Non Resident Alien

LOST! What a disappointment!!

2010-05-27T19:14:00.000-04:00

Seriously! The quality of the show had been declining since the end of Season 4. I kept to it hoping there will be some twist to the story. But, the very first episode of Season 6 where the distinction was made between black and white, good and evil had me cringing. As the Season unfolded I could not help noticing some parallels with certain religious beliefs, and then it became a deja vu; another disaster like Battlestar Galactica. I think, story writers simply do not know how to end it and then take either a religious, environmental or social message direction towards the end. So, what was the story of the island before Oceanic 816? Just the glimpse we were shown! C'mon there needs to be more to the narrative right!! Tons and tons of loose ends and characters unexplained. What was Whitmore's role? It seemed like Daniel Faraday was all over the place, the past the present, the future. I do not buy the multiverse arguments either. So if all of it is possible, why the heck did we have the story of the crash survivors in the first place. They all exist differently in different dimensions.. so..? Its like an exercise in research, where you collect lots and lots of data, run a lot of analysis over an extended period of time (such as a PhD dissertation) and then at the end conclude that there is no definite answer to the research question, because all alternative solutions are correct. ok.. So what? I think I will give up on TV shows!! I do not see how Heroes is going to end either.. and given the trends in these other suspenseful scifi shows, there is no reason to believe that it will be any different!!

Moon outside my window

2009-10-05T06:09:00.000-04:00

I woke up to a round moon shining through my window. That has not happened since I left Pondicherry. I can already tell that the day is going to be beautiful. This Fall has been absolutely gorgeous. The weekend was incredible weather, and I could finally relax and stop stressing. I love Fall. I get to play my little game on the sidewalks where I try to walk by stepping only on fallen leaves. I love the crunch of the leaves, and try to find only leaves that crunch well. Its my leaf-crunching season. I remember last year around this time, leaves had pretty much turned colour and fallen in this area and Noah Gabe and I had to go up North into Pennsylvania to watch Fall colours. I will go next weekend to see the colours and hopefully Noah and Gabe will be around as well!!

Reflex Action

2009-09-26T18:31:00.000-04:00

Ok! How does it help to shut your eyes tight when the car in the next lane lands in a big puddle and splashes all the water on your front windshield? Well! That is exactly what I did this evening on my way back from the airport. It has been pouring all day, and this minivan in the lane next to me landed in a puddle at 35 mph; I was driving alongside, and all of the water splashed on to my windshield. It felt like someone just dumped a big bucket of water on my windshield. Visibility in that instant was zero, compounded by the fact that I shut my eyes tight to prevent the water getting into my eyes :D!! Of course, I opened my eyes right away, but the reaction was simple reflex!! I laugh about it now, but I am also wondering how you can prevent such reflexes. After all, I knew the water would not splash on me, cause I was inside the car with the windows rolled up, nice dry warm and cozy!! I guess its similar reflexes that make us instinctively duck even inside a car when we pass low clearance areas, especially under those hanging clearance indicators at parking garage entrances

Withdrawal Syndrome

2009-09-26T18:22:00.000-04:00

I just got back from taking a friend to the airport. The last few days I have been to the airport several times to see people off. Today was no different, the same quietness at home after having talked and laughed non-stop for 24 hours or more. This is the toughest part of life here, connections with people. I have found my life here too busy to make any new meaningful new relationships; while at the same time yearning for the companionship of my younger years. There is just no time outside of school and research to think of hanging out with friends. Every minute I spend away from my dissertation I feel guilty that I am wasting time, and it adds to stresses later. I guess that's the price we pay for ambition. It puts a lot of perspective on my claims that I am not ambitious. I think I lie to myself every time I say I am not.

A friend talked about having spent a third of his life in the US; and a third of your life seems like a lot. But, I have been studying Economics for over a third of my life and will continue to do so the rest of my life. Such magnitudes just put things in perspective. For now, I have no time to wallow in my withdrawal syndrome. I need to quickly snap out and get back to revising my paper so I can call it done sometime in the next two weeks. Thankfully, being practical is something I have learned along the way and I should be at work in the next hour or so. Until then, I shall give way to nostalgia and those silly memories

Too many flash backs!!

2009-09-21T09:45:00.000-04:00

It has been a week of flash-backs!! Another of my college friends was in town from India yesterday. He just surprised me out of the blue, just as I was getting ready to enjoy a lazy sunday afternoon basking in the glorious sunshine. Instead we spent the afternoon looking at old photographs from college and laughing at how silly we used be, and catching up on life in the last 8 years since I saw him last. We had always been in touch on and off, and he had mentioned a couple of months ago that he might be in the US sometime later this year. Little did I know then that the visit would be so soon, and to the DC metro area. It was a wonderful afternoon. I love visiting and visits from friends that have known me in my past life. This has indeed been a wonderful weekend, and I am glad I was at home to see email messages from friends in town.

Bridge Across Forever

2009-09-19T22:02:00.000-04:00

Lately, I have been reconnecting with friends from High School and College quite by chance. Last week, I found a high school friend online quite by chance and we spent a wonderful morning chatting (online) about old times. Today I met with another old friend quite by chance. Its always to fun to see old friends again, cause they see you and you them as you were when you first knew them. Sometimes the differences are not too many, but other times you are a different person now than you were in the past. Its always a laugh when you remember the yester-years. If not a laugh at least they bring back fond memories of a childhood long gone. Its funny how you forget so many things for a long time and a chance meeting reminds you of stuff tucked away somewhere in the deepest recesses of your mind. I guess it has something to do with associations in your head. On my way back from meeting my friend today I was reminded of this poem by Richard Bach.

Dawn’s peaceful, luminous blue Intensified
with the day As did happiness,
Blue … bluer the bluest
White puffs of delight,
Joyover flowing,
Until sunset Wrapped us in tender pink
And we fused in a Passionate magneta goodbye,
Earth-soul and Cosmic-soul
Bursting with beauty.

When night came,
A baby moonLaughed sideways in the dark
I laughed back And thought
Partway across the world
Your sky Is filled with this same Golden laughter,
And hoped that you, Twinkling Blue Eyes,
Saw and heard,
So that somehow we three
Were joined in our gladness,
Each in our own space,
Together apart
Distance meaningless.
And I slept In a world Full of smiles
wishing u a world full of smiles -

Two Movies:The Lives of Others; Pan's Labyrinth (Spoiler Alert)

2009-09-12T13:58:00.000-04:00

I have always loved European movies. They are significantly different from Hollywood. My bias could also be availability bias since I am usually exposed only to the award winning European movies and not the run-of-mill ones like I am with Hollywood. However, that being said, even the award winning Hollywood features do not capture depths of emotions the way European features do.

Das leben der Anderen (The lives of Others) is a beautiful story that shows the extremes of Socialism in East Germany. It is also the tragic story of a bureaucrat who has to spy into the life of a writer and ends up protecting him. To me the most powerful parts of the movie were the descriptions of scholastic conditions under Socialism. Artists did not have the freedom to choose to do what they wanted to do, instead they had to work on ideas and topics the administration liked, and heaven forbid anyone who chooses to assert their independence. The administration breaks their career and drives them even to suicide. This movie is also a curious case of movies mimicking reality. The life of Ulrich Muhe the Stasi officer in the movie was spent in East Germany and he died in 2007. What I loved about the movie was the characterization of great emotions without much fanfare and drama. The most powerful part of the movie for me was the last scene where Muhe buys the book about him and tells the cashier "No! It is for me". That scene brought tears to my eyes. It was such a loaded sentence, filled with dramatic irony. What a beautiful movie. Gave me new perspectives on life under socialism, and the depths of human emotion and character. The casting was superb and it deserved the Oscar win. The Lives of Others: Quiet, deep and emotional.

The other foreign movie nominated in the same year and same category is El Laberinto del Fauno or Pan's Labyrinth in English. A completely different storyline. This is a wonderful fantastical tale of the war from the eyes of a child. The movie opens with a gruesome scene where you see a mortally wounded girl rasping for breath. The rest of the story moves back in time and is woven as fantasy interspersed with reality. Is the fantasy Ofelia's escape from the reality of her stepfather and the horrors of war? That just seems too obvious. There is a deeper meaning I want to read here, but as a simple fantastical tale it is very poignant. The fairy is not the usual disney fairy, but something that looks like a grasshopper and a scary creature. The same is true of the faun, not the friendly Mr.Tumnus of Narnia, but someone who seems much more scheming and scary looking. You keep wanting to warn Ofelia not to trust him, while at the same time questioning your own judgement. What a fantastic story of bravery and innocence!! I loved this fantasy tale and it gave a new meaning to fantasy outside of the Disney culture. Its not all nice and hunky-dory. Fantasy can be as gory as reality, and that is the lesson I learned from this movie. Wonderful movie!! I will see it again.

Little Devil's Stairs

2009-09-06T15:55:00.002-04:00

All summer my hiking goal has been Little Devil's Stairs at the Shenandoah. I have been working my way upto it the past few weeks and yesterday was my moment of triumph. I finally did it. In fact I did even better. Instead of doing the usual Keyser Run Fire road circuit, I did the longer circuit through Pole link, Piney Branch Trail, Hull School to Keyser Run, and Little Devil's Stairs was the last 2.4 miles of my 10-11 mile hike. Needless to say, I was pretty tired by the time I got to the Little Devil's stairs trail head. However, little (all pun intended) did I know what was awaiting me. There were at least two places where the trail went absolutely vertical and I had to put my hiking stick down and climb up using my arms. It was incredible. The trail was pretty steep and pretty rocky most of the way. It climbed 1200 feet elevation within one mile. On the whole, it was a wonderful hike yesterday. I started at 2900 feet, went down to 1400 ft, and climbed all the way back up. Piney Branch was as beautiful as the last time. I took my lunch break at the second river crossing before hitting Hull School trail, and enjoyed the company of several spiders and small insects during the break. However, it got hot towards the end of my hike. It could have just been me, cause I was burning up a lot of calories, but I do think it was the weather as well. This is despite the fact that I started early. I hit the trail head at 9:15 and was done by 3pm. The longest and most strenuous part of the hike was obviously Little Devil's Stairs. There's a small stretch on Hull School (maybe a mile) which gains about 400-500 feet elevation, but the rest of it besides Little Devil's Stairs was mostly downhill. I would not recommend going down on Little Devil's stairs. I do not like going down-hill on rocky surfaces; you keep stubbing your toes (unless you have great hiking boots). It is certainly strenuous, but doable. I am glad I saved it for now when I am more in shape than I was at the beginning of summer.

Main Relay

2009-09-02T06:00:00.002-04:00

I have never regretted my mechanical bent. After weeks of suffering from no starts on hot days I was forced to do something about it. My car is unique. Most old cars have a problem starting on cold days, mine refused to start on hot days. The problem is simple enough. The component called Main Relay has several soldered connections. These soldered areas develop cracks and that prevent it from conducting a charge when it is too hot. I am yet to figure out why heat has this effect on it. I have known this problem for a few weeks now. I would make a quick stop at the drug store or gas station and my dear car would refuse to start after. The first time this happened, I thought my $300 investment had run its last mile. However, I did go online and find out what was wrong, and there were enough forums that discussed the Main Relay problem with older Hondas. So, I kept track of when my car refused to start and diagnosed my problem as the Main Relay. Although this diagnosis was made in mid May, I have been too busy (think not having time to talk to folks back home) to do anything about it. Finally this last saturday my Main Relay gave out completely at a gas station forcing me to fix it right away. The fix was simple enough if you have hands the size of a small child and the power of gigantor and a muscle and bone density of elastigirl. The Honda Main Relay is at an impossible location and took me forever to get it out in the first place. Long story short, 2 tow trucks, 1 main relay, greasy hands, cricked back and neck and 72 hours later my Main Relay is fixed. Ladies and Gentleman I present to you Your's Truly, who lives up to the family tradition of being a Petrolhead!!

Inglourious Basterds (Spoiler Alert)

2009-08-25T05:33:00.005-04:00

I ever there has been a charmer on screen it is Christoph Waltz, as SS Col. Hans Landa. How can one not be charmed by him? The smooth talking, fluent in French, German, Italian and English (who knows what other), cool-headed yet cunning Col. in Hitler's army. Now I do not know what part of Tarantino's new movie is based on true events, but the tale he spins is gory and funny at the same time (I do not mean to undermine the seriousness of the plot). In classic Tarantino style there are multiple plot lines that progress simultaneously and we are left tethering at the edge of our seats towards the end wondering how it is going to end. There are so many unexpected turns in the story that you quit predicting in your mind how the plot will progress next. To me Christoph Waltz was the show stealer. Brad Pitt aka Aldo the Apache, with his thick accent is hard to follow sometimes (for one unused to such accents like myself), but renders a good role. It was good to see non-American talent on a blockbuster such as this for a change. Melanie Laurent as Shosanna and Diane Kruger as Bridget von Hammersmark are stunning both to look at and in character. Daniel Bruhl as Zoller is eye-candy of sorts if you can peel your eyes away from the two ladies and Waltz. As usual Tarantino does not disappoint. Two thumbs up. I am going back to see it again. Leave the kids at home. If you have a weak stomach for blood on the screen (there's plenty of it) stay at home.

New York!! New York!!

