Vishful Thinking...

A photo-walk around IIMB campus

2008-09-03T06:23:00.000-07:00

IIMB Campus pictures

How to name it?

2008-09-02T07:51:00.001-07:00

I have always been fascinated by dot-com blogs. They seem much more professional and profound and un-cheap than the dot-blogspot-dot-com and dot-wordpress-dot-com ones.

So after much thought and cost-benefit analysis, I decided to get a domain name for myself months back. Got to know from KP (www.kprabu.com) today that blogger offers domain names for a year at 10$!!

So I've decided to take the plunge. But I am unable to decide what to call my blog. Have put up a poll on the right side of this page. Do vote for your choice.

If you have some good option to suggest, do use the comments section of this post!

Life@IIMB: The not so random parts

2008-08-25T05:59:00.000-07:00

Ok, so FINALLY I bring myself to key in these thoughts that I've been thinking of penning for a long long time now. It's just more than 2 months since I landed here, and in this period I have got a hang of the place. Some notes from my thought stream:

The brand of IIMB is just too powerful. Very often we have some great people coming over here to talk to us from the dais. When I say great, it's not out of diplomacy; I truly MEAN great. The likes of Abdul Kalam, Capt Gopinath (Deccan Aviation) and Subroto Bagchi (MindTreeeeeeee :) ) were here in our first month, and many more keep coming over. Their sessions help in one thing: to keep our targets focussed high. Their presence keeps instilling in us a sense of the significance of the place we are in.. It keeps reminding us that being in such a place, if we end up doing something insignificant in life, something is really really wrong with us.
The campus is a separate world in itself. Its culture and feel are very different from those of Bangalore.
Except for the pub and party attitude :) I am reminded of a small incident.. A few years back when I went to Max Mueller Bhavan in Chennai for some competition, I found a govt school boy of about 10 - 12 years sitting next to me. When we were small-talking, suddenly he gasped. I looked at him quizzically, and he pointed to a lady (foreginer) seated across the room. She was smoking. That shocked the spine out of my small acquaintance, as was evident from his words "pombala dum adikkuraa!!" (meaning "a female is smoking!"). Had that guy been here, he'd have become very broadminded very soon.
Self sufficiency rules IIMB campus. If one wishes so, one can stay within the campus itself for 2 full years without stepping out (except for stuff like bank loans).
After coming here, I take longer to wash my face, and shorter time to comb my hair
Ok that's another way of sayin I'm losing hair :( Maybe cos of the post 2 / 3 AM sleeping habits. In the two months I've been here, not once have I slept before midnight. It's not that acads are too tough. Am sure they're manageable. But there are a whole lot of other stuff that go on here, and one always finds that time is heavy in demand. I would sure be happier if days were longer than 24 hours.. I can learn/do something more in that time..
Luckily most of my passions have remained unaffected here.. I've performed three dances till date :) And am a part of the photography club.. And, I've enrolled myself in the carnatic music classes - something I've always wanted to do!! These make sure I stay in touch with myself and my life.. Maybe the biggest casualty is my blog.. Whenever I find some free time, I rather wish to rest and relax than write something here.. cos i usually write ONLY when am in the mood.. In fact, this blog started as hints at the back of my Economics notebook..
Which brings me to the point that classes here are like classes everywhere.. We sleep / draw caricatures / click pics of sleeping friends / etc.. In that sense, this place is as good as any other educational insti in the country :) and we just love it.. Cos classes are 1.5 hours long :( one simply cant focus on a subject for so long at one go..
A point of respite is that there will be max 3 classes per day.. and afternoons are free.. One can catch precious sleep in that time.. which is what most of us do actually :)
Hectic activity comes in cycles here.. If one week is back breaking, the next week would be relatively cool.. But one should risk getting used to the "cool" part, cos that's just a temporary respite.. Schedules will soon be back to demanding superhuman levels of capacity, tenacity and efficiency.. But no one feels bogged down by all this, cos there are 270 other shoulders to offer solace..
Competition here is high.. very high.. damn too high.. fuckin high.. Ok guess I've hit the superlative.. Just imagine, in my first test here, I got 5 out of 7, and was class second (mark-wise).. but there were 4 guys who had scored more, and 15 who had scored as much as I had.. In one sense, I stood 20th in a class of 67, despite scoring the 2nd highest mark..
One reason for the point above is that this place overflows with IITians.. They have landed here in flocks.. Before coming here, I used to think IIT+IIM was an awesome combo.. But now, I feel that's very very commonplace.. In fact, now methinks if you are a non-IIT+IIM candidate, it is a greater achievement :D
Another point about students here is that most of them have been in many positions of responsibilities in the past.. That gives all such people a great sense of confidence.. And to some, it adds to arrogance of the undesirable kind.. Though a minority, these people end up as "footage mongers".. Anything happens at college, these people HAVE to grab some limelight.. And they do it so obviously, it gets very irritating.. but, have got used to it now.. and it's become fun to watch them in action :)
One thing that jumped out at me @ IIMB is the level of diversity here.. There are so many people who have never been on my radar in life which has been full of Engineers and nobody else.. And here I share class space with people who have been pilots, sailors / marine engineers, CAs, pure science aficionados and so on! My networks in life have never been this diverse..
But if I look outside of diversity, my networks are quite useful! There are so many DAV and PSG guys here at IIMB!! Kinda reiterated the significance of being at good institutions..
Almost all student related activities here are handled by students entirely, including the all-important placements.. This reminds me of my good ol' alma mater PSG Tech, where similar autonomy existed for students..
A funny thing here is that one's sense of seniority gets muddled.. many people who were my juniors at school and UG are my seniors here :) And this is bound to continue as the average work-ex of the incoming batches is on the rise year-on-year..
The buildings here remind me of Hogwarts.. Tall, stony structures.. with creepers to add to the impact.. And pergolas to offer a light-and-shade effect (jargon courtesy: my architecture friend).. The great imposing structures are a sight to watch! have clicked some pics.. Mostly my next post..

