Friday night fever...

Enthralling was the word that came to my head when it finished...

Well for starters, we got the passes for a concert that held in Palace grounds on 27th Oct friday night... It had my favorite singer Raghu Dixit, Parikrama and Farhan Akthar singing!

The show must have started 45 mins earlier... thanks to da rain... it was late... but the wait was worth it and more...

In any concert, I really love the start when the artists are getting ready... usually the guitarist, drummers, violinists... will have a go... and what they do is something totally out of the book... and those innovations will make the atmosphere ready for more... and this was the same on friday evening as well... lead guitarist of raghu dixit's band and the violinist were out of the world in displaying what they can do!!

Raghu began the show with amazing number "Hey Bhagwan!"... (I am checking my videos to see what next!!) "Mysore se aayi!"... and then came a number I hadnt heard before... beautiful... "Gudu Gudiya seedhi nodo..." and the introduction to this song was hilarious... but in the middle of the song there was a commotion and the organizers (and the police who graced the occasion for a while!!) had to reduce the volume since there was another performance going on next to where we had this rock concert... Raghu took on them displaying great courage and sang for the crowd... involving everyone of us in his songs... He sang many more numbers like ambar, khidki and a kannada track "Ee Thanuvu ninnade" from "Psycho" fame.... Awesome... The best part was the combo of guitar (base, rhythm and electric) along with the violin!! The extension provided to all the songs in the end was fabulous... fantastic music... Raghu thanked the audience and thanked parikrama for lending their guitar... nice gesture indeed...

Next on the scene was Parikrama... Now for those who haven't heard rock music and parikrama in particular might feel that Nitin Malik screams a lot and stuff... but then he is brilliant in doing that... I have loved all his shows that I have been to and this dude can sing... His opening song was a blast but I bet more than half of the crowd were waiting for Farhan rather than wanting to watch Parikrama sing... until parikrama's violinist took center stage!! and people had to momentarily forget Farhan for a while there... The one thing I would like to add is that one of parikrama's guitarist didnt look that he belonged to the stage at all... that was kinda sad part but then these guys had been testing sound since morning and it showered in the evening taking away precious time for their concert... need to give them credit for hangin in there...

Farhan Akhtar is a brilliant artist if I say so... because there are very few people in the industry who can sing as well as he can and act as well as he can... even direct movies like him... He is a perfect package. He had the same kind of clothes which he wore in "Luck by chance" simple but trendy... But then... all these promotions has made his voice tire a bit... cos he couldnt hit the highs on the song "Where the streets have no name - U2" which he sang well though... To very much crowd's displeasure, he sang only one song from "Rock on" and that was just the title track from the movie... people really wanted more hindi songs... but then he had already prepared certain songs and... well any ways it was a good show...

After the concert, the food at chung wa was awesome... thus ending an eventful day at a high note!!

Meet the bu's!!

Sometimes feel that I should write about a subject.... but then... I don't usually find time to think on a subject as much as I have time to write about the days I have been through... Many may feel that I usually hand out lavish praises to my near and dear ones but I feel that this is not true as these praises come straight from the heart... no pretensions...

Coming back to the topic... saturday... I happened to meet two of my closest friends... I lovingly call them the bu's!!... perfect couple...

My friendship with rajibu (jibu) goes back... way back... to just 5 years... hehehe... but then it seems longer... I happened to be in US for the first time... and I knew he would be coming to US and to the same hotel after 9 days... Actually I didnt even know him then... but when we met eventually I was overjoyed since I was almost down and out in that place... Rajiv sensed this and gave me much needed advise to keep my positive energy. I will never forget that. Jibu became a close friend when we got a friend's place for rent. Here we had a deal every morning without even talking that I would make the breakfast and he would do the dishes... served us well... I learnt that behind that sense of humor there was a very methodical, practical, decisive... man if ever I had seen one. I have learnt many many precious things from him that has made me be the person I am today!

