Tryst with Barcelona

A rare ingenious DBLP (Bob Colwell)

2011-05-12T10:33:00.000-07:00

For those engineers/researchers who enjoy humor, and even for the other lot who don't fathom why and how scientific humor could be invented, this DBLP is uniquely ingenious.

From Bob Colwell: Presentation Lessons from Comedians -

You’re sitting in yet another interminable conference session. Man, this chair gets more uncomfortable by the millisecond. Who’s that over there? He looks like Mike Meyers from this angle. Or maybe Mini Me. What’s that interminable droning sound? Oops, that’s the speaker going on and on about ... whatever his topic is. You can’t remember—your mind has been wandering for the past 10 minutes.

Another one from Bob Colwell : Engineering Follies -

Our confidence in our instructor having thus been substantially diminished, we moved even farther away from the experimental apparatus. Meanwhile, this intrepid grad student now demonstrated whatever is the exact opposite of an intuitive sense for how physics works: He reinserted the now-bent calibration device and told us the problem was that the shaft had not had enough weight on it—an error that he now undertook to correct by standing on it. Then he told us to turn on the power to the motor.

And, you must read *in detail* about "the guy who turned on the motor/generator during the assisted suicide incident". (Reference - Bob Colwell : Engineering Follies). Its not worth a miss. Not at all !

G for Green

2011-04-22T14:28:00.000-07:00

Loved today's doodle on the Google web page. Hovering the mouse over and over again just for the fun of it. Check out all other Google doodles at the archive here. Also check out the latest of Google's websites - Google Green.

The drift of corporations going green / carbon-neutral is a good news by all means. Some Interesting content for this special day :

Some of the few business giants which are self-proclaimed carbon neutral include Google, Dell, ING Group and PepsiCo (PepsiCo? Really ?!)
Here is a list of carbon-neutral companies from a refreshing wordpress. Of particular interest to me is to see a gradual drift (in the recent years) in the corporate world towards monetizing on the business opportunity of " helping organizations become green ".

Really hope for a Greener tomorrow.

Hitler's MISCA Paper Rejection

2011-01-23T08:12:00.000-08:00

The viral Hitler parody phenomenon strikes another hilarious note. Due credits to the original idea of creating parodies using the Original Bunker Scene from Downfall. More on it here.

Café con leche

2010-11-20T05:39:00.000-08:00

As I sipped my morning café today accompanied by my ritualistic aimless surfing on the net, I (yet again!) stumbled upon the facebook's sky-rocketing revenues (the third time this week!):

That would put its worth at about $41 billion, more than EBay’s $39.3 billion valuation on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Facebook only trails Amazon.com Inc., worth $74.4 billion, and Google Inc., valued at $192.9 billion, among US Internet companies.[Source]

Everytime I read Facebook's success story, I am amazed at how cleverly we manoeuvered clear of any "On the Internet, nobody knows you're a dog" era. Internet now is synonymous to opportunity, money and recognition. It has this distinct feature of linking up content and users treading these trails to find useful/interesting content. And here comes another feather in the cap of Internet - Social Networking. The magnitude of it all is what is rather a surprise (41 bn $ !!); and all so because people have found a new way of life -- "living" online?

The content creation rate on Internet is massive (I would love to be pointed to some statistics on this btw). Every new day brings tonnes of new websites/services going live; Increasingly interesting content is being created and used everyday. Internet as a platform for Knowledge sharing and Collaboration has made life much easier (and astonishingly richer for quite a few).

Other interesting Internet content that I found over the course of this week(two of the six to be precise) --

xtranormal : Great site for text-to-video creation. I tried a test video and other than the limited avatars/backgrouds/effects, I was impressed at what it enables a user to do -- Create your own animations!
Sintel : An impressive "open-source" graphics creation testimony.

This morning, my Café con Leche tastes peculiar. My Café con Leche is intimidated at sharing its much endeared place in my weekend morning breakfasts with a multi-billion entity - the Internet!

The Indian Head Wobble or "Bobble"

2010-09-26T07:39:00.000-07:00

Much to my amusement, I found this link on the Indian Wobble or "Bobble" - what it is, and how to interpret it. Read it full, please (the bit on "Tips for Understanding the Indian Head Wobble" might be insanely insightful for a foreigner and much enjoyable for an Indian) ! Google it and you will be amazed to see how carefully it has been observed by so many people across the world.

