Recently, (well, about as recent as you can get w.r.t my blog :-) ), Pothy's unveiled their "World's longest silk saree", which "depicts India's history". And I was like, wtf?? Okay, fine, I appreciate the effort put into it, and all the intricacies and other assorted whatnots associated with weaving a humongous silk saree. But really, when RmKV did it, it was innovative. Just about a year later, if someone else does it, really sorry, it's got "COPYCAT" stamped all over it.
Okay, that was issue #1. Issue #2 would be Pothy's bragging about the way it is a "tribute to Mother India". Hello? When I saw it on the news, it looked like a really really long wall hanging, not a silk saree..Once again, not dissing the effort that's gone into it, just thinking that it's all a bit pointless...And really the Guinness Committee should have some more stringent requirements of what constitutes a saree. Otherwise, I'm just going out and buying TRUCKLOADS of dhotis/veshtis and stitching them all together and call it the world's longest cotton saree.
Sheesh.
Oh, and RmKV announced a 50,000 colour saree. Assuming this kind of madness will never end, this is kinda funky :-D
And no, I'm not just saying this 'cause my cousin sister's former classmate was the grand-daughter of Rm. K. Vishwanathan...no really...
Sunday, 11 September 2005
Monday, 5 September 2005
I'm all kinds of things
Well, I tried the Food-Eating Battlemonkey meme, but the results are too embarassing to post...I was beaten on every count by Putu :-( The only thing going for me here was that Putu is a phenomenon, so losing to him is no disgrace
Buuut....but but but but but...kintu-parantu-lekin-but..The other two are pretty okay :-)
So what are you waiting for??
Buuut....but but but but but...kintu-parantu-lekin-but..The other two are pretty okay :-)
So what are you waiting for??
Trying to post from office..
Friday, 2 September 2005
Oooooo aaaaaaa eeeeeeeeeeee memememememe
In case you didn't get it, that's how an opera sounds to me. And no, even if some hot babe took me to Troilus And Cressida, and tearfully explained it to me, it would still sound the same..
Anyways, point being that I finally got around to downloading Opera. The browser, i.e. Wasn't using it till now because of multiple reasons..
-> Firefox + extensions totally ROCKS.
-> It's not free, and comes with ads. Yes I know I could use a keygen or crack or whatever, but it's a brilliant product by brilliant people. Don't want to needlessly rob them of their due :)
-> I'm just soooo spoilt rotten by Adblock on Firefox...
Now that I'm using, I wouldn't say it rocks just yet, but it's amazingly fast. Quite possibly the fastest browser I've ever used, in terms of startup and page rendering. Cool interface, totally browser-migration-hassle-free.
Pages render a little funny, but I gotta say this blog looks positively STUNNING on Opera..Dunno why...
Anyways, point being that I finally got around to downloading Opera. The browser, i.e. Wasn't using it till now because of multiple reasons..
-> Firefox + extensions totally ROCKS.
-> It's not free, and comes with ads. Yes I know I could use a keygen or crack or whatever, but it's a brilliant product by brilliant people. Don't want to needlessly rob them of their due :)
-> I'm just soooo spoilt rotten by Adblock on Firefox...
Now that I'm using, I wouldn't say it rocks just yet, but it's amazingly fast. Quite possibly the fastest browser I've ever used, in terms of startup and page rendering. Cool interface, totally browser-migration-hassle-free.
Pages render a little funny, but I gotta say this blog looks positively STUNNING on Opera..Dunno why...
Wednesday, 31 August 2005
Chennai train insanity
One bashful couple quietly blushing at each other. One not-so-bashful couple quietly groping each other. All this in different corners of the same carriage in a Chennai local train.
The things you see when you're just sitting and minding your own business!
Somewhere between the couples is a sloshed guy, barely able to stand. Needs to hold on with both hands. The obvious bulge of a big bottle in his shirt. Who or what is he hiding is from? It's ducking obvious.
The things you see when you're just sitting and minding your own business!
The things you see when you're just sitting and minding your own business!
Somewhere between the couples is a sloshed guy, barely able to stand. Needs to hold on with both hands. The obvious bulge of a big bottle in his shirt. Who or what is he hiding is from? It's ducking obvious.
The things you see when you're just sitting and minding your own business!
Finally!
After days of searching for a template, and more days of tweaking it, and even more days of wondering why Blogger was breaking it, and still more days of revising it, and a few hours of wondering of tinkering with settings to make it display at least okay in most browsers, I bring you the new and (hopefully) improved http://shr1k.blogspot.com !
Friday, 29 July 2005
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways - naan, pizza, idli, paneer...
Almost exactly two hours back, I was having an SMS conversation with a colleague (I can say that now! Woohoo!) called Sushmitaa (Yes 2 As, and don't ask questions you already know the answer to..) and talk veered, as is inevitably does when you're talking to me, to food.