Hemibu... well we were friends even before we met!! and when we met, I was too shy to talk... (The day she came for Agile Interview!!) we were not at all introduced but then we both knew each other!! Hemibu was jibu's fiancee when jibu and I were in USA... I had sacrificed my room to jibu and used to sleep in the hall since he would be busy with hemi and her calls most of the night and I didnt intend to be kabab mein haddi!! May be when jibu used to talk about the day he has been thru... my name would have slipped more often than not because I was such an idiot at that time!! Well... with jibu's training!! (:-p), I was a changed man by the end of that trip!! and I pledged to be excessively happy hence forward!! May be all this were in detail posted to hemi!! So we kinda knew eachother before we actually met...
The best part about a friend's wedding is that all the other friends who happen to know eachother casually will become closer... This is what happened when Joshi bhai got married... Hemi, Jibu and myself became fast friends thanks to tat!!. Hemi is funny, articulate, and most tolerant creature. She can be hurt very easily but wid jibu and me around can come out of it as well and she will be her chirpy self in not more than 10 mins!!

I strongly feel that both bu's and me have a I love the bu's for the simple reason that they love me more!! They know everything about me and its viceversa... even with our busy schedule, we keep in touch and make sure we meet up atleast once in two weeks!! depends more often than not how much of work jibu has!! :-p

Simba's Day Out...

I can't generalize this very much... I hope it is the same way across the world... The word "relaxation" applies to any living thing... when we relax... we progress... we think... and stop worrying... There is a huge difference in anything we do when we relax!! This little word was acknowledged even by my buddy Simba (my Dog! in case you are reading for the first time!!) when I took him for a short trip to a farm house this past weekend...

Vivi and I planned adhoc(best way to do things!) that we needed a break from the city and hence we hit the road on sunday morning! and we took simba along with us as well... We already had kitty waiting for us at the farm house... He had a nightmare of a travel story to tell us how he got there because of traffic on the NH-04!!

When we reached the destination, simba was left alone to have fun... and fun he had...

After a sumptuous (exaggerate please... if you feel!!) breakfast, we walked around the farm to check out a new artificial fountain that was being built... very nice indeed...

Simba was too excited and had the expression like... "You are supposed to tie me up... aren't u??!!... are you sure..." all the time... We managed to even see what hunting instinct a dog has... The care-taker had left all the chickens out... when we asked him to put them all inside since simba was outside... thankfully he obliged... but then there was one chicken which was missing... Simba was playing around until we saw him crouching and slouching carefully and very close to the ground... waiting for an onslaught... and when it came... we were almost too late... The chicken was shrieking in fear... it was very funny in the end since simba didn't know what to do with it... may be even he was kinda taken aback at a thing which made strange noises when held... Apart from this one incident, he behaved himself through out... One other incident where he came searching for us while Vivek and I were exploring was very nice...

The best part about this farm is that people are so hospitable and they treat you like family... It shows in the way they take care of us... well... after another super lunch, we took simba to the nearby lake... hesitant at first, he then took on water and was doing underwater stunts before we leave... very nice indeed... We had time to visit kitty's farm where he grows ragi and beans... and take loads of pictures... The funniest pic being kitty and his farm's caretaker both smiling...

We came home by 7:30 PM with some funny incidents with strangers (can't state them here!) who were bugged by kitty on the way back... memorable day for simba indeed!!

My Quest for a better life... Thanks to Dr JP!

At the end of the Quest the major finding about the entire episode is that PEACE can be found from with in and no where else... we should just go ahead and find it... FAITH is something we need to have that we can find that peace from with in! Deep isn't it... but true

This past year I was suffering from various issues... firstly I had joined a company where I didn't wish to be in... with that I had started developing symptoms and eventually got gastroenteritis. I happened to try many ways to heal this but none successful...

