The Long and Winding Road

The ace up my sleeve

2009-07-05T09:56:00.000-07:00

I'm waiting for the day when some innocent kiddo asks me, "what's with the people who stand along the tennis courts, and peer at the court-lines with great interest?"

"Haven't you heard them scream Ooooooohhhh or Oooouchh," I'd ask.

"Yes I think so. They do squeal now and then during a game."

"That is their job you see? They are carefully positioned so that any ball landing just outside the court hits them, and those that land inside misses them. And of course they yelp in pain when they get hit. Helps the umpire make the right decision. Might sound archaic but is actually very accurate."

"Makes sense. Thanks bro."

(Spreading knowledge- that's what I'm here for.)

Can't get you out of my head

2009-06-25T07:18:00.000-07:00

My colleague at work has the coolest ring tone- "Brown Eyed Girl" by Van Morrison. Plays whenever his wife calls. (There's something really interesting about VM's voice that keeps you hooked. I remember reading a review where the critic remarked that even hearing VM read off names from a telephone directory would leave you goose bumped). So I told my colleague I'd copy the idea if I got myself a doe eyed girl or wife. (I was serious). For the time being I am simply addicted- inadvertently start humming 'BEG' whenever I am restroom-bound!

Protean Cricket- I'll have the usual

2009-06-18T20:15:00.001-07:00

Yohoo!! Am so glad that South Africa got dumped out of yet another world cup semi final! There are some teams that you just can't stand winning, however eye catching be their play. I strongly feel that way about South African and Australia cricket. ManU spring to mind too. And that's strange for me because I am an unbiased sports watcher (with a proclivity to cheer on 'the David'). I tend to support players (and the teams they move with) rather than being frenetic about a club's fortunes. And therefore, in spite of being a Scholes/Giggs fan for eons, I can't digest United winning anything. Even the FA cup. Ditto with Real Madrid and Brazil. Anyways it's been a Cinderella like ride for Pakistan in England, and I really don't mind any of the remaining three teams winning the tournament (if I were watching the coverage live, all I'd ask was for Ranjit Fernando and Rameez Raja to be given a comic to quietly read in the corner...wonder if they are around this time?). For those w/o access to Star Cricket, catch the highlights on cricketonline-tv.

Tinkering with the idea of going to watch second division football (soccer...grrr!) this Friday- the Austin Aztex lay the carpet out for the Carolina Railhawks (this definitely is a huge step down from having seen PSV trash the daylights out of Ajax). Even the (discounted) $10 entrance appears steep now. I have no second thoughts though about renewing my tix for the Longhorns football season. I never doubted I'd grow up to embrace American football so soon; I'd got a strong dose of vicarious passion from my friends (Penn State and USC supporters) who came to the US and instantly fell in love with the sport. And I truly believe that if you are a sports fan with an eclectic taste, you will follow suit. Last season we got heartbreaking close to challenging for the top honours in US college football. One failed interception (and an unhurried, unpressed one at that) at Lubbock was all that came in the way. Similar to missing a sitter in cricket, and watching the last batsman knock off the winning runs the next ball. Have bitter-sweet and enduring memories of watching that game live with friends at 'Docs' in Austin...and in my naivety I had come dressed in a black-tee, the clours of the Raiders (the guys who beat us that night). But redemption is close by...Sep 19, 2009 is hopefully a day that Texas-tech fans will want to forget.

The NY Times is my favourite paper

2009-06-13T13:18:00.000-07:00

Folds into just the right size to line shelves with.

ZZ Top...

2009-06-13T12:42:00.001-07:00

...gimme more!

Will I ever learn to play the bass?

2009-06-13T12:39:00.001-07:00

What's the fuss with wordpress?

2009-06-13T12:20:00.000-07:00

Must confess I frequently feel outdated about some of the things that could be done online. I only got to know a few month ago that just about any song you would want is already available on some benevolent soul's computer online. For free. No strings attached. Took me a while to digest. I am stumped about how record companies even continue to exist. Back to wordpress...why are all my friends from blogpost moving over to wordpress? I guess it's to do with some additional flexibility that wordpress offers? Too lazy to dig that out today. Could someone reply with a summary? Please (often helps)?

Such a pain...

2009-06-13T12:15:00.000-07:00

...it was to be able to log in here again; no wonder I haven't updated it for ages (hrmfg!). Hope to write more frequently, more insightfully and have it less rehearsed. Pandora inspires!

The Practical Guide to Going Digital

2007-01-08T20:12:00.000-08:00

Digital camera technology is here to stay. A vast majority of people have already transited from film to digital. That's hardly surprising considering the slew of advantages digital cameras bring with them- instant feedback on the photos you take, being able to experiment in photography without wasting film, a chance to correct minor artifacts in your image or even creatively dabble with them before printing them out, and a greater ease in storing and sharing them with others. Ever falling prices of digital cameras and the pace of technological improvements have meant that only a few aficionados have resisted the crossover to going digital. This article is meant to act as a rough, layman's guide to buying a digital camera and the first steps to take in exploring the digital world.

The main steps involved in choosing the right camera are as follows- introspect on your interests and desires in photography, research and narrow down to a list of cameras that fit both your needs and budget, compare these for features offered and read more exhaustive reviews for each camera, and finally after zeroing down on one camera, begin to fraternise with colleagues who might have to travel abroad soon! It's very likely that a first time buyer may not know what aspects of photography might enthuse them; photography is after all an interest that only slowly grows and develops. Worry not, as most cameras should prove able enough in all normal scenarios. Over a period of time as you identify your interests (and the shortcomings of your camera), there is always an opportunity to upgrade your camera. It might be reassuring to know that most people having more than a passing interest in photography thus end up owning multiple cameras!

Which one is for me?
The first step in choosing the right camera is to identify the basic type of camera you intend to buy. Digital cameras can roughly be classified into the following three categories:

1. Point and shoots (P&S)- The most basic of the three, targeted predominantly at 'the family-user' whose main interests would be in taking pictures of relatives and friends, pets and interesting sights while on travel. The focus is on keeping the camera compact, easy to use and carry around. This does not necessarily mean that they produce poor image quality.

2. Prosumers- These offer the user a better control over photographic parameters, and in most cases a greater zoom range, allowing the user to capture a wider variety of pictures. These are targeted at photo hobbyists and passionate amateurs. These are not as compact as the P&Ss. In recent times their prices have fallen quite a bit, making them an attractive proposition even as a first buy.

3. Digital SLRs (DSLR)- The big daddy of the lot and meant for the serious amateurs and professionals. The main advantages of a DSLR are- a discernible improvement in image quality (especially when shooting in an uncompressed image format), faster response times when taking pictures, and an ability to accept multiple lens types suited for different tasks. But these advantages are to some extent offset by a marked increase in camera size (though many serious photographers prefer the secure feel of a big solid camera as compared to the smooth slippery hold offered by a similar credit-card sized device). This means that on a meaningful photo expedition you will be saddled with one huge camera, and a load of add-on lenses; not quite ideal if you would like to go skipping gleefully on a trek! A DSLR is prone to problems like dust entering the camera when lenses are changed, and hence requires greater care while handling. And finally the bottom line- with the buying of a DSLR (which itself is more expensive than either of the other two types- a decent entry level DSLR could cost you twice as much as a good prosumer camera) tags along the associated costs of purchasing additional lenses which in most cases are more expensive than the camera itself!

Other factors to consider
Having decided on the kind of camera, one also needs to consider preferences for other factors such as:

1. Camera resolution- The resolution of a camera (expressed in mega pixels or MP) decides how much detail you can capture in each photos. The higher the MP rating, the more the detail you can capture per photo. But this leads to a larger file size for each photo and hence the camera memory fills up faster too. Many people unwittingly fall prey to the MP race and buy cameras touting large MP values. In reality to start of with, one need not look at cameras with resolution greater than 5 MP. This is more than sufficient to take A4 sized printouts and to create wallpapers for a 19 inch monitor. A larger resolution is only required to make huge enlargement of photos or if one wants to only crop out a small part of each photo and still be left with sufficient detail.

2. Zoom and focal length- A large optical zoom is a must if one is interested in taking photos of animals or birds in the wild. If you decide to buy a camera with a large zoom factor (6x or more) ensure that it also provides Image stabilization as shaky hands at a large zoom end up producing very blurred images! Similarly if it is the private affairs of flora, insects or still life that interests you, a good macro focal length is a must. The smaller the macro focal length, the closer you can get to your subject, and hence the better are the details you can capture. A macros focal length of less than 10 cm should provide satisfactory results.

3. Exposure settings- Chose a camera that allows you to tinker around with aperture and shutter settings. This will allow you to experiment with a variety of interesting photographic techniques like speed photography or shooting with a shallow depth of field.

4. Type of battery- Cameras either run on AAA batteries (normal and rechargeable), or on rechargeable Lithium ion batteries. I find that the later last longer per charge, and so if you are a very frequent camera user, repeated spending on AAA batteries will literally drain you out in the long run.

That's what the web is meant for!
One can get elaborate camera reviews on the Internet at popular websites such as www.dcresource.com, www.dpreview.com and www.steves-digicams.com. They analyze various aspects of a camera and compare it to similar competing products. The also display sample unprocessed pictures from each camera, which can give you a good idea of how sharp or saturated images from that camera would appear. These websites also post a number of user opinions which make for useful reading.