It then struck me that I should really put up a blog post here explaining what I feel about food. Yes, that's right, you read right what I wrote. (hehehe, I'm attempting A.C-style stuff here). I have feelings about food. As in, I love it.
No no, I don't just love eating food - I actually love food. When I'm having a meal, which is really often, like 5 times a day, and I encounter some thingy that I don't particularly like, I eat it anyway. Why?
Well, my theory is that food also has feelings. The scientists of the world are all morons with twisted priorities. My salutations to all the IIT people who end up doing Food Technology. I'd happily trade degrees with you!
Anyways, coming back to my point, I basically theorized that food has feelings. Therefore, it must feel bad when we reject it after putting it on our plates. You don't raise hopes like that, and then recklessly dash them to the ground. NO, that's just not done, okay? So I do my bit towards the emancipation of not-so-good food that's already been selected, and eat everything on my plate. Hell, I practically wash my plate. Waste not, want not :)
I'm actually going to draw an analogy from my own life. Only *I* [no, actually, a few others too] know how it felt when a company tells you, "hey pal, come on board, enjoy yourself" and then just when you're about to set foot on the drawbridge, they yank it up and go "Neener neener". I just don't want anybody else, human or otherwise, going through that in their lifetimes in whatever form. [Actually, there's another analogy from my own life, but I'll be damned if I'm going to bring *that* one up :-p]
So you see people, I love food. Sometimes people love people, I love food. And what makes this better is that even food that you've been having for a long time never loses its zing. Food doesn't make fun of your paunch. Food doesn't pester you to go on a diet. Food doesn't stand you up. Food doesn't put nakhra. You don't have to wonder what a particular foodstuff tastes like, or what aftertaste it leaves, you can delve right into action and sample it. And pass judgement without feeling guilty. Food doesn't BSOD on you. Food doesn't segfault. Food doesn't crash. Needs no drivers. Very few, if any, dependency issues. Food doesn't deride you for being a klutz with it. You can be with food for a really long time, say nothing, and still turn out totally satisfied. Food can't break up with you, it can't ditch you, dump you, break your heart, screw with your head. Food can't pee on your legs. Food doesn't leave hair on the sofa. Food doesn't leave the toilet seat up, neither does it forget to flush.
And most importantly, food doesn't eat up your time by writing long, meandering blog posts about human beings.
Update: I forgot to mention that I'm writing a book about my love for food! Hurry up and book your copy today!
It then struck me that I should really put up a blog post here explaining what I feel about food. Yes, that's right, you read right what I wrote. (hehehe, I'm attempting A.C-style stuff here). I have feelings about food. As in, I love it.
No no, I don't just love eating food - I actually love food. When I'm having a meal, which is really often, like 5 times a day, and I encounter some thingy that I don't particularly like, I eat it anyway. Why?
Well, my theory is that food also has feelings. The scientists of the world are all morons with twisted priorities. My salutations to all the IIT people who end up doing Food Technology. I'd happily trade degrees with you!
Anyways, coming back to my point, I basically theorized that food has feelings. Therefore, it must feel bad when we reject it after putting it on our plates. You don't raise hopes like that, and then recklessly dash them to the ground. NO, that's just not done, okay? So I do my bit towards the emancipation of not-so-good food that's already been selected, and eat everything on my plate. Hell, I practically wash my plate. Waste not, want not :)
I'm actually going to draw an analogy from my own life. Only *I* [no, actually, a few others too] know how it felt when a company tells you, "hey pal, come on board, enjoy yourself" and then just when you're about to set foot on the drawbridge, they yank it up and go "Neener neener". I just don't want anybody else, human or otherwise, going through that in their lifetimes in whatever form. [Actually, there's another analogy from my own life, but I'll be damned if I'm going to bring *that* one up :-p]
So you see people, I love food. Sometimes people love people, I love food. And what makes this better is that even food that you've been having for a long time never loses its zing. Food doesn't make fun of your paunch. Food doesn't pester you to go on a diet. Food doesn't stand you up. Food doesn't put nakhra. You don't have to wonder what a particular foodstuff tastes like, or what aftertaste it leaves, you can delve right into action and sample it. And pass judgement without feeling guilty. Food doesn't BSOD on you. Food doesn't segfault. Food doesn't crash. Needs no drivers. Very few, if any, dependency issues. Food doesn't deride you for being a klutz with it. You can be with food for a really long time, say nothing, and still turn out totally satisfied. Food can't break up with you, it can't ditch you, dump you, break your heart, screw with your head. Food can't pee on your legs. Food doesn't leave hair on the sofa. Food doesn't leave the toilet seat up, neither does it forget to flush.
And most importantly, food doesn't eat up your time by writing long, meandering blog posts about human beings.