I met Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan (shortly as Dr. JP) in march 2008 and mainly because I had lost hope in all other forms of medication and had lost hope that I would get better thanks to many people who said that the gastroenteritis problem was permanent... only Dr JP thought otherwise... He not only helped me get rid of my issues in a matter of very short time... he gave me counselling that has made me what I am today... Dr. JP told me that I had to reduce my weight and that is the major cause of all the issues I had... He is the start of the Quest that I was after... actually that I am still after... and the goals keep on increasing...

By then I had joined the company that I am in now... AOL... where I found some very nice people who shared the same feeling about fitness... My gym trainer Naveen in AOL is such a motivator who not only keeps fit himself but gave some nice advice... Good company really helped me to keep it going... and that was present in AOL where I found my friends (Vivi, G5, to some extent Vinance!! ) being fitness freaks!!

For any building... the foundation needs to be good... I guess I had read that somewhere so un-knowingly I started building the foundation!! I ran for 40 minutes everyday on a treadmill and did reps of smaller weights... crunches and elliptical... for 2 hrs everyday for 2 months... when I lost over 10 kgs... Big thanks to Naveen...

The next phase was interesting as it included loads of convincing myself!! I met a friend Vinay who told that he learnt swimming and had lost lot of weight... Hydrophobic that I was... it was really tough to convince myself that I could do this... Somehow I joined and completed the course of 21days in may this year... and I have been swimming ever since from 5 AM to 6 AM in the morning... regardless of the weather and conditions... The result is amazing... I lost the fear of water and lost lot of weight too... The whole routine that I have managed to keep alive has definitely given me rich dividends... I have not only lost close to 28 kgs... I have made some very nice friends along the way... The end result is the personality and positive attitude that I have developed in the past year is a byproduct of the efforts that have gone in towards it.

Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan:

I have to thank Dr. JP for his faith in me. There are many other things that make him a great man... His Ayurvedic treatment and counselling has solved many complex cases where the patients have been left to nothing by other medications... When I met him yesterday, I was talking to a person whose brother had an accident 3 months ago... Her brother, all of 26 yrs, had lost speech and couldn't walk... The orthopedic specialist who used to come to their home couldn't help him... and the case was almost closed when they came to Dr. JP. By and large most doctors usually give up or give reference for another specialist... but Dr. JP took this challenge and the results are there to see... This guy came walking to his clinic for a consultation and answered many questions that was asked.

Another case was of a central govt employee whose gross motor skills was solved... He had to literally convince the patient's family so that he can treat. Dr. JP has solved many cases which can be called miracles yet he is modest and has the humility to take GOD's name in whatever he does. He is the 4th generation of Ayurvedic specialists in his family and has practiced ayurveda for over 30 yrs now.

In the end all I have to say is that treatment can be given by any doctor but Peace, Faith that the issues can be resolved is given by some. Dr. JP is one such man! and I am happy to be his friend.

Made in Heaven!

Someone I know (with a colorful name!) once commented that "Pairs are made in heaven"... that made me think.... How does this person know that... or for that matter how does anyone know that pairs are made in heaven?
Its always WE who decide on what kind of person we want as our counterpart for life! isnt it?

Btw... yes, i do agree in some terms that pairs (read as marriages) are made in heaven in a more spiritual way (watever spirituality left in me!!) but then the effort should always be from our side in firstly recognizing and then seizing the oppurtunity to go ahead and express our feelings to them. They may not agree in the beginning because everyone is circumspect and that is human nature... but in time, they "may" accept that your feelings are true and will be with you for the rest of your life together!
There are many things in life which we cant explain... one of them is this... some are lucky enough to find love at their first attempt and some keep on trying till they settle down for something that can be considered as a compromise in life... and then there are some for whom all these dont matter... for them its a discovery... They love to find out what their partner is after they get married...
The next question that lies ahead of us is what makes a guy and a girl like each other and how they go about building their liking in to a relationship... well... may be the chemistry of the brain is such that we try to find out what we lack as a character... in the other person and get attracted to that part in most of the cases... this is very generic way of saying but i believe this is very much the way it goes...

Weekend bonanza - Trip to adventure camp!!

