e- Saraswati poojai

Happy Saraswati Poojai to all of you. For the uninitiated, this is the second-last day of Navarathri (Dussera) on which the Goddess of knowledge, Saraswati is honoured by a festive celebratory prayer/poojai. It is typical for people to place their study books, work-related material, musical instruments, bank documents and anything else that they need prosperity in, in front of a picture/idol of the Goddess and pray for prosperity. Other than that, pooja is performed for all vehicles and utility devices to pray for their running smoothly. This is part of the ‘Ayudha Pooja’. That apart, this is a very important day for kids too. Guess why? It’s the official break from study! Yes indeed… one is not ‘supposed’ to study on this day while giving the Goddess a break for one day a year while otherwise constantly seeking Her blessings to study well and perform well at school/work. As kids, this was a great day to celebrate. The parents gave us a voluntary break from the whole – ‘Go to your room and study for the semester exams’ sermon. In fact we were encouraged to see TV, catch up on the phone, play games and what not, while being served yummy feast including payasam, vadai, sundal and what not. Ah bliss… of course everyone knew that the break was for exactly one day. because the day after Saraswati Poojai is Vijayadasami; And that’s the most auspicious day of the year to start something anew. It is traditional to do a bit of everything you want to/have to do on this day because there is a traditional belief that you will continue doing whatever it is that you do on Vijayadasami for the rest of the year. Typically in south India, classes (music/dance/cultural) are begun on this day for it’s auspicious nature. And hence, we had to study, paint/sing/dance/blah etc on this day and it was just as full as activity as Saraswati poojai was void.

While back home in Chennai the celebrations remain traditional, living in Paris means having to improvise. So that means that the shlokas are crooning off Youtube. The only photo of Saraswati we have is the current desktop wallpaper (only just downloaded from the Internet). So the velakku (diya) is lit in front of the laptop which currently serves as a photo frame, the incense sticks shown to it (and also thus performing the poojai for the laptop as an ayudham (utility) – orey kallula rendu maanga (multipurpose single move), hehe). The prasadams (Pal payasam and vadai) are placed in front of this, so are the books, cheque books, housing lease and whatever other papers that could be found along with contraptions such as the cell phone, PS3, etc. This is the age of the e-poojai.

Happy Saraswati Poojai and Vijayadasami everyone!

Wordsworth..

Nope, I am not talking about the renowned poet here. I am talking about how the wordplay happens, sometimes unintentionally and how then it becomes the brunt of comedy or blog posts such as these. I was going through the Masters/PhD theses of many friends over the past few days. Before you decide that I am a complete geek, I was only going through the acknowledgment section of each one (by the way this is my best opportunity to brag that I made about 5 of those :D). And maybe because this is the one section that the advisors don’t correct and the one section that you have free reign, people often end up not reading what they’ve written. And that leads to some comedy of errors. Here are a few-

1. This thesis is dedicated to my late grandfather. May his sole rest in peace. This one had to have been checked. I mean, come on!

2. Last but not least I would like to thank my parents. There blessings have helped me get here. Here, there, everywhere.

3. Life would have been difficult  at Cincinnati if not for my fiends (friends). Really? You’d think it would’ve been easier.

4. If not for my friends who were my family here, I am not sure I would have been able to beer living here alone. Of course friends are responsible for beers. Cheers!

Well, there are more of course. Any bloopers you’ve come across that you’d want to share?

Say cheese

Just yesterday one of my colleagues was looking over some pictures of mine and happened to comment that I have a very natural smile. And this wasn't the first time I was hearing this. In fact many of my friends tease me that I can give a "Colgate" smile at the drop of a hat. But then they haven't all met SM. Some people are just naturals at the art of posing and at any given time can give you a totally authentic smile like it's the most fascinating thing looking at the camera in front of them. Some others are not so comfortable... and it shows. So this results in either a smile-free, serious-looking face which makes them look sad to be next to the person they are or a fake smile (lips smiling but their eyes giving them away). Both are equally unconvincing. At this point I have to mention the Friends episode where Chandler just can't smile when posing with Monica for their engagement picture.
Hahaha...

So here are my tried n tested tips (not that you asked) -

1. Work on it - This is the hard part - sometimes it requires work. Yes it's geeky, but if you want to look great in pictures, you have to give it 2 minutes in front of the mirror to get it right. Preferably this should've been done in your adolescent years when you anyways spent hours admiring/correcting yourself in front of the mirror. Mirrors don't lie. So give it a try (sorta like how SRK teaches Preity to smile in Kal Ho Na Ho - ok, maybe less creepier).

2. To bare or not to bare? - Of course this is with reference to your pearly whites. For some people, it suits them to show their teeth especially if they can frame their lips perfectly around it - think the world-famous Madhuri Dixit smile. It just works. For some others, the subtle closed-lip smile works just fine.

3. Smile with your eyes - This is the clincher really. Your lips could be pursed but if your eyes are smiling, you're smiling. Period. The clearest insight to our emotions lies in our eyes and it's fooling no one. So, for an authentic smile, it is completely imperative for your eyes to smile. How do you do that? This may take time or skill... But feeling interested about something brings that depth into your eyes... maybe you really are fascinated about something, maybe something's funny... be that as it may, you have to bring it to your eyes. And what emotion you bring is what distinguishes you from looking plain happy to sexy to brooding to angry to sad. So if you are just posing for pictures, it helps to widen your eyes a fraction and quickly imagine how you want to look in the photo the second it is being snapped. That helps your posture, your pose and most importantly your smile.

And that's your 2 minute guide to the art of smiling. Say cheese!

Stuffed tomato subji

I’ve always wanted to try this dish ever since I first had it at ML’s house and subsequently at some restaurant. It’s certainly not hard but I just hadn’t gotten around to doing it. Here goes – a recipe for stuffed tomatoes.. so this dish can be had just as an appetizer/snack by itself or as a side-dish with gravy. It doesn’t matter.. the procedure is pretty much the same.

What you need -

Tomatoes	4-6, reasonably firm
For the stuffing -
Paneer/Mozzarella or some cheese	100g
Garlic	3-4 cloves, finely chopped
Pepper	Freshly ground to sprinkle
Salt	to taste
For the gravy-
Onions	2 large, coarsely chopped
Green chillies	2, slit
Capsicum	1 medium, coarsely chopped
Milk	2 tablespoons
Dhaniya-Jeera powder	1/2 tsp
Turmeric	a pinch
Oil	1 tsp
Salt	to taste
Curry and coriander leaves	to garnish

As always, for stuffing the tomatoes, use your imagination. I actually used 2 spoons of leftover fried rice along with the paneer and the spices to give it some body.
Method -
1. Wash the tomatoes well and prepare them for slitting. What you want to do is to make the tomatoes into cups which you can then stuff and bake. So using a sharp knife, make a slit at the crown of the tomato and keep slitting clockwise (or anti) till you’ve made a full circle. Now you should be able to remove the top of the tomato. You may wonder why you should do this instead of just slicing away the top. The reason is that this gives it more of a cup structure and is less likely to crumble while baking than if just cut across. Reserve the tops as they assist in quick baking.
2. Using a spoon, scoop out the pulp from the tomato leaving behind the empty tomato cup. Do not throw the pulp away. Collect the pulp from all the tomatoes you plan to use.
3. For the filling: Just mix all the ingredients you plan to stuff your tomato with in a bowl, divide them evenly and stuff each tomato cup with it till 3/4th full. I like to leave some cheese on top of all the filling because it looks pretty when it’s baked. So this is what you should have -

4. Now before you prepare the gravy (if you are going to), shove the tomatoes into the oven with their ‘tops’ on at 180°C for 20 minutes to bake. Voilà – Notice how the tomato is cooked well enough to crack it’s sides. You could stop right here if you’re just serving this as a snack.