2009-08-09T08:46:00.002-04:00

Last week I was at Irvington-on-Hudson, a NYC suburb, at the FEE campus, for a week long seminar on Advanced Austrian Economics. We had one afternoon off and decided to go into the city. NYC is one city I have been terrified of visiting, and it was comforting to go with a couple of others who were also visiting the city for the first time, one other who was raised in the city. We took the commuter train into Grand Central and walked up to the Empire State Building, waited in line for about an hour and a half to the top, went around gawking at the city swathed in a setting sun like other tourists around us. Then we walked up to Times Square, and by the time we reached TS we were all too tired to do anything more; so we just hung around TS for half an hour and then walked back to Grand Central to commute back to FEE. It was not bells and whistles but it was at least a non-terrifying trip and I am glad I had company.

Sham at Shenandoah!!

2009-08-01T20:13:00.006-04:00

What a day!! First, I got up late, so could not leave as early as I'd like to go to Shenandoah, so by the time I reached the Ranger Station it was almost 10am, which meant I could not hit the trail for another hour at least. So instead of the usual 12-14 mile minimum hike, I ended up choosing a much simpler 9.5 mile circuit from Matthew's Arm through Traces Trail, Overall Run, and Beech Ridge back to my car. I was a little busy the last couple of weekends and could not go, so I was really looking forward to hiking today. The trail was beautiful, and I had packed a good supply of water and food, but I ended up taking 6 hours to do this short hike which was a huge disappointment. Besides, I took too many breaks, was tired very soon, and all this despite my beautiful new hiking shoes which felt really good on the trail today. I do not know if my lethargy was weather induced, cause it was a pretty humid day today. Well! Like Ranger Jay likes to remind me, no excuses! You either do the trail or you do not!! Hopefully next weekend will be a better hike than today.

Mist and Rain in the Mountains

2009-07-21T06:56:00.007-04:00

After my last botched attempt at Piney Branch and Thornton River trails, I was hopeful I would have better luck this time, since I was better prepared for the terrain and know the trails a little better now. So I decided to do the 12-14 mile loop from Hogback overlook, through Sugarloaf, Piney Branch, Hull School, Thornton River and over to AT going North back to my car. I was prepared this time. Had enough carbs and water in my backpack, knew the elevation gains and had hiked part of the trail before, so knew what to expect. I also planned it in such a way that I did the downhill on the AT between the moderate elevation gain of Thornton River and the final push on the AT after Rattlesnake Overlook where the elevation gain is quick and pretty high. The reason I failed at my last attempt was cause I did not have adequate water and body fuel (aka carbs) in my backpack, and took a wrong turn and ended up on a different trail. So, this time was doubly careful that all should go well for me. I was prepared right, nothing should have gone wrong, right!! Doubly wrong!! The one factor I forgot this time was mother nature herself. Goes to show, how after all meticulous planning we can never be sure of the outcome.

So, I was about 2/3 of my way into the hike. Did good timing. Was almost at the AT and noticed dark clouds in the horizon. I had been hearing the rumble of thunder for about an hour, but thought I might be able to beat it since it was still pretty sunny. Little did I know that my plains knowledge of weather serves no useful purpose on the mountains. I looked around and saw the clouds moving away from me in the direction opposite to my hike, so was pretty sure I could at least make it to Elkwallow where I could take shelter if it rained. Sure enough it started pouring by the time I reached the AT. I still had another 3 miles to Elkwallow, and then another 3 miles on from there to the end of my hike. I had no rain gear was wearing my cotton shirt and socks and had no clue if my $30 hiking shoes were water-proof. Initially I thought I would take shelter; however it took less than a minute to realise that I was going to get wet no matter what, so I decided to just hike it in the rain. It was one of the most beautiful experiences of my life, although I was soaked and shrunk a little bit. The most disapponting part was finding out that my hiking boots were not water-proof and were a soggy mess by the time I reached Elkwallow. The rain lasted just 20 minutes, but it did its mischief. I was not sure I could complete my hike as planned. I almost asked a lady to give me a ride back to my car, but then decided to hike another mile and decide at Rattlesnake overlook, cause that is where the trail became really steep. I managed to reach Rattlesnake in one piece but was sure I could go no further and decided to hike the last mile along Skyline Drive to get to my car. In some ways I am glad I did that because it gave me some of the most beautiful views of the mountains around me shrouded in mist after the rain. Driving back on Skyline Drive was wonderful, as the elevation dropped off, the mountains were alternately misty and clear and a pleasure to drive through. I have always loved the rain, but rain in the mountains is an entirely different and even more beautiful experience.

The wait for Harry Potter 6 is over (Spoiler Alert)

2009-07-15T21:12:00.003-04:00

and I can't say I am not a little disappointed. It seems like JKR washed her hands off this movie. There were several parts of the movie totally not in the book, including the first scene of the movie where HP shows interest in a muggle girl. C'mon!! Please keep the integrity of the story. As an independent movie The Half Blood Prince lacked even a basic plot. The viewer is left bewildered as to what is going on on the silver screen. For an action packed book, the movie was a big disappointment to me, especially since the trailers lead to such anticipation. I found the editing sorely lacking in quality. Reminded me of the days I worked for the radio and tried editing my first feature and kept getting these horrible fade outs. Only here the sequences seemed like a jigsaw puzzle that had to be put together in order by the audience. I was horrified that the Burrow was burned down in a by-line that forms no part of the original story. Luna Lovegood seemed like an after-thought in the movie and had no part to play. First off she is shown as peddling the Quibbler on the Hogwarts express, and secondly, her Lion's Head hat at the Quidditch match was in-animate. Did they not read the book at all? Where was the story of the Gaunts so crucial to the story? Where was the quick summary of Tom Riddle's life within and after Hogwarts? Who were they pandering to showing the movie as predominantly a bunch of love stories of the students? I agree that was part of the story, but that is not the crux of the story.

As usual I was very disappointed in the characterization of Dumbledore by Michael Gambon. Jim Broadbent was ok as Professor Slughorn although I feel like he could have brought more to the character. Tom Felton has really grown into a strapping young man and his performance as Draco Malfoy was remarkable in this movie. Helena Bonham Carter as Bellatrix Lestrange has given a truly good performance. Alan Rickman of course as Snape was his usual reticent self and as impressive as always. Hero-Fiennes Tiffin who plays Tom Riddle age 11 is a rising star. He is truly talented. He brings the cruelty of the young Tom to life with his eyes, but there was nothing more in the movie besides what I had seen of him in the trailer. Frank Dillane as Tom aged 16 was another remarkable performance in the movie. Besides them except for Danny, Rupert and Emma no one else really had a role in this movie which seemed like a last minute hocus pocus version of the original story. As a die hard Harry Potter fan, I am truly disappointed. I am horrified that they changed the story in so many important places. They kept us waiting a whole year for this? Huge Disappointment, and not worth the $11 at the theatre. The special effects were not even that great, and to think I contemplated seeing it at the IMAX. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, both thumbs down in my review. Stay away if you are a true Harry Potter fan and avoid a giant disappointment.

A sea of giant Broccoli

2009-07-05T09:13:00.005-04:00

I was hiking in the Shenandoah yesterday, and part of my hike took me through this clearing on top of a small mountain. I took a break at the clearing and looked around to face a sea of giant broccoli all around me. I was about 2000 ft high and in front of me was this beautiful valley filled with tree tops. I could not make much else but that it looked like broccoli all around me. It is ironic cause broccoli is my least favourite vegetable and this was a breathtaking sight. Yesterday, I parked at Elkwallow, hiked down Jeremy run, up Neighbour mountain, met the AT going North, and hiked down to my car. Neighbour mountain was pretty challenging. I forgot to ask the Ranger what the elevation gain was and ended up going up about 2000 ft. This has been one of the most challenging and beautiful hikes this summer. Jeremy Run was fantastic. I crossed the stream 10 times (yea I counted). It was a pleasure to look forward to these stream crossings. Most of Jeremy Run is an easy hike. Neighbour mountain is moderate with quick elevation gain. AT going North to Elkwallow is all downhill and is a good tail-end of the hike. Next time I would like to do the Knob mountain trail which is parallel to Jeremy Run but with no stream and much elevation.

Pehla Nasha

2009-06-19T12:43:00.003-04:00

One of my all-time favourite songs from the movie Jo Jita Wohi Sikandar!! I found the video to this song on youtube when I was looking for something else. It was the first full Indian movie song to be shot in slow-motion. To me this song never gets old or boring. One of those songs you can have on repeat play and listen to all day long. In fact, back in the day, I recorded a 90 minute cassette back to back with just this song, so that I did not have to rewind to listen to the song. I also found the meaning of the word Khumaar (Pehla Nasha, Pehla Khumaar). It means intoxication, and its so apt in this song. Takes me back to high school when the movie was released and the song became an instant hit. I think I even learned to play the intro piano piece at one point. Enjoy the video here!!

For my American friends, its a song about first infatuation!!

Appalachian Trail Fever

2009-06-15T07:49:00.007-04:00

Yesterday, I went to Shenandoah National Park. Its about 55 miles from here and has over 500 miles of hiking trails for every level of hiker. Yesterday was supposed to be a scouting mission, to just get a feel for the place and the trails, and I had planned to start chipping away at the close-to-home stretch of the Appalachian Trail beginning next weekend. However, I ended up starting on the AT and hiking about 6 miles of it going south. This is how it happened: I stopped at the Visitor centre to get trail maps and suggestions. The Ranger asked me what I was comfortable with. I told him that I would like a trail between easy and moderate and that I could do 9-10 miles. He suggested that I start at Jenkins Gap, take the AT South for about 5.6 miles, switch to Bluff trail 4.1 miles, then to Mt.Marshall, 3.5 miles, which would bring me back in a circuit to my car. He said it was a good 13 miles, with some elevation. He showed me the contour maps, and I set off with this information in my head. The AT is simply wonderful. It is a well maintained trail, and I had some wonderful views from the top (sorry no pictures). I went up about 1100 feet on the AT. I started at an elevation of 2355 ft, went up to 3368 ft on Mt.Marshall, went down to about 1000 ft, and back up to 2355 ft. Bluff Trail was my least favourite, it was all rocky and I kept stubbing my toe going downhill. There were very few flat stretches and it was constant downhill. It was too rocky for me. Mt.Marshall took me back up the hill towards Jenkins. That was a pleasant trail. I crossed several streams and it was beautiful going up hill with the sun behind me. On the whole, I did 0.28% of the AT, and plan to go back again next weekend to do a little bit more of the AT and the Shenandoah. I am certainly suffering from the AT fever. I do want to complete the whole 2000+ miles in sections. Maybe by the end of summer I will be fit enough to do the Devil's Stairs.

A milestone!!

2009-06-13T13:08:00.005-04:00

Today, I ran my first mile in almost 15 years. Did take two weeks of training (walking and hiking) to get to this point. Did the first two reps as an interval, walk 2 minutes, run 2 minutes. I had planned just to do different reps for the whole course of 5 miles, but when I started the third interval, I just kept on going after the 2 minutes were up and did not feel like stopping to walk. Luckily it was pretty much flat and down hill, so I could do it without my lungs bursting. Between running the mile and walking the rest of the trail I did it in just about an hour. Not that great, but it is a significant achievement for me!! Plan to follow up with more mile runs this week.

Almost done..

2009-06-11T08:32:00.002-04:00

Last saturday I went back to Prince William Forest park and completed the South Valley Trail, High Meadows Trail, and Oak Ridge Trail. South Valley was spectacular. I loved every moment of it. This time around, I barely met anyone until almost the end of the trail which was close to some camp sites. I saw a coupla guys fishing and a coupla families out for a small hike. But other than that it was the trail, the creek, and the wind in the leaves for company. It was an incredible day. Unlike last week, this week I was prepared for a four hour hike, so I had plenty of water, peanuts with me and a nice pasta lunch waiting for me in the car. Now I only have to complete the North Valley and some of the smaller trails and I would have completed all the trails at the Park. My brother thought it was funny that I drove 30 miles one way to hike about 10. But I think it is totally worth it.

The next hike would be the Shennendoah which is also not too far. I might probably even go camping there. Hopefully by the end of summer I would have had a chance to explore some of the Appalachian trails. I am enjoying summer here. Hopefully, between all this fun I am having I will also get some work done.

UP!! Delightful Comedy: Spoiler Alert

2009-06-06T22:47:00.004-04:00

I saw UP today and it was incredible. As is usual with PIXAR it was incredibly well animated. The story line was just wonderful. In the first 20 minutes or so of the movie, I was beginning to feel funny that a Disney movie had so much sadness in it. I kept waiting for the sequence of scenes to be a nightmare from which our hero wakes up. But, he did not, cause it was real. Just as I was beginning to feel a little let-down, the action started and what a glorious flight of fancy it was!! I was up there with Carl and Ellie, flying over the clouds. PIXAR retains its element of surprise and novelty with movies. The characters were delightful to watch on screen and the animation is surpassed only by Monsters Inc. I plan to go again and watch it in 3D. 3D seems to be the sudden craze this Summer. Two thumbs UP!! Go ride the balloons on a fascinating journey through the clouds, and let your kids run amok as well!!

Night At the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

2009-06-01T18:41:00.003-04:00

Brian and Ali spontaneously planned to go see the movie and I went with them. It was good to hang out with them after a long time. I can't even remember the last movie the three of us saw together, or the last time we hung out together. It was a hilarious experience, complete with Ali mistaking a Psychedelic Jawbreaker for a gumball. Anyway, the movie was a riot. Compared to the first movie the museum characters had less of a role in this movie. It was more about the romance between Larry Daley and Amelia Earhart. There were some dull moments I agree, but there was enough comedy to keep us laughing through most of the movie. I heard others tell me that they did not like the movie. I disagree with them, however, that being said, I do not think I would pay $11 again to see it in the theatre. Although you may be able to convince me to go see it at the IMax. Hank Azaria was great as Kahmunrah, especially with the lisp. Al Capone was a good touch to the story. I thought the Einsteins would be funnier than they turned out to be. On the whole, take your kids and have a blast. You can watch it again when it comes out on DVD.