Youtube video: how Indians say yes and no

I have personally been accused of having wobbled my head to indicate a "yes", and I, of course, denied the allegations.

Although the bobble gesture does seem to be pretty colloquial, but it was never very hard for me to understand whether it was a Yes or a No :). It's pretty useful I must say. Here's an example how -

Q : Are you telling me that you agree that Indians really wobble their heads?

A : Head Wobble

El Arte no tiene Patria

2009-06-21T07:34:00.000-07:00

Art has no fatherland - Incribed on the walls of the Hall of Mirrors of Theatre Liceu.

A dreamy philospher went today to two beautiful concert halls at subsidised rates as its the World Music Day today - 1. Teatre Liceu and 2. Palau de la Musica Catalana (in photos). There is this peculiarly unique combination of serenity and resplendence inside a concert hall which always amazes me. Each of these concert halls has a personality and a character of its own.

The grandeur of music is totally discernible in both the concert halls. Every nook and corner has been meticulously designed to bring that complete essence of music unto you- Music which makes you dream your own world into reality; Music that lets you -sing- the song of life.

Music really is the epitome of purity and omnipresence, isnt it? It is what your soul sings; probably that's why all the religious cults have devotional music to relate to God. Particularly stark is the sound (and symbol) of Om (Aum) in Hinduism. Essentially, it would not be an exaggeration to say that this sound forms the spirit of Hinduism! Quoting Bhagwat Gita (Song of God) -

Uttering the monosyllable Aum, the eternal world of Brahman, One who departs leaving the body (at death), he attains the superior goal.

God aside, nature itself creates music all the time. My piano tutor used to tell the students that before you even know any syllable of music, you must know that to learn music, you have to learn to feel it. If you cannot feel music, you cannot learn music. Very cliché but quite fundamental as well.

a special day

2009-06-10T09:35:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to that special someone who has influenced my personality in many subtle and forthright ways. Some memories remain eternal; Some lessons unforgettable. Marking this entry as a token of my appreciation for the character his acts have imbibed in me. This is the song that all the newcomers in our family (the kids mainly) have learnt by heart - thanks to my dad :). And yes, its his birthday today. All his applauds, all those dissapprovals and "recommendations", those real-life-mathematics-based-toffee puzzles :P and very tough word-dictations :P are always close to my heart.

the 3 mistakes of my life

2008-10-24T10:40:00.000-07:00

Just finished savoring my second Chetan Bhagat's. 'the 3 mistakes of my life' is the story of a young guy with two close friends, his desire to be a successful businessman, his small indian-style love story, packed neatly against the backdrop of Ahmadabad. It revolves around his life and the externalities which 'affect' it big time - natural sabotage, communal violence and norms of the indian society.

I don't relish much of fiction per se, but sometimes it's a nice break. I do enjoy reading what Chetan Bhagat writes - casual, easy, fast-paced turn of events with intermittently embedded smart witty one-liners.

Here are some of the funny one-liners to give a glimpse of his style :
...
'This is a suggestion. Don't take it the wrong way. But do consider taking a bath', my wife said.
I looked at her.
'Just an option', she said.
I this she is overcautious sometimes. I don't bite back.
...
It looked like a marriage party where only priests were invited. Most of them carried some form of accessory like a trihsul or a rudraksha or a holy book.
Ish and I exchanged a what-are-we-doing-here glance.
Omi went to meet a group of two bald-whites, one grey-saffron and one bald-saffron. He touched their feet and everyone blessed him. Considering Omi met these kind of people often, he had one of the highest per-capita-blessings ratio in India.
...
She had a track pant on that I think she had been wearing since she was thirteen and a pink T-shirt that said 'fairy queen' or something. How can a grown-up woman wear something that says 'fairy queen'? How can anyone wear something that says 'fairy queen'?
...
There were many others. This is something inseparable to Chetan Bhagat's style. Overall, a fast-paced, funny, (minimal-junk but not no-junk) nice read, but its fiction after all. Fiction of the cheesy type - the Bollywood type? more so,the atrocious type? Enjoy the humor - thats what marks his style I would say.

