11/05/2004
The Da Vinci Code
Years back i had seen a mind blowing movie: JFK .. a fast paced thriller with twists and turns and they got bigger and better with a shocking conspiracy theory in the end. Yet they were based on solid facts ... The Da Vinci Code follows on the same path. The book rocks the roots of something everyone belives. This book has a different point of view on these roots and is a very interesting read. The book takes you on a beautiful paris ride. This knowledgeble book also insists time and again what i belive in: Nature is the only God.
8/15/2004
Matheran: Keep Walking
Barely 171 kms from Mumbai, Matheran, discovered by Hugh Mallet, collector of Thane district, in 1850, has long been a refuge for humidity-stricken Mumbaikars. All motor vehicles are prohibited in Matheran, so the air is squeaky clean. However the only mode of transport, other than walking, is on horseback and hand-pulled rickshaws.
Keep Walking, 2 simple words nevertheless a good quote; Inspiring words for someone who is
down...words that spring an image of mahatma Gandhi for his dandi march or the famous punch line
for Johnnie Walker. Matheran is the next best thing which justifies those 2 words. Some wise
humans decided to ban all vehicles from this hill station and make this place a paradise for
nature freaks. On a Friday night we 14 of us accompanied by a nature group called Nature Knights
set for a 2 day visit to matheran. The trip started on a hectic note as we ran to catch the CST/VT
bound train from andheri. Similarly we had to hurry and catch 10:30 Karjat bound local from
CST/VT.
Comfortably seated people had started cracking jokes, pulling legs while others tried to know the
new comers better. In the conversation i discovered that actually we were gonna drive to matheran
instead trek by foot at night. I thought i was going to miss the very thing most people come to
matheran in rainy season; to trek by foot at night. Later this turned out to be a blessing in
disguise. By 1am on saturday we had reached Neral station where Asif our leader gave a brief
introduction. A fresh deep breath gave a clear indication that we were miles away from any
polluted place.
During the nice 20 mins drive to matheran we got glimpses of milky waterfalls and foggy valleys. A
board titled "Welcome to Matheran" and under that board iron bars to prevent vehicles entering
gave me a feeling of pureness. The short walk to our woodlands resort started in the chilled air.
The fog around the neon lamps was beautiful. As we walked the neon lights ended and torches came
out. We walked and walked only to realise we had lost our way !!! The leaders forked and came back
leading us to the right way. We checked in the resort and had a quick coffee, another brief
introduction of all and we retired to bed by 3 AM but reluctantly.
Next morning we got up by 8, breakfast was ready. The aroma attracted the monkeys who captured
vantage points to make a strike at the table. A caretaker with an air rifle was posted to take
care of the monkey, but it turned futile. A smart monkey out from nowhere jumped on the table,
grabbed 2 slices of bread and then jumped again wotever came in his hands and ran away. Smart.
Really smart. Similarity with human genes was obvious here. And Greediness too.
We started out for one tree hill point and walking there would cover most of the points in
matheran. We started crossing the bazaar. Morning time was hustle bustle as one day trekkers has
also landed. There were people on horsebacks, walking thru the rail tracks, oldies preferring the
hand pulled rickshaw. Amongst the various groups the ear caught a familiar laughter. Alas it was
an old friend who had come with his office group. Meeting a friend anytime is a joy of life.
As we chugged along we let the chatter groups move ahead and preferred enjoying the silent trek.
Usually my treks are around forts, there is a destination, there is a first transport to catch and
a last transport of the day to come back; thats adventure. But there is a destination and time you
are bound to. Matheran, like the spirit of life, was more about strolling; enjoying the walk, the
nature, the chilling rain, the green grass, watching horses gallop in the fog, hear the beautiful
singing birds and enjoying the scenes around.
We reached our first point and all we could see in the valley was white milky clouds. Cameras were
out and the click click started. Someone spotted a huge mushroom and it was simply beautiful.
Assisted by enthusiasts i made it to the akward place to take pics. We moved on to a path which
was more denser and foggy.
"Hey Ghost tree, Ghost tree" someone shouted wildly. Surprisingly it was the usually cool but
observant Asif. He was pointing excitingly to a tree across the valley. By the time everyone could
get their line of sight right it became foggy. We climbed down the main road to get a clearer view
and waited. As the fog gave a slight clearance we saw was simply surreal. Definition of surreal is
"Resembling a dream" and thats wot it was all about. A long spread out tree with white barks,
green leaves sprinkled over the top was standing majestically on the edge of the valley. The brain
tried to relate it with some movie scenes but the senses advised to see what lay before us. As the
wind danced with the fog it made a circular clearance like a halo and we could just see the tree.
It was unbelievable. Wanted to pinch myself to believe it.
We moved ahead, and it started raining. Cameras were packed inside and rain gear came out. We came
across a huge horse race course and like kids we circled for no reason. After that the rain was in
its full fury and the visibility came down to 3 to 5 meters.
We came across a parsi cemetery. The adventurous decided to explore it while others stayed back.
Rain was menacing as ever. Dodging the small streams we continued walking till we reached a chai
wala. By that time everyone was shivering due to the cold rain and winds. After a long wait we got
our tea and Parle-G biscuits, an irresistible combination and a must "trekking energy supplement".
We saw some beautiful scenes at chai wala point and continued walking till One Tree Hill point.
One tree hill point was totally engulfed in the fog and the routes to it were too confusing so we
skipped it. Everyone was hungry too and we were just half way in our trek.
The chilling rain had made me a Thakur of Sholay. I was walking with my hands totally cutoff from
outside world as they retracted back in the windcheater. Slowly the rain decreased and the the fog
cleared a bit. Actually it was because we were descending the terrain. We again had a cuppa and we
reached our hotels, hungry like a wolf.
We hogged and then some decided to have a nap. Me and a few decided to just talk and enjoy the
climate. Rain on the roof was music to the ears. So were some birds whom we coudnt spot. It was
lunch time for some langurs and monkeys. My camera tried to follow them but it was in vain as they
jumped across tree branches. There was no city sound. No people in sight. World Peace Day should
be like these.
