The heightened sense of awareness might really just be your numb toe (at 15000 feet)

Back from a trip to Manali with the folks.They are right when they say that you need to be in the right mood to take a vacation and even though I tried switching off,it was not the most memorable of trips.Though really glad that there is one more state which goes off my list of 'not visited'.I now have 8 states( The Seven sisters and Madhya Pradesh) on my TODO plus throw in a few UTs (Andaman being a major one) :-)

Crossword was having a sale and there was an extra discount for StanChart Creditcard holders so couldn't resist (even though I prefer Landmark over its somewhat inadequate collection) and this:
was the end result of the major splurging which happened.The books are:
1.Pamuk's- Other Colours and Istanbul:memoirs of a city
2.Joseph O'Neill's- Netherland
3.The private Lives of the Mughals of India
4.The history of South India

Pamuk is fast rising up the ranks in the list of my favourite writers.Istanbul is definitely one of his finest works in my opinion. Reading books about cities gives me great pleasure even if it is only just a backdrop for the story ,Istanbul and The Black Book lionize the city to such an extent that now,I dream of walking the streets of that city some day,I dream of standing on The Galata Bridge and gazing at the Bosphorous ferries.
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After reading Cuckold,I have started liking the whole idea of the historical novel,very minimal effort is needed in holding up the plot as the reader is generally aware of the subject at hand, the writer is free to concentrate on certain specific characters and the general style of his writing,he generally doesn't need to bother himself too much with the authenticity of the setting as most of it is 'already out there'.

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It is really surprising but Delhi happens to be the only city where I see Hindi signs(which include traffic signs,building names,municipality signs etc) giving English signs some competition.(Somehow 'Bhoomigut Paarpath' for subway has got a nice ring to it )In Bangalore,the usual practice is to only have the English sign or the English Sign+the Kannada sign in a smaller font.The really frustrating thing is that the normal BMTC buses in Bangalore carry only Kannada signs indicating just the start point and the final destination.In Delhi,the stoppages along the route are mentioned on the sides of the buses which I think is a really prudent thing to do.In Jharkhand,you get to see very few bilingual signs and usually,the Hindi signs outnumber the English ones(though this is changing quite rapidly)

What have you been reading?

Alice in BLunderland

I want you to take a look at: Arun Shourie slams BJP

What is funny is not that Arun Shourie called Rajnath 'Alice in Blunderland', but the fact that Shourie called Rajnath 'Alice' .This attains a more sinister angle than the usual 'The party is being run like a Akhara' attack if one happens to notice this

But seriously, to understand why Lewis Carroll is being quoted by Shourie,read on:

Humpty appears in Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking-Glass, where he discusses semantics and pragmatics with Alice.

"I don't know what you mean by 'glory,'" Alice said.
Humpty Dumpty smiled contemptuously. "Of course you don't – till I tell you. I meant 'there's a nice knock-down argument for you!'"
"But 'glory' doesn't mean 'a nice knock-down argument,'" Alice objected.
"When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said in a rather a scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean – neither more nor less."
"The question is," said Alice, "whether you can make words mean different things."
"The question is," said Humpty Dumpty, "which is to be master – that's all."
Alice was too much puzzled to say anything, so after a minute Humpty Dumpty began again.
"They've a temper, some of them – particularly verbs, they're the proudest – adjectives you can do anything with, but not verbs – however, I can manage the whole lot! Impenetrability! That's what I say!"

Really saddened by the unraveling of the BJP.They are supposed to be our 'major' opposition party aren't they?

He will always remind me of sitting in my living room in Ranchi, sun-filled and quiet in the afternoon,listening on my music system using my Sony Walkman headphones and going into raptures every time the recorded tape moved on- Remember the Time to Heal the world to Scream and then finally to the one I liked the most-They don't really care about us.He was quite clearly the first western artist I listened to,from a dog eared cassette which had the whole of History-2 on it and which some friend of dad had lent to me.Before there was Metallica and the rest of the Metal lot,there was MJ,entertaining me for hours when I couldn't go out to play or bear watching TV.Before he was 'Wacko Jacko' his Thriller was (and still is) the biggest selling album of all time.Before environmental issues were in Vogue,there was MJ along with a select few speaking out about them through his songs.The one song of his which I like above all else is 'Stranger in Moscow' -a ballad of exemplary beauty. My favourite video of his would be "The way you make me feel" with the dark alleys and the wonderful dance moves and the heart-achingly beautiful Tatiana Thumbtzen giving it that whole 80's feel.Thank you MJ,for the countless hours of entertainment and sheer bliss and 'Magic' that you have provided to millions of fans.You would always be an integral part of all our collective childhood memories and may your soul rest in peace forever.