In the valley

2008-08-22T02:36:00.000-07:00

Atop peppy pines, junipers and embracing grass-clad slopes,
Over chilled water springs and the beaming placid lake,
She flew in her dreams,
flew unto eternity, beyond those clouds shrouding the mountain peaks.

In sparkling waters, and on soft lavender blooms
In the green overgrowth on entwining trails around steadfast bens
She fluttered in her dreams,
fluttered blithe fully in the valley of beauty and bliss.

Silence whispered a sweet song,
When the moonlit valley cuddled her in its arms,
She smiled in her dreams,
with the twinkle in her eyes surmounting those of the diamonds in the sky.

Virgin sunshine and chirpy chirps,
Soft wet grass and morning bells,
Bubbly butterflies and the flora of spring,
She touched them all in her dreams.
She dreamed in the valley of beauty and bliss.

...

I spent two good days at the Vall d'Nuria. Nature does it for me. I like standing amidst tall high trees, so tall that they gracefully defy the famous saying "Sky's the limit". When you look up through the dense shroud of those leaves high above, you do but believe "N'ah, I don't see the limit!".

Song I am listening to : How Great Thou Art
We sang this song in our class assembly when I was in the eighth grade in high-school. The topic of our morning assembly presentation was Nature. Good Old days :). In spite of the disputatious stand I take on my confounded belief in the presence of "God", I like this hymn a lot.

An Evening @Jongleurs :D

2008-01-26T11:40:00.001-08:00

Quite an evening...yeah it was! A marvelous evening at Jongluers with four great stand-ups - Keith Fields, Glenn Wool, Micky Flanagan and Ben Norris at their Camden location, London. The UK is often considered the stand-up center of the world, and Jongleurs often the largest comedy club in the world. Thence, my first involvement with stand-up comedy had to be quite an affair.

A mildest recollection of that evening involuntarily brings a grin on my face :D. Keith was hilarious. His innovative style of combining props (and magic :P) with admirable way of penetrating the crowd in style was incomparable. Yeah right... alleluia, it was a miracle! :D

Micky Flanagan and Ben Norris were great too, though they made me realize that I surely have a problem with the British accent. :D A performer who deserves a special mention is the one who replaced Glenn Wool. The new performer was a New York based stand-up comedian and I laughed my heart out on but all his jokes.

In general, the experience was unforgettably entertaining. Jokes ranging from traffic, travel, sex (some quite explicit), weather reports :D, frisky talks between friends, and well, the list is too long. Do experience an evening with stand-ups, at least once in your lifetime if you can. It can be matter-of-factly amazing.

About me, yeah..sure, would love to jongleurize another evening any day! Do check out the hair bands with ever dangling antennas that we happily donned in the true spirit of Jongleurism that night :D

Dating a Graduate Student

2007-06-16T04:00:00.000-07:00

Depending on what your genre is, the title might arouse different reactions across the readers of my blog (if any :P). Do this and see where you land :

// Either the user is a grad or not a grad.
bool is_grad_student = get_user_input(is_grad_student);

// if is_grad_student, rest of the inputs are redundant, avoid sucking the user for more, assign default
bool have_known_any_grad = FALSE;
// assigning default values, may not hold true when is_grad_student is TRUE
bool did_like_him = FALSE ;

if (!is_grad_student) {
// user is not a grad student, get a feel of his tastes
have_known_any_grad = get_user_input(have_known_any_grad);

if (have_known_any_grad) {
// remember default = FALSE
did_like_him = get_user_input(did_like_him);
// TODO - put more cases here, this part is crucial
}
} // end of non-grad user inputs

switch (is_grad_student) {
case yes : Cool! Hey..what you say? we meet for a coffee or something to discuss issues more important than this just silly dating thing?
break;
case No : if (have_known_any_grad && did_like_him)
Fine! Go ahead..following post "might" interest you;
if (have_known_any_grad && !did_like_him)
Sucker! Yes thats what you are...Get lost!;
break;
}

Reached here? Nice to see you passed a crucial preliminary test. So what state of mind you are in right now?
1. ApPaLlEd (Oh damn this test! its so difficult to do it, who knows how easy will be to understand the post).
2. Wearing a tickling smile (hey I like the way you screen users)
3. I am Ok. (I dont understand why people tend to ramble so much before getting to the point!)
4. Ok!! (Holy Son of God! no more of your stupid ramifications of dumb cases, get down to the point or rather I will just exit now)

