Charge of the Geek brigade.

Tumultous Monday should I say ....... Sigh!!! The traffic scene in Bangalore is radically changing day by day. But sadly not for the better. Of these 'long' journeys from ' home' to 'office' ( how ironical ... if at all time spent were a decider then .......) the only respite many of we commuters have are the FM stations that churn out music to our ears.

A leading daily had remarked that prolonged exposure to music through headsets at full volume can lead to disastrous effects over long periods of time. In accordance with that my radio volume is at 50% .

My fellow colleagues seemed to have serious fun discussing about Take homes, House rents and how somone who had flunked their 'compre' had been the 'chosen' one to go 'Onsite'.

An excerpt :

Col 1 : Hey so how the weekend.
Col2 : I was at home itself. It was like somone had issued a Exclusive Lock.
Col1 : He he he.
Col2 : He he he.
Col2 : So ur weekend?
Col1 : It was fun ... On saturday had so much fun ... it was like a 'Buffer Overflowing'
Col & Col 2 : He he He.
Col1 : So when is ur birthday?
Col2 : ...........
An eloquent pause.
Col2 : Its on May 10
Col 1 & Col2 : He he he !
Col2 : I was actually wondering in which format I should tell ya!!
Col1 & Col2 : He he he!!

I increase the volume to 100 %. The Charge of the Fire Brigade, by Alfred Lord Tennyson came to mind. " Cannons to the Front of them, cannons to the back of them .... ". Oh here were the geeks.

SIGH!! How far is this place!

Time flies and how ?

It was not how I expected it will turn into. It was not the way i expected it would end. It was just not the way I thought things would carry on.

Well ..where do I begin? Could connect it to the flight path traced by a butterfly. Colourful, interesting and curious it whizzes past U. Enjoy it and let is pass.The moment U beging to get closer to it it moves away. Stay away and it comes back. Hmmm........ Interesting.


It was a mixed bag when the seperation actually hapenned. Things seem to have changed. Butterflies are best left on their own. I am much relaxed this way.

Cynicism .... Reloaded.

The drizzle in the evening was a welcome break from the intense heat that was just boring through me the whole afternoon. Madurai, the place where the Meenakshi temple is situated. The temple is an architectural wonder , with the art standing tall even after 382 years of when it was constructed.

Time had come to bid adieu and to head back . Train journeys always provide you with some food for thought, this time no less ofcourse. There was a mixed bag of personalities this time around. A middle aged person was too engrossed in discussing her 'take home' with another. As her friend parted away she began religiously reading 'Men are From Mars , Women are from Venus'. The ticket checker who came in to verify took the additional pain of introducing all of us to each other bu reading out all our names and seat numbers loudly.


Thats when I met this guy. A T shirt, Jeans and an attitude to match that. He bid adieu from his dad ( I guess ) and promised to call once he gets some accomodation. After a while of silenence he starts a conversation ... an excerpt ... R.

R : Is it raining outside ?
Me : Hmm ... I guess ( Well its pouring out what did U expect me to say??!)
R : The TT gave a introduction of all of us isnt it?
Me : Yeah .... ( I smile ... That was the best I could do that question)
R : U From Bangalore?
Me : Yeah I am.
R : Is it really cold there?
Me : Well the weathere is good most times of the year. We do touch 35 sometimes, but we touch 14 sometimes too. Overallk its pretty nice.
R : Oh ....we see temperatures till 48 - 50 here. (:O)
Me : Oh really??!
R : So where do U work ?
Me : Me .... well I work in the Service Industry. (:-))
R : Oh ..... ( A look of disappointment in his face)
Me : What about U?!
R : Well I am a Software Engineer, I am going to Mysore to join Infosys.
Me : Oh ......... Thats nice.
R : Well IT was always my choice and this company is great U know.
Me : Hmm heard of it .... Pretty neat campuses U all have eh?
R : Yeah, U name it from Multiplexes, Swimming Pools, Shopping Malls, Guest Houses and yeah the reputation of the company .. is just too good.
Me : Oh really?!
R : So how is this place Koramanagala?
Me : The real estate bit is a bit expensive. But yeah this place is close to ECity.
R : Oh ... If I get a choice between Bangalore and Chennai, I guess I ll go 4 Bangalore
Me : But the Cost of living is more in Blore.
R : Considering I work for Two years in Bangalore , I should be able to buy something in Bangalore .
Me : Really?!
R : I think so .....

