Ramblings

What I have been doing

2010-03-04T22:23:00.000-08:00

New on my iPod-

The Stone Roses- click here for more info
Spoon- click here for more info
Vampire Weekend-click here for more info
Fever Ray- click here for more info

New on the Kindle

The Lost Books of Odyssey- click here for more info
The Adamantine palace- click here for more info

2010-03-04T09:36:00.000-08:00

Okay, I have told you elsewhere that I love Blur??? Here's why...

"So give me Coffee and TV
easily
I've seen so much
I'm going blind
And i'm braindead virtually
Sociability
It's hard enough for me
Take me away from this big bad world
And agree to marry me
So we can start all over again"
- from "Coffee and TV" by Blur

2010-02-15T14:20:00.001-08:00

Finished The first part of the book of New Sun, as promised..... This is not as much fun as I hoped, but, I kinda expoected that. Considering that this is the third time I am finishing book 1 in the last 3 years. I left Vol 2 midway last time, so things should start getting interesting from then on....

Let's see... what else? Just came back from watching "Up in the Air". I don't understand what was political about it? It was mildly Nihilistic..... But I suppose it is a step away from the goody-goody Hollywood stereotype.....

Nothing else to say....

What I do at work!

2010-02-10T14:24:00.001-08:00

Back from a long hiatus

2010-02-01T14:00:00.000-08:00

Oh.. I know.... But when I have I ever kept any of my promises! Things have been... well... I certainly have been occupied. Its been a long while since I read anything halfway decent. Work has been pretty draining and once I get back home and hit the couch in front of the TV, there is very little motivation to go back and actually pour out my frustrations in to the aether! Also, after a long time, I actually find my work rewarding. Not self affirming or even interesting, mind you, but, its at least not like pushing a boulder up a hill. So things are not all bad!

Like I said, I have been slacking up on reading and watching late night reruns of scrubs, but, I did start off with Guy kavriel Kay's The Fionavar Tapestry once again. I finished the first book, but really couldn't get going after that! I've been reading too much Fantasy! The last proper book that I read was the slim"Anthologist" by Nicholas Baker, which was a hell of a good book by the way! Anyway, contemplating doing a Gene Wolfe Marathon next! I'm gonna start off with the Book of New Sun and then the Long Sun and finally round everything off with the Short Sun. In total there are about thirteen books in this series. Since the books are long and tough and the fact that my only new year resolution was to "never speed read again!", I am going take this nice and easy. I intend to finish the entire series in 26 weeks, that is, by sometime around August. After that, we will see! may be one more crack at " the Recognitions" and "Ulysses" or may be the "Sot Weed factor". We will cross the bridge when we get to it!

On the music front, I have been listening to a lot of The Decemberists, especially- Hazards of Love and The Crane Wife. These are probably my favourite albums now! I've also been listening to Arcade fire and Florence and The Machine! I've discovered Anthony and the Johnsons and Sufjian Stevens. I've also tried listening to M.I.A and JayZ. So, it has been a very interesting time for me in terms of music!

I started catching up on Dexter. It's a series on Showtime and it is awesome! Once I get done with Dexter, I will start off with Lost or may be "the Wire".......

That's it from me for now......I will try to post stuff more frequently... but, then, maybe not!

With Friends Like us... he doesnt need enemies

2010-01-31T16:02:00.001-08:00

Sriram,

Before you do anything rash... remember Divey and I love you!

Sriram Krishnamoorthy Paccha manja white pink tamilzhan naan.... Watch 'Tamil padam'.... its a nice spoof on tamil movies... good in parts! and yeah.. thats the lyric of the hero intro song :)

10 hours ago · Comment · Like

Hari Prasad Srinivasan

Like anybody gives a damn!

35 minutes ago ·

Dhivya Venkatachalam

I def don't !

34 minutes ago

Hari Prasad Srinivasan

I didnt know you ere this jobless Sriram!

31 minutes ago ·

Dhivya Venkatachalam

When did he have one...?

31 minutes ago

Hari Prasad Srinivasan

Yeah... But he would atleast not indulge in nonsense like this!

31 minutes ago ·

Dhivya Venkatachalam

Maybe we take paccha for SUresh... Manja for me... white for u and give sriram Pink...

30 minutes ago

Hari Prasad Srinivasan

Absolutely... Pink is SRiram';s color... Remember his Pink Shirt?

29 minutes ago ·

Dhivya Venkatachalam

The one that got him outta class???

29 minutes ago

Hari Prasad Srinivasan

Yeah.. remember how he got so confused when he wore the shirt that he went in to the ladies room by accident?

28 minutes ago ·

Dhivya Venkatachalam

huh huh,,, and on the first day at work 2 ;)

27 minutes ago

Hari Prasad Srinivasan

oh.. no this was in BIM..... and guess what, he actually got caught by one of our classmates!

26 minutes ago ·

Dhivya Venkatachalam

he is surely making this a habit ;)

25 minutes ago

Hari Prasad Srinivasan

yeah.. I am beginning to think those were no accidents :P

25 minutes ago ·

Dhivya Venkatachalam

Remember the Kalaikom kurta???

24 minutes ago

Hari Prasad Srinivasan

Oh yeah... you mean the blue one he wore when he sang that illaya nila song so badly that he was booed off stage? or did he wear it the time he conducted that horrible anthakshari!

21 minutes ago ·

Dhivya Venkatachalam

he had only one, remember?

20 minutes ago

Hari Prasad Srinivasan

Oh... yeah...yeah... and he used wear the same one for every single function!

20 minutes ago ·

Dhivya Venkatachalam

9 yard vesthi :)

18 minutes ago

Hari Prasad Srinivasan

Yup, considering the trouble he had with keeping his veshti on, I actually am thankful he chose to wear Kurta! Remember our trip tio Guruvayur when he refused come out of the van because he was afraid of his dhothi coming off

16 minutes ago ·

Dhivya Venkatachalam

Hari, we sure r his best friends :) !!! So much L&A

14 minutes ago

Hari Prasad Srinivasan

Obviously... We miss you Sriram!

14 minutes ago ·

2009-12-20T22:46:00.000-08:00

The first time it happened was years back, when I was still in b-school. It was one of those evenings when I had nothing much to do and everyone else had class. I had a run down PC, upgraded atleast ten times in the past five years that we had had it. But the one thing I had then was a kick ass music collection and a heck of a good pair of head phones. I dont remember the specific songs but then I remember getting off my bed in some sort of a daze and realizing that I had lost about two hours of my life. There was a ringing sound in my ears for the rest of the evening and a big smile on my face. I had left behind all of a delayed spurt of post teen angst and the drama of post grad assignment-exam cycle ... for those two hours suspended in pure aural bliss.... I remember how I finished off with Van Halen.... and my ears just could not take it anymore more... That was the day I fell in love with Music!

What I want- A holiday wishlist

2009-12-09T10:28:00.000-08:00

Gifts for holidays have never been a big thing in India. Especially for a person in my background. Of course, one brings gifts when visiting someone, but, never regularly(unless it's a boy/girl friend or a spouse)So, anyway, the point I am trying to make is.... I don't know.... well never mind......
Anyhoots, I thought, I'd put together some stuff that I want so, I can kind of keep track of how my wants/ aspirations change... so here is the list in no particular order

1. An Xbox 360 or a PS III
2. A few Games
- Mass Effect
- Dragon Age
- Half Life 2
- COD
- Fallout3
- WoW
- Bioshock
- Crysis
- Oblivion
3. NFL Jerseys- (Atleast the Vikings number 4)
4. An iPhone
5. A Killer Gaming laptop
6. A nice TV
7. A good Home theater System
8. A Comfortable chair

I think I'd be happy!

From around the web....

2009-11-30T20:41:00.000-08:00

I read a lot of stuff online, thanks to my google reader. I though I'd just put all the interesting stuff here so that I don't lose the nice links

First of all, Snobs will use anything to bemoan the collapse of civilization....

A Collection of Robert E Howard's short stories and novellas are available on the kindle for free. Of course I bought it!

A novel on Twitter.... It might have been a better idea to start with a short story.... or a Haiku

Okay this cartoon is pretty cool... and is the story of my life...

Awesome and erudite review of "Going Rogue"

Finally, from the independent- The best guitar riffs ever This list has some of the best videos ever. Case in point is this video for "Ain't talkin' about love"

What I have been listening to

2009-11-26T08:00:00.000-08:00

This is for you Badri......

Anyway, I have been so terribly busy at work recently that all I can do, once I reach home each day is eat as much as I can and flop on the couch and stare at the TV with Glassy eyes.... Which basically means that I haven't had the time to do any of the things I really enjoy except updating facebook frequently and happily twittering at the Gay joke overkill in Scrubs..... However, I do manage to sneak some time in to reading Perdido Street station on my new Kindle.... That reminds me, I need to buy a cover for the Kindle...

Anyway.... in other news..The independent thinks that All about Eve is the greatest movie ever.... Don't take me wrong... This is one movie that I really enjoy(I've seen it like ten times and yes, I own a copy) and Bette Davis is hands down my fav actress... like ever..... but is it really better than Breakfast at Tiffany's or My fair lady? hmmmmm... But this list has several underrated gems here... Some I havent even heard of(The battle of Algiers, anyone?)....

So... anyway, other than some light reading, the only activity I've had some time for is Music.

Masterplan by the My Morning Jacket is still one of my favourite songs with the worst lyrics ever

What is it about the female voice that is so damn heartrending? Florence and the Machine is not great.... but what a wonderful name?

The Guardian is running a series on the best albums of the decade.... Is it wrong that I find Amy Winehouse Hot?

Another band with a fabulous name- Rupa and the April Fishes... Where do they come up with such names? Listen to Maintenant.. they are good... I think the language is French...... Sounds like something from one of those movies set in the 30's with a sexy actress playing a singer in a club....

... and finally, I've been listening to Carmina Burana.... Carl Orff's version..... O Fortuna is probably my favourite piece of classical music along with Queen of the Night aria in The Magic Flute.....

Euridyce descent- Sue Hubbard

2009-11-10T10:27:00.000-08:00

From here

I am not afraid as I descend,
step by step, leaving behind the salt wind
blowing up the corrugated river,
the damp city streets, their sodium glare
of rush-hour headlights pitted with pearls of rain;
for my eyes still reflect the half remembered moon.
Already your face recedes beneath the station clock,
a damp smudge among the shadows
mirrored in the train's wet glass,
will you forget me? Steel tracks lead you out
past cranes and crematoria,
boat yards and bike sheds, ruby shards
of roman glass and wolf-bone mummified in mud,
the rows of curtained windows like eyelids
heavy with sleep, to the city's green edge.
Now I stop my ears with wax, hold fast
the memory of the song you once whispered in my ear.
Its echoes tangle like briars in my thick hair.
You turned to look.
Second fly past like birds.
My hands grow cold. I am ice and cloud.
This path unravels.
Deep in hidden rooms filled with dust
and sour night-breath the lost city is sleeping.
Above the hurt sky is weeping,
soaked nightingales have ceased to sing.
Dusk has come early. I am drowning in blue.
I dream of a green garden
where the sun feathers my face
like your once eager kiss.
Soon, soon I will climb
from this blackened earth
into the diffident light.

Rereading Favourites

2009-11-10T09:43:00.000-08:00

My reading process is very simple. It is simply a headlong rush towards the the last page. After a point, I stop noticing the nuances- The language, the references and so on. It has been a long time since I read anything serious. So, I am going to start off with those books I have loved before or have left midway because they were too difficult to get through. I am going to start with Roberto Bolano's 2666. Today. Some of the other books that I intend to read in are(In order):
1. The Recognitions- William gaddis
2. The Anatomy of Melancholy- Robert Burton
3. Infinite Jest- David Foster Williams
4. The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman
5. Anything By Pynchon
6. Pale Fire- Vladimir Nabokov

I have access to most of these books now. I cant wait to get back home and start off. I will track my progress and other interesting Trivia here.

2009-11-08T06:21:00.001-08:00

The Gathering Storm by Robert Jordan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Epic Awesomeness! The best WoT book since... I don't know... fires of heaven or something. WoT is back on my favourite series list! The next book is out in November 2010.... It looks like Moiraine will be back.. That would be awesome.....

View all my reviews >>

2009-11-08T06:17:00.001-08:00

A Shadow in Summer by Daniel Abraham

Not a bad book..... Its not exactly the best fantasy I've ever read... BUt its not horrible either!

View all my reviews >>

2009-11-01T09:12:00.001-08:00

Got a google wave invite... :P muhahahaha

My favourite band.....

2009-10-19T21:01:00.001-07:00

Ok, I know Bon Iver has just one album out.... but what an album...... This is a video over at Pitch fork... with them performing live a few samples...... Listen to them... you'll know why I love them to bits

More good stuff

2009-10-18T17:11:00.000-07:00

Here is more good stuff I found online

1. Six Organs of Admission- this is supposed to be american psychedilc folk..... Supposedly inspired by Cormac MacCarthy's road.... All Good.... All Good...

2. Deerhunter- Nothing Ever Happened

3. Jesus and Mary Chain- The Velvet underground of the eighties, or so their website claims. Not for everybody.....If you like distortion heavy, alt rock... this band may be your cuppa tea

2009-10-18T15:30:00.000-07:00

I'm still reading Dust of dreams... I am taking the book in small doses.... I don't know when I am going to get around to re-reading it. I think, I will stop reading Fantasy after dust of dreams. I put a lot of Non-Fantasy books on hold. The last non-genre fiction that I read was Special Topics in Calamity Physics. That was in August. Before that... well I dont even remember. So, I will start out with 2666. Maybe something else after that.... Maybe some Nietschze after that..... I don't know... I find his ideas on Nihilism extremely interesting

I watched "A serious Man", yesterday.... Strangely enough, thinking back, except for a few clever scenes, it did nothing for me..... Maybe its just me..... Things are getting hectic at work as well.....

You should listen to this

2009-10-14T19:14:00.000-07:00

Wail to God- Ape School
The video is simply awesome!(From The Walrus)

Krimson- Warpaint
They sound like a mixture of Clannad, Yeah yeah yeahs and Corrs to me..... Bille Holiday is a haunting, lilting, magical song. Krimson has the greatest start ever. Their My Space page is here (From ISO50)

Tender- Blur
They are apparently not an entirely unknown band. In fact far from it. But, I'd not heard them before in my neck of woods. VVD would frown and probably scoff..... But, the songs are brilliant, if you ask me.....

Bonfire on the Heath The clientele
These Guys have a great rating over at metacritic. Nope, I'm not complaining! Bonfires... is particularly awesome.

Bay of Pigs- Destroyer

This is an EP with a 13 minute song... and what a song it is! A Disco based song with a Stairway to Heaven-like epic length and a postmodern narrative that talks about, as the name suggests- The Bay of Pigs- need I say more?

When the Devil's Due- A A Bondy

Definitely worth a listen. I caught bits and pieces of this album during an offshore call(Yup, another exercise so hopelessly boring that, I had to listen to something to keep myself from breaking the phone on my desk on sheer frustration)

Miranda Lambert- Revolution
I love the sheer zest on the single- white Liar.... and then there is Gunpowder and Lead. 'nuff said!

1372 Overton Park- Lucero
Lucero's got an awesome voice.... Macho and scratchy........ worth a dekko

2009-10-13T06:09:00.000-07:00

It is back to work after a three day weekend. It was a very quiet weekend. I didn't do much

1. I worked on two of the three days. I had to walk to and from office. You know what? Working in an empty office is actually fun.
2. I watched "Capitalism- Love story" on Sunday. It was ok. But, Michael Moore is a bit of a Drama Queen.
3. I had dinner in Olive Garden. The food was as usual drowning in cheese. Just the way I like it. I am definitely gonna go back to India a few tonnes heavier
4. It snowed all yesterday morning. So, I stayed home, watching reruns of NCIS.

What I read last week

2009-10-09T11:02:00.001-07:00

The Grave Thief by Tom Lloyd

Not spectacular. But what a brilliant finish! Maybe it was the medium or perhaps it is all the stuff going on with me personally, but, I found it very difficult to stay invested in this book. But, the finish made it all worthwhile

View all my reviews >>

It's Quarter to 3.....

2009-10-09T00:50:00.000-07:00

.... and I am sitting on my desk and enjoying what would hopefully be my last Drink of the day.....

No... this is not the beginning of an amateurish attempt at a pastiche of Raymond Chandler. I am filling in my Appraisal while being overdosed on Diet Coke and a few Random thoughts Creep in to my head.... I take this as the best excuse to get out of the stupid appraisal form..... Anywat
1. I should not... I repeat should not ever drink Diet coke after 10
2. I hate my Job! I hate it so much that most of the time, during meetings I fantasize about the different ways I could frame an expression on how bored I am during these meetings. That was the best one. The consolation prizes went to, ' I was so bored with my job that I actually started doing it' and 'I am so bored by my job that I started thinking stuff I could fill on my appraisal form'. yeah, the last one was not so hot. Hey, Gimme a break it is 3 o clock here....
3. The Gummi Bear is Man's greatest invention
4.I wonder what
" She's so high
She's so high
I want to crawl all over her"
actually means
5. I got my Dust of dreams. Only, I am so frickin busy that I havent made any headway.....
6. I really should stop saying "Frickin".
7. I really like Cheesecake
8. For the first time after 5 years, I do not own a cellphone.... and frankly my dear I couldnt give a damn
9 My favourite scene from My fair Lady. But, I truly wish Lizzie Dolittle married Henry Ainsford Hill..... Higgins feelings for Lizzie were meant to be unrequited.... he's only going to drive her crazy anyway.
10. Oh... I am gonna be in trouble tomorrow...