4. For the gravy: Shallow fry the green chillies, onions, the capsicum and the tomato pulp you used in oil for a few minutes till everything’s cooked. Season with salt, dhaniya-jeera powder and turmeric. Set aside till it has cooled down.

5. Grind the mixture into a coarse paste adding milk to it to give it a creamy texture. Add water if required till you get the desired consistency.
6. Heat it to a boil once again the saucepan and set aside. The tomatoes that have baked can now go in.
7. Garnish with coriander/curry leaves and serve with fresh white rice or chapathis/parathas.
Bon Appétit!

Moving

Out come the boxes
With crackle of duct tape
And so much stuff in excess
Is there no escape?

Stacking and packing
There is no respite
Cleaning and dismantling...
Will last many a night.

Ooh, it's just the beginning
For we have to do it all again
I mean the unpacking
To be done God-knows-when!

One thing's evident
I hate to move
Oh what do I tell ya
It's just not my groove.

PS: Happy 10th "anniversary" fellow F-Batchmates of HCE! Can't believe it's been 10 years since we all met each other. Cheers!!

Comments anyone?

Well well... here's where we get to the heart of the blogger's world. Comments. Without the comments, it seems almost unacknowledged that your blog gets read at all, but for the Statcounter that sits there proclaiming that 150 people have visited your blog in a single day. That sounds great... but with no comments, it's hard to tell if people enjoyed or cussed your blog for it's contents. Well, the bigger person may say that they don't care and that they use it as an outlet for their emotions, blah.. but we know that in every bigger person, there hides a tiny little part that wishes that people would just comment! And it's not a big ask, considering that we're the ones who sit n dole out every aspect of our lives for dissection while the rest of you only have to put in some words of encouragement, support, acknowledgement or in pertinent cases, make relevant contributions to the discussions in question.

Of course I realize that not everyone will enjoy everything you write about. But does that authorize them to leave anonymous one-liners that neither relate to the content of the post nor do justice to the rest of the stuff you've written about? I don't think so. Like my friend Gandalf pointed out in the comments section of the previous post, if you have nothing good to say, you should probably say nothing at all. And this is strictly in relevance to unrelated comments that contribute nothing to the content of the post. On the other hand, a healthy debate about some discussion is more than welcome and we've seen it happen in quite a few topics in the past. So does it make me vain if I delete these anonymous comments that are plain derogatory? Probably. But it's in keeping with the fact that these comments are left anonymous for a reason. Does that sound reasonable? No anonymous comments on this one please.

Being Jaya

I saw this movie called Julie and Julia yesterday. To make short of the story, it's about how one woman makes a life out of challenging herself into trying all the recipes written by a famous chef within 1 year and keeping it up by creating a blog. It charts her triumphs, her meltdowns and how she thinks that she is the center of the universe and how she is more worried about disappointing her readers than herself. It set me thinking. It is so true of almost everyone who blogs, I guess. Not always for the disappointment factor, but also for the treading-the-fine-line factor, especially on sensitive issues.

The weird thing about having a personal blog is that it's not really a personal space. But it is something I've chosen to share with everyone, not something I've been forced to. Over the course of MindBlogging, I realize that I have expressed my views over a variety of things/incidents/experiences, blah. And of course there are 2 sides to every coin. While some people agree with my view point, others don't. And that's perfectly alright. There's a reason this is my blog. It's about my thoughts (sorry about center-of-the-universe vibe). And unless you're me, we can agree to disagree.

The ripple effect

Loose definition: Sorta like a Mexican wave that spreads around from the place it started.

Ah, have you noticed something? Many bloggers aren't writing all of a sudden. Confused? Scroll down to the 'I spy' section on MindBlogging (find it on the column on the right) and look under each blog to see when it was last updated. These are the blogs I "follow". Apart from a couple of updates (after more than a few weeks), the rest of the bloggers and inadvertantly the blogs, have reached stagnation. Now scroll up to the part of MindBlogging's archives. See the dwindling number of blogs from hale n hearty June to now? It's begun crawling.. And I assure you that apart from me actually having been busy and out of the country and on vacation and stuff, a part of it is certainly attributed to the ripple effect. Everyone else has given up writing and my own motivation to keep the wheels moving is winding down. Earlier I used to find bloggables on all sorts of situations... now I am having to hunt.

Come on fellow bloggers... let's rise again!

For the people who came here hoping to read something fabulously interesting, I am sorry. But here's a peace offering. I promise you won't regret reading this one - 20 weirdest craigslist ads of all time. Enjoy!

That elusive balcony

Forever it's been my desire
To watch life go by from some place higher
And how it skipped me is a mystery
That elusive balcony.

To sip my chai undeterred
Even as my mind wandered
How I wish that could be
But for that elusive balcony.

To always live on the ground floor
Oh no, what a bore..
Through apartments aplenty across many a city
I haven't yet had that elusive balcony.

Surely next time I hope n pray
That finally fate will give way
And so it will come to me
That elusive balcony.

Of flattery and tomfoolery..

Surely you've gone for a haircut sometime or the other. Let's be honest. At least 50% of the people I know of aren't satisfied with their hair. Be it length, texture, colour, style... If it's straight, you think its drab, if it's curls, you think it's messy. There is a greener side to most arguments. But what happens when you sit on the hairdresser's cutting throne? The hairdresser runs his/her expert fingers through your not-so-satisfactory hair and mumbles under his/her breath - you've got such nice hair. Those golden words. They vary with every customer. For me, it's always been - You've got such beautiful natural curls. So many girls would kill for them. At that instant, you want to believe them. You want to be vain enough to think that maybe to someone else's non-critical eye, your hair looks good. Now substitute hair for just about anything else - eyes, clothes, shoes, blah. It is true that somethings start to feel better once it is appreciated by someone else. Take the birthday present you don't like but everyone else is gushing over... take the movie you hated but everyone's all praises for - you start to wonder if your mood wasn't right to appreciate it. That figment of doubt is what makes everything seem brighter the second you have someone else's approval. That which is desired by someone else makes something entirely desirable. Ofcourse the purist would argue that this is mere insecurity and that one should be able to tell the difference between what's good and what's not for themselves without being influenced by other people's opinions. But let's face it... who is that secure of their judgement? A very few. The rest of us just rely on our basic instincts and the reflections of those close to us. And there's no need to be a realist at all times. Indeed, what's so wrong in getting a boost of confidence from some harmless flattery? Nothing at all.

