It doesn’t matter how much or what you have in life. What matters is what you do with it.
– Kevin Green Hyd. Thursday, November 16, 2006
– Kevin Green Hyd. Thursday, November 16, 2006
Monday, December 04, 2006
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
MY NEW FIREFOX MOUNTAIN BIKE
On Saturday 4th Nov 2006, I acquired myself one of these babies.
From the "Full-Sus Range" check out more at http://www.firefoxbikes.com/
Light-weight yet tough, with a 21 speed gear-box.
Imported from Korea and assembled here in India. Rides like a dream, and attracts a lot of attention from youngsters who wonder how this fat uncle came by something so sexy.
Friday, October 13, 2006
PAPIKONDA WILDLIFE SANCTUARY OCT 2006
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KOLLERU BIRD SANCTUARY OCT 2006
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Sunday, October 08, 2006
Camera Advice
The other day my cousin Cynarra emailed me to say her trusty Canon PowerShot was misbehaving and that it was now time to repurchase.
Her question was specifically seeking advice on whether to go for a D-SLR or just stay with the higher end point-and-shoot models.
Some of my other friends too have also asked me similar questions in the past, so I’ll attempt to answer that here, and pre-empt you from asking me in the future.
I think before deciding what to buy, you need to ask yourself some basic questions :
A) What is the intended use ? [ Birthdays, general use, business field-reporting, serious amateur use or professional etc ]
B) How far do you want to go with your camera / hobby ? [ Fiddle around with it once a month, take it to the next level, produce fine-art prints, share over the internet etc ]
C) How much are you willing to spend ?
While most camera and optic systems today cost far less than they did say 10 years ago, it might still be worthwhile fixing a ceiling limit to how much you wish to spend.
Given the bewildering options available, and what each camera manufacturer wants to promote as a “killer-feature”, stay focused on your specific need. Besides, they keep improving on technology every 18 months. So it never ends.
Some of the common questions people ask me :
a) How many Mega Pixels is good ?
b) Should it be able to record VDO ?
c) Which brand ?
If you’ve successfully and truthfully answered the self-questions earlier, it becomes easier to decide. For instance, general-use and occasions etc don’t warrant more than 4 MegaPixels.
The thumb rule is more mega pixels [ MP ], more the memory requirement for each image.
And if your intended use is for shaing over email / internet, you don’t want huge files clogging peoples mail boxes. Each MP is roughly half an MB [ Mega Byte ] unless you resize and save it in a smaller form.
Besides, most peoples monitors are set at 1024x768 screen resolution, so anything more than that is a waste. Also, if you wish to take domestic sized prints of a size like 4x6 [ generally acceptable ], you would get the desired results.
Now coming to VDO. I am of the personal view that still images and moving images are inherently different both from the technical angle as well as their subsequent usage, and should be treated and handled differently. [Which is why camcorders were invented in the first place.] So without going into the myriad world of screen size ratios, PAL/ SECAM standards, movie file formats, bit-streaming, vdo codecs and cross compatibility, I’d say don’t go there. Buy a camcorder separately.
But if you have to; and simply MUST HAVE that awesome moment of when the knife slices through the cake [ or someone’s throat ], then just do it.
Now the all important question of which brand.
In my opinion, we all have personal brand preferences, and no matter what you tell someone, they are pretty much pre-programmed towards one rather than the other for a host of reasons.
So I’m not going to open up a discussion with Hasselblad Vs Canon Vs Nikon Vs Olympus Vs Minolta Vs Sony. So just do whatever works for you, and go with whichever matches your needs and personal preferences.
Now for those of you who are planning to upgrade from point and shoot to D-SLR, my personal experience has been like this.
SLR offers you the greatest control over the results, and is personally very rewarding. It can be very exciting, the learning curve is long and deeply satisfying.
Entry cost can be high [ starting at Rs 40,000 to 50,000 ] and this may be only for the body and maybe an additional kit-lens to get you started.
Additional accessories can set you back a fair amount. Eg
- Prime lenses [ at the wide or telephoto end ] approx Rs 10,000 to 25,000, you’ll want at least one wide and one tele.