We had tea at 5 PM and we headed for Monkey Hill Point. We had no alternatives but to slip in wet
clothes as we had another day to go. The thick foliage made the evening darker. Me and asif
strolled slowly as we passed some historic bungalows of which 1 belonged to the person who built
the railway to matheran decades back. Asif and me then went into a bhoot (ghost) bungalow. It was
spooky when we saw small plants covered the rocky stairs. It looked prehistoric. We moved to
monkey hill point.
It was a fantastic site; huge expanses of land lay before us. Huge mountains could be seen at a
distance. Some got their pencils and paper and started sketching, some practiced yoga and
meditation while others like me sat on the edge and just stared. Suddenly we saw something
beautiful which was for a change not green. It was the sky with fiery colors and shades. They
changed their colors and patterns like a kaleidoscope. It was getting darker and we stared back to
our hotel.
On the way back came the irresistible bhoot bangla. Everyone went to check it out. It was really
dark but our "spirits" were high. We closely peeked into the broken windows and eventually
trespassed in the bungalow. It was damn spooooooky. The corridors led us way way deep. The
corridor was vibrating and we saw a well and shinning eyes of a fleeing cat. We took quick snaps,
ofcoz the spooky ones and quickly left the bungalow. But let me tell you that something had
grabbed us there which made me and many uneasy for a long time.
We had a nice dinner at 9 PM and it was hard to believe that we had just spent 18 hours together
in matheran, It felt like 18 days.
Asif then showed us a leech which had got in his socks. Blood sucking leech looked liked a small
slim earthworm, but its way of transport was magic. I felt something uneasy around my thigh and
decided to have a look and was shocked to see blood all over. A leech attack. Obviously a quick
pic and an education class on leech bite i went clean it with a soap and water. The blood didnt
stop oozing for around 45 mins thereafter.
After dinner we became prehistoric humans playing dumb charades. The game lasted till almost
midnight with the scores amicably settled at 1 all. Jyoti's dance clue for "" was fantastic. At
that moment a plan was devised to guess jyoti's birthday in form of a movie name. It clicked and
there was wishing, cake cutting and smearing and pics taken forever stored in time. In a very
unique way we celebrated the birthday. I retired in sometime with background of laughter and
chatter.
Day 2 had 2 purposes for everyone, return back to mumbai and take a dip any form of deluge. Sunday
had brought tons of people to the hill station and people were engrossed in all kinds of picnic
games with a innovative group who got a volley ball field ready with leaves as marking lines and a
floating plastic ball. We passed through a garden where swings and a huge slide lay rusted. We
entered into a beautiful petit tower. It had a freshly painted gate in black and the artistry on
that gate was beautiful. A recently painted tower looked a bit different which was covered with
moss all over. After some filmy pics we headed for echo point.
Echo point was engulfed in fog again and the attempts to produce an echo were futile. We moved to
Charlotte lake. We tried a shortcut which turned out to be a damp squib as we ended up walking
through thick forests and some landed up with minor injuries. Charlotte lake was totally crowded
and we didnt see any lake as it was sleeping with a blanket of fog. We went to the Pisarnath
Temple to say a hi. Coming back it was a beauty to see the fog cleared up on the lake. Some folks
even had a swim. After that we went to edge of a huge waterfall. It was risky but the scenes were
fantastic as we saw water drop down thousands of feet below us into the fog. It was again like
heaven. I spotted 2 langurs close by watching who monkeys had come there to take a cold water dip.
I took out my camera but they were distracted and they disappeared into the wilderness. DAMN.
We started back to our hotel, shopping for chikki, fudge and some footwear. Meanwhile we went to
the famous matheran toy train and took some pics. Incidentally the engine in the museum was
exactly 100 years old. A Salute to heavy engineering. We climbed into the driving seat and
realised that it was very well preserved. We walked a bit through the old railway track. Some
rails lay there rusting and blending with the red soil.
We came back to the hotel with the "oh we have to go back" feeling, had a quick lunch and left
matheran. As we came out of matheran we experienced the blissfully forgotten cars, car horns and
as the city life it was now about keep RUNNING.
In just small span of 36 hours we felt like we had spend 36 days, and friends turned out to be
friends we had never met. Nature again taught the joy of walking, slipping and falling and then
walking again. Except the television everything there reminded how it would have been a century
back, people happily and peacefully living with nature. Relearned a lesson, respect nature and in
life KEEP WALKING.
P.S. Next time i write this much i hope its about keep talking rather than keep typing.
Keep Walking, 2 simple words nevertheless a good quote; Inspiring words for someone who is
down...words that spring an image of mahatma Gandhi for his dandi march or the famous punch line
for Johnnie Walker. Matheran is the next best thing which justifies those 2 words. Some wise
humans decided to ban all vehicles from this hill station and make this place a paradise for
nature freaks. On a Friday night we 14 of us accompanied by a nature group called Nature Knights
set for a 2 day visit to matheran. The trip started on a hectic note as we ran to catch the CST/VT
bound train from andheri. Similarly we had to hurry and catch 10:30 Karjat bound local from
CST/VT.
Comfortably seated people had started cracking jokes, pulling legs while others tried to know the
new comers better. In the conversation i discovered that actually we were gonna drive to matheran
instead trek by foot at night. I thought i was going to miss the very thing most people come to
matheran in rainy season; to trek by foot at night. Later this turned out to be a blessing in
disguise. By 1am on saturday we had reached Neral station where Asif our leader gave a brief
introduction. A fresh deep breath gave a clear indication that we were miles away from any
polluted place.
During the nice 20 mins drive to matheran we got glimpses of milky waterfalls and foggy valleys. A
board titled "Welcome to Matheran" and under that board iron bars to prevent vehicles entering
gave me a feeling of pureness. The short walk to our woodlands resort started in the chilled air.
The fog around the neon lamps was beautiful. As we walked the neon lights ended and torches came
out. We walked and walked only to realise we had lost our way !!! The leaders forked and came back
leading us to the right way. We checked in the resort and had a quick coffee, another brief
introduction of all and we retired to bed by 3 AM but reluctantly.
Next morning we got up by 8, breakfast was ready. The aroma attracted the monkeys who captured
vantage points to make a strike at the table. A caretaker with an air rifle was posted to take
care of the monkey, but it turned futile. A smart monkey out from nowhere jumped on the table,
grabbed 2 slices of bread and then jumped again wotever came in his hands and ran away. Smart.
