Mad
February 9, 2012 2 Comments
“They deem me mad because I will not sell my days for gold; and I deem them mad because they think my days have a price.”
– Kahlil Gibran
Twenty Minutes To Nine
February 6, 2012 3 Comments
Sometime in early 2010, I was headed to a Technology Summit at the London Business School. I alighted the tube at Baker Street and stepped out of the station, admiring the giant Sherlock Holmes statue right outside. I think I was running late; I didn’t have a smartphone to guide me and quickly picked out a direction to head to. And considering my sense of direction is worse than a blind donkey, I ended up hurrying down the wrong street. I must have spent about twenty minutes walking down every road and then retracing my steps. But there was a silver lining. On one of the streets, on the stone face of a building, I found this:
That’s the thing with Dickens and London. He is everywhere, omnipresent in the city that he once called his “magical lantern.” It’s a city that has shaped almost every single one of his books, a city that has lingered in the background of every one of his creations. It’s the city where this characters have loved and lost, fought and conquered, lived and died. He walked the nights treading through the heart of London and his footsteps can still be seen. Everyone you talk to here can gush for hours about Dickens; the Dickens exhibition at the Museum of London is a sell-out. He is the author Londoners have always embraced as their own. He told London’s story, its emotions spoke through his words. And they love him for it.
I have read quite a few of Dicken’s books and he is my favourite writer from the yesteryears. I still think no book has a better ending than A Tale of Two Cities and if I ever start tracking the butterfly effects in my life, I am quite certain that I will find those afternoons spent re-reading every page of Great Expectations shaped quite a bit of what came to pass. It’s the master’s 200th birth anniversary in a few hours. And when the clock strikes twelve, I have decided to take off my wristwatch and pull that circular lever that sticks out. I’ll rotate it clockwise, watching the needles trace their usual path around the dial. And for the next twenty four hours, I’ll leave them at twenty minutes to nine…
Dear Boz, thanks for the words, thanks for the wisdom, thanks for the memories…
The Green Man
February 3, 2012 Leave a Comment
It’s cold in London this week. I’ve been ducking under my woollen cap when I walk back from office, hands covered in gloves and tucked into my overcoat. Tonight, I noticed that the footpaths were covered with grains of that brown rock salt that they sprinkle when snow is expected. They crunched under my feet as I hurried back.
There’s a road that I cross every day. It’s one of those streets where the flow of traffic isn’t constant. Vehicles flow through in patches, half a minute of cars vrooming loudly past followed by twenty seconds of silence. A push-button traffic light lines up on both sides. Those black and yellow pole structures seem rather unnecessary; even if you do push the button and wait, the flow of cars has usually stopped long before the light actually turns green. Most pedestrians just press the button and cross whenever there’s a break in the traffic. The light changes many moments after those waiting on the pavement have already walked on, forcing the cars that drive on a few seconds later to wait for a group of people who have already passed.
When I reached that crossing today, a woman and a child had just walked up to the traffic light a few seconds before me. The woman had three large Sainsbury’s bags in one hand. The little one was probably around three years old – chubby and cute the way only little ones can be. He wore a grey cap and his over sized winter jacket covered most of his body. The hood was pulled over his forehead and his fingers were invisible under the long sleeves. I walked up next to him and stood facing the road. A couple of cars zipped past in front of us. The cold wind nipped at my uncovered face and I pulled my scarf on tighter.
The flow of vehicles was bound to ebb in a few moments; I waited patiently till the last car passed us. A traffic light had turned further down the road and there would be no more vehicles for some time now. I almost took a step forward when I felt a pair of eyes on me. The little one was staring up at me. I looked down at him and smiled. He quickly turned to his mother. She stuck a hand around him and glanced at me. There was something in her eyes that I couldn’t quite understand.
The road on front of us was still clear. The cars had started moving at that traffic light to our right but I could still comfortably amble across if I wanted. However, I was in two minds now and I didn’t know why. The little one had turned to me again. It seemed like he opened his mouth to speak but then stopped himself. His round eyes were fixed on me and I waited next to him. I waited even though I could have crossed. I waited till the light finally turned green.