Where to buy from?
The US still remains the best place to buy a camera. Not only are the latest models not immediately available in India, when they do become so they end up costing almost one and a half times what they would cost in the US. If the need is not urgent, it might be prudent to wait for about six-eight months after a camera is released before buying it. Since the digital camera market is so competitive, and since models get outdated fairly soon, camera prices often drop a fair bit after release, especially during the Thanksgiving and Christmas season (if you really must buy the camera in India, then try posting queries on a city specific group of a photo-sharing forum like www.flickr.com). Buying the camera online is always more economical then buying it in a store. Details on the best deals available can be got from websites like www.pricegrabber.com. Make sure you also invest in camera accessories such as a large enough memory card (at least 512 MB), a compact and well padded camera bag, and a protective neutral filter in case of a prosumer or a DSLR and a mini tripod that fits in the camera bag.

What next?
Once you lay your hands on the camera, read the camera manual completely (if you are really excited and simply can't wait, try reading an online version even before getting the camera). Experiment with different camera settings to evaluate what gives you the best exposed pictures. There are plenty of online tutorial sites to improve your photography skills. Subscribe to an online group dedicated to your camera where people share tips, problems and experiences (you will know that it's time to unsubscribe when the group gets inundated with offers on other products that 'excite' you). And finally, do join and participate on one of the many photo sharing sites such as www.flickr.com where you can share your photos with others, receive valuable critiques and get bright ideas on how to take pleasing pictures.

Do remember that the mythical perfect camera does not exist. The results from a camera will only be as good as the ability of the person peering through it! Here's wishing you good luck and success- the digital world awaits you!

Note: Crossposted at Desicritics.

A French treat

2006-05-17T02:17:00.000-07:00

The French are well known for the gastronomical extravaganzas they serve up. Tonight however they will lay out a mouth-watering treat of a different kind, as Paris gets set to host Arsenal against Barcelona at the Champions League final.

This is perhaps a dream final - to have two well established powerhouses replete with international stars, and whose sole mandates are to play attacking, entertaining football. Although at face value it does seem so for tonight's match, on sounder consideration, one realizes that both teams also bring with them water tight defenses, with Arsenal now famously holding the record for ten straight shut outs in this tournament.

On paper, and going by achievements this season, Barcelona seems slight favorites for this encounter. On TV yesterday most English sports journalists were found saying that their hearts wanted Arsenal to win, but their minds chided them otherwise.

For us to decide, lets get down to analyzing the teams piecemeal.

In goal we have two solid, unglamorous goalkeepers, who are also capable of the occasional ludicrous gaffe. Lehman demonstrated that in the free kick goal conceded against Wigan, and Valdez had done so at least twice during the league season.

I would rate the Arsenal defense a bit better than Barcelona’s simply because there are no old legs there but for Sol Campbell. Campbell despite being over thirty is always a monstrous, menacing, subduing presence in his half of the field and an intimidating physical embodiment in the opponent’s penalty area. If Cole plays at left back it remains to be seen how well he copes up with playing a big game after being sidelined for much of this season with injury. I am not too sure how Old Balletti and Marquez are, but I get the feeling that I have been seeing Puyol on TV forever; so all in all not the youngest and most fleet footed of defencive setups. Barcelona have looked tight and composed at the back in their recent games, but I would put it down to good strategy and teamwork rather than individual brilliance.

The Barcelona midfield seems more creative than Arsenal's with Deco, Iniesta and Ronaldinho pulling strings, and very frequently white rabbits from their hats. The Arsenal midfield is more of a quick paced, well-drilled unit. Wenger has denied that Ronaldinho will be given special attention, but I probably think either Gilberto or Fabregas will shadow him all over the pitch.

Going upfront, Henry’s solo brilliance is not completely matched by Eto'o. Henry is more creative, pacier and better at free kicks. Eto'o though is probably a more complete striker as he can head well too. Eto'o is luckier though to have a more potent strike partner in Larsson. Somehow Robin van Persie’s contributions have dried up as the season has progressed, leaving Henry to shoulder most of the goal-scoring burden.

To sum it all up, I think Arsenal will pip Barcelona to the title. The Arsenal defense should prevent conceding too many, and Henry is sure to give Marquez and Puyol hell. To stick my neck out further, I see them winning 2-1, with Henry scoring twice, and Eto'o getting the consolatory goal for Barca. While Barca might already be partially satiated by winning the Primeira Liga, Arsenal seem hungrier and would be less pressured to win. Henry would love to leave an emphatic and emotional mark on this, possibly his last game for Arsenal. Ironically he might shift to the team they face tonight! This season has been just that - full of such quirky occurences. Sample another - it's been an English team against a Spanish team in the finals of both the Champions league and the UEFA cup!

For most football fans on the subcontinent, the champions league final is the culmination of the football season, the one last time you can brew up a hot cup of coffee and wait for the clock to strike midnight! Stay up and get ready to be treated.

Au revoir Highbury

2006-05-08T07:46:00.000-07:00

On the seventh of May 2006, a bit of English football heritage died. It was the day on which Arsenal played their last match at Highbury – their home for the last ninety three years (1913 – 2006). They start next season in their swanky new stadium at Ashburton Groove, just a couple of blocks away from Highbury. Aerial pictures showing the two stadiums in proximity appear very poignant; Highbury’s ancient looking edifice pales in comparison with the gleaming all steel construction of the Emirates stadium. But as the fans trooped out of Higbury that evening for one last time, they knew that they had left a piece of themselves behind, a void that they may never be able to fill.

However all was not gloomy at Highbury a few hours before that. Arsenal put on a champagne performance in front of their home fans to beat Wigan – the fairy tale team of this season. And once Tottenham Hotspurs 2-1 loss at West ham United was confirmed, it was time for the Highbury faithful to start celebrating. This turn of events meant that Arsenal would participate in the Champions league next season irrespective of how they fare against Barcelona in the Champions league final later this month. For Spurs it seemed like a cruel twist of fate, and condemned them to the UEFA cup next season. This may actually prove to be a blessing, as doing well in the second string event may prepare them better for a decent shot in the Champions league the following year. Just look at how well Middlesbrough has done in the UEFA cup this season. They might not have lasted long had they been in with the big boys of the Champions league this season itself.

For Arsenal though, the events of the evening did not unfold so favourably right from go. Wigan made a real fuss and came to the match without reading the script. The result – they were leading 2-1 about half an hour into the match and were making a serious case of damping all celebrations at Highbury. But when the chips are down for Arsenal, they always look up to to one man to bail them out. And Henry honoured them yet again. His hattrick thereafter silenced a recalcitrant Wigan team and yet again confirmed his status as the greatest Arsenal import, and probably the best ever to have graced the grounds of Highbury. Even Henry appeared so awed by the occasion that he knelt down to kiss the turf after this third goal.

This climactic last day brought the curtains down on yet another fascinating season in the world’s most popular football league. How things may turn out for Arsenal next season is not yet clear. Will they be able to convince Henry to stay on for longer? Or will Henry decide to follow in the footsteps of teammates Wiltord and Vierra and return to the continent. Even if he does so, no one can question the commitment he has shown by dedicating his prime years to the club’s service. There is no doubt that Arsenal and in particular Arsen Wenger have transformed Henry into the potent striker that he is today. But he has repaid all that and more many times over during his stay with the North London club.

The evening was nonetheless more than about Henry. It was drenched in the melancholy of saying goodbye to an institution of English football. There are so many fond memories that I personally have of Highbury even though I don't consider myself a true Arsenal fan: the low camera angle that brought you that much closer to the game, the sea of red and white cheering fans, and more recently the giant squirrel who popped up when Villareal were visiting and which refused to be shooed away (and which has since become something of an icon at Highbury)! Highbury will in the future no longer physically exist. It will soon be torn down to make way for an apartment complex (one wing of the stadium though being a heritage site will be spared). One banner in the crowd last night aptly summed up the mood - “ Gone forever, but not forgotten.” Where ever they may move, Arsenal will forever remain synonymous with Highbury.

Updates:

1. It gladdened me in some way to learn that season ticket holders would be able to buy the Highbury seats they occupied in the just completed season. That would be quite a nostalgic memorabilia to hang on to.

2. The fate of the invading squirrel is unknown. If you google up on "Arsenal Squirrel", you will be amazed to see the following this story has! In this news item courtesy Yahoo news, Arsene Wenger seemed impressed with the squirrel's performance and commented, "He was quite fast -- and dribbling."

(courtesy: Yahoo news)

A bane of a bone

2006-05-04T06:52:00.000-07:00

The dreaded “fragmented metatarsal“ claims another English victim. Till now the list of English internationals suffering metatarsal injuries in the recent past included Beckham, Gerrard, Ledley King. Last weekend against Chelsea, we saw how Wayne Rooney got pissed, got wild and came under the knife (sorry...had to copy the style! and to be politically correct, it would be 'will come under the knife'). Rooney unluckily gets his name on that infamous list for the second time (the previous injury being suffered in Euro 2004). Very optimistic opinions suggest that he may recover in eight weeks (assuming England progress that far), but even if he does so, I think he will not be as potent as he was of late. You can well imagine the anxiety one would face in stressing a fragile, hardly healed foot. He is sure to be circumspect and play within himself.

