My Kinda Art

If there is anything in man made things that keeps me captivated for some time its the written words. I can spend hours on end reading captivating stories, articles, etc. Pictures painted with words. The real killer is that they let me add my own interpretation on things. That's the true beauty. And I don't come out at the end saying, "What was that?!".
Been reading again. After a long long hiatus. And the words are beautiful. Love the images. How plain old boring words can create such a crack up of a story. And I'm just now discovering the pleasures in finding the odd articles worth reading. Never was one for newspapers before. Though I still don't end up reading much of  the news part of it anyway. And Opinions. That's the good stuff.
 Not to forget - never realized all those esoteric words were hiding in such plain sight all these days. Hope the reading continues.

Moonlight Hikes and Shooting Stars

Love living in the Bay. As they say - Location location location. And this one of the best I've seen. This summer has been particularly good to me. Numerous hikes, travels and fun in general.
Hiked the Mission Peak again yesterday and this time it seemed easier though I was on the harder trail. And was it beautiful! The weather was the best and the moonlit path back just divine! Seeing as I had a wish to make and that it was that time of the year for Perseid's meteor showers I was wishing to see a shooting star.. and wasting a wish in wishing for it! :D But I did see one and got to make my wish - so all is good!
One of the best hikes I've been on recently. Loving Summer! Always :)

Put to Rest

Today I finally closed my Orkut account. This is the first online account of any sort that I have closed out. I still have a few email accounts I don't access anymore but never got round to deleting. Don't know why I didn't. But for some reason I felt like shutting down my Orkut account today and went ahead and did it! In anticipation of Google+? Don't think so. More like to remove unnecessary distractions.

And I guess this is my eulogy for the account. Which had served me well back in the day. I do not miss you, but you shall be remembered.

Instant Updates

There was a time when I considered a cell phone with a data plan a superfluous extravagance. When being online at work all day or the frequent updates on a laptop were good enough. And then comes the iPhone. And perspectives changed. Actually scratch that, perspective is still the same. But habits changed. And I entered into the realm of update addiction - I check my email/FB etc every other minute! or so it seems.

Its such a frivolous waste of time. I need a break. From my online-ness. And there I am employed in a company trying to make more access possible. I guess more is no longer possible (or have I spoken too soon?). But faster for sure! How very fitting.

The good thing though, is that when I am doing something I find interesting, I can absolutely tune off. And its comforting to know I'm not a total addict. but for now I have to go and check in on my email, waiting for the next absolutely engrossing moments to occur. So long.

A Weekend of Feasting

Thats what this one turned out to be. Started with dosas, dahi vada, pongal and yummy carrot custard a friends Mom dished out for a bunch of us. And then in the evening a get together at another friends place where I met S's wife for the first time and A is back from her India trip. S and his wife are headed out on that Amazon trip we were all hoping to go on! I guess he got fed up with waiting on us to give him company! :). More yummy food followed by amazing kesar halwa.
Sunday was a day at the city with a beach trip thrown in and some shopping. The beach was surprisingly warm, not the water mind you, which I didn't dare touch, the air was warm and I sat down and watched the surfers for a bit, concluding that they must be manics to be swimming in those cold cold waters. But it looked oh so fun floating on the waves. Went to the shops near Union Square for the first time. Love the daunting man made buildings and bridge. And deals how I hate you - making me buy stuff I never intended to!
Ended up at a friends place for dinner. Another get together. Met everyone after real long. A month (these are people I used to meet every weekend, so a month felt like a loong time). Had more yummy food and ended with the most devine semi-liquid pala kova. Was telling my friend how I always remember what she made for us that very first time she called us over for dinner on her birthday. Its not a trivial thing - me remembering stuff. Her cooking left a mark.
Beyond the feasting it was a great weekend. Got to meet a ton of friends. Walked down the downtown area close to home and saw the holiday lights for the first time. Where have I been these days? Missed out on quite a few of the regular stuff. Oh and talked with another good friend after a long long time. Donno why it took so long there again.
A good weekend.

Ads

Growing up, loved these ads from Dairy Milk - KuchKhaasHai1 & KKH3. And the Amul ads frequently updated on the billboard above Manikanda bakery - they had some of the best one liners I've seen so far.