Optimism of buying a place in 2 years ........... and his cynicism about the service industry. SIGH!!! He has lots of things to learn and experience!! ;-)

Incoherence .....

An acquaintance (Y) that occurred offlate is the subject of this blog. Came in contact through a buddy of mine.

Y had some issues with the curriculum they followed and those issues pertained to the profession I undertake . The buddy of mine felt that just coz i work in a field I would n 't blink my eyelid to help people out with their issues after the ordeal I go through everyday. Sigh!!!

Anyway the issue with Y began after I apparently did help out with the issue . Y seemed to be really thankful for me having done this favour and wanted to extend the boundaries beyond the realms of aquiantances!! I mean getting all carried away by a simple gesture was all too much anyway. Well it apparently appeared so strange that merely by helping out with a small issue somone wanted to extend their association.

Well what may have triggered this .......... Incoherence at its best.

Weekend Getaway .......

Embarking on a journey that was just about bound by time gave me a sense of surreality. Time is supposed to be boundless and here it bound my trip …………………………………… Screeeeeeeeecccccchhhhh!!!!!!! Sorry for the interruption … Now coming back to reality…… J

We started around 7 30 am on Saturday and proceeded, from my place towards Old Madras road. Surya aboard now the focus shifted towards Silk Board Junction. The ‘aam citizen’s’ mode of transport bought Jyo into the world of fun …. Ahem ahem and that would be the Qualis we all were traveling of course. Circa 8 30 , we were at Joyee’s place. After some hassles we managed to get her and Hiresh on to the Qualis.

Bangalore seemed to faintly disappear in the background as our vehicle sped from 0 to fun in just no time. To set the mood up we had to play some music. Randomness has its own disadvantages and on randomly choosing a CD, it turned out to be a Soft Instrumental. Well not something U would associate to start a trip actually. Anyways …. The vehicle veered in control and we were treated to delicious sandwiches by Chef: Jayeeta Roy. Nice ones indeed. Guess some amount of ‘man’ hours would have gone into making it. No pun intended ;-).

After 4 hrs of driving and sometime of navigating through mysore (not out of interest but by taking the wrong route) we did reach the Infy Guest House. Refreshments hardly were something to raise a toast too but the campus by itself had a splendid view. The English style cottages, lush lawns, Greek constructions, beautiful gardens, multiplexes, snooker parlors , cricket ground and yeah I just forgot a few Development centers too. The next stop was the GRS fantasy park. Water is fun ……. From waves, to oscillatory rides and some more water rides …………… it were fun. J. Surya was at her shreiky best and that according to her was just for fun. Anyway we shall take that at face value, it was fun J. The next stop was at KRS. The musical fountain was the major attraction ……. The music, water, lighting the co ordination was just awesome. Just awesome. I guess if all the movie stars could actually gyrate to that precise accuracy many movies would have been Super Hits ;-). Heading back we went to a restaurant called Heritage which I guess didn’t seem to have any of it in the first place, so the hunt for dinner began and that ended close to 12 midnight.