To say that Vivek would have killed me if I had missed this trip would be an understatement... This particular trip had been planned and executed in perfection to think back on it now... kudos to the karate king... Btw the gang was 5 AOLites... Vivek, Sriram (G5), Vinay, Guru and urs truly along with Kitty and his friends Vinay and Vinay G!! We had three Vinays to begin with and worse part... 2 of them was Vinay G!! No confusion as our Vinay was already called as Vinance!! (Vinay from our Finance team!!) and the other two known as Vinay and G respectively!!
We started at 1 PM IST on 27th June Saturday... which is as all u guys know... 2 PM... on our bikes… we had 2 Victors, a pulsar 150 and my Bullet. We were hit by bad rains and bad roads for the latter part of the trip reaching the destination... and could only manage to reach the place called as Shrishti Adventure camp (This place is 45 acres of farm land and mountains - http://shristiadventures.com/) which is near Dabaspet, Shivagange by 5:30 PM
Firstly almost everyone was starving and kitty made sure there was some food arrangement done as soon as we reached... very thoughtful of him... After the light snacks, all of us trekked a short while for about 1 hr bare foot!! Not a very sane idea... but we feared that our shoes would get sunk in the mud which was way too thick... anyways... When we came back we readied ourselves for the night bonanza which included another round of snacks, drinks, bon fire and kitty special... dance programme!! G5 was at his best making fun of everyone including the localities’... the best part was greeting people wid wassup!! or How u doin!! People were making faces at him... like who is this guy acting crazy! But that didn’t stop him from wishing and greeting everyone in the true NRI fashion!! Vivek and myself were better off the smoke less end of the bon fire... :-) Vinay was busy boozing and having a dialogue here and there and Guru was busy explaining Nostradamus theory about 2012 when he is totally flushed! All this while we were having the time of our lives... We were having so much fun... we were laughing in our sleep! :-)
Sunday morning started for us at 7:30 AM and we went on another trek this time... shoes ON!! This was better and a bigger trek than the previous evening... We tried rope climbing and swings!!... We visited the cottages and other places which are pretty much high profile and not so cost effective for us... but of course better facilities... We also visited the temple in the farm house... and back for a sumptuous lunch and bread omlette just after that!! That takes some doing... lol... We had the ride of our life on our bikes as we took exactly an hour for the return journey! Kept an average of above 70 kmph!!
The facilities and the hospitality (food was fantastic!!) provided were more like what we do to our relatives rather than outsiders!! That was the respect which they gained from us. Kudos to all those people who work in shrishti adventure camp. It was a journey to remember for a long long time...!!

MJ - No more!!

Michael Joseph Jackson 29th August 1958 - 25th June 2009
To many people who are born in 70s and 80s... I think Michael Joseph Jackson will have a discreet and definite place in their hearts... The place given to the great entertainer and musician... For anyone who has the slightest knowledge of music... be it rhythm... technique in singing... like knowledge of octaves... etc... MJ is GOD!!
I have never heard a POP icon... who besides being a freak of nature!!... could influence so many people around the world by his music and lyrics... He could have been the face of UNICEF if he cud have kept his personal life in better shape...
I loved the album "BAD" since that was my first cassette that I got... I don’t even remember which class I was studying... but i remember the casette being almost worn out as it played in the music player so many times in a day!! I still love the song Speed Demon for the beats... I used to read the lyrics and tried syncing lips (difficult even now! :-p) for the songs! Then came the rest of songs and I had bought each and every cassette... Dangerous was having an absolute awesome front cover wid MJ's eyes and all kinds of animals and birds in it!! loved counting them!! :-p His latest and prob last album History had songs "Earth Song", Blood on the Dance Floor", "Stranger in Moscow" which is one video I love to see!!
The tribute to MJ:
All the news channels and all the portals (.com, .de, .uk) in the world had a setback after the world had the news that he is no more... that says! Twitter/BBC... etal... No one was able to handle the traffic... We had been trekking this past sunday and I was playing MJ all the way in the trip... that was my tribute to the great man!
His death while tragic when he was on the verge of a comeback tour... and writing new songs... referring to poems of Tagore (as told by Dr Deepak Chopra), is again mowed by controversy like so many icons... This happens to be a bigger tragedy... who's next!!