- A respectable speedlite is another Rs 25,000
- And between Rs 8,000 to 15,000 for additional soft boxes if you intend doing any indoor/studio work.
- A light meter [ if you want to be a purist, though most cameras now have a reasonably good one built in ] this could be another Rs 15,000
- A remote “plunger” for those night shots [ must have ] which cost another Rs 5000.
- A reasonably good tripod will come for another Rs 1500 to 2000.
- Then we have filters with another Rs 2000 each.
- Spare batteries, chargers and memory cards another Rs 5000
- A kit bag to dump all this stuff into another Rs 3000
Overall, the camera body is just the beginning of the story. Do the math.
I don’t mean to scare you, or to make it sound like you need to get all geeky and into gadgetry. Its just that as you progress, your needs WILL expand, and you WILL be confronted with these decisions at a later stage. Might as well you know it now, and choose wisely.
[ I’ve been evaluating which of my lesser vital organs I can sell to fund my studio expansion ] Ha ha, don’t be such a pussy and get scared off so easily
.
After all, at the end of the day if you don’t have a passion, where’s the fun in life ?….
Her question was specifically seeking advice on whether to go for a D-SLR or just stay with the higher end point-and-shoot models.
Some of my other friends too have also asked me similar questions in the past, so I’ll attempt to answer that here, and pre-empt you from asking me in the future.
I think before deciding what to buy, you need to ask yourself some basic questions :
A) What is the intended use ? [ Birthdays, general use, business field-reporting, serious amateur use or professional etc ]
B) How far do you want to go with your camera / hobby ? [ Fiddle around with it once a month, take it to the next level, produce fine-art prints, share over the internet etc ]
C) How much are you willing to spend ?
While most camera and optic systems today cost far less than they did say 10 years ago, it might still be worthwhile fixing a ceiling limit to how much you wish to spend.
Given the bewildering options available, and what each camera manufacturer wants to promote as a “killer-feature”, stay focused on your specific need. Besides, they keep improving on technology every 18 months. So it never ends.
Some of the common questions people ask me :
a) How many Mega Pixels is good ?
b) Should it be able to record VDO ?
c) Which brand ?
If you’ve successfully and truthfully answered the self-questions earlier, it becomes easier to decide. For instance, general-use and occasions etc don’t warrant more than 4 MegaPixels.
The thumb rule is more mega pixels [ MP ], more the memory requirement for each image.
And if your intended use is for shaing over email / internet, you don’t want huge files clogging peoples mail boxes. Each MP is roughly half an MB [ Mega Byte ] unless you resize and save it in a smaller form.
Besides, most peoples monitors are set at 1024x768 screen resolution, so anything more than that is a waste. Also, if you wish to take domestic sized prints of a size like 4x6 [ generally acceptable ], you would get the desired results.
Now coming to VDO. I am of the personal view that still images and moving images are inherently different both from the technical angle as well as their subsequent usage, and should be treated and handled differently. [Which is why camcorders were invented in the first place.] So without going into the myriad world of screen size ratios, PAL/ SECAM standards, movie file formats, bit-streaming, vdo codecs and cross compatibility, I’d say don’t go there. Buy a camcorder separately.
But if you have to; and simply MUST HAVE that awesome moment of when the knife slices through the cake [ or someone’s throat ], then just do it.
Now the all important question of which brand.
In my opinion, we all have personal brand preferences, and no matter what you tell someone, they are pretty much pre-programmed towards one rather than the other for a host of reasons.
So I’m not going to open up a discussion with Hasselblad Vs Canon Vs Nikon Vs Olympus Vs Minolta Vs Sony. So just do whatever works for you, and go with whichever matches your needs and personal preferences.
Now for those of you who are planning to upgrade from point and shoot to D-SLR, my personal experience has been like this.
SLR offers you the greatest control over the results, and is personally very rewarding. It can be very exciting, the learning curve is long and deeply satisfying.
Entry cost can be high [ starting at Rs 40,000 to 50,000 ] and this may be only for the body and maybe an additional kit-lens to get you started.