The woman held out her hand as soon as the light changed and the little one grabbed her finger. “The green man is here,” he said, “We can only cross when the green man comes!” The woman glanced at me, a satisfied smile on her face. She pulled at her son and they hurried across the road, the boy almost jogging as he tried to keep up with his mother. I nodded sheepishly and crossed the street a few steps behind them.
Still FRIENDS
January 30, 2012 1 Comment
A dear friend put up the photos of her first born on Facebook. My comment was – “‘I can’t believe one of us has one of these!’ :D”.
People quote great philosophers, intellectual thinkers, renowned leaders.
I quote FRIENDS. Still.
Meh.
Rant
January 22, 2012 Leave a Comment
This post is just to express how annoyed I am by what I can only call the dumbification of my vocabulary. Sometimes I play back things I’ve said in my head and it’s incredibly irritating. Everything is huge – it’s not large or enormous or gigantic. I always bug people – I don’t bother them, I don’t trouble them, I don’t annoy them.
You get the point. These aren’t even words that only exist in a GRE book. These are everyday words; anyone who speaks any semblance of English knows them. But I just don’t use them as often as I should in my everyday language. My writing’s better but I speak like a six year old. My sentences belong in an American sitcom and nowhere else.
What’s the point of having a vocabulary if most of it is just stored frozen in an ice box in some corner of my mind? What’s the point, really?
Welcome, 2012
January 6, 2012 Leave a Comment
Fifteen of us were dragged into a conference room.
“For this group, the exercise is over. Take in a sigh if you were at all worried. You can go about your business as usual. Any questions?”
I looked around the room. One face missing. No one even got to say goodbye.
There were no questions asked.
Life. I guess.
The Sweetest Songs…
December 10, 2011 Leave a Comment
Here you go…
First go and read the comic at this link below:
http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/spirit.png
Now read this one:
http://imgs.xkcd.com/blag/spirit_rewrite_unknown_author.png
Now, tell me this. Did the second one become more fulfilling because you had read the first one earlier? When Shelley said – “the sweetest songs are those that tell the saddest thought” – perhaps that’s what he really meant.
Must not forget
November 27, 2011 Leave a Comment
Must not forget.
Must not forget.
Must not forget.
Turning Thirty
November 25, 2011 Leave a Comment
I’ve turned 30 today.
I still remember the time I turned 13. I remember when I turned 18, later when I turned 21 and again when I turned 25. I remember them all, they’re important birthdays as per the ways of the world. But what I remember most of all is that I didn’t feel different in any way. It was somewhat disappointing to tell you the truth, they were supposed to be such big deals. But they weren’t. They really weren’t.
So, as I approached my 30th birthday and the customary F.R.I.E.N.D.S dialogues (“why God, why?!”) started doing the rounds, I wondered whether this one would somehow be special. It’s taken me the day to figure it out… and yup, this one’s different.
Thirty is one of those in-between ages. It’s too late for a quarter-life crisis and too early for a mid-life crisis. It’s too late to start worrying about an uncertain future and too early to be disappointed over a regret-filled past. You haven’t fully played your cards yet, lots can still be changed. You haven’t lost the game yet, the tide can still be turned. If you pause for a moment and look back, you can still see where you started from. You can still see that turn you decided not to take. You can still walk down that road if you want to.
You’re also more sure of yourself. Failure doesn’t scare you as much as it did a few years ago. You’ve had a few tumbles, a few falls but you’re still on your feet. You know you can handle it. You’re still young enough to take risks but you’re old enough to know which risks are worth taking. You’re young enough to be enthusiastic and old enough to be patient. Youth and experience have both planted their seeds within you, you’re slowly understanding how to use them to your advantage. You haven’t figured it out yet and you like the uncertainty. It’s what makes you tick. It takes you exactly where you want to be.
Yes, this birthday’s different. Coz it’s not depressing. Coz it’s kinda exciting. And I didn’t expect that.