So, there you go, that's how difficult dating a grad is. Even a grad himself fears to date another of the same breed (i.e. grad). They will be all critical, contemplative, alert and methodical when you least want them to be. Some pretty day (like today here in barcelona), they will feel like -writing- about the Art Of Dating rather than -practising- it. Some gloomy day (like Mondays), they will be busy making plans for the week and promising not to repeat the same mistakes as last week, rather than sleeping till late morning to call it a long relaxing weekend...

And then when you are all rejoiced and wanting to party, they will be philosophical, acutely sagacious about their motive in life and blue about their past. Yes, my friend, dating a sane graduate student is not a piece of cake :-) For starters, I will give you some Don'ts, which are more crucial because even a single mistake can be a pure disaster.

1. Never ask for going out on a weekday. Though no day is perfect, but never ask him/ her out on the day of his/her weekly meeting with the advisor. That's the most jeopardous day. Fridays sound okay.
2. Never be impromptu when it comes to fixing a day for date. Do it well in advance, so the grad can plan his time accordingly.
3. Don't go to a awfully expensive place for a date. The less you make him pay, the happier he will be. A walk by the beach followed by a drink or two will be perfect!
4. There are two donts which should be a part of your "Bible for Dating Grads" (stolen from phd comics) PHD Comics: Grad student etiquette ...they indeed are the most important.
5. Don't screw your date by sounding unnecessarily geeky. A grad has an eye for a true geek.
6. Don't try too hard to give an impression that you are the perfect one! You shall be the sheer envy of the grad! Grads hate perfection. They will never dirty their hands with something that's already perfect. It is more important for a grad to see a clearcut scope / potential of making you the perfect one.
7. If your date (the grad) is down because of something (something = could be simply anything!), never get judgemental and extra-preachy. Grad hates it, its simply disgusting for him. It will rather be great if you could also make yourself feel bad about something really bad that happened to you in near or remote past, and dive into the sea of gloom and misery togehter with the grad.
8. If it doesn't work out, never forget to mention the possibility of a next date in future. No one other than a grad accords more to the gravity and meaning of "Future Work"!

The list of Don'ts is endless truly. I will add more as and when I have somthing urgently important for you to know. The problem of coming up with a formal complete solution to this problem of dating a grad student belongs to the class of NP Hard problems. Though do's aren't that important, but expect a list soon.

Happy Dating! Be Cautious...your date is a grad!

Disclaimer : Dont's are largely grad student specific. Never rely on anything published and/or certified anywhere in this world in this regard.period.

Rèquiem de Mozart

2007-03-18T06:25:00.000-07:00

This classical music concert (orchestra) was the first ever of my life. The works that formed a part of the impressive repertoire were compositions of Mozart and Vivaldi. W. A. Mozart (1756-1791) and Vivaldi (1678-1741) were two great European composers of their time.

The Orchestra was performed by “Filharmònica de Cambra de Pardubice” (in Basilica Santa Maria del Mar, Barcelona) , a group founded in 1969 in Czech Republic.

Those 80 odd minutes in the old Basilica of the city situated downtown were divine; immaculately serene, for one because of an inexplicable sensation of peace n composure that I experience when I am in a church, and secondly I just loved the compositions.

The compositions of Mozart, to me, were faster in rhythm and more intense; Requiem in D minor was the last work that Mozart did before his death on December 5, 1791. The Group played the same work in R minor. It is controversial as to how much of this composition was actually completed by Mozart. The Rèquiem is in fourteen movements, with the following structure:

Intriot (Requiem aeternam)
Kyrie
Sequence:
----- Dies irae
----- Tuba mirum
----- Rex tremendae
----- Recordare
----- Confutatis
----- Lacrimosa
Offertory:
----- Domine Jesu Christe
----- Hostias
----- Sanctus
---- Benedictus
----- Agnus Dei
----- Communion

An amazing experience! Looking forward to more such concerts.

Simply shore...