I commiserate with Rooney. Reportedly, he himself had commented a few days prior to the incident on how getting injured before the world cup could be the worst thing that could happen to a player. Prophetic indeed. But Rooney apart from Gerrard is the only real live wire of the English team, the pulse of the team, the one reason why British bookmakers (in a rather father fetched vein I felt though) were quoting them at second best odds to win (after Brazil). After the disaster in Wayne’s world though the English have slipped to the third place in the odds, with Germany leapfrogging them. I am as surprised as you are about that list. Germany at second (where are the Italians, the Argentines, the French)?? Mind you I was a big German fan at one time, and even now dearly hang on to my faded, patched worldcup’94 German jersey. But I really don’t see enough firepower and creativity in them to proceed beyond the second round. I possibly don’t know about a third of their national squad as they remain confined to playing in the Bundesliga (the German football league), which rarely gets much coverage but from Ten Sports. I only regard Ballack and Schwinsteinger as real quality players in their team. They promised so much in the final last time around, but instead put in a shocking and inept display. Being the home team may spur them on to achieve more than they would have on foreign soils, but they surely can’t reach the last four.

Returning to the sorry fate of Rooney, some analysts were quoting his new shoes to be the cause of his injury. They claim that the studs on his new shoes did not come out of the turf easily as he fell. Rooney however exculpates his shoes and stands by them (pun intended…digressing – I wonder why people write ‘pun unintended’ when very clearly it’s a deliberate attempt at punny phraseology).

Where does Rooney’s injury leave the English team? Hoping I have traced the progress charts correctly, I think England will beat Paraguay and Trinidad and Tobago, draw with Sweden, but top the group on better goal difference. They will then face the runners up of group A, whom I predict will be Ecuador. England should beat them to make it through to the quarters (on July 1) to face Holland. This is such a tough match to call, and I give the edge to Holland. Had Rooney been fully fit at this stage, I would (albeit with a slightly heavy heart as my loyalties lie a bit with the Dutch) tilt the balance in the favour of the English. So it looks like yet another QF exit for the English – predictable aren’t they. I am tempted to analyze the strengths and weakness of the English team here, but this post has already turned out much longer than I had envisaged. So that will be later, probably after Sven announces his squad. As of today, the media is abuzz with who will be his successor. The English FA is about to announce this any time now, but from the recent build up to this announcement, Steve McClaren taking over seems like a done deal!

Reichweite heraus zur Schale - the Cup is within reach

2006-05-02T07:13:00.000-07:00

Over the extended weekend (courtesy the off on Labour day), I got to catch a lot of football centric programs on TV, including (hold your breath) one on Discovery channel! It is quite a surprise that an American channel is taking fondly to football. Somehow the lead up to this world cup seems bigger than that to any of the previous editions. This program on Discovery was a profile on the Brazilian teams of the past, covering both masters and duds. Strangely, the program only covered the world cups up till 1970, missing out on a few special occasions, the biggest of which is undoubtedly their win in 2002, when the Brazilians finally got to redeem themselves and shake off the nightmare they endured on that Paris night in 1998 (more on this program in a later post).

I initially took to this Discovery program with subdued enthusiasm despite football being one of my prime passions. An hour later, I was completely awash with emotions (the game can do that to you). Consequently, I spent most the next day (Saturday) seeing other soccer (sounds blasphemous eh.?) programs on ESPN - a few were official FIFA films of different world cups, one a compilation of the top 20 World cup moments (this was amazing), and another, a program on the drama called penalties. My evening was consummated on seeing Chelsea majestically waltz past ManU in their premiership title defense.

Surfeited with so much of the beautiful game, I felt inspired to write about it. Till that moment I had no intention of doing anything of that kind, but as I said, the game does really reach into you, want to make you reach out and talk to others about it. So starting today, I regularly plan to pen the odd word about football here, culminating with the finals in June (I am sure once the tournament is over, I will feel despondent, gloomy and with no visible means to fill the sudden void I would experience; but that’s for later to worry about). At the moment I have some topics in mind to write about; not the usual news update kind of posts, but perhaps more reflective and personal in nature. So hold on, the wait is almost over. Ole ole ole ole…ole…ole….

PS: The Bable Fish translator apart from being a pretty useful tool, is also an ingenuous source of entertainment. All you need to do is translate your text from English to a foreign language and then translate it back - a few laughs are guaranteed. For instance I got the title of this post by converting “Reach out to the cup” into German. When a re-translation of this into English is attempted, you get the very comical– “Range out to the bowl.”

The great Indian divide

2006-04-26T07:39:00.000-07:00

India, though developing at a fast pace, remains a land of remarkable disparity. While some people are forced into a livelihood of menial labour and toil, others get to choose from the multitudinous white collar jobs now available. It is this inequality that I am trying to potray here - the new age yuppie, screaming past in his car with a swanky rear spoiler stares in amazement at Mr Nagaraj, who is driven to perform tricks on his bike to earn his living.

This is my entry to this week's Bangalore shutterbugs photo contest themed 'Work'.

In harmony

2006-04-25T07:23:00.000-07:00

Classical chirps

2006-04-25T06:47:00.000-07:00

I guess dragon flies don't exactly chirp. But this one does quite resemble an Indian classical music artist, rhythmically waving an outstretched palm while singing. The image is actually rotated ninety degrees anti-clock wise. In the top left corner you can spot the edge of a fluorescent lamp - the soul audience to the crooner's performance. The image has a greenish look because I messed up with the white balance. Again!

Parched

2006-04-24T07:26:00.000-07:00

This is my entry to this week's Bangalore shutter bugs contest titled Summer.

Just minding my business...

2006-04-07T07:18:00.000-07:00

The other day I had almost drifted into a slumber when my sister jabs me awake. "There is an interesting insect on my room wall", she cried, and beckoned me to follow her. I wasn't sure if her adoration was true, or whether she just required my service to drive it away, but I ambled along behind her. I was expecting to find a flashy, led powered beetle whizzing around in her room, but it wasn't so. In fact the thing was practically invisible and had to be pointed out to me. Upon closer examination, the insect did turn out to be interesting, cute even. I spent a few minutes, clicking it up from every angle, and it cooperated beautifully, not minding one bit even though the lens was virtually prodding it all the time. When I later saw the images on my system I was convinced that my camera is indeed blessed with fabulous macro capabilities - the insect was practically only a centimeter and a half in length! Satisfied with my capture, I tumbled back into my bed. A while later I swear a I could hear my sister talking to the insect, congratulating it on it's two minutes of fame.

The sordid link

2006-04-07T07:01:00.000-07:00

Why do pest exterminators make ideal IT test engineers?
...because they help in raising a lot of bugs.

- authentic elderly Camel humour

Just dessert

2006-04-01T01:18:00.000-08:00

We have heard about there being no 'free meal' in this world. But maybe they forgot to account for the dessert in it!

Poised for flight

2006-03-31T06:00:00.000-08:00

Big is beautiful (click to see large size)

The Orange prickly wood eating monster family

2006-03-29T23:56:00.000-08:00

Take a minute to answer this riddle -

Q. What stays five feet underground, is orange in colour, has prickly spines all over, and devours wood for breakfast, lunch and dinner (while testing someone else with this, you might add a 'midnight snack' for variety)?
A. The orange prickly wood eating monster.

If you are tearing your hair out, hold on a second, there is more. Take a break and then read on.

Q. What happens if you dig a hole from New Zealand all the way through, and drop a twig into this hole? (If you are scientifically inclined, your first reaction should be that the twig goes into a simple harmonic motion. On the other hand if you are a geo whizz kid, you might argue that England and New Zealand being antipodes, the twig might land in some pommie's cup of tea. If you are neither, then please compare your response to the answer below.)
A. Once it falls to a depth of five feet, the twig would be made mincemeat of by a ravenous orange prickly wood eating monster.

This riddle was extremely popular in my dad's college days, as most of his friends who have come over have quizzed me on it. Well, not exactly this version. The authentic version talks about a green rock eating monster only, but as you view my pictures below, you will probably grant me the use of my literary license.
Note: The orange prickly wood eating monster occasionally ventures out of it's burrow (present five feet underground) to feast on superficial growth.

With that introduction out of the way, I am glad to present before you a photo portfolio of an orange prickly wood eating monster (OPWEM) family that I chanced upon near the Hebbal lake.

An OPWEM in toothpick usage mode

(toothpick chewed down after usage)

A content snoozing OPWEM

(probably after devouring a whole giant sequoia)

A septuagenaric OPWEM reflecting upon better times
(in the backdrop a strapping young OPWEM can be seen, awaiting his first big meal)

India shining

2006-03-29T05:59:00.000-08:00

I think this could make quite a funky party electoral symbol (all rights reserved)!
PS: The boundaries of India depicted on this globe may be incorrect.

The bright side of the moon

2006-03-29T05:38:00.000-08:00

After a lot of experimentation taking moon shots I finally learnt that the best way to get a natural, glowing, moony look without fringing and over/under exposure is to shoot - with a tripod, a small aperture, spot metering, and with any image stabilization feature on the camera turned off.