Conquer your fears...

When I was a kid my dad used to take me swimming... that would make u think that I knew swimming all along isnt it... negative... I used to just keep a watch on his clothes and wait for him to complete his laps!! :-p But I definetely had the great desire to learn swimming and learn it well so that I could let go of my fears... I was a hydrophobic to the core... although i used to enjoy beaches wid my friends whenever we were in goa or any such places... but primarily I was afraid of water... Similar to my fear to water was my fear of heights... so much so that I used to make all kinds of excuses to quit on my friends who used to plan trekking trips... It all had to end... and how...

Well it all started in april... when one of my colleague introduced me to his friend, who had started going to a summer swimming camp near RPC layout... I was kinda interested as I thought that swimming camp is mainly for kids... I was so wrong... I took the dive on this matter and the moment i kept my toes in water I was thinking the same old thing again... "Did I commit another mistake in my life... " Apparently not... after about 30 minutes inside water the instructor finally had my attention and I started obeying him... and letting go of my fears...

It took Ramesh (our instructor) just 3 days to teach us how to control our breath and float and our group of 20 odd people were enthu enough to take the dive in 12ft in just under that very week... that was amazing... So what if the classes cost us 2300 Rs, I got so many contacts and made so many friends in a space of those 21 days that I did not even bother thinking about the amount even though its rough!!

Meantime after the classes got over I have been swimming early in the morning from 4:45 AM till 6 AM every single day since... and made new friends as the group I was primarily involved had their own reasons to quit... except for Manju...

We now have a group of 8 to 10 people (depending on their punctuality ofcourse!!) and are being taught the key techniques in swimming to go the distance and not be tired... our coach is a person named Nagaraj sir who is a business man who is one of the finest swimmer and diver I have ever seen!! So much for my swimming now that I can hit about 10 laps (1 km) an average each time i step in... Thats something to improve upon!!

This new found strength and determination in me has made me climb new heights... well... I was never a go getter when it comes to heights... used to make me real nervous wreck... but ever since I have joined this group, my strenght has increased but my stamina has gained by leaps and bounds and for the very first time in my 3 or 4 attempts I was able to conquer Shivagange mountain which is near Tumkur...

Thanks to my swimming group I am, what I am today!!... In these three months I have not only conquered my fears but also have found a new personality in me!!

Buddy for life!!

Have you ever wondered how pet owners feel about their friends for life... I always used to wonder and longed for that feeling...

After waiting for more than 20 years for that time, I eventually got the perfect occasion... my dad's retirement... for which I had planned for more than couple of years as mentioned in my earlier post... well this was one amongst that....

This friend of mine was born on 31st March 2009... irony is that one year back I had quit my previous company for a better life and this year I have better company!! if you understand what I mean... Well "Simba", my Golden retriever came to our home on a saturday afternoon... I fell in love with this ball of fur the moment I saw him and my pal Vivek helped me get him home...

I have waited so long to post regarding him because I had to get my thoughts together... but apparently I dont have time to pen down any thoughts because of him!! He constantly demands time and attention!

There are many things I got to know about my own family... like how complimentary my parents are... for example when I got the pup, I had expected dad to blow the roof but he was calm and accepted it but mom blew the roof which was never the expected and guess who came to the rescue! Dad... he had the experience of raising a dog when he was a kid which was no surprise in the way he is handling simba now... And after a week, when dad turns a little impatient guess who calms him down... mom... who used to have her hands at her ears and scream her lungs out when simba used to wander near her is the one who feeds him everyday in the morning and night and is also the one who calms my dad when simba is too playful (which is actually all the time!!)