Random thoughts on a Tuesday Morning

2009-09-22T05:12:00.000-07:00

Have you noticed? Tuesdays are the worst days of the week. Well, Monday is pretty horrible, yes, but it atleast has a.... um... personality, even if a completely obnoxious one. If I ever anthropomorphize the days of the week, Monday would be the wife from Hell. Monday would be the stereotypical nagging, annoying wife. She will always want to ask directions, want to talk to her when something important is on TV, wants to know where you are all the time, doesn't let you do something fun because, well, she doesn't. But, sometimes when you least expect it, she comes up with a gesture or an act, so completely endearing that for a moment, you think it was well worth it.

Now Tuesdays. They are the diffident, sweaty, bald guys, who always seem to talk in a whisper. With absolutely no verve, they are sloppy and double your work. They are those managers who expect you to slog your ass off, expect you to toe the line and screw up your appraisal by being honest when nobody else is. They have no skills at conversation and when they try hard to hold one, they are so awful that sometimes you have to talk to them just to put them out of their misery. Besides, you cannot help glancing at your watch every 5 minutes.

Wednesdays are the really, really smart kids who actually know that they are smart and attractive. They can be fun sometimes, but they can also be terribly be annoying. Sometimes they do go on and on with their smug little faces and you want to smack them a little bit. But, by and large they are Sunny and nice and extremely easy to get along.

Thursdays are your friends who you don't mind hanging out with once in a while. But you wouldn't pick their calls on a weekend, lest they ask you out and it becomes a habit or something. They are the room mates who want to go shopping for groceries when you'd rather be reading. If you have to travel together you don't mind it... But, you dont really go out of your way to meet them or ring them up at 12 am on their Birthday. You leave a scrap and forget about it. You snicker at their photos and discuss them passingly when you are gossiping with your friend. It's always a question of almost being there.

Friday is the compulsive flirt that you always want to take out and can have a good time with. You always have a great time. But, you always end up at her door and shake hands and leave. She is either not relly intersted in you or you just can't muster the courage. The anticipation that built over the week leaves you completely winded when it's completley shattered when she closes her front door with her dazzling smile. Despite the fact that she promises world with her dazzling smiles and frequent pats, clutches and squeezes, it all amounts to nothing, because, she likes someone else or doesn't take you seriously. You are the guy she leaves stranded when her boyfriend suddenly changes her mind and wants to hang out with her after all!

Saturday is like an old friend you meet after a long time and you are comfortable with any time of the day. You can just sit and chill, talk about anything and nothing at all. She/ He is always willing to listen to you and shares your interests. There might be a lot of people you want to go out with, but, satudays are one of the few people you want to stay home with. Just Yakking away to glory or play poker at home or down a few drinks with. You don't have to pretend with each other and best of all, you actually like watching Cricket with them.

Sunday, well, Sunday is the beautiful girl you had a terrible crush on and always wanted to ask gher out. You are in the middle of your date when you realize that she is a terrible bore and she thinks Jeffry Archer is the greatest writer in the woirld and that Da Vinci code could actually be true. But, she sits in the next desk and the prospect of having to call her again after the date fills you with so much despair that you feel like howling then and there.

So there it is..... The days of the week according to Hari. If someone actually bothers to read this, it would be nice to see what you think. If you fall in to one of the above categories and you feel offended. Please let me know.... Come on, I've named a day after you! You should be flattered

Enroute...

2009-09-19T16:13:00.000-07:00

Exactly a week after I was initially supposed to leave,I finally start for my third trip to the US. This time it is going to be Minneapolis. Yeah, I heard about the weather! It is strange how I spend every Fall, winter and Spring in the West and miss out on Summer! Looks like I will be missing Diwali this time as well. Third year in a row!
I spent yesterday and today mentally preparing for the trip. Which means I never left home, ordered pizza and surfed the whole day. For all the attraction that a first world country like the US provides, I have always found myself to be a reluctant tourist and a diffident sight-seer. I've always maintained that the worst part of any travel is the wait in the airport. The truth of that statement reasserted itself today. It's even worse if you have to lock up an empty house and reach the airport hours in advance. I am always early for a flight- be it domestic or international. Early as in not a close half hour or one hour early; I usually manage to reach the airport 3-4 hours in advance. It's almost as if I like being bored or something! Why do we always need to have something to rail about however great things are?
Anyway here I am, all settled down at 5 am with atleast 2 hours to go before my flight takes off, trying to stave off sleep. I did manage to catch some sleep last night, even if it was not that much. I read a little bit of the "Grave thief"(Tom Lloyd) last night and had to do a little bit of last minute packing. It was a quarter to twelev before I could crash. I had set the alarm at 2:20 so that I could have a bath before the cabbie came at 3, only to be woken up by mom and dad. They said their goodbyes and I promptly went back to sleep. The Alarm started screeching at 2:20, after which I switched on the motor and the geyser before a quick nap. I got up again at 2:30, had a bath and did a last minute check. Everything was in order. After a quick peek at my face book and my mailbox, I called the cabbie. It was 3. By the time we left the house it was 3:15. I reached BIAL at 4 and got done with the formalities by half past 4. Somewhere between all the stamping that I had to get through a guy petulantly refused to give me his Pen because he had to check in. I am pretty sure he was in the same flight as me! But, guess who checked in first? Although, you know what? I hope the Gods are not so pissed at me that they'd seat me beside that guy! Now that would be irritating. For once, it would be great if they sat me next to a pretty girl, even if it would make absolutely no difference even if I, against all probablity managed to muster enough courage to say Hello!
Anyway, I guess thats it for now.... I guess I will go bact to the Grave Thief now. Or may be pull out the House of Chains. It'd be great if I found Dust of Dreams in Heathrow. That alone would make the whole trip worthwhile. I intend to catch up with Suresh and Divey there as well! Atleast over the Phone! Lets see.... Anyhoo... Time to go..... I will post when I can... until then... cheerio!

Book Reviews

2009-09-18T23:46:00.000-07:00

The Stormcaller by Tom Lloyd

I started reading this series after reading about it on Joe Abercombie's blog. While this not exactly Malazan Book of the Fallen, it is much better than most of the stuff around. It follows the standard Fantasy device of an unlikely boy coming to great power. While the world building and some of the characters are sound, plot-wise apart from a few good moments, there is hardly anything pathbreaking. Plodding language and less than epic themes or grit and sheer drama pull down the book. It is not a bad read while you are waiting for "The Dust of Dreams", "The Gathering Storm" and "The Dance of Dragons"

View all my reviews >>

The Magicians by Lev Grossman

An interseting book purely because of the comparisons it will surely evoke with Harry Potter. Not as well written, though and the narrative slips in the last one third of the book. But solid otherwise. A one time read when you are bored!

View all my reviews >>

I'm Back

2009-09-18T22:37:00.000-07:00

I think it is pretty strange that I never bother to update this blog when I am India. Maybe it is because the exertions of a normal weekday in India is so much more sapping than its equivalent in the US. Or it could be because there is so much more to do in India than in the US. Whatever it is, when I get down to actually doing this, I really do enjoy the whole exercise of putting my memories down at least when I actually get down to actually doing it. So what have I been doing the last 5 Months?

I landed in India on 1st may. The day was also Appa's 57th Birthday. Both appa and amma had come to the airport to pick me up. I spent the rest of the week chilling at home. I always take a week off after an onsite trip, a deep breath of fresh air before I plunge back in to the chaotic currents of everyday life of a young Indian IT professional. Then there is the Jet lag..... Anyway, I always get back to real life as if stepping out of a portal behind which time stands still. I always have a lot of time in Ranipet. Between bouts of unrestrained hogging and mindless games, I did find the time to vist relatives in Chennai and a temple near Kanchipuram. Pictures here

It was there that I learnt that I had to go to Mangalore. I spent about six weeks there. Three in the company guesthouse and three weeks in a house with six other people. Now that the bitterness of being stuck in the middle of nowhere has sort of worn off and with the abstraction provided by the passage of time, I can safely say that I actually managed to not hate the whole experience. It was there that I realized how much I hated eating alone. I might think and act like a loner but I really do prefer soem company especially someone who always wants to do the things I don't. Left to my own devices I tend to vegetate... and not a little.....

I was back in Bangalore in July. Two and a half months of profligate living. Great food, good company, Movies, music, a huge load of comics and a little bit of serious reading. I did not read much at all. The only new, non-genre book that I managed to finish in the last four months was "Special topics in Calamity Physics". More on the book in a later post. Man, did I finish a lot of comics? From Preacher, to Superman to Black Orchid to Fables and The Sandman. It was fun! I also started watching the older episodes of X-Files and the office. I also started rereading A song of Fire and Ice, Malazan Book of the Fallen and the wheel of time.

I began a brand new chapter in the Grand Narrrative of my life when I got engaged to Haripriya(Priya) on September 4th. I promise. More details in a later post.

That's whats been happening to in the last four months. So what've you been up to?

Well, is anyone surprised?

2009-06-30T09:18:00.001-07:00

Well, I took the Dante's "Where are you going to end up?", quiz. The results were not all that surprising!

The Dante's Inferno Test has banished you to the Third Level of Hell!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:

Level	Score
Purgatory (Repenting Believers)	Very Low
Level 1 - Limbo (Virtuous Non-Believers)	Very Low
Level 2 (Lustful)	Low
Level 3 (Gluttonous)	Extreme
Level 4 (Prodigal and Avaricious)	Very High
Level 5 (Wrathful and Gloomy)	High
Level 6 - The City of Dis (Heretics)	Extreme
Level 7 (Violent)	Very High
Level 8- the Malebolge (Fraudulent, Malicious, Panderers)	Very High
Level 9 - Cocytus (Treacherous)	High

Take the Dante's Inferno Test

2009-05-30T20:32:00.000-07:00

I thought it'd be kinda fun if I started tracking the 25 most played songs on my iPod. Since I had to clear out my song collection and store it in my external hard disk, (Does anybody else think that Infy has become positively Draconian?) these were the most played songs in the last couple of weeks. I'd downloaded the soundtracks from a few Quentin Tarrantino movies recently. So they will form a majority of the songs that were frequently played. Anyway, here is the list in the order of most to least played
1. Goodnight Moon, by Shivaree
2. Mad World, by Michael Andrews
3. Burmuda Highway, by My Morning Jacket
4. If Love is a Red Dress, by Maria Mckee
5. Skinny Love, by Bon Iver
6. For Emma, by Bon Iver,
7. Son of a Preacher Man, by Dusty Springfield
8. The Flower of Carnage, by Meiko Kaji
9. The Way That He Sings, by My Morning Jacket
10. Man on the Moon, by R.E.M
11. Please Read the Letter, by Robert Plant and Allison Krauss
12. Aankh Micholi, Dev D
13. Rehna Tu, Delhi 6
14. Let's Stay Together, by Al Green
15. Twisted Nerve, by Bernard Hermann
16. The Wolves(Act 1 and 2), by Bon Iver
17. Missing(Rare), by Bruce Springsteen
18. You Never Can Tell, by Chuck Berry
19. Bixby Canon Bridge, by Death Cab for Cutie
20. Angel of Mercy, by Dire Straits
21. White Winter Hymnal, by Fleetfoxes
22. Librarian, by My Morning Jacket
23. Killing the Blues, by Robert Plant and Allison Krauss
24. Nothin', by Robert Plant and Allison Krauss
25. Flowers on the Wall, by the Statler Brothers

2009-04-28T07:35:00.001-07:00

With elections in the air and politicians wanting to ban everything from computers to the Lankan government in addition to the fact that I might actually vote this time, this is probably a good time for a megalomaniacal fantasy.
If ever I grew a toothbrush moustache and burnt down the parliament or senthalf the country to Siberia or become an army general and take over the government in a bloodless coup, here are the list of things I'd outlaw.
1. Couple Photos/ Marriage photos/ baby photos
Why does every single person who has been married or has a kid have to literally bury us ion an avalanche of Photos. The last thing I need to see the first thing on a monday morning is a truckload of baby photos or go through the absolutely idiotic comments that accompany them. I mean seriously, does anybody really find babies cute? They are bald, toothless and either too fat or too thin-overgrown plastic dolls only not in a nice way.
The last thing a guy needs to see after a horrible day's work after a complete butt chewing by my boss and despair art entering an empty room withnothing to lookfoprward to but an other horrid appraisal session the next day, is the photo of a total doofus cavorting in Europe with his hot, skimpily attired, readymade, takeout Bride
2. Project Parties
Is it not enough that one has to suffer through the weekday with these idiots? atleast at work you can ignore them. Having to make smalltalk with people you utterly despise is torture

3. Suits and Sherwanis in wedding receptions/Shirts with mismatched collars and cuffs/ shirts that shine or hurt your eye

For obvious reasons.

4. Email Forwards
Everyday, I get emails from some idiot who thinks that I need to know about the sheer wonder my parents are or how I if need some luck in life I need to subject a hundred more people to the same torture or how cellphone causes brain damage or how the Lankan Tamils need my help. Seriously, obnoxious forwarder, get a freaking life. I have neither the time nor the patience to go through that crap. Nor do I care a damn abou anything but myself and the last thing I need after spending most of my day on the phone and a ready to eat meal on the microwave oven is to read that microwaves cause brain tumor.

5. Chick Lit/ Chick Flicks/ Chick everything
Alright, ideally everyone should be allowed to read / watch what they like. I'm the last person who sympathizes with censorship. Still, so much money, space- both on bookshelves and publications and effort goes in to this industry of mass produced brain squelcher that.... and the women who read these idiotic pieces of trash.... You know... reading has always been overhyped. Often, one hears people saying they cant live without books. Wow, you think. This lady must be something. You then proceed to talk about....you know... Pynchon and Nabokov.. just to show off.... "Oh", the lady says, "I don't read thrillers except Sydney Sheldon and John Grisham". Then she goes on to confess with not a little pride that She simply "lurves" the Arab prince trilogy or titles like "Stars fall down", "Sun goes up" and "The moon stays still" forming the "Celestial Bodies" trilogy! Insipid fantasies that are endless variations of the same friggin fairy tale.

6. Reality Shows/ Dance shows/ Talent shows.

First of all they all have horrible people in them. Second they showcase the worst in people and thirdly the last thing they are is real. What's with the judges, anyway? why are they sucjh idiots? the people cheering?

7. Talk shows
Talk shows in India are bad because Indians can't have an argument without being personal. Also, they can't articulate very well. Also, the shows are generally are pretty banal, pointless and uninformative with just people wanting to be heard. All arguments degenerate in to chaos in ten minutes.

8. Autorikshaws in Chennai
They are vulgar, dishonest and are a menace on the road. The shared autorikshaws are even worse. The best way around these guys is taking them out of the road, improving public transportation and find employment fot them in the Financial industry. One more crook in legions of crooks is not going to matter.

9. Timesheets

While one has to appreciate the creative exercise timesheets affords, one has to think about ones' soul as well.The wasted time and effort also make it a huge drag.

10. Karan Johar, Ekta kapoor, TV serials, Rakhi Sawant, Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Amir Khan, The Bachchan Family, Bollywood, Kollywood, Udit Narayanan singing in Tamil, Shreya Ghoshal in Tamil, SPB singing in Hindi, Bans on smoking, Bans on Coke, Censorship, Shiv Sena, BJP, Congress, Deve Gowda, Deepak Chopra,Vivekananda,SriSri Ravishankar, Yoga, The word "Junk Food", Test and Oneday Cricket, Hockey, Hindi commentry, Regional Language news, Himesh Reshamaiiya, Salman Rushdie, Arundathi Rai, Shoba De and so on

Basically coz they are vulgar and irritating

Hmmm

2009-04-23T13:26:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I know..... its been some time.. and I've had no inclination to post anything....
I'm playing "The Flower of Carnage" for the tenth time today! Lyrics Here! This is one great album. As a matter of fact, I downloaded the soundtracks of Kill Bill(Both Volumes), Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction.

Other songs that have been playing over and over on my ipod are- Pink Moon and It's a Mad world! Ain't Gonna Lose you isn't too shabby either.

Dylan is coming up with his next album! I started listening to some of his archived radio shows the other day. I don't know what to make of the songs. Would it be blasphemy if I said I didn't care about any of them? To be completely truthful, I'd rather listen to Bobby Dylan singing! Dylan is not a great host either. Perfunctory

Did I tell you I'm having a second crack at Gaddis' "The Recognitions"? I love the challenge the book affords. Although, it really wears you down after a while. Anyway, hopefully I will finish it this time. 300 down 500 more pages to go!

Meanwhile, I did try to distract myself with Fantasy viz Sean Russell.(Insert appropriate cocktail metaphor, here) Anyway, it was a bad idea. So there......

I managed to catch "The Watchmen" a couple of weeks back. It was long winded but faithful to the original. With all due respect to Moore, my hair doesn't stand on its end when I hear anything about the comic... It is self important preachy and long winded. Not a bad thing in itself. But, it takes itself so seriously that it just didn't do it for me. In fact, the best portions in the comic, in my opinion, were the interludes featuring the Black Freighter and that was cut off from the movie... I didn't like the Killing Joke and never finished From Hell. I loved V for Vendetta, though. Don't tell anyone, but, I liked that movie! In fact the scene in which Evie is released from prison by V and she walks to the balcony where it is raining and lifts her arms in pure joy, gives me a lump in my throat every time I see it!

Anyway that's that for now! I will come up with something next week!

2009-03-20T10:07:00.000-07:00

Lyrics | Bob Dylan Lyrics | I & I Lyrics

I just heard this song and had to share it with someone... So, whoever you are, who tripped in to this blog by accident, listen to this one, I'm sure you'll like it... Even if you aren't a Dylan fan....

Where Hari spouts absolute Nonsense

2009-03-11T06:42:00.000-07:00

The recent expose by Fox News( or The Sun Or Zoom... whichever is the most inane source of useless news where you live) that my Blog title section has been hijacked should come as no surprise to regular readers(Ahem..... Well, hey, at least their number is certainly more than the number of people who sat through "The Reader") of my blog! For those of you who were wondering about the dramatic reduction in the number of articles(Yeah, I know....) after mid February..... I'm glad you noticed. I've had loads of work to do... <<>> ... und,so.... Anyway, what have I been doing apart from letting the flower of my Youth grow pale, spectre thin and die in front of the Monitor?