Not single, hence not ready to mingle?

I had a rather interesting discussion with a friend yesterday. Whilst talking about something else, he pointed out that I had no real friends in Paris... as in, none that were my own. I'd just walked into S' friend's circle and sort of adopted them. Of course, that was true. And I started thinking about it a bit myself. True, I didn't have any chaddi-buddies here... add to it that I walked into a country with as less Indians as I've seen (btw none in S' close circle has taken a wife yet). So make that no girls in the hang-out gang. And my PhD isn't exactly conducive to making a tonne of friends either. With no classes, I have no purpose to hang around with everyone else after school hours - no assingments, nothing to study for, nothing. And the main thing is that all my colleagues (and me) have lives to go back to and this isn't like grad school where most people were yet unattached, all alone in the country and had time to kill in the evenings. Then of course, there's the mild language barrier and yes, so that makes it no real friends here.

Once I began thinking of it obsessively I started panicking a bit. Could it be really that because I was now married and had a husband to go home to, I was no longer new-friend material? Then I started talking to VR and SM about it. We concurred that after marriage our friend expansion had dwindled. But there was something else. Now that we were in couples, we looked forward to making new friends together. That restricted the number of interactions. But the biggest epiphany was this - I was content with the friends that I already had. It didn't matter that they were in the US or in India. I already had a certain number of absolutely tight friends with whom I shared everything no matter what their location geographically and I realized that at this stage in life I wasn't going to make any new friends who would eventually match up to the ones I already had. As VR pointed out, we were past the stage where all the life-altering changes had taken place- living alone, getting married, blah and we'd shared each of these experiences in parallel with one another and the bond that held us together was very strong. I was just happy with the chance encounters with a few and became friends with a handful whom I only met where we first met. Though probably vaguely related, marriage wasn't the real culprit. Maybe I'd just maxed out after the trillion friends' circle over the years. Or maybe the two were related. That was the epiphany.

Hit n run

Hit-on: The slang for being approached by someone at the outset with not-so-platonic intentions.

Have you ever been hit-on by someone? No, I mean, really... And this question is no longer restricted only to the female folk.. The women these days have become as brazen in their ways and do not hesitate hitting on the men either, though I must admit they probably have more class than most men. I am not here to discuss the "art of hitting on someone". I am here to discuss the repercussions. Who's more embarrassed? The person being approached or the approacher? Logically you'd assume it's the "approacher" considering they are making the first move. But after a few incidents, I am convinced that's not the case. Almost after "incident", everyone I know of is left embarrassed wondering what it is about them that they are singled out to be hit-on by random people? And I don't know if the rejection makes them squirm, but it sure doesn't make you feel any hotter (in most cases). So while discussing a recent "incident" that happened to a friend, we decided we didn't understand it entirely. So, help me out here. Have we not understood the concept of the "hitting on" game? Take this snippet of conversation for example -

Him: Hi, my name's XYZ. What's yours?
Her: Do I know you?
Him: No, but I'd like to.
Her: Sorry, I don't talk to strangers.
Him: We won't be strangers if we became friends and went for a cup of coffee.
Her:@éè(-&_"(__çé'&çà_'_@àèa'-è_é-'è_&é"(è'&é'&à'è²
Him: What's your phone number?
Her: Excuse me?

Is it this the usual way? Is it so cut and dried that people no longer have the interest in finessing things over? No chance meetings... no small talk, just a cut to the chase. In some ways this is probably better. All the chance meetings and small talk might otherwise create an illusion of "friendship" which most certainly doesn't exist (look at all our Tamil movies for examples - most plots are chance meetings ending in sappy love stories). Does it happen in real life though? Or are all these moves inspired by movies? (I used to think it was the other way around). Maybe it does or maybe that's what the "approachers" are hoping for. And hey, they'll probably never find that elusive person unless they hit-on everyone else in the vicinity. And that means that people like us become the carnage along their road to their dating destiny.

The realization...

After 18 solid hours of my ill-informed resolution, I realized the most painfully obvious thing - I wasn't addicted to the internet at all. I had nothing better to do! Today, with all the IMs logged out, FB never opened, 10+ news websites browsed past, I got it... I wasn't online because I was addicted. I was online because it was available and effortless and let's be honest, during the first week of school, I had nothing better to do! So, I go back on my resolution (the premise has collapsed) and all you people who missed me for one whole day, can see me back. Au revoir!

PS: For all the wise folk, who didn't join me in my silly "resolution", good job!

Techno-lite?

Is it possible to go lite on technology with everything that we are used to at this stage in our lives? By that I don't mean going into antediluvian realms of writing reports on actual office paper and using calculators to make scribbly calculations on the margins. I mean something far simpler.. Logging off all the IMs, the Orkuts, the FBs (sorry, Blogger isn't included) for a week... perhaps not touching the laptop at home unless a 2-time email-check break per evening (yeah yeah, I realize there are a lot of concessions on this whole thing but you can't go cold turkey!). I remember my brother surviving an entire month like that. I am only going to try this for a week from this Friday to the next, to try and purge my system from the unwanted net-addiction. I bet it'll put things in perspective for me and show me what I need to survive and what I really, really don't.

Anyone else in on this with me? Do leave a comment.
PS: If you want to reach me, GMail me (no GChat for the next one week at least)!

New-age "writers"

At the pace technology is going, I am afraid that none of our children are going to identify with the art of "writing". And by this, I don't mean the content of the text, the grammar, the puns, the insinuations or none of the finer nuances that make a good write-up. I mean, quite literally, the process of "writing" itself. Though every article/blog or anything has been made out to be a "write"-up, isn't it really just a type-up? The other day I was trying to write a letter (snail-mail) to someone and I found that after about 4 lines of my neat, semi-cursive hand, my wrist had an annoying ache which I've never had in my days of 20+ pages Madras University answer sheets. And on closer inspection, my handwriting was progressively deteriorating. After just 4 lines. It was shocking how used to typing I was now, that my hands refused to hold a pen long enough to complete a letter. If after over 20 years of actual writing, the past few have obliterated the need to, I can't imagine how our next generation is going to be... And to think I was big on ink-pens and had a collection boasting Sheaffer, Waterman, Parker and what not. Good that I gave it all back to Appa who bought them for me in the first place. At least I know that the generation before us are still used to scribbling on notepads and writing out lists and sending out postal letters. In fact my bro n I used to go stationary-shopping in Kuwait where my father was and bought all sorts of fancy notebooks (the paper variety and not the trendy laptops) and what not. And that's how I started writing a journal in the first place. And remember those 4-line books? The ones that were the practice books for cursive writing? I won't be surprised if they are out of production by the time the next generation goes to school. Somethings are best left unchanged... and writing particularly has a big, old-world charm to it, something the future isn't going to appreciate much. Sigh!