Prince William Forest Park

2009-05-30T22:07:00.005-04:00

I went hiking at the Prince William Forest Park today. Its an hour's drive from Fairfax and a beautiful place to spend the day. There are multiple trails with varying levels of difficulty. I picked one of the longest trails, the South Valley Trail (8.7 miles) which wound alongside the South Fork Quantico Creek. Of course, I knew I could not go all the way on the trail and get back to my car in good shape, so I mixed up the hike with other trails and did a smaller loop. It was still a good four hour hike, and I probably covered 8 miles anyway and I loved every moment of it. It was a pleasant day and most of the trail was in the shade so I did not feel the heat. I somehow managed to startle a deer which bounded right in front me across the trail. I was also accosted by an Eastern Box Turtle. So, I stopped and let him cross the trail, which took him about 3 minutes, especially since he wanted to stop and investigate everything along the crossing. It was a fun hike and I plan to go there again for a longer hike and complete the South Valley trail.

Outsourced: Spoiler Alert

2009-05-27T21:29:00.003-04:00

Once in a while there comes a movie that captures your attention through and through. Outsourced would make top of the list in this category. It is a romantic comedy about a young American who goes to India to train call-centre employees and his own replacement. I am not American, but I can relate to every single experience he goes through, beginning with the crowds in Mumbai, the interrogation by the lady who hosts him, down to the way businesses are run in India. Him falling for the best employee was cliched and expected, but other than that the movie was a laughter riot. It is as real about Indian conditions as Flavors was about Indians in America. Not a dull moment in the movie and there is the required song and dance sequence to keep us on our toes. The acting meets and exceeds expectations. Josh Hamilton was the best person for the role of Todd (aggravatingly pronounced Toad by the Indians) Ayesha Dharker was barely recognizable in her role as the top employee Asha. I would have preferred a less romantic relationship between the two, but it is what it is. However, the course of the relationship, secretive, no Public Display of Affection etc is so true about romantic relationships in India. Outsourced, is a warm, funny comedy which will keep you rolling on floor laughing. You need to know only about the Indian or the American way of life. If you know both, then you will appreciate both sides of the story much better. Its slightly reminiscent of Bollywood Calling, another wonderful movie about an American in India. I will see it again and enjoy every joke as if it was my first time seeing the movie. Hilarious comedy, two thumbs up!!

Terminator Salvation: Needs Salvage!! Spoiler Alert

2009-05-21T22:33:00.004-04:00

My roomie and his buddies live life on the edge. I saw two movies with them and both times we were late, missed the previews and half of the opening credits. However, the late entrance was just the beginning of a disastrous hour and a half at Terminator Salvation.. Yawn! Is it over yet? The CGI was fake, Arnold was fake and the story-line was mushy enough to be a Bollywood movie, especially with dialogues like "I have been around so man bad men", "Your heart beats so real", "Everyone deserves a second chance", "Here take my heart". Puhleez! I know the original Terminator was bleh.. but at least update the dialogues for the 21st century!! I had to suppress my gag reflexes everytime there was mushy dialogue. Felt like I was watching a B grade Hindi movie instead of a Hollywood production, complete with mute gal, hero in distress, a bad guy turns good cause he listens to his heart, and ultimately sacrifices himself to keep the good guy alive. Give me a break, no just some HEAD-ON! The design of the robots is reminiscent of Transformers. Motorcycles and airplanes breaking away from the main pod. Isn't there any more imagination to this story? The CG effects looked obviously bad CG and fell flat. I could almost see the green screen in the background. Sam Worthington did a good job in his role, although the dialogues he had to recite. urgh!! Christian Bale was unremarkable and unmemorable. Terminator Salvation is in serious need of some salvation. I think it all comes down to bad direction. C'mon MCG stop making bad movies. You turn even good actors horrible on-screen. None of the actors, not even Bale had a screen presence. They were just there as if they were automatons with no acting skills or experience. If nothing else, I hoped to enjoy the sound track! There was very little of the Theme music in the movie and.. Oh! What's the point! Just wait for the movie on DVD or University Theatre. Not worth the $11, and running red lights to catch the start.

A little over 100 years of Aviation

2009-05-17T21:01:00.009-04:00

The Wright Brothers took-off for the first time in 1903. Today, I saw a climactic performance by the US Air Force Thunderbirds at the Andrews Air Force Base Open House. What amazing progress in 100 years of Aviation. Back in 1903 who would have even imagined a sleek machine such as the Thunderbird!! It was sheer happiness to see them soar into the sky and perform tricks which seemed to defy the laws of physics. If you want to be a Pilot there is no better than a Fighter Pilot. A commercial plane would just not cut it.

Although the Thunderbirds stole the thunder (no pun intended), the smaller planes, especially the GEICO Skytypers (restored WWII planes) and the Oracle bi-plane did gravity defying tricks as well. I was especially amazed to see a helicopter do a full somersault and fly upside-down. I did not know helicopters were capable of going upside down.

The F-18 and F-22 stunts were truly captivating, especially the vertical nose-dives. My ears are still ringing from the boom of all those jet engines flying past me just metres away from the ground.

The grand finale was of course the Thunderbirds. They flew flawless formation as if it was one machine instead of four, while two others flew almost right into each other just to swerve in the same direction at the last minute. Of course, they did not collide, but my heart skipped a beat every time they pulled that stunt. Then when the formation was flying in the direction opposite of the runway and all heads were turned away, one plane swooshed right past us from behind very low giving us all a fright. It is a day to be remembered in my memory for a long long time. I am running out of adjectives to describe how wonderful the Air Show was today.

Unfortunately, I did not take my new camera which is practically useless and since my nice camera is broken we have to live just with my memories for now.

Two Movies: Wolverine and Angels and Demons: Spoiler Alert

2009-05-16T01:53:00.008-04:00

It has been a very long time since I saw back to back movies. I think it is a fitting end to the semester. I saw Wolverine first with Brian and then Angels and Demons with my roomie and his friends later at the same theatre. Since the movies were back to back this review is also back to back.

Wolverine was ok in my opinion. I would not rate it great. Hugh did a predictable performance. Liev on the other hand had a wonderful screen presence. He seems to have a penchant for the "other brother", remember Zus Bielski from Defiance. That was captivating performance as well, except that Daniel Craig outperformed everyone else in that movie. None of the other characters were even memorable in Wolverine. The first half of the movie was very slow, slow enough that I could text on my cell phone and not miss anything on screen. If this part of the story was never revealed in the comic then the movie does a poor job keeping my attention. I thought it was pretty lame that Wolverine lost his memory in the end. Colonel Stryker being commanded to walk until his feet bleed is reminiscent of the part of the story in Brisingr when Eragon commands Sloan to walk to Ellesmera after Eragon learns his true name. It was just ok and very predictable. C'mon who would have suspected that Sabretooth was acting alone. It was not even a great moment of dramatic irony. I would say, wait till the DVD release, not worth the $$ in the theatre. If you want to go, take a friend along who can be there for moral support through the first half of the movie

Angels and Demons was the better movie of the evening. In fact it was better than the Da Vinci Code. It was quite fast paced and well adpated. There was not a dull moment in the movie and I loved the several twists and turns in the plot. Towards the end, at one point, I thought it was becoming very Bollywood style, when Ewan McGregor gets into the helicopter and flies up, and I almost wrote the movie off at that point. However, as the plot unfolded to a beautiful climax I was pleasantly surprised and happy that the storyline kept its integrity. The casting for this movie was superb. No one else could have done justice to Camerlengo Patrick's character than McGregor. Ewan has charmed us as the crooning writer in Moulin Rouge and the confused Ed Bloom in Big Fish. I think his performance was superb as the Camerlengo. Tom Hanks' performance was better in this movie than in the Davinci code. Nikolaj was the perfect Assassin. I have not read the book, but the movie was good. Two thumbs up.

The Mises Mobile

2009-05-13T07:13:00.004-04:00

Tyler Watts is in possession of a car with historical significance. He bought it on ebay and towed it to Fairfax in January this year. Legend has it that this is the same car that Alfred Schutz drove up in to pick up von Mises when he landed at the docks of New York in 1940. Tyler has been fixing it all semester. The mechanical stuff has been taken care of, and only the cosmetic details remain. I have helped with the fixing up a little bit. I helped bleed the brakes, take the window panes out, and just odds jobs here and there. Last evening, the two of us gave the car its first coat of paint and boy does it shine!! It is an exact shade of Hunter Green and looks great. There's still a bit of work before it becomes perfect again. I shall miss the Mises mobile which even as we speak is on its way to Michigan to join the Watts family.

July 17 2009

2009-05-10T10:25:00.003-04:00

I cannot wait for the next Harry Potter movie. The wait is too long!!! Here is the latest trailer. Embedding is disabled, so please click on the link to watch it on youtube. Notice the updated original score. Promises to be the best HP movie made yet!! Boy! How the kids have grown since the Sorcerer's Stone!!

Star Trek Movie Spoiler Alert

2009-05-10T08:57:00.005-04:00

Brian and I saw the Star Trek movie on Thursday and I am ready to see it again. For those of us who grew up watching The Original Series (TOS) this is a treat. Chris Pine is certainly eye-candy, and boy he can act as well. He does a great impression of Shatner from TOS. I was particularly impressed with the Starship Enterprise design that has been updated for this century. Karl Urban does justice to the role of Dr.McCoy, and to me the wonderful surprise was Leonard Nimoy as Spock Prime. What a treat!! There was never a dull moment in the movie. Even if you have never seen Star Trek before, this is a great stand alone Sci-fi movie, except that you would not understand why the crowd applauded when Leonard Nimoy made a funny hand gesture and said "Live Long and Prosper". The visual effects were superb and the original score of course is familiar to all of us Trekkies!! Wonderful movie, two thumbs up!! Here is the trailer. Enjoy! I plan to see it again with other friends later this week

The current Recession in Pictures

2009-05-09T20:26:00.005-04:00

Anyone who knows me here in the US knows that I derive some kind of unadmitted utility out of buying and selling used cars. Its never intentional, but somehow I have managed to buy and sell at least 4 cars in this country till now.

Currently, I am on car number five. This car is also the oldest car I have owned, and I am proud to own it. My new car represents the current recessions nicely in pictures. During prosperous times, cars were sleeker, so were waist lines. The first impact of the recession is on the model of car in the picture. Hopefully waistlines will shrink as well with some belt-tightening during this recession. However, I must say, grad school is never sympathetic to waist lines and I am but a poor, struggling, starry-eyed grad student.

End of another Semester

2009-05-06T18:49:00.003-04:00

This semester has flown past me in a blur. It seems like it started just yesterday and now its gone. I gave my Micro class their exam. Had to report the grades in 48 hours. I was disappointed with the class performance, especially since I put so much into that class. Monday, my development class will turn in their essays. With all this hanging around me, I also need to move and that is not something I am frustrated with.

Depression in Fairfax!!

2009-05-05T06:06:00.002-04:00

Since July 2006, this is the first time I am experiencing incessant downpour in Fairfax. Its a pity I have been too busy to enjoy the rain. Most people think this is yucky weather, I enjoy it!! If only I had time to sit by a nice window reading with chai and pakode, or be able to walk around enjoying the chill of the rain. Reminds me of the June tropical depressions back home when it rains 2-3 days continuously without respite. Virginia is beautiful. It has lush green plants and trees that simply sparkle and shine and become greener after the rains. This weather is making me homesick, not because it feels gloomy, but because its so much like a tropical depression back home!!

Moving up in Life, nomad style!!

2009-05-02T08:27:00.006-04:00

I have been a nomad for most of 2009 till now. I had to move out of campus due to academic commitments in February, and less than three months since I have moved again cause the house I moved into in February is on sale. My current apartment is also temporary, and I will be here only till end July. I was grateful to have Tyler and Nathan help me move last weekend. My current apartment is on the 4th floor and Nathan generously agreed to hold on to my book boxes until my next move in August. I guess my recent move is an example of upward mobility in my life. I moved from a basement apartment to the 4th floor. :) I also have a car now since this place is about 7 miles from the Fairfax campus and does not have a dedicated bus service. Hopefully my next move will be my last until I graduate in a year.

Goodbye Filmore

2009-04-16T18:15:00.003-04:00

Filmore my dear Goldfish found a new home today. The past few weeks I realized that I have been unable to care for him at all. I have had no time to clean his tank and no time to spend with him or even be able to feed him on time. He was also too big for the little 5 gallon tank he was in. In stead of subjecting him to more humiliating experiences with me, I decided to give him away to a nice gentleman who owns 15 tanks and has a pond where Filmore will live with other friends like himself. I am sad to see him go, but am happy that he will have a better life at a better home. Goodbye Filmore!! Have a happy life.

Being politely booted out!!

2009-04-05T08:49:00.004-04:00

Sigh!! My landlord is selling the house and I am house hunting again. I would have made better plans if I had been informed that he had plans to sell the house. However, less than a month and a half ago when I signed my lease I was told nothing about this plan and even now the only reason I even found out was cause I saw the FOR SALE sign outside the house, and asked him about it, and even then I did not get a straight answer. The other roommates and I all have 6 month rental contracts. None of us were informed of the intent to sell and were not asked if they could show the house to potential buyers. We all feel that our privacy is being violated. I am mostly frustrated cause I have already done several small home improvements in this house and was planning some more. Besides, I just moved and had planned to stay here for at least a year if not until I graduate. This throws a big wrench in all my plans. Back to hunting for a house again.