Really smart. Similarity with human genes was obvious here. And Greediness too.
We started out for one tree hill point and walking there would cover most of the points in
matheran. We started crossing the bazaar. Morning time was hustle bustle as one day trekkers has
also landed. There were people on horsebacks, walking thru the rail tracks, oldies preferring the
hand pulled rickshaw. Amongst the various groups the ear caught a familiar laughter. Alas it was
an old friend who had come with his office group. Meeting a friend anytime is a joy of life.
As we chugged along we let the chatter groups move ahead and preferred enjoying the silent trek.
Usually my treks are around forts, there is a destination, there is a first transport to catch and
a last transport of the day to come back; thats adventure. But there is a destination and time you
are bound to. Matheran, like the spirit of life, was more about strolling; enjoying the walk, the
nature, the chilling rain, the green grass, watching horses gallop in the fog, hear the beautiful
singing birds and enjoying the scenes around.
We reached our first point and all we could see in the valley was white milky clouds. Cameras were
out and the click click started. Someone spotted a huge mushroom and it was simply beautiful.
Assisted by enthusiasts i made it to the akward place to take pics. We moved on to a path which
was more denser and foggy.
"Hey Ghost tree, Ghost tree" someone shouted wildly. Surprisingly it was the usually cool but
observant Asif. He was pointing excitingly to a tree across the valley. By the time everyone could
get their line of sight right it became foggy. We climbed down the main road to get a clearer view
and waited. As the fog gave a slight clearance we saw was simply surreal. Definition of surreal is
"Resembling a dream" and thats wot it was all about. A long spread out tree with white barks,
green leaves sprinkled over the top was standing majestically on the edge of the valley. The brain
tried to relate it with some movie scenes but the senses advised to see what lay before us. As the
wind danced with the fog it made a circular clearance like a halo and we could just see the tree.
It was unbelievable. Wanted to pinch myself to believe it.
We moved ahead, and it started raining. Cameras were packed inside and rain gear came out. We came
across a huge horse race course and like kids we circled for no reason. After that the rain was in
its full fury and the visibility came down to 3 to 5 meters.
We came across a parsi cemetery. The adventurous decided to explore it while others stayed back.
Rain was menacing as ever. Dodging the small streams we continued walking till we reached a chai
wala. By that time everyone was shivering due to the cold rain and winds. After a long wait we got
our tea and Parle-G biscuits, an irresistible combination and a must "trekking energy supplement".
We saw some beautiful scenes at chai wala point and continued walking till One Tree Hill point.
One tree hill point was totally engulfed in the fog and the routes to it were too confusing so we
skipped it. Everyone was hungry too and we were just half way in our trek.
The chilling rain had made me a Thakur of Sholay. I was walking with my hands totally cutoff from
outside world as they retracted back in the windcheater. Slowly the rain decreased and the the fog
cleared a bit. Actually it was because we were descending the terrain. We again had a cuppa and we
reached our hotels, hungry like a wolf.
We hogged and then some decided to have a nap. Me and a few decided to just talk and enjoy the
climate. Rain on the roof was music to the ears. So were some birds whom we coudnt spot. It was
lunch time for some langurs and monkeys. My camera tried to follow them but it was in vain as they
jumped across tree branches. There was no city sound. No people in sight. World Peace Day should
be like these.
We had tea at 5 PM and we headed for Monkey Hill Point. We had no alternatives but to slip in wet
clothes as we had another day to go. The thick foliage made the evening darker. Me and asif
strolled slowly as we passed some historic bungalows of which 1 belonged to the person who built
the railway to matheran decades back. Asif and me then went into a bhoot (ghost) bungalow. It was
spooky when we saw small plants covered the rocky stairs. It looked prehistoric. We moved to
monkey hill point.
It was a fantastic site; huge expanses of land lay before us. Huge mountains could be seen at a
distance. Some got their pencils and paper and started sketching, some practiced yoga and
meditation while others like me sat on the edge and just stared. Suddenly we saw something
beautiful which was for a change not green. It was the sky with fiery colors and shades. They
changed their colors and patterns like a kaleidoscope. It was getting darker and we stared back to
our hotel.
On the way back came the irresistible bhoot bangla. Everyone went to check it out. It was really
dark but our "spirits" were high. We closely peeked into the broken windows and eventually
trespassed in the bungalow. It was damn spooooooky. The corridors led us way way deep. The
corridor was vibrating and we saw a well and shinning eyes of a fleeing cat. We took quick snaps,
ofcoz the spooky ones and quickly left the bungalow. But let me tell you that something had
grabbed us there which made me and many uneasy for a long time.
We had a nice dinner at 9 PM and it was hard to believe that we had just spent 18 hours together
in matheran, It felt like 18 days.
Asif then showed us a leech which had got in his socks. Blood sucking leech looked liked a small
slim earthworm, but its way of transport was magic. I felt something uneasy around my thigh and
decided to have a look and was shocked to see blood all over. A leech attack. Obviously a quick
pic and an education class on leech bite i went clean it with a soap and water. The blood didnt
stop oozing for around 45 mins thereafter.
After dinner we became prehistoric humans playing dumb charades. The game lasted till almost
midnight with the scores amicably settled at 1 all. Jyoti's dance clue for "" was fantastic. At
that moment a plan was devised to guess jyoti's birthday in form of a movie name. It clicked and
there was wishing, cake cutting and smearing and pics taken forever stored in time. In a very
unique way we celebrated the birthday. I retired in sometime with background of laughter and
chatter.
Day 2 had 2 purposes for everyone, return back to mumbai and take a dip any form of deluge. Sunday
had brought tons of people to the hill station and people were engrossed in all kinds of picnic
games with a innovative group who got a volley ball field ready with leaves as marking lines and a
floating plastic ball. We passed through a garden where swings and a huge slide lay rusted. We
entered into a beautiful petit tower. It had a freshly painted gate in black and the artistry on
that gate was beautiful. A recently painted tower looked a bit different which was covered with
moss all over. After some filmy pics we headed for echo point.