Additional accessories can set you back a fair amount. Eg
- Prime lenses [ at the wide or telephoto end ] approx Rs 10,000 to 25,000, you’ll want at least one wide and one tele.
- A respectable speedlite is another Rs 25,000
- And between Rs 8,000 to 15,000 for additional soft boxes if you intend doing any indoor/studio work.
- A light meter [ if you want to be a purist, though most cameras now have a reasonably good one built in ] this could be another Rs 15,000
- A remote “plunger” for those night shots [ must have ] which cost another Rs 5000.
- A reasonably good tripod will come for another Rs 1500 to 2000.
- Then we have filters with another Rs 2000 each.
- Spare batteries, chargers and memory cards another Rs 5000
- A kit bag to dump all this stuff into another Rs 3000
Overall, the camera body is just the beginning of the story. Do the math.
I don’t mean to scare you, or to make it sound like you need to get all geeky and into gadgetry. Its just that as you progress, your needs WILL expand, and you WILL be confronted with these decisions at a later stage. Might as well you know it now, and choose wisely.
[ I’ve been evaluating which of my lesser vital organs I can sell to fund my studio expansion ] Ha ha, don’t be such a pussy and get scared off so easily
.
After all, at the end of the day if you don’t have a passion, where’s the fun in life ?….
Thursday, September 28, 2006
ON SOLITUDE
Tuesday 26th Sep 06
Deepa and the kids have left for Ludhiana today.
It’s the first time in almost 3 years that I will be all by my lonesome self.
Infact at first it was difficult to re-call what it felt like even during my bachelor days, to be living alone.
Such is the all pervasiveness of wedlock and child-rearing.
My observations on the experience of so far :
v I could play music at the volume I wanted, anytime of the day or night.
v I could listen to that music with the door of the loo wide open while I took a shower or whatever.
v Walking naked round the house is my next best luxury [ to the horror of Mrs Kamala Reddy in the neighbouring building ]
v I see stuff lying around the house and briefly wonder how it got there, and then I remember that I myself kept it there a few hours ago.
v I can see the whole house gradually morph into this messy and unkempt look, with stuff lying around, plates, glasses, crumbs, furniture moved around etc. In fact I had half an idea to photograph it day-wise to record how it [d]evolves.
v Finding some of my stuff in the original place I left them is nice, such as my slippers, which usually seem to travel around the house and under furniture.
v Reading till late in the night, and waking up without the crazy rush to go to school with Alisha [ bathe, dress, pack tiffin, do homework, feed breakfast, and drive to school ]
v With the exception of a couple of phone calls during the evenings, I’m silent and reflective with my own thoughts for company.
v I’ve watched more TV in the last 2 days than I have in the last 2 years. And that’s a fact. Speaking of which by the way, I just got a TATA SKY subscription last week, and had a satellite dish installed on my rooftop. The reception and audio quality is fantastic, and the features are lovely. I would highly recommend it to anyone.
Deepa and the kids have left for Ludhiana today.
It’s the first time in almost 3 years that I will be all by my lonesome self.
Infact at first it was difficult to re-call what it felt like even during my bachelor days, to be living alone.
Such is the all pervasiveness of wedlock and child-rearing.
My observations on the experience of so far :
v I could play music at the volume I wanted, anytime of the day or night.
v I could listen to that music with the door of the loo wide open while I took a shower or whatever.
v Walking naked round the house is my next best luxury [ to the horror of Mrs Kamala Reddy in the neighbouring building ]
v I see stuff lying around the house and briefly wonder how it got there, and then I remember that I myself kept it there a few hours ago.
v I can see the whole house gradually morph into this messy and unkempt look, with stuff lying around, plates, glasses, crumbs, furniture moved around etc. In fact I had half an idea to photograph it day-wise to record how it [d]evolves.
v Finding some of my stuff in the original place I left them is nice, such as my slippers, which usually seem to travel around the house and under furniture.
v Reading till late in the night, and waking up without the crazy rush to go to school with Alisha [ bathe, dress, pack tiffin, do homework, feed breakfast, and drive to school ]
v With the exception of a couple of phone calls during the evenings, I’m silent and reflective with my own thoughts for company.
v I’ve watched more TV in the last 2 days than I have in the last 2 years. And that’s a fact. Speaking of which by the way, I just got a TATA SKY subscription last week, and had a satellite dish installed on my rooftop. The reception and audio quality is fantastic, and the features are lovely. I would highly recommend it to anyone.