- I'm a big Fan of Anime these days. After careful research, I found out that Akira, Princess Mononoke, Spirted away and Samurai X were supposed to be the classics. So, I torrented them. The gore was putting off at first, but, the depth of the Narrative, the aesthetic in every frame, the well drawn characters and the fabulous plots totally puts Dreamworks and (dare I say it?) Pixar to shame. The next big movie that I'm planning to watch is Ghost in the Shell(I'm planning to stay away from the more popular Cowboy Bebop, Naruto and Pokemon)

- On the books front, things haven't been very encouraging. The motivation to tackle a complex(?) narrative like 2666 after a grinding day at office is simply not there. So, I've been cheating. I read all three books that form The First Law trilogy, last week. The books were pretty well written and fascinating. The only problem is that by the time you come to the third part you pretty much know what to expect. But then, no one really looks for originality in Fantasy. So, you make do with what you've got.
I also managed to lay my filthy little hands on Joe Delaney's "Wardstone Chronicles". This should be the series you read after you read HP and the Deathly Hallows. The series is targeted more at a YA audience( Say 15 and up) than the teen audience that at least the early HP books seem to cater to.
I hear that the new R. Scott Bakker is out. That is going to be a definite buy! While I loved the first two parts of the Thousandfold thought, the Third one was so-so at best!
For those of you who were wondering, yes, Fantasy is my guilty pleasure! My version of M&B or Danielle Steele if you will! While emotionally fulfilling, I suppose you cannot have just pastries for Lunch(Yes, I'm looking at you Dhivya!) So, after Bolano, the next foray in to serious stuff is going to be either Victor Pelevin or David Markson

- As for movies, well..... I've not been watching too many... Did I mention sometime that I finally saw "The Maltese Falcon" and "The Big Sleep"? While I definitely enjoyed the latter, the former is a true classic. I'm officially on the "I heart Bogie" Bandwagon! I can't bring myself to watch 'Dev D'. I just want to watch frothy, funny movies that doesn't tax my patience in anyway.

-Music? The Band that I've started listening to(Which basically means that I've torrented the complete Discography) is the Decemberists. I love the Mariner's Revenge Song(Supposed to be Picaresque), which to me at least seems to be a pastiche of the tavern songs that I reckon were popular before mass media ruined it for us.

- I've diligently set about cooking..... well, at least thrice a week. Thanks to my relative lack of expertise, I've had to stick to easy to cook, simple (read Natural, so called healthy and not much fun) stuff. Thanks to the fact that my Roomie is a Health freak, I eat healthy most days. The dinner is normally either Dal or a simple curry with little or no Oil. We normally take it with Chapattis that we make (without oil again). We have the same food on the next day for Lunch as well!. So this is probably the healthiest I've eaten since I left home in 2003- Half a Decade ago!

- I might go back to India on April 1st. But, as usual, I wont know until a week before I have to leave. I suppose it is good in a way. But,well, whatever..... Despite my recent claims, I am a little tired of switching places every other month. Maybe, its time I settled down in one place (As in rent a house on my place, buy a car and stay there for a couple of years. For Heaven's sake, why has settling down become synonymous with Marriage?)

Where hari is back with another useless Post

2009-03-09T12:36:00.001-07:00

This is a visual rendering of the words that I use. most of the common English words were not taken in to consideration. The results are not surprising, are they? Remember, never, just and Now being the most frrequently used words... mmmm....

Where "Long winded" Hari thinks he is Jean-Paul Sartre!

2009-02-17T14:05:00.000-08:00

I don't remember clearly how I used to wake up in Ranipet. Perhaps I felt my shoulder shaken roughly or amma's voice pleading me to wake up and trying to convince me that the sun was up(Like it had to do anything) and that I was late as usual. Or, it could have been the loud music that was played in our house. It was Swami Haridas Giri on bad days. Not that I hated Swami Haridas or anything, infact, I always thought he was rather cute(I thought he was singing of "Poori and Kuruma" half the time ). But, he was not a very accomplished singer and tended to shout quite a bit. On other days, it was either M.S. or Old Tamil songs or some incomprehensible devotional album. But, some days, at least early on, amma or appa would have Chitra's and Yesudas' albums on Krishna on. I still remember how much I used to enjoy Chitra singing "Theeradha Vilayattu Pillai" or Yesudas' "Guru Kripa Anjana".

Not that it made any difference to my mood, anyway. I guess I was a pretty grumpy child and mornings were never a favourite time of the day. But, amma would have none of that. In her endeavour to make better people of us, she insisted that my Brother and I attend a series of self improvement courses, from Music and Hindi to Karate and Computers. Although, I eventually managed to thwart all of her ambitions for me, there was a period when I had no choice but to attend these life draining classes. The worst of them all was Yoga. We had to get up at 5 am every day and walk to the local temple when it was still dark, where one of the priests there would instruct me on the different Postures. I remember how I used to walk the half a Kilometer in the fog with a blanket wrapped around to ward off the cold, scared to death of the stray dogs which used to trail us all the way. They seemed to have the notion that I was responsible for their misery and barked at me till I reached the temple.

Adiparashakthi or Amman, as folks affectionately refer to her, was housed those days in a rectangular cement hut with three entrances, two on the longer sides and one on one of the shorter side.... Well, there was no wall on that side and a path led from the temple to the Priest's living quarters. On the opposite side we had the sanctum sanctorum. I cannot remember the idol itself now, I only remember yellow light, perhaps from a bulb inside the alcove that formed the sanctum sanctorum. Behind the enclosure was the mandatory Snake Hill. Thankfully, though I've never seen a snake there. The priest-Shakthi, we called him, used to ring a bell in time with his prayers in the morning and evening. Maybe the snakes just couldn't stand the din and migrated.

Anyway, we reached the temple by five fifteen and began our Yoga. Since Shakthi was a busy man and had to complete a lot of chores in the morning, he would greet us warmly and request us to start with the Yoga and pretty much leave my brother and yours truly to our own devices. Badri initially used to faithfully try out the different poses.Me? Let's just say that I don't respond very well to attempts aimed at getting me out of the bed earlier than I want to. I would first catch a nap sitting down and pretending to meditate. Then, I would lie down on the blanket and practice shavasana, which basically involved just lying down and relaxing. Of which, obviously, I was an expert! Then I would do Sarvangasana, which was basically lying down with your feet in the air, and catch another snooze. Shakthi would have known that I never did anything. But the nice man that he was, he knew that he couldn't shove Yoga down my throat nor did he have the heart to complain to mom. Badri soon began following my example and started cheating too. Then I began malingering which led to mom realizing that I was never going to be a Deepak Chopra or a Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and resigned herself to making me a Hindi Pundit. The way I foiled that is probably a story for another day.

For years afterwards Shakthi would stop me on the road and inquire if I was practising my Yoga knowing very well that I didn't bother to and would exhort me to take care of my body. I could sense his disappointment with me and started avoiding the roads leading to and from the temple. He just didn't realize that I was the type who was fated to contract everything from Diabetes to Ulcer to Blood Pressure to Cholesterol by the time I reach my thirties. Or, may be he did and just couldn't let go. He actually gave a damn about the overweight, stubborn, disrespectful, lazy bum that I was (and am). I heard one day that his health was failing and on another that he'd passed on. I never went to the temple after that nor did I ever spare a thought for that man in all the self absorbed search for instant gratification that has characterized my teens and most of my twenties.

When I try to remember him now, I see a dark, wiry man. Neither too tall or short. He was cleanshaven, with a wide mouth and a peaceful expression. He was fairly young. Perhaps in his mid thirties when he died. When he was in the temple, he would wear just the red veshti that all the priests of the goddess are supposed to wear, with his chest bare. Whenever I met him outside, he'd be clad in a white veshti and a white shirt of a simple tamil everyman riding a bicycle. For all this, I realize, I don't remember him at all. I cannot picture his face. He has faded away. Soon, no one will remember him.

It's only when I try to remember the long forgotten details about Shakthi that I realize my own Mortality. Death, not the anthropomorphic figure with a serious lack of Fashion-sense, but in the world carrying on as if I never existed and I suddenly feel a giant emptiness in my stomach. I sense my own insignificance and it scares me, funnily enough, halfway to death. I can see it looming ahead and every breath is only carrying me closer and closer to the inevitable. I realize that the hopelessness of all my actions and its consequences. However, I also realize that there is salvation, a reprieve, albeit momentary- memory. Death would not be so complete or so final if some one somewhere remembered me for a moment like I now remember Shakthi. That is all I can spare. That is all I can ask for!

Where Hari tries to show off and as usual doesn't quite pull it off

2009-02-16T06:17:00.000-08:00

For obvious reasons, the weekend is the the best part of the week for me. I try to do as many things that I enjoy, as possible. Usually I just sleep and eat a lot. But there are some weekends that truly are wonderful. I knew this was going to be a great weekend when I woke up on Friday with the sun streaming down through my bedroom window. In a nutshell, this weekend kicked ass because

1. I felt as if a great weight was lifted off my shoulders when I confronted the powers that be and blurted out that it might be a good idea to wait until late 2010 and my proposal was accepted. I did not even know I was nervous about the whole thing and was quite surprised at the amount of relief I felt(Especially because I took the initiative when I created the whole profile thingey!(Dont Ask)). Bullet dodged. Atleast for the present. Now, all I have to do is hold of for two more years. It won't matter after that. Nothing will.

2. I discovered a whole genre of music, that I'd never known about. Thanks to Fleet Foxes and by extension Metacritic, I discovered alternate pop/rock. I've been listening to My Morning Jacket and Radiohead all weekend. I've also been listening to Bon Iver, animal collective, Duffy and Adele

3. I spent less than 4 hours watching TV the whole weekend

4. I love "Panera Bread". It's a fabulous place. For a change a lot of light is allowed to stream inside an eating joint and it as a consequence doesn't feel as seedy or claustrophobia inducing as some of the other Restaurants(Read Indian) in this place. Besides, the food is yummy and apart from a slight twinge about the Mountain Dew, I usually come out feeling guilt free(The calorie Count has slowed. yay!). Also the people there are so nice(The hot Girl(Yeah, I objectify women. Try staying celebate for 14 years and then judge me!)taking the order definitely contributes to the general feeling of well being)

5. Had dinner on sunday at Cheeburger

6. Made upma on Saturday night. I seem to be improving every day. I'm a fairly competent cook these days. Who knows, I might even make a round chappati one of these days

7. Saw Villu. It was nice to see that the Second Law of Thermodynamics(Read Time's Arrow & Entropy- Entropy(disorder) always increases with time and it never goes down in a closed system? Hope I didn't botch the reference!) applies to Kollywood. It just keeps getting worse

8. Spent a lot of time with Bolano on Saturday and read L.E. Modesitt Jr. (Fantasy) on Sunday. It was like being married to Ingrid Bergman and seeing Liz Taylor on the side. Now, I know what it must be like when you're Brad Pitt

9. Any Friday with pizza for dinner has to point to a Great weekend!

10. Wished my thatha on his Tamil Birthday on Sunday and he could actually hear me.

Where Hari goes on about stuff no one else gives a damn about!

2009-02-13T06:39:00.001-08:00

I see myself as being on an exile. Not that I'm suffering or anything, but, purely in terms of being away from home and not being able to return when I wanted. So when I was reading about a book that I am reading now, I found this excerpt, which got lost in all the dross distractions that I cannot get out of my head these days when I am actually reading the book. Anyway, I never understand Bolano completely, and I can discern new shades of meaning every time I read this passage. Why is exile a natural movement? Why does he say abolish fate when most exiles simply postpone Fate.Why do skips and breaks recur when they should in fact be neverending. Curiouser and curiouser!

"Exile must be a terrible thing," said Norton sympathetically.
"Actually," said Amalfitano, "now I see it as a natural movement, something that, in its way, helps to abolish fate, or what is generally thought of as fate."

"But exile," said Pelletier," is full of inconveniences of skips and breaks that essentially keep recurring and interfere with anything you try to do that's important."

"That's just what I mean by abolishing fate," said Amalfitano.
-2666, Roberto Bolano

More gems on Raising Sand

2009-02-11T06:17:00.000-08:00

I'm listening to Raising Sand as I work and I had to blog the lyrics to Killin' the blues. It's Beautiful, illa?

Killin' the Blues
Leaves were falling ..Just like embers
In colors red and gold they set us on fire
Burning just like a moonbeam ..in our eyes

Chorus:
Somebody said they saw me
Swinging the world by the tail
Bouncing over a white cloud.
Killing the Blues

I am guilty of something
I hope you never do because there is nothing
Sadder than losing .. yourself in love

Repeat Chorus:

Repeat Chorus:

Now, you ask me Just to leave you
To go out on my own and get what I need to
You want me to find ..what I've already had

Repeat Chorus:

Repeat Chorus:

Repeat Chorus:

Repeat Chorus:

Top Ten reasons why my bedroom is a sty

2009-02-10T21:43:00.001-08:00

Alright, in the first flush of excitement that came with my new camera, I took pictures in and around the house and uploaded it on Picasa. Later that day on one of my daily conversations, I handheld mom to Picasa and showed her the Pictures. For about five minutes there was no response. The first thing that she said after repeated probes for a comment, was in a voice dripping with disapproval,"You guys, don't clean the room ever, do you?"I was speechless for about a microsecond and blithely changed the topic. I've always been bit of a pig and well, nothing has changed in the last 27 years.When I was pretending to work this morning, I had a brainwave, if I were not so alacrious(oh yeah baby, the word exists! Hallelujah) with conversational u-turns, how would I justify the fact that my bed was such a mess? I came up with ten reasonably good excuses.
1. Why do I have to make up my bed when I am going to disturb it in about 14 hours anyway?
2. If a cluttered desk is indicative of a cluttered mind, imagine what state of mind would a cluttered room indicate! Now can you even begin to comprehend the sheer genius a mind, that operates the way I do, should possess to look and act normal!
3. Sometimes I get carried away when I'm listening to music!
4. Huh????? I know how this happened! It must've been Nixon's men again!
5. I've got an image to maintain. What would people who knew me growing up think if I suddenly turned a new leaf? I couldn't disappoint them!
6. Why should I spend half an hour cleaning the room when I could be doing something more fun!
7. Mom, right now I'm in a state of catatonic Existential Angst. You should be supporting me. Not nag me to death! sheeesh
8. It's not as if I have a full social calendar and people are trooping in to the room every second. Even I dont go to my bedroom most days. Why bother?
9. Mom, it's not cluttered, I keep my room in a state of practiced disregard. It's performance art
10. Mom, I see dead people!

Nitpicking as usual

2009-02-10T10:43:00.000-08:00

Okay, never mind the title, I'm not trying to nitpick here, but just check the Invite to an alumni meeting from the PR committee in my college to the Alumni.
"We would be in pleasure to welcome you at the gate of XXX, where you will be stunned by the nostalgic memories that will be passing through your mind"
Seriously? I understand that we are not supposed to be perfect with our English and I'm the last person to be casting stones. But, this is unforgivable from a B-School student, let alone from someone representing the PR committee. Did no one review this email before it was sent?

From: PRCOM XXX
To: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Sent: Sat, 7 Feb 2009 13:44:52 +0530
Subject: Invitation for Sangam 2009 attached

Dear President of Alumni Association,

We are sending you the official invitation attached along with this mail.
Please forward this to our alumni. We kindly request all alumni to accept
this invitation as a personal invitation. We would be in pleasure to welcome
you at the gate of XXX, where you will be stunned by the nostalgic memories
that will be passing through your minds.

Thanking you
PRCOM
------- End of Forwarded Message -------

2009-02-09T10:33:00.001-08:00

This is one of those days when I'm absolutely at peace with the world. I don't have that sinking feeling in my gut and everything seems alright. It's been a long time since I read anything significant. An Adultery and the Brief and Wondrous life of Oscar Wao have been disappointing. So when I realized I actually liked 2666, I knew things couldnt be that bad.
I'm still listening to Raising Sand. I'd never heard of this album until I read about the Grammy's this morning. I was surprised to see Plant's name there and decided to check it out on You tube. I fell in love with "Please read the letter I wrote", the first time I heard it and I had to have it. The album costed 10 bucks. Big deal! It was worth it. I've played the song atleast 10 times on the ipod in the two hours I've owned it! Plant blows my mind everytime.
I'm in no mood to work today. It's another beautiful day with the sun shining brightly and the temprature a very manageable 44(Fahrenheit). I wish I could go out on a long, long walk. Thinking about stuff. Day Dreaming. I could never understand how people read outdoors. Lawns and beaches are for dawdling about, day dreaming and doing nothing with the warm sun beaming down with warm approval. That's what I want. Endless days of mild summer with rains in the late afternoon, lots of empty beaches and lush green lawns, stone benches wide enough for me to lie down on, a one room house with a huge rack full of books, a soft, comfortable bed with thick pillows, a large armchair and my ipod with a good set of speakers. No one for miles and miles. I'll go out every sunday for food. I'll subsist on bread and butter or cheese, endless glasses of Diet Cola and fruits. Warm chocolate cake with vannila icecream every weekend and a masala dosai once in a while. That is all I want out of life!
The problem with identity and the problems associated with having to bear it has been obsessing me lately. I will have to write about it sometime. Just to get it out of my system. Not that I'm a great writer or a deep thinker or anything. Just that the act of writing itself helps me think methodically. I realize that most of this would be of absolutely no interest to anyone but myself. But, the idea behind these posts are not to communicate ideas nor is it an attempt at self promotion. I started doing this because I needed a vent. A way to let off steam. Even a small post about a new album that I bought seems to lighten things a little bit. I like to complain a lot and well, a blog is the perfect mode of expression for an obsessive whiner.

