Thursday, August 28, 2008

A must read - Devils Chronicles by Tys on Ice

I was going through my mailbox and i end up clicking on the profile link of Tys on Ice - I always like his blogs, and I consider his as one of the most hilarious bloggers around - his sense of humour never fails to light up my day when i read his posts. I saw link to two anotehr blogs, and being a blogphile I am, I promptly clicked on the link to see what more is on store.

And then I found this -Devils Chronicles - One of the best story I have ever read in blog world.
I knew he was talented, but this story made me realise what a talented writer he is. All of you who like good fiction - go there and read, I am sure you will not be disapponited.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

lost...

rain....
strands of rain..
like a shadow
like a cold embrace

she traced her fingers on the windshield of the car. the fogged windows, the lines made by the water drops...

the paper boat
the drenched white petticoat
the long lost childhood
she sat back, lost in the rain

he looked out, trying to make out the penetrating yellow light beams. the winding road. The sleeping tea beds on the roads sides, enclosed in the blanket of mist.

warmth of a coffee mug
fresh Jasmin flowers after the rain...
the wet umbrellas
the overflowing paddy fields

the traveler he was. the crazy paths he trampled. the slow moving cars, the old man with a black umbrella. the stacked logs on the side of a roadside hotel. the lorrys stopped for rest. the gentle kiss of his leg against the throttle pedal. the soft feel of raindrops against his stubble.

the silence is more heavy
than the weight of a thousand words
she looking out, lost in the rain
he looking out, trying to find himself

and they - they traveled along, in different tangents but bonded by the physical presence...

the flowering grapevines...
the rain draped mountains...
and the long winding road, lost in mist...

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Thus spoke the wise

I love quotes. At times when I have feelt I have no power left in me to fight, I have come across words so powerful that the very next moment I was back with full energy, trying to achieve what I thought I am not going to do.

Tia tagged me recently with a "list-5-of-ur-fav-quotes" tag. This is something I love to do, and here goes my favorite quotes.

1) “A man can be destroyed but not defeated.” From Old man And the Sea by Hemingway

2)"I stand at the end of no tradition.I may, perhaps, stand at the beginning of one"From The Fountainhead by AynRand

3)" I swear by my life, and my love of it, that I will never live for the sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for mine" From Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

4) "I have what I have given" - Foucault's Pendulum by Umberto Eco

5) "I'm gonna make him an offer he can't refuse" - Godfather by Mario Puzo


There are many more quotes which are near ot my heart from all these books, but I have limited myself by choosing one from each book. The next in this list will be Jonathan Livingston Seagull,Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Tao of Physics, Fathers and sons, The Prophet... the list goes on...

I tag WinniPoohie, Sameera, meghz, Preetz and ~nm. And cess, u r always tagged ;-)

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Klueless 3


I was back to active blogging and was clearing my backlog slowly when I stumbled up on the link to Kluless3.
For those who are new to kluless, it is a puzzle game made by students of IIMI for their annual Management Festival - IRIS. This is the third iteration of the game and it is challenging and addictive to the core.
From the moment I got the link, I started playing around with it, but my monitor decided to play the spoil sport, so i had to call it quits after level 4 (or was it 5). Today I started cracking it again during the free time and by evening, I solved all the leavles. Now i can go hoem and sleep well :)
(thanks Meena and ~nm for teh two clues :) )

If you like solving puzzles, try this - it wont disappoint you.
Try playing it, and if you stuck at any level, ask for clues :)

Monday, August 18, 2008

Horsley Hills, a trip log.

Phew! it sure feels good to be back here. I know I have been neglecting this place so long that I can almost see cow webs hanging around.