The next day was of course was reserved for a date with Ooty aka ‘Queen of Hill stations ‘or that’s how people call it. The journey up there was filled with fun and frolic. The Bandipur sanctuary ... on the way up was a treat to the eye. The Silence of that park affected slightly due to the voices within our vehicle. Ooty …. Was at sight by 3 pm. The Queen of course seemed particularly busy and dint seem to receive her guests in the way she royally would have I guess. Chocolates for lunch and snacks at 4 30 pm as a substitute for lunch are indeed experiences one can cherish sometimes. Our date ended with our inability to even enter her famed Botanical gardens. Our tryst with royalty was turning sour ……. thereby we deserted a lesser royalty and walked away towards the ‘Empress of Cities’ …… of course Bangalore. ;-)

The drive back was high pitched ….. men don’t have a high pitched voice …. Or do they (?) ;-). The music collection that we had would make other play lists bow down with shame. ;-) .Songs are best when heard with the lyrics understood ……….. Jumboo did the thankless job of explaining the same with a smile on his face. Humming along and gyrating as much as possible we moved along. Dinner …ah what is that. Was it the timing or coincidence ……. Too hard to say. With music playing along and Jyo and Surya (bits of Joyee/Hiresh) adding flavors to the same… and dancing away too … the journey was all fun. Thus came to end one of the trips that happened and yeah the trip was fun. J

Resolutions ....

Resolutions ........... well suprising as it is to myself, I have a steely determination to uphold the resolutions I make. This trait is embedded deep within me that I never go back on the words I promise myself. There are hundreds of instances where I have done just that and I still do.

Well I guess all thats changing offlate now. It all started with me deciding to avoid all modes of communication with a certain X. Well i succeeded to a fair degree to isolate myself from X. But X................. I guess this emotional vice is just too excruciating. Though I am isolated for some strange reason I feel like I shouldnt be walking so far away. I feel its kind of acceptable to retract the resolutions i make. I feel it is justified that I can relax the stand I have taken. I feel that I am kind of craving to break the stand I have taken and am actually putting up with some stuff I need'nt.

I guess this is just a temporary phase and I shouldnt stoop down to allow some aquaintance to shadow the commitments I make to myself. Resolutions .................... are sanct and have to be honoured!!

The world ..... my Oyster

The cool breeze and the warm feeling of the mild sun beating down do provide an awesome contrast to the place which is inhabited by some of the 'coldest' people you will ever find.

The attitude of some of the people around make you wonder if there is anything called humanity. The reports you read everyday of the world around you makes you really wonder, 'What is it with these people'.

For instance last week a person who met with an accident succumbed at the accident spot to his death and the people around just watched it as though it was a soap opera. What is it with these people.

As i ponder over these thoughts ....... the bus I am traavelling veers away from its normal course. I can see some commotion on the road ahead. Apparently , it looks like another accident. A Sumo has crashed head- on to a bus. As I was preparing for the worse .... there is apparently no casuaty though. To an extent relieved i go back to my thoughts.

The person next to me suddenly wants to start a conversation with me . I can sense some sort of disappointment in his face. I enquire about it and he says shamelessly, " I thought there will atleast be one casualty, I guess the accident is not that serious after all ". Incredulous.

I remember a poster I hung in my room .... " The world ......my oyster, with my sword I shall open" . What an irony !!!

Excuse me !

The weather ............... well there are just no words to describe it. The terrace looked ever so inviting and was just browsing through the month's edition of Readers's Digest . A section on Life's like that ....... ( An excerpt)

" My wife suferred from Brain tumor. She was admitted to the hospital to undergo a surgery. I preferred to stay back at the hospital looking after her. After the operation went on smoothly , i stayed back with her for two days. At the end of it I decided to go home for a change. As I got up to leave , I kissed my wife on her cheek. In her sleep she mumbles ...... 'Not today dear .... I have a headache' ".

Laughing out Loud .......... I can see an aircraft descending down and the cool breeze ...... ah ..... its great to be in this city.

Innocence ??!

My nephew ........ all of 7 years old. He is visiting Bangalore for the first time. Evening showers, gardens , weather, shopping for his toys, innumerable numeber of chocolates, 7 flavours of Ice Creams, KFC, Coffe Day .......the city amazed him. This guys seemed to have the energy to do another round of all this even at 10 in the evening. His excitement was contagious.