Truth or tale?

Are you one of those people who makes conversation with the person sitting next to you on the airplane/train/bus out of sheer boredom? I am. Many times I extend the first arm of conversation with the person next to me and then act off their reaction. Thankfully on long flights, no one is complaining for some chatting company and are typically content with some small talk that anyone is willing to offer... more so on the ancient Air India flights that lack a personal entertainment system, leaving the interested few craning their necks to glimpse the teensy TV sets that drop off the roof of strategic seats. Almost all of the time I am very honest about everything I tell the people about myself, mainly because it never occurred to me to fabricate anything on-the-go. But this time I was thoroughly bored on one of my shorter connecting flights and decided to give my imagination a go. More so because the person next to me went on and on about how Indians were incapable of doing "different" jobs and how we were all stereotypically only Engineers these days. And how Engineers led to IT jobs led to India's inflation and now the recession. After that, I didn't want to admit to being an Engineer. Hence, meet Jayanti Parasuram, food photographer for the Food Network in India, now travelling to Delhi for an assignment with the Taj for their annual Gujarati food festival. And so it began. Having chosen a very different tale to tell, the interest from my co-passenger was high and my prospects for spinning the tale in random directions even higher. Some questions I loved to answer - Do I get to taste the food? What happens to the food after we've photographed it? The answers? Your guess is as good as mine.

Bye bye India..

Isn't it typical? It always seems as though the time you countdown to a trip/vacation lasts much longer than the trip itself. In my case, I have little to complain considering my India trip was 30 long days in duration. Even still, it flew. I can't recollect exactly where I've gone, whom I've visited or what I've done during the trip... but it's over and I've reluctantly packed (and as always exceeded the baggage weight allowances - but this time blame it on Air India who allow me to check in 1 bag of 20kg). And I have just a little over one day to go in precious India... I have done everything I've wanted in this trip - spent all my time with family, eaten all the Indian goodies I've wanted to, caught up on a few precious books, updated myself on mega-serials (no, I didn't want this one.. but these are side effects of the India trip). I've not done a few things I've meant to - call many people and inform them that I am in India and now it's too late - I'm leaving. None of my friends are in Chennai anymore and hence I didn't meet a single person. I didn't travel out of Chennai to visit any of my relatives (blame that on Swine flu), etc. As always there are a few "could-have-beens" and a few "maybe-ifs". Ah, forget about all that.. let's be honest - I had a total blast. I maxed out my time with my family, was able to aid my Paati in her time of need. Now I suppose I am completely refreshed and recharged to pounce back on my PhD work and give it my all. And did I mention the brightest part of going back? My S is out there waiting. :)

Happy Birthday Ganesha..

Happy Pillayar Chathurthi to everyone! Incidentally, it's Happy Birthday Chennai too! Yes, Madras/Chennai turns 370 years old today but I am not going to ramble about the city's statistics in this post. This post is just a synopsis of my festival-ridden vacation month here in Chennai. It never struck me when I was young that all these festivals occurred pretty close to one another or maybe I didn't care because of all the holidays we got starting with Varalakshmi Nombu, followed by Avani Avittam (which occurs in Aadi, by the way), Gokulashtami and culminated by Ganesh Chathurthi... It's only after growing up a bit (or maybe it has something to do with marriage) that I've realized that apparently Aadi (the tamil month corresponding to mid-July to mid-August and is probably called something else in each of your respective linguistics) is inauspicious for conducting any major "good" function like weddings or grahapraveshams or the likes of it. And because we Indians (read Tamilians if you will) are a well-renowned lot of foodies, Aadi got ridden with all these festivals during which the pious junta make all the goodies from kozhakkattais (modaks) to vadais to what not.. Ah yummy.. As they say, we only need an excuse to eat.. and devotion is as good as any other reason. If you can't go to weddings for a plateful of food, make it a festival to invoke your own devotion. Do the neiveidyam (the practice of offering the food to God first) during which you think you're pleasing the poor Gods (who obviously don't eat anything) and then feed yourself. Foodies rule! Happy Eating!

PS: This post is in jest and not meant to hurt anyone's religious sentiments.

The Friendship Ebb

Well, we've all heard about the "web of friendship" - that impenetrable fortress that forms around you and your precious friends circle. But have you experienced the "ebb" of friendship? No? Try getting busy for over a year, then consider getting married and then try contacting your friends. Suddenly there are gaps in conversation that were unthinkable back in the days you spoke for hours together even when you spent the entire day in one another's company. You don't share that common thread that held you together anymore. Of course a special few transcend this phase and stand the test of time. But not all make it. And it's not a walk in the park once you run into those people. Sure there's stuff to talk about but it's so not like before. The pauses are very obvious, as is the lack of common ground or the interest in the new pursuits of the people involved. If you are someone with a knack for small talk, then that works a bit. If not, both of you suffer through the ordeal counting the seconds to a decent interval at which you can make an excuse to get the hell out of the place. After one of these encounters I was a touch sad. I guess that's where the social networking sites like Facebook, Orkut help the others just keep aware of what's going on at the minimalist level and beyond, for the more snoopy ones. On the brighter side, it's the encounters like this that make you treasure the really close ones. And probably makes it worthwhile.

The lighter side of Swine Flu

Well... that's all that's hogged all the news headlines for the past few months - Swine flu. What??? You don't know what that is? You might as well read about it here. In India, there seems to be a late outbreak and well, people are panicking left, right n center. I do completely mourn the unnecessary loss of lives from not taking the necessary precautions. On the other hand, I find it utterly hilarious how people have been reacting in the name of "precautions". I guess the guideline would be to report any symptoms of flu - fever, nausea, throat infection, diarrhoea, running noses, watery eyes, blah to the doctor and get it ascertained that it is not H1N1. The people, however have taken it to a whole new dimension. They wear masks for no reason (though every bulletin clearly states that the infected people are the ones ought to be wearing it).. the schools are shut down for over a week to-be-safe, and here's the crowning thing - pigs are being hunted down and killed.

The other day, we were going to get my Paati checked by an ENT (Ear-Nose-Throat) specialist in our area. This was right after they'd announced that you'd rather avoid huge gatherings or very crowded public places, etc as a precaution to getting infected. Needless to say, at the doctor's office, no less an ENT at that, the crowds were ominous-looking and regarding each other with fear and suspicion over the face-masks that they'd donned (and no, it was not a clinic-enforced requirement), with their eyes darting furitively from one another trying to zero in on a possible swine-flu-infected candidate.. This doctor is very renowned and I have never seen under 15 people at any time in queue for an appointment. This day though, surprisingly there were under 10. Oh, did I mention that I have sinusitis? And that it manifests in me by making me sneeze in rapid bursts at random times? Well, I guess this was as good a time as any for my sinusitis to attack me... and there I was.. sneezing 3-4 times in quick succession(with a hanky) and I wasn't even the patient! In no time, the 5 people ahead of us had vanished and we were the next ones in! Bless sinus!