Echo point was engulfed in fog again and the attempts to produce an echo were futile. We moved to
Charlotte lake. We tried a shortcut which turned out to be a damp squib as we ended up walking
through thick forests and some landed up with minor injuries. Charlotte lake was totally crowded
and we didnt see any lake as it was sleeping with a blanket of fog. We went to the Pisarnath
Temple to say a hi. Coming back it was a beauty to see the fog cleared up on the lake. Some folks
even had a swim. After that we went to edge of a huge waterfall. It was risky but the scenes were
fantastic as we saw water drop down thousands of feet below us into the fog. It was again like
heaven. I spotted 2 langurs close by watching who monkeys had come there to take a cold water dip.
I took out my camera but they were distracted and they disappeared into the wilderness. DAMN.
We started back to our hotel, shopping for chikki, fudge and some footwear. Meanwhile we went to
the famous matheran toy train and took some pics. Incidentally the engine in the museum was
exactly 100 years old. A Salute to heavy engineering. We climbed into the driving seat and
realised that it was very well preserved. We walked a bit through the old railway track. Some
rails lay there rusting and blending with the red soil.
We came back to the hotel with the "oh we have to go back" feeling, had a quick lunch and left
matheran. As we came out of matheran we experienced the blissfully forgotten cars, car horns and
as the city life it was now about keep RUNNING.
In just small span of 36 hours we felt like we had spend 36 days, and friends turned out to be
friends we had never met. Nature again taught the joy of walking, slipping and falling and then
walking again. Except the television everything there reminded how it would have been a century
back, people happily and peacefully living with nature. Relearned a lesson, respect nature and in
life KEEP WALKING.
P.S. Next time i write this much i hope its about keep talking rather than keep typing.
7/18/2004
Karnala Trek
Last sunday i went to Karnala Trek (Pics), Karnala is a bird sanctuary and fort just an hour drive from mumbai. Nature Knights has arranged the trek and it was nice meeting new people. With 45 of us talking and trekking, the birds decided to have a peaceful sunday and disappeared. Usually bird watching is done early morning and late evenings and in groups of max 10 ppl. So started the rocky & muddy trek. We started at around 9 am and reached on top at around 12. Actually it takes around 90 mins but we went out of way trying to spot a langur, watching small inects and spiders and snails. Also stopped at the plateau where we could see for miles and enjoy the cool cool breeze. From here we could had the first glimpse of the fort.
The fort is almost 1000 yrs old now and was actually a vantage point. You could see 15 KMs in all directions on a clear day. The fort has actually 2 parts, the fortifications or the walls and the 2nd were water tanks carved out in the mountain. Such tanks are common in the forts around here. The tanks had the perfect geometry which showed the skills and vision of its makers.
The pinnacle itself was 150 feet high and it could be scaled only via ropes and climbing gear.
There was a narrow opening between 2 pinnacles and the feeling there was unbelivable. Soft white clouds were squeezing through that opening and caressing our face. From the top all u could see were white white clouds and the only distracting thing you could see were ur eyelids. As the clouds cleared you could see the land below and that view was breathtaking.
Lastly we came down had lunch while it was raining and went to a waterfall. Though the waterfall could accomodate only 2 at a time we had fun there. Some enthusiasts went on top of the waterfall to make some temporary embankments to assure a good flow of water.
After that i had the tea in one of the most beautiful surroundings, made beside the water streams on a portable cylinder. Eveyone chose a nice rock to sit on and some ensured the monkeys didnt bother us.
By 8 PM i was home with loads of pictures, a sweet pain in my muscles and small plastic bits which were securely tugged in my pocket during the trek.
Long Live Nature
The fort is almost 1000 yrs old now and was actually a vantage point. You could see 15 KMs in all directions on a clear day. The fort has actually 2 parts, the fortifications or the walls and the 2nd were water tanks carved out in the mountain. Such tanks are common in the forts around here. The tanks had the perfect geometry which showed the skills and vision of its makers.
The pinnacle itself was 150 feet high and it could be scaled only via ropes and climbing gear.
There was a narrow opening between 2 pinnacles and the feeling there was unbelivable. Soft white clouds were squeezing through that opening and caressing our face. From the top all u could see were white white clouds and the only distracting thing you could see were ur eyelids. As the clouds cleared you could see the land below and that view was breathtaking.
Lastly we came down had lunch while it was raining and went to a waterfall. Though the waterfall could accomodate only 2 at a time we had fun there. Some enthusiasts went on top of the waterfall to make some temporary embankments to assure a good flow of water.
After that i had the tea in one of the most beautiful surroundings, made beside the water streams on a portable cylinder. Eveyone chose a nice rock to sit on and some ensured the monkeys didnt bother us.
By 8 PM i was home with loads of pictures, a sweet pain in my muscles and small plastic bits which were securely tugged in my pocket during the trek.
Long Live Nature
7/03/2004
Copyright = Right to Copy
I got an exciting SMS from makrand when he saw himself in a newspaper pic. I had taken this photograph at Sanjay Gandhi National Park, Mumbai and it was published in Maharashta Times dated 28 June 2004. But no mention of my name or any mention of the true place. Infact they misled it to some other place.
They have completely ignored the copyrights notice on my site. Thinking about writing a letter to the editor.
Had another feast at Tunga Paradise yesterday
They have completely ignored the copyrights notice on my site. Thinking about writing a letter to the editor.
Had another feast at Tunga Paradise yesterday
6/28/2004
Game, Set, Match Ivanisevic
Everything about him was different. Right from his name his 2nd name his superstitions his view of the game and life, his one liners & sense of humour and ofcoz his serves. His last wimbledon win was the last full tennis match i watched. He was the only wildcard entry to win wimbledon. He once commented in a press conf. "I can go on the women's tour with this second serve.". People loved him in 2 ways. they loved him or they loved hating him.
I have spent countless hours arguing abt his serves and his game. If ever i wanted to look like someone it would be him ;)
The only news he made this year was announcing his retirement. Frankly he said after bidding a farewell "no more painkillers and no more early mornings".
People, take a bow
I have spent countless hours arguing abt his serves and his game. If ever i wanted to look like someone it would be him ;)
The only news he made this year was announcing his retirement. Frankly he said after bidding a farewell "no more painkillers and no more early mornings".
People, take a bow
6/25/2004
Way to go Prez
Why do you have this hairstyle?