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Lunar Eclipse
For those of you who missed it , I'm attaching here some pics of the partial LUNAR ECLIPSE
which commenced 8th Sep 2006 at 2335 hrs and continued till 0100 hrs.
Suggested viewing of pics :
a) Save onto your desktop.
b) View in series, full screen, progressively as ONE TWO THREE ...
c) Observe the Umbra and Penumbra as it develops.
d) Look for the Lunar Oceans and craters in image FIVE where they are clearly visible.
[ monitor resolution set to 1024 x 768 ]
Feel free to circulate these, and if you wish to have them in high resolution copies, let me know.
[ Average file size of each goes up to 4 MB ]
For those who may be interested in the technical aspects of how these images were captured :
a) Canon 350 D [ 8 Megapixel ] digital SLR body
b) f stop 16, exposure time of between 1 sec and 5 sec
c) Sigma 70 - 300 mm tele lens [ using special low dispersion glass and multi-layer lens coating ]
d) UV filter removed to prevent lens flare
Saturday, September 16, 2006
ETHIPOTLA WATER FALLS
Ethipotla Waterfalls are close to Nagarjunsagar Dam on the great Krishna River.
As we approach the dam, further upstream Deepa took a ride in a "basket boat", which is a circular basket which serves as a boat. That the water is crocodile infested didn't seem to deter her.
This is the Nagarjunsagar Dam. [ Downstream ]
As we approach the dam, further upstream Deepa took a ride in a "basket boat", which is a circular basket which serves as a boat. That the water is crocodile infested didn't seem to deter her.
This is the Nagarjunsagar Dam. [ Downstream ]
Monday, September 04, 2006
ALISHA ASKS 005
Recently Alisha has been attempting to refine her understanding of God as a concept. Here are some questions I've tried to field in the last 2 months. Mostly, I just pass them on to Deepa...
1) Is God a boy or a girl ?
2) Where does God live ?
[ deepa told her that he lives in our hearts ]
3) If God lives in our heart, how does he make soo-soo and potty ?
4) How can I speak to God ? And if he hears me, why doesn't he speak back to me ?
5) My finger was hurting and I asked God to make it better but its still hurting, why ?
6) If God really loves me as much as you say, why did he not catch me when I fell and bumped my head ?
7) Why are the street children poor ? God made them new, how can they be poor so fast ?
Suggested responses are always welcome.....
[ Circa Sep 2006 ]
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
ONE KATORI
Today I began my self-styled ONE KATORI program. [ Armaan calls it a KATORETI ]
What I’d intended was that from today for an indeterminate period, I would eat 3, preferably low-fat meals in a day, each not exceeding a quantum of one katori.
Breakfast went off fine with one katori of vermicelli upma. [ Armaan calls it OOMPA ].
At lunch time I reached for a plate at first, and as my program flashed thru my mind I didn’t want to slacken so fast; so I placed a bowl on top of that, and proceeded to fill it with dal and rice. But then there was mushroom with peas, and roti.
I was ok with letting mix the rice and dal in the bowl, but the roti presented some serious problems in containment as well as in not getting it soggy, yet staying within my one katori definition.
So I let it go for now, thinking to myself that I MUST NOT start getting all neurotic about it. After all, I’m a mature and responsible adult & capable of self-regulation.
So I took half a spoon of mushroom-peas and a roti [ yummy ], halfway thru I realized that this would leave me unfulfilled, so I got another serving and another roti.
This was followed by the katori of dal rice.
And then a katori of ice-cream ...........with chocolate sauce to boot !!
Its ok I thought, considering most of the food came in katoris. [ a convenient solipsism ]
All went fine with my internal moral system, until it was snack time at 1745 hrs and the mini pizzas came around. Not only did I have mine, I ate my colleague’s as well !!