The other time this happened was at the Delhi airport. I suppose the cabin pressure had something to do with it or that stupid disinfectant airspray that Air India uses inside... Eitherways, I found myself with fits of sneezes and passengers looking dubiously concerned all around me. Thankfully, I wasn't the only one sneezing away... there were at least 3 more people.. and one temperature check later, I was cleared of being a Swine flu suspect.

I guess I respect the people for trying to be safe than sorry... However, instead of overcrowding the hospitals with unrelated symptoms, it would be better for people to be aware of what they need to look out for. And yes, this is as good an excuse as any to cultivate the people to wash their hands after they've been out. Be safe! On that note, get well soon, Paati (no, she isn't a swine flu patient either).

A typical weekday evening at home in Chennai

Mega-serials rule! :)

Honk honk!

Gosh.. what is it with the honking culture in India?? It's enough if you live a few days away from India to realize that people abroad don't honk without reason. And both in the US and Europe, honking is strictly restricted to bringing to notice offensive road behaviour - an unexpected sharp turn or an indecent pass and the likes of it earn angry honks from the cars being crossed over by dissed drivers and only briefly. In India, it's a whole different thing. The traffic is so frustratingly stagnated in most places, the heat is so unbearable, the cars so unruly that people honk for no reason at all except to vent out some of their own frustration or to pretend that they are helping to move things along by honking. The result is pure chaos and noise pollution and further more frustration for everyone in the sweltering traffic. Ah, it's a very poor vicious circle. And the concept of lanes hasn't taken off in Chennai (and probably never will). Cars, trucks, lorries, buses, cycles, pedestrians, cows, stray dogs and bikes all compete for the measly space to squeeze in their vehicles to keep ahead of the traffic and get to their destinations. Half the time when you reach your destination, you are so relieved not to have hit someone/something and made it in one piece even if you are semi-deaf from the blaring horns of the vehicles around you. Yesterday was the worst. We heard the sizzling horn of a lorry (the one that goes exactly like this - pambanpambanpam in that snakey tune) and Appa huddled over to a corner of the road fully expecting a heaving giant to pass by us only to see a measly motorcycle pass by. The guy had installed a lorry horn on his Hero honda. Jerk. Personally I think they should fine unnecessary honking in India too.. though how they would enlist the offenders is something I haven't come up with yet. Perhaps it should become like the Western countries where honking is restricted to offenses. Of course that requires a certain level of driving decorum which I unfortunately don't envision in the near future. Darn!

The art of "giving"

For as long as I've known, my dad's been great at the art of "bribing". Well, that's a misnomer in this case. Appa has a great knack in making people feel it's their duty to accept the money from him for whatever work that they've done for him. And he is very neutral in the way he distributes money for no reason among watchmen, housemaids, doormen and the likes of the working class. And that makes him an instant favourite with them for obvious reasons. Naturally our mail gets delivered first in the building... and our car is washed first and the gates are opened for us and well, you get the picture... Being his daughter, I have reaped the benefits over the years of getting heavy stuff carried upstairs for me and blah-blue.. But I have never adopted Appa's skill in being able to give money to all these people and not feel like I am doing something wrong. I always feel stupid mainly because I think being with Appa makes me feel younger than I am. And that makes it look like a kid is trying to give someone (who is much older than her by the way) money which she didn't necessarily earn. Appa tries to hand me some money and ask me to hand it over to them every once in a while and I am always uncomfortable and end up declining. I've figured there's more to just the knack in giving the money. The thin line between the obvious bribe and the obnoxious over-patronizing attitude. And while people like my father are born experts and can come across with the perfect attitude, my discomfort alone rules me out other than perhaps being a woman which isn't so appealing when giving someone money randomly for some good deed of the past or the ones to follow. You've got to be supremely confident of your abilities, of not being misunderstood, of being superior-yet-approachable at the same time, of being normal and of not being patronizingly pushy. My dad is the perfect eclectic mix and I haven't seen anyone be as at ease with the task at hand. I guess some things you learn and practice makes perfect... and some others, you just have to be born with it or it's never there. I know where I belong on this one.

Maple calling

So Appa n I were out shopping this evening... Suddenly there is cacophony. A millisecond later I realize that it's coming from Appa's pocket. It's his cell phone resounding a ridiculously high volume. He grabs it and hands it over to me (he can't read who's calling without his glasses). An instant before I pick it up I glance at the screen. It says "Maple calling". I double-check the screen looking at it dubiously as I prepare to answer the call. Who on earth was Maple? I had a friend who's last name was "Oak" but I couldn't imagine that Appa had a friend called Maple. I had absolutely no clue what to expect as I clicked the "Answer" button and muttered a very questioning "Hello" into the answer-piece. A brief crackle of static later, "Hello" comes the very familiar voice of my husband. I had to laugh. It wasn't Maple then. It was a very simplified spelling for Mappillai (meaning son-in-law in Tamil) or simple Map-le (to be pronounced as Map-lay). LOL moment.

French flaws

What happens when a country starts to grow on you? Embarrassment! I have been saying "Bonjour" instead of "hello" and "pardon" instead of "sorry" consistently over the past week. While the others think I am alien, I turn red from the heat/embarrassment or both and am found floundering for the right equivalents for words that the people can understand. So much for trying to embrace the French culture. Hmph.

BTW, Happy Friendship Day everyone! If you want to read rants from last year - here you go!

3 seconds later...

Want to know the value of 3 seconds? No no... I don't mean this in the way that a fraction-of-a-second can make a difference- so don't go asking the accident victim or the people with big regrets from big moments. I am really only talking about something on the lighter side... like temple queues. Being in the land of a thousand temples, Kanchipuram, it was imperative that I visit a few on my yearly visits here to my parents-in-laws' house. And so we temple-hopped today. While a couple of them were deeply, spiritually satisfying, one of them was one of those thoroughly commercialized affairs where you had to pay for everything from leaving your footwear outside to getting normal dharshan of the God/Goddess. Mind you, this wasn't even one of those temples like Tirupati where the monetary collections were part of maintaining some vague decorum or strata of luxury. There must've been about 30 of us in a queue today waiting to get a glimpse of the main deity. Yet, everyone was in a hurry. Why would one come to a temple if they were in a hurry? Beats me. And I am sure that they weren't exactly in a hurry... it was just the way they were used to being in temples. Want to know the value of 3 seconds? Ask the sweaty woman who makes it her business to drip all over you and push you with all her weight from behind while if she just waited instead, she could still glimpse the deity in like 3 seconds. Or the man who's twice your size trying to elbow you into a corner so he can squeeze past you in the single-line file and be ahead of one more person (or how-many-ever more he manages to elbow past). Oh and I hate groups that are trying to move in packs. My philosophy is if you get separated, deal with it (unless you have kids walking by themselves risking a stampede). The line's usually so narrow that you are unlikely to evaporate or get lost. Have a reunion at the clearing after the dharshan for God's sake instead of squeezing past in groups or worse, holding onto one another to keep together. Perhaps, it's a mental victory of sorts for all these people who do it... that they caught sight of the deity 3 seconds before the guy behind them or say 3 minutes before the end of the queue. No, that doesn't make sense, does it? Why not then move in an orderly fashion and behave decently rather than stifle the already stale air in the waiting queues by huffing over someone else, or worse dripping perspiration over them? We'll never know.