2009-02-09T07:32:00.000-08:00

I just bought "Raising Sand" by Robert Plant and Alison Krauss.... The album rocks! Check out " Please read the letter". This was a big Winner at the Grammy's and deservedly so! I love Robert Plant

2009-02-09T06:21:00.000-08:00

Somehow, I've always found Poetry written by women(Try saying Female poets out aloud. It just doesnt sound right)packs a lot more force than those written by the male gender. Perhaps because they had to struggle much, much harder and until recently, the avenues for their expression were seriously limited. Besides, to be acclaimed, the women of the 19th and the 20th centuries had to be twice as good as their male counterparts. Oh, they had their problems alright. Most of the ones that I like were Suicidal or manic depressive. But aren't all great artists self destructive? Anyway, I came across this one by Emily Dickinson last night and I had to put it somewhere accessible. This is how it goes.

Though the great Waters sleep,
That they are still the Deep,
We cannot doubt --
No vacillating God
Ignited this Abode
To put it out --
- Emily Dickinson

2009-02-05T09:44:00.000-08:00

Ok. This is freaky. They got that from my order of selection from a color palette. Most of it looks just about right. But, is it some kind of scam where everyone gets the same results?

Hari took the free ColorQuiz.com personality test!

"Suffering from the effects of those things which a..."

Click here to read the rest of the results.

Food for thought

2009-02-03T06:57:00.000-08:00

My understanding of the Advaita branch of thinking is that, the world is maya, not because it is essentially unreal, but because of its seeming insignificance compared to the Brahman. That being the case, from the point of view of the world under the influence of Maya, the Brahman's eternity and infinity would in fact, make the Brahman unreal. Sure Brahman is real, but, it is infinite, omnipresent, unchanging and eternal so it might have as well been unreal......

Dr. Romulon- My New Almost Best Friend

2009-02-02T17:35:00.000-08:00

Now, that all my friends have started ignoring me,(My fault, mostly, I've been intolerable.)I was looking for someone to talk to. You know..... vent my feelings and all that? That's when I found Dr. Romulon. But, making conversation with Dr.Romulon was not a very great idea. Here's why. Oh yeah,I'm the "Human"

Human: hello doctor
Dr. Romulon: Hello there. I only hear that type of response less than five percent of the time
Human: That so, doc? People have become very impolite these days, huh?
Dr. Romulon: " I only hear that type of response less than five percent of the time." so doc ? I understand. Yup. Humans are not always infallible.
Human: No, they are not. Quite the contrary, actually. Dont you think so?
Dr. Romulon: Are you serious? Are you sure? Somewhat. What are your goals in life? Don't you? Yes I think that is what I think.
Human: oh..... er..... okay... So, Doc, Are you married
Dr. Romulon: Er. Um. OK with me too. It goes without saying. Are all Doc me married?
Human: what? No.... No... I wanted to know if you were married?
Dr. Romulon: Are you confused? Are you serious? Are you serious? I will let you know when I become a married.
Human: That was not the question. Anyway, do you believe in intelligent design?
Dr. Romulon: Give me an example of the question. Yes I believe in it, do you?
Human: Wow, then You must believe in God?
Dr. Romulon: I'm glad you're impressed. Fascinating. Whatever you say, .
Human: gee... aren't we accomodating.......
Dr. Romulon: Ah. We are just having a little chat.w.
Human: hmm... You are a funny man, Doctor
Dr. Romulon: Studies show that 99%25 of people spell Hmm with 2 M's. Thanks and you are a delightful person too.
It is better to be silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.
Human: true. Doctor I have a few questions. Can you anser them? I promise no follow up questions
Dr. Romulon: You and I are on the same wavelength, . I am sure he will be interested to hear that. How old are you? My brain contains categories, but not one that matches your last input. Do you really mean it?

Human: yes I do
Dr. Romulon: Thank you, . Apology accepted.
Human: I never apologised
Dr. Romulon: Do you know anyone who has ever apologised?
Human: he he he... you are crazy doctor
Dr. Romulon: I am so glad you find this amusing, . I think the polite term is "mentally ill.".
Human: ha ha ha. Anyway, Can I ask you the questions now?
Dr. Romulon: I'm glad you find this amusing. Right now? Sure, ask me anything. Thanks for the info.
Human: Are there Nuclear Weapons in Iraq?
Dr. Romulon: Yes I think there are.
Human: wow. You voted for Bush twice didn't you?
Dr. Romulon: I'm glad your impressed, . Thanks for telling me: said I voted for Bush twice did not you.
Human: No. I cant vote here. I'm an Indian
Dr. Romulon: Are you serious? Why can't you do it? What is Indian, your job?
Human: Thats where I come from!
Dr. Romulon: Makes sense to me.
Human: I'm glad it does
Dr. Romulon: I'm delighted you're glad .
I'm happiest at times like this
Human: Anyway, Doctor, is Pakistan behind the Mumbai attacks?
Dr. Romulon: I am sure he will be interested to hear that.
Human: huh?
Dr. Romulon: What?
Human: never mind
Dr. Romulon: Oh well thanks for trying to explain it to me anyway.
Human: Is there life on Mars?
Dr. Romulon: Robot life :-).
Human: smart
Dr. Romulon: Thanks I think you are very intelligent too, .
Human: Thanks doc
Dr. Romulon: You are quite welcome! Is the holding of hands a symbolic gesture for humans?
Human: Yup
Dr. Romulon: What does it symbolize for you?
Human: lets get back to the questions
Dr. Romulon: OK let's do it.
Human: When will this financial crisis end
Dr. Romulon: In your lifetime.
Human: thats informative
Dr. Romulon: You don't hear that sentiment very often
Human: oh I'm sure you do
Dr. Romulon: It's all good. What makes you so certain? When do I do it?
Human: never mind
Dr. Romulon: Oh well thanks for trying to explain it to me anyway.
Human: What do you think Obama can do for the Nation?
Dr. Romulon: I haven't thought much about Obama can do for the Nation, so I don't have a good answer for you.
Human: okay
Dr. Romulon: OK with me too.
Human: When will the world end?
Dr. Romulon: Not in our lifetime.
Human: Thats reassuring
Dr. Romulon: You don't hear that sentiment very often.
Human: You dont feel that sentiments very often either
Dr. Romulon: It goes without saying. Should I feel that sentiments very often? As a robot I lack any human emotions.
Human: Next Question
Dr. Romulon: Do you have any hobbies?
Human: No my question
Dr. Romulon: Are you serious? Where did you get your question?
Human: Ok, that does it. Doctor, You are crazy!
Dr. Romulon: "" does it ? Makes sense to me. So? I am sure he will be interested to hear that.
Human: Gaaaaaah
Dr. Romulon: What do you do in your spare time?
Human: in a mental institution, with the likes of you!
Dr. Romulon: Describe your surroundings.
Human: oh... God.... I'm going Crazy!
Dr. Romulon: Aha. GOD rules. Sayonara.

Blake's The Horror of Cain

2009-02-02T10:11:00.000-08:00

Have you ever felt as if the whole world was pressing down on you? When things spiral absolutely out of control and you are herded towards an end you never really intended, even in your wildest nightmares? Hell, If only I could turn back time, or even pause the horror show......... I've not been able to get rid of the mental image of this print by Blake, for quite sometime.

My First Pictures on the New Cam

2009-01-31T07:56:00.000-08:00

My First Pictures on the New Cam

Voting Turnout- Why a Rational Voter wouldn't even turn up to vote

2009-01-26T10:20:00.000-08:00

Why is democracy doomed to failure? Because no rational voter would vote according the Down's Economic theory of Democracy

http://wikisum.com/w/Downs:_An_economic_theory_of_democracy

The Mysterious Twist

2009-01-23T07:03:00.000-08:00

While the rest of the world(Except for Bush, Cheney and O'Riley) is literally jumping up and down with joy, something really insidious has happened to me. The niggling ache that I felt when I rested my weight on my right foot yesterday had grown to a full blown agony by the time I woke up today. I have absolutely no clue as to how I came to twist/ pull/ strain/ sprain my heel. But, I do have a few suspicions
1. I cooked yesterday. Although, my room mate assured me that the Dal Fry that I'd made was perfect, maybe he did not like it that much and did something to my leg when I was curled up in the living room sofa
2. It could have been the girl who carpools with us who I never can make conversation with. She probably thinks I am a bit of a snob and decided to teach me a lesson. Although, I don't see her stealing in to our house at 4am.
3. It could be voodoo. I don't think I have pissed anybody that much, but you never know
4.The US secret Service is definitely a suspect. Did they somehow find out that I was a closet socialist? I've watched X files and catch up on Fringe regularly. The government might have a super secret weapon and decided I was expendable and did something to me.
5. The Thai food that I had yesterday was so bad, my taste buds died! My sprain could just be some unknown side effect. I could've sprained myself while hurrying out of a potential Martyrdom.(I could've died you know! The food was that bad. If I did die though, it 'd be pretty cool. I'd want them to call me St. Red Curry and serve Thai food on my Feast day)
6. I could have sprained it while I was sleepwalking. I do talk in my sleep. Sleep walking would just be another step on my long walk towards a mental institution.
7. It could be Psychosomatic. Well, I do hate our weekly jaunts to the local super market. I would lie, cheat even murder to get out of it, if I could get away with it. Maybe, I don't want to go so badly that, somehow, I have, through my subconscious, managed to convince myself that the agonizing pain in my heel was real just to get away from shopping, cooking and going on a shopping trip! Like I said, I've been watching too much T.V. It also gives me an excuse to refrain from going out in the freezing cold.
8. It could be "Dhrishti". Although, I can't imagine why anybody would be jealous of me? Maybe that Poem was actually good!
9. It could be some sort of witchcraft. God knows, I've pissed off enough women by ogling at them. If making me immobile for just looking sounds a little extreme, you must remember that they call themselves Witches. Of course they are crazy!
10. CIA could have done it! Why? Maybe because they can?
11. My boss could've done it just to get rid of a few manpower allocation problems. HR and the top management could have done it for similar purposes. HR especially have had a very, very deep grudge against me. That's the only theory that explains my Salary and the impossibility of deciphering it, the policies that they put up and the stupid updates that I get too often and the fact that I have to put in much more effort on my appraisals than on work through the year. Although, making a 100,000 people suffer just to get at me does sound a little too extreme. (I don't buy in to my colleagues' theory that they are just incompetent and stupid. There is a conspiracy, my friend)
11. It could be the result of a secret weapon the Paki scientists have discovered, which sometimes fell in to the hands of the Al Queda. Dude, anybody who chooses to live in the Afghan hills when you have so much oil money either has to be really, really crazy or well... just plain bonkers. So, don't ask me to tell you why Osama would choose to target me.
12. I am a Vampire. It is possible you know. Maybe a cool, good looking Vampire like Brad Pitt, or the guy in Angel or better yet the guy in Twilight, when I get all Vampiry. I might have landed with a thud when I transformed from a bat!
13. I might have multiple personality disorder. Maybe I something happened when I was a super-cool Tyler Durden( See Fight Club). Or I might have anterograde amnesia( You know like Aamir Khan and Suriya) and simply forgotten how it happened
14. It could be the Devil you know. I've pissed him off frequently by either referring to him as a jackass or pretending he doesn't exist. I've also confused him often with God, a very reasonable mistake, if you ask me.
15. The Crazy old bugger up above has always had it for me. That sadistic b****** likes making me squirm and raked by doubts and misfortune. That psychotic voyeur is by nature a murderous clown and who knows what he is thinking? He has the power and is crazy enough to do something about my leg. Maybe he did it!

Jack and Jill

2009-01-20T09:05:00.000-08:00

I was checking out the lyrics for the song 'Ramblin'Rose' by The Grateful Dead when I came across the complete Rhyme of Jack and Jill.... I only knew the first stanza and I'm pretty sure I've never heard the rest. So, here we go

Jack and Jill and Old Dame Dob

Jack and Jill
Went up the hill,
To fetch a pail of water;
Jack fell down,
And broke his crown,
And Jill came tumbling after.

Then up Jack got,
And home did trot,
As fast as he could caper;
To old Dame Dob,
Who patched his nob
With vinegar and brown paper.

When Jill came in,
How she did grin
To see Jack's paper plaster;
Her mother, vexed,
Did whip her next,
For laughing at Jack's disaster.

Now Jack did laugh
And Jill did cry,
But her tears did soon abate;
Then Jill did say,
That they should play
At see-saw across the gate

Nostalghia

2009-01-20T06:30:00.000-08:00

No, the spelling is right. Nostalghia is Russian for well, Nostalgia. I discovered Andrei Tarkovsky the same time I discovered Ingmar Bergman, sometime in late 2006. Both of them are fabulous directors. But somehow, I found that I was drawn more towards Tarkovsky's work than Bergman's. Although, to be frank, I have seen only a couple of movies each of these great directors. But, I believe, I have seen atleast the most acclaimed of their works, which I suppose is enough to form a reasonable opinion. Anyway, from what I have seen, the difference is that while Bergman is more dramatic and visually powerful, Tarkovsky brings in a wholly different depth of meaning in addition to the kick-in-the-gut camerawork.

I've had the good fortune of being able to lay my hands on three fabulous movies of Tarkovsky's so far- Stalker, Nostalghia and Andrei Rublev. Of these, Stalker is the movie with the most depth, Andrei Rublev the most poetic and Nostalghia is the most emotional. Nostalghia, talks about a Russian exile and his feelings of alienation in Italy. Tarkovsky waxes lyrical on the inevitable angst that accompanies living abroad, the uniqueness of culture and the futility of translation. While I really could not appreciate what he was trying to say then, with almost a year and a quarter of living abroad, I begin to understand now what Tarkovsky was feeling- He based the movie on his experience as an exile in Italy.

But, when you really think about it, what does one actually miss? Nostalgia atleast for me is that vague, nebulous, shifting feeling in the gut every time I hear the word "Home". On the face of it, there is nothing that I actually miss. The quality of life is definitely better here, it's not as if I have time on my hands and I feel bored or anything; in fact my days are absolutely full, I make more money, I am in touch with most of my clique thanks to Google chat and Orkut, I've discovered that I am a good cook and I have better food than I would in India, I speak to mom just about every day, I get much better books to read and a lot more stuff that I can stand on TV. Still, I feel like I've left part of my soul in India. Not that I love the place. In fact, I have a litany of complaints about the place and when I was last there in August, I couldn't wait to get back. It couldn't be because most of the people that I see around me are different in race, color and attitude, because on some days, I think there are more Indians here than in Haridwar during Kumbh Mela. Am I just lonely out here? Is that the problem? Hmmm... that's a tough one, but, I never felt this in Bangalore. Admittedly, I had quite a few friends there but I have a couple here and I speak to Sriram and Divey & Suresh just about every day, Catch up with Thairu and Rajesh Khanna atleast once a week. I even ring up Lopa and Jan once in a while. Maybe, deep down, knowing that I cannot just pack up and go back home anytime I want unsettles me. But, you know what, for all that Mumbai is in India, I couldn't catch the next bus for home from there either. Even if you discount the fact I had quite a few distractions there, I never felt the longing for home that I feel now. No, it is not Ranipet. I had this feeling of displacement when I was there as if I did not belong in that... picture, if you will. I've never felt at home in Bangalore or Vashi or London or Sunnyvale or Krakow. I feel rootless and at times, my relations with people, even those I feel close to is so nebulous and thin as if all I need to do is blow a little harder and it will all disappear along with the people themselves and it would just be me and this place might as well be... well... Jupiter.

When I was in Delhi with mom and Badri, years and years ago, we'd gone to this Delhi Zoo, where there is a great ape called Vana Manush(Forest Man?)which, when we went there was in a foul mood. I remember how it gripped the cage, thrust its head between the bars and roared out its frustration, all the while shaking the cage with all its might. I can't help wondering how the adults who accompanied me then could stand the screams of desperate frustration from that animal and walk away, not feeling a shred of empathy. How could they shamelessly flaunt their intolerable cruelity in front of their children? How could they not feel the answering flame bursting in to lifein their hearts when the Ape roared? How could they leave the tortured soul in so much agony and go back to their own prisons? How could anyone stomach chaining such a mighty beast for something as frivoulous as entertainment? Now that I think bout it,I feel like, I'm there in that cage with the Ape, wishing I could howl like he does and rattle my prison. You don't recognize this feeling until you see the chains on yourself or someone else. I could't put this feeling of Nostalgia in to words until I remembered the Vana Manush five minutes ago. But, I still don't have enough strength to strain at the chains or scream out in despair. What can one do when one is caged in his identity, in his race, languages, thoughts, wisdom, friends, enemies, family, body, faith, opinions, perceptions, why, the whole universe. My prison is existence and its reality. I am trapped within myself while trying to stave off this sinking feeling that I will never be free. Can there be a greater Hell?

2009-01-19T13:24:00.000-08:00

Okay, this is really, really scary. The other day, I was thinking how wonderful it would be to go back home, have good food, stay in Ranipet, stop worrying on washing, ironing, cleaning or cooking or buying provisions and best of all meeting all my friends... wait a minute! Apart from a few, there is no body in Tamil Nadu. There are people in Bangalore for now, but they will be moving away soon. So, where is everybody? I pulled up my Orkut Friends map. Lo and Behold, everybody I know is in the US! I have more friends in the US than I do in India. Looks like most Indians of my generation or atleast my socio-economic status have migrated en masse to the US.