One thing I do miss is Chennai and MindTree.. That's equivalent to family and friends.. They were so much a part of my life for 2 years and suddenly now they aren't, in the everyday scheme of things.. That is one reason why I relish this hectic life.. Takes my mind off all these..

To end, a small anecdote.. A friend of mine had some personal problems and was cribbing to his brother about how he was unable to get some things done.. his bro (an IIMB alumnus) said with a smile: "Don't worry.. There are very few things an IIM guy cannot get in life".

I have grown to LOVE the arrogance in that statement.. And this is quite unlike my usually sober nature.. The reason is that, to this date, it gives me a lot of strength and confidence when am down and nearly out..

AdSenseless?

2008-07-24T13:41:00.000-07:00

Look at the Ad unit that Google chose to display below my last post:

Guess Google thought Clearasil helps in soothing burnt behinds?! :D

Random: Life @ IIMB

2008-07-19T23:20:00.000-07:00

I was brushing my teeth at the washbasin, when a foreigner come out from one of the toilets there. (We have quite a few exchange students on campus). He was in quite a rush, and the moment he saw me, he blurted out a frantic "Hi". I managed a "Hello" in response, through my frothing mouth. And there was a queer bout of silence when he was washing his hands. Wishing to break it, I asked him:
"Are you from this block?"
"No I am not"
"Hmm.. Was wondering.. I haven't seen you around here"
Seemingly stunned by what I had just said, he thought for a second and then said,
"I come here only if it's very urgent"
and rushed off to class.
I felt so bloody embarrassed!! I had half a mind to call him back and clarify that I had actually referred to the block and not the restroom. But he had vanished by then.
An open request to all my readers: If you come across any blog by a non-Indian that narrates the harrowing experience of being asked about restroom preferences by an Indian, do mail me the link. Would like to know the other side of the story.

---

We have a section on our intranet portal for registering hostel complaints. A couple of days back, when I had a few minutes to kill, I went through the list of complaints that others had registered. Much of it was about broken locks and mosquitoes in the bathroom.
But there was this one complaint that kept surfacing time and again: "Getting hot water from all taps in the bathrooms and toilets. Very uncomfortable. Please set things right asap." It was the same guy who had registered the complaints many times over a few days. Apparently no action was taken for a while.
And this is what our guy put up next:

The taps were set right the next day :)

To "B" - is the answer.

2008-07-07T07:25:00.000-07:00

Hey guys!

Been a long time since I posted anything here. Let me break my silence with something I love doing - a foto blog post.

Those of you who've seen IIMB campus would sure agree that it's a separate world of its own. Here are some glimpses from a walk I took yesterday evening.

(Maybe a sign for us guys to take things easy ;) )

Well, but obviously :) Have I ever posted pics without macros?

This was by accident. Didn't notice the creature when I framed the shot!!

If only the petals had been proper :(
Still, my favo among all flowers I've shot till date!

This was a God-send.
Have been waiting for months to click a butterfly on a flower.
And finally when I got the chance, didn't have enough time to get close enough.
Anyway, happy that I clicked this shot hurriedly before trying to position myself well. The butterfly had vanished by then :(

So this is the first part. Planning a second one soon, focussing largely on the buildings here. Amazing architecture.
Post: IIMB Pictures

"Peelings"

2008-06-17T22:28:00.000-07:00

Manidhan..
kaatril parappathillai
neeril midhappadhillai
iravil vizhitthiruppadhillai
Eedhanaitthum iLa vayadhil
naan katra ariviyal
Unnaal arthamatru ponadhadi!

----

மனிதன்..