The hair grows.
thats the answer from the same guy who saved the career of a hapless student when the student mailed him.
The above answer was given during a question answer session by our prez, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam with school children.
Some of his answers were practical and inspiring. Its great to see a president fuel dreams into young developing minds.
Here are a few interesting QAs:
Who will you make the next President?
YOU, and you get ready.
There is always a woman behind a successful man. Who is responsible for your success?
God Almighty.
aint he practical ;)
Please share with us any of your happy and enthralling moments.
Once I was watching some polio-affected children walking with heavy calipers (artificial limbs), which weighed around three kg.
They found these very difficult to carry. One of my friends, a doctor, asked me why we couldn’t use some of the light-weight material used in missiles for making light-weight calipers.
This was quite an idea, and our team made the light-weight calipers, weighing 300 gm, within 10 days. These were fitted to those children. They started riding bicycles, running and jumping in great joy. It made me happy.
Way to go prez
Full article is at http://ww1.mid-day.com/smd/play/2004/june/85545.htm
The hair grows.
thats the answer from the same guy who saved the career of a hapless student when the student mailed him.
The above answer was given during a question answer session by our prez, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam with school children.
Some of his answers were practical and inspiring. Its great to see a president fuel dreams into young developing minds.
Here are a few interesting QAs:
Who will you make the next President?
YOU, and you get ready.
There is always a woman behind a successful man. Who is responsible for your success?
God Almighty.
aint he practical ;)
Please share with us any of your happy and enthralling moments.
Once I was watching some polio-affected children walking with heavy calipers (artificial limbs), which weighed around three kg.
They found these very difficult to carry. One of my friends, a doctor, asked me why we couldn’t use some of the light-weight material used in missiles for making light-weight calipers.
This was quite an idea, and our team made the light-weight calipers, weighing 300 gm, within 10 days. These were fitted to those children. They started riding bicycles, running and jumping in great joy. It made me happy.
Way to go prez
Full article is at http://ww1.mid-day.com/smd/play/2004/june/85545.htm
6/22/2004
Working Class Hero
John Lennon said "When they've tortured and scared you for twenty-odd years, Then they expect you to pick a career" in an amazing song called Working Class Hero. Though the song has such hard hitting lyrics this story resembles nothing described in it.
There are few days and i mean very few in my (and yours too if ur reading from ur office) life when there is absolutely no work. I mean ABSOLUTELY NO WORK.
No coding, no compiling, no design review, no designing, no code reviews, meetings, discussions, patching, delivering, commenting, testing. You report report to no1 and no1 reports to you. N O T H I N G.
And with this heavenly fact you wake up in the morning. In fact its an inspiration. You cant sleep well coz of this thought. The world looks happy and chipry. You smile and are courteous to even strangers. You dont command anything to any1, u are humble in every possible way.
You land in the office early and you dont check mails, don't check any WBS, yeah i mean its a different day, u dont want to do things which remind you of work days. (A work mail can ruin your morning you know).
Then every hour you go for social errands, smiling n greeting every1, asking abt their life and people arnd them. They feel good, they think "oh what a nice guy" .. and i say the same to myself only replacing nice with smart.
Lunch is long and heavy and so is the walk after that. Noon goes slowly, time doesnt pass, more social errands. You loiter in the canteen or in the gym. You have couple of extra coffee cups and out from nowhere comes the project manager crying out "Amit you will have to ...". (If u are sad at this point u are a working class hero).
Anyways i was kidding, the day just goes on and you suddenly say hey its the longest day in northern hemisphere, lets reach home when there is light. And with some previous experiences of Last minute work coming in ur mind, you run out of the office and enjoy rest of the day. You reach home to relive the office day.
There are few days and i mean very few in my (and yours too if ur reading from ur office) life when there is absolutely no work. I mean ABSOLUTELY NO WORK.
No coding, no compiling, no design review, no designing, no code reviews, meetings, discussions, patching, delivering, commenting, testing. You report report to no1 and no1 reports to you. N O T H I N G.
And with this heavenly fact you wake up in the morning. In fact its an inspiration. You cant sleep well coz of this thought. The world looks happy and chipry. You smile and are courteous to even strangers. You dont command anything to any1, u are humble in every possible way.
You land in the office early and you dont check mails, don't check any WBS, yeah i mean its a different day, u dont want to do things which remind you of work days. (A work mail can ruin your morning you know).
Then every hour you go for social errands, smiling n greeting every1, asking abt their life and people arnd them. They feel good, they think "oh what a nice guy" .. and i say the same to myself only replacing nice with smart.
Lunch is long and heavy and so is the walk after that. Noon goes slowly, time doesnt pass, more social errands. You loiter in the canteen or in the gym. You have couple of extra coffee cups and out from nowhere comes the project manager crying out "Amit you will have to ...". (If u are sad at this point u are a working class hero).
Anyways i was kidding, the day just goes on and you suddenly say hey its the longest day in northern hemisphere, lets reach home when there is light. And with some previous experiences of Last minute work coming in ur mind, you run out of the office and enjoy rest of the day. You reach home to relive the office day.
6/19/2004
Pothole Theorem
Theorem: Irrespective of the diameter, depth and the distance of a (smart) human from the pothole, the water displaced can be disastrous for extremely higher values of vehicle weight and lighter shades of trousers.
Potholes are the accidental human creations on a intentional creation called roads and they become polymorphic when they are filled with brown muddy rainwater. Recently we friends had been to a dinner part at goa portuguesa and i was waiting for shyam was coming to pick me up. Just meters away from the place where i was standing i saw a pothole and immediately moved to a "safe distance" .. but then something happened which made me derive the above theorem.
Anyways the dinner was as always great, the cusine at goa portuguesa is exteremly impressive and they have a menu card which is categorised by south indian states.
The cusine, Crab Papad and live music requests make this place quite unique.
Potholes are the accidental human creations on a intentional creation called roads and they become polymorphic when they are filled with brown muddy rainwater. Recently we friends had been to a dinner part at goa portuguesa and i was waiting for shyam was coming to pick me up. Just meters away from the place where i was standing i saw a pothole and immediately moved to a "safe distance" .. but then something happened which made me derive the above theorem.