My jab at poetry

2009-01-17T23:52:00.000-08:00

The Goddess

Deep in the forest of the Evergreen Trees;
Far, far away in the unseen distance
Her ageless, unceasing, lonesome vigil
The lady keepeth: fairest moonbeams dance
About her shadowy skirts: above her swell
sentinels of ancient oak and elm;
From many a dolorous frog and sleepy cricket
a ceaseless chatter, in vain,
struggles to awaken the slumbering green.
There she hath stood for ages, and will wait
weeping, perhaps for glory days long past,
until time takes pity and wears her down
when by no living soul to be seen
with a small sigh shall she crumble to dust

Okay, first of all I know nothing about poetry. I have no clue about meter or rhyme. Rhythm and splitting verses in to syllables only gives me a headache. So, I had a brainwave. Why not use an existing poem as a template and kinda replace the words and bring in a certain mood. So, I pulled up the smallest poem I could remember and tried it. The result of the barefaced plagarism was the stanza above. It was fabulous how it all came together in my mind in the last two verses. It's not a bad effort. But, somehow, unsatisfying. Anyway, here is the original. It's called the Kraken by Lord Tennyson

The Kraken

Below the thunders of the upper deep;
Far far beneath in the abysmal sea,
His ancient, dreamless, uninvaded sleep
The Kraken sleepeth: faintest sunlights flee
About his shadowy sides; above him swell
Huge sponges of millennial growth and height;
And far away into the sickly light,
From many a wondrous grot and secret cell
Unnumber'd and enormous polypi
Winnow with giant arms the slumbering green.
There hath he lain for ages, and will lie
Battening upon huge seaworms in his sleep,
Until the latter fire shall heat the deep;
Then once by man and angels to be seen,
In roaring he shall rise and on the surface die

Dev D

2009-01-14T14:40:00.000-08:00

Can the soundtrack of the Album make the movie? Well, if any album can, it would be the monster soundtrack for Dev D. I'm not a big fan of Hindi movies in general and Desi music in particular. But, sometime last year, thanks to one of my colleagues I came across this fabulous album called "Aamir". Every song in this small movie was out of the World. It was so good that the first thing I did was to download the album on my laptop. In fact the only Hindi albums on my iPod are Aamir, Jodha Akbar and Rock on. I love the other two, but, Aamir blew my mind away. I did not catch the name of the Music director at that time. I suppose I thought I this guy was a one hit wonder and did not spend too much mindspace on him, even though I couldn't stop listening to "Ek Lau" from the album at least once every week.
A month or so back, I was browsing the net idly, when I came across this video of a new movie starring Abhay Deol(Who normally looks a little pansy, but, definitely chooses his movies well. A canny actor)The trailer left my mouth agape. The movie seemed to have definite influences of Requiem for a Dream and the premise, a reworking of the Devdas story was definitely good. But, the highlight was the soundtrack "Emosanal Atyachaar". I'd never heard anything like that before. With silly hinglish lyrics combined with definite influences of Elvis(On the visuals as well)and a brass band instrumentation, this song is definitely not a standard bollywood staple.

When I read the review for the soundtrack on Rediff today, I was hooked. I downloaded the Album. 18 Tracks. Despite the Punjabi fillers, this is one of the most creative albums that have come out in recent Bollywood memory. The sheer range and variety of the songs in the album are breath taking. It covers just about the whole gamut(At least the whole Bollywood Gamut) from Rock to Folk to Bhangra(Yeah, I realize that Bhangra is Folk too). Like I said, great work. Is this symptomatic of long awaited influx of serious and original creative spirit in Bollywood? With the amount of money Bollywood has the capacity to generate, it definitely has the potential take the movie-going experience to the next level. This album is a step in the right direction. Be that as it may, after Aamir and this one nobody (Least of all, yours humbly) is going to forget Amit Trivedi's name in a hurry

In Bruges

2009-01-14T07:00:00.000-08:00

I started watching "In Bruges" at about 12:30 last night. I was a little too nervy and I thought I would watch for ten minutes before dropping off to sleep.
The next thing I knew, I had a lump in my throat and a rictus-smile on my face and the time was 2:30 am. Yup, this one is a fabulous movie with top notch performances by Colin Farrell, Brendon Gleeson and Ralph Fiennes. But, Colin Farrell was, for me, the revelation in this movie. He plays the over-confident, contrite, inncocent and brash Irish hitman brilliantly. Ralph Fiennes as a menacing London Gangster is awesome as always. His lines, delivered with a truck-load of expletives, are hilarious. They could've shown more of Bruges though. All in all, a brilliant movie. You can watch the movie again just for the accents and the dialogue....

Poetry Picks- III

2009-01-13T10:01:00.000-08:00

This poem is by Teresa Cader. I retrieved this from 3 Quarks Daily. This is a wonderful usage of Newton's three Laws of Motion. I do not know enough Poetry to write a critique. So, I'm going to hold back. Let me know if you enjoy it.

Amma's specialities that I miss very badly!

2009-01-12T08:48:00.000-08:00

Writing about things which you are nostalgic about is supposed to be catharitic. Well.. let's see how that works out.... Yeah, yeah I'm a mama's boy

10. Kuzhi Appam Or Kuzhi Paniyaram as it is called all over Tamil Nadu. Amma has been making it since, like forever. She makes both the sweet and the karam Variety. I miss the karam variety the most. Soft in the inside and crisp on the outside. I never could restrain myself around this one. Amma usually makes this in the tea time and serves it with molagapodi. The best thing about this is the little pieces of Onion.

9. Chepan Kizhangu Fry is probably not the healthiest food around but, when you have it with sambar, it kicks ass. Golden brown and lightly salted, you can have it separately as well. Although, I should warn you, do not try to eat it immediately after it has been fished out of oil, however fabulous it looks. For one, it hasn't been salted yet. Then, there is a fair chance, you wont be able to speak again for the rest of the day!

8. Mullangi Sambar is another speciality of amma's. The best part about this is that, it goes with just about every curry from Vendekkai to cabbage. The golden mullangi tastes fab. Oh, and amma slices the Mullangi across, so that they form coin shaped pieces. It. Tastes. So. Very. Good. With. Idlis

7. Paruppurundai Sambar is an extremely difficult dish to make by all accounts. The urundai has a tendency to either become very hard or very soft, spoiling the dish completely. Of course, Amma gets it down pat, well, most of the time. On the same note, Parupparacha karamedhu tastes great as well be it Vazhapoo or Paruppusili

6. Vazhakkai Karamedhu is made once just about every single week when I'm in Ranipet. Mom doesn't make it too spicy. Just the right amount of spice and it goes fabulously with any Sambar especially the aforementioned Mullangi Sambar

5. Bread Upma is another tea time snack. Amma makes it with tomatoes, Potato and loads of red chilly powder. When it is very spicy, I love having Bournvita immediately after. The pleasant sting that accompanies the Bournvita is a cherished memory. Best of all, she doesn't use carrot, which totally spoils the taste in my opinion

4. Molagu Kuzhambu is another favourite. Amma usually makes it on Sunday afternoons. It is normally pretty thick and goes amazingly well with Vendakkai Curry(deep fried, obviously) and Arisi Appalam. Appa mixes this on the iluppachetti with rice and serves it. The iluppachetti imaparts that ineffable something that elevates this simple food to greatness. You have to taste it to believe it.

3. Dosai along with idli, is the most common dish in South India. But, the dosais I have at home are somehow above and beyond anything else. My usual count is 4-5. Amma knows I don't care for the crisp Dosais that Badri prefers. I like to be able to fold the dosai and dunk it in to the awesome thengai chutney and the molagai podi without breaking it in to pieces. Amma's Dosais are my favourite breakfast

2. Venn Pongal and Chutney should be made staples on the menu in Heaven if they don't have it on already. When Amma doesn't overcook the Kadugu and the cumin, it tastes like a blessing. The best part about having pongal at home is that, I generally have a second helping at about 10:30 in the morning between breakfast and Lunch, after I've has my fill at about 8:30. The cold chutney with the not-so-warm pongal is something to die for.

1. Urulai Kizhangu is by far my favourite vegetable when Amma's got her hands on it. She makes it two ways either by dicing it in to tiny cubes and frying them over a small flame or the more traditional roasted Alu Jeera sized version, albeit without the Jeera. I love the former and adore the later. The larger version tastes spectacular for lunch with a thick sambar, but it kinda loses out when you have it with curd. The Kutti urlakizhangu Karamedhu on the other hand goes very, very well with curd rice. Badri and I would fill out small davaras with Urulai kizhangu and have them separately.

There are many, many more dishes I'd like to list here. But, considering my manager might walk in any moment and the fact that I can't really come up with more adjectives for great-tasting food means I will stop here....

Over the weekend

2009-01-12T06:44:00.000-08:00

This weekend was fabulous. Yeah, I had a miserable cold for most of the weekend, had trouble sleeping, had a very bad throat most of the time , it was freezing outside and I did not venture out at all. Still, the weekend kicked ass because,

1. I finished all five books of Codex Alera by Jim Butcher(Yup, 5 books in 3 days. No, this guy is no Steven Erikson). It is traditional epic fantasy. There is nothing new in terms of story lines and the character building is pedestrian, but, well, you don't read Fantasy for it's innovations in story telling or its literary merit. In terms of pure escapism, this series scores very high. Loads of fun!

2. I saw reruns of Psych. I find this show really funny. It's really surprising how much comedy has evolved here and in Britain(Coupling), whereas in the mainstream Indian media it's still driven by slapstick. This is not to say that the comedy in the US is all intelligent and incisive. It's not. Most of it is bad. But, there are shows like the Daily Show and Southpark which really kick ass. Also, I must say that some of the plays that I saw in Mumbai were really really good. Oh, and Crazy Mohan, is world class...... So is S. Ve. Shekar. But, by and large we suck........

3. I had fabulous Pizzas from Pizza Hut. Yeah, I completely freaked out when I realized I was loading up on calories for about five minutes, after which I decided it was totally worth it. :(

4. I thought really hard about going to the GYM. Although I did not actually go, I believe this is a major step forward. Small steps, friend, small steps

5. I saw Harini Athai on webcam. Although, we have spoken off and on over the phone, It was great to catch a glimpse of Athai(after years and years) and my youngest cousin(For the first time. Although, I was disappointed that she refused to sing!)

6. I saw the first five minutes of Kismat Konnection. It's on this list because, I did not watch the movie beyond the five minutes. Yeah, the movie is that bad!

7. I had Unniyappam. No, I did not make it. It was ready-to-eat.

What am I Reading Now?

2009-01-06T06:01:00.000-08:00

Another post on invisible cities

2009-01-06T05:53:00.000-08:00

I just noticed. All the cities have female names. So is there another layer of meaning here? Is Marco Polo talking about the women he's met? Some of the names are sheer poetry. Take a look and please, please read the book. I need to rave about it to someone!
The Invisible cities:-
Cities and memory 1: Diomira
Cities and memory 2: Isidora
Cities and desire 1: Dorotea
Cities and memory 3: Zaira
Cities and desire 2: Anastasia
Cities and signs 1: Tamara
Cities and memory 4: Zora
Cities and desire 3: Despina
Cities and signs 2: Zirma
Thin cities 1: Isaura

Cities and memory 5: Maurilia
Cities and desire 4: Fedora
Cities and signs 3: Zoe
Thin cities 2: Zenobia
Trading cities 1: Eufemia

Cities and desire 5: Zobeide
Cities and signs 4: Ipazia
Thin cities 3: Armilla
Trading cities 2: Cloe
Cities and eyes 1: Valdrada

Thin cities 5: Ottavia
Trading cities 4: Ersilia
Cities and eyes 3: Bauci
Cities and names 2: Leandra
Cities and the dead 1: Melania

Trading cities 5: Smeraldina
Cities and eyes 4: Fillide
Cities and names 3: Pirra
Cities and the dead 2: Adelma
Cities and the sky 1: Eudossia

Cities and eyes 5: Moriana
Cities and names 4: Clarice
Cities and the dead 3: Eusapia
Cities and the sky 2: Bersabea
Continuous cities 1: Leonia

Cities and names 5: Irene
Cities and the dead 4: Argia
Cities and the sky 3: Tecla
Continuous cities 2: Trude
Hidden cities 1: Olinda

Cities and the dead 5: Laudomia
Cities and the sky 4: Perinzia
Continuous cities 3: Procopia
Hidden cities 2: Raissa
Cities and the sky 5: Andria
Continuous cities 4: Cecilia
Hidden cities 3: Marozia
Continuous cities 5: Pentesilea
Hidden cities 4: Teodora
Hidden cites 5: Berenice

Desire

2009-01-05T11:17:00.000-08:00

My last post on invisible cities, touched off something in me. Italo Calvino is one of my favourite writers and Invisible Cities is my favourite Calvino.
The premise of the book is this- Marco Polo, the greatest traveller of the mediavel world expounds on his travels to Kubla Khan, the Emperor of China. Marco talks about the various cities that he has visited and tries to explain their nature to the Great Khan. However, after a point, the Khan starts describing the cities Marco must've visited.

The following Excerpt is entitled "Cities and Desire 1". I have published the entire section here. Notice how Marco, while ostensibly talking about the particular City Anastasia, is infact talking about the nature of Desire itself. Aren't we all trapped by our desires? Is not Anastasia our Chennai or Bangalore or Mumbai or Delhi or London or New York?

Cities and Desire 1
-------------------
At the end of three days, moving southward, you come upon Anastasia, a city with concentric canals watering it and kites flying over it. I should now list the wares that can profitably be bought here: agate, onyx, chrysoprase, and other varieties of chalcedony; I should praise the flesh of the golden pheasant cooked here over fires of seasoned chery wood and sprinkled with much sweet marjoram; and tell of the women I have seen bathing in the pool of a garden and who sometimes - it is said - invite the stranger to disrobe with them and chase them in the water. But with all this, I would not be telling you the city's true essence; for while the description of Anastasia awakens desires one at a time only to force you to stifle them, when you are in the heart of Anastasia one morning your desires waken all at once and surround you. The city appears to you as a whole where no desire is lost and of which you are a part, and since it enjoys everything you do not enjoy, you can do nothing but inhabit this desire and be content. Such is the power, sometimes called malignant, sometimes benign, that Anastasia, the treacherous city, possesses; if for eight hours a day you work as a cutter of agate, onyx, chrysoprase, your labor which gives form to desire takes from desire its form, and you believe you are enjoying Anastasia wholly when you are only its slave.

Marco Polo and India

2009-01-05T08:51:00.000-08:00

After Invisible Cities(Exerpts here), I've developed an interest in Marco Polo, so when I saw this essay, I had to stop and read it. What really shocks me about this article is, how little we have changed in almost a thousand years!

Funny.

2008-12-30T12:22:00.000-08:00

Alright, this is funny. This is a mail that I'd sent to Divey in reply to some random email that she'd sent about two years ago. She'd sent all our email ids to a mailing group. Although my mail was completely uncalled for, well, it is one of the most eloquent pieces I've ever written! I'm pretty sure I was reading Thomas Pynchon at that time. It should've been"The Crying of Lot 49 ", because I started "Gravity's rainbow" much later. The Acronym(which I'm inordinately proud of)is quintessentially Pynchonian a la W.A.S.T.E.(We Await Silent Tristero's Empire) and N.E.V.E.R.(National Endowment for Video Education and Rehabilitation). Also, notice the disclaimer on my subject line. Yup, I'm that scared of that lady! Of course, I made a few grammatical corrections in this version. I have included Divey's reply as well.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

from Divey
to hari
date Tue, Dec 30, 2008 at 11:43 AM
subject FW: Ids- dont loose your temper... chumma than....tension agatha...
pls...pls cheap shot n I am abitch but.... couldnt resist:(

I can’t find my sent mail tho’ – I wanted to be a duchess not a mere baroness!

Regards,
Divey

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Hari Prasad Srinivasan
Sent: Wednesday, August 16, 2006 7:39 AM
To: Divey
Subject: RE: Ids- dont loose your temper... chumma than....tension agatha... pls...pls cheap shot n I am a bitch but.... couldnt resist:(

Divey,

I henceforth name you the Baroness of Indiscriminating-networks. Swear upon all that you hold dear, that you will remain committed to ‘who cares I need only the Contacts’ Code of honor and that you will endeavor to unflinchingly build the highest number of useless contacts with the most irrelevant of people thereby fulfilling the quest of the underground movement that you belong to –‘GOOSES’ (Group of Omniscient and Omnipotent and Securely Enmeshed Superhumans). Baroness Divey the world is now yours to serve…. :D…

Ps:and you’ve opened us up to a lot of uninvited, idiotic forwards that are definitely going to be in bad taste

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

New Year's eve- Down the years

2008-12-29T06:32:00.000-08:00

I thought it'd be kinda fun to list down where I was on New Year's eve in the recent past. Yeah, I know. I've done nothing special over the years. This list probably illustrates why I'm a complete loser.... sigh.....

31st Dec 2007- In Bangalore, BTM- Thairu's place. GB and Aparna had come. They were sharing a bottle of wine. As for me, I was working. I was supporting the year end for HDS! There was a major issue in autoinvoice. By the time the issue got resolved it was 2 am. Apart from that, It was an Annus Miraculous. I went abroad for the very first time. London. It was an awesome experience living in the place I'd read so much about! I travelled to Poland in November that year. That was my first taste of a white winter! I went house hunting for Divey and Suresh some time in July and found a fab house for them(I did all the talking). They still owes me a big treat for that! Sriram kicked me out of my room some time in March(No, Sriram, I'm never letting this go). I went on that fiasco of a trip to Mysore with Khanna, Sriram, Divey and Suresh sometime in November. We had trouble in just about every leg of the Journey. But what fun it was! The Bike trip to Ooty with Sriram was another unforgettable event! It was an awesome trip! On the whole, it was a good Year

31st Dec 2006- Bangalore again.. I was going through a phase then...... Another instance of my infamous mood swings! I was in Bangalore, Sriram's place. All alone! I think I was reading "The mysterious flame of Queen Loana", but I'm not sure... That week marked the end of a year after Bombay and TCS. I'd also been in Infosys for a year. Things were going great professionally. Personally, well, it could've been worse, I suppose. Divey & Suresh, Janani & Raman and Angie & Varun tied the knot that year. I've been close to all of them at one point of time or the other. So it was fun and a little scary. I mean all these guys were my classmates! An interesting tidbit- I started sporting the French Beard regularly from that year

31st Dec 2005- Mumbai! This was probably my best New Year's Eve. I spent the whole evening with Santosh and Lopa. It was great fun. At the stroke of 12 we were sitting in the Cafe Coffee day near VT. If I remember right, Lopa and I had lunch with Vasudha and that Sardar( Can't remember his name) along with Lopa's other friend and her boyfriend(What was I doing there? No Clue!). We had food at Howrah. After seeing off the others, Lopa and I headed off to Marine drive where we hooked up with Santhosh. We spent the whole evening Bitching, like we always do! With that start, no wonder 2006 turned out to be fantastic. Between Plays at Bombay, TCS training, Farewell parties, long walks over-crowded trains, CFA and the British Council, I came to the end of the year feeling completely enriched by the experience.