காற்றில் பறப்பதில்லை
நீரில் மிதப்பதில்லை
இரவில் விழித்திருப்பதில்லை
ஈதனைத்தும் இள வயதில்
நான் கற்ற அறிவியல்
உன்னால் அர்த்தமற்று போனதடி!

F.R.I.E.N.D.S

2008-05-26T08:15:00.000-07:00

As I mentally detach myself from my workplace, I so want to reminisce the beautiful days I spent here. And the beautiful people I came across in the past couple of years.

In no specific order.

Dennis

You’ve been my manager for the largest part of my stay at MindTree. But somehow I cringe whenever I use this word for you. You are the most un-managerly person I have come across ever. Not that I have seen many managers, but I do hear a lot of stories from my friends. And whenever that happens, I'm reminded of how unique you are. And whenever I tell people about you, they get envious of me.
And adding to that, I find some similarities in the way we think/operate :)
Hope, wish, pray and believe that you will be able to achieve your great ambitions in life.
p.s: Thanks a lot for the aloo parathas you made yourself on my last day at work. I was not in the mood to appreciate the dish then, but the gesture itself was so nice!

Shanthini

Feels kinda funny to write a farewell note for you. The last one and a half years, you were my confidante at work. A friend. And a mentor. It's hard to believe that you wont be there in any of the activities that I'd be doing now on. Be it RDS / TM / STP / DNB / MCC / Whatever! Or rather, I wont be there in any of these activities.
Will sure miss you in my assignments at (b) school :(
I have always been envious of your ability to tackle problems by decomposing them systematically. Wish I could do that!
And you and your husband are among the most doting couples I've ever seen. Wishing you both a great life ahead together!

Barani

What drew us together was our wavelength match. It's too good to be true. I can pull you into any activity of my interest, with closed eyes, knowing fully well that you would like it too. And so also the other way round.
You are clearly destined to serve the society. Whatever be your profession, I do not doubt one bit that you will find your 15 mins of fame in life in something that empowers our people - our country. Am sure the day is not far off when I will point your picture in the papers to my other friends and tell them that I know you pretty well. (Enakku IG ya theriyum :) )
For the sake of completion: You are one hell of an all rounder man!

Priscilla

Have known you well only for a few months now. But I guess we have moved along quite well in that period.
You're one of those pretty lasses in office who'll make heads turn wherever you go. But what I like the most about you is your conviction in things you believe in. It's hard-to-believe solid!
And your innocence. To the point of being labelled "ignorant" at times :D (Pallavi claims it's not true thou; guess u need to take it up with her)
Am sure you are giving people shocks wherever you go, with your being oh-so-different from what you appear to be, from far. You do not have pretensions, which is probably your defining quality. Don't ever change for anything please.
Wishing you a great life across the turn!

Pallavi

Hi Aunty (Aunty... Aunty... Aunty... :P)
Your infectious enthusiasm is very endearing. And making friends seems to come naturally to you - something an introvert like me has always been in awe of.
And I will always remember your ability to call a spade a spade. Along with your smartness.
You are among the very few women who manage personal interests well even after marriage and a kid. Would like to see you and Dhandu getting so much out of life forever! Like Mrs and Mr Shanthini, Mrs and Mr Pallavi too is a pair I admire :)

Jacob

My only batch mate in RDS :)
Your uncanny ability to make people laugh has always made you a darling of the masses. Anything and everything always appears funny to you, which is something very rare to find. You would be an asset for any group you belong to da - be it personal / professional. People will always remember you for de-stressing them very easily machi!
May all your searches in life culminate in a grand sucess. And may the Lord assist you in your endavours.

Kaushik

Nee summa irundhaa kooda enakku sirippu vandhurudhu da.. Will always relish our train journeys and your college stories.
And I can never ever look at a court without thinking of you!! ;)
Again, we have known each other for a very short period and in limited circumstances. Though it does not feel so at all.
Would have loved to interact with you a lot more in different setups. Hope we cross paths again in the future.

Venky

My partner in crime at office :) Invariably I would end up just being a spectator, while you would indulge in the actual 'act' itself :( Irundhaalum paravalle. Enjoyed being that!
Have told numerous times about how I love your ability to handle people. So not going to delve into that.
But there is something else too that I admire in you - your ability to speak your mind. Many times I've seen you say difficult things to people close to you. I have never had that capacity. Would love to steal that from your armoury!

Anusha M

Like I've told you before, your enthusiasm sets you apart from everyone else.
And everyone knows you for your being a conventionally "good" girl :)
But of late some other feature of yours surfaced rather blatantly. The way you have been gorging food is stunning everyone :D Saapudradha paathu kannu vekka koodadhu than.. irundhaalum mudiyala!
One small request: People spend crores in making movies. Please dont laugh for the wrong scenes and cause a heartbreak for the makers!