I leave you with some links.
1.The guardian
2.YouTube
3.'The way you make me feel' video
and finally:
4. Greatbong

The buzz of the cabinet AC,clickety-clack of muffled keys invigorating tired muscles at the end of the wire,the metallic flickering of a thousand tubelights giving you solace, some even winking.The soft almost soothing droning over late- night, long-distance, inter-cultural conference calls from across the aisle.The clipety-clop of a high heel walking down the hallway. A car backing up, breaking the silence which descends like a fog , evoking some long lost shard of memory glistening in remembrance.Far away sounds of traffic.A sudden gust of wind and the slight rattling of window panes in their grooves.The sudden groan of a chair being relieved of it's burden for the day.
The urgent,almost angry gurgling of the entrails-It is time to go.

Managed to vote for the first time this time around .I cast my vote in Jamshedpur for the constituency of the same name.It was your typical Jam morning with mercury in the forties but I was excited nevertheless having spent days trawling election websites and watching countless debates on Television.What I particularly like are statistics and the numbers in the exit polls.One thing about statistics such as the number of Lok Sabha constituencies per state is that it makes you starkly aware of the population distribution across states.Do you know that if UP was a country of it's own,it would be the sixth most populous nation on the planet?UP elects 80 MPs to the Lok Sabha.But this is along expected lines.But which is the state with the next biggest contingent of MP's?It is Maharashtra with 48 MPs and then next in line is AP and WB with 42 seats apiece.The polling booth was DBMS school and when we arrived there were very few people with 'stalls' of political parties set up outside to help people find their identification numbers in the copy of the electoral roll.We found our names but there were no photographs against them.We walked into the polling station and there were two classrooms earmarked for voting.Each had a security guard standing outside but the whole set up was anything but intimidating.When my chance came,one officer checked my Electoral ID card and before I could step into the Booth another officer inked my finger but surprisingly no part of the ink touched my nail.I walked into the booth and took a minute to gaze at the EVM and all the candidates and their symbols and then pressed the button against my chosen candidate.There was a loud beep registering my vote and I was done.It was all over in practically ten seconds because the officer was coaxing me to vacate the booth quickly.It was my mom's turn after this and she took some time to put on her glasses,look at the list and then press the button,she did not take more than fifteen seconds but the officer was already mumbling about people taking time which infuriated mom and she turned around and gave him a piece of her mind.

It was as good a voting experience as it gets,quite often people have to wait for long hours sometimes in adverse weather conditions but there is one thing I would like to point out for people who are confused about the procedure of procuring voter's ID card and getting their names on the electoral roll.There is no clear link between getting a voter's ID card and getting your name on the roll.The voter's ID card is to be seen as an Address proof.The reason it is usually insisted upon is because most rural and poor voters have nothing else which can act as a proof of residence.But us Urban voters have a plethora of cads such as driving license,Passport,Ration card or PAN card.The more important thing is to get your name on the electoral roll and technically it is possible for you to vote in more than one constituency if you have names on more than one electoral roll (you can furnish your Election ID card in one and your other card in the other constituency)

PS:This was in draft mode for a long time.

I was going through my drafts and I found this Tag.I am just incredibly busy these days and so have been unable to post.Went home for a couple of weeks mid-April, bought a new phone(A N73-I am in love again....ah the seductive joys of seamless wireless file sharing! I love Bluetooth(Yes it is a big deal if you consider the fact that my last phone would switch off every time I pressed '9' on it ) , voted for the first time(this would go into another post),managed to finish One hundred years of solitude,The Black Book(which was on the list since last July!) and The Reluctant Fundamentalist(really not up to the hype-a big letdown)Also was gifted the Entire Sandman series on my birthday! :D(I know you guys are sick already with all the gloating but seriously...do you know anyone as lucky ?).This tag is kinda sappy and I still can't remember where I flicked it from but here goes:

1. If your lover betrayed you, what will your first thought be?->Screw Everyone!I hate this world.Then probably go and listen to some Nirvana.

2. If you can have a dream coming true, what would it be?->Spending all my life reading in a room full of books.
3. What is the one thing most hated by you?->The current misuse of the world 'culture' to depict seemingly legal activities in a bad light .E.g. 'Pub Culture','Eating-out Culture' etc.This is being done quite frequently and I am sick of it.

4. What would you do with a billion dollars?-> invest some and spend some to buy a house for myself. will stop working and tour the world.Perhaps start my own firm if I am not too bored.

5. Will you fall in love with your best friend?->I don't think so.It is too complicated and is not fun.

6. Which is more blessed, loving someone or being loved by someone?->loving someone because in this you can improvise.You just have to accept what you get when you are being loved by someone but loving someone can be done in unique and myriad ways.

7. How long do you intend to wait for someone you really love?->I don't have to.I am already in love.

8. If the person you secretly like is already attached, what would you do?->think of someone else.simple.lot of fishes in the sea :D

9. If you like to act with someone, who will it be? Your gf/bf or an actress/actor?-> No one.I would perhaps like to watch Jack Nicholson or Leanardo di Caprio when they shoot for scenes.

10. What takes you down the fastest?-> I don't know what this means but what totally demoralizes me is disinterest esp in people you care, for you.

11. How would you see yourself in ten years time?-> probably a lot more fitter and slimmer and surer of what I want to do.

12. What’s your fear?->The only fear I have is of not being able to live upto my own ideals.

13. What kind of person do you think the person who tagged you is?-> Like I said,I don't even remember where I got this from.