Unfamiliar land..

It seems that everytime I set foot in Chennai something has changed. And you unfortunate folk read about it each time... I bet a bunch of you must be like - here she goes again, out to crib... The change in the landscape of the place you call "home" is never something easy to digest. Remember I'd cribbed about it last time too? Here it is. Ever so often, there are new buildings... new stores... new protocols and new modes of transport. Sure, Chennai has seen a big improvement in the public transport sector and those who can afford it, one can now ride AC public buses on popular routes paying a tad extra for a pollution-free and necessity-chilled ride straining through trecherous traffic and loud everyday life. Indeed I was able to experience the tranquility of the experience on an AC Volvo bus to Kanchipuram, reaching here unruffled, unsweaty and non-distressed for a mere 75 rupees. Having lived at a stretch in Chennai for 14 long years I still seem to be unequipped with ways to deal with the changes in the last 5. There are of course more one-ways, more flyovers and more ways to get to a certain destination... all of which I am unaware of. My little cousin asked me the route to Mount Road from some place... Normally I'd be able to give it in a jiffy... but with the changes in the public transport system and road routes, I was rather clueless and had to transfer the responsibility of the right answer to my dad who's become more Chennai-ite than I ever thought it was possible for a former Mumbai-ite to become. Then again, you probably adapt to things as they happen around you.. and to take it all in one gulp every trip isn't exactly like having mango juice... It takes a while... it maybe be bitter even if it is for the better and by the time you adjust, you're leaving the place and have much more to contend with the next time that you're back on vacation. I guess they don't say for nothing that "change is the only constant thing in life". Time to take it all in.

The India experience

Know how you've had a million transits through various countries and you haven't felt a thing? Have you ever transitted through India? I did.. just this time... through our fabulous capital, Delhi. Here's the thing - when you transit through some city in any country as the port of entry, you have to do the customs there. Not a big deal... except for the pain of actually claiming the baggage and re-checking it after the customs. And it's not a big deal in any other country. Not here in India though. A 3 hour transit was just about enough. For what? Claim the bags... go through the non-specific customs... and then starts the "fun". So, I was told that there was a "regular" shuttle service between the international and domestic terminals of the airport. First, by "regular" in the normal sense in itself they meant once in 20 minutes. Well, having gotten used to international customs, I thought it was not-too-conveniently paced. But I figured it wouldn't be so bad if it was indeed 20 minutes with no additional "IST" clauses. But who was I kidding? The next thing I learned was that the ride took 30 minutes on an average. Why would this whole thing be called "transit"? I was frustrated... I can't imagine what the whole experience translated to, to the foreigners, especially the ones visiting the fantasy land of India for the first time. And the people at the airline counters weren't equipped to answer in English too well either. Half the time, people like me were chatting to the people in charge in Hindi and translating for the language-challenged folks. That done, the waiting "lounge" was excruciatingly small with the overflowing passengers and further overflowing luggage. After over 40 minutes of waiting, the first "shuttle", a complete run-down school bus variety vehicle pulled up to a curb of overly eager passengers (I don't blame them - each one had a flight to catch) who stuffed their luggages and themselves into the bus and within the blink of the eye, it was full. I decided to wait for the next one, having marginally more time than the people who'd jumped ahead of me. Another 40 anxious minutes later, no buses, more useless banter with the guys at the counter, more eager passengers and the news of one broken-down bus and one in accident. The guy at the counter finally suggests that it may be better for me to get a prepaid taxi. While I mutter curses under my breath and make my way halfway across the stupid lounge, the other one yells that the bus is here. To their credit for having bantered with me for so long, they helped my suitcase into the bus first and then assured me that I would make my flight. I chattered with everyone in sight and made a few short friends out there while the bus paced painfully within the airport making it's way to the domestic terminal from the backyard of the international terminal. 40 minutes later we are dropped off at what is obviously the destination. Only to learn that the terminal for the Air India flights was a level lower and we couldn't get there unless a smaller "golf-cart" took us. I was very nearly at the end of my tether and there was under 20 minutes for my next flight and I still had luggage to check in. The stupid surprise wasn't going as per plan in this leg at all. With 10 minutes to go, I reach the Air India counter only to be misinformed that the flight has departed... and then told that that it was cancelled and then finally told that I needed a proper printout to let me board. I was exasperated beyond measure and a few choice words started exiting my mouth. Realizing my utter frustration at the system, one helpful dude finally thrust a printout into my hands, guided me to a counter and told me that the flight was late by 10 minutes and that meant I could make it. A rush of adrenaline... a checkin.. a boarding pass... a delayed flight and 2.5 hours later, I was finally in Chennai, ready to carry on with the surprise.

We'd want our country to project the best we have to offer... we should be willing to make that effort to expose the advancement in the country. The unhelpful (and under-informed) staff, the complicated procedures, the run-down airport vehicles, the delayed flights... none of this have the vestige of giving anyone the experience of landing in Incredible India. Let's really hope that a good change is in the horizon... and soon. If only we could all individually help.

Surprise surprise!

Finally I did it... I've always wanted to surprise my family by just showing up at the doorstep. I've never had the heart to do it because a big part of the "going to India" thing was to celebrate with everyone at home and countdown to the day, and hour even. but this time, encouraged by S, aided by his parents, we kept it all under wraps... till S made that phone call to my dad while I waited under the balcony in eager anticipation of catching sight of that first face and that first reaction of anyone from the family. It was my dad who stepped out to look out at which VIP had come to see them but didn't know the way up (that's what S told them when he called to say someone was waiting downstairs). And I clearly caught the reaction as I yelled out "Appa... surprise!". It was pure shock bordering on hallucination as he ambled out the door announcing the grand news that I was here to the rest of the family. More disbelief, shock and shouts later, I was assured in... with chidings... with reconfirmations of all the lies that I had to say to lead up to the day... and with utter, total disbelief. It was all worth it to see the jaw-dropped looks from all the faces - my mom and my grandmas. I felt like a celebrity. And my long-term wish was fulfilled. I wanted to do this surprise thing this once. And it was worth every lie I said. For me and for them. All thank to S. Happy holidays!

The empty house

"Empty" house: a house that has been left behind by people who'd made it home for a reasonable period of time, thus making them regular fixtures in the grand scheme of the house.

I think it's been a while since I felt an "empty" house. For a while now, I have been the one travelling and hence leaving behind "empty" houses... That explains why I can feel the very obvious emptiness around me now that S' parents have left for Chennai. I suppose it's a very noticeable difference in our teeny house when half the members have left... add to that 4 suitcases leaving too.. that means an unsettling amount of space.