Hard Work

2009-03-29T13:31:00.003-04:00

This weekend was for hard physical labour. Every time I use my muscles instead of just my brain I always have a good night's sleep. There is no better way to learn valuable life lessons than working in a garage, in the backyard or fixing everyday household items. I am proud of my parents for having raised me with such knowledge and discipline. Yes, these days, most of the time I engage in exercising my grey cells alone. However, this is not how it was growing up. We had to work in the yard, the barn, and around the house. Our parents and grandparents ensured that we had enough work to do and started us as early as when we were seven or eight years old. I have fond memories of my dad and I working on the bike or fixing the wiring at home. Even now when I go home in summer, dad and I end up doing a lot of work around the house ourselves.

The life lesson is that at the end of a hard day's work, you sleep with a clear conscience that you gave the day's activity your best. Physical work has a clear way of being measured. Thus at the end of the day you can see the fruits of your labour. Its not the same with research. The fruits of your labour are not obvious immediately. Productivity is measured in number of papers published. However, several projects take months to fructify and some are even discarded after months of research. That is not to say that research is not fulfilling. Its just measured on a different scale!!

Malgudi Days on Amazon Kindle

2009-03-25T20:43:00.003-04:00

Indians, my generation and older, raised in India need no introduction to Malgudi Days, R.K.Narayan's wonderful collection of short stories woven around a small South Indian village set in pre-independence India. Thousands of young people like me were regaled by the adventures of Swami and his friends. I was pleasantly surprised to find an Amazon kindle edition of Malgudi Days for $9.99. Now, all I need is a kindle. :) The cartoon shows Malgudi Town Square on a regular weekday!!

Viva Las Vegas

2009-03-10T10:20:00.003-04:00

I am at the McCarran Airport on my way back to Fairfax after almost a week in Vegas. I was here for the Public Choice Conference and I must say it was a resounding success. In addition to the conference being extremely stimulating intellectually, I have had a chance to see some local sights as well. Here are some previews of my experience here this year. Here's one from the Mystere theatre.

This one is from 460 feet above the Las Vegas Strip looking down on the Bellagio fountain
This is from my Blue Man group show experience.
More detailed pictures and posts to follow reviewing my Cirque-du-soleil and other experiences.

Meeting grade school friends again

2009-02-22T08:57:00.004-05:00

Yesterday one of my grade school friends who lives in Boston came to DC with his newly wedded wife. This gave us a good opportunity to have another small reunion. Two more of my grade school friends and their wives live in Maryland, and I went up there to meet with them. We had a fun day driving around DC and chilling out in the afternoon. As always we had funny stories from back in the day that the wives did not know and they enjoyed laughing with us as well. It brings back fond memories of being in school with them and we were all happy that we could keep in touch after all these years. None of us expected to meet each other after High School graduation, especially since we all moved away to different cities in India for college. That is why these reunions are extra special.

Do you know these people?

2009-02-15T10:31:00.002-05:00

I am a big fan of optical illusions. The last two years I have been a regular at the Mighty Optical Illusions site. Today, I found the following cool thing. There are a 100 celebrities in this picture. See if you can find them. I found about 25 with my brother's help. Knock your socks off.

New Home

2009-02-12T18:14:00.003-05:00

I am finally officially checked out from campus housing and in my new home. Its a beautiful place right across from campus. I live with three others, one of who is the son of the owner. I live in the basement and have a separate living and bedroom with my own bathroom. After four years of sharing bathrooms, this is luxurious. Right now my stuff is all over the place and I am yet to organize my new living space, but it feels like home and I am happy I moved here. There is room to entertain people and I hope to revive my Bollywood Nights with food and movies. God willing, if all goes well I will graduate from this house. Will post pictures as soon as I am organized enough to show-off my new diggs!!

Moving is Back Breaking Work!

2009-02-09T07:41:00.003-05:00

Since Summer 2007, I have moved six times including now and this has been the most back breaking move (no entirely literally). It has been stressful because it was not planned in advance and its in the middle of the semester. The move is not over yet, I still have loads of little stuff scattered across the length and breadth of my tiny little room that needs to be moved by Thursday when I officially check-out of my campus housing. It has been a very eventful year and a half living on campus and I am excited to live off-campus again. Right now all I have done is take all my stuff from my dorm room and dump it in the living room of my new place. The process of making the new place home will be another couple of weekends at least. I have had plenty of help this time like every time I moved, and feel grateful and blessed to have friends such as these. Kathy gave me her SUV for the weekend and Nakul gave me his manpower. It will be nice to have roommates closer to my age, and a drama-free environment. It will also be nice to have big closets and my own bathroom. It will be great to have a study and living area separate from the sleep quarters. I am looking forward to living in the new place. Will post pictures when I am settled in and the area is presentable enough for photographs.

Flurries in the Sun

2009-02-05T10:45:00.002-05:00

Yesterday was a strange day. I had had a very busy but productive day teaching and was walking home to get ready to go to my desk shift. It was windy but sunny day; however there were snowflakes, not a lot but a few, scattered here and there and it was very strange to me. I have seen rain when its sunny, but this is the first time I saw snow flakes in the sun. It was a unique experience and made me happy. I wonder what made it happen.

Its snowing in Fairfax

2009-01-27T08:12:00.002-05:00

After much cold and dry weather its finally snowing in Fairfax. I am happy. As I sit in my cozy chair, sipping my morning cuppa and catching up on news, its nice to glance outside my window and see the soft flakes falling. I know its going to be a great day today.

Twenty Pounds Heavier

2008-12-14T10:42:00.001-05:00

Today I am twenty pounds heavier than I was four years ago. The reasons and excuses for my weight gain run several pages. I am not the kind of person who suffers from body image issues; however, I have noticed several health related issues since my slow weight gain. The predominant issue is my inability to walk faster, and climb a small flight of stairs without huffing and puffing like a steam engine. I know I have a family history of diabetes, which means I need to be extra careful; however, my recognition of that ends there. I live less than five minutes away from the superbly equipped campus gym and I have been there fewer than ten times in the last two years of living on campus. Somehow I have mastered the art of making excuses to not go. I have also stopped cooking my meals at home for other reasons which has resulted in eating outside, pre-packaged and frozen food on a daily basis which is the least healthy option one could choose. I do not like going on diets. I would prefer to eat healthy and exercise, but the heavier I have become the less motivation I seem to have to exercise. So, again since its almost end December, I will make a New Year resolution to lose 2 pounds a month. Its not difficult to make resolutions, lets see how this one ends up a year from now.

Let it Snow!!

2008-12-06T18:12:00.003-05:00

I was indoors the whole day today and did not realise that it has started to snow sometime late afternoon. As I walked out to get to work around 5:45 this evening, I saw a thin layer of fine white powder coating on the cars and grass. I love the first snow of the season. Its always a nice warm feeling, in a manner of speaking that is!! My gloomy day has been brightened by snow this evening. Let it snow!! Let it snow!! Let it snow!!

Thanksgiving

2008-11-25T07:33:00.003-05:00

Another holiday season is upon us, and as usual this Thanksgiving I have many things and people that I am Thankful for. This year, I am most Thankful to the people who have enriched my life in many ways. My family of course is who I am most Thankful for. They have put up with my busy schedule and fleeting conversations once a week, and have been the cushion every time I stumbled. Thank You mom, dad and Prakki. I am Thankful to Pete for pushing my research farther than I would have gone. I am Thankful to Fred, for never losing faith in me. I am Thankful to Virgil, for always being honest about my progress. I am Thankful to Prof.Wagner for making me look both at the forest and the trees in my research. I am Thankful to Prof.Williams for his generosity. Thank You Kathy for letting me stay in your house during some very stressful times. Mary, who else would be patient with my drama and whining, Thank You for always being ready to help out, especially for simply listening. I am Thankful to everyone at Mercatus and the Economics department who funded another year of graduate school.

Thank You Prof.Basant for being a good friend and role-model all these years. Thank You Prof.Morris for all your summer help. Thank You my PMP team, you de-stressed my summer and gave me a lot of great memories.

Laura, Thank You for being an amazing boss and listener. Everytime I talked to you, I left feeling comforted. Thank You for letting me baby-sit Kait. Kait, Thank You for bringing a lot of joy and happiness to weary and tired days. Thank You Danny for trusting me with Kait and not being offended when I forgot to greet you. Thank You Brad for being supportive throughout this rough semester. You are an awesome boss and I am Thankful to be working in your team. Thank You Tom for being a very supportive boss.

Noah! Thank You for being a friend through good and rough times. Adam, Thank You for your kindness. Thank You Visu for being the bestest friend to me. While others had a choice, you did not have a choice but to listen to me everytime. Nakul, Thank You for letting me bully you ;-) and for all the soirees and rave parties. Thank You Vinay. You and your family are exemplars of kindness and humility. Ali, Thank You for all those rides. Brian, Thank You for always being ready to hang out. There are several more people unnamed here that I am Thankful for this year.

I am Thankful to God for good health and abundances in my life. Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

Weekend in Boston

2008-11-16T12:13:00.004-05:00

After several weeks of toil, I finally found a weekend off, and just in the nick of time. My dear friend Kali is getting married in a couple of weeks and I had been planning to spend some time with him, especially because I will not be at the wedding in India.

My plans were frustrated several times before this past month. Finally, I just booked a flight ticket and flew down here on Friday. Since being here, we have done nothing but talk and laze around (well I have been lazing around). It feels good to have a relaxing weekend without school and RA stuff. Last night Kali organized a small party with a couple of friends, and we had a blast playing risk. Reminded me of the road trip back in 2005 when Noah and I played Risk all the time. It was fun evening, and thankfully I have pictures from my friend's camera.

Here are the heads of the different armies

Kali does not understand why he is losing and is frustrated with the roll of his dice

Here's the Winning Team. These guys colluded so that the reds could take over the world

Elsa tells us a lovely story and keeps the party entertained
Its been an enjoyable trip so far, and I am feeling relaxed and refreshed.

Fall for Fall

2008-11-10T12:44:00.010-05:00

This is one of the most beautiful Fall seasons I have experienced in this country. The one other Fall that comes close to this fall in my memory is Fall 2005 when I was in Lincoln, NE. I have participated a few Fall activities this year that have made this season all the more beautiful for me. I went hiking in Pennsylvania with friends a few weeks ago, and some of my RA buddies and I carved pumpkins Halloween eve.

Here's the midget with dear dear Noah and Gabe

Here's the happy face I carved

Here's Noah Pirate ship
If the weather keeps up there will be several more beautiful times this Fall I hope.

Hilarious or Tragic: Its a matter of perspective

2008-09-14T11:12:00.007-04:00

I have been extremely busy the past few days, and this is my first breather to update my blog. What have I been busy with? Just getting back to life as an RA with a new staff and life as a PhD Candidate. Between school and the job there seems to be too little time to even get a good night's sleep. I work late nights on Wednesday and do not get to bed till about 3am Thursday morning. This past wednesday as I tumbled into bed at 3am, I set the alarm for 8:30 so that I could be ready to take the 10am bus to the Metro. I woke up with a start at 9:30 and wondered if I had slept through the alarm. Took me less than a minute to figure out that I had set the alarm for 8:30pm instead of 8:30am. I somehow managed to get ready, pack breakfast, lunch and coffee in my travel mug and grab all my stuff and leave the apartment by 9:55. I quickly looked at the weather forecast on my laptop and it said 55F, so I wore my winter jacket and ran out only to notice that it was warm enough to be 70F and people were walking in shorts and sleeveless shirts. I had no time to run back and change and still had to walk to the bus stop, so I waddled quickly. Just as I was climbing the small hill that goes to the bus stop, I saw the bus pulling away from the stop. Praying that the driver would be generous, I stepped into the middle of the road, arms flailing, requesting him to stop. Much to my dismay, he shook his head vigorously. I tried to reason with him by pointing to my watch and indicating that it was not 10 yet (it was 9:59). Finally, frustrated with me, he rolled down his window and said that he was not going to the Metro, and that is when I realised that the bus was empty and the bus stop had a small crowd of people, all watching me and some even laughing. I must have been some sight, in a winter jacket on a 70 degree day, backpack, shoulder bag, lunch bag, coffee mug with coffee spilling all over my bags and waving frantically in the middle of the road. Embarrassed, I quietly walked to the bus stop, got into the waiting bus and sat in the last seat and sunk low in my seat, hoping people would forget me by the time we reached the metro.

So, its a matter of looking at the lighter and brighter side of life. I realise that I have been too busy to notice how hilarious my life has become these past few days.

Busy start to the Academic Year

2008-08-26T19:39:00.003-04:00

I am back in Fairfax and it has been a busy two weeks. So busy that I even forgot mom's birthday. This would be the first year I have forgotten her birthday in at least two decades. I am back as an RA and it has been busy with training schedules and work schedules. This is my first breather since I came back from India and I am glad to have two quiet hours away from work. School stuff has suffered a bit the last month but I am pretty sure I can get back on track quickly. Its surprising how fast time has flown this past three years and especially this last three months in India. As usual, you never have enough time at home and I wish I had had more time with mom dad and my brother. But then again I do want to finish soon and get a real world job like normal people. I have been in school so long that I am ready to leave the dorms and campus and start living in an actual house. There is much to do this year if I am to graduate end of this year and I am excited about it.

My RA staff is wonderful and I cannot wait to see and participate in the programs they design. They are a very creative bunch and I am excited about working with them. I am very happy to be working with my RD and AC. I am really grateful that our AC decided to stay and work with us some more. It looks like a very busy and wonderful year and I am all geared up.