A makeover

2006-03-27T06:13:00.000-08:00

It was time to bring in some change. Thanks to Suyog for making me realize that black looks great (especially as a background for photos), and to Varun whose profound blog made me aware of 'Flickr badges' (the dynamic array of images on the right, fed from my flickr account).

Delicate beauty crawls to Glory

2006-03-20T06:31:00.000-08:00

This snap won me first place at the weekly Bangalore Shutter Bugs contest. Delicate was the theme for the contest, and this was my formal Flickr entry for the competition. Coincidentally the third placed picture was also an arachnoid based one! Seems a paradox then that spiders are one thing most people are petrified of.

Jaipuri graffiti

2006-02-27T05:46:00.000-08:00

Notes on a scale

2006-02-15T05:25:00.000-08:00

Yup...that's what they appear to me like. Each bird seems to be doing something different (I like the way the fourth bird from the right on the second wire from the top is peering down) - reminds me of the spot the six differences kind of puzzles. I do wish that this picture had come out better though. This is cropped from a picture taken from a moving car, and at large zoom.

The colourful male

2006-02-08T06:03:00.000-08:00

I readily fall for any show hosted by Sir David Attenborough, the famous British naturalist. What I like best about his shows is his inimitable style of talking and explaining things, and the way in which creatures don't seem to sense any peril when he approaches them. In one of his documentaries on the birds of paradise, he was accounting for why the male amongst the birds of paradise have such magnificently coloured plumage. Apparently as these birds are found in habitats where there are few predators and plenty of easy food for the picking, the male can indulge in the far more satisfying activity of trying to attract a suitable mate. Evolution has thus blessed them with resplendent coats, neat dance moves, and an aesthetic sense in decorating up their homes that any man would love to possess.

Eyes

2006-02-03T05:51:00.000-08:00

Eyes was the theme for this week's Bangalore shutterbugs contest. I searched through my archive, and found the following three snaps that could sort of relate to the theme. I eventually submitted the one which has the model sporting Gucci coolers.

Can somebody point out my eyes please???

Keeping an eye out...

Summer eye gear from Gucci

My first panaroma

2006-01-27T06:49:00.000-08:00

I think the panorama maker did a decent job (sadly this can't be viewed in a very large size here)! This is part of the Jaipur skyline formed by taking four photos. From L to R: The hospice of the SDM hospital, a famous fort (owned I think by the Maharani Gayatri devi), the red and white buildings of the Jaipur Development Authority, the familiar Birla mandir, more JDA, houses in Bapu nagar. The Aravalis form a nice backdrop. Towards the right you can see its quarried faces.

PS: A larger verison is visible here on Flickr.

Wild beauty

2006-01-24T06:15:00.000-08:00

This is my entry to the Flowers theme of the weekly Bangalore shutter bugs contest. I wanted to post something pretty but also different from the more commonly seen disc shaped flowers, and hence choose this one.

Grub on grub

2006-01-19T05:48:00.000-08:00

The case of the abandoned footware

2006-01-11T05:44:00.000-08:00

Trampled underfoot

Lonely soul

Flight into the twilight

2006-01-09T05:15:00.000-08:00

I submitted this snap as an entry to the Light theme of the weekly Bangalore shutter bugs contest. What I submitted there was this brighter, less contrasted version though. A few people on that site dropped in a note suggesting that I darken and increase the contrast of the image, and I end up with this current image, which I like better.

Drive-in bhakti

2005-12-30T18:40:00.000-08:00

Its not uncommon in India to see patrons invocate a small prayer while on their way to work, without quite alighting from their vehicle. Such a sight is more common outside the smaller temples, where the deity is physically not very far from the road. This was taken outside the famous Moti Dongri Ganesh temple in Jaipur.

Here’s heartily wishing everyone a happy, peaceful and successful new year. May all your prayers be answered too!

Fields of gold

2005-12-29T18:47:00.000-08:00

Unfinished business

2005-12-28T02:29:00.000-08:00

Opening Up

2005-12-28T02:25:00.000-08:00

Resurrection of the Jedi

2005-12-26T19:53:00.000-08:00

There is news to cheer about for all those grieving the extermination of the Jedi tribe. Darth Sidius’ swift and ruthless attack (The revenge of the Sith) it seems was not completed to perfection. Apart from Master Yoda and Master Kenobi, a small packet of Jedi resistance in the remote Indian city of Jaipur managed to evade the intent of order 66, and has now for a few generations kept alive the heritage of the Jedi clan. Seen above is a young apprentice practicing the ancient Jedi art, using the influence of the force to levitate a brick.

“And a time there will come, when out of the great sands of Tatoine and The Thar, will a new power rise. And balance to the force and peace and stability to the Republic this force will bring” – Yoda

Pecking in public

2005-12-23T18:47:00.000-08:00

This is my entry for the Birds theme at the weekly Bangalore Shutterbugs contest. I took this snap one evening, from our terrace here in Jaipur. I changed the image’s colour balance and then processed it with the ‘comic strip’ tool to achieve this surreal effect.

Feels like love is the in air!

Field Mice

2005-12-23T00:43:00.000-08:00

We are lucky that the adjacent plot and the plot behind our backyard are vacant. This means that we get to see plenty of different birds and animals living out their lives. In my three days or so since coming, I have seen and caught on camera mynas (of two varieties), sparrows, bulbuls, partridges, parrots, sun birds, pigeons and something that resembles a roadrunner. Amongst the animals I get to see goats, camels (occasionally), dogs and cows. But I was fascinated most by the plenty of field mice that scurry around.

Corporate Inspiration?

2005-12-21T19:21:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I was taking a closer look at a group of busy ants, ferrying away some food to their homes. It’s quite an education to observe the way they communicate and help each with their work. When a bit later, I saw the same scene as a digital picture on my computer, it inspired me to have a nice tongue-in-cheek go at the roles and responsibilities in the realm of our corporate world. My favourite in this image is the Quality officer who according to popular lore, keeps an eye out to make everyone's life less worth living, and who always buzzes on the precipice just before a product delivery is made, waiting to point out flaws in it.

Dating dilemmas

2005-12-21T19:18:00.000-08:00

Sigh! I can't make up my mind between handsome Henry and dependable Dave.

Pinned down

2005-12-21T03:37:00.000-08:00

Caught this great tussle between two soldier ants. I think it was a do-or-die battle as one held the other in this grasp for quite some time.

Homeward bound

2005-12-21T03:32:00.000-08:00

I am finally at home for a three week vacation. I think Jaipur is at its best in the winter season. The sights and sounds that winter brings along with it make up for the bitter chill in the air at this time. I would vouch for the Rajsathani locals as being probably the simplest and easiest to get along with people in India. Add to this the colour and gaiety that they normally infuse into their living, and you can be assured that their company is enjoyable and fun loving at almost all times.

The exception to ‘all’ being if you have them for company on a train journey. Having studied in a college in South India, I have made numerous trips from either Bangalore or Chennai to Jaipur, and I have almost always been blessed with a decent sized Marwari (one class of ethnic locals from Rajasthan) family as co-journeymen. The typical family would consist of one huge (horizontally challenged) male, an equally bloated brother, a slim wife and two noisy young kids. If you are really down on your luck, the kids’ grandparents would have also decided to make the trip.

There is the rather curious affair of how the Marwaris age – as he steps into old age, the Marwari male to some degree loses his mass, and the wife does her very best to restore family neutrality by gaining some. In case of confusion in identifying who is who, the lady (mother-in-law) can always be identified by the huge key bunch that jingles merrily at her waist, having been stuffed with much effort between her sari and the emerging flab.

The only point of attention and interest for the journeying Marwari family is in their food. Four courses at least must travel down the esophagus, without which peace and sleep they will get not. Sweets and savouries form the bulk of this diet, supplemented with frequent indulgence in fruit. The fruit is generally fed in equal measure to both the family members and the train compartment floor! The other activities that the Marwaris devote time to en route are playing cards, and starting impromptu and incongruous Antakshri sessions, where half the people sound like croaking frogs.

I was prepared for a similar experience when traveling to Jaipur this time around, but am glad to say that the corpulent Marwari populace seems to have stayed at home. The journey on the whole was peaceful (spent most of my time reading Treasure Island), and was punctuated with a few amusing incidents which I shall next narrate.

The principal cause of the amusement was a young boy who kept pestering (though in a friendly, innocent way) his elder sister. For example once the sister expressed her desire to get some sleep, and wanted to bring down the middle berth. But her brother would have none of it, and insisted that she trek up to the top berth, knowing only to well that she was too scared to do so. And thus proceeded a hilarious session where he demonstrated three different techniques in which she could climb up. She reluctantly tried each one of them, but could not proceed beyond the first step at any attempt. What was even more amusing was the assistance offered by one of their friends – a curly haired young girl whom everyone referred to as ‘Bag wali Aunty’. She spent most of her two days on the train tightly clutching her shiny new handbag, which we would learn later, contained a comb and a wad of paper soap strips. Every now and then she would seat herself comfortably in a corner, pull out the strips, and would anxiously count them to make sure none were missing.

Also comical were the ways in which the young boy ‘cheated’ at cards. Whenever he sensed that he was going to be on the receiving end of a game, he would suddenly fall over and drop all his cards in the common heap, pretending it was an accident. Looking into neighbor’s cards was no crime for him, and playing was exciting until he began to lose a few hands.