For the past month we've enjoyed mom-made food, dad-cut fruits, a clean home and other basic comforts that we were once used to receiving and now used to providing. It felt good to be pampered all over again by the doting parents... and it was an all-new experience of living with the in-laws... all just for a month and now, it's back to just the both of us. We'll get used to it of course, as with anything. But here's wishing Amma-Appa a Bon voyage and a safe couple of flights!

The perfect lie

Know how some people can't lie? Like their lips lie but their faces and especially their eyes give them away? Well I used to be one of them... But now you know the second category? The liars-on-fire type? Where it's second skin for them to roll out the lies off their tongues and it's just as good as the truth being told, except that it's not? Now here's the third kind. Those who've gotten so good at lying that they start to believe that it's the truth. It is true... once you keep repeating something over and over again, even though it is not true, it starts sounding true. You soon lose sight of what is real and what is not. I am caught in limbo somewhere. To be continued...

Fair play

India is one of those countries with an obsession for "fair" skin... From matrimonial ads to face creams, the emphasis is on "fair" skin. For some weird reason, everyone wants to be "fair" or so the beauty markets assume. Which explains the large variety of fairness creams for sale in the market. If it's not enough that this vanity was associated just with the women in the past, these days it has extended to the men as well. I just saw an ad for Nivea men's fairness cream endorsed by the likes of Dhoni... and fortuitously, right after that I read this article on BBC, where Ms Authentica is crowned based on her natural skin and all contestants are verified by the organizers to have untreated and natural skin. Immediately, I wished that this concept took off in India too... we have a large spectrum of people occupying all the shades of colour possible and we have to be proud of what we're born with. Trying to change what is naturally ours, to blend in with what the world's view is, is not the solution to anything. Not in terms of skin colour, and not in terms of personality, not for anything. Instead, the world would be a better place if we embraced what was ours and made the most of it. Unfortunately in India, people are made to believe that having fairer skin is superior. Period. It's the age-old race war... where white trumps black. It's as simple as that. I applaud stars like Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan who have made conscious efforts not to endorse any of these "fairness" creams in an effort to globalize all skin tones and colours. And the fairness cream ads totally piss me off too - have you noticed how they show the quality of skin to dramatically improve as well when someone uses their product? And what's with the doors opening for their careers with "white" skin? It's all such BS and what's worse - people buy into it. I mean there are people with glowing skin with whatever colour. We don't have to go far to prove that dusky beauty is very real - look at Nanditha Das or Bipasha Basu for instance. And to think that we've transcended into the modern era... where one would've thought it was relatively easy to be who you are and get what you want with your charm/persona and not having to rely on something as fickle as fair skin. Embrace yourself.. that's what makes you glow from within... not any of these beauty propagandas or the likes of it. The rest of it is not fair.

Bonne vacances!

After days of dreaming about it, days of cribbing about the busy-ness, here it is finally -the start of the vacation. And so we celebrated with pizza, with cake and with well-wishing emails and what not.. vacations are a big deal in France and this vacation has been embraced with open arms by everyone including me. Not that this is going to make me jobless in any manner, mind you. Upcoming in these few short 4 weeks are a couple of out-of-town trips, S' parents departure, moving apartments and what not... it promises to be busy and I promise to keep you posted. until then, bonne vacances, as we would say in France.

One ticket please...

I had an interesting discussion with a friend just about 30 seconds ago which is what sparked this post in the first place. So, she expressed a desire to see the new HP movie. And the reason she hadn't seen it yet was because she didn't have any company. I suggested she go alone and well, she dismissed the idea, opting instead to die. :D. But this is just an opening line for a very interesting discussion. Are you one of those people who can't eat/go to a movie/shop alone?

I am not. Sure, I'd prefer to go to a movie with someone, but I can name a handful of movies that I've been to by myself... mainly because I have a unlimited movie pass (for which I pay monthly) and partially because no one was available to accompany me at a time that suited me best. But I have done it nonetheless. Similarly I have actually lunched alone a few times, mostly in college when my lunchtimes don't match anyone else's. But I've done it all the same. And with no pretenses. I have never used books/notes/ipods to be a pretend companion with me. I just enjoy looking at people around me and eating. Sure, some probably thought I was a loser. But here's where my don't-care attitude benefits me. For everyone who thought I was a loser, there might've been someone else who thought it was cool that I was secure enough to eat by myself with no props. At least with eating alone, I can understand the discomfort. Perhaps it is a little unsettling. You do feel like an invisible spotlight is around you. Everyone knows you are alone and wonders why you have no friends. That's what you think. But here's the thing - very few people give a damn... and that actually works out to your advantage! But as far as a movie is concerned, I am very comfortable going all by myself. After all it is dark and no one is looking at you... everyone is there only for one reason - to see a movie, during which even if you went with a companion and discussed in loud whispers, the only extra thing you get is dirty looks. Sure it's totally great going with a friend or a group of them, but it's hardly that horrible to go alone. In fact here are some tips to surviving a movie alone (all totally dumb) -
1. Go there just in time - Well obviously if you don't want to be thought of as being alone, you can just get into the cinema hall at the last minute when everyone's gushing in and no one knows if you're joining someone or not.
2. Skip the snacks - Well, people tend to notice you only if you are loudly cracking on pop-corn or guzzling down pepsi. If you don't want to be noticed, the easiest way is to not give anyone a reason to.
3. Sit between groups of people - When people are in loud groups, they don't care who's with them or not. Ergo, they don't care about you.

Well, that concludes my simplistic guide to lone movie-watching. I hope the friend is reading. Just coz no one else joins you, doesn't mean you can't have a good time alone. And well, if you miss a friend to "discuss" the movie with, that's what cell phones and free nights n weekends are for. Go girl!

Appearances matter?

Ah.. why are we so fickle when it comes to deciding upon something that is neither in our hands nor matters too much? For example when you are apartment-hunting (like we are), is it important for the building to look nice or for your particular apartment to look nice? Ideally, both of course. But what if you had to choose one? Logic says that it only matters what the apartment looks like on the inside. Why then does it bother you when the building is a little old or a little unkempt? Because impressions matter. Remember how you walk past a beautiful building and wish you could live there? You have no idea how it looks on the inside...if it is practical... if it will be large enough... if it will fulfill your everyday requirements... if it is well-designed, etc. It just goes with the territory in your head that a beautifully designed building on the outside can't go wrong on the inside. If only that logic were infallible. Buildings like people come with no guarantees or promises to match the outside with the inside. Even while we preach that the "inner" beauty is all that matters, we are haughty when it comes to "lesser" significant things like rental apartments. We want that our building look imposing and majestic... Practically, how much time do you spend looking at your building anyways? But it is hardly a question of practicality as it is of status. For some reason it matters. I haven't come across anyone who's disregarded the outside completely giving credit to the inside alone. Are we this judgmental when it comes to people too? I certainly hope not, for that would be truly sad.