Anyways the dinner was as always great, the cusine at goa portuguesa is exteremly impressive and they have a menu card which is categorised by south indian states.
The cusine, Crab Papad and live music requests make this place quite unique.
6/17/2004
AAAaaaaa raaaa laaaaa eeeeee HAHAHA wuUUUu waaAAAA
Well im not dozing on the keyboard but something i heard remixed with birds chirping this monday morning. There was some deja vu .. ummm arnd mid june, pouring rains and noises, high pitched, enthusiastic and shrilling noises !! it was a school bus passing by, Ahaa it was 14th June, the (not so) glorious day when school reopens in this part of the world. It used to be a mixed feeling then. Getting up early and homeworks used to be a pain.
But then again the joy of everything new was unmatched. I realised other than marriage, there is no other period in life where you can buy everything BRAND NEW. New books, new uniforms, shoes, socks, pens, pencils everything. Nothing is old. Not even yourself. (Atleast for the first week ;)).
"Shopping Bonanza" starts a week before. Wherever you go, you realise parents are shopping as if its the armageddon. Kids want the best, more, anything old is waste.
The smell of new books are drugs then. You start conquering the world goin thru geography books and "I SEE DEAD PEOPLE" in history books.
Brown traingular shaped paper cuts are lying everywhere as parents cover the books nicely whereas you are busy deciding which book gets the HeMan, Orko stickers and who gets the skeletor stickers. Personal care and attention is given covering the Physics Chemistry books and it dies as Maths book comein (irrespective when their chance comes ;)).
Your identity is stamped on every possible thing.
First week its all about being a good boy. You pack your bags properly. You dont forget anybook and are neatly lined up neatly in ur bag. Textbooks(read write) on one side and Notebooks (write read) on another.
Your new class and the floor are the earliest discussions with your friends. You proudly approach your classroom with your eyes firmly fixed on "STANDARD/GRADE" board. You feel on top of the word and good that you have climbed 1 definite step in life. You arnt nostalgic about your previous class/past as i am now. Nobody is discussing about their vacations but showing off their new pen, waterbag or something. Introduction to new class friends is out of question. Heck you even wave with apprehension to your old friends. You are perfectly fine the moment you see your only "best friend" (who is actually your bench partner of your previous year) . Class teacher and ur bench partner are the things you eagerly wait for. The first thing you see in your timetable are the games and club periods. You pray for an empty saturday coloumn.
And then the school takes its monotonous way and life is never the same until the next vacation or June.
And that my friend is the school life of the 80s. High Hopes and High Apprehension. No damn worry of the money which bought all the brand new things. Parents are angels taken for granted who bring everything for you on the platter and then probably go back to work, back in their own world, handling work pressures and then u see them back home enthusiatically running after you to get the homework done.
Life has some really beautiful lessons which no class or teacher will teach. Everyone learns and teaches, not neccesarily in the same order. Hope i have taken ur heart for a nice little ride.
But then again the joy of everything new was unmatched. I realised other than marriage, there is no other period in life where you can buy everything BRAND NEW. New books, new uniforms, shoes, socks, pens, pencils everything. Nothing is old. Not even yourself. (Atleast for the first week ;)).
"Shopping Bonanza" starts a week before. Wherever you go, you realise parents are shopping as if its the armageddon. Kids want the best, more, anything old is waste.
The smell of new books are drugs then. You start conquering the world goin thru geography books and "I SEE DEAD PEOPLE" in history books.
Brown traingular shaped paper cuts are lying everywhere as parents cover the books nicely whereas you are busy deciding which book gets the HeMan, Orko stickers and who gets the skeletor stickers. Personal care and attention is given covering the Physics Chemistry books and it dies as Maths book comein (irrespective when their chance comes ;)).
Your identity is stamped on every possible thing.
First week its all about being a good boy. You pack your bags properly. You dont forget anybook and are neatly lined up neatly in ur bag. Textbooks(read write) on one side and Notebooks (write read) on another.
Your new class and the floor are the earliest discussions with your friends. You proudly approach your classroom with your eyes firmly fixed on "STANDARD/GRADE" board. You feel on top of the word and good that you have climbed 1 definite step in life. You arnt nostalgic about your previous class/past as i am now. Nobody is discussing about their vacations but showing off their new pen, waterbag or something. Introduction to new class friends is out of question. Heck you even wave with apprehension to your old friends. You are perfectly fine the moment you see your only "best friend" (who is actually your bench partner of your previous year) . Class teacher and ur bench partner are the things you eagerly wait for. The first thing you see in your timetable are the games and club periods. You pray for an empty saturday coloumn.
And then the school takes its monotonous way and life is never the same until the next vacation or June.
And that my friend is the school life of the 80s. High Hopes and High Apprehension. No damn worry of the money which bought all the brand new things. Parents are angels taken for granted who bring everything for you on the platter and then probably go back to work, back in their own world, handling work pressures and then u see them back home enthusiatically running after you to get the homework done.
Life has some really beautiful lessons which no class or teacher will teach. Everyone learns and teaches, not neccesarily in the same order. Hope i have taken ur heart for a nice little ride.
6/12/2004
All for one
This blog has taken the course of my 10 yr old diary ... suddenly loads of empty pages ... but ill make it up, using a typical software process documentation format.
-
I got a chance to travel a part of bandra worli sea link. The road looks like a mumbai pune expressway and you get to see a new view of mumbai, looks good. - Anirudh's bike was stolen only to be found the next day. Three cheers to mumbai police. Sadly its now stuck forever in all paper work and formalities.
- Traditional day at office was a nice change.