One of my fellow commuters turned out to be the vocalist for a fledgling Bangalore rock band. He had brought his guitar along with him and would occasionally fish it out and strum a few chords while singing popular numbers. He was quite talented with the guitar and possessed a good voice as well. I got talking with him and in due course he handed me the lyrics of his latest song that he was working on. It spoke of dreams that the singer was having, and which he wanted to turn into reality. He sang to me this partially completed song, and I would say for an own composition it had a great sound to it. Then came the question from him that I was dreading - “Can you guess what this song is about?”

I was sure that most likely one of us would end up looking like a fool. Knowing that I was treading on slippery ground, I tried to give an erudite reply – “I think its about an ambition you have, a someone that you would like to be, and your quest in turning this aspiration into reality.” He looked disappointed with my reply. “It’s about my girl friend,” he said. “I haven’t seen her in six months, and am going to Jaipur to meet her.” I gave an understanding nod, and silently turned back to the charms of Treasure Island.

The journey ended without fuss, and I thanks to my slow reading speed have still not finished my book. I hope my luck with Marwari travel mates holds on the return leg too. I really don’t miss the feeling of squished fruit under my feet!

No need to say cheese

2005-12-13T20:01:00.000-08:00

Their genuine, uninhibited smiles and reaction really warms the heart! I took this snap during a field trip from my company to a village near Kolar. This photo is my entry to the Faces theme of the weekly Bangalore shutter bugs contest. After posting this I got the idea to instead submit a macro of a Rubik's cube, in all the splendour of it's multicoloured faces. Unfortunately, found it hard to lay my hands on one at this time of the year.

Live bird on wire

2005-11-25T05:20:00.000-08:00

also known as Bird on live wire!

Colours

2005-11-18T06:25:00.000-08:00

Worn

2005-11-18T06:07:00.000-08:00

Desperately wanted to enter the "Worn" edition of the Photofriday contest. So I quickly put up this snap and named it so (was intending to name it Shelter before the thought for entering the contest came up). I found out though that the contest was already done with and the next one was up and running :(.

I like this snap a bit because of the detail the camera has manged to capture (for example check out the rust formation on the metal), and the soothing brown tones the whole image abounds with. This is quite worth seeing at its expanded size.

Empty Headed?

2005-11-03T05:02:00.000-08:00

The following paragraph contains textually graphic material. Reader discretion is advised :)

I have always been on the lookout to snap a picture of a dragonfly (they are awfully pretty insects, and once they are stationary, sit tight posing nicely for the camera). I finally did succeed in getting this one, but was quite horrified when I saw it on the PC. Doesn't this remind one of the movie Hannibal? Remember how Dr. Lecter slices the top of one of the baddies, pickles his brains, and shares it gregariously with a Chinese kid on a plane? Could someone tell me if this is how all dragonflies look? Maybe the sphere shaped body end sits nicely in the con-caved, hollowed out head like a ball and socket connection.

Slloooowwww...

2005-11-03T04:58:00.000-08:00

I really pity the celebrities in the snail world - they can never make a run from the prowling paparazzi!

Fresh

2005-10-16T00:10:00.000-07:00

This snap of the tiny fruits (must be about a cm in diameter each) on a branch was taken after a fleeting monsoon shower. The water drop in the centre looks quite captivating. In fact on enlarging the snap and turning it around by 180 degrees, I could view my reflection in the drop, seen while taking the snap!

I have reduced noise in this image with a tool called Neat Image that Suyog suggested to me. I think the tool works wonders! It makes the image look clean, freshly washed out, and also gives it a somewhat ethereal look. I used it to fix up a previously posted image , and it sure does work! Quite unfortunately, since I only have a demo version of the software, it removes the exif data from the image, something that I personally find useful when checking out a great snap. Good things are never for free?

Dainty legs on display

2005-10-15T23:50:00.000-07:00

Also known as "The acrobatic centipede". PJ Time now -

Q: Why was Mr. Centipede always late for the party?
A: It took him time to lace up his boots.

Q: What goes 99-Clonk, 99-Clonk (Hint: Long John Silver)?
A: A centipede on crutches.

Incidentally, PJs were also called kadis by some people back in college. Wonder if that is a familiar term?

Unused

2005-10-15T23:34:00.000-07:00

Also known as 'Wasted talent', or according to the IT industry parlance - 'On the bench'.

Utilizing Solar energy efficiently

2005-10-11T03:37:00.000-07:00

Someday, it might well be as simple as this - just plug into the halo and use up!

...and pink is the colour of heaven

2005-10-06T07:20:00.000-07:00

The sky as the sun sets over Hebbal, Bangalore.

O' Piya piya...

2005-10-06T06:20:00.000-07:00

Honestly, when is the last time you caught sight of a guy trying to woo a ball?

For the reader's enlightenment, the recalcitrant ball did not quite fall for his charms. Later, our friend tried to cover up his failed attempts at courtship by pretending that the snap actually captures his attempt to catch the ball that some one else had tossed his way! Ya, ya...we sure do believe you. The look on the face of our friend at the extreme right is quite priceless. Suspending the perpetual nibble at his cookie, he seems more interested in how this romantic interlude finally spans out.

Stand at ease...

2005-10-04T06:59:00.000-07:00

...aka "in a Lilliputian's shoes at the Town meeting".

On the trail of the red velvety mite

2005-10-03T06:36:00.000-07:00

A bug in hand...

...and one on its way home

When I was young, I remember seeing plenty of these precious little creatures in my hometown in Rajasthan. They could be spotted in fairly shrubby, wilderness growth like areas, and were found to emerge especially during the rainy season. I even got a few home once and put them in a big brass vessel filled with moist mud. Sadly they did not survive for many days. I don't know what they are called, but 'red velvety mites' were what my dad used to call them. That name has stuck.

At the lord's feet

2005-09-30T02:48:00.000-07:00

This was taken more than two months back at a Ganesha idol making stall. The good idol maker is sure to have all his wishes granted! Interesting to note that not all parts of the idol are hand-shaped each time for each idol. Seems like the componentized approach functions well here too.

The force of the bhel*

2005-09-21T06:57:00.000-07:00

Bangalore Sep 22,
By our special correspondent

In one of the greatest biological science discoveries made over the past decade, two researchers at the Indian Institute of Science at Bangalore claim to have uncovered the rationale behind the well-known “bhel force”. Prof Chawal and Prof Sake, both associated with the department of Biological Maladies at IISc, publicly announced their findings at a hurriedly called press conference yesterday morning. The stunning announcement has been greeted by celebrations of unabated jubilation around the world. The discovery explains one of the most baffling questions put to us by science - why humans get physically drawn towards puffed rice (also called bhel in Hindi). Scientists have struggled to even replicate this scenario in their labs, for the fear of loosing one of their assistants in the process. As a result this enigma has remained largely unquantified and unanswered.

The unusual phenomenon of the bhel force was first observed by the British physician Stephen Paddy in 1895 while being stationed in the tiny village of Bennaganahalli. Writes Dr. Paddy in his journal –“…I was amazed to see a whole family literally stuck to a pot of cooking, puffed rice. The grandfather of the family was crouched in a corner, far away from the smoking chullah, crying away helplessly, and resigning himself to his daily task of feeding and caring for the rest of his family. I have heard from the village folk that the magnitude of attraction begins to wear down as time progresses, and as the rice begins to wither away. But still being stuck to a pot of rice for a good twenty or thirty days is not a cherishable experience...” Dr. Paddy’s journal vividly illustrates the plight of such victims, and victims to be. One such photography from his book shown below recounts the tale of two brothers, minutes before they got sucked into a bag of puffed rice. You can almost hear one of them scream out, “Help! Don’t let the force get me.”

Over the years, as the rest of India and the world slowly awoke to this mysterious and disturbing behaviour, the call for an absolute ban on the production and sale of puffed rice raged around the world. But the ban never came into place. Explains Dr. Sake with a sardonic smile, “Its rather like the Japanese liking for the puffer fish. They know it’s potentially lethal, but still one gets a kick out of eating it.”

According to Dr. Chawal and Dr. Sake, the bhel force can be traced to a basic affinity that the rice cells feel to the sweat bacteria in humans. It may seem far-fetched, but Dr. Chawal says they have strong observational data to state their case. They have even expounded ways to counter the force. Not wanting to further elaborate on their findings at the moment, Dr. Chawal urged the scientific community to wait for the December issue of Nature, where the findings of their research will be published.

Apart from soothing plenty of frayed nerves, this discovery is also bound to shake up the world of physics. According to the classical laws of physics, only four fundamental forces exist in nature - the gravitational forces, electromagnetic forces, and the strong and weak nuclear forces. The discovery of this fifth, and plausibly different force is sure to stir up some feathers. The discovery may also have unfathomable and far-reaching consequences in other domains. The transport industry has for example always fantasized a vehicle driven by “bhel energy”, where the front section of the car with a carton of bhel is fuel powered, and the rest of the car, with the people strapped in is automatically pulled behind! Whether the bhel vehicle finally ends up on the road or remains confined to the realms of science fiction, only time will tell, but for the time being, the corner bhel puri wala can get a big load off his chest.

* For the unacquainted, bhel or puffed rice is served as part of a delicious Indian Snack called bhel puri.