2006-10-12T07:23:00.000-07:00

It’s quite a question for me: Why can’t past be undone (not in deed but in its effect)? Each one of us has had some bad experiences in life, why is it so difficult to just come over them and live life to its fullest in the present? If it’s supposed to take just a little more will-power, why is it that most of us are not able to do it? Why the brain isn’t wired in such a way that you remember only the pleasant ordeals (damn it!:P)? I know I am asking too much. :-P Why cant everything be just as simple as the shore?

Looking at the white foamy waves hitting the shore incessantly, indomitably, today suddenly reminded me of these lines. I love being at the beach. My mind is so much at peace when I am at the shore. The wonderful sight of a lone sail boat slowly fading away off the horizon…waves hitting shore incessantly…coy clouds mollycoddling each other…gentle breeze refreshing you in and out…and as the sun recedes to its abode, the princess of night making its presence felt with the silver twinkling over the dark water. The sky sprinkling a continuum of shades dynamically to welcome Her Majesty, it’s just too heavenly. And that’s precisely when I re-iterate-“Life is beautiful”:-)

Current Mood: Pacified
Song I am listening to: Jewel Spirit –What’s simple is true

Einstein's Monsters (1987)

2006-09-03T04:09:00.000-07:00

Martin Amis skillfully brushes away the dust which had laid down shrouding the Nuclear Weapons Race, by the aid of a compilation of five short stories. A well-written set of views do make you indulge into
1) Thinkability – “Nuclear Weapons repel all thought, perhaps because they can end all thought.”…that makes one think, doesn’t it?
2) Reality – so grotesque which is!

“Language cannot live with this reality”-so true. So when you enter the world of nuclear weapons there are two possibilities – Nuclear Warfare or Nuclear Disarmament, both of which are difficult to imagine-the former due to its immense fatal repercussions and the latter because of its immense improbability. His distinct style of writing is unquestionably impressive. The story “Insight at Flame Lake” so uniquely uncovers the life of a young boy suffering with Schizophrenia. A probable future of humankind has been unveiled – and beneath the veil is laying a world so petrifying, dehumanized or rather inhabitable – a world inhabited by the Einstein’s Monsters.

“Events that we call “acts of God” – floods, earthquakes, eruptions – are flesh wounds compared to human act of nuclear was: a million Hiroshimas. Like God, nuclear weapons are free creations of the human mind. Unlike God, nuclear weapons are real. And they are here.”

“Indeed they are remarkable artifacts. They derive their power from an equation: when a pound of uranium-235 is fissioned, the liberated mass within its 1,132,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 atoms is multiplied by the speed of light squared – with the explosive force, that is to say, of 186,000 miles per second times 186,000 miles per second. Their size, their power, has no theoretical limit. They are biblical in their anger.”

This piece of literature/fiction is a masterpiece for sure. Another of his work “Times Arrow” , the autobiography of a doctor who helped torture Jews during the Holocaust, which was shortlisted for the 1991 Booker Prize, drew notice both for its unusual technique — time runs backwards during the entire novel, down to the dialogue initially being spoken backwards — as well as for its topic. I havent read Times Arrow but appears to be quite tempting :)

Quantum Physics et al

2006-08-26T01:52:00.000-07:00

If you have had a chance to chit chat wiht any physicist ever, then this is something that you would have already heard of. Quantum Physics, the physics of probability (really!?). It is sufficiently wierd, yet acceptable. Whenever I read anything even remotely based on Quantum Physics, I am more than overwhelmed by the explanations that Quantum physics provides as it infalllibly shakes my understanding.

If you do the mathematics using Quantum, you will be bound to conclude that moon (humongous large body - the star of the night since my childhood) has a non-zero probablity of going around and visiting other planets when you are not looking at it. Once you look at it, it pops into existence. This is what Quantum physics says, everything around you has a non-zero probability of not being there when you are not looking at it. But once you look at it, it pops up and says "Hey, look, u fool, I am real!". Only when it bangs its head against something real, it is real. wow! thats wierd!

Wondering about the heisenberg's uncertainity principle, have you ever also thought that how can the reaction of measurement be so instantaneous? A concept quiet out-of-the-box is Entanglement.Gee...two quantum particles can be so well-associated that knowledge about one is enough to measure the other.