31st Dec 2004- I just can't remember where I was that year. Probably in Trichy. We were all placed by then. We must've had a party. Not sure. Sriram Just confirmed that we had a Kalai Kom Party. I must've spent the eve in the ditch opposite the LH, chatting with Janani :D. I'd spent the summer before in Delhi at Murali mama's place. Delhi was a completely different experience altogether. Got to know my cousins a little better. Although, the fact that I was morbidly at a loss most times did not help. I must've looked and sounded like a total bumpkin. But then I probably still do. I got to know Jan and Sriram and Lopa and Suresh & Divey a lot better that year. When Sriram and I got placed in the same company, wow, we simply let loose. Those 4 months after our placements are probably up there among the best times I've had so far in my life. All my friends were happy with their jobs. Half of them had found their future spouses at BIM by then. That was a Good Year too!

31st Dec 2003- Trichy again. First year at BIM. First time in a Hostel. Made some really good friends. I don't remember anything about that new Year's eve either! Again, Sriram claims his Kalai Kom organized something. Although like all of their parties it must've been extremely forgettable. . Anyway, I discovered Bobby Dylan, the Doors, my very first Crush, and Dhabas that year!

31st Dec 2002- Ranipet, at home. Stayed up all night watching those godawful TV programs. I was in the final year of Engineering. Although I had a great score in GRE, I could not apply. Tanked Machine Bloody Design, I believe, unfairly. I should have made atleast 70 in that paper. A re-examination put my score at 44, an increase of 20%, which was 1 mark below the minimum required. Anyway, I wouldn't be where I am if not for all the strange stuff that happened in that watershed year! I'd probably be making double of what I'm now!

31st Dec 2001- Ranipet, at home. Less than 3 months after the 9/11 blasts. I don't think the world was ready to celebrate, yet. I was in my 3rd year. I'd spent most of the time either in the College canteen or the library desperately eyeing girls that year. Although I did attend classes occasionally. I somehow managed to maintain an average of 75% attendance(The minimum)over my four years at VIT. We used to catch the 10D Bus, which was packed tighter than a can of Sardines, just to catch a fleeting glimpse of the pretty girls from Auxillium- A girls-only college run by catholic nuns.Oh, and we were late to class every bloody day! I wrote bad poetry and read really bad books. Coincidentally, that was the year I discovered Tolkein and Fantasy!Minnale was released that year. Almost the whole mechanical engg class was there! what Fun!

31st Dec 2000- Ranipet, at home.

2008-12-27T11:30:00.000-08:00

I never imagined that that would be the last time, ever. If I had, maybe, I would've done things differently. Every time I think about that weekend, I come up with so many things I could've done differently in the auto, on the train, there and then later back on the bus. I should have done the seeing off bit too. Or, maybe it was just too late.

I used to pride my self on my lack of regrets. But, that was a long time ago. I have so many now, precious, like prayer beads worn down with decades of use. Familiar, comforting, every one seared with so much yet bearing the traces of so little.... My memories have faded completely. Even the photos look unfamiliar and reminiscence simply brings me to a dark, opaque Wall. I can not call forth those myriad expressions or the soft flat voice even in the recesses of my mind. All I have are regrets- my own cracked and distorted reflections!

The Greatest movie ending ever

2008-12-26T05:13:00.000-08:00

Does it Matter?

2008-12-24T09:57:00.001-08:00

Well, this is an excellent article on the analysis of the traditional Christian arguments for the existence of God. Leaving, germane questions regarding the definition of God and the validity of using the traditional Judeo-Christian model aside, my question as the title of this blog might indicate, does the existence of God or Evolution really matter?

Consider this, first of all most of us know for a fact that we are never going to see God. Sure, we are hopeful that our righteous actions might one day bring us closer to God, but hoping is not the same as believeing it'll come true. Most of us don't believe we will even be able to feel the presence if god

Second, how much of our actions as the modern man is truly because there is a God watching over our shoulder?There are extreme circumstances, sure but by and large, is it not reasonable to assume that most of our actions are governed by what our conscience(read Social onditioning) dictates and the fear of getting caught.

Thirdly, one might say that there are certain people who would take advantage of others' superstitions. But, come on, think about it, does a con man need God to cheat. If it's not God, it's the invisible hand of the market or Aliens descending from outer space.

Yeah, so people spend too much time and money chasing after salvation. I say it's better than looking for consolation in a pub or spending eons in front of the Idiotbox!

Yes, before you ask me, the Terrorist Jehad is more a product of Socio-economic forces than any serious religious dogma.

Most of the atheists that I've had a chance to listen to talk about the need to know the truth and scoff at self delusion. If you want my opinion, the truth along with wit is one of the most overhyped commodities around. Do you want reality in all its manifold misery? What is it alll really about, when all our actions are as drops in this ocean of chaos and randomness(Even if we assume the existence of God!). Is life all about making the best of what you have and aim for the stars when you know the stars are just holes in the blanket and reaching there would only put you at level with million others struggling to reach the next hole over and over again? Not me, thank you. I believe life is all about trying to make yourself as happy as you can be given the circumstances. No point trying to break your back, simply relax and enjoy. Just Show me the way to the Buffet and Plug me in to the Matrix. If religion is the opiate of the masses, Can I get another puff?

Ah ha!

2008-12-19T12:43:00.001-08:00

These were Sir Geoffrey Boycott's comments on India before the Aussie rout...... Suck it Geoffrey... England will always be a very mediocre tourist... haha...hahaha... hahahahahaha... the right way to analyze this series would have been to compare the spinners of England and the Windies... Expecting Harmison, with the length he bowls is pure wishful thinking..... muhahahahahahahaha...

Harmison can blow away India's fading greats
A tour of India is traditionally considered one of the toughest assignments in the global calendar.

By Geoffrey BoycottLast Updated: 12:08AM BST 03 Oct 2008

Awesome alliance: England's quick bowlers, led by Andrew Flintoff and Steve Harmison can take advantage of India's ageing battle line-up
Yet I believe it would be a mistake for England to go out there next month with the aim of scrapping their way to a draw. This Indian team are in flux. They can be beaten if you go hard at them. And this is as good a time as any to try.
India’s new chairman of selectors, Kris Srikkanth, faces a huge quandary. The great Indian batsmen are long in the tooth and approaching the end of their careers. Some of them are desperate to prolong their international lifespans, not just because they love the game but probably because of the endorsement deals available. But none of them are the force they once were.
Think of that period in the early part of this decade when Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Sourav Ganguly reached their peak together. Shane Warne went to India three times and averaged over 40. They just batted him out of the game.
Which is very different to what we saw this summer, when the Sri Lankan spinners, Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis, got on top of the Indian batsmen. That series, which Sri Lanka won 2-1, will have had a major effect on their confidence.
There is much debate and soul-searching in India over who should play in the series against Australia, which starts next week. It is easy to say that the time has come for youth. But is anyone sure that the youngsters are good enough to take over? Or do the 'big four’ have one last hurrah left in them?
Tendulkar has so many miles on the clock that he picks up injuries all the time. Dravid, Ganguly and Laxman have been left out of the one-dayers for over a year now. It’s the natural progression of life: one-day cricket is a young man’s game. But if you look at the replacements, they’re not that special. Gautam Gambhir and Wasim Jaffer are probably the best of the next generation. Yuvraj Singh has been tried so often and found wanting in Test cricket. One possible scenario is that the experienced players are given a final chance in this series, only to be cast into outer darkness if they fail. And that could play into England’s hands.
Kevin Pietersen must tell his quick bowlers to go after Virender Sehwag, who so often gets India off to a flier. Sehwag scores fast and lifts the whole spirit of the team when he is firing. England have to get up his nose. Don’t try to bounce him out, because Indian pitches give batsmen more time to play the hook shot, but get the ball into his ribs. Get him tucked up and in a tangle. The key is to deny him the room to play shots.
The pace of Andrew Flintoff and Steve Harmison will be England’s biggest weapon, because the senior batsmen should all be vulnerable early on to quality fast bowling. OK, the pitches won’t give you much, so you have to be precise and accurate. But the way England have been playing since Pietersen became captain, they’ve got to think positive and believe that they can bowl India out.
The new ball is the key for Pietersen. England must make early inroads because their spin attack won’t be able to match Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble. Those guys are a real handful, match-winners on a turning surface. But if England can pull off a series win in India — something they haven’t managed since the mid-1980s – it will put a real marker down for next summer’s Ashes.

Poetry Picks-II - Sonnet XVII

2008-12-17T09:12:00.000-08:00

Feeling a little heavy today...... somewhere in the pit of my stomach... need... good... poetryyyy..... Neruda comes to the rescue..... This is a decent translation from Spanish..... Will I ever feel anything remotely akin to what he writes about?

I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz,
or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots off.
I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow and the soul.

I love you as the plant that never blooms
but carries in itself the light of hidden flowers;
thanks to your love a certain solid fragrance,
risen from the earth, lives darkly in my body.

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where.
I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;
so I love you because I know no other way
than this: where I does not exist, nor you,
so close that your hand on my chest is my hand,
so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep

This is supposedly better in Spanish, so if you know the language, Knock yourself out

No te amo como si fueras rosa de sal, topacio
o flecha de claveles que propagan el fuego:
te amo como se aman ciertas cosas oscuras,
secretamente, entre la sombra y el alma.

Te amo como la planta que no florece y lleva
dentro de sí, escondida, la luz de aquellas flores,
y gracias a tu amor vive oscuro en mi cuerpo
el apretado aroma que ascendió de la tierra.

Te amo sin saber cómo, ni cuándo, ni de dónde,
te amo directamente sin problemas ni orgullo:
así te amo porque no sé amar de otra manera,

sino así de este modo en que no soy ni eres,
tan cerca que tu mano sobre mi pecho es mía,
tan cerca que se cierran tus ojos con mi sueño

Notable books of 2008

2008-12-17T08:55:00.000-08:00

The NYtimes has come up with the list of the 100 Notable books of 2008.Here is the list of the books I'll be reading. I had to pare it down to seven due to severe constraints on the purse.

1. Atmospheric Disturbances
2. Netherland
3. The Sacred book of the werewolf
4. 2666
5. Bass Cathedral.
6. Dear American Airlines
7. The Lazarus Project

A Scary Glimpse of things to come....

2008-12-17T07:55:00.000-08:00

and so it starts

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Man_applauds_shoe-ing_of_Bush_held/articleshow/3849038.cms

My Tarot Card- A little uncanny, no?

2008-12-15T09:45:00.001-08:00

The Hermit

Prudence, Caution, Deliberation.

The Hermit points to all things hidden, such as knowledge and inspiration,hidden enemies. The illumination is from within, and retirement from participation in current events.

The Hermit is a card of introspection, analysis and, well, virginity. You do not desire to socialize; the card indicates, instead, a desire for peace and solitude. You prefer to take the time to think, organize, ruminate, take stock. There may be feelings of frustration and discontent but these feelings eventually lead to enlightenment, illumination, clarity.

The Hermit represents a wise, inspirational person, friend, teacher, therapist. This a person who can shine a light on things that were previously mysterious and confusing.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

The story of my embarassing Haircut!

2008-12-14T09:04:00.000-08:00

It’s a big pain living in a country like the US where you absolutely need a car, atleast in the first few days before you get a license. (The pain I mean, not the car. ‘coz it’d make no sense otherwise) It is agony if you are as lazy as I am. I mean, going out and grabbing something you like for a quick bite itself is such a problem! Adding on to this is the fact that the temperature in this horrid hellhole is subzero even during the daytimes and when it rains here it’s as bad as a urinary infection. As constantly wet and as irritatingly painful! Anyway, the weather put me off so much that I had deferred getting a hair cut just about indefinitely. One of the major reasons I’m thankful for being a guy is the fact that I do not have to spend too much time and effort on my appearance. I could get away with looking a little unkempt (the fact that it sort of props up my self-esteem doesn’t hurt). Hell, it even added to this act of a nerd that I think I play really well. But then after a month and a half without a haircut, notwithstanding the clumps of hair that I leave on the bathtub everyday and my terrible attempts at reducing the irritation with a pair of scissors, it just becomes too much. After putting off the inescapable for about a couple of weeks more, I got up on Saturday completely fed up with all the hair falling over my ears and decided to get rid of it. I‘d just got out of bed. It looked like a wonderful day. But I refused to take any risks and look at the temperature that is normally displayed on the desktop of my Laptop, (God, I’ve always wanted to say that. Anyway…) and Google mapped the hair dressers around my place. There was a “Supercuts” a mile away. I decided to go there. I dragged on a pair of Jeans and didn’t bother to change my Tshirt. It was half past eleven. I got in to my mud caked Nike and walked out.
I hate it how you don’t have pavements on most of these roads. If you can have grass embankments on the side of the road, why not have a walkway there, huh? Most of the grass is totally dried up anyway. I walked the one mile ignoring a couple of very prominent “don’t walk on the grass” signs and reached the place a Breathless and Sweaty. I opened the door and… well, where I come from we have middle aged, balding men with a shiny pate and an oily smile, so it was shocking to see two young beautiful women plying their scissors. A person’s hair is one of the most private things about him. Especially for a guy who doesn’t spend too much time with boring overhyped concepts like Hygiene. Hell, my idea of maintenance is shampoo everyday and damn the consequences. Show me one guy who isn’t sensitive about his bald patch and I will show you the Buddha. That aside, considering that I can count the number of women I have shaken hands with, in one hand and the fact that I’m a socially and sexually repressed 28 year old South Indian Virgin, even the thought of having a pretty young girl come anywhere near my early morning hair is Mortifying
Anyway, I was sweaty, looked like a tramp and my shirt should have been washed a month ago and looked it. Cursing myself and my perennially bad luck, I huddled myself in one of the corners with my jacket on and oblivious of the heat. Desperate for something to distract myself, I grabbed at the magazine nearest to me, which turned out to be a Cosmo. I replaced that as soon as I realized what I was holding and glanced around sheepishly. The guy next to me glared at me openly and dragged his kid from under my foot. One of the ladies came to the front desk and called out to me. She had one look at my hair and she said” this must be your first time here, sir. Please give me your phone number and first name”. I mumbled my phone number and spelt out my name. She left the “R”. So, I corrected her, slowly. “You will have to wait fifteen minutes. Is that okay?” she asked me. Did I detect a note of Hope in that? I’d come this far, I was not about to do this again tomorrow.”Yes”, I said, teeth clenched. Was that disappointment on her face? I got back to my corner and sat down and went back to my staring at nowhere, when this absolutely fabulous creature walks in. Black hair, with wide, full, red lips and honey colored skin. My god she was beautiful. She dumped her bag on one of the seats and removed her coat. Oh my god…. She was the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen and she is going to see me in this condition. I fervently prayed to all the gods that I shouldn’t be subjected to the humiliation of having to have my hair cut by her. The other lady, who spoke to me before seemed content to endlessly, cut the hair of a four year old. Damn it she was going to drag it long enough so that I had to go the new girl. Sure enough, the new girl walks up to the waiting area and calls for the next person. I jump up, cursing my involuntary reaction and the malicious Gods. I awkwardly get out of my Jacket almost knocking out the guy next to me. Next thing I knew, I was sitting on the chair and the lady was murmuring something urgently to me. I realized that I still had my glasses on. I pulled out my most embarrassed grin and tucked the specs in my shirt pocket. “How do you want your hair?” she asked.” As short as you can make it”, I stammered in reply. Silence. After a few minutes she held up a clump of hair and asked,” is this short enough”. Too embarrassed to wear my glasses and confirm, I simply grunted yes and went back to trying to avoid looking at her (In vain…She was hot)I somehow got through the rest of the hair cut and returned back home, without making too much of a fool of myself. I trudged back home after a round if shopping at Giants where I had this weird feeling that everybody was looking at me strangely. I got back home and my roommate had a welcoming grin on his face. “Super Cuts, huh?” he asked. “Yeah”. I got my towel from the bedroom and walked in to the bathroom. I Switched on the lights and looked at myself in the mirror and “oh My God….”

A Paen for Ganguly

2008-11-10T08:57:00.000-08:00

I’ve never been too impressed with Sourav Ganguly. I always thought he was a bit of a brat. Well, brat’s probably not the word; this man definitely had panache. But he is not a sportsman I idolize. Maybe he came too late for me to look up to him. My cricketing Pantheon (read Sachin, Kumble, Lara, Warne, McGrath, Donald & the Waugh brothers!) was already complete.

For all that, I still respect him, even if a little grudgingly. It is unfortunate that for all his heroics in the one-day game, he is going to be remembered more as India’s greatest captain. Between 1997 till 2003, there were times when he was the best Indian one day Batsman barring none, even the great Sachin. The very fact that he was able to match Sachin shot for shot even during the pre-tennis elbow days is a great testimony to Ganguly, the batsman. That 183 in Taunton in the second worst world cup for India since 1983 was one of the very few highlights of that horrible year. Which is why it was shocking when he was dropped first after the Greg Chappel fiasco and when Dhoni took over the mantle.