KP

You are one of the friends I picked up in the course of Crescendo. Will always remember you for your jokes, though most of them were PJs that would make the rest of us groan all day long. And will miss your tongue-in-cheek replies to the chain mails we all used to send so regularly.
Glad that you have started a blog for yourself finally. Will keep looking for updates there.
A pity that you had to be away during my last few days at office. Do drop in whenever you visit Bangalore, B** A****** Sir :)

(Siva) Karthik

Dai Devaa***. Except in TSA, we could not interact much at office. But guess our friendship from college continues as ever.
Your story of getting into our company is something I keep giving as an example for grit and determination to everyone da. I too often derive strength from those experiences of yours. You will always be an inspiration for me in that regard :)

----

You are all the people with whom I spent the largest part of my life at work. Apart from you, there have been others too who've defined my stay here; Nikhil, Vijay and Archana were among the first people I ganged up with and will always remain special. Sabari and Desi are nerds with whom my relationship grew from strength to strength - B-school interview to interview :D And Jeeva and Dwija are a couple of others very integral to my mental image of my company. And wish I could go on some trekking trip sometime with Vikram.

In all, I have had the privilege of getting up close with such beautiful people who give me such a strong sense of completeness. Am sure this is not to mark "the end". Seems more like a beginning to me. Cos only now do I realize how close I've got to you people, and how difficult it is for me to break away.

Just a couple of years guys.

I'll be back ;)

?????

2008-05-17T23:10:00.000-07:00

At my office's restroom

Search me!

2008-05-12T20:59:00.000-07:00

Ok guys, I'm fed up of explaining to people that you can format your text in Gtalk.

- Enclosing text between asterisks makes them bold.
- Enclosing text between underscores makes them italicized.
- Dunno if there is a way to underline text. Let me know if there is.

Anyway, this is fairly common info. (That is to say, pls dont hit back saying your 5 - yr old cousin has this in his knowledge bank)

But there is something extremely interesting about Gmail that I got to know from my friend, philosopher and guide Rathna Anna!

In gmail, all the following IDs are one and the same:
- abc.def@gmail.com
- a.b.c.d.e.f@gmail.com
- ab.cd.ef@gmail.com
and so on!

The dots can be played around with! :) If you dont believe me, send yourself a mail with the dot misplaced.

Interesting right?! :)

Do you guys know any other easter eggs like this?

Pereechambazham!!

2008-05-08T07:06:00.000-07:00

Taken (frantically) with my mobile at IIMB when I went there for my interview.

Reminded me of the numerous cartoons like the one here.

Un paarvai maelae pattaal

2008-05-03T05:39:00.000-07:00

One more tag :)

This is quite an exciting tag from Mathi. Her entry made great reading and I was ready to steal the tag by hook or by crook, but was pleasantly surprised to see that she had tagged me too!

The tag:
All you need is your music player in the shuffle mode and your ability to press the 'next track' button. Each new track is the answer to each question.

The questions are bold..
The answers are slanted..
And my comments are straight..
(Am talking about the font formatting here)

So here goes..

If someone says “is this okay?” You say?
Dandanakka Danakku Nakka - Kaalai
(Ya.. and maybe fold my lungi and bite my tongue and perform a saavu koothu)

What would best describe your personality?
Aaj ki raat - Don
(Achacho.. Enakku vekka vekkama varudhu)

What do you like in a guy/girl?
Yeh jo des he tera - Swades
(Politically correct :) )

How do you feel today?
Chor chor - Theme music
(Thiruda thiruda theme music.. Didn't even know I had this with me!)

What is your life’s purpose?
O indha kaadhal - Sattham podadhey
(Mom.. Hope you skipped reading this point)

What is your motto?
Tanha Dil - Shaan
( :( )

What do your friends think of you?
Duet theme music
(Sheesh! This is a revelation!)

What do you think of your parents?
Khwaaja mere khwaaja - Jodha Akbar
(Somebody translate this pls?)

What do you think about very often?
Its my life - Bon Jovi
(This is so un-me! I've never had such strong convictions on anything!)

What is 2+2?
Track 01
He he. Ok, the song is actually
Daddy cool - Boney M

What do you think of your best friend?
Nee Marilyn Monroe cloning-aa - ATM
(I guess/hope this has girls lining up claiming to be my best pal :P)

What do you think of the person you like?
Kaattu kuyilu - Thalapathi
(Hiiiya!! Finally one song that answers the qn at hand)

What is your life story?
Nenjil jil jil jil - Kannathil Muthamittaal
(WHAAAT! And sis dear always claims that she gets second degree treatment cos she's the adopted one!)