Update: I forgot to mention that I'm writing a book about my love for food! Hurry up and book your copy today!
Sunday, bloody sunday
December 6th, 1992 was a Sunday.
Why this topic, now? I was browsing around and found this. Echoes my sentiments exactly.
Even today, when I think of the sight of the kar sevaks dancing and celebrating at the site at that moment, I feel sick to the stomach. No really. Physically nauseated.
Although I was only 9 or so then, I can distinctly remember the time. It came on the news. Oman T.V. No satellite channels then in Muscat, except for the filthily rich. The significance was so starkly visible that my folks promptly popped in a V.H.S tape into the cassette recorder and preserved those images on magnetic media.
A few days later, I couldn't take it any more. I didn't get the 'religious' hoo-haa around it, but it still sickened me that people could get so happy by destroying something. We children were taught to only bring up, not topple.
A few more days later, the inevitable. Backlash. In Bombay. Following the news of which my mom quietly and quickly recorded M*A*S*H over it.
Even now, I like to believe it was more out of loathing to keep in our home such a reprehensible chapter of India.
And just as Anand puts it, that was the first time - keep in mind I was living in Muscat, Oman since 1989 - I was aware that I'm Hindu, and my friends are Muslims. But I suppose it wasn't as bad as it would have been in India at that point. There wasn't any real tension in the air, just some sort of a curious...how *are* you different? More importantly, *why* should you be considered different? Looking back, we were pretty smart children, eh? Never let faith, or its lack thereof, interfere with our cricket in vacant lots...
Why this topic, now? I was browsing around and found this. Echoes my sentiments exactly.
Even today, when I think of the sight of the kar sevaks dancing and celebrating at the site at that moment, I feel sick to the stomach. No really. Physically nauseated.
Although I was only 9 or so then, I can distinctly remember the time. It came on the news. Oman T.V. No satellite channels then in Muscat, except for the filthily rich. The significance was so starkly visible that my folks promptly popped in a V.H.S tape into the cassette recorder and preserved those images on magnetic media.
A few days later, I couldn't take it any more. I didn't get the 'religious' hoo-haa around it, but it still sickened me that people could get so happy by destroying something. We children were taught to only bring up, not topple.
A few more days later, the inevitable. Backlash. In Bombay. Following the news of which my mom quietly and quickly recorded M*A*S*H over it.
Even now, I like to believe it was more out of loathing to keep in our home such a reprehensible chapter of India.
And just as Anand puts it, that was the first time - keep in mind I was living in Muscat, Oman since 1989 - I was aware that I'm Hindu, and my friends are Muslims. But I suppose it wasn't as bad as it would have been in India at that point. There wasn't any real tension in the air, just some sort of a curious...how *are* you different? More importantly, *why* should you be considered different? Looking back, we were pretty smart children, eh? Never let faith, or its lack thereof, interfere with our cricket in vacant lots...
Meeting Leon head-on, hopefully ;)
Before I start off, I'd like to make references to this, this and this. And this too. Now, one at a time :)
"Yes, CBSE is great(I studied in CBSE too) but it still offers far fewer choices to students than American school education does and opens up far fewer opportunities."
Choices? You don't need choices till the 10th. Learn the fundamentals of everything possible. At that point, you decide what you want to pursue, and you take up that branch going into 11th. Before you're even 16, if you're given the 'choice' to choose subjects in school, it's almost a guarantee that one will pick krapo stuff because it's easy, scoring, whatever. Hell, that already happens in the State levels with students taking up French and Sanskrit, not to learn the language, but to score more. Choice is good, but only when you're equipped to make it properly.
"What would you say about your undergrad education? best?"
Why not? As Indians who take advantage of our system to 0wn Maths and inflate our SAT/GRE scores, we look at American institutes almost exclusively from the point of return on investment. So we tend to overlook the so many community colleges all over that country, which might offer just as good an educational experience as the biggies, their only fault being that they're *not* a biggie. For all its affiliation horrors, I must say I had a most wonderful undergrad experience, and if I had to do it all over again, all I'd change is that I'd probably study harder ;)
"Admittedly the IIMs are great institutions but I would think Harvard, Stanford, Wharton and Sloan are not far behind..."
Accessibility is the key. It is the endeavour of all IIMs that no student be denied opportunity to pursue the Post-Graduate Programme in Management for want of adequate financial resources. While you might find some way later to make money, USA schools ask you for proof of financial solidity. Just how easy would it be for the IIMs to say, "Hey, you're going to be raking in the moolah by the truckloads after you graduate anyways, so suck it up and scratch along." You got a tuition waiver, I know, but gazillions don't :-p Asking you to furnish financial details is really way out man. If you can't, then what? You're stymied at the first hurdle. And I'm going to pre-empt all arguments about 'consultancies'. They charge a fairly hefty fee for their services. So looking at ROI again here, the IIMs come out trumps.