There were one or two other ads I used to like watching - Humara Bajaj , Doodh Doodh. I'll bet you can't guess what this ad is for: Ad (unless you've already seen it :) ).

These days the ads I enjoy most are made by auto manufacturers. Like this one from Mercedes and this one from Audi. Love them. Have to record this one from Honda as one of the good ones. Some non auto mfg ads like this one on seat belts! And not to forget the Incredible India ads. This one that plays on psychology from Virgin Mobile reminds me of the stuff we used to try on our parents :P Love the punch line on this one :)

Creativity captured in short span of a commercial! Love it. Wish I could make stuff like this.

Games and Volunteers

Did I already mention it - I love board games? I must have. But time for re-iteration - I love board games!! :)

Be it with house-mates over a game of Blokus or with strangers over friendly matches of Carroms or with friends over competitive Catan; inevitable to have fun. Spent last Saturday playing carroms. I never perceived myself as a good player. I still think I'm not; but I have my flashes of genius! Lets not get carried away - flashes of good playing :P Thanks in dollops to my doubles partner.

Volunteering is fun. Be it at the Carroms tournament or the early morning runs on Saturday where I'm the water carrier :) Free rides to beautiful locations and the chance to bike in said locations. Rubbing shoulders with people resolute enough to run marathons or half marathons. Conversing with die hards who believe in the cause. These are the fun parts of volunteering; the stuff I participate in. But then there is a whole different level to it. There is something to be said about people who diligently attend meetings and coordinate projects long distance; who spend hours and days in advancing their cause and organize rallies to increase awareness, in researching for their fights; who stake out dharanas; who leave behind personal aims and ambitions to work for others less fortunate.

So here's to all the real volunteers out there, doing an awesome job at it, not craving recognition or accolades but just the greater good of people - you are amazing!

Fighting Gravity

Was at a meeting earlier today. A bunch of people ranging from the engrossed to the disinterested. But all of them had one thing in common - drooping edges to their lips. Did you know age makes it harder for a smile to come by? Something to do with your zygomaticus muscle.

-Just something I noticed today.

Thought for the Day

"When we treat man as he is, we make him worse than he is; when we treat him as if he already were what he potentially could be, we make him what he should be." - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

Was thinking about how true this quote is. And then I thought how closely it matches my own thoughts on the matter... and wondered - do I like this quote as it resonates with my own thoughts? Or cos there is universal truth in what it says??

Truth. Universal Truth. Was a time when there could only be one Truth. Now I tend to accept that there are perspectives. But Truth? I guess its all in the experiences people have. Either ways I happen to agree with this quote and believe it to be the truth.

A Weekend

I'm loving weekends these days. Some with lots of activities, some with lots of travel, some with nothing to do but scratching my head thinking about what to do next.

This one was different. Its that time of the year again when I move. I know! Yet again. I had been looking for a shared house sort of a situation. And somehow a lot of them seemed to come with pets of some sort. In some cases of all sorts! Like this person looking for a roommate who just couldn't turn down a stray and ended up with two dogs a cat and a parakeet. Not sure what else was hidden in her room. Almost ended up adopting her as my stray :)

Then this Saturday I went and visited this happy house. That's all I can think of calling it. The people were very nice and the cat and dog were simply adorable! Loved everyone and the house and signed the lease right away even though I'm sure its overpriced. But well I'm sure the experience will beat the loss. And so I'm the owner of a new lease! another six monther :)

After that the weekend was pretty routine... farmers market, hung out with friends over lunch, volleyball, tried to convince my sis to come up with a name all of us liked better, cursing myself all the while for having suggested the current choice... and some vegging. Oh and today I went and treated myself to a hair cut. Even though it was good, I wasn't so pleased with it and asked my friend to do what she could to alter it to how I wanted my hair.. and she very willingly obliged and chopped most of it away. Sort of reminded me of Edward Scissors Hand the speed and efficiency with which the whole job was done. Now for better or worse I'm back to sporting a bob! Oh and before that I had pani poori - two whole greedy plates and sugarcane juice! Yummy and only in the bay area. :)

In all of this I realized I almost forgot a birthday. This blog is going to turn one year old! and its still alive and kicking. Miracles do happen.