The woes of apartment-hunting

We’ve all been through this at some point of time or the other… be it while hunting for shared accommodation as students, collocation as colleagues/friends or your happy home with the husband, we’ve all dealt with the woes of apartment-hunting. Barely 24 hours after having compulsorily decided to switch apartments, I am fed up already… sometimes with the lack of choice and sometimes with the abundance. However, most of my complaints this time around are to have embarked on this search during the long weekend – the consequence being that no one answers the damn phone! Oh and add to that that S n I work at 2 ends of the spectra leaving either or both of us to travel eons between home n work. But I guess my biggest issue is the inertia itself (look at the post below) and the fact that we are so in love with our locality. So that severely restricts our choice because add to the whole rent situation the fact that we want a decent-sized kitchen, preferably larger accommodations, with maybe a balcony and perhaps a cellar… it brings our choices down to very very few. Sigh! Oh and did I mention I hate moving? No, I am not helping myself. I hope fate does.

Inertia of life

Remember when they taught us about inertia in middle school Physics? I don’t know why I thought it was a hard concept back then. It wouldn’t have been so, had they even remotely associated it to the million examples from life. Take us for instance. We live in a gorgeous suburb close to the heart of Paris… the rent is astronomical… the markets are exorbitant in price… but the place is so likeable. There is a certain warmth to the streets, a lot of gaiety in life, not to mention that it is extremely well-connected by public transport. Common sense says that if the cost of living is too high, we’ve got to move to more affordable places. Not that the other factors outweigh this very important one, but we’ve been reluctant as hell to move. It’s just the inertia. We’re so used to living here… people know us here (no neighbours or friends or any of that – just the store clerks, the bus-mates and other people who change with the tapestry of the place we reside in. We just haven’t gotten around to seriously looking at apartment rentals. The fact that we have a lousy gas (read hot plate) in here at home, something that never struck as vital when it was just cooking for the 2 of us was put to serious test when S’ parents came and the people doubled. (I’ve cooked for a dozen people while hosting them at home – but I used to spend close to half a day making the food while it took all of 10 minutes for it to vanish – true physics of life). And so we have another big fat reason to move. All of this propelled mainly by the gas and that fact that we could save a neat 200€ a month has finally forced us to at least consider the apartment listings on the various websites. This is the force that was required to move our asses off the inertia. And this is just one simple example of physics in everyday life. And with inertia, there are plenty examples up for the grabs.

Leonardo's lion

Here's a look at yet another creation conceived by the Master. Ode to Da Vinci.

Return to “innocence”

Yesterday I was out shopping all by myself with a mission to get gifts/souvenirs for S’ parents to give back in India… One of the people on the list was a little girl of 5. And I thought I was fully qualified to deal with what to get her, considering I had been there.. done that and all that. What I wasn’t prepared for was the variety and utility of things available, even for little girls in today’s world. The store I went into was a giant eyesore of pink. Don’t get me wrong.. I am a fan of pink myself.. but think of this as a largely overdone Legally Blonde store. Yeah, not so girl-invoking anymore, right? Anyhow, the crowd there was unbelievable. This store must’ve been all of 300 sqft and every breathable inch was filled with moms and daughters or young giggly teenagers trying on ridiculous wigs or people like me – lost in an ocean of one another with not a clue of what we were looking for. As I scanned the store for something I thought was appropriate for a 5 year old, I caught glimpses of what was considered appropriate in this day and age – makeup (not-so-faux anymore), elaborate hairdo-creating bands (remember the good old days of love-in-tokyos?), actual purses kiddified only by adding cartoon characters on top.

As always, this post isn’t what it was made out to be. My mind wandered into our days of simpler schooling where our textbooks were our bibles. And where we could get the teacher to change our marks/grades, simply by showing proof of the print on the textbook to back up our claims on the answer papers. Fast forward to today. Where the kids are all internet-savvy, not just with Facebook or Myspace but with the whole googling experience as well. Now the evidence to backup any of their claims stretched to astronomical limits. I don’t know how it works in school with this development. But it would make a solid argument to claim that something was true and that one had read it off Wikipedia. That puts an enormous strain on the poor teachers who now had the world wide web to contend with and had to be abreast of all the facts that were and not just the ones mentioned in the now seriously-restricted textbooks. Does anyone have a clue how this works now? Please enlighten me if you do. I would imagine it would be terribly competitive with each person trying to show up the other, particularly if it was a subject they liked. And all of this thought manifested itself while I was in that horribly-crowded store, fishing out a coloring book and jumping the queue to pay for it and get the hell out of there. I only wish I didn’t move in slow-motion further strangling the crowd and the air in that place. Don’t have a clue. However, Good luck teachers.

Paris visits

Here's some of the scenes we've captured while taking S' parents around Paris. The beautiful Sacre-Coeur church in Montmarte. Gorgeous, isn't it?
Tip: Click on the photo for a higher-resolution image.

Happy Birthday RER E

Isn't it cute when people celebrate birthdays of trains? I think it is.. So it was my favourite train's birthday apparently one of the days last week. And the entire train was festooned with balloons and stickers saying "Bon Anniversaire" and all that. Not just that, they gave all of the travellers that day a free juice box and a madeline. Cute, huh?

Je suis bizee

Dear Readers,

I sincerely apologize for not having been able to update this space for about a week now. Sounds less to you? Feels like eternity to me!! Having been pretty regular with MindBlogging, I find it oddly unsettling that my thought-flow has been arrested enroute to making it on the blog due to unforeseen busy-ness. With the vacation fast approaching and work remaining to be completed and S's parents here, there's just enough time to breathe and exist. Once the vacations start, you can be assured that I will be back in full swing.
Until then, please hang in there.
Cheers!
J

5 shades darker

Don't you hate summer? All that skin colour that you slowly and steadily accumulated all through the torturous winters using moisturizers and what not, all gone within the flick of an eye-lid? It's like 4 days into hardcore summer with sweltering temperatures of 32°C (sorry, Parisian 32°C are nearly unbearable) and I have bronzed rather evenly. Gone are the days of fairness I say. I support Aiswarya Rai in her claim that all skin tones are beautiful. And if I have bronzed, so be it. Bronze is beautiful.

From my android

Yoohoo... now I can blog on the go thanks to the husbands android. cheers.

The days of slog...

Ever since starting my PhD, I've been unconvinced about my conviction in the whole thing. I took it up as an interim thing to do in a new country where I required some orientation. And the PhD just fell into place and was interestingly in my field of interest and everything, so I had no reason not to take it up. And all along it's haunted me that I haven't done justice to it. And then came along S's parents for a long visit. With my MIL taking over the kitchen, this is finally my chance to bask in the days of being a PhD candidate - finally I can work on something for however long I like without having to be concerned about going home and whipping up dinner. The days of slog are here and I welcome them with outstretched arms (only because the vacations are in the horizon and I know this phase won't last). Every slog has a holiday lining.