".. the Indian education system at almost all levels, is designed to make well oiled human machines that perform reliably over a long period of time. It is not designed to produce thinkers and innovators."
Was designed, not is! And what's wrong with reliability over long periods of time? Better that than burnt-out at 30. One more point here - the education system doesn't stifle anything, it's our society, which too often likes to fall back on our "culture" for anything and everything...Scene from 'Swades', anyone?
"...And that is ALL the reason you need to not choose to live in the US." -- :-)
"...You say you've lived abroad for 7 years. Why not study in the US for 2 years and then go back to that "American telco" back home?"
Eh? The point being? What's my studying abroad for 7 years got to do with anything? I studied C.B.S.E International Syllabus. I don't understand the connection between those sentences of yours...
"I'm sure your job back home would ensure you visit a lot of exotic locations. And it would take only 10 years!!!"
Eh? The point being? Once again, I don't get the connection between those sentences...are you implying that the money would be inadequate? Yeah it probably would, if I looked to fly executive-class on premium airlines, and live only the Savoys, the Carltons and the Sheratons. Dude, that's not travel, that's the high life. I like to TRAVEL, not be ferried around...
I want to wind up with one more disclaimer. I'm no great fan of the Indian education system myself, but all I'm saying is that the American system probably is equally bad, if not worse. At least here the government tries to care for education. Capitalism creeping into education is just as bad communism into business ;)
"Yes, CBSE is great(I studied in CBSE too) but it still offers far fewer choices to students than American school education does and opens up far fewer opportunities."
Choices? You don't need choices till the 10th. Learn the fundamentals of everything possible. At that point, you decide what you want to pursue, and you take up that branch going into 11th. Before you're even 16, if you're given the 'choice' to choose subjects in school, it's almost a guarantee that one will pick krapo stuff because it's easy, scoring, whatever. Hell, that already happens in the State levels with students taking up French and Sanskrit, not to learn the language, but to score more. Choice is good, but only when you're equipped to make it properly.
"What would you say about your undergrad education? best?"
Why not? As Indians who take advantage of our system to 0wn Maths and inflate our SAT/GRE scores, we look at American institutes almost exclusively from the point of return on investment. So we tend to overlook the so many community colleges all over that country, which might offer just as good an educational experience as the biggies, their only fault being that they're *not* a biggie. For all its affiliation horrors, I must say I had a most wonderful undergrad experience, and if I had to do it all over again, all I'd change is that I'd probably study harder ;)
"Admittedly the IIMs are great institutions but I would think Harvard, Stanford, Wharton and Sloan are not far behind..."
Accessibility is the key. It is the endeavour of all IIMs that no student be denied opportunity to pursue the Post-Graduate Programme in Management for want of adequate financial resources. While you might find some way later to make money, USA schools ask you for proof of financial solidity. Just how easy would it be for the IIMs to say, "Hey, you're going to be raking in the moolah by the truckloads after you graduate anyways, so suck it up and scratch along." You got a tuition waiver, I know, but gazillions don't :-p Asking you to furnish financial details is really way out man. If you can't, then what? You're stymied at the first hurdle. And I'm going to pre-empt all arguments about 'consultancies'. They charge a fairly hefty fee for their services. So looking at ROI again here, the IIMs come out trumps.
".. the Indian education system at almost all levels, is designed to make well oiled human machines that perform reliably over a long period of time. It is not designed to produce thinkers and innovators."
Was designed, not is! And what's wrong with reliability over long periods of time? Better that than burnt-out at 30. One more point here - the education system doesn't stifle anything, it's our society, which too often likes to fall back on our "culture" for anything and everything...Scene from 'Swades', anyone?
"...And that is ALL the reason you need to not choose to live in the US." -- :-)
"...You say you've lived abroad for 7 years. Why not study in the US for 2 years and then go back to that "American telco" back home?"
Eh? The point being? What's my studying abroad for 7 years got to do with anything? I studied C.B.S.E International Syllabus. I don't understand the connection between those sentences of yours...
"I'm sure your job back home would ensure you visit a lot of exotic locations. And it would take only 10 years!!!"
Eh? The point being? Once again, I don't get the connection between those sentences...are you implying that the money would be inadequate? Yeah it probably would, if I looked to fly executive-class on premium airlines, and live only the Savoys, the Carltons and the Sheratons. Dude, that's not travel, that's the high life. I like to TRAVEL, not be ferried around...
I want to wind up with one more disclaimer. I'm no great fan of the Indian education system myself, but all I'm saying is that the American system probably is equally bad, if not worse. At least here the government tries to care for education. Capitalism creeping into education is just as bad communism into business ;)
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