-
More Work -
A SKY TRAIN gets a green signal in Andheri !! Coool -
I transfer list of friends ph. num. to my mobile by sending SMS to my mobile via Yahoo messenger ;) .. no more buying some expensive cable -
Still more work -
I opt out from a trek .. decide to take rest -
Again enjoying these digestive pills called Havaban Harde. Havaban means Air Arrows ;) -
Updated my site. added some new personal pics -
As always didnt miss the Cover Story on Star TV. Vir Sanghvi still takes beautiful interviews. Makes himself & the celebrity guest look like a common man and talks casually abt their lives. In a recent SHANKAR, EHSAN, LOY interview i came to know that a mock Woodstock happened in borivali national park ... man i missed it coz i wasnt even born then !! but thanks to that fest, LOY met EHSAN and they sure make some good music. Btw did u know shankar mahadevan is a comp. engineer who once worked for Oracle -
Talking about music we were listening to "Mann ki lagan" by rahat fateh ali khan, nephew of nausrat fateh ali khan(NFAK). Listening to that music in the car was just a terrific feeling. Being in the music mood i downloaded Passion by ravi shankar, NFAK and peter gabriel, NFAK sure knows how to sing pain !! -
Downloaded recent Aerosmith album Honkin' on Bobo .. Jazz Rocks !! -
I missed the venus transit, didnt have any tool. But lucky are the people who got to saw this gorgeous cloudy venus transit view -
Mom showed me an article in Lokprabha (Career Spl.) abt Rajesh Joshi and Nikhil Gupte's
Auriga Logic, where i used to work till last year.
Marathi article is here
Also there is a v good article by rajesh which throws light on many diff things. Some tips for young entrepeneurs
All the best guys .. hope u get more n more good business.
am missing things @ auriga from participation in major decisions to uploading office furniture in trucks
5/30/2004
Three One Zero Zero
Finally i bought the Nokia 3100 mobile for 6100 Rs, preferring it over 3510i. It took 1 whole day and a zerox of a PAN card and Voter Identity Card to get the SIM working. Of the choice of numbers i had, i took the one which ended with 355 as it was simpler of the lot and there is a Ferrari 355.
Coming back to the title i wonder why are these mobile numbers spelled as three one zero zero instead of three thousand one hundred or something ? Is it for standardi(z/s)ation of numbers across the world ?. All our school life we learnt india's population was touching 100 crores while in the west india was touching 1 billion.
How long before a generation starts using a standard number format.
Anyways the mobile is cool and as a true geek i RTFM and it has some cool features and a bit of phosphorescence (i love to type his word, prolly coz few words this long are spelled confidently ;)). While using the various menus i realised the much hardwork and design process done behind the scenes to make it look so easy. i have been working on Swing and its quite a challenge to get user friendly graphical screens (GUI) in the first shot.
5/27/2004
Vacation Affair
Whenever im home alone, i am naturally expected to b extra cautious abt door locks, cooking gas, electricity and one thing i always forget watering plants. Watering skips my mind coz i dont do it everyday. But when i do realise it for the first time i feel very bad and i regularly water them. In the silent home they are the only other signs of life (creepy crawlers dont count as i hate all of them). Suddenly a close bond is built and u just feel good. The reason to feel good is either beacuse there is a sense of company or you feel a bit pampered/proud as ur sustaining life. Hopefully it should be the former one.
Talking about water, there comes a "oh-i-have-heared-this-song-but-cant-recollect-but-why-is-it-sounding-so-beautiful-now" situation. This happened last week in office when i heared BADALON SE KAAT KAR from SATYA. The song, lyrics and specially the guitar fillers are amazing. Songs like these take a backseat as other catchy/radio-friendly songs become famous. Music by SANDEEP CHOWTA and BHUPINDER's Voice is great and his background score for the film is just terrific. I recall similarly i started liking "chup ke chup ke" from Pardes and "ae ajnabi" from Dil Se months after the movie was released
Also caught up with films like Three to Tango (Matthew "chandler" Perry's timing is too good) and Catch me If You Can ... the story is great; leo, tom and steven have nothing new to show. Leo, shown as a minor reminds of this brilliant performance in an equally brilliant movie What's Eating Gilbert Grape
I end my day as i still ponder how discovery channel did research and made a docu. on hippo dung supported ecosystem ....
5/25/2004
Enlightenment
Weekend was boring as i had to wash all my clothes, but then i said i have a FULLY automatic washing machine (FAWM). FAWM DRIES clothes too (marketing gimmick). But actually it does not. I had to dry the clothes the natural way. I knew this but now i was enlightened as my back got a tuff workout. We need better definations.
Of many interesting dreams, i saw one where no one else than BIG B (** Link says is doin 13 pictures this year !!!!) had come as a sales person. He showed me a cool fashion utility. He had customisable hair. He just pulled his hair out, shortened its length, arranged them, caurled them, changed colors, mixed them, made beckham designs. COOOL !! *thinks abt patents*
Another dream i saw i had a an umbrella which could be converted to a bike. I always think why did i dream this. I think the silly BATA HARRY POTTER ADV is the root cause.
In Short:
I met a certain friend miss X after a long longg time.
I saw a cool docu abt Hong Kong Int Airport, the 2nd man made structure visible from space. Man they now make pre fabriacated underwater tunnels like pipes.
Saw Beautiful Mind and meet the parents again
I went to shop for mobile only to return empty handed again. I take eternity to buy electronic gadgets. But im buying nokia 3250, the cheapest color display mobile. Cam mobile looks too useless and costly.
** As always im still completely amazed at IMDB's database.
5/22/2004
In the still of the night ...
Being home alone, i had to carry operation dinner out and as always my old adda buddies Anirudh and Shyam joined in. After a nice prawn masala and rice we went back to enjoy the still of the night. A stone bench under a rain tree and right behind a bus stop was a perfect spot. Parked Fiero and Bullet had almost disappeared in the darkness as we talked about anirudh's goa trip and about future (read marriage). Shyam as always talked about his only love (read mercedes). I said its a long time since we had a vacation and planned about planning a vacation ;). For an hour we talked abt old stuff the old days. Its beautful talking when there is no one on the road, its silent, all rain tree leaves are sleeping and its just us talking at 1 in the morning.
5/19/2004
Tale of 2 cities and 2 trains
"2951 Dn Mumbai Delhi Rajdhani Express platform number teen par se char baj ke pach pan minute par ravane hone ki sambhavna (!!) hai" ... cried the electronically recorded voice from a loudspeaker which was fighting with other acoustic waves of a huge TV crying out that sonia had declined to be the PM. People of all shapes and sizes and all the possible shapes & sizes a body (while lying down) could make were watching the TV. Its always been fabulous observing people on these railway terminals, gathered for a moment; destined to part forever.