Grass on the other side looks greener. Physics in its purist form, sometimes lures the hell out of me. I also want to see if Schrodinger's Cat is alive. So if you have some interesting reads related to Quantum physics, do pour them on here.

The Castells

2006-07-15T08:11:00.000-07:00

Castells is the catalonian word meaning Castles (human towers). I must say I was lucky enough to have got an opportunity to catch this excitement live.

I particularly was held in awe when I saw the needle formation. The highest that I saw was of height 9. It was just spectacular. Hope you can feel the excitement statically with these pictures.

Right Below : Needle Formation in progress (Other team). Notice the people in the middle, which will later be the part of the needle as the cocoon of the surrounding castellers sheds off later. Teamwork incarnated.

Left Above : The cocoon shedding off. Excitement building up. :-)

Right Above : The one of height 9 (attempt in progress, which was later successful). I have no words to describe how amazing it was. Building a real 9 storey high structure is an irrefutable achievement for any castellers team.

Had a good time on a otherwise lazy and hot sunday afternoon. Check out this link of the team Castellers de Barcelona.

Diane Arbus Revelations

2006-05-21T14:54:00.000-07:00

“Nothing is ever the same as they said it was.
It’s what I’ve never seen before that I recognize.”
-Arbus

About two months back, I had the opportunity to witness the legendary collection of Diane Arbus’ work. This exhibition catalogue has also been published as one of the four books of her work.

Some of the photographs were really amazing. Diane Arbus photographed a variety, but freaks are what she concentrated on. In the exhibition, I also got to read some of her hand scribbled thoughts in her personal diary/planner. It was perplexing to read how invincible she was for her passion. The boldness of her subject matter and photographic approach were recognised as revolutionary. Not only were displayed over 200 photographs (making it the most complete presentation of her work ever assembled), but also were there her cameras, contact sheets, letters, notebooks, and other writings...as well as books from her personal library.

“I want to photograph the considerable ceremonies of our present because we tend while living here and now to perceive only what is random and barren and formless about it. While we regret that the present is not like the past and despair of its ever becoming the future, its innumerable inscrutable habits lie in wait for their meaning…These are our symptoms and our monuments. I want simply to save them, for what is ceremonious and curious and commonplace will be legendary”
-Arbus

I was particularly shocked (a lil numb) when I read those few words from her diary when she tries to describe her hotel room where she was staying. The way she describes everything that is very much static and dumb around her to be so noisy and annoying for her; somehow those words made sense to me. The world around all of us is very much the same; but to reason out or accept why it appears vastly different to some people is intimidating.

Arbus was also attacked by critics and her contribution to art remains controversial. She committed suicide in 1971.

“A Photograph is a secret about a secret.
The more it tells you the less you know.”
-Arbus

Quotes from Diane Arbus: An Aperture Monograph

Introducing Banerjee

2006-04-29T14:31:00.000-07:00

I really relish the evening jogging, sometimes brisk walk when I am not well instead. Though I haven’t accommodated it permanently in my schedule, but whenever I go for it, I have a fresh feeling…freshness of being alive.

Spending time with self is probably the best gift that you can give yourself. And one important lesson that I always sincerely -recommended- myself to learn is that 'none other than yourself should be yours more than anybody else' (makes sense?). When you live for self, when you strive to make your self a better person, that’s when the true purpose of your existence can be realised. Sometimes, I think I have revelations… of what wrong I did on the day that was, of what I can do, and of what I should do. Sometimes, I make plans, motivate myself.

I believe that to synergise your different levels of existence - spiritual, physical, emotional and mental, you should spend time with yourself to make yourself more aware of what you really are. That -is- true if you want to believe it.

The most beautiful walk/jog is but on the full-moon night, when I am accompanied with the princess of the night with her blissful , calm and divine white light all the way playing hide and seek…hiding behind the trees, high buildings :-)

I feel different.

I feel I am not alone.

On a lighter note, see who I met today on my way. This is the one and only ...Banerjee (The name rings a bell? This is the only name I had for him as the algorithm that I implemented yesterday was the Banerjee Test for Data Dependence). So this justifies the title of my post. Doesn't it? :-) I love the way he shied away, on knowing that someone is going to capture him. God bless Banerjee [-o<. The picture quality isn't that good, I used Nokia 6600.

Love is...

