Pics from Flickr

I have linked my flickr account to the blog and also a badge of 5 random pics on the side.. Do check and drop in comments though I don't upload too many pics and not very regular at that too..

Hazards of train travel!

Last weekend I had to go to Chennai and I booked myself tickets on Charminar Express. Now, usually I give my preference as the upper berth. For one, it allows me to go to bed early irrespective of when the others in the compartment want to sleep and secondly, and more importantly, it allows me to get away from all the aunties and uncles who want to make small talk (which is mostly a one-sided interview). This time though, I booked side lower for both legs of the journey. I personally like side lower because you can stretch your legs and lean on the window- read your book in comfort as well as take in the scenery. The only itch is a nosy person on the adjoining seat.

While going to Chennai, there was this lady on the other seat who was listening to music on her cell and was mildly swaying her head. Seeing her so lost in whatever she was listening to, I felt at peace. But then she switched off her cell and started perusing some magazine. I could sense the danger signs but chose to ignore and avoided any eye-contact. But alas, that did not dither her. "So, you are going to Madras", she asked. "Yes", I said, momentarily looking up from my book and immediately diving back into it. "So, you work there?", pat came the next question. " Ah, no, I work in Hyderabad" and to preempt the next question, I added "but, my parents live in Chennai". She gave a friendly nod and proceeded to know where I worked, where my dad worked, how many siblings I had, what they were doing, whether I was a gult, and finally will I exchange my lower berth for another old lady who got the upper berth. I agreed and sunk back into my book and this time plugged in my ear phones. She didn't bother me until the next day morning, that too, only to know how long it would take to reach Chennai. Meanwhile she had a good round of discussion with others on rising property prices and how it cannot sustain, how IT people were screwing the economy by spending carelessly their high disposable income.

I wasn't so lucky on the way back. There was this rotund gentleman who seemed very disinterested and was preoccupied making phone calls. Again my hopes of a peaceful journey were dashed. He started with an innocuous "When does this train reach Hyderabad? " to discussing the seasonality of travel on that route, how it was different from Bombay-Hyderabad route, where I worked, what was the nature of my work, which sectors were going to outperform in the near future (IT is a laggard now according to him, "saturation ho gaya IT mein, construction sector mein badiya growth hoga.. investing in LnT anyone), why I was an underpaid MBA (He heard me wrong and thought I earned a lakh a year and I didn't correct him for my own amusement, till the time we discussed about my house rent.. he started wondering how I paid 6k a month in rent on an 8k a month salary.. our man was good at no.s), why doing an MBA from Bangalore was nothing great (again I missed out on IIM), why an MBA from Ahmedabad was the only worthwhile option in India (I still haven't figured out why he mentioned cities instead of institutes) and interestingly, the best place to get an MBA from was "Boston, Canada". Obviously, I didn't try to argue with that. I agreed that Boston, Canada was indeed the best and I will probably consider studying there in the future. To wade him off, I opened my laptop and started playing a word game. Our man asks me, "doesn't it require wires". "Well, It is running on battery", I said. "For internet?", he asked, "err, no, I don't have an internet connection here". So, after a good round of talking, I decided to go to bed early and woke up only after reaching Hyderabad station.

Train travel is boring, if you are traveling alone that is. I remember how painful those 26 hour journeys from Bombay to Chennai were during engg. days. One of the reasons for going home once in 6 months. If you are a male and < 50 years of age you invariably end up on the upper berth. And if you are the don't-like-talking-to-arbit-people kind then death only will happen.

PS: I could have taken a flight but it is easier to go home (which is 25km away from the city) using the local train from Chennai Central then from the airport. Also dad wouldn't have to drive all the way to the airport to pick me up.

Update

Well, since it has been quite a while since i paid a visit to this part of cyber space, I thought I will update a bit.. afterall, some people do read my ramblings..

I finally have a car. After much dilly-dallying about what to buy, I decided that I don't deserve a new car, given my complete inexperience with driving in a city and also given the state of traffic in this city. So, I persuaded my dad to send me his old Alto from Chennai and am going to buy him a new car. Dad hasn't decided on what to buy yet but knowing him I am sure he will finally buy a Santro. A car is a decent luxury even if it does not have power windows, power steering, a cd player etc. I love driving on the road from Jubilee Hills to Banjara Hills. Its more fun on rainy days. The roads look very inviting. But still have to learn a bit on how to park in cramped spaces. I have already got a big dent on the side on a car which didn't have a scratch in the last 3 years. Much sadness resulted but we have taken it in our stride.