What do you want to be when you grow up?
Chookar mere man ko - Yaarana
(Doesn't make sense. Maybe that's what I'll be when I grow up - Nonsense)

What do you think when you see the person you like?
Genie in a bottle - Christina Aguilera
(Googled for the full lyrics of this song.. All I have to say is: Aggagagaa - Vadivelu style)

What do your parents think of you?
Kal ho naa ho - Kal ho naa ho
(Har pal yahaan.. Jee bhar jiyo :) Cool )

What will you dance to at your wedding?
Vasantha mullai polae vandhu - Pokkiri
(Those who know me: no cheeky comments pls :) )

What will they play at your funeral?
Nenjaangootil neeye nirkirai - Dishoom
(Elumbukootil neeye nirkirai would have been truer.. But this is so flattering)

What is your hobby/interest?
Please sir - Boys
(Pleading/Begging! My hobby? NEVER! At least, not after completing college)

What is your biggest secret?
Tanga Dunga - Paruthiveeran
(It's encoded)

What do you think of your friends?
Pal pal hai bhaari - Swades
(Unable to link qn and ans. 0 marks)

What should you post this as?
Un paarvai maelae pattaal - Chennai 600028
(Ya.. That's why we all blog right? :) )

Enjoyed doing this a lot! Throwing the tag open to one and all. When you're done, leave a link in the comments section. Let's get our mental association juices flowing.

Yelagiri trip photos

2008-04-24T08:31:00.000-07:00

Had been to Yelagiri about a month back.

The name Yelagiri comes from the words "Yela(m)" (meaning auction in Tamil) and "Giri" (referring to a movie starring Action King Arjun). Probably.

Here are some pics from the trip. We had a nice 6 km trek at a place called Swami Malai at Yelagiri. Am not satisfied with the number of good clicks I made. But anyway, nice to be foto-blogging after quite some gap!

Lights in the bus

Campfire

Campfire - up close

Campfire again.
Not a perfect pic, someone is visible behind the fire which kinda spoils the effect.
But love this one cos the transience of the fire is visible!

During the trek.
Love this one cos of the various layers in the image,
each more faded than the ones at front, cos of mist.

One more image with layered clarity

Had taken this pic last year at Ooty with my mobile cam. Was a dream-come-true composition, but lack of image quality has always been irking me. (I didn't have a digicam back then)

Got a vaguely similar chance at Yelagiri this time! :)

Cattle grazing!
The scene is not as dramatic as in the other one though :(

Our trek path

Don't even know what this thing is.. And it's in real-life size here!!

View from the top

Some wild flowers

Was reminded of Clouds.bmp as I saw the sky :)

The only wildlife I could capture (apart from cows)

Pitter patter rain drops. On our windshield

Et tu, Brute?

2008-04-18T20:55:00.000-07:00

Got a pleasant surprise a month back when I found that Mathi had tagged me. Apologies to her for delaying this one. As any conscientious blogger would clarify, this been lying in the drafts for quite sometime.

Tags are great cos they give us something to write about, which can be a huge relief when one is running a dry patch. But what is greater about them is that they give us a sense of security: if at all the post ends up drab, one can always pass the blame on to the originator of the tag. ("Such a dull tag it was, there was only so much I could do to make it interesting")

Anyway, this tag demands me to put up eight facts about myself. Here goes...

Fact 1: I have lived in 6 different places till date: Tirupattur, Sholinghur, Vellore, Coimbatore, Chennai, Bangalore

Fact 2: I love myself. A lot.

Fact 3: Realization is dawning upon me slowly: 8 is a BIG number, actually

Fact 4: Few of my material desires/targets in life: A BMW for my first car, A huge bungalow with a swimming pool right at the heart of Chennai, a library at home with full collections of PG Wodehouse and Calvin & Hobbes

Fact 5: And I placed fact 4 here so that I don't chicken out in the future :)

Fact 6: I have installed Google's "monetizing tool" on this blog (wink wink. Aint I being subtle?)

Fact 7: My room at home is like an outhouse without an attached bathroom. Everytime I want to relieve myself at nights, I need to encounter and defeat 6 doors

Fact 8: My all time favo movies: Saamy, Lagaan, Azhagiya Theeyae, Alaipayuthey, Sarkar, M Kumaran S/o Mahalakshmi, Anbe Sivam, Phone Booth, Independence Day, Baasha and a few more which I have forgotten now

Passing the tag to Martian Geek, Prabhu Ferrari, Desi and Knittins.

p.s.: The title is not in Latin. "Ettu" is Tamil for "Eight" and "Brute" is English for "Brute".

FC(uked)

2008-04-13T07:22:00.000-07:00

I support reservations wholeheartedly.

However it is my sincere belief that we do not have enough quotas for everything as yet. So here is a humble request for bringing in additional quotas.