I must say that I under-estimated my family's commitment to my buddy... actually they are doing amazing!! He keeps my dad occupied pretty much entire day he is around home and my aunt is totally fond of him... My sister who was so afraid of dogs... now pets him and he listens to her command!! (well... not always!!) The time I was giving to my family has increased ever since my buddy has come home and he demands everybody to talk to him and play with him!! He responds to the sound of my bike and expect to cuddle him everytime I am around him... He even understands that he should not go near my mother because she is afraid of him... but and my mother somehow forget that part during his breakfast and dinner!! Ani... who used to run a mile from dogs... now feeds him with her hand... has gone to such an extent of loving him that she prepared cake when he barked for the first time!! lolz... amazing!!

It has enlightened me in many ways that having pet is a good thing but accepting its responsibility is so huge a task... Its not that simple... you have to be more patient and develop that 6th sense which makes you understand a being that doesn't understand your language!

Overall amazing feeling and I better not forget to thank Dr Manjunath Shinde, Vivek, Sriram(G5) , Kitty and my family for their support...

Read... Remember... Recollect...

I always remember one say from my lecturer... Read, Remember and Recollect!! well it always worked when I was in college but I didnt know that it applies in real life this way!!

When I first saw this dude and talked to him... I thought he was just a geek but there was always that air of confidence in his speech and mannerism which made me think that I shud get to know this person better and that he is the person who will be called a "friend for life"... if it was meant to be... and friend for life he is to me... Sharad Awasthi...

In the course of time... say 6 months of his stay in our company, I got to know that we share the same passions... music, photography... u name it... but the fact is that he is still better than me in all of those passions I have (except singing!!) and has the taste to make his passions richer!!

He is GOD in selecting great music... especially in trance and lounge... He was the person who introduced me to that kind of music which I might have heard but didnt know what its called!!

He also introduced me to Photography... I had the right equipments but was not sure of myself to take pictures of that quality!! I owe him that...

We spent some quality time together and what time we had... we went to Nandi hills where we took tons of pictures and then I took him to Ranganthiptu where we took the boat ride... I am sure he will never forget them.. I can't!!

After packing up the night before, I got to his place at 7:30AM next morning, as promised on sunday... Little did we know that his plane had already left 7 hrs before!! He had missed his flight to singapore... but had to wait another 14 to get on to another flight... (That made his day worse because he almost took the brunt from his wife!!) lolz...

I always wanted him to visit my place one last time before he leaves and wat a way to get ur wish!! It was amazing as Neelu even read my thought and blurted the same words on my face!!

I was really content of helping my friend and his wife to the airport the same night after we had an amazing time at my place!!

Now settled in singapore, we exchange mails and calls more often than not... but yes, the worst part is whenever I see a bajaj eliminator and a back pack... a dude of similar build, invariably the thought goes back to the best days in office for me... I read in to that situation... I go back rememberin the good old days... recollect the wonderful times we have had...

One last hurray!!