It Can’t Be That
November 7, 2011 Leave a Comment
If we are to believe that there is a good and powerful God, it follows that we must also believe that there is a life after this one. But what of the departed, in this world? Are they gone from this world? Do they exist on Earth? I would say to you they do. Stanley Deeks will continue to live among us through the memories of his loved ones. He will be kept alive by those who knew him, those who cherished his gentle spirit, those who saw his life as we see all lives, as sacred, as children of God. To look on Stanley Deeks’ time on Earth, we must know there to be an afterlife. Otherwise, life on Earth is all there is. And it can’t be that. It simply can’t be that.
From The Practice, Season 7, Episode 20, Heroes and Villains
–
Stanley Deeks was a random character. The name is not important. The thought is.
Dance
November 2, 2011 Leave a Comment
“We’re fools whether we dance or not, so we might as well dance.” – Japanese proverb
Happy Diwali!
October 25, 2011 1 Comment
A random acquaintance on my Facebook feed had shared a “Positive Outlook” quote. It said – “Stop saying ‘I wish,’ say ‘I will’ instead.” I added a comment underneath it.
“I will you a happy Diwali :D”
And the dude didn’t get it!
I miss my friends the most when I crack a joke and no one gets it. No one rolls his/her eyes. No one shakes his/her head in disgust. All you guys, wherever you are, have a great Diwali :)
The Crazy One, The Unreasonable Man
October 6, 2011 Leave a Comment
“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” — George Bernard Shaw
Crazy times
August 14, 2011 1 Comment
It’s been crazy times at the office, trading volumes have gone through the roof. The economic / financial craziness is probably meant to stay for a while now. And I guess crazy times often also seem quite interesting. Most people I’m around relish challenges, it gives them the opportunity to excel, to demonstrate they’re good at what they do. It makes sense to an extent, when I was in Vendio and eBay had an outage, I loved the challenge of sorting out the mess. An acquaintance from BITS (now working in an investment bank) who is on my Facebook friends list posted a link yesterday about the ups and downs of the markets in the past week. The comment he added was: Fun time, this!
It took me straight back to Independence Day.
Dr. Okun: The last 24 hours have been really exciting.
President Whitmore: EXCITING? People are dying out there. I don’t think “exciting” is the word I’d choose to describe it.
Baba Ramdev and Me
June 10, 2011 3 Comments
I don’t support Baba Ramdev but I support the fight against corruption. I don’t support his specific demands but I support the idea of a corruption free nation. When I speak against Ramdev, don’t mistake my words to be an attack on the idea that he claims to represent. When I speak in favour of the idea, don’t mistake my words to be in support of Baba Ramdev himself.
It’s a thin line and all of us are struggling with it. Support the idea while not supporting him. Understand that and you’ll understand me.
Scala and Kolacny Brothers
June 8, 2011 Leave a Comment
Scala is a all-girl Belgian choir that performs along with the Kolacny brothers, who together are responsible for the musical arrangement of their compositions. You might know them from that haunting music in the trailer of The Social Network. That’s them.
Yesterday, I attended their concert at the Union Chapel. I stumbled upon it by pure co-incidence, I didn’t know they even existed till a few days ago. For a 15 pound ticket, I knew this was not to be missed.
The concert was indescribably amazing. I almost cried with Creep, my heart melted when they sang Use Somebody. Nothing Else Matters was just heavenly and The Beautiful People was just shiver-down-the-spine scary. Some of the originals were pretty good as well. It was an emotional roller coaster, it was exhilarating as hell. And most importantly, it never let up. Two hours of goosebumps are damn exhausting.
If you ever get a chance to hear Scala and Kolacny Brothers live, don’t miss it. DO NOT MISS IT.
10 / 10.
Democracy is the Matrix
May 21, 2011 1 Comment
I was randomly thinking about things and this thought entered my head. I dismissed it, I don’t really agree with it but I still think it’s interesting and worth blogging about.
—
Democracy is the Matrix. It’s this system of government devised by our rulers to give us the semblance of power. It makes us feel that we have free will. It’s a system of control that has been carefully calibrated to provide an outlet to public anger, but a type of outlet that can’t really change anything worthwhile. Not immediately anyways.