I am an FC guy. History proves beyond doubt that in the field of sports, people from my community have not performed well. Hmmmm.. Err... rather, people from my community have been discriminated against and have not been given enough opportunities to shine. So, I put forth the following requests to the Sports Ministry of the Government of India:

In the athletic event of high jump, the bar should be lowered by anywhere from 6 to 12 inches for people from my caste
In long jump, we should be allowed to run across the landing pit, instead of leaping over it
We should be given iron balls half the stipulated weight in shotput. Or alternatively, we can be given rubber balls, along with a cannon for additional support
In Javelin throw, our throws should be measured in inches, while those of people from other communities should be measured in miles. And the final result should be calculated from the numerals obtained thus
We want motor support in running events
We should be allowed to take diets consisting WHOLLY of performance enhancing drugs
And we want 49.5% reservation in our Olympics squad

So how does that appear? Gross? Ridiculous? Ugly? That's what is happening with higher education in our country.

In principle, I am against ANY form of reservation. But if at all it needs to be there, it damn well not be on the basis of caste/community.

Financial status is a more sensible (to me) parameter.

And even more sensible is a rural-urban location based reservation. Cos the kind of educational opportunities that are available in our cities are far far more robust than those available in our villages. So if we want our truly backward masses to be thrust up, provide them good facilities for Godsake! And the "backward masses" referred to here are our rustic folk, irrespective of their caste and community.

Now don't tell me we don't have enough funds for all that. When we can set aside Rs 60,000 crore for temporary relief for our farmers, this can well be done.

Only food

2008-03-27T22:59:00.000-07:00

Went for a team treat last night to a good 4 star hotel on Mount Road in Chennai near DMS bus stop.

Ok, chuck confidentiality. It was Courtyard Marriott.

I have been to star hotels before. But this was an out of the world experience. Simply cos the menu sucked!! If you are a veggie, please avoid Courtyard Marriott like the plague.

Out of the total 30 - 35 dishes, hardly 6 or 7 were veg. The rest were all living-turned-non-living things. (Technically plants are living things too. But we veggies will never ever buy that argument. We would be left food-less then!)

So in all, I did not relish the food. Forget relishing, I hardly ate anything. So this post is less about all that.

What provoked me was the menu card for drinks. I reproduce a pic of that below.

Maybe when I used the word 'reproduce', I was being extremely suggestive (wink wink)

This prodded me to think how in the world people can order these drinks?

Excuse me, can you give me an orgasm please?
Excuse me, I would love to have a screaming orgasm please.
Excuse me, can I have some Slazy sex on the Beach? (this was another item that was listed below. And "slazy" was how they spelt it too)

Phew, I am sure the waiters would have a whale of time in their private rooms discussing the day's orders.

A friend of mine wondered if this was just a parliamentary way of indicating that they offer rooms per hour, a la Jab We Met.

Anyway that was that. Now on to today morning. I was coming to office by train. And a few college students were seated next to me. From their talks, I found out that they were having an exam today. One guy was saying

"Tamil Nadu manage பண்ணிரலாம் டா.. Andhra, Chettinadu தான் problem"
(Tamil Nadu can be managed. Andhra and Chettinadu would be a problem)

For a moment, I thought they were some B.Arch guys who were discussing different styles of architectures. Then when I peeped into their record note book, I realized that they were catering students, and were talking about different cuisines!

Their record note. Ah! That was a wonderful sight! Each experiment was a multiple-course menu of some cuisine. Two of the guys were "mugging" up ingredients like we used to learn apparatus required. Another was drawing lines in all pages and fretting that he should somehow convince Sir to sign in his record before the exam. Another was spreading worldly gyan:

"Machi எனக்கு no tension டா.. எந்த கேள்வி கேட்டாலும் மாவு பெசஞ்சு சப்பாத்தி செஞ்சுருவேன்.. கூட சிக்கன் கரி, சேமியா பாயசம்.. எனக்கு இவ்ளோ தான் தெரியும்.. இதுக்கு என்ன மார்க் வருமோ குடுங்க னு சொல்லிருவேன் டா"
(I have no tensions.. Whatever they ask me, I will mix some dough and make chapathis.. Then some chicken curry and Payasam.. Will declare that this is all I know, and ask them to give me marks for that)

Though it was funny then, soon I got a bit irked. Come on, cooking is something so exciting after all! And still these guys were not interested in doing it with spirit?

That was when I remembered that even I did stuff like this at college. I might say that the subjects I had to learn were of a different kind, and were not as exciting as this is. But the point is that I was the one who chose to pursue that course in my UG degree. And I should have been more sincere there.

Open Source

2008-03-11T07:33:00.000-07:00

Note: If you are someone who has landed here from Google after searching for open source tech stuff, please exit asap. This is not what you think it is.

--------------------

Today morning, my manager told me an interesting belief of a friend of his: One can judge a company from its restrooms.

If that person visits my company, he'll conclude comprehensively that it is an open and transparent organization.

We recently shifted locations. And the new office boasts of Western style restrooms. I am not referring to the western commode. Am talking about the restroom by itself. They are of the kind I have seen only in hollywood movies.

Reference:

Note: Restroom changed to protect privacy. This is a Googled Image.