Life in Slow motion

2008-07-31T05:24:00.000-04:00

Illness always puts things in perspective. I remember several years back a friend was sick for a couple of days and went into an introspective mode then and took him a while to get out of it and when he got out of it everything had changed about him even though he claimed nothing was different. Those of us, who knew him, knew he was a changed man. His perspective on everything from his career to relationships changed as a conequence of those two days. Last year being bed ridden for a month changed me. My parents had to do everything for me and I loved the attention of course, but it also gave me a chance to reflect on my life choices and where they had taken me. It came at a time I was questioning my ability to continue with my research and helped reaffirm my commitment to my course of study.
I am down with viral fever now and spent the day in bed yesterday. It’s not a life threatening illness, just a small bump, but I am back into the introspective mode. Life’s in slow motion today, not only due to the antibiotics, but also due to my mental state. I am walking slower, talking softer, and taking it all slow. I miss my family and friends and wonder what I am doing so far away from them. These are however consequences of choices I made several years ago. For now, I am convalescing, light headed in a physical sense but heavy with thinking about my choices that have lead me to where I am now. Some ignorance is indeed bliss. However, I do not regret any of my life choices.

Hancock (Spoiler Warning)

2008-07-27T23:55:00.003-04:00

OK! So! I went to see this movie not knowing anything about it. Within the first three minutes I realized that it was a movie about a super hero. So far so good. I love men in spandex. The first half of the movie was marvellous. There was some comedy, lots of action and the promise of more to come. Just as I was getting warmed up to the idea of Hancock and a super hero gal as well the movie was over. My popcorn tub was not even half way through, and Cici and I were even sharing a small tub. What a great disappointment! We were stunned at the abrupt ending. I thought there would be a story behind the Eagle emblem, a story of past adventures, in short more story. All that being said, Will Smith was superb as the super hero with an attitude. Jason Bateman of course was good. I see this as a wonderful opposite to the rock and roll loving, super casual Mark Loring in Juno. The visual effects were good, but the lack of a story was the biggest let-down. Leave the kids at home, the language is bad and yeah! its not worth the money you pay at the movies. Wait for the DVD release it will be more value for money and you would not have missed anything by waiting, just saved yourself some huge disappointment and a lot of wasted popcorn

When it rains...

2008-07-27T23:45:00.003-04:00

it pours. Its been a hard downpour all morning and I had to wade through ankle deep water to get to work this morning. I do love the rain, but when rain water mixes with the drains and I have to walk through it its not a pleasant idea. Ideally, the way to spend a rainy day is curled up in a laz-boy next to a nice window facing the garden or/lawn with my favourite book (these days its Potter mania) with an endless supply of hot tea (Indian style) infused with ginger or tea spices and hot pakoras or samosas (Indian deep fried snacks). I did consider doing the least which was to curl up in bed with Potter, but then the rest of the amenities are not available in a dorm room and I need to finish work before I leave in a week. So, this first rainy day since my two months being here, I am at work wishing I was enjoying the rains.

Bomb Blasts in India

2008-07-26T13:25:00.003-04:00

Yesterday there were about eight serial bomb blasts in Bangalore the IT City of India, where I have tons of friends and relatives. By God's grace they are all safe. This evening there were similar serial blasts in Ahmedabad, the city I am living in right now. I was out with friends this afternoon, but we all came back to campus by 6:00pm. The institute campus is safe for now. There was a time when my biggest fear living anywhere was of being harrassed by eve-teasers and road-side Romeos. India today seems like a much scarier place to live in. Last August, there were twin blasts and several casualties in my city Hyderabad two hours before my departure to the US after my summer break. There are so many bombs going off and so many people dying that there seems to be no place safe and we all seem to have just started accepting this as a normal way of life rather than as out of the ordinary. Here is a three year blast chronology. Plainly shocking!! For now, all I can do is pray for the families of all those who have lost their lives and for those that are injured. Please join us in your prayers.

The Dark Knight (Spoiler Warning)

2008-07-25T01:03:00.006-04:00

I looooooooove Christian Bale! Then again, who cannot love the buffed up adorable creature of the night and playboy by day! However, Heath Ledger stole the show as the joker in The Dark Knight. He was so thoroughly the psychotic character. The casting was superb. Aaron Eckhart delivered a superb performance which would have shined if Heath had not been the joker. I only missed Katie Holmes as Rachel Dawes. Cillian Murphy and Morgan Freeman did not have heavier roles in this movie, but the cast was simply brilliant. Every single person delivered wonderfully. What I liked best about the movie was that there was not one dull moment and I was constantly at the edge of my seat waiting for what would happen next. My personal favourite of all scenes was the action sequence orchestrated in the Hong Kong building. The clever planning behind it and the final airplane rescue added that additional flair and to the idea that Batman has no boundaries.

My second favourite was the cinematography especially in the scenes with Batman in the Bat-motorbike. I kept wondering how Batman would move with his Bat-Mobile destroyed and then there came this wonderful surprise. This new Batman series is so much better than the old Batman series with Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson. Ledger makes Nicholson look like a buffoon in contrast, but then again for 1989, Nicholson was good I suppose.

The show stealer for me was Heath Ledger followed by Aaron Eckhart and Christian Bale in the same order. Yeah! I love Chris Bale but I have to give credit where it is due, and in this movie Batman was not the biggest star. Go to the movies and help with the record setting performance of this movie. It is worth every penny you pay and some. Enjoy the visuals and the soundtrack. I am going back for seconds and more later.

Delhi trip and Old buddies

2008-07-21T08:28:00.005-04:00

I was in Delhi last week to attend seminars and talk to academics and policy makers. I also managed to find a couple of hours during my tight schedule to meet with my old college mates. It was such fun as we reminisced about old times and caught up with each others' lives and tried to believe the changes in our lives. We are all now grown up and pursuing careers. It was hard not to laugh at how confused and naive we used to be back in college. Nija and I were also hostel mates and so we had a special hostel bond in addition to the class bond. For some reason I keep thinking Tinu is a year ahead of us, and the two of them had a good time teasing me about my memory. I am still pretty convinced that Tinu was our senior. Well! I bought my new camera just before I met them and here are the memories!!

It is always nice to meet people who have known you when you were a gawky teenager without the graces of age (not that I think I am much different from before except about 40 pounds heavier) So! Now I know I have gained a lot of weight especially in the last few weeks in India. Sigh!

I finally succumbed

2008-07-21T08:12:00.003-04:00

After days without a camera, I finally succumbed to temptation and bought myself a new camera. It has fewer features than my old camera, is twice as expensive as a similar model if I had bought it in the US, but the basic laws of economics I really haven't paid a lot cause I ended up buying it, which implies that I valued owning the camera more than the price I paid for it. So! Here is what I bought! Its a Sony Cybershot. The advantages are that it is smaller than my previous camera and will fit into my pocket, so I am more likely to have it on me all the time, and hence more likely to take more pictures. It came with a 1GB card, so I can take a lot of pictures. It has macro mode, video facility and rechargeable batteries. What I have lost is my 10x optical zoom, 4GB capacity, regular view finder in addition to the LCD screen, and 180 rotating flip out screen. The best part is that I now have a camera to take pictures with yei!!!

The fragility of life

2008-07-10T12:20:00.003-04:00

This morning we heard that one of our students' wife had taken critically ill during preparation for a routine medical procedure. She was declared dead and apparently for close to 45 minutes nothing was done to resuscitate her. It took another 45 minutes to move her to a bigger hospital with facilities to handle such emergencies. The result is that she is comatose, on life support in the ICU for over 24 hours now and no sign of progress. They were a fine happy family at 6:30pm and at 7:15pm she was declared dead. They have two little kids about 3 and 6 years old. My heart goes out to the whole family. Makes all of us take a step back and introspect on the purpose of our lives and what we do with it everyday.

Indeed last year as well, I went through a similar introspective phase when I had to go through surgery myself. The neurosurgeon seemed really cool, but I was really tense. My biggest fear was not death (although that would have brought a lot of grief to my parents), but that something would go wrong with the procedure and I would either be paralyzed or brain damaged for life which would have been horrible for my parents. I am glad the anesthetist talked me through it and calmed me.

Nothing is permanent in this life. the best we can do is to live everyday to its fullest and let our loved ones know we love them, cause you never know when all of it will be taken away from us. All of us here are praying for the students' family. His friends have really rallied around and are keeping vigil at the hospital in turns. She is still in the ICU and critical. Please pray with us for her and her family.

RIP my dear dear Camera!

2008-07-06T05:45:00.004-04:00

This morning I found out that my camera is busted. I think something is wrong with the lens, I do not know what. I can see only blurred black through the viewfinder (and no the lens cap is not on). I am very disappointed at this development cause I was planning a photoshoot day on campus and outside for next weekend and now I can't take any. My dear camera has served me loyally for four years now. In the very first week I owned it, a waiter dropped sugar syrup on it and since then the flash developed a mind of its own. We dropped it from a twenty feet high ride in Disney Land (Dec 2005) and that did not break its spirit. Since then I have been extra careful with it to not drop it or abuse it in any way. But I guess its age and early abuse caught up with it finally. I had planned to buy an SLR before my India trip this year, but it was too expensive and now I will spend the rest of my trip with no pictures and that is very sad. RIP my dear Powershot. You have served me well and I am sorry I unintentionally abused you. You will remain in my heart, my memories and in the pictures you took forever.

International Group and The Chocolate Factory

2008-07-06T05:10:00.006-04:00

This morning my American friends invited me to brunch at The Chocolate Factory. They had become sick of toast and eggs for breakfast everyday and wanted some American Food for brunch today. The chocolate factory was promising because they had stuff such as crepes, pancakes and waffles in their menu. So, nine of us trooped into this cozy little place not too far from campus. The group was very international, Frederico and his wife Maria from Mexico, Alexandra and Morgan from France, John from Kenya (who studies in Geneva), and Cici (from Hawaii), Diana (from Virginia Beach) and Gary (I forgot to ask him) from the US. We had a blast ordering all kinds of fancy chocolatey drinks and food, which was served in fancy mugs and fancy plates with sauce garnished as if it was on Top Chef. My camera is busted (boo hoo), so I could not take it with me, but Cici took some good pictures and I will post them later. They even served one of our coffee drinks with a chocolate syrup smiley on top which we all thought was cute. I enjoyed the food and the conversations around the table. Of course as the single Indian in the group, my expertise on India was in demand and I had to show off, which I think I did quite successfully. :D To burn at least a few of the million calories we had consumed in less than two hours, I suggested we walk back to campus which we did. Good lazy start for a lazier sunday!

Happy Birthday America

2008-07-05T00:09:00.004-04:00

Here are the two wonderful cakes baked by Indian bakers for our Georgetown friends. I could not join the party due to reasons, but Cecilia took this wonderful picture. There was music, watermelon and this awesome cake all of which I missed. Count at the number of states the Indian bakers have given America!! I am not sure if Amerika is intentionally spelled wrong. Cecilia (the sweet thing) has saved me a piece of the cake which I will get to have sometime today!!

Happy Fourth of July America

2008-07-04T07:32:00.003-04:00

Over two and a quarter centuries old, Happy Independence day America. This is the fourth year in a row that I am missing Fire works on this Federal holiday. This year at least there is small consolation in that I am meeting up with a few students from Georgetown University (who are here on exchange) to celebrate the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. We hope to light some fireworks as well in the spirit of the holiday.

Indiana Jones (Spoiler Alert)

2008-06-10T01:57:00.004-04:00

At last!! Typical Indie movie. Loved Harrison Ford. Shia LeBeouf has come a long way since Even Stevens, and Karen Allen was a nice touch. I expected several more scenes with snakes, given Indie's obsession with the critter :D! The movie was a nice continuation of where Indie left off almost 2 decades ago! For fans like me it was much anticipated and did not disappoint. The special effects are great and keep up with newer technology while still maintaining the old school atmosphere of Indiana Jones. As usual, Indie is betrayed, put in some tough spots and gets out of them either through his cleverness or sheer luck. This time he has the help of young Shia. I was particularly looking out for the scene in the trailers where he falls into the windshield of the truck, and it was simply marvellous. The stunts were in keeping with Indie's style. The motorbike stunts were both amazing and funny at the same time. Ford is certainly older and I could not quite digest that fact that he married. Married and kids or not, I love Indie. Highly recommended. Take your teens with you and have a blast!!

Chandni Chowk

2008-06-10T01:46:00.002-04:00

Last week I was in Delhi on work, and took a day off to visit the famed Chandni Chowk. It is part of Old Delhi next to the Red Fort. My cousin was my guide and we had a wonderful time roaming the small streets and alleys while window shopping. Our first stop was Parathewali Galli, which means the street of Parathas (a kind of North Indian stuffed bread). Apparently at one point, this street was lined with shops selling freshly cooked Parathas. There were still a handful of these and one such shop was our first pit stop. We had about six different varieties of hot parathas (which included one with stuffed bananas) and resumed our window shopping. It is amazing how many small shops are crammed into such a small area. I am always amazed at the enterprise of these small entrepreneurs. Although we did not buy anything we had tons of street food to eat and spent a whole day browsing colourful merchandise while the shop keepers kept marketing their wares to us. I love business activity however small or big, and Chandni Chowk reinforced how much economic activity is taking place in India. The Delhi metro is quick, convenient and affordable. The metro runs underground mostly and the cars are all air conditioned and well maintained. Did I ever mention I love India!!!