2006-04-07T09:16:00.000-07:00

I am not sure if many people are aware of this beautiful strip (updated daily except one) - The Love is...on Comics Page.

I love these gifs and involuntarily check these daily every morning :) I think its just a perfect gift for your love to remind him/her that you are indebted. :D What came to me as even a sweeter surprise was to see the gifs in spanish as well. It a bliss to have the gifs befitting your mood on some days.

Have you sent your love this gif today? :P

Link to the Love is...strip.

Stop Cribbing...

2006-02-18T14:57:00.000-08:00

I wonder why some Indians here ensure that they always crib against India, now that they are away from the homeland. Almost any discussion that is taken up ends with a patent remark "In India, you cannot expect this!".The discussions varying from movies to politics, from literature to education et al.

If you have ever heard of this famous expression in Hindi "jungle mien mor nacha...kisi ne na dekha" But if nobody saw the peacock dancing, does it imply that the beautiful peacock doesn't dance? India is rich and diverse, full of opportunities and corruption, love and violence, and freedom and struggle. Its a hell, thanks to the irresponsible ingrates Mother India is nourishing. But its a heaven too, kudos to the people who want to make a difference.

I personally feel that India is struggling and is trying hard to cope up with all the problems...India has a chaotic system for democracy/administration/education/politics..but the beauty of it all is that -it works!- Because if there is a black sheep amongst us, there is a revolutionizer too!

Every nation has witnessed a vivid history...is marked today with dynamic levels of intrusion of technology/science/education...is at different stage of development...and is fighting against its respective odds. Its simply wild to think and compare society and cross cultures et al. , as wild as trying to find intersection of two subsets from disjoint sets.

I am sure there are numerous people striving for a better tomorrow for the country in face of NGOs/social reformers/politicians/teachers..., but they just don't get the limelight, thanks to the irresposible and highly commercialised media. But do you comprehend no message from the formation of a political party by IIT guys? Is cribbing about one's own country justified? Let me assert that I am not talking of adopting extreme aggressive nationalism which stands insignificant in wake of globalization. I am talking of arousing -the nationalism- that gives you a sense of oneness as a nation, a sense of Singular Identity, a sense of resposibility. The time calls for resposibility, responsibility on the part of every citizen of India and not sit back and crib!

Having an opinion, I take no authority to bar others from having a different one ;). I have the right to express mine but also the duty to respect others' :P ..Any takers?

Bingo!

2006-01-21T13:26:00.000-08:00

Well, I should have posted something here around 15 January 2006, the day which marked a month of my stay in Barcelona! :P

Apart from the teething problems, I think life here should be easy. The days are passing by without my knowledge...hectic week days, and a lil dull weekends at times. I am looking forward to making some gala time, memories that I can cherish all through. But a void in some form will still remain. And yes, travelling with the turk flight wasn't that bad an experience. I have received compensation for the luggage delay, even when it took me around 4 weeks to fax the required documents. I had been told a majority of airlines are a bit orthodox with the compensation stuff. I won't mind travelling again with the same flight even ;) (assuming that I get compensation again)

Right now, listening to Welcome to my Life - Simple Plan. This song has it...

Landed in Barcelona

2005-12-24T08:40:00.000-08:00

I landed at the Barcelona airport on 15 December 2005 thirty minutes past 1305 hrs (that´s because the flight was delayed).

I was in a mixed mood when I was carrying out the formalities at the airport...a lil thrilled for this new opportunity, a bit apprehensive for my check-in luggage...and at the same time home-sick already :P Its said that Only Change is permanent. But I must say that Only Change is also both bitter and sweet.

So, as I reached there to collect my check-in baggages, within 15 minutes of it all, I realised that both of my baggages have been misplaced. I filed a Luggage Irregularity Report after a lot of pains. I say `pains´because not many ppl could understand English. And I had trouble going to the concerned counter. People here are in awe of their native language Spanish. I found them inheretly friendly but they were of lil help as I speak no spanish. From here I proceeded towards the Sortida(`exit´ in spanish). I met my friend who had come to receive me and bursted into tears ( I am not sure but sometimes I cry because I want to :P)

By the way, the airline I was travelling with was Turkish Airways :P and this post is enough to warn the future passengers ;)