The Pied Piper

2005-09-16T06:29:00.000-07:00

A prime exhibit of a "Funambulus palmarum", posing nicely for the camera inside the Lal Bagh gardens (Bangalore). I shot from a fair distance, and hence the slightly fuzzy snap, but this one is still amongst my favourites.

Catching a breather

2005-09-15T07:04:00.000-07:00

Was lucky that this moth decided to take it's afternoon siesta on my balcony wall.

All together now

2005-09-12T06:53:00.000-07:00

A content looking red ant family snapped on the sly! These are the common, half-centimeter long ants that we frequently find gnawing away at our sweetmeats.

A natural 'Master' stroke

2005-09-12T06:39:00.000-07:00

Got a few more ‘wild’ macros to upload starting with a snap of this Master Card logo (OO) look alike. The crinkled edge of the red flower reminds me of some kind of biological single cellular creature when viewed under a microscope.

Input and output

2005-09-01T06:53:00.000-07:00

I had to post this seemingly unpalatable image just for the sheer luck I had with it's timing. But there can be nothing obnoxious with nature can there? Where would that leave us if it were?

Better than the best

2005-08-29T05:37:00.000-07:00

Have been reading some really fabulous blogs of late. In addition to feeling elated, I also feel, as folklore goes, the way Clapton felt when he heard Mark Knoffler for the first time - strangely depressed, subdued, bluesy, and what not. All of a sudden I don’t seem too eager to want to visit my blog and check out if people have left their thoughts behind. My previous posts feel mediocre and pedestrian in content. I seem unable to think up an original idea to convert into a post.

But the silver lining in all this murkiness is that the authors of those fabulous blogs seem to think alike too - that their work pales in comparison to others that they really look up to and idolize. Its not exactly a comfort that I can lean upon and carry on. But I realize that there are many grades of good writing, and similar levels of an appreciative public.

I recall now an analogy I have had at the back of my mind all these years. I have been a fairly good football player in school and in college. But they were a couple of players both in college and school who were leagues better than me. And the best of those players probably only went as far as playing in the Calcutta second division. Considering how much better the first division and the national level players are than the second division ones, its humbling to learn that I would surely not feature in a grouping of the most skillful one lakh players in our country. And finally when you realize that India is ranked around 130 odd in the world football rankings, its a very fair chance that every other European, South American, Middle or South East Asian I come across would probably dance me off my feet! Sigh.

Flowers within flowers

2005-08-22T21:16:00.000-07:00

This flower rather reminds me of the song "I am the walrus" - which appears to have been composed by stitching together three separate songs! I like the fuzzy background of people here as its different from the more ubiquitous hazy green/natural backdrops for similar macros.

Lalbagh in full bloom

2005-08-13T06:40:00.000-07:00

Visited the Lal Bagh botanical gardens today. A special flower show at the green house is on currently to commemorate Independence day. Sadly the show itself was bit of a damp squib, but some of the other blooms in the pretty vast expanses of the garden were quite eye catching, and came up well in the snaps. Nature has some really amazing colours in her make up kit!

Star flower

This snap came out so well that I had to do absolutely no post processing to up it's appearance.

Dad I have already had my bath for the day!

Both adults and teens alike were 'chilling' out at this fountain in the gardens. This exuberant dad seems to want to share his feelings with his poor kid.

The lover's bench

Looks like a well known politician seems to have started scratching his name into the top row of this bench!

A motley

2005-07-26T07:12:00.000-07:00

The following is a bunch of snaps that I took over the past couple of weeks. They have been clubbed together as I guess they don't each merit an individual post.

Are you lonesome tonight?

Rather pretty looking flower this was. At first sight it seems as though some of the petals have been plucked away (maybe as part of Tang's lavish spread for Salman). But I think the space between the flower petals is intentional and symmetrical.

Apartheid no more

See...no legs!

This 'artist' was entertaining the crowd (and making a living out of it as well) by performing a variety of tricks on his simple ‘torn down to basics’ bicycle. I like the look on the face of the dog in the far right corner- it too appears to be spell bound by his antics.

Dinner at my place - 7 pm sharp

2005-07-18T07:26:00.000-07:00

Tangavelu the brown garden spider and Salman the black louse were the best of friends and used to be inseparable. The two knew each other since childhood days, having grown up on adjacent marigold stalks. But things were slowly changing. Nature has this wonderful phenomenon called instinct, and both Salman and Tangavelu were coming to grips with its reality.

Of late one look at Salman was enough to send Tangs scurrying into his kitchen, where he pulled out book after cookery book bequeathed to him by his late mom. Tangs salivated and drooled over the glossy pages of “Quick fix mix – gastronomy for the working spider”. He wasn’t sure if “The lousy broth” would taste better than “Crispy bug chips”. Maybe he could manage both - after all Salman was fast growing into a prime, exemplary louse, at least size wise.

Salman meanwhile was no longer drawn to the glow in Tangavelu’s shifty eyes. That radiance, which he earlier perceived as one of friendship and warmth now had a menacing, diabolical look. He did not like playing hop skip and jump with Tangs anymore. Somehow he got this strange feeling that Tangs was always on the lookout to jump on him! He shuddered as he recalled his last meeting with Tangs – a cold blistery morning a few days back, when he was sitting on the edge of a desiccated leaf, ruminating over his life, when he felt the leaf beneath him creak and move almost silently. He jumped around and saw Tangavelu, motionless and with his fangs raised in unison. Just as he was about to screech out, Tangs pulled out a worn out toothbrush, and began to scrub his fangs, humming an innocuous oldie, and trying to give an unsurprised, bored look. “Mean weather for this time of the year,” he uttered as he turned around and marched back. Salman beat a hasty retreat, having lost any interest in wanting to ponder about life any more at that moment.

A few summers pass by.

The field in which Tangs and Salman had made their home were now flush with bright flowers and young buds, all swaying in the gentle breeze, as the favourable July sunshine continued to make life a joy for all concerned. Except for Tangs that is, who over the years had developed an allergy to pollen, and was sneezing and sniffing his life away. “Damn these flowers!” he muttered. Adding to his aggravated mood were his repeated failures in making a meal out of Salman. Salman had only grown stronger and faster, and sleight was no longer Tangavelu’s best friend. He had to think of something fast if he was to turn that vista of “Crispy bug chips” into a reality.

His idea came in a fleeting moment of brilliance, something relatively uncommon in the arachnid world. He decided to call Salman over for dinner knowing quite well that Salman could not refuse an offering of fresh honeydew and tender hibiscus buds. He elaborately planned out the rest of the menu, and spent the whole of the afternoon gathering the ingredients for the feast. He sent his invitation to Salman, through Prabhakar the caterpillar, asking him to drop over for a ‘quick bite’ anytime in the evening. The hard work out of the way, he relaxed back and sat down to catch his favourite serial – “Crawl into my parlour”.

Why Salman made the stupidity of accepting the invitation is indeed hard to fathom, and so not worth dwelling into. In his final moments, as he was being drawn into a silky embrace, he saw a bright light flash before his eyes a few times. Mistaking it for a luminous blaze from the heavens, he steadied himself for his eternal journey.

Shy damsel amongst bougenvalia fronds

2005-07-15T08:32:00.000-07:00

Took a series of snaps of this very timid and cute looking girl last weekend. She was playing all by herself with the plants and rocks in the same ground in which I had earlier taken the picture of the football playing kids. It was a bit tough to photograph her as I did not want to do it without her permission. So I asked a localite who was relaxing in the park to ask her so in Kanadda. That proved to be a blunder as he instantly became suspicious of my intent and asked what will people think if they saw me snapping. Finally after much consoling and explaining from my side, he tried to get the message across to her but she coyly slunk away. I then had to stand from quite a distance and surreptitiously shoot her. In one series of photos, I set the camera on a high burst mode and got a set of shots where she slowly looks up from behind the branch and becomes aware of the lens focussed on her.

Spoilt for choice

2005-07-03T07:31:00.000-07:00

A view of the juices section in my neighborhood supermarket. Would recommend a new brand called Coolers to anyone who likes jamun and panna (green mango juice). The jamun juice specially tastes just like the fruit - the same rough sensation you get on the tongue after consuming the actual fruit. After drinking it I felt as if I was transported to some exotic wild forest like location!

Tension amidst tension

2005-07-03T07:18:00.000-07:00

Nothing special in this photo, but I put it up because of it’s pretty catchy caption. Captures kids at a game of football in which tensions were running high, and the two high tension wire towers seem to stand as extra goalposts!

Close encounters and Live 8

2005-07-03T02:27:00.000-07:00

This has been a weekend of extremely close sporting contests. Was constantly switching between the ladies final at Wimbledon and the Natwest final at Lords. Could not make up my mind at which one deserved a more prolonged viewing (the live Live-8 telecast was complicating a decision even further...but thank you VH1 for not making my life so straightforward). The men's final later today might be a treat too. Can't expect much from the F1 race at Mangy Cours.

The longest ladies final in tournament history was a fitting way to end this years competition. Either one of the two could have won it finally, but the amazing fact that Venus has reached the final five times in the past six years speaks of her consistency at this venue. You could sense her sheer joy and relief at the way she kept prancing about till bed time came around.