Long road down memory lane

2008-05-27T10:44:00.008-04:00

I spent the morning clearing out the attic at home with dad. By far, it has been one of the best days of my trip yet, even though it was 110 degrees outside and we had no power to use a fan or any other modern cooling conveniences. We had such a laugh digging up old dirt (quite literally). Well preserved among my effects were the millions of letters and cards I have received from friends since my 3rd grade or so. I had a fun couple of hours reading through some of them. They were all organized by person and in chronological order (courtesy the OCD tendencies of yours truly). Made me feel very good about those wonderful people who have enriched my life all these years. I seem to have stopped writing as eagerly sometime in 2001. That's when the snail mail stops and remains only between my dearest Manju and me. Enough history!! Enjoy some of my old pictures!!

This is a classic photo everyone has taken when they are between one and two. Do you see the resemblance?

I call this the Bengal Famine Family Photo! I even remember that the dress I am wearing was white with blue flowers, and the jacket was a light sky blue!! Sigh!! Pity you can't really see the colours...
Well! My make up was so good that even my mom failed to recognize me and wondered who the little boy was who was holding on to her dress. Yeah! I am the unsmiling boy! The cute girl is one of my oldest friends with who I started kindergarten and graduated high school. She is a doctor in London now.
That's my dearest Manju, my best roomie and best friend ever! Yeah! We are lazing in the middle of the road on a summer morning. It was one of those beautiful sundays in Pondy and we had just come back from experiencing another beautiful sunrise at the beach!
This is my mom's family. She was about four when this photo was taken, and everyone in this picture lived in one big house with one kitchen at one time. My mom is the little boyish looking gal peeping out from the middle of the third row from below where there is a small gap between people towards the left.

A Wonderful Surprise

2008-05-21T02:57:00.001-04:00

I surprised mom and dad with a visit home. They had no clue that I was going to be in India this summer, so when I landed at home bags in tow at 7:30 am local time Wednesday morning, they could not believe it. Took them a while to realize that it was I calling them from the front window. Its good to be home. More than anything else, its been very relaxing since I got here. They seem to mind the heat more than I. Its been an average of 105 Fahrenheit since I came here, but I am at home and love it. Mom's been making my favourite dishes and I have been the dutiful daughter and have eaten everything without wasting a single morsel. Every time I am home it makes me realise how much of every thing I am missing. I am back in my old gear of Indian dressing which is so much more comfortable than trousers and shirts. I am yet to visit old friends. For now all my time is for family. Friends will have to wait a bit longer to see me. The next two months are going to be so much fun and I am looking forward to spending the end of summer and beginning of the monsoon season here.

Battlestar Disappointica!!!

2008-04-29T19:19:00.005-04:00

The fourth and the final season of Battlestar Galactica, which I so eagerly waited far in spite of the writer's strike and other delays has been a big disappointment. The season premiere which I had high hopes for was a crushing disappointment, and since then only one half of one episode was even barely interesting. Forget being better than other episodes in other seasons, it does not even stand up on its own. If this was the first season on BSG I would not have continued watching it. So why do I continue watching it? I do not know, I guess I still have the hope that things will turn around for the better as the season progresses. In the meantime, I am not wasting my time eyes peeled to the telly Friday nights at 10. I do other stuff as well, which is kind of sad, cause I had freed up my friday night schedule completely so that nothing takes me away from my favourite Scifi show. Sigh! So much for all the build up and suspense and waiting!!! This is how exciting it is now!!

Here's how you spot a Cylon!!

Weekend Getaway

2008-04-26T09:44:00.002-04:00

A dear friend invited me to house sit for her this weekend. I am now experiencing the joy of living in an actual home as opposed to dorms and other living conditions. It feels great to live in an actual house with different levels, furniture, front and back yards, patio and tons of birds to keep me company. I have been here since last evening and am already completely relaxed and de-stressed. Its as if the rest of the world, especially school, does not exist. I stayed up late in the patio just listening to the sounds of night. I could not see too many stars, but it was a pleasant night. This morning, I did some light yard work early, and now I am in the patio with a nice cup of coffee and my laptop watching birds flock to the bird feeder and chirp from the trees all around me. I am a farm girl at heart and this is the kind of life I want, not the hustle of city life. Good bye worries! Hello life!!

Battlestar Galactica

2008-03-19T08:53:00.003-04:00

My favourite TV show is back on air again in a couple of weeks!! For those of you who have not seen the show follow this link for an eight minute snapshot of the last three seasons!! This will be the last season of the show and I cannot wait to see how it ends.

Blast from the Past!!

2008-03-15T22:51:00.003-04:00

It was truly a wonderful day down memory lane. I met with my old school buddies, one of who I haven't seen in about fifteen years. He is now married and he and his wife graciously hosted me and our other buddy!! It was a wonderful reunion. We went to Great Falls, a 30 minute drive, and had a great time reminiscing those days. We also caught up with other school buddies scattered across the country and conference called them so we could all talk. Some of them I haven't heard from since leaving high school and it was fun catching up after all these years. Hope to have a more reunions soon.

Spontaneity in San Antonio

2008-03-13T11:11:00.007-04:00

This past weekend I was at San Antonio TX at a conference presenting a paper and also making contacts and connections which is part and parcel of an academic’s life. I arrived at San Antonio on a windy chilly evening and a nice gentleman at the conference offered to go with me to dinner. We walked around the River Walk area and settled at Joe’s crab. I had the most wonderful time debating the meaning of justice. Has set me thinking a lot about issues I have not given much thought to. Just as we were getting ready to leave, the whole place turned into a giant dance floor when a troop of young children walked in. They turned on the disco lights and the kids just lined up and started dancing to Y.M.C.A. It was hilarious. It was totally spontaneous and a wonderful sight to see these little kids dancing to this classic song.

My second evening in the city was marked by spontaneous events as well. After being abandoned by the GMU gang, I went off by myself to the River Walk and found out that there was a ‘cruise’ (see photo!! I did not take this picture). It was just a small boat that would take people around the River Walk area for a small fee. Of course I had to try it and had a fun time as the very funny boat driver kept us engaged in the historical events of the city. The city holds two Guinness records according to our guide, and I will let you find out what they are cause I do not remember them. On the whole the evening was quite enjoyable.

Saturday evening was even more spontaneous. I had planned to go out with my roommate Cecilia and ended up going out to dinner with 8 more people, three of who were Professors and the rest complete strangers to me. It was a fun evening with Texas Style Mexican food and after dinner the Professors left and let us young ‘uns hang out. We all went to a place called Rainforest Café and hung out there for a bit, after which William and I decided to call it a night and the rest of the group partied on till 2am.

Sunday morning, after the session, me and my new friends met up and went to the Alamo which is a historic area in San Antonio.

This is where the Texans fought the Mexicans and became an independent nation before they joined the union. The Alamo itself in my opinion is not very impressive. It could also be because I hate crowds and we went on a Sunday morning and my mind could not really get past the crowds to pay attention to details in the area. It’s a small structure, but like everything American, it needs to be celebrated and remembered for Texan and American pride and all that stuff.... To me it was fun just walking around with my new buddies and just hanging out after 3 days of frenetic conference sessions. We then hung out some more had lunch and walked around the River Walk and just chilled until it was time for me to leave.

It has been an extremely fruitful trip. I met a lot of good people both from the States and abroad and hopefully I will keep these connections.

aXbo

2008-02-17T17:00:00.005-05:00

Last October out of sleep deprived and bad morning desperation I searched online for a fancy alarm clock I had heard about. This one wakes you up based on your sleep cycle, so that you don't wake up feeling grumpy and horrible. I found the aXbo here. It was pricey and I was almost willing to pay the 200 Euros or more so that I could have good mornings. Then I noticed that digitalreviews was running a contest to give away three of these beautiful alarm clocks. I entered the contest not knowing my lucky stars were aligned that day. You guessed it, I was one of the contest winners. Of course, I spent half a day, during finals week, writing a 100 word essay saying why I wanted it. The beauty arrived the day after Christmas and even before that I had become a celebrity of sorts since my name was published online as one of the winners. I have used the product almost every single day since then and it works like a charm. Gone are those grumpy mornings and multiple alarms and disabling snooze features. You can read my review here!

Bee Movie

2008-02-16T00:11:00.004-05:00

Bzz Bzz Bzz!!! So what if it was released in November 2007, I saw it a second time at the University Theatre this evening with my friends and it was a blast. Its a very kid friendly movie and the special effects are amazing. Seinfeld does a great job as Barry and its just as good as his stand-up comedies. Every dialogue is a laughter riot. You will hear every 'B joke' possible and still laugh at them. It has typical American elements to it, like the pollen jocks and girls falling for them, and the bunch of bullies and the wimps and all the gritty details of American life. That is what makes it so much fun and somewhat predictable. Predictable or not, it is a witty movie, and make sure you listen to the dialogues carefully. The scene with Bee Larry King is loaded with jabs at all kinds of popular references. That is what makes Americans amazing. They love to make fun of themselves and laugh at their silliness. Two big thumbs up for the Bee Movie. Keep Buzzing with your kids in tow!!

Awesome roomies

2008-02-14T00:05:00.006-05:00

I have three totally amazing roomies. They are so nice I have run out of adjectives to describe them. They are patient with me and extremely considerate. I came back home this afternoon, to find this on my room door. They each have one cause they are Princesses. Isn't it really nice of Ali to make me one as well!!

Earlier this evening I came by with my rounds partner and this is what was on the refrigerator door!! My picture even has little pigtails. My roomies are adorable!! What more can I say or ask for!!Thank You Megan, Ali and Kristy!! You rock my home base!! :D

Evening with the team

2008-02-10T11:50:00.000-05:00

Last evening was a blast with my RA colleagues. I love parties and this was a nice cozy get together with my team. We were supposed to have watched a movie and played games but the movie was relegated to the background while we had tons of fun eating and playing games. To me the highlight of the evening was the beautiful cake Laura (big boss) baked us!! The whole evening was fun! I work with an amazing team of people who put up with all my eccentricities. Last evening I learned two new board games, Apples to Apples and Dominos. Dominos is an intellectual game. Brad (our new boss) made it a game of skill when he made a tower of dominos and of course we had to make it fall. Charlie helped bring the tower down. Here are a few pictures from the evening. Laura's lil 'un is so adorable!!

Lil un beating us in Dominos

Yei! I built this says Brad! He needed an energy boost after all the hard work.

The Scene it group!!

Did I mention I love my job!! :)

Down memory lane Winter break 2005

2008-01-29T17:10:00.000-05:00

Noah and Gabe enthralled me with their French horn duet last evening. As usual an evening with close friends is very relaxing. I especially love their company cause they love my food and I love cooking for them. We celebrated our continued friendship and the turn of events for the better in our lives. Each of us faced our demons last year and it has been a wonderful journey of helping and supporting each other to find peace and grow from within. I spent the rest of the quiet evening looking at old pictures from our road trip in December 2005 and found some really goofy ones. Here's when Noah and I were pirates!!

This one was at a Rockshop near Carlsbad Arkansas. The sign says Unattended children will be sold as slaves :)
This one here is on top of Martin's pile of rocks!! This was on our way to San Diego. We just saw these rock hillocks along the road and could not resist stopping and scaling at least one peak.We named the pile Martin's pile of rocks to honour the third member in our squad and our dear friend Adam :)

This was the view from the top of Martin's pile of rocks! Notice the red 18 wheeler and the tiny speck of blue below the car on the road!! That tiny blue speck was our trusty Richard who hauled us almost 10,000 miles from DC to SFO and back.Here's one from Disney Land. Boy! That was some experience. I have to go back there again. Notice how horrible we look from camping and eating beans and rice cooked on a camp fire for more than a month.

New Year!! New Room!!

2008-01-13T17:25:00.001-05:00

Kia Ora! Belated Happy New Year guys! 2008 has started out slowly but seems like a fresh start. I am in a new room with new roomies. Haven't had a chance to meet them all, but they seem like a nice lot. Seems like yesterday that I wrote my annual e-mail to friends and family welcoming the new millennium!! Its already eight years since. This past year has flown past me! Have no clue where the last 365 days went. 2007 was a year of roller coaster rides for me. After a nasty start, I revelled in the love and comfort of family and close friends and my beloved India. This past six months have just flown. I do not remember a time that I have been so busy or so lazy at the same time. Did not do a lot of new things. Travelled a little in India, but nothing much in the States. Have been a homebird for the most part. Lost a few friends to the passage of time and distances and have been generally wrapped in my own life for the most part. Without a doubt, the best time was my visit back home and my summer in India. It was familiar and comforting. It was great to be back at IIM and visit with my old Professors and notice that little has changed there and also much at the same time. The students were much younger. Made me feel older than my years!!
Its a New Year, the resolutions are the same: shed those love handles, eat healthy, study harder!! All three are already broken, as resolutions are meant to be! I am excited to be in a new apartment and seems like it will be a wonderful New Year like every year past if not better!!

American Gangster

2008-01-07T21:40:00.001-05:00

If you love Denzel Washington, you will love this movie. It is based on a true story. It is not just another gangster and mob movie. You will be at the edge of your seat throughout the movie. The cinematography is great and yes there is some blood and gore, but if you are willing to sit through it, like I did, you will have the contentment of having seen a really good movie. The dialogues are crisp and fresh and I loved Russel Crowe. Its from the same guy who produced Black Hawk Down and Gladiator. Leave the kids at home. Its not a date night movie. Its heavy and intense throughout.