The Deluge

Wet. That is what I remember the most. Everywhere all the time. Bed posts acting as support for washed clothes drying out, creating private rooms where one could lie and read story books all day long without falling into Mom's notice. Floors damp from the short dashes outdoors and back - the recycled gunny bags acting as door mats no match for the surplus water. Humidity so high that the bath towels remained damp forever. Water splashing through the meshed windows, coconut tree leaves swaying in a frenzy to the winds tune. That was how it was at home.

One day, midway through, school closed early citing the weather. Our transportation to/from school was a mini bus which always reminds me of a loaf of bread. It must have seen many years; though the way it ran till then, there was never a hint that its better days were over. It almost got us all the way back home, fighting the rain, its engine slowly heating till it started spewing out fumes. And then it gave up and died right in the middle of the road with a few more Kilometers left before all the kids got home. It being the days before cell phones and virtually no means of contacting all the parents; and the kids old enough to find their way back; above all, it being a small city in India - the driver and conductor let us get off the bus to fend our way homeward. In the pouring rain.

It's probably the best rain day I ever had. Splashing our way through shallow and sometimes not so shallow puddles, nary a thought to hygiene. Playing and jostling with siblings and friends. Raincoats and umbrellas no match to the wind and the water; boots all sloshy from the water soaked in through the socks. Drenched to the bones. We had the time of our lives heading the last couple of miles back home that day.

Haven't seen rains like those in a while. Though today's weather comes close.

Moments

Met with a few friends today evening. This small bunch - a guy in his 50's, a girl (girl? woman I guess) in her late 30's and another couple of guys 25-35. And me. We drank, ate and talked. Talked about days younger, when all of us were upto comparatively more "no-good" in life. Swapping stories and experiences, travel anecdotes. With music running in the back-ground all the time. Somehow felt like I had my first ever grown-up evening.

And then on the way back, I was driving at my usual crazy speed, keeping up with the crowd when I saw some cops lights glowing in the distance. I didn't really want to slow down the others behind me. But didn't want to be speeding right next to the cop either. So came down to this speed which I thought was a moderate balance (still above the speed limit but not by much). Seconds later I realized I was no longer in a crowd - all the other drivers had slowed down much more leaving me all by myself! suddenly bare from the crowd I was surrounded by just moments ago. Of-course I didn't get a ticket but I did have a good laugh looking back into the rear-view mirror.

Nice evening. Wish I had pictures of it.

Bend in the Road

Going on the train from NJ to New York, NY you come across a curve in the track where you cross this building real close. Its the corner of the building and the first time I was sure we were very close, too close for my comfort. But ever since I am in the habit of looking forward for this turn. It gives you a good view of the tail end of the train and perhaps a peak into the building.

In life too most often its not until I arrive at a curve that I notice what a good stretch I've been having. I guess every change gives a good perspective of what has been and maybe a glimpse of what is to come. Just like how right at this moment after reading what I have already written I feel its soo preachy but hadn't thought so a moment ago while I was writing it down! :D

Anyhow, I will attribute this change in mood to the drawing to close of the year. Happy holidays everyone! Make merry and a ton of good memories.

Treats

Cadbury's Eclairs. Those were my favorite treats as a kid. We used to get some every so often and I used to relish every slurp of the toffee. And then came Nutties. What all I would have done for each crunchy bite of those! Nanna used to indulge us quite a bit and so I might have ended up trying most of the range of chocolates offered by Cadbury's. With Amma treats mostly translated to some sweet or dish she would make for us. My favourite is boorillu. Even to this day she makes them on my b'day if we happen to spend it together.

These days I get my treats from a very unexpected source - my colleague in the lab. His brother happens to be employed in a Hong Kong bakery (Kee Wah) and they make these really delicious buns/cookies. So when I happen to be working in the same lab as my colleague at coffee-break time, he graciously shares his stash for the day and once more the treat never fails to delight.