Went for the Aerosmith concert during the first weekend of June. It was a big let down before it even started. The crowd, despite some really hot chicks, was appalling with the huge lines. We almost stood an hour in the queue. Then there was no dearth of weirdos, dopers, drunkards. The worst of the lot were anyways on the stage. Loved 3-4 songs, a few I had never heard before, rest I never liked in the first place. The chicks behind me were shrieking to express their love for Mr. Tyler. At the end I only cursed myself for putting a long train journey for a 2 hour show and feeling out of place. Wanted to go to campus which didn't materialize. But got to thulp food at Krishna Cafe after more than a year. Roamed a bit pillion riding on Baada's Thunderbird. Hope to put a road trip on it the next weekend that I will be in Bangalore.

Will get hold of a laptop, the R61 thinkpad, by the end of this month. I should be able to blog more regularly. Also, its high time to start downloading movies and some new games. I am tired of playing counter strike, that too the single player version and the 70-80 odd films that I have and watched 'n' no. of times. Have been reading some travlogues by Pico Iyer, Hanif Kureshi's Midnight All Day and what has been more moving - Milan Kundera's The unbearable lightness of being. There will be a blogpost on that one for sure. And, now its time to head off to Gayatri Andhra Meals for our daily dose of good gult food.

I am a movie buff!!

got the link to this site from Choochie's blog. Basically one has to tick the movies they have seen from a list..

Your Movie Buff Quotient: 88%

You are a movie buff of the most obsessive variety. If a movie exists, chances are that you've seen it. You're an expert on movie facts and trivia. It's hard to stump you with a question about film.

Are You a Movie Buff?

This passivity!

It's a saturday.. officially a holiday but there is work to be done.. it has piled up over a lazy week spent at office doing nothing but playing a few games of table-tennis, orkutting and reading blogs/wikipedia and chatting... and all I can manage now is to sit and stare at the screen (not at the excel sheets and market reports though) and listen to music.. The empty coffee cup lies desolately on the table after making an abortive effort to stimulate some grey matter inside my brain. It isnt dead yet. It still frets about the things to do, the deadlines etc. but that is all it is capable of now and no more....

Long long time ago, the mind wasn't this numb. It liked doing things faster and better than everyone around. It wanted to know more than anybody else. It loved books, of all kinds. It loved being questioned, liked raising a few too. And revelled in knowing the answers to the unknown. The hand would invariably rise in any class. Eyes would try to make contact with those of the teacher to grab attention. It was methodical, clinical in it's approach to anything. Failure was despised so much so that a kite that didn't fly on a windless day would bring down tears. The crumbling house made of playing cards would cause much heart break. And now..

...the inquisitiveness and confidence of a 14 year old have been replaced by the anxiety and fear of a 24 year old. Simple things take time to accomplish. It is impossible to stick to a plan. The mind wanders easily, often, to completely unconcerning issues. It tends to go into a state of worrisome restlessness. Competition is not savored but feared. Criticism is accepted without a word of protest, without any effort to prove it wrong or work on a mistake. Is this an unending spiral to the bottom? I shudder to think so. The mind still wants to break free of the claustrophobic walls that it has built around itself. It still believes this isn't me.. this can't be me. May be there is still a way out of this limbo.. Hope is afterall a good thing, probably the best of things...

the new drug lord in town..

This thing with IIT coaching...

My sister just finished her class Xth exams and given the uncertainity involved in my dad's transfer to hyderabad, she came here all the way from Chennai, in the middle of a much deserved summer break, to give a battery of entrance exams. To where you ask? Well, these are for getting admission to the coaching classes which guide you for the IIT Joint Entrance Exam. Now there are coaching classes for these entrance exams to the coaching centers for IIT entrance too. and some foundation courses right upto class V. Amazing isn't it? There is so much fucking money in Education as long as the great Indian middle class in all its stupidity wants to get all its children into these elite institutions. and all that for what? Greed. Pure greed. An IIT seat is a ticket to success. Success here being determined by how much you earn post that.

And it doesnt stop there. The IMSes, TIMEs and CareerForums of the world have shown how much money there is to be made in MBA entrances. With the no. of students taking these exams swelling nicely year on year, I think it is high time to step in and share some of the exploits. After all, we are greedy too. With the no. of international schools, engg. and medical colleges and management institutions growing exponentially, may be, I can have a couple of those for myself and take a vacation off in the Carribean with the donation money. Man! I am turning ambitious here :D

Table tennis...

This is one sport I have loved playing since the first day I held a TT racquet in class V. Though I haven't still managed to learn a decent serve, I am good at belting out smashes to any corner of the table.. and the thrill in getting perfect reflex shots cannot be described in words .. so a game of TT is always thoroughly enjoyed especially so, if it is in office.. makes for a perfect break inbetween excel sheets and annual reports..

But there is something really annoying about this game. It so happens that people tend to learn it faster than me.. they start at a beginner level, keep getting belted and then slowly their game improves, they start serving better, have a better control over their shots and voila! I am at the recieving end.. that too without any punch in their smashes.. and that results in much heartbreak...