Almost one month of a crazy schedule is over, and life is back to almost normal.
I was so looking forward for this weekend to take a break, and started making plans for a three day getaway. But all the initial plans came crashing down when I realized that I had to be around here coz I might be working on Friday, so we - me and my friend Sivaram, started re planning and scouting for possible routes.
The incessant rain made it sure that most of the plans I had will not be feasible, and then I saw a thread @ BN mailing list about a ride to Horsley hills. A quick call to Vasnath and I was all set for the ride.

The grouping point was hanging bridge near KR Puram, and I reached there by 5.25. Soon one by one, the nomads started arriving and after a set of quick hellos, we started the ride. The road was good, and early morning traffic was not heavy, but once we took the turn after Hoskote to Chintamni, the roads became smooth and inviting. Every one was in the rhythm, soaking up the sweet fresh early morning air and enjoying the smooth, traffic free roads.



After a small sutta break and some more miles behind, we stopped at a small village hotel for some delicious breakfast. Soon after Chintamani, the roads stated deteriorating, and the next few kilometers where pothole filled - the road was bumpy and almost resembled a caterpillar ride in an amusement park. Once we crossed the border and entered Andhra Pradesh, the roads became butter smooth, and soon our steeds started ripping the black ribbon.



A detour en-route took us to Rishi Valley School. I fell in love with the place the moment I saw it - If I can, I want my kids to study there. Click here and read more about the school. The place is calm and quiet, serene and green.





(This snap of white Lilly is for a blogger - I remember reading in a blog the author saying her favorite flower is white Lilly - I am sorry i forgot who it was, but this is for you, my drea blogmate.)





We met some of the students and saw the display of some of their talents. Some of us (I think it was professor, but I am not sure who it was) asked "what do the students generally choose as a career once they are out of the school" and Jitu, a 7th standard student gave a prompt reply - "Something like agriculture or other options." Imagine asking the same question to a student from most of the educational institutions, and I am sure you wont come across many who have the same answer.

After spending close to two hours exploring the campus, we traced our route back to the highway and then to Horsley hills. The road was better than when I visited last time, and we didn’t waste time but started devouring the twisties soon.





After a small on-the-rocks session and enjoying 'hot' chilli bajjis, we parked our bikes and started scouting the area.
After rounding it up by a nice buffet from the AP tourism hotel, we started our journey back by 2.30. This time, we took another route - around 50 kilometers extra - one of the best decisions we took that day. The tarmac was smooth, sprinkled with lot of nice curves (yeah, I love curves - cant get them enuf.. ;) ) We took fewer breaks on the way back, and before duck, we reached Hoskote. By 7.15, I reached home (Sorry Prof - lost you in traffic between Marathally and Sarjapur junction)

A nice ride, lot of enjoyable roads, nice scenery and cool weather - what more can I ask for to take a break from the daily work grind?

Click here for the Picasa album
PS: I have not startd visiting the blogs, but will start soon...

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

grey cells


grey cells, originally uploaded by -xh- aka aNoop.

As many of you might have guessed when you see this photo blog, I am still missing from action, coz of my hectic schedule @ work.
I don't want to keep this place without any new posts, so i though why dont I make you suffer with one more of my 'creative' photograph (creative being the operative word).

ps: a huge thanks to all who did the captions - what a verity of captions - all of there where exceptional and I laught till my lugs hurt, but Tys, anonymous and G - your's where outstanding.

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Get creative...

I know itz been long time since I have visited all you pages and spammed your pages with my comments, but trust me, you wont get spared for much longer.
I am just waiting for this crazy spell at work to end (now I send so much time @ wrk that I am really thinking of getting a sleeping bag to wrk :P ) and then I will be back, spamming all you pages.

I took a much needed break last sunday, and me and my friend Jubi went for a ride to Kolar Gold Fields town and kotilingeswara temple. the ride was small, less than 230km round trip.

I will post a trip log and photos soon.
Now, I am posting a mug shot of yours truly, captured by Jubi, while I was trying to comb my hair. Go ahead and give it a tag line - funny, whacky,outlandish - get ur grey cells running, and let us have a laugh.