Dad's retirement today... 37 years in a single company!! BEML... the company responsible for what he is today and what we are today as family.. comes to an end... well... wat a day... probably as a son... once in a lifetime kinda day... It’s amazing for our generation to have such a day... since we will not be able to give our children that kind of an experience but who knows what will happen in the future... anyways
Well I was also a part of one of the most revered man's retirement that was Mr Ramaswamy Iyengar who was the father figure in my mother's office (LIC of India)... It was quite accidental that I was present that saturday as I was passing by her office and happened to know that it was his last day in office... People spoke great things about him... and the respect oozed in every word they said... quite an experience
I always knew that my Dad was well respected but how much is what I got to see... It was overwhelming... Btw I had prepared for this day for a long time now... almost 2 years and when that day came.. I had goose bumps all over... I am sure my dad had too! He apparently couldn’t stop smiling… wonderful to see that… We went on the inspection round of the hospital which he showed with great pride… I am really proud to see his achievements and was very much privileged.
Well in the first place my dad had to give some reason to leave (retire)... what more than my marriage!! as his utmost important family commitment. I was impressed by that but then when people asked me about it I said it’s my mother's constant issue getting up at 4 AM in the morning which would be put to sleep!!
There were many people unhappy (Infact everyone including his boss CMO!) that they are going to miss their AO sir (Administrative Officer) Many staff were telling me that its sad to know that there will not be their loved AO sir ordering, teaching or guiding them anymore... But unfortunately thats the way it is... life has to move on.. Someone else will live up to the challenge of administering a hospital and could improve upon what my Dad has done so far... People were voicing their opinion that their AO should stay for another year or so except two of the doctors... Dr Mythili and Dr Shanti who talked some sense... Talking more about the respect it was evident the way people came till the gate (including the Chief Medical Officer CMO, my Dad's boss!) to give a grand send off and the gifts that they gave told the story! One Mr Mahesh had gifted with a writing in it which quotes "To the greatest person who is responsible in guiding me to the right path... this is my small gift to you". People did 3 cheers for AO sir when we left the building… mesmerizing!!
They say that engineers are problem solvers... but my Dad is a born engineer (Science grad in education) and his Degree in Personnel management was put best in use all these years in professional and personal front!
Well as of now and now onwards for my dad, "Relaxing" is of the highest priority and atlast the day has arrived when my Dad's going to see the sun after it is up above in the sky rather than greeting him...
As I was about to go to sleep, my Dad who was watching IPL cricket, laughed and said... "Well... I have given my alarm clock some rest!!!" and his retirement has just sunk in!!
No time for anything else today I thought...

Promotion and Extortion!

Promotion:
After all the hue and cry at last the most deserving candidates in our team have been given promotions... All the very best to my friends Sonu and Bejoy...
Tomorrow is the big day when all our team mates are going out for class (tats what verma calls!) and that is the place where we are going to study the spirits and their influence when taken on the rocks!!

Extortion:
IPL2 is fast turning out to be game of golden oldies... Tendulkar is in scintillating form and so is Sanath who is turning 40 in June! In the meantime...
Bangalore Royal challengers are prob just enjoying their beers rather than trying to play!! The golden oldie rule somehow misses them by more than a whisker... This team when told that it was a test team, last season, is proving that now every bit of that... heck they even turned KP in to a test bat!! He doesn't even know the changes that are made in the team for the game!! His experience has made us lose 4 games in a row and Vijay Mallya will be kicking himself... He has been extorted! It would make a lot of sense to dump the whole team minus Dravid and come back home for good!!

Election selection... IPL mania!

Dad's Birthday couldn't have been more special!!

Thursday, the day of action... elections in Bangalore... 46% vote... Bangalore need to do more of the jaagore concept i would assume...

There were still instances of my pals (Captain especially) attending office... and their managers telling them that voting just takes 10 mins of their time... This would be a criminal offence and a non-bailable one at that...

Good to know that all of my friends still exercised their veto power and lets hope there are some changes around... with BJP and its operation kamal in full swing, the phase shift assumed would be a little tougher... how would Bangalore react to de-famed JDS is something to be taken notice as well... I don't know what congress is doing or what is their position in this elections.. All the best to all of them... With almost 28 candidates... out of which 25 of them are independent(Their voting symbols.. violin, torch, sewing machine, cricket bat!! lolz!!) ... the elections are going to be fun this time around in Bangalore... I was just stating Bangalore North constituency. All of those independent candidates would have shelled out atleast 15 lakhs on this election campaign... what a waste of money!!

The bifurcation of the constituencies are kinda confusing with Basaveshwaranagar which is hardly 1 km from my place being Bangalore central!!! Anyways...

This was the first time that my family voted together... and all of us went ahead to the place like a marriage party!! at 7:30 AM... even a crow wouldnt have woken up at that time!! (btw how many of you have seen 7:30AM on a non-working day... point to ponder!) but still my dad's logic made us do that.. which is... "Vote before someone else does on your name!!" makes sense with lots of names missing and loads of others being mis-guided!!