Photos

Simply love them; could waste hours reminiscing over pictures. Somehow they seem to capture the best of moments. And encapsulate a part of time, giving you back that fleeting moment once more everytime you look at the photo.
On all my trips back home, I never miss browsing through all those albums Amma stocks safely under lock and key. Albums filled with black and white photos which slowly progress to colour and now to digital format. Prefer the paper photos though. Somehow more tangible. The more the time elapsed since the photo the more valuable it becomes - I simply dote on all the black & whites!
Should remember to get some prints of my digital photos one of these days. And buy a camera. Surprisingly for one who loves browsing photos I don't own a camera currently!

Single Story

I'm an ardent fan of TED and on one of my recent browsing sprees on their website came across this: Single Story. I have to admit I'm very guilty of many a time getting carried away by the Single Story. Hoping that now that I'm conscious about it, I will not do it that often.

Hmmm So....

We had a product release party a few weeks ago. It was like any other release party, only this time I let someone take a photo of me. I didn't think much of it till this lady came to my cube a couple of days ago to get me to sign a release. It was the first time I signed a "model release" letter to allow the use of my picture. Didn't think much of it then either actually. And then yesterday they placed a poster in the lobby of my building with my picture right there on top. Alongside others of-course. And that's when I noticed. Or rather other people did. And suddenly random colleagues were coming upto me and asking if that is me on the poster downstairs!

My "5min of fame"?

The Perpetual Nomad

That's what I seem to be... this is my 4th move in two years... am getting quite good at packing and unpacking and carting things around. Compare this to my childhood spent all at the same house (almost) and school. Looks like I'm trying to balance out across the years :) But as they say, Change is the essence of life and I'm more than happy making that my mantra.

The Zen Room. Thats what I'm calling my room right now. Its got the best balance of light and the serenading sound of the fountain close by just soothes the spirit. Its... picture perfect! And then I stumbled upon the dark thread of ants running across the room the other day. Now I'm trying to co-exist with them. Telling myself they are not bothering me as long as they don't bite. All part of the Zen living. Time to bring my plants home and imbibe them into the ecosystem that is my room.

First Times

New experiences, anticipation and excitement go hand in hand for me. I look forward to the event/experience from the day I know I will be a part of it. Like the first time I went for a grand slam final. The first music concert I attended. The first time I went white water rafting. First time I visited New York, London. First time I went on that crazy ride in a theme park, first time skiing.

For the most part First Times turn out to be fun. But sometimes, they don't live up to the expectations. Its probably cos all that anticipation builds up the expectations sky high. The experiences though have always been worth having. And even though at the end of the day on some occasions it might seem anticlimactic, I've never regretted any of them so far.

I'm about to go on another First Time. A trip to Las Vegas! In all the time I've been here, which is quite considerable BTW, I've never been yet. As usual the anticipation and expectations are high. I know how they say expectations are not a good thing. But alas I am but a base human being and could never separate the two. And so Las Vegas here I come, looking forward to a dazzling experience!

Board Games

Its a kind of family pass time which has been around for as long as I can remember. Since the first pin ball board long ago to the dozen or so I cart along with me to every new place I move to. Summers past wasted away pursuing a marathon run of monopoly, caroms, etc. Its almost a tradition now with the cousins and us playing board games late into the night whenever we happen to meet up. The monotony of the game never gets to us, we can keep going at it forever and not get tired. Can keep at it till more urgent and unrelenting needs like hunger pangs and droopy eyes finally drive us to pursue deeds beyond the board.

Last week the games were revived again... my sister and cousin visited and old habits it seems die hard. Had fun playing game after game of monopoly, like we used to all those summers. With a game of scrabble thrown in here and there. Over the years spent in the US, I have collected close to a dozen board games thanks to the multitude of friends who introduced me to new games and the inner addict in me.

This is probably one of the few pursuits my whole family involves in at various times. I still remember the long ludo games played with my Grandmother; chess which our father introduced to us; chinese checkers... and the list goes on. And even though I never remember my Grand-dad ever playing with us, I still do have memories associated with him and board games - like the time he threw all the jackpot cards (resembling in shape and size to playing cards) away cos he didn't want us getting addicted to gambling. In retrospect I realize he didn't want us getting addicted to games which waste time either, but unfortunately that lesson was never learnt. And a new tradition was born.