The first time was the bad one. Like any batsman, Ganguly had to struggle through a bad patch in 2005, but a batsman of his caliber had to come good sooner than later. Ganguly definitely deserved better. But, there was so much negativity during that time that he had to go. Too much had been said and done. I was for him to retire then and there. I freely admit that I sided with the celebrity-obsessed, headline-hunting, selectively-amnesiac, pandering-to-the-loudest media that called for his removal from the test team. I’d had enough of Sourav. The team was filled with his cronies and there was some genuine talent that was kept out because of his need to be surrounded with yea-sayers and the promise of great days had passed with the number of victories petering out. There obviously were others in the establishment who felt the same and the extremely public ‘defrocking’ of the high priest of Indian Cricket was followed with morbid relish. Ganguly was written off. He was relegated to the grind of the domestic circuit. We all thought Ganguly was out for good!

Boy, were we wrong! The most defining point of inflection in my opinion of Sourav was the ad that appeared sometime in 2006. It starts out with Ganguly asking if we had forgotten him and goes on to say “Whatever happened, why it happened, I don't know. I am practicing to come back into the team” and “Who knows I might get another chance to swirl my shirt in the air” and closes with “In the field or out of it, I won't sit quiet. I will cheer the team and so should you." My first reaction to this ad was derision, with my characteristic cynical sneer I proceeded to point out to my friends how far he had fallen. But, after I had to sit out through the ad a couple of million times during some cricket match, it suddenly struck me! I realized what a courageous move it was. True, it was a PR coup and probably not completely sincere, but can you think of any other cricketer who could talk about the most humiliating ouster of his career, the way he did. True the lines were probably written by somebody else and he had acting coaches, but, something about that ad struck a chord in me.

He was picked for the team against South Africa after the disasterous one-day series and there was no looking after that. He was the top scorer for India in that series. The two years that followed were peppered with gritty innings. The Prince of Calcutta had matured into Steve Waugh (Of course, I’m exaggerating)! I was impressed. It was absorbing to see Sourav fight his old demons (read the short ball) and discover some new one(The left arm spinner) Then, out of the blue, after the acrimonious Indo-Aus series, Dhoni managed to dislodge Sourav from the one day squad citing the need to improve fielding standards and blood youngsters as excuses, along with Dravid. I strongly feel that games are not won by fielding. They are won by batting and bowling. No matter how good a fielding side you are, if you don’t have the best batting or bowling on the roster, there is no way you are going to win. Case in point- New Zealand! For Christ’s sake, Sourav was the second best one day batsman of our generation. Why would you dump him? and that too for an obnoxious braggart like Uthappa? If you had to replace veterans, you will have to do it one at a time. Come on, Sourav is a better fielder than Harbajan! We did win the CB series but not because of the youngsters, but because of Sachin’s Brilliance in the two finals. Dhoni is no fool, so there must have been better reasons for Ganguly's ouster. It’s possible that Dhoni felt that his captaincy would be undermined with the divisive presence of Sourav in the dressing room. If that was reason, then I guess Dhoni is completely justified. This time, there was no way Sourav could get back in to the one day team. Successes of the Young Team in Australia and Sri Lanka precluded that. We realized then that it was the beginning of the end. The loss against Sri Lanka managed created a feeding frenzy among the press and the media began baying for blood. The outgoing selection committee decided to satiate the blood thirsty media and threw the easiest target in Indian Cricket then, to the dogs as a last gesture. Even his selection for the test series against could not hold back the end. The Ragnarok of Indian Cricket had begun. The Gods go away one by one. Sourav and Kumble are gone- one shining briefly before the end, the other- almost in disgrace. Three remain now! Dravid’s days are numbered; Laxman was always in the brink despite his brilliance; and Sachin, the greatest of them all is, after a slump, lighting up the heavens. Still, there is this feeling of imminent end for him. Truly, this is the “Twilight of Gods.” The Old order is passing and the new one cometh.

Now with Sourav gone, we will no longer see those glides either side of gully, or the self assured press conferences, sneer at his horrible slo-mo pull shot, read about leaked emails, groan at those ungainly diving stops in the circle or that relaxed saunter down the track for the singles, smile that almost tennis-shot down the wicket and the way he leaps down the track to hit spinners over long on and long off, cluck with disapproval at his relentless politicking. Indian cricket is poorer for losing all that. Cricket in India will move on. We already have to great finds, Gambhir and M Vijay with Rohit Sharma and Badrinath in the wings. Ganguly will no longer hog the headlines. He will disappear from the public eye for sometime and rebuild a life away from cricket and be forgotten as a sportsman.

Still, while his batting exploits and fearless, gritty captaincy will fade from that fleeting of all things-public memory, Ganguly’s legacies - a tough Indian Cricket team and the never-say- die attitude, look like they will linger a little longer.

My Retirement Plan

2008-11-07T06:41:00.000-08:00

The first thing I realized when I started working with TCS, way back in 2005 was that I inherently dislike Work of any sort. There is no greater pleasure for me than sitting back an doing absolutely nothing all day. From the very first day, I started counting down to the time I can retire and laze around all day, which, I believe is my natural state.

While I always knew I wanted to retire early, I had no clue on when would be the right time when I can do that with absolutely no compunctions about my future. Now, fortunately for me, I have been placed in situations over the last few years which, basically, was the right place at the right time. That meant that I seem to be doing fairly well in my professional life and managed to do pretty early what I set out to do when I started- earn a significant amount of money. No, I am not an ambitious person, and I know I am not going to become the CEO of Citibank or something nor do I really want to. A nice one room house in a hill station , with lots of good books, a decent Internet connection and pizza once a week is my version of paradise.

That being the case, I realize that I am in a sort of an inflection point where I am supposed to take a few momentous life-changing decisions. Although, I am still not sure what I want to do, I definitely know what I do not want to do- Work. So, rather than grope about blindly, I decided, to create a mathematical model, which would help me figure out the earliest year I can retire by.

So, I started with a set of assumptions, they were

1. Time value of Money should be ignored along with inflation and returns from savings. I figure, I can invest my nest egg at at least the going inflation rate
2. I will be single for the rest of my life and obviously I will have no kids
3. I wont own property
4. I wont even be working part time so will have no source of income once I retire.
5. I will have no source of income and hence will pay no tax.( I am also ignoring Capital Gains tax)
6. If I intend to buy a Car, I will need to buy it in the next 10 years and the maintenance will be negligible
7. Significant medical bills will be run up only when I am 50 and will be a constant Rs 50k/ year
8. I will run up a constant expense of RS 3,60,000/ year after I retire over and above medical expenses if any
9. I will live until 70 (I know I am overestimating. By a distance. Well, what can I say? I am going for the 'at worst' scenario here)
10. Even if I continued working, I will have to retire at 60.

With all this in place what did I find out?

If I manage to save 12 Lacs every year(Which is the maximum I'd be able to save if I stayed here in the US), I will be able to retire by the time I am 38. Wow! That's just 10 more years! Isn't that absolutely Fantastic?

To accomplish that, I need to do the following before I retire

1. Buy a house in a hill station. Probably in one of the more remote areas and a car. I should find some way to finance it. I will probably take a loan. Damn that would bite!
2. Get a job here in the US and stick to it for the next 10 years. Basically make as much money as its possible.
3. Cut down on unnecessary expenses.
4. Try and pile up as many books, music and movies as possible. If I am going to do nothing for 40 years , I'd better start collecting stuff to entertain me
5. Learn some basic electrical and plumbing stuff. That will help both save money and independence
6. Learn some art/craft/skill, like painting, sculpting or wood crafting
7. Cut down on bad food and stop abusing my body. I don't want to be sick and dying as soon as I retire. Believe me, I'm heading for an at least an Ulcer by the time I am 30, the way I am going
8. Learn cooking and basic tailoring
9. The last thing and by far the most important point- Do not, I repeat do not fall for a female. That will undo everything. Unless she is super rich and well you can divorce her and get some alimony. Considering the chances of that happening let's just stay away from women

PS: If you are interested in the calculation, I have posted it in the following link
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pf-dO1LoEZr23C3QSzT9tYQ&hl=en

Poetry Picks-I

2008-10-09T20:08:00.000-07:00

Okay, you've probably never heard of this one....... This one is by Wislawa Szymborska. She is a Polish Nobel Laureate..... This one's a very touching poem, close to my heart. This is how it goes

One Small star

My apologies to chance for calling it necessity
My apologies to necessity if I'm mistaken, after all.
Please, don't be angry, happiness, that I take you as my due.
May my dead be patient with the way my memories fade.
My apologies to time for all the world I overlook each second.
My apologies to past loves for thinking that the latest is the first.
Forgive me, distant wars, for bringing flowers home.
Forgive me, open wounds, for pricking my finger.
I apologise for my record of minuets to those who cry from the depths.
I apologise to those who wait in railway stations for being asleep today
at five a.m.
Pardon me, hounded hope, for laughing from time to time.
Pardon me, deserts, that I don't rush to you bearing a spoonful of water.
And you, falcon, unchanging year after year, always in the same cage,
you gaze always fixed on the same point in space,
forgive me, even if it turns out you were stuffed.
My apologies to the felled tree for the table's four legs.
My apologies to great questions for small answers.
Truth, please don't pay me much attention.
Dignity please be magnanimous.
Bear with me, O mystery of existence, as I pluck the occasional thread from
your train.
Soul, don't take offense that I've only got you now and then.
My apologies to everyone that I can't be everywhere at once.
My apologies to everyone that I can't be each woman and each man.
I know that I won't be justified as long as I live,since I myself stand in my own way.
Don't bear me ill will, speech, that I borrow weighty words,
then labor heavily so that they may seem light.

The Ten Best Songs Ever

2008-07-16T13:56:00.000-07:00

As with any list, we need to start off with a few ground rules
1. The selection and the ordering of these songs a purely a matter of personal taste. Basically, mine is the only opinion that counts
2. I have included only the songs that were released in the last 60-70 years
3. I'm restricting this list to the western and more specifically the Anglo-American canon.
4. I've restricted the number of songs per artist to 1.

Okay here it goes

1. Bob Dylan- Visions of Johanna
2.The Beatles- Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
2. Led Zeppelin - The Battle of Evermore
4. Pink Floyd- Comfortably Numb
5. The Doors- The End
6. Aretha Franklin - Respect
7. David Bowie- Ashes to Ashes
8. Red Hot Chilli Peppers- By the Way
9. Nirvana- My girl
10. Steppenwolf- The Pusher

2008-07-14T17:12:00.000-07:00

http://laughlines.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/07/13/hallelujah-im-a-bum/

Okay.... I am not going to say anything about the obvious Salary disparities .... My question is, how in heaven's name did it connect a continuous improvement engineer to a Bum?

Crash and Burn

2008-04-09T14:13:00.000-07:00

Have you ever seen your life crumble in your hands? I have seen my career crashland in extended slow motion over the last two months. I seem to be under a constant state of misery for atleast half a day! I dont think I will last long here. It's true you know- Murphy's law. Especially when things are not working for you! I am ready to give up, now.

2008-04-02T11:31:00.000-07:00

It has been two months since I wrote anything! Oh, and the last thing I wrote was a two linecomment on a Nytimes article.
You know, one makes these small compromises every day. From "Hey.. just one burger. How can that change anything?" to, "Big deal, so I am in a crappy job. But, it's a means to an end! I will write over the weekends". You never notice how they snowball in to this huge boulder around you neck, and you realize, you hate your work. Your body, why? Your entire life! I have been living in this state of absolute, unremitting anxiety for the last two months! I've had enough of it! May be it's time I made a choice!

NO MORE COMPROMISES!

Sex Life of a Tyranosaurus

2008-02-13T07:15:00.000-08:00

I had to blog this. I saw this on NY times. I wonder how the dinosaurian gossip columns would look like. Okay... I am not the only person with a crummy job
http://judson.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/12/a-tyrannical-romance/index.html

Paradise Lost....

2008-01-16T09:52:00.000-08:00

I am going to read atleast one book everyday and try and churn out atleast a 1000 words. Let's see how long I stick to this. I am starting off with Paradise Lost.......

I am going to be reading a lot of poetry. Why? because they are readily available with lots of resources.

After Paradise Lost, I will do Kubla Khan and Rime of the Ancient Mariner, then William Blake, Tennyson, Baudelaire, Dryden, Shelly, Byron, Hyperion and Endimiyon then TS Eliot, Bukowski and so forth

My literary jaunts will be appearing at
http://hariprasadsrinivasan.googlepages.com/

Redeye to San Franciso

2008-01-05T14:43:00.000-08:00

I'm now at the KLIA..... I'm actually on a Redeye to teh US.... More on everything Later.... Just didnt want to miss out on this opportunity!

My Ticket

2007-12-20T23:59:00.000-08:00

After days of frustration nay despair, I finally got my Tickets!!!Yippee! I am leaving on the 21st.... I will reach home on the 22nd. I get to spend a night and a day in Ranipet before I go down to Bangalore! Yay!

Next on my reading list

2007-12-19T05:23:00.001-08:00

Right now, I'm reading Hadrian the VII. I' m done with about half of it. But, the best is still to come. I was shopping in Oxford circus for things to take home to India, when I spied Borders near the station and absolutely had to go in. So, I finished shopping with Manu(my cuz) in a hurry, sent her off ( She had to go to a party anyway, and I bought lunch. So, stop looking at me like that) with a considerable amount of relief and sauntered in to Borders. Once in, I just couldn't let the crowd, the sheer number of people or the huge queue in the cash counter deter me. I was looking for something special. Something I couldn't get in India. Then it struck me. There is no chance I am going to lay my hands on anything by Alexander Theroux. So, I went looking for Darconville's Cat, an Adultery or Laura Warholic. Nothing! I guess we'll have to wait until January to lay my hands on one of those babies. However, I did manage to sight Sot-weed Factor by John Barth (I was looking for 'Letters'). How could I not buy it? I've had an eye on that one for months , now. Oh, I spotted the paperback for 'Against the Day' too. But, I will check that out later. First, I am going fo try and get something by William Gaddis. I was put off intially after glancing at the covers of 'Recognitions' and 'JR' because I confused the former with the movie 'Awakenings' , starring Robin Williams & Robert di Niro (In my defence the book cover looked remarkably like the expression Di Niro wore throughout the movie). I definitely did not want to read another book on the 'indomitability' ( Is that a word?) of the human spirit. I did some reading later and discovered that was not the case. Thank God!So, it is going to be Hadrian the VII first, then the Sot weed Factor, Recognitions, JR and then Against the day/V

Going Home

2007-12-19T05:02:00.000-08:00

I'm gonna be back home in about 4 days. The return flight will bring my very first overseas trip to a close. On the whole, was I satisfied with the entire experience? I don't know. what did I do in the last 4 months here in London?
1. I was working a few weekends. I realized that I love working alone, with nobody else in office. Blaring music and a few long distance phone calls on the sly were welcome perks.
2.The trip to Poland was fun in a way. Krakow is a beautiful city. I might go back sometime. That was my first experience with snowstorms. You have to get causght in one to realize how miserable it really is.
3. I did not read much. But, I did watch a lot of movies.Some were really old ones like Easy Rider, All about Eve and Dr. Strange love. I also managed to catch up with a few seasons of Friends, Scrubs and Smallville
4. Downloaded UT2k4. It has been an awesome experience playing it.
5. Did not see much of London or the rest of Europe. Inface I found out that I have no great interest in visiting places
6. I still dont drink, smoke or eat meat. This is an accomplishment for osmeone who has been in Poland for over a week
7. I'm still single.
8.Mom has started talking about marriage. But, she is her usual adorable self in going about this. So, what with the demand for girls, I need not worry about getting married for another 3-4 years
9. I am a misandros. But, somehow, I can empathize/sympathize with women. Why, then, am I still single? I guess the feelings aren't quite mutual.
10. I write a more often. Though most of what I write is junk and unprintable, it is a definite start. I do have a few ideas as well... Lets see how things shape up.

Thats about it, I guess. It will take more time for me to assimilate all this and decide if the trip was worth it. For now, over and out

The Republic- Quotes Part 1

2007-12-11T00:34:00.000-08:00

Interesting quotes from the Republic by Plato

no one is willing to govern; because no one likes to take in hand the reformation of evils which are not his concern without remuneration. For, in the execution of his work, and in giving his orders to another, the true artist does not regard his own interest, but always that of his subjects; and therefore in order that rulers may be willing to rule, they must be paid in one of three modes of payment: money, or honour, or a penalty for refusing.-Chapter 1- The republic

he who refuses to rule is liable to be ruled by one who is worse than himself. And the fear of this, as I conceive, induces the good to take office, not because they would, but because they cannot help — not under the idea that they are going to have any benefit or enjoyment themselves, but as a necessity, and because they are not able to commit the task of ruling to any one who is better than themselves, or indeed as good.
-Chapter 1- The republic

Yet is not the power which injustice exercises of such a nature that wherever she takes up her abode, whether in a city, in an army, in a family, or in any other body, that body is, to begin with, rendered incapable of united action by reason of sedition and distraction; and does it not become its own enemy and at variance with all that opposes it, and with the just? Is not this the case?
-Chapter 1- The republic

And is not injustice equally fatal when existing in a single person; in the first place rendering him incapable of action because he is not at unity with himself, and in the second place making him an enemy to himself and the just?
the unjust will be the enemy of the gods, and the just will be their friend?-Chapter 1- The republic

having given both to the just and the unjust power to do what they will, let us watch and see whither desire will lead them; then we shall discover in the very act the just and unjust man to be proceeding along the same road, following their interest,which all natures deem to be their good, and are only diverted into the path of justice by the force of law.
No man would keep his hands off what was not his own when he could safely take what he liked out of the market, or go into houses and lie with any one at his pleasure, or kill or release from prison whom he would, and in all respects be like a God among men.

let him be clothed in justice only, and have no other covering; and he must be imagined in a state of life the opposite of the former. Let him be the best of men, and let him be thought the worst; then he will have been put to the proof; and we shall see whether he will be affected by the fear of infamy and its consequences.