[ neither fitted in a katori ]
I’m not sure how dinner will go, but I’m staying positive…….
What I’d intended was that from today for an indeterminate period, I would eat 3, preferably low-fat meals in a day, each not exceeding a quantum of one katori.
Breakfast went off fine with one katori of vermicelli upma. [ Armaan calls it OOMPA ].
At lunch time I reached for a plate at first, and as my program flashed thru my mind I didn’t want to slacken so fast; so I placed a bowl on top of that, and proceeded to fill it with dal and rice. But then there was mushroom with peas, and roti.
I was ok with letting mix the rice and dal in the bowl, but the roti presented some serious problems in containment as well as in not getting it soggy, yet staying within my one katori definition.
So I let it go for now, thinking to myself that I MUST NOT start getting all neurotic about it. After all, I’m a mature and responsible adult & capable of self-regulation.
So I took half a spoon of mushroom-peas and a roti [ yummy ], halfway thru I realized that this would leave me unfulfilled, so I got another serving and another roti.
This was followed by the katori of dal rice.
And then a katori of ice-cream ...........with chocolate sauce to boot !!
Its ok I thought, considering most of the food came in katoris. [ a convenient solipsism ]
All went fine with my internal moral system, until it was snack time at 1745 hrs and the mini pizzas came around. Not only did I have mine, I ate my colleague’s as well !!
[ neither fitted in a katori ]
I’m not sure how dinner will go, but I’m staying positive…….
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
The Sigma Lens
THE SIGMA 70-300mm F4-5.6 DG MACRO
For those of you who know what I'm talking about.
Basically I picked up this lens two weeks ago, to compliment the current one I have which came as part of the original kit.
For its price its not too bad. [ Approx 200 USD ].
yes its supposed to have the new coating on the glass and SLD glass ( Special Low Dispersion ), both of which work quite well and eliminate flare and does away with chromatic aberration commonly seen in higher-end tele lenses.
The macro setting is an over-rated feature, and frankly doesntly allow me to get close enough.
From 70 upto 200 its quite good, after which it drops sharply. AF mode too is a little slower, and it "hunts". So frequently I shot in MF mode. Easier for DOF calculation too at that range.
I ned to work it some more to do it justice, meanwhile here are some pics, not all using the SIGMA.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE CENTRAL STORES SHOOT
For those of you who know what I'm talking about.
Basically I picked up this lens two weeks ago, to compliment the current one I have which came as part of the original kit.
For its price its not too bad. [ Approx 200 USD ].
yes its supposed to have the new coating on the glass and SLD glass ( Special Low Dispersion ), both of which work quite well and eliminate flare and does away with chromatic aberration commonly seen in higher-end tele lenses.
The macro setting is an over-rated feature, and frankly doesntly allow me to get close enough.
From 70 upto 200 its quite good, after which it drops sharply. AF mode too is a little slower, and it "hunts". So frequently I shot in MF mode. Easier for DOF calculation too at that range.
I ned to work it some more to do it justice, meanwhile here are some pics, not all using the SIGMA.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE CENTRAL STORES SHOOT
Thursday, July 20, 2006
The Cosmic Twin
Today 2 things :
As I was explaining to Juhi about the plum pudding incident, I got call from Aman in Delhi who is claimed to be very similar to me [ my cosmic twin I'm told].
Later in the evening when we got home from lifestyle, and Deepa explained to Alisha about the pink flower Alisha gets her and the concept of gratitude, I wasn't around during this explanation.
2 minutes later I explained the very same thing in the very same words.
Rating 8/10
As I was explaining to Juhi about the plum pudding incident, I got call from Aman in Delhi who is claimed to be very similar to me [ my cosmic twin I'm told].
Later in the evening when we got home from lifestyle, and Deepa explained to Alisha about the pink flower Alisha gets her and the concept of gratitude, I wasn't around during this explanation.
2 minutes later I explained the very same thing in the very same words.
Rating 8/10
Thursday, July 13, 2006
ALISHA ASKS 004
Last night Alisha set out to spell this fruit-
According to