Take, for example, the recent events at Tunisia, Egypt etc. Those weren’t democracies. When the pressure started building up, there was nothing to control it. It reached a boiling point, people took to the streets, took up arms and the ruling regimes were summarily abolished. The ruling regime wasn’t protected by the democracy matrix.
Now, what would happen in a democracy in a similar scenario. Assume that there’s a democratically elected government that’s super corrupt. Maybe the ministers have taken billions of dollars in kickbacks. The pressure of anger builds up in the public. But that anger will always be channeled towards an election because a democratic electorate has been brainwashed into believing the high ideals of democracy. We have an outlet for our anger, if a government is corrupt, we won’t vote for them in the next election. It’s like that tiny hole in a pressure cooker that lets the steam out so that the boiling point is never reached. The public is under the impression that they’re in control as they elect the government.
But does the public really have control? Politicians stay in power by stuffing ballot boxes or by making alliances of convenience with each other or by making promises during election time that they won’t keep when in power. And then the anger builds up again waiting for 5 years for the next election. If it wasn’t a democracy, at some point the anger would boil over. But it doesn’t in the Matrix, because we think we have control. Sometimes, of course, we are indeed able to get rid of governments that we don’t want. What happens? The people who we got rid of 10 years ago are back. Coz they’re the alternative. They were corrupt then and we voted them out but now we know that the current government is corrupt as well. Perhaps these earlier guys have learned from the past, let’s bring them back, anything would be better than the current government.
And so we get them back. They shake hands with the outgoing ministers and go wink-wink. The plan of the Matrix has worked again. Don’t worry, you’ll be back again too. Give it 10 years.
—
To re-iterate, I don’t agree with this and some day maybe I’ll blog about why. But it’s still interesting…
Tips for a Roman Holiday
May 11, 2011 Leave a Comment
Expect chaos: It’s the kind of chaos that you wouldn’t expect in the capital of a “developed” nation. Or that perfect city that Caesars ruled only a few hundred years ago. Yes, those parts of the city built a thousand years ago are still awesome and totally worth it. But the surroundings… oh my God! There’s ugly graffiti everywhere, random stick on “bahumulya mat daal kar vijayi banavein” pamphlets deface almost every outward facing wall, even residential ones, even hotels! Especially in the northern part of the city. Even official notices in metro stations are simply pasted on the wall in cheap printouts. The metro system itself is unlit and dirty and the signboards keep pointing you to the wrong direction. It makes you feel really sad, they’re completely ruining the legacy of Rome.
Get a Roma Pass: If you’re there for around 3 days or more, get a Roma Pass. It might be worth it even for 2 days. You can get them at the Punti Informativi Turistici (tourist information centers) at both airports, Stazione Termini (the main metro/train station) or near many of the other tourist sites. All the details about the pass are here. Basically, for 25 euros per person you get a pretty helpful map and guide unlimited travel on the metro line and the local bus system for 3 days, you get free entry to the first 2 sites you visit (if you choose the Colosseum as one of the two, you’ve already recovered half the cost as entry costs 12 euros) and reduced ticket prices for all sites and museums after. There’s also a separate entry point for Roma Pass holders at the Colosseum (and probably other sites as well) and we saved a couple of hours of waiting-in-line time there!
Book tickets to the Vatican online: This is probably the most important tip. Go to the online Vatican ticket office and buy tickets to the Vatican museums (including Sistine Chapel) online. Seriously, make sure you do this. There are limited online tickets per day but if you’re planning a holiday in Rome, you’re probably doing advanced preparation anyways. So go to the site and reserve admission for yourself. Judging by the size of the queue when we got there and the speed at which it was moving, I think it would take you about 6 hours of waiting (and the Vatican gates close at a fixed time) before you actually gain entry into the gates of the Holy See. Guess how long it took us to get in with prior reservations. 3 minutes.
Diwali 2015
April 26, 2011 1 Comment
There are things I publicly blog about. There are things that are a little private and I blog about in password-protected posts. There are things so private that I don’t blog about them at all.
But then this blog is also about memories…
22 April 2011: The day Tauji was promoted from being the head of the Misra family to being its guardian angel. The day I realized it doesn’t always rain…