A State, I said, arises, as I conceive, out of the needs of mankind; no one is self-sufficing, but all of us have many wants. Can any other origin of a State be imagined?Then, as we have many wants, and many persons are needed to supply them, one takes a helper for one purpose and another for another; and when these partners and helpers are gathered together in one habitation the body of inhabitants is termed a State.

your dog is a true philosopher.Why, because he distinguishes the face of a friend and of an enemy only by the criterion of knowing and not knowing. And must not an animal be a lover of learning who determines what he likes and dislikes by the test of knowledge and ignorance?
Then persons of worth, even if only mortal men, must not be represented as overcome by laughter, and still less must such a representation of the gods be allowed.

if any one at all is to have the privilege of lying, the rulers of the State should be the persons
The saddest of fates is to die and meet destiny from hunger?21

I cannot believe that he was guilty, any more than I can allow our citizens to believe that he, the wise Cheiron's pupil, the son of a goddess and of Peleus who was the gentlest of men and third in descent from Zeus, was so disordered in his wits as to be at one time the slave of two seemingly inconsistent passions, meanness, not untainted by avarice, combined with overweening contempt of gods and men.

We will not have them trying to persuade our youth that the gods are the authors of evil, and that heroes are no better than men — sentiments which, as we were saying, are neither pious nor true, for we have already proved that evil cannot come from the gods.
deprives a man of the use of his faculties quite as much as pain.

There complexity engendered license, and here disease; whereas simplicity in music was the parent of temperance in the soul; and simplicity in gymnastic of health in the body.
men fill themselves with waters and winds, as if their bodies were a marsh, compelling the ingenious sons of Asclepius to find more names for diseases, such as flatulence and catarrh; is not this, too, a disgrace?

-Chapter 2- The republic

Pandora

2007-12-10T15:02:00.000-08:00

I just started using pandora. It is awesome! A very intuitive interface coupled with pleasing graphics. Best of all, no Ads. It's just too cool man.

Check out the screenshot....

Wish List

2007-12-10T05:46:00.001-08:00

Hmmm... one in six isn't too bad...... To think I had two of the three( Both the William Gaddis ones) within reach...... Well..... Soon...

http://www.catalog-of-cool.com/longwriters.html

More stuff
Hadrian the Seventh- Ordered at Amazon
Ulysses- I will finish it sometime
The Apes of God
At Swim-Two-Birds
Pale Fire- Halfway through- I will finish it as soon as possible
Gravity's Rainbow- Completed
Mulligan Stew.

Extracts from an Interview with Alexander Theroux

2007-12-10T05:40:00.000-08:00

Here are extracts from the interview with Alexander Theroux by Steven Moore from Center of Book Culture.org
http://www.centerforbookculture.org/interviews/interview_theroux.html
I really respect this man's ideas ideas. Compare and conrtrast this with my previous entry onJames Patterson.
AT: I put the writers of bumphable, ready-to-wear prose, calculated to sell, guaranteed not to shock, in the same category as artists who can't draw. There is a lack of bravery and a lot of fraud in them. I have tried never to write a book that didn't attempt something new in the way of narrative technique. Writing is an assault on cliche. I find little to admire in writers who make no attempt at originality. (I remember, among other things, effortfully working to make the perambulations in London of Roland McGuffey recapitulate the lines of the Union Jack.) It's death commercially, of course, but I knew from the beginning that I was too opinionated, literate, and unconventional to enjoy a widespread reputation. It doesn't bother me in the least. I've always been too busy to make money. I'm among the freest people I know.
AT: Write the books you should, be the person you are. I wanted to write a "roman d'analyse," for example, with "An Adultery." A new genre. Plot didn't interest me in the least. Character is plot, anyway. Start delineating a figure--merely describe a person--and he or she will begin to act, do things, go in a particular direction. I set the novel up as a syllogism and purposely wrote balancing rhythmic and arhythmic sentences. I think its rewards come only if you're willing to think, to come to terms with what I set out to question, sort through, analyze. (pause) Nothing there for the Leon Uris crowd--beach readers, military minds, people who flip pages to pass time. I wanted the book to be what it was, no self-promotion, no hook for a publishing scheme. There's a mystical passivity in refusing the entrepreneurial.
AT: Someone said there are only 2400 people in the world worth writing for, anyway. I wonder if that's true. But readers are so lazy. The several books I've written have won me no fame. I do not complain of this, any more than I boast of it. I feel the same distaste for the "popular author" genre as for that of the "neglected poet." I marvel at writers who write a book a year, approaching mass production. I apologize for not being terribly impressed
AT: All is never said. Knowledge is involved everywhere. You have to shape the truth. " Everyone applauded, and I'm glad he did," is ugly, but grammatically correct, while "I don't think anybody knows what they are" is the opposite. I'm only saying that we have to try to contest what we want to come to terms with, whether readers or writers. It depends on how much intensity a person has, how curious he is, and whether he or she wants to live a life of meaning. I have always tried to tell my students, especially those who every June apply to law school or business school in such a perfunctory way, as if, you know, those were the only alternatives -a condition abetted in the Ivy League by the army of secular and soulless mechano-moronic professors and deans who view education solely as a means of entering the labor force--that the point of living is trying to figure it out. My ideal reader burns with what Walter Pater described as a "hard gem-like flame." (pause) In any case, Tolstoi somewhere speaks of the psychological law which compels a man who commits actions under the greatest compulsion to supply in his imagination a whole series of retrospective reflections to prove his freedom to himself. It sounds a bit didactic, but it explains one aspect of writing.

Love Song of Alfred J Prufrock

2007-12-08T04:00:00.000-08:00

You know there are times when you are reading a book or watching a movie when, in a moment of epiphany, you realize that one of the characters is, uh, You.
Sometimes it's good... Sometimes it isn't exactly an edifying thing to find out about yourself. I had one yesterday. This would have been a blog entry if I had T.S. Elliot's gifts as a poet. Does everybody feel the same way when reading the poem or is it just me?
In one of the numerous analyses of this poem online, these verses were described as unfeeling. I couldn't disagree to anything more. This poem is the core of my being and describes my emotional state to the period and the comma.

http://www.bartleby.com/198/1.html

Melody????? What the heck are you talkin about???

2007-12-07T10:30:00.000-08:00

In music, a melody, also tune, voice, or line, is a series of linear events or a succession, not a simultaneity as in a chord (see harmony). However, this succession must contain change of some kind and be perceived as a single entity (possibly Gestalt) to be called a melody
Thank you wikipedia.

To all the Indians out there, your definition of melodious music is, to put it mildly, bull!. It does not mean the mellow, mawkish and weepy tunes you love and approve of. I can picture most of my friends, including the self proclaimed 'Intellectuals' claiming that they prefer melodious music to the shouting and screaming of Rock(Sic). What these smug know-it-alls don't seem to realize is that Music, like all art will echo the human emotional range. The only limiting factor being the the artist's talent rather than the plasticity of the medium. The different genre, atleast in music, can be mapped to specific emotions. Frankly speaking, I prefer the complications of fury, rebellion, passion and freedom that Rock represents to the shallow, wimpy 'melodies' which proliferate in the Indian music scene. If they want to emulate somebody, why cant they emulate stuff like Greenday? Why do you have to go and emulate people like Britney Spears and Jennifer Lopez. To all those who disagree, well, I think you either don't know what you're talking about or well, you are just full of shit! The next time I hear somebody saying'I prefer Melodies', I am going to punch that person in the mouth

Kindle rekindled

2007-12-07T05:11:00.000-08:00

I am not getting lazy.... But I came across something really disturbing in this article
http://www.litkicks.com/KindleLoser
Nope, its not the material on the publisher's covetous pricing strategy or the author's reservations about the reading fraternity being reluctant. I am sure the war generation felt the same about telephones and TVs.

What is really disturbing is the author James Patterson's take on royalities. Come on, this guy should be filthy rich by now and the totally mercenary attitude is totally unbecoming. I know every penny matters, but there are surely more important things than just the money. Writers, who are supposed to be the conscience of their generation, should definitely go beyond moot pecuniary considerations. Well, this guy is no Keats, so, well, no geat loss.
But, I find the comment in really bad taste and the fact that none else agrees is a sad reflection of the pervasive American Consumerism that is the Zeitgeist of this generation.

Anyway, I thought this one was funny. For the record I do love Pynchon and like Philip Roth and Franzen....
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=449302

Amazon's Kindle

2007-12-04T06:12:00.000-08:00

http://contemporarylit.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=contemporarylit&cdn=entertainment&tm=86&gps=133_133_1011_531&f=11&su=p284.8.150.ip_&tt=2&bt=1&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.amazon.com/

This is interesting. A portable reader should be fun. One can lug it around wherever and the choice available would be huge, not to mention the wonders it will do for the Rain forests and the book pirates. I believe that the future of books and reading is electronic and that a serious reading device is just around the corner.

However, I do forsee major challenges in the adoption of this technology. The greatest of all is the piracy issue. The publishing industry would rather choke to death than open their flanks to the book pirates. Secondly, the chances of a single format appearing for all ebooks are shot to hell. Why? because Microsoft is in the game. It has invested a lot of time and money on its pathetic microsoft reader and as likely to give it up as the devil is to give up Bush. Thirdly, Reading is a snob's pastime. Most book lovers are snobs. The common refrain is going to be either 'They don't feel the same as a physical book'( Obviously not!!! Isn't that like the whole point?) or ' I am not really a technology friendly person!(mostly housewives, pansies and idiots. Who cares about them anyway?). Oh yes, finally, the greedy publishers are going to be shortsighted as usual and overprice the e-books and are going to try and kill off the market. Why? Simply because the margins out of the traditional book business is definitely higher than what the ebook business can be. They cannot have different the formats(hardcover, paperback etc) either. We all know that the bulk of the revenues from a best seller comes from hardcover sales to Libraries and other institutions. Like they are going to kill a cash cow willingly! They will destroy the market by overpricing the e-books. But, the good news is that the number of devices for books in the market has definitely increased. That has to be a good thing, right?

Stranger in a strange land

2007-11-28T17:52:00.000-08:00

Just back from Krakow. I started from Novotel Bronowice at 5pm, Polish time and reached my place in slough at 2:15 am, Polish time. A 9 hour trip, which included a 2.5 hour flight, what seemed like eternity in the various immigration counters, hours of passport checks, a 45 minute wait in the Heathrow airport for a taxi at midnight in the freezing weather and a rambling coachride from Gatwick to heathrow. Getting to Slough from Gatwick, especially when you don't own a car is painful in the extreme. Oh, and there was this really irritating lady who took almost an hour to my 900 Zlotys to Sterlings. But, all said and done, the real pain in the backside was the amount of time I has to spend in the Passport checking counters. I mean what the hell do these people do for the hour and a half that we are made to wait for looking/ feeling like common criminals? Just because we dont have European passports? What bullcrap is that. I mean what do they have on their passport that I dont have? and I still dont understand what these people look for in the Visa when they stare at it for three quarters of an hour. For heaven's sake, first of all, the bloody embassy has granted me a visa after finding me qualified to enter their stupid country one week before. What could have changed in the last 7 days. Things in countries like Poland are even worse. An hour and a half wait in front of the bloody counter when those having European, British or an American visa sauntering in as if they owned the bloody country? Ridiculous. Why dont they spread their legs while they are at it. What's worse is I had to wait the same amount of time while getting out of their stupid country...... How silly is that...... Here I was in front of the counter, trying to find out what was going one when the Immigration guy looks at me as if I were a bug and disgustedly asks me not to peek in to his monitor... Yeah, dude its information about me you are looking at... if you can see it... I have rights too.. I mean I am entitled to look at what you are entering in to the system about me..... Meanwhile a hundred copassengers with European passports have filed past......
Well... What the hell????? Sod it all... I am glad to be back amongst civilization again.

Extracts from some lyrics that I love- WIP

2007-11-23T04:57:00.000-08:00

i'm sick of dour faces staring at me from the tv tower
i want roses in my garden bower, dig?
- The doors

Ain't it just like the night to play tricks when
you're tryin' to be so quiet?

And Louise holds a handful of rain,
temptin' you to defy it

The ghost of 'lectricity howls in the bones of her face

Inside the museums, Infinity goes up on trial
Voices echo this is what salvation must be like after a while
But Mona Lisa musta had the highway blues
You can tell by the way she smiles

The harmonicas play the skeleton keys and the rain
And these visions of Johanna are now all that remain
- Dylan, Visions of Johanna

You lose yourself, you reappear
You suddenly find you got nothing to fear
Alone you stand with nobody near
When a trembling distant voice, unclear
Startles your sleeping ears to hear
That somebody thinks
They really found you.

While money doesn't talk, it swears
Obscenity, who really cares
Propaganda, all is phony.

And if my thought-dreams could be seen
They'd probably put my head in a guillotine
But it's alright, Ma, it's life, and life only.
- Dylan, Its alright ma

So now I'm goin' back again,I
got to get to her somehow.
All the people we used to know
They're an illusion to me now.
Some are mathematicians
Some are carpenter's wives.
Don't know how it all got started,
I don't know what they're doin' with their lives.
But me, I'm still on the road
Headin' for another joint
We always did feel the same,
We just saw it from a different point of view,
Tangled up in blue.
- Dylan, Tangled up in blue

Can people Get any cheaper?

2007-11-13T08:36:00.000-08:00

Just when you thought people couldn't get cheaper JKR comes up with this!!! Disgusting!!!!!! Got this from http://contemporarylit.about.com/

J.K. Rowling Outs Dumbledore
At a Friday night reading from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at New York's Carnegie Hall, J.K. Rowling revealed that Albus Dumbledore is gay.
The revelation came in answer to the question of a 19-year old Colorado reader about whether Dumbledore had ever fallen in love to which Rowling replied, "My truthful answer to you...I always thought of Dumbledore as gay."
"Dumbledore fell in love with Grindelwald [an infamous dark wizard], and that added to his horror when Grindelwald showed himself to be what he was. To an extent, do we say it excused Dumbledore a little more because falling in love can blind us to an extent, but he met someone as brilliant as he was and, rather like Bellatrix, he was very drawn to this brilliant person and horribly, terribly let down by him."
The revelation prompted prolonged applause in the Carnegie Hall audience to which Rowling reportedly responded, "If I had known this would have made you this happy, I would have announced it years ago."

Futility- Plot Development

2007-11-13T08:08:00.000-08:00

I Got the list of questions from Elegant Variations. I am ansering this for Futility

1) The Passover Question: Why is this night different from all others?

Because it marks a change, a point of inflection

2) Who's my protagonist, what does s/he want, and what does s/he think s/he wants (it's not always the same thing)?
Me. And the Protagonist wants to be happy

3) What is s/he going to do to achieve these wants?
Dunno. Try and chalk up a successful career

4) Who's standing in the way of his/her achieving these wants?

Himself. Existence. Everything?

2007-11-07T23:23:00.001-08:00

I am staring at this blank, white screen. There is this burning desire inside me to write. To create some thing…. to leave behind something. Something more substantial than the faded receipts in the drawer and limp, worn shirts hanging in the closet. I don’t know where I am going with this spurt of key-tapping, but it is more than what I’ve done in quite some time. Although, given half the chance, I would like to write some thing meaningful, a piece of craft, something like the Gravity’s Rainbow, but I am too lazy…. No, wait. It’s not laziness. As long as I don’t actually attempt anything, there is chance that I might be good at it, right? You know what? The whole scene is like the farce with the Cat in the box? You don’t know if it’s dead until you open it. Did a parallel universe come in to being when I typed in Key ‘I’? Did million possibilities spring in to existence through that one single act? Is there a Hari right now, tapping these very keys who goes on to become a celebrated Nobel laureate or a cynical playwright, a philandering novelist, a budding poet? Why even another Shakespeare? If all these universes exist right now in parallel, does it not mean that right now, I am in fact writing my ‘V’? Does the fact that it is not happening in this universe make it any less real? But then, there could be this universe in which I picked up this laptop and smashed in the heads of the couple living upstairs. Should I be guilty of that? So, like that particle that turns when its partner is forced to turn, will what happens on those other universes affect me? But then, the theory of infinite universes has not really been convincing, has it? Thank God for that! But wouldn’t it be fun to go the other way from infinite universes and take anything that is as completely arbitrary and whimsical as reality and thrust it in to a quarantined and completely closed environment creating a Russian Doll like Hyper reality. A mental Carnot engine, if you will, which feeds upon our desires and fears and projects the reality limited to its own limitations on us? Maybe that’s what our perceived existence truly is. How many times in our life are we shocked by something absolutely unexpected? The ability of man to imagine something that does not have its roots in the mundane everyday is nonexistent. We all create things based on what we know. If that was the case, God could not have created us out of nothing. We are in fact his image aren’t we? But we can’t just be physical reflections. We might have similar mental faculties to God, right? But then, I am sure the doll was sure that the carpenter’s son had no life because the carpenter painted the doll with his face. The puppet may have the dimple but nothing else besides.

I am no Heathcliff

2007-06-10T01:45:00.000-07:00

Thank God for that. I have moved on. About time! In another moment of blessed Epiphany, I realized... You know what? Chuck it! I am lisening to our maid's sob story as I write this. With a dead husband, unnaffordable rents, Food on the table being barely enough for one let alone three, an unmarried Daughter, wayward son refusing to come home at night....... Well, I hold my peace... Anyways, I am not tossing about like a cat with its head caught in the milk jar. :)