No Country for Old Men

2007-12-18T16:14:00.000-05:00

Indeed a cast of Old men and a story twisted and bizzare bordering on wierd and the silver screen splattered with blood. If you can ignore the blood and concentrate on the greater philosophical meaning of the story you may get somewhere. I tried real hard to get to the heart of the story, and I think I am missing something here. I do not know if the movie is a nostalgic story of a bunch of old men and how life has turned out for them and how the world has gone fast past them and they are left wondering what hit them!! There it is. As I write this I guess I get a small handle on the movie. Its a good plot, and has not a dull moment. Javier Bardem as Anton (in the picture) did full justice to his character and had me transfixed in a perverse sort of way. He is the villain, if indeed there is a villain in this movie, and fits the role to a T. It is a movie worthy of the Coen brothers. Excellent cast. I loved Woody Harrelson in this movie. I have always liked him, and in this movie his character is great. Josh Brolin and Tommy Lee Jones were ok. I am not sure I understand why Tommy Lee Jones has so many accolades for this movie. It is certainly a different kind of role for him as an older man. I see him in a different characterization, but Javier steals the show. The story is set in rural Texas and the Southern drawl is musical throughout the movie which has very little in the name of soundtrack. Its a great movie if you can stand the bloodiness.

Lola Rennt

2007-12-16T12:04:00.000-05:00

Thats Run Lola Run in English. 80 minutes of non stop action. I remember when this movie was released in India, almost a decade back. The name was too seedy for me to go see it. Now, after reading several reviews, I rented it and it blew my mind! I got the hang of the story after the first 20 minutes. It is one heck of a movie. It has a disco 80s feel to it. I loved the cinematography and the use of images in this movie. There is a lot left unsaid at the end of the movie, but that's the best part, you can conjecture all you want and make up your own little stories. It is fantastical and has a kind of O Henriesque twist to it in my opinion. Although the number of characters in the movie is not a lot, you will realize after the first 30 minutes that the lives of everyone is tangled in this web. See it to experience it!

Two great movies!

2007-12-13T15:50:00.000-05:00

For the first time this semester I could relax in my apartment, and I ended up watching two beautiful movies: Carol's Journey and In America. Coincidentally both are stories told predominantly from the eyes of 10-12 year old girls. Spoiler warning!!

Carol's Journey (El Viaje de Carol):

This is a poignant tale of a lil girl facing terrible tragedies at her age. It is somewhat of a coming of age story. It is also a story of war and the sadness it brings to her life. The movie is in Spanish, but the subtitles work wonderfully. You cannot help yourself from wanting to reach out and comfort this lil soul, and will soon find out that she is brave and she is the one that's comforting you. The emotions are very subtle and the whole story is handled so differently from American and Indian movies. I have always admired European movies. They are beautiful in the way they handle everyday emotions and great tragedies. A big thumbs up to this movie!

In America

This is based on a true story of an Irish family that comes to America, the land of dreams. None of the actors are names I recognize. The screenplay is by the director and his two daughters whose true story forms the basis of this movie. You do not know if you want to laugh at the comical situation or cry for this poor family. One thing I took away from this movie is that hardships in life need not mean you fall-apart. As long as you have your family and a sense of humour you can ride through any storm. The tenacity of this family of four in the face of daunting challenges is something to be admired. The two little girls are outstanding in their performance and Ariel's (the younger of the two) fiestiness is contagious. In an interview the director says that he did steal the airconditioner, walked on a busy street with it and carried it up the flight of stairs. Its real life drama on the silver screen. You cannot take your eyes off for even a minute. A must watch!!

Both these movies remind me again about how differently emotions are handled in movies made out of the US. The narrative is different, it is more realistic and people are not rushing off to see a shrink the minute something goes wrong in their lives. Neither are they full of blame or self pity and bitterness. They take life as it comes to them and accept that sadness is a part of life, its natural and no one, especially not the parents, is to blame for the troubled hearts of young people. My guess is that it also tracks real life beliefs in these regions. People are easier going outside of America and that is just a cultural thing I think. Evrything in America is blown out of proportions including reel life. But for now the memory of Christie is etched in my mind just as she wants it to be.

Fitting end to semester

2007-12-09T18:02:00.000-05:00

Friday 6pm my semester ended. I completed my term papers and take home exam well ahead of schedule and turned it in after multiple proof reading and have been partying since then. Friday evening it was Prof.Wagner's party and it was such a blast. I have been unable to go to his end semester parties the past couple of years and it was so much fun to go this time. The intellectual snobs (the ones who think they know best of all and make fun of everyone else not in their elite league.. you know the type) as expected kept to themselves. The rest of us had a ton of fun with each other. I particularly loved all the stories from Prof.Wagner's youth. His wife Barbara is also an amazing person. She had so may more stories to tell us. They have done the end of semester student party for about 35 years now. Half way through the party was when it hit me that I was done for the semester and it was such a relief.

This morning my boss Laura had a pancake breakfast for us. No better way to get into a student's heart than free food. Laura and Danny are very generous and this year we also had baby Kaitlyn who is such an adorable young 'un serving up the love. I love my job, all my bosses and my colleagues. So, its sunday evening! I haven't got a lot of sleep but it has been great to have the semester end. Now, all I need to do is gear up for my field exams and pass them.

First Snow this season

2007-12-05T20:03:00.000-05:00

Its the first snow this season in Virginia. It was terribly cold outside when I left at 7 this morning, and it hasn't stopped snowing since. Its become colder and wetter, but the one nice thing was that my evening class was cancelled which gave me time to team up with a couple of classmates and finish my take-home exam. Need to get my snow boots out so my feet can stay warm and dry and so I can walk on icy snowy slush and not slip. I cannot afford to slip and either fall or twist my body in any way. Its going to be a delicate walk winter. In addition, I cannot carry my bag-lady persona anymore cause of the wetness outside. All that apart, it was nice to see the leafless tree outside my window coated in a soft white powder this morning. Here's Brian's experience and here's what Ali thinks of the snow.

Academic frustrations

2007-12-02T21:10:00.000-05:00

This past three months I have been struggling to finish a paper. I am down to the last stages of completion (at least that's what I think), and have hit a major rut which I am unable to steer out of. The closer I get to completion the more silly my research idea seems, and the less sure I am about it. Is it simply because I have worked on this idea for so long that I am tired of it? I have been putting in 8 hour days just on this paper in addition to my other academic commitments and its frustrating to not be able to finish it. I was pretty confident a couple of months ago that I would have it all done by end November. November has come and gone and my paper remains in its unfinished state. I do not have any excuse. I have been successful in compartmentalizing my brain to not think about my other frustrations when I start working on my paper. Even so, its extremely frustrating to spend more than 6 months on something and have no finished product. There is no better judge of productivity for an advanced graduate student than a finished and well written paper. In my case, I have failed to produce even one paper after 3.5 years of graduate school. I do not wish to compare myself with others and their performance or lack of it. I have failed to achieve my own goals in a timely fashion and am rather disappointed in myself right now.

Help!! I am becoming a Rajini fan!

2007-11-28T21:15:00.000-05:00

I seem to have developed some kind of fondness for Rajinikanth, his movies and the songs from his movies. For those of you who know me well, you will know that I have shied away from Tamil and Hindi movies unless they are really great and exceptional!! Ever since I saw Shivaji this summer while I was in India I have simply become enamoured with the songs in that movie and can't have enough of the songs. Of course! This has lead me to seek out more Rajini songs and I am listening to them in a new light now. The title song usually has lots of meaning and appeals to the finer emotions and makes me relate a lot to the Tamil culture. Now I know why he is a big star and has such a crazy fan following. His newer movies have lots of social messages in addition to great songs and silly dance sequences and one typical catch phrase like "naan oru darava sonna nooru darava sonna maadiri" (if I say something once its as if I said it a hundred times). Help me I am becoming very Tamizh and hopelessly falling in love with Rajini movies!!

Crank that Soulja Boy

2007-11-28T08:37:00.000-05:00

This is the latest craze among young people here these days. I had the bizzarest experience of my life over the break when the Tyler kids found this on youtub e and spent a lot of time getting the moves right. Being such a stuck-up person, this was strange to me, but I was also part of the group learning the moves out of an instructional video. I understand that this is from a new album that was released in October. The craziest part of it was finding an instructional video that breaks down the individual moves.

Here's the instructional video that breaks down the moves. I love the moves to the woooo part and the superman move.

Here's a Spongebob version of it ;)

Thanksgiving 2007

2007-11-24T22:12:00.000-05:00

Another Vacation comes to an end. I have been at the Tylers' since Wednesday morning to spend Thanksgiving with them. As it always is time with the Tylers is always amazing. Thursday evening we had a wonderful Dinner with tons of food. Of course good food did not begin on Thursday. Gluttony began Wednesday morning, its Saturday night now and none of us has stopped eating. There are practically no leftovers. There was my favourite stuffing with no meat and outside of the turkey (as opposed to inside), and mom made these amazing skinny pancakes (they look like crepes and are delicious) this evening for dinner. Hmm! Hmm! Hmm! Here's everyone at Thanksgiving dinner!! Clocckwise from front left, Kiwa, Hava, Rooskie, Mom, Pa, Eli, 3ya, Gabe and Noah!! Friday evening, we visited Brian and his family. Stacia is a very smart and adorable three year old and I am very happy for Brian and Brooke. Here they are sad to see us leave.

Mom and Kiwa (Hava's roomie from Japan) finally finished the Puzzle. They had been at it since Thursday morning and it was wonderful to see the finished 1000 pieces. Good job ladies!!
The visit has come to an end. We leave early tomorrow morning and I wish it goes on for ever. As usual, I am going back feeling loved and in great spirits. I really needed this break. Now I am ready to attack the rest of the semester with renewed energy!! It has been one of my best holidays. What more can a person ask for when she has not one but two amazing families who look out for her.

Ali Turns 24

2007-11-11T12:21:00.000-05:00

Ali is 24 now. Brian, Ghazia, Asma and I surprised him with a small party yesterday evening. Happy Birthday Ali!! May God Bless You with success and happiness this year. Here is how Ali is spending his 24th Birthday! We are all very proud of you Ali!!

Evening with the Damerons

2007-11-09T23:52:00.000-05:00

I had a wonderful evening with Kirk and Ruth yesterday. Kirk is is my Constitutional class and he and his wife Ruth invited yours truly and Helen (a first year student form China) over to their home for dinner. It was a most enjoyable evening with music, great food and some wonderful conversations. They have a big Harp in their living room (I have never seen one before except in pictures), and Ruth performs at concerts. They let Helen and me actually strum a couple of chords. Kirk taught us the fingering. I was just too scared that I would break the beautiful instrument. Reminded me of the Greek stories I had read as a child where harp wielding goddesses and demons bewitched the heroes. In addition to that they have other musical instruments as well, and Ruth played an Appalachian Dulcimer. She said she was 'fretting' :) Kirk joined her for a short duet. It was just beautiful music. This is one more of my amazing experiences here with local hospitality. Both Kirk and Ruth have such rich experiences in life. I especially love meeting Christians in this country. They are people with so much love and faith. I am grateful to every one of them for giving me some of the best faith based and culture based conversations of my life. They have also helped me explore my own faith and dig deeper into my own identity as a Hindu woman living abroad. Here are youtube videos from yesterday.

Ruth said that she was fretting in this piece. :)

Here are Ruth and Kirk. Helen is sitting next to Ruth

Seeing DC in a new light!!

2007-10-26T16:43:00.001-04:00

Guest blogger was in town a couple of weeks back and, yours truly had a wonderful weekend doing touristy things in DC with him. We started friday with a visit to the Spy Museum. It was a fun fun experience. For a couple of hours, we and 8 other people (most of them kids) became spies who listened to clandestine conversations and tried to decipher code. We followed a person around, broke into the office of a high official who was a suspect and scanned documents in his office which we thought would give us clues. We were in a getaway and narrowly missed being caught, interrogated a suspect, made a crucial decision on strategy and were rescued and debriefed by our senior officers. It was a fun fun experience. I highly recommend the International Spy Museum if you haven't been there already, and if you want a partner in crime, you can always count on me.

The rest of the weekend was spent on a whirlwind tour of the different art galleries, museums and monuments in the DC area. We wish we had more time than we had at the end of it. Here are a few select pictures out of the 1000 or so that Visu clicked. We are still in the process of sorting them and naming them.

This was one of my favourites at the natural History museum Fossils section on the ground floor.
We almost missed sunset at the Lincoln Memorial.
This was a shot Visu had been waiting to get. Unfortunately it was a little too dark by the time we got there. However, we still managed to get decent photos.
It was a most enjoyable visit. We walked a lot over the weekend, had little sleep, and spent a lot of time at the Air and Space Museum at Dulles. My dear fried Noah lent me his car so we had easy transportation between home and metro and when we went to the Udvar Hazy Centre on sunday. I had a great time. It was a wonderful break from the routine of school. Wish I had more time to do DC otherwise. Wish we had more time to catch up.

Summer at home

2007-10-26T16:25:00.001-04:00

After almost two months I finally found the time to download pictures from my summer trip onto my new macbook and upload them on picasa. Here are just a few. More summer stories in the next few weeks.

My mom dad brother and lil cousin who's all grown up now. My brother balder than the last time I saw him, dressed in the traditional dress and my cousin Ashwin who is in med school now. I used to babysit him when I was in middle school. Now he advises me on correct posture for my back.
My cutiepie niece Anoushka. She was a little shy since I was just introduced to her. The cutest kid I have seen in a while. Such a joy to be around. Wish I had more time with her. She is going to be a heart breaker when she grows up. But, don't grow up lil girl!!
My high school buddy Sathya and his mom. He and I used to study together. He's a math whiz!! He took two days off work and spent a lot of money to come see me in Hyderabad (he lives and works in Chenai, a few hundred miles away) and spend some time with me. One of the closest and oldest friends I have!!
My lil cousins Ashok, Sandhya and Vijay who are all grown up now. These two boys were so naughty when they were young that we used to worry about them and if they would learn to be responsible. Ashok works for Microsoft and Vijay is a bigshot at GE India. Sandhya just started college.
My favourite mama (uncle) and me. He is just the best. I have many a memory of him picking me up from school, taking me to the doctor when I was sick and helping me with my homework. He was always there all the time growing up!! The funnest person to be with!!