I don't think that for a long time have I sat on the edge of my seat for a cricket match like I did for yesterday's Natwest final. The way Jones and Collingwood were consolidating their innings after England were five down for very little brings back memories of that Natwest final a couple of years back when Kaif and Yuvraj were similarly repairing the damage on road to that memorable triumph. I don't think I can even imagine the nerves that Giles must have had when he played the final ball and scampered through for a brace. Strangely there was a bit of a hush for sometime in the ground and the commentary box after the last ball suspense. I would have imagined Nasser Hussain to have leapt out of his seat and do a impromptu jig. Botham is rarely stirred enough to emit more than his customary "Well". Am sure that the Aussies felt like a pelican whose beak has been priced open, and the catch fished out. There have still that yard to go before they can achieve the domination that Armstrong or Rossi have shown in their respective sports.

Sir Bob Geldof's endeavor in trying to eradicate poverty, hunger and death is highly noble. It’s gratifying that so many top musicians have pledged their solidarity and support to this cause. I just hope that people around the globe remember the real motive behind the concerts after the sounds of the absolutely top quality music have died down. I don't think we will get to see Paul McCartney, REM, Pink Floyd, U2, Cold Play, Elton John, Annie Lennox, Madonna, Robbie Williams and The Who sharing the stage any time soon again. Hyde park crowd - thank your stars! If you would like to be a part this "Long walk to Justice", you could sign up at http://www.live8live.com/list/. May peace and prosperity descend upon us all!

Raising an empty toast

2005-07-01T08:31:00.000-07:00

This was taken a few minutes before the crowd was let loose on the innocent biscuits!

...and along came a spider...

2005-07-01T07:49:00.000-07:00

Snapped this beauty outside my friend’s house. Was a bit scared in taking the lens in too close...haven't yet forgotten Spielberg's Arachnophobia.

As shallow as a petri dish

2005-06-30T01:46:00.000-07:00

I have often thought of myself to possess fairly good, cultivated tastes in most aspects. But over the past few years I have found this premise to be unraveling quite fast. This is especially true with regard to critically acclaimed books and movies that I have read and watched of late. In general I found that my taste or opinion seemed to disagree with that of the connoisseur.

It all started maybe a couple of years back when I chanced to glance at a list of top 100 books as rated by a highly distinguished panel (as in most such lists, Ulysses seems to be unshakable from the top). Looking at the list I realized how much of good literature I had actually missed reading. That I am an incredibly slow reader has not really helped my cause either. I have this tendency to re-read pages and lines I have already read and only a few minutes down the line realize that the seeming familiarity with the text was not due to any foreboding powers that I possessed, but due to my apparent stupidity in not mentally marking the point from where I left off. I re-read the list in the hope of finding a few books that I could claim to have read, but there were not too many. I felt a bit deprived and wondered if I will do justice to my existence if I did not manage to get at least a few of these books under my belt by them time I started using a walking stick.

And thus began the quest to read (or more realistically to hoard up) some of these masterpieces. When the next Strand book exhibition came around, I ran out and purchased Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Lord of the flies, The great Gatsby, Catch 22 and a couple of others. All the Ulysses editions bordered (luckily) on the marginally expensive side, and I decided to give them a miss for the time being.

A year passes by…

I have now read The Alchemist, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, The great Gatsby, The old man and the sea. My verdict?? I am a little clueless about why so much has been made of these books. Sacrilegious as it may sound, I am GENUIENLY puzzled about why critics claim that these are amongst the masterpieces of our time. The Alchemist was pleasant reading in the beginning, but once the protagonist begins his search for the alchemist, the book for me became unpick able! The repeated references to two stones (Ur and something else) became quite annoying. As for Jonathan Livingston Seagull, and The old man and the sea, I can’t fathom any deeper implicit meaning that these books are supposed to convey. I did however find myself sympathizing deeply with the Old man. I heaved a big sigh of relief when I finally managed to wade through the Great Gatsby. It is a far from memorable book.

I also recall reading somewhere that Moby Dick is supposed to convey a more significant message to readers above the superficial story of captain Ahab out to avenge the loss of his leg being made part of a midday meal by a tempestuous sperm whale. Curiouser and Curiouser! I am still searching for that message. I am lamenting on why I was in such a hurry to buy The Lord of the flies. The language used in the book seemed to me quite dense, uninteresting. Here too the back cover glorified the purported message the author was trying to get across about decadence of our society and how we are going at war with each other. I could not progress beyond the first fifteen pages.

My experience with acclaimed movies is alike. A fish called Wanda comes to mind immediately. Why does it find a place in an all time great movies list is quite an enigma. It happens the other way around too. I quite liked this movie called Sweet November. Maybe it was because of the absolutely lilting soundtrack song by Enya, or maybe because I am a fan of Ms Theron, and that I don’t quite mind the sight of Keanu Reavees. But I was quite shocked to see that each and every online review I read shredded the movie to bits (I have a shifty feeling that all reviewers, behind the scene, work conjointly to avoid giving discordant statements, and loosing face). They claimed that the chemistry between the lead artists was virtually non-existent and that the movie ending was unreal. They did not even grant the movie the status of a pastime tearjerker. I am sure that had I been a girl, I would have been through 2 packs of weepie-wee tissue papers by the time that the movie credits began to scroll up.

I have now realized that my brief endeavor at sampling the connoisseur’s recommendations is not completely worth the effort. Therefore I am not going to reach out for Ulysses in a hurry. And yes I loved the movie Serendipity no matter what they say!

If the readers of this post mirror my experiences or anything thereabout related, I would request them to share it in their comments. It would be heartening to learn that I am not the lone petri dish in this world!

The wicked witch of the north!

2005-06-22T08:19:00.000-07:00

Destiny it seems had already scripted my afternoon! Just as I finished snapping the giant peanut tree, and was waiting for a new cab, a dust storm began to gather. The whirling wind began to scatter the loose leaves, dust and paper lying around. The skies began to take on a menacing greyish hue. It was then that i spotted by chance the infamous wicked witch of the north gliding onto one of the top branches of the giant peanut tree. She almost instaneously disappeared into a flash of light that scared the daylights out of a tiny squirrel nestling thereabout. Luckily my Lumix was quicker than the eye!

The GIANT peanut tree

2005-06-22T08:15:00.000-07:00

Saw this peculiar fruit-bearing tree in Malleswaram (18th cross near the Margosa road junction). An elderly cobbler (strangely sitting away from the shade of the tree on the uneven crumbling pavement) told me in a hoarse voice that the tree was haunted by a specter who (in hushed tones) was referred to as the wicked with of the north! Wonder if he was reading The Wizard of Oz of late?

Baby you can't drive my car

2005-06-22T08:14:00.000-07:00

Got into this taxi on Malleswaram 18th cross we had called, and found pretty soon that it was punctured! The driver seems quite hopelessly helpless

And registered your flat shall be

2005-06-13T06:46:00.000-07:00

Am in quite a sprightly mood today...managed to get my flat registered finally :). In fact ever since I moved into my new flat in April, I have not really had a chance to put up my feet over the weekend, relax and simply sip some tea. There are countless niggling issues associated with purchasing a new house (few of those still remain..so can't really see the contents of my tata tea pearl pet bottle dip dramatically over the coming month).

Am keen on updating my blog more frequently now... got a boost when I saw a comment from someone who I has not virtually dragged to the altar :). Thanks daneshia. There are a few topics that I would like to write about. Also want to dedicate a small post to a close friend of mine who recently left to pursue his MBA. We have been good friends for 7 years, and I will surely miss him. Jack hope you caught the train!

Am ending this post with another short story I wrote last year. Its called The Pest from Best. (Best is a sleepy but pretty village in The Netherlands where our company is headquartered. I actually wrote the story after coming up with the rather cute title. I wanted to format the heading so that 'best' fell below 'Pest' and there was a single vertical line connecting the top circle of the 'p' with the bottom circle of the 'b'. The magazine editor obviously thought otherwise :( ). At Best, the walk from the office to the local station is a 40-minute stroll on a nicely winding road, along farms with longhaired ponies grazing away in gay abandon. The road looks incredibly picturesque when the trees lining it put on their autumn overcoats. I remember the time when I smuggled a camera into office just so as to take a picture of those ponies on my walk home. Sadly the battery had to breath its last just then. Anyways, here’s the story:

The Pest from Best

The story kick starts one February evening as I was packing for my maiden business trip to Best, Eindhoven. My flight was in the early hours of next morning and packing for the trip was still in disarray. As I proceeded to gather my scattered possessions, stuffing them randomly into one of two open bags, my heart gave a lurch and my throat suddenly went dry. The reason – my eyes fell upon a ugly, large brown cockroach that had taken pride of seating place on my best T-shirt.

Joe (the cockroach being christened henceforth in an attempt to breathe more life into his character; ‘his’ was an assumption- I was terrified enough without bothering to ascertain whether it was a male member of the species) was supported on only 5 hairy male legs and was also missing one of his antennae, probably having lost them both in a dispute with some accomplice of his over a small matter of dining rights to a rotting cardboard piece.