If you have ever used this kind of a restroom, you'll agree that the name itself is a misnomer. I mean, that is the only place where I am restless. As if the gaps in all directions were not enough, the whole damn structure rattles everytime someone opens/closes one of the doors. One would think those excuses-for-walls would all fall down anytime, leaving a scar on one's psyche for life.

Dunno what the aim of the facilities team was in putting up this kind of a structure. Whatever it was, it will surely achieve one thing: having experienced this, fewer of our people would pursue onsite opportunities vigorously. Money is not so important, after all.

RIP Sujatha

2008-03-04T00:51:00.000-08:00

I've been quite upset for a few days now. The demise of Sujatha has struck me real hard. Even as I write this, am confused whether to say “Writer Sujatha” or “Scientist Sujatha” or “Novelist Sujatha” or “Kollywood Sujatha” or whatever!

I have never come across any one else as versatile as Genius Sujatha was. He exhibited a perfect blend of right and left brain skills. And at what degree of achievement! He came across as an intellectual of the highest order, in everything he did.

And add to it the fact that he wrote in Tamil. That was exquisite by itself! For years, he was the only answer to the question of “Who is to promote அறிவியல் தமிழ் (Tamil for Science)?”. This moment I am unable to think of anyone else who wrote about scientific things in Tamil. Maybe, Hai Madhan comes a distant second.

The first time I came to know about him was in my class 3. Doordarshan used to telecast a serial written by him: என் இனிய இயந்திரா (Yen Iniya Iyandhira). It was a sci-fi thing, if I remember right, and I was fascinated by a puppy that starred in it (Geno). What was even more fascinating was that some male was named “Sujatha”. My Mom explained to me about pen names. But I never really understood that then.

After that, Ananda Vikatan became my most regular source of contact with him. I used to dig anything and everything that featured in his name – articles, reviews, interviews, stories, et al. But what floored me definitively was ஸ்ரீரங்கத்து தேவதைகள் (Srirangatthu Dhevadhaigal) – his book on life at Srirangam. The clear flow of his language and his succinct humor greatly touched me, and I became a BIGGGG fan of his. I even read out one full chapter (the one on cricket) from that book to my friend Ananth. That was more than a decade ago. And I still remember that. Such was his impact on me.

I almost met him in person once. Almost. When I was in class 12, a group of us went to meet him at T Nagar in PentaMedia’s office to invite him for our culturals. We were waiting outside when his secretary went in and explained the reason of our visit to him. He replied “What will I do at a school function where kids would dance and sing? Please tell them that I am not interested”. We returned disappointed.

Then it hurt me to hear him say that. But in retrospect, I can understand what he must have thought. Every minute of his was precious and had to be spent on higher causes.

Dunno what to say.. Feeling rather disoriented.. May his soul rest in eternal peace..

Today's Kavi'Day

2008-02-26T01:38:00.000-08:00

Was reading a nice tamil blog. This guy (Sree) writes very well!! As I read through all that, I too felt an irrepressible desire to pen a "poem of love":

Yengu paarthaalum neethan therigiraai...
Kaadhal pirandha bodhum idhu nadakka villai..
Oodal konda indru nigazhndhuLLadhu..
Yaen endru yosittha bodhu pulappattadhu:
Yen manaththiraiyil uLLa nee,
KaNgalin mun neer thiraiyil pradhibalithu,
Vizhiththiraiyil vizhundhuLLaai...

எங்கு பார்த்தாலும் நீதான் தெரிகிறாய்...
காதல் பிறந்த போதும் இது நடக்க வில்லை...
ஊடல் கொண்ட இன்று நிகழ்ந்துள்ளது...
ஏன் என்று யோசித்த போது புலப்பட்டது:
என் மனத்திரையில் உள்ள நீ,
கண்களின் முன் நீர் திரையில் பிரதிபலித்து,
விழித்திரையில் விழுந்துள்ளாய்!

Ok, does not seem to be much. Did not even want to post this, initially. But eventually did so cos my friend Neo opined that this is "definitely post-able".
(Your response will tell me whether he was being sincere, or was trying to make the most out of my dilemma.)

P.S.: Smart alec comments would not be published

MBA interviews : Attempts to peep into the ass' soul

2008-02-07T00:21:00.000-08:00

Hi guys.. Have been busy with preps for MBA interviews.. And it's such a sick thing!! Preparing for "all kinds of questions" drives me crazy.. Especially for those questions that seem to probe into the core of our consciousness..

Of course, most MBA aspirants lie through their teeth in their interviews (the others rewrite CAT the next year again).. But preparing for all this is frustrating..

Now, what would happen if B-school interview panels start forcing verita serum down our throats before the interviews?

Possibly this:

Panel: Hello Aspirant. Please take a seat.

Aspirant: Thank you, Sirs.

Panel: So how was your journey?

Aspirant: Cut the cooling-down crap.. I know you are not bothered about it one bit..

Panel: Ok then, why don't you tell us something about yourself?