The other exiting part was to get up close and personal with rajdhani express, the one time pride of biggest employer in the world, indian railways. And there she came like a lady in red, slowly. The new bogies made me feel that yes this is one great looking train you can find in india .. perfect from outside .. until i went inside. it was a complete disappointment. The door was narrower than normal, so was the gangway, the door didnt open fully, . some lights were not working. the only god thing was that it had soft cushion tiers, reading light, working AC and really clean. But it missed the smell and dead silence of a normal non AC train. the voices inside them are loud and it is so dead that u dont feel this thing will ever move. This is the essence of starting a train journey in india.
Anyways as the train left everyone including the guard and pantry guys eye locked to see if some one would wave them a goodbye. just anyone. for a sec they wanted to be connected with someone.
The train had left the platform.
With hours to kill i went to do some photography shopping in town (VT/CST and Churchgate). They still fascinate me because everything good and famous and historical is just 5 to 10 mins apart. There are lots of open spaces, the famous zebra crossing which defines mumbai's lifestyle. Those historical buildings, their architecture, the lion statues, the weathercock. The old british style buildings, the buzz, the hurry. I looked like a newcomer as i gazed and relived those places.
Peeking inside the GPO (General Post Office) was creepy. The unpainted walls, the darkness, the lifelessness depicted perfectly how i use snail mail today. Things have changed big time for my kind of generation.
Roaming here are there i caught some never before seen things like a coin seller bragging a huge 50RS coin from 1970s, people cleaning a garbage truck, a money change machine and women at railway ticket counters. It was all new to me as it had been long since i wandered in the heart of mumbai.
As i went back to catch my train i had to wade in a huge crowd which had gathered around the huge TV watching the various MP's trying to coax sonia to become the PM. Sonia had made life rough bowling her "doosra". Polictics and Cricket remained the greatest pastimes of ordinary indians.
Then came the other pastime, the local train journey. As expected there was entertainment as a drunkard entered and started narrating his "movie script". "AAp hamare GODi mein hai" was his film title. As always the tired but tolerant passengers had a good time teasing the poor fellow.
So this one day office leave after 8 whole months went perfectly as after a long time i felt like another common man living another common life.
5/13/2004
Veterans Shinning ...
2 Veterans have given me tremors in the last 2 days, the bearable tremor is the rise of "6 feet under" Congress ... the ground shaking termor was when dad showed me the new branded jeans he had brought ... not only he debuts in buying one, he spend enuf that i could have got him 2. im ashamed to an extent. He already has shown interest in my branded shoes (read washed, cleaned and tested). Dad is all set to look "Corporate-manager-on-a-vacation" in his coming trip.
Coming back to the other tremor, it was nice to see vajpayee's "... but India won" speech, this man deserves my respect. one of the Few good men. Talked all about the good things which india went through. Great attitude. We need more people like him.
Also it was nice to see the ever cool Rahul Gandhi wishing all the best for Vajpayee, shaking hands with the media people and apologising for being a pain. Man this person should be in PR. No doubt everyone is looking him as a future political biggie.
Also i noticed a minor stat in my office: more people interested in polictics than cricket.
This also reminds me of my engineering days where everyone scored well in exams. today seems to be that day for congress.
I think its time i start DLogging: logging my dreams; Yest i had one where poisonous species of reptiles were mutated to bite and make the other species non poisonous .. hmmmmm
Thats it for now while i tease my mom with "Sonia" is going to be .... while another proud son & mom rejoice, relive and contemplate their long long political saga .....
I hope india really wins ....
5/11/2004
Microsoft bolt works perfectly with microsoft nut
this aint about elections (though i would love to talk abt how cyber naidu was hacked) , its abt some basic rights in the internet world which is going to affect everyone who is reading this sooner or later. Seems india has decided to take on the goliath Apple (wish yashodhan was online to tell me wots happening inside apple) by releasing a software which makes u listen to iTunes (iTunes is for Apple what mp3 is for well .. everyone) on any OS.
Where india comes here is that the software required to do this is currently available ONLY on servers located in India. They are back again after they took down the sw when apple sent them a legal a month back.
Those who are still with me here and still are confused what the heck im talking abt here is the rundown in nice "Navneet 21 question answer set" format
1. SW Giants for their own business interests have started introducing DRM in their software which works in hand with their hardware.
2. purpose of DRM is to lock users .... in car language: Tyre type abc will only fit with CAR TYPE xyz and nothing else ... or microsoft nut will only work with microsoft bolt .... u buy 1 u get locked in the other
3. Noble , freedom loving people continously try to anti-DRM such stuff so that they become univeral and compatible.
Still confused ?? then u deserve a F (Imagine ur under 14 and its 30th April)
5/10/2004
In a blink on an eye u finally see the rain
A day since i claimed the sultry mumbai and it started raining arnd midnight .. so i have finally put on some clothes ... it was a cool day ... released my module of our project .. wondered about the long list to movies i have to catch up on .. namely meenaxi, maqbool, chameli, passion of yesu krist .. couple of mohan kapoor movies ... my next month's vacation will be decided this week ... have my fingers crossed ... and as my diary this blog seems to get boring .. so i better halt
5/09/2004
So so hot !!
Finally i can associate myself with something happening at Lakme India Fashon Week ... am dwelling in bare necessary clothes .. last 3 days in mumbai have never been so hot and sultry and draining.
can exactly tell u the last date when mumbai got so hot ... i just need to get my hands on that table fan bill. But i can assure you it was around 10 years back.
Which also reminds me of Madna and the only novel i have read in the last decade. First 2 words in the novel are enuf to keep you hooked all the way...
can exactly tell u the last date when mumbai got so hot ... i just need to get my hands on that table fan bill. But i can assure you it was around 10 years back.
Which also reminds me of Madna and the only novel i have read in the last decade. First 2 words in the novel are enuf to keep you hooked all the way...
Another one bites the dust...
Another one bites the dust ... have decided to start logging ... err blogging (sorry for the weekday coding reminiscences). This is almost ten years since i started maintaining a diary. But in a year the stint was over as laziness won again.
I was not goin to start blogging till i got a good voice to text software. But finally looking at my bro's blog i have given in.
so stay tuned err logged ..
I was not goin to start blogging till i got a good voice to text software. But finally looking at my bro's blog i have given in.
so stay tuned err logged ..
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