After meeting Brat and boyz... we went home to witness a peach of a game (IPL T20 cricket) Shane warne's rajasthan royals stole the game right under KKR's feet!! Ganguly was devastated... dude had played really well and btw I have never seen Ganguly run those singles and twos so fast!! Yusuf pathan was in the end too hot to handle for Mr Mendis... (who was a great buy for KKR team! Rookie Kamran Khan was good as well... This was, by far, the best game so far in the tournament.. Hope to see more of that!!

Chappadi... place to visit more than once... (my weekend experience!!)

Well I don't call myself an orthodox person... the only thing I do is bow my head when I see a temple while drivin... so I had to think twice before agreeing to my pal Brat when he invited to his village chappadi (15 kms from hosur) for srinivasa kalyaNotsava... But then it was long due and we had to see his farm as well...

The drama started on saturday night when there was only one car and 8 people!! (Brat, vinu, rama, abhi, BD, kettu, captain & me!)... After thinking about various options Vinu came to the rescue... He got his car and hence we left..

Usually 7:30 AM IST means sharp 8:45AM... that's when we started... After an hour long drive... Brat treated us with an awesome breakfast... typical iyengar breakfast... idly, pongal, vada and dosa... last but not the least... super coffee and tea to go in the end...

We eventually got to the village at about 11:30 AM and the first thing we did was visit Brat's ancestral home.. what a place and what location.. absolutely wonderful home... and he offered us tender coconuts... wat a relief...

We saw the temple which was situated on the top of a hill... easy climb... But it so happens... whenever I go to a temple... I will always forget my camera... and when I try remembering how GOD looked like(especially Lord Venkateshwara!)... I cant when i come out of the premises... It happened the same way yesterday too... surreal... Anyways... we came back and became a part of kalyaNotsava... Brat solved the first problem with his mobile... and clicked some very good pictures... The whole place was serene and beautiful.. which people wont forget that easily...

Next came something we all were waiting for... what food... again typical iyengar special... we all loved it... we had to wait but it was worth it... It had the usual puliyogre and sweet pongal... fantastic...

In the late afternoon as our schedules were packed... after food... we went straight to the farm...

Brat's farm has mangoes, coconuts, silk farming... As discussed earlier we had plans to play cricket there... and we did.. ram took a dive in the well... BD was busy checking out snake's skin... which apparently was of a cobra and about 1 1/2 feet in length... (you can view all the pics in the face-book a little later...) and what else... we had tender coconuts again... as sweet as honey! thanks to brat...

Brat's mother gave us coffee and some goodies from the farm when we were about to leave... mangoes and veggies... very generous of her... classic case of "Undu hodaa... kondu hoda..." for us...

We came back to Bangalore at 9:30PM dead tired... I hit close to 120kph in my car... quite an exhilarating experience...

Coffee date wid AJ...

She is the cutest in the office I would say... very forward thinking... yet cultured.

On the other day I was asked for a coffee date!! first for me... well guess what happened... she had a meeting with her new boss and we had to get back to the office.

Coffee date wid AJ... popat expected!! Thats life guys...

Tomorrow is another such day ... lets see what happens!!

After 8 years!!!

She was this serene type... They had named her perfectly... who listened more than talk... I insisted to sit next to her in the classroom all the time... Now a house wife and living in toronto, my friend has an angel daughter who surely resembles her... I do hope she will be like her when she grows up too!! My best friend from school is back!! Thank you.

Deepest fear!!

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our dark that most frightens us. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people don't feel insecure around you.We are all meant to shine as children do. Its not just in some of us; its in everyone. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsiously give other people to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. Sir I just wanna say thank you . . . You saved my life.
- Timo Cruz played by actor Rick Gonzalez

This quote comes from the Coach Carter - Motion picture - starring Samuel L Jackson

Too much... too little...

Many people face the issue in telling me that their bachelor/spinster life was amazing... They end up married and the excitement is like a beer kept in hot sun!! I wonder why...