Aspirant: My name is Aspirant. I did my schooling at Chen...

Panel: No no. All those details are there in this form you submitted over mail. Tell us something that is not on this form.

Aspirant: I love porn.

Panel: Ok you are a software engineer. Can you tell me today's price for an Infosys share in the BSE?

Aspirant: And why am I expected to know that?

Panel: Simple...
You are software.
Infy is software.
You want to get into business.
Shares are business.
See the relation?

Aspirant: Duck you.. Tell me this is a practical joke.. Please..

Panel: Hmmmm.. Can you please tell us why you want to do an MBA?

Aspirant: It's for the money, dude! I heard that MBA guys get paid bucket loads.

Panel: And why do you want to do your MBA at this institution?

Aspirant: I wrote CAT and applied to all institutions in the country. You are one of the few who have called me for an interview.

Panel: So what are your short term and long term goals?

Aspirant:
Short Term: Earn money.
Long Term: Earn more money.

Panel: Which other B-schools have you got interview calls from?

Aspirant: IIM Ahmedabad

Panel: Between us and IIM Ahmedabad, which institute would you choose?

Aspirant: What kind of a question is this? Either you've got no brains, or you've got loads of balls. How can you even ask such a question?

Panel: Which stream would you want to specialize in, if you get in here?

Aspirant: Marketing

Panel: Ok, lets see how good you are at marketing. Sell this pen to us.

Aspirant: I said "I want to specialize in marketing".. That means I suck at it now.. If I was already skilled, why would I want to learn that? Confirmed, you have got no brains..

Panel: Let's say you work for a multinational company. You overhear your manager conveying some sensitive data to some stranger over phone. What would you do?

Aspirant: Record his conversation and blackmail him.

Panel: Tell us one good reason why we should offer you a seat.

Aspirant: I have made you run out of good questions, and now you are trying to throw the onus on me. Is this reason not good enough?

@Other MBA aspirants: Have I missed any sick-to-the-core question? Add on...

Kavidhayae theriyumaa...

2008-01-28T01:55:00.000-08:00

"Iraivanidam kaiyaendhungal" endru paadugiraan.

Engalidam kaiyaendhum electric train picchai kaaran.

Tag: Special pic of 2007

2008-01-02T06:18:00.000-08:00

The new year dawned in the best possible way for me - to be tagged by my maanaseega blogging-guru PrabhuFerrari! (Ok, technically, he tagged me at the fag end of 2007. But this sounds a whole lot better :) )

Thanks Thalaiva!!

This is what the tag says:
‘All you have to do is select and upload one photo that you have clicked this year that is special to you. Could be anything…aesthetic, technical or personal. Also, put in a short note why it is special’

I'll exploit this opportunity to put up my favos from among the pics I clicked this year before honouring the tag.

Let me begin with "people". I have taken very few pics of people this year, so it has been fairly easy to choose this:

My sis

This pic is special because this was among the first ever shots I clicked when I started controlling camera settings by myself.

Another pic is that of the kids I clicked at Thirumalpur. I spoke about it earlier here.

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Airshow @ Chennai: Sometime in Mar/Apr 2007

I love this one because it took too much of an effort from my side to click this right. These machines were flying way too fast(!!). It was very difficult to keep them within the frame.

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AappiLL

This was among the first "experimental" pics I took with my (then) new Sony DSC H3.

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Thennai Maram

This pic won me a consolation prize in a photography contest judged by Thotta Tharani.

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One more pic that is very close to my heart is that of some crops that I took during my trip to Thirumalpur. That also was put up in the same page I linked to earlier.

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Now, on to my S.P.E.C.I.A.L pic of the year:

Mis-focused flower
(Click on the pic for a bigger version)

Frankly speaking, this was an error in focussing. I should have rightly focussed on the flower. But the focus ended up on the bark of the tree behind. So this pic should have been deleted at once.
But I retained it because it seemed to say:

Whether you choose to focus on the beautiful or on the not-so-beautiful is a matter of your own choice

With my job done, I pass the tag on to Arvind. Hope he shakes up from his slumber soon!

Some photos from a recent trip

2007-12-29T11:32:00.001-08:00

Had been to my grandparents' place at Pollachi this week. The tranquil garden around the house offered numerous Sony moments. Some of them...

In retrospect, am not too happy with this pic. There is quite a lot of noise that could possibly divert one's attention from the subject - the leaf. But the coloring effect takes care of that, I guess. BTW, can you think of some interesting caption for this pic?

This one was a very difficult shot. The problem is that when you point your camera at the moon and try to focus, it will simply refuse to obey your command. The moon would appear as a blurry blob. Just try it once for yourself. For that matter, getting the camera to focus on any source of light is a difficult proposition. I got this one by sheer luck :)

And ya, I can never stop clicking flowers on macro.. These damn things look beautiful any way, making our job easier ;)