He sat pretty motionless, glaring at me though piercing eyes, his lone feeler tracing out imaginary circles in the air. I dashed off to get the pest extermination spray from the kitchen. Although I returned in a jiffy with the spray can in hand, Joe had disappeared. My reasoning that five legs wouldn’t take him very far was off target - even after ten minutes of solid searching, I was not able to unearth him. I sat down sweaty, tired wondering what to do next. If the reader at this point is wondering what was there to wonder about, he or she must have surely never felt the joy of a creepy roach slithering over a bare leg under one’s jeans. I unfortunately have experienced this esoteric pleasure in a crowded bus where I could not even scream out. I was therefore not particularly eager to make contact with cockroaches again in the near future. So I sat down to think how I could trace Joe and get rid of him.

My tryst with cockroaches goes back further than the bus incident. Bangalore- a haven for engineers, also welcomes cockroaches with equally open arms. Maybe being the IT (read InsecTopia) hub of the world explains why. Confrontations between both parties are therefore inevitable. But my worst experience goes back to one night when a raging thirst drew me to the kitchen, where I spotted the floor maculated with a dozen or more large cockroaches who seemed to be having a ball. You could literally visualize the couples waltzing thorax to thorax to the lilting music of The Blue Danube. Those were the good old days when all I had for my defense was an aging broom. It took me ten minutes and loads of pluck to hunt down and squash each one of them. I gave a whole lot of them a decent burial by plonking them into the drain outside my house.

The incident of the night had a permanent effect on my psyche and was the reason why I was keen to stay clear of this story’s protagonist and his complete lineage. The unpacked items lying scattered on the bed drew me out of the dreamlike state I had wandered into, and I resumed my interrupted packing session.

~

I was probably destined to “Meet Joe Black” again. On reaching the Eindhoven apartment, as I began pulling my things from the over stuffed bag, out flew Joe menacingly and deposited himself on the bed. There was no mistaking him- a chassis on five legs with one antenna is a pretty uncommon sight. I was in a bit of despair as here on alien territory, I was robbed of my trusted broomstick and insect spray. I earnestly began hunting around for a weapon to end the matter once and for all. After managing to find a seedy looking tabloid stuffed behind the sofa, I rolled it up and returned to the bedroom with a threatening look in my eyes. But Joe it seems had taken a liking to the game of hide and seek. Again so perfect was his hiding spot that I could find no trace of him.

As I sat down having the lost the battle yet again, I suddenly realized the appalling enormity of my loss. What if the maid who cleaned the house found Joe? That was the last souvenir from India she would have desired. I began to panic as I thought of the huge fine for littering apartments that would greet me when I returned to Bangalore. I began to picture even more depressing scenarios. What if Joe settled down with a pleasant looking female Dutch cockroach and raised a horde of kids who overran the city of Eindhoven as did the spiders in Arachnophobia! But there was little I could do as yet another mini search proved futile. Out of desperation, I slammed the front door and marched out onto the streets to get him off my mind.

There is a certain incisiveness and bite in the fresh Eindhoven breeze that solaces you and gets you out your depression. This was just what happened. As I drank in the new sights and sounds of Eindhoven, I began to think of the exciting and challenging week ahead of me, the places I would visit, the people I would get to meet. My bad mood slowly melted away and I began to enjoy the stroll around the neighborhood. When I returned to my apartment after the short walk, you could have asked me who Joe was and I would have given you a pretty blank stare.

~

The following week went off in pretty much six-sigma fashion. My business trip had proved to be really fruitful, and the weekend extremely enjoyable. I was pretty cherry even after the long travel back to Bangalore. At home as I unzipped my luggage, still reminiscing the time I had had, out scrambled Joe in typical deja-vu fashion! He looked weary and a bit jet lagged and had put on some weight under the influence of warm Dutch hospitality. Strangely enough though, I did not try to reach out for the spray can this time. I don’t know whether it was because I was feeling so upbeat at that time or because I almost felt relieved to see him. I suddenly began to see him in a new light. I began to feel a new respect for his creed’s tenacity and staying power. Getting hold of an old greeting card, I gently transferred the veteran on to it and lead him to the windowsill from where he staggered out into the warm night. Had he turned back, he would have seen me giving him a one-handed salute.

I'm on a roll...

2005-06-02T21:47:00.000-07:00

After writing the previous post I was so keyed up to put up some real stuff that I thought of publishing a story that I recently wrote for my company magazine..it is the easy way out, but that’s okay. The story is called The Sweet Lie (slightly corny title, but not too bad I think)...managed to interweave a few of likes of mine into the story too :)

The Sweet Lie

Jonathan boarded the 909 with a deep sigh and occupied his customary seat in coach 7. The usual stream of commuters passed by in the coach aisle – the pair of giggling schoolgirls, a couple of stern looking policemen clutching their morning newspapers and coffee, and the cursing mother and her tugging little daughter who always scowled at Jonathan. Jonathan returned the scowl and turning away to the limited sights that the window offered, began to reflect on where his life had gone wrong.

Ever since he had graduated a year ago, and had taken up his assignment as an investment banker in the sleepy little hamlet of Sullyhill, Jonathan’s life had been reduced to plain drudgery. Up at six in the morning, he had to rush to the station to catch the 909 to Sullyhill. The journey was a dreary two-hour drag past uninteresting towns and stark grasslands that even the cows seemed to avoid. His desk job from nine thirty to five was only punctuated by an hour’s lunch break, at which he munched down his hurriedly prepared sandwiches. In harmony with this general theme, his fellow employees were as interesting (well at least to a non-archeologist) as the rocks at Stonehenge. Back at home by eight, Jonathan dined, and then tuned up his old radio to the airwaves carrying the latest on Bush and Blair’s quest for world peace, before finally entering into an uninterrupted slumber till dawn. Thus ended a typical day in the mechanized existence of Jonathan Harper.

***

“Is someone occupying this seat”?

The lovely voice stirred Jonathan out of the daydream he had unwittingly slipped into. Rubbing his eyes in disbelief, he gazed at the charming and pretty young lady who stood before him. The woman’s cheeks blushed slightly as she became aware of his stare. She coughed lightly and repeated her question. Jonathan stammered an apology and shook his head. The train slowly lurched into motion as the girl took of her coat and took the seat opposite Jonathan.

“Hi. I am Sara.” His hand trembled slightly as he eased out of the weak handshake he had offered while introducing himself. “I am a law student currently on an apprenticeship in Sullyhill,” she continued. Jonathan mumbled out his business as an investment banker. How he wished he could have rather replied “I play left back for a second division club in Leeds and in my spare time strum the bass for a local band called the Ladybirds. Ever heard of us?”

“Well that sounds quite interesting,” said Sara, trying to sound polite. As she was saying this, a deceptive plan was cooking in Jonathan’s mind. He wondered if he could fabricate his life’s story to keep this celestial angel engaged in a decent conversation. Without this extreme measure he was sure she would before long change compartments out of boredom.

“I am divorced with two kids,” was his opening move. Jonathan was sure he sounded drop dead unconvincing and he quickly turned away to the window to hide any emotion that would give him away. “Oh! I’m sorry,” apologised Sara. “Its okay. These things can happen at times,” accepted Jonathan with a shammed tinge of sadness. “She ran away with a painter; and a rather lousy one at that. I hope his works never sell.”

“It must be tough on your kids,” sympethised Sara. “Oh no. Michel and Mary are coping fine without her. We have our own fun times. In fact this weekend I plan to take them to the village fair to celebrate Michel’s fourth birthday. My kids just love the candy floss they serve down there.”

Jonathan began to gain more confidence as he wove his fictitious tale further. A mythical aunt with foreboding powers and a romping jaguar car were all soon rolled into the narrative. Just as he was starting out on a supposed summer adventure while rowing on the Thames, he noticed the spires of Sullyhill coming into view, and realized that his small moment of delight was nearing its end.

As they were parting ways on the diminutive platform at Sullyhill station, he abruptly blurted out “I am single, unmarried and lead the most sorry and uninteresting life imaginable.” If Sara was taken by surprise, she never showed it. She dipped into her handbag and pulled out a wrinkled card. “Call me sometime,” she said and gracefully walked away with a mesmerizing, gentle smile.

***

Jonathan and Sara have now been married for seventeen years. Michel and Mary exist for real. Jonathan’s sandwiches taste much better, and he even manages to smile at the scowling daughter of the formerly scowling girl! To date he has never asked Sara if she had believed his Sweet Lie.

And then there was one

2005-06-02T21:17:00.000-07:00

Its been an eternity since I started my blog and made the first post. Actually that one does not even count..it was more of scribbling something to be done with after inaugurating the blog.

I un-bashfully admit that it was sidin's blog that inspired me to try a hand at doing the same thing. I started off with full josh and immediately realized that it much harder than it seems. I think one needs to remove a feeling of consciousness while blogging. Should not worry about how good it reads. Its got to be honest and effusive in flow. You can't expect to churn out a Renoir each time.

All this counseling has allowed me to get a 2nd post down... hope I can avoid reviewing it :)

...its going to be a bumpy ride!!

2005-05-11T07:33:00.000-07:00

Thats that! Finally got down to buying my own little cyber-plot. I know the blog's name is totally non-original..but hey dont curse me..when your in front of a "Enter a user name or password" kind of screen, thats when your mind decides to take a break! So the easiest way out was to think of a psuedo-philosophical line dedicated to the fab-four.

Writing these first few lines have been much tougher than I had imagined. But I am glad to have got off the starting blocks. Hope the force is with me the next time.