14. Would you rather be single and rich, or married but poor?->married but poor.I think poverty is a lesser curse when compared to loneliness.

15. What’s the first thing you do when you wake up?-> look at my cell phone to see how late it is.

16. Would you give all in a relationship?->I would certainly want to give as much I can but not give up on things which I think makes me what I am.

17. If you fall in love with two people simultaneously, who would you pick?->The one who loves me back more?

18. Would you forgive and forget no matter how horrible a thing that special someone has done?-> No.I hope I won't get into such nasty situations.

19. If you get to go back in time and fall in love all over again , would it still be with the same person?->Yes.I am not allowed to say anything else. :D

20. What will you do about climate crisis?-> try hybrid cars and solar heating and lighting systems.probably convince people to become vegetarians.

25 random things you did not know about me:The facebook tag

I was tagged on Facebook by The Diva.

1. I am an early riser.I am happiest if I can be up at 5 before sun rise which doesn't happen too often these days.
2. I can't understand the whole fuss about "How I met your mother' and don't find it particularly funny.However I am a big fan of Seinfeld and Will&Grace.
3. I've never read any Shakespeare (if you discount A mid summer night's dream in Sandman)
4. I love eating a variety of fruits except Watermelon.That's because when I was a kid I ate a whole watermelon and promptly puked my guts out.My favourite fruit is Orange.
5. My favourite characters in books are angst-y troubled people like Raskolnikov,Ameena Sinai,Gregor Sampsa,Rorschach (can't think any more right now :-) )
6. I am a big sucker for museums.I try to check out at least one museum in every city that I visit time permitting.Paris was a very difficult city in this regard.
7. When I was a kid,one of my favourite pastimes was to pore over Atlases.I can still recall a frightfully big number of countries and capitals.At the risk of sounding bombastic,I might just beat you in a geography quiz unless you happen to be a Geography major :-)
8. Just to clear the air on the confusion created by my various testimonials on Orkut-I support Chelsea very casually.I started supporting The Blues when Crespo used to play for them.Actually I am big Argentina fan so back then,among the major English clubs,it was only Chelsea which had an Argentinian player.Now,it is quite different so you might just catch me celebrating a Tevez or a Messi score for ManU or Barca even against Chelsea. :-)
9. I prefer Nokia phones(other than for obvious reasons) because they let me drop them from crazy heights.Once back from Goa,I was able to extract a fistful of sand (and I am not fibbing) from my Nokia phone after I disassembled it :-) They are magnificently sturdy.
   
10. I am an optimist by nature.
11. I am a tea drinker.I was once a coffee drinker and would plead with mom to put some drops of decocotion in my milk when I was a kid.When I was a little older,I even tried milky coffee with my Chocos.But now, I prefer the unhurried mellowness of tea.
12. At precisely this point I was interrupted in office by my manager looking over my shoulder into my screen.Somehow whenever he strolls by he always catches me at some random work unrelated website.This has led him to believe I am an Anarchist and a Satan worshiper.
13. I am somehow the attractor and retainer of bad genes in my family.The tendency to put on weight and the tendency to lose hair from my father's side.Being hard of hearing at an early age from my mother's side* and random facial injuries-the work of my sis(Its not a genetic thing but I had to mention this :-D )
14. I think all tongue twisters are just too lame when compared to the baap of all tongue twisters( courtesy Vineet Jain)-"Upper Roller Lower Roller"-try it and I shall treat anyone who can do this continuously five times without faltering
15. I prefer Facebook over Orkut
16. I think Obama rocks.The man justifies the hype.I especially like the way he is trying to address the Iran issue.He exemplifies the fact that most great leaders are also great men of words and rhetoric.
    
17. I agree with those people who say that 300 the movie was overtly sexist and contrary to expectation,this is what I found out about the Spartans
18. I find it amusing that Frieda Pinto is suddenly the talk of the town and that people are suddenly going gaga over Slumdog's soundtrack when it is most easily Rehman's worst composition.Just gets to show that the world knows zilch about India.
    
19. I prefer Beer,Whiskey the way it is supposed to be had and Scotch.I think Guiness is undrinkable.Not also too big a fan of Fosters.I once tried to convince a friend that VAT 69 is actually a government-made Whiskey and is a brand to promote V.A.T. I don't remember much before or after that.
20. I would like to have a house with wooden floors.Concrete just doesnt feel right under your feet.
21. I can eat Pasta anytime of the day.I prefer Penne,Macaroni,Fusili in that order and don't like Spaghetti or Lasagna
22. Indian states that I have not been to-Himachal Pradesh,the whole of North East,Andman and Lakshadweep,Punjab,Haryana.
23. I am once a skeptic then a firm believer and now I would call myself agnostic
24. I turned 24 this 24th of March
25. ending with a Jim Morrison quote-"I believe in a long, prolonged, derangement of the senses in order to obtain the unknown."

*though my mom still retains her hearing and my dad is not overweight I am referring to thier respective sides of the family

PS:Happy Ugadi to all!