A Few fun things I have (not)done

2007-10-25T22:08:00.000-04:00

I got this long list from a friend and thought I would share it with my blog viewers. The ones in boldface are what I have done!!

01 Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02 Swam with wild dolphins
03 Climbed a mountain
04 Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05 Been inside the Great Pyramid
06 Held a tarantula
07 Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08 Said “I love you” and meant it
09 Hugged a tree
10 Bungee jumped
11 Visited Paris
12 Watched a lightning storm at sea
13 Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14 Seen the Northern Lights
15 Gone to a huge sports game
16 Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17 Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18 Touched an iceberg
19 Slept under the stars
20 Changed a baby’s diaper
21 Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22 Watched a meteor shower
23 Gotten drunk on champagne
24 Given more than you can afford to charity
25 Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26 Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27 Had a food fight
28 Bet on a winning horse
29 Asked out a stranger
30 Had a snowball fight
31 Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32 Held a lamb
33 Seen a total eclipse of the moon
34 Ridden a roller coaster
35 Hit a home run
36 Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37 Adopted an accent for an entire day
38 Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39 Had two hard drives for your computer
40 Visited all 50 states
41 Taken care of someone who was drunk
42 Had amazing friends
43 Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44 Watched wild whales
45 Stolen a sign
46 Backpacked in Europe
47 Taken a road-trip
48 Gone rock climbing
49 Midnight walk on the beach
50 Gone sky diving
51 Visited Ireland
52 Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
53 In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them
54 Visited Japan
55 Milked a cow
56 Alphabetized your CDs
57 Pretended to be a superhero
58 Sung karaoke
59 Lounged around in bed all day
60 Played touch football
61 Gone scuba diving
62 Kissed in the rain
63 Played in the mud
64 Played in the rain
65 Gone to a drive-in theater
66 Visited the Great Wall of China
67 Started a business
68 Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69 Toured ancient sites
70 Taken a martial arts class
71 Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72 Gotten married
73 Been in a movie
74 Crashed a party
75 Gotten divorced
76 Gone without food for 5 days
77 Made cookies from scratch
78 Won first prize in a costume contest
79 Ridden a gondola in Venice
80 Gotten a tattoo
81 Rafted the Snake River
82 Been on television news programs as an “expert”
83 Got flowers for no reason
84 Performed on stage
85 Been to Las Vegas
86 Recorded music
87 Eaten shark
88 Kissed on the first date
89 Gone to Thailand
90 Bought a house
91 Been in a combat zone
92 Buried one/both of your parents
93 Been on a cruise ship
94 Spoken more than one language fluently
95 Performed in Rocky Horror
96 Raised children
97 Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
99 Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100 Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101 Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102 Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking
103 Had plastic surgery
104 Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived
105 Wrote articles for a large publication
106 Lost over 100 pounds
107 Held someone while they were having a flashback
108 Piloted an airplane
109 Touched a stingray
110 Broken someone’s heart
111 Helped an animal give birth
112 Won money on a TV game show
113 Broken a bone
114 Gone on an African photo safari
115 Had a facial part pierced other than your ears
116 Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117 Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118 Ridden a horse
119 Had major surgery
120 Had a snake as a pet
121 Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122 Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123 Visited more foreign countries than US states
124 Visited all 7 continents
125 Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126 Eaten kangaroo meat
127 Eaten sushi
128 Had your picture in the newspaper
129 Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
130 Gone back to school
131 Parasailed
132 Touched a cockroach
133 Eaten fried green tomatoes
134 Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey
135 Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read
136 Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137 Skipped all your school reunions
138 Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139 Been elected to public office
140 Written your own computer language
141 Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream
142 Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143 Built your own PC from parts
144 Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you
145 Had a booth at a street fair
146 Dyed your hair
147 Been a DJ
148 Shaved your head
149 Caused a car accident
150 Saved someone’s life

Being Sick

2007-10-23T10:41:00.000-04:00

The worst thing about being so far away from home is being sick. This is my second experience with being very sick in this country. Last time was in November when my back seized up and I was bedridden for a whole week during the Thanksgiving break. Now its the middle of the semester and I have been down with cold and cough for a little over a week now. Have been in bed most of the time. At least last time I had a peaceful home to be sick in. This time I am having to contend with an unreasonable roomie who is loud in spite of my requests. I have never been in bed with a cold for this long and its beginning to get to me. At least all of last week I was too sick to think. Today I am slightly better, but still too weak to sit up for long. Hopefully another day of complete rest and I will be back on my feet. I need my mommy!!!

Disappointed with the Nobel Committee

2007-10-13T08:44:00.000-04:00

I am horribly disappointed in the Nobel Committee for awarding the Nobel Peace Prize to Al Gore. In my opinion he is just a fear monger. Writing books that sell and making movies that get large crowds is not the mark of a peace prize winner. Does the Nobel Committee know the environmental excesses in Al Gore's own house? Mahatma Gandhi was not given the Nobel Peace Prize, and in my opinion he was one of the greatest champions of freedom and peace the 20th Century has seen. The Nobel Committee is losing all credibility according to me.

Guest Blogger in Town

2007-10-13T08:41:00.001-04:00

Our guest blogger Visu is in town this weekend and we are doing all the touristy things in DC. More as the weekend progresses.

Into the Wild (Spoiler Alert)

2007-10-08T19:38:00.000-04:00

True story and not for the faint hearted. I found myself with nothing to do on a holiday afternoon and went to see the movie cause it had 8.6/10 in the imdb ratings. Had no clue about the story or even that it was true. Wish I had been better prepared for such a sad story of a young man. It touched me deeply and I want to sob my heart out to the lonely young man who made a difference in the lives of at least two sets of people in the movie. As the story progressed I kept wondering if it was true and I kept waiting for a cheerful ending till the very end. For two and a half hours I forgot my silly worldly worries and travelled across the wilderness of the US with Alexander Supertramp, college educated, running away from the truth in search of happiness. I triumphed in his happiness and shared his pain and desolation as he lay dying in Alaska only to be found two weeks after he died. It made me very introspective of my own life and all the silliness surrounding it. Every once in a while there is a movie that shakes you at your very roots and questions your very basic choices in life. This is one of them. Makes you wonder at the pointlessness of material things in life. The story has the fatalistic mood of Thomas Hardy and an almost O Henriesque twist to it. The lone man in search of happiness, turns off the kindness of strangers, lives in the wilderness all alone, and one day it strikes him that happiness is meant to be shared, and he decides to leave the wilderness and fate takes a different turn. The ending was a shocker to me. I kept waiting for him to be rescued. As the titles rolled my cheeks were moist and it felt as if I had been in a train wreck. This is a must watch for all of you to who the finer aspects of life matters. You will not get it if you do not like philosophical movies or do not like to spend time every other week to take stock of your inner self. Leave the kids at home, its a movie for grown men and women. The cinematography is excellent so is the music. The protagonist is magical. Will bring out the child and the tramp in you. Five Big Stars!!

Ratatouille

2007-10-04T14:34:00.000-04:00

I have been dying to see this movie since even before it was released. Unfortunately, by the time it released in India I was leaving, so I had to wait for it to be released at the University Mall Theatres close to campus. I went with no expectations other than that for a PIXAR movie. It was a little less dramatic than most PIXAR movies, but wonderful story and great animation. I do not agree that anyone can cook, especially after seeing the three seasons of Top Chef on Bravo TV. But, the rat was cute so was the guy. There was a touch of reality about how difficult it is for women chefs to succeed in a male dominated society, and I was pretty sure there was some decent economics in the story as well. I thought about it while I was seeing the movie, but now it escapes me. Although its a good movie it does not come anywhere close to Monsters Inc or Shrek. The story and characters are not as memorable in Ratatouille, and in some senses it is a lil 'eeeewwww' with the Rats in the Kitchen and all that. Its not a cutsie movie that you will think about and smile. It is however, a good movie to go with the kids on a tuesday evening. Lifted, the tiny feature that was shown before the movie was much more entertaining in my opinion.

A Bridge too Far

2007-09-28T17:36:00.000-04:00

Here is an interesting piece Lacchu sent me. This will make more sense to those who know Indian mythology, politics and current events. To the uninitiated there's a small glossary at the end.

The Lord surveyed the Ram Setu and said "Hanuman, how diligently and strenuously you and your vanara sena had built this bridge several centuries back. It is remarkable that it has withstood the ravages of the climatic and Geographical changes over centuries.

It is indeed an amazing feat especially considering the fact that a bridge at Hyderabad built by Gammon using latest technology collapsed the other day even before they could stick the posters on its pillars."

Hanuman with all humility spoke "Jai Sri Ram, it is all because of your grace. We just scribbled your name on the bricks and threw them in the sea and they held. No steel from TISCO or cement from Ambuja or ACC was ever used. But Lord, why rake up the old issue now."

Ram spoke "Well, Hanuman some people down there want to demolish the bridge and construct a canal. The contract involves lot of money and lot of money will be made. They will make money on demolition and make more money on construction."

Hanuman humbly bowed down and said "Why not we go down and present our case?"

Ram said "Times have changed since we were down there. They will ask us to submit age proof and we don't have either a birth certificate or school leaving certificate. We traveled mainly on foot and some times in bullock carts and so we don't have a driving license either. As far as the address proof is concerned the fact that I was born at Ayodhya is itself under litigation for over half a century, If I go in a traditional attire with bow and arrow, the ordinary folks may recognize me but Arjun Singh may take me to be some tribal and, at the most, offer a seat at IIT under the reserved category. Also, a God cannot walk in dressed in a three-piece suit and announce his arrival. It would make even the devotees suspicious. So it is dilemma so to say."

"I can vouch for you by saying that I personally built the bridge."

"My dear, Anjani putra, it will not work. They will ask you to produce the lay-out plan, the project details, including financial outlay and how the project cost was met and the completion certificate. Nothing is accepted without documentary evidence in India. You may cough but unless a doctor certifies it, you have no cough. A pensioner may present himself personally but the authorities do not take it as proof. He has to produce a life-certificate to prove that he is alive. It is that complicated."

"Lord can't understand these historians. Over the years you have given darshan once every hundred years to saints like Surdas, Tulsidas, Saint Thyagaraja, Jayadeva, Bhadrachala Ramdas and even Sant Tukaram and still they disbelieve your existence and say Ramayana is a myth. The only option, I see, is to re-enact Ramayana on earth and set the government records straight once for all."

Lord smiled "It isn't that easy today. Ravan is apprehensive that he may look like a saint in front of Karunanidhi. I also spoke to his mama Mareecha, who appeared as a golden deer to tempt Sita maiyya when I was in the forest and he said that he won't take a chance of stepping on earth as long as Salman Khan is around."

Ram Setu: A bridge constructed from South India to Sri Lanka in the Indian mythology Ramayana by an army of monkeys (vanara sena) lead by Hanuman (Son of the Wind God also known as Anjaneya or Anjani Putra)

Lord Ram: A Hindu God in the Ramayana

Ayodhya: The birth place of Lord Ram which has been embroiled in a controversy for a few years.

TISCO, Ambuja, ACC: Modern Indian companies

Arjun Singh: A current Indian politician who is infamous for his "Reservation bill" to introduce quotas in all educational institutions

IIT: Indian Institute of Technology, the top technical school in the country

Darshan: Hindi word that, means in this context, to appear to the very devout.

Ravan: The villain in Ramayana

Karunanidhi: The current Chief Minister of a South Indian state who is highly popular among one section of the state for his partisan policies and anti-upper caste philosophies

Seeta maiyya: Lord Ram's wife

mama: Indian word for Uncle (mom's brother)

Mareecha: A character in the Ramayana who could transfigure himself into any form, and took that of a golden deer in the forest where Lord Ram spent few of his years of banishment.

Salman Khan: Current Indian actor who is alleged to have shot a 'black buck', which is an endangered specie, for fun.

The context is that of a planned project to build a bridge to Sri Lanka from South India, and demolish the Ram Setu which is under water and believed by many Hindus to be the original bridge built by Lord Ram and his vanara sena.

Our regional Identity

2007-09-28T14:59:00.000-04:00

India is diverse and it is a common complaint by some educated Indians that Indians prefer their regional and caste based identity to that of a national identity. The one thing that binds us together is Cricket, and in recent years even that has come under much controversy in terms of representation of different states in the National Cricket Team. I used to believe that my identity was that of an enlightened Indian and my Tamil identity was secondary only to my identity as an Indian. The truth is I have been a hypocrite most of my life. I realize now that my predominant identity is that of a Tamilian and then that of an Indian. Of course I was devastated at this realization. I am anything but a typical Tamilian, and grew up with a multi-linguistic identity at home (my parents brother and I speak at least six languages between us and during a normal conversation switch between languages with natural ease and very unconsciously) I knew that I had the distinctive Tamil identity within me and as I grow older it is manifesting itself very forcefully, especially since I am so far away from my culture. There is this fierceness in me to preserve my regional identity. I have always maintained that I could not imagine being married to someone who does not speak Tamil or follow some of the Tamilian traditions. I was listening to a song in Tamil a little while ago (Mettu Podu from Duet for those who know) and the emotions associated with my regional identity came welling up inside me and made me so proud to be Tamilian. I guess in some sense however modern we are the regional identity within us will persevere. I am no longer ashamed to identify myself as a Proud Tamilian.