An excerpt from a conversation I had with him ......


Me : Hai !! So enjoyed today?

Him : ............................... ( Looks like I asked a Rhetorical Question!!)

Me : So .. which grade are you?

Him : Completed 1 grade now ..... I ll go to 3 ,5,7,9,11.

Me : U forgot to mention 2, 4,6 ......

Him :( A look of disdain) Dont U know I hate even numbers???!!

Me : ??!!! Okie .... So whats Ur plan after that?

Him : Well I want to study MBBS and then become a Collector .

Me : Nope ....... studying for MBBS is fine, Collector ??!!

Him : Collectors get a computer for themselves and they can keep playing games on that!

Me : ( The Future of India Looks bright .. I think ) Oh I see and then ......

Him : (As though I asked him a dumb question) Well since I am a Doctor and also a Collector
what is left is just my 'marriage' and then its time for me to see my retirement and
Grand Children.

Me : ??!??!??!?!

Him : Thats my ambition, a simple life . Okie ....... Good Night!

Me : Yeah ....... Good Night!

Change is Constant.

Friends ...... well they are an extension of yourself. The association you have basically describes what you are .

One amogst them was this one too. Lets call that person XYZ. Well I guess we were pretty close friends that I stored the name in my mobile as X . That was enough. What was the point in having XYZ for a person whom you know very well ? Anyway we were suppossed to be friends.

The electronic communication has its disadvantages. Some changes are irreversible. Well XYZ was kind of cranky to send an electronic message which left a bad aftertaste. Sigh ...... my reply was equally curt . Anyways things have never been the same after that.

The transformation was almost instantaneous. A friend had become an aquaintance overnight. I nfact i recieved a wish for my birthday from XYZ , it appeared as X in my mobile and I kept wondering who it were........

Change is the only parameter that is Constant.

Contrast .....

Sunday's are for relaxation. The French open clash was scheduled towards the evening, anyway I thought the match was gonna be one sided after the phenomenal perfomance by Nadal (Actually It was'nt one sided ! ) . I was zapping through the channels and fine tuning some , when my cousin enquired what CONTRAST was.

I explained that it was ' The difference in brightness between the light and dark areas of a picture'. Ah ........ that was in context of me zapping the channels.

Saturday evening was awesome fun. It was a get together of school mates and the occassion was my birthday treat. The treat was at Leela Palace sports bar and then we move to Bombay Post for Dinner and Corner house to finish of the celebration.

On sunday evening , near Cafe Coffee Day , 100 feet road as I reversed my bike , there was this urchin , clad in minimal amounts of clothing. He approaches me and asks in a meek voice ,

" Brother , I am hungry from last three days ".

Me ......................................................................

" My Grandama want's Rs 30 if she has to cook for us"

Me .......................................................................

" So please give me some money"

Me "U look healthy, why are you begging".

( I never encourage begging in any form by giveing them the cash)

" Brother , I cant be employed till I am 15 years old"

Me ..................................................................( I am ashamed I even asked him that question)

I gathered my face and kick started my bike and sped away. I would have travelled like a 100 metres , my thoughts were still on the kid. I turned back. I thought I could help this kid by buying him food instead of cash. I went back in search of him. I searched for sometime. He wasnt around.

The meaning of CONTRAST became far more evident to me.

Sense and Sensitivity.

Eccentric timelines, hectic workloads and a host of associated factors are pushing people to the brink of extreme stress .

Amidst such chaos, does it actually make 'sense' to be 'sensitive' to others around you? It just dosent make sense at all to stay sensitive to others when they are being insensitive to you. As though the 'ordeal' (aka Work) what you go through is not enough, you have to muster a lot of patience to be nice to somone who is driving you cranky with his/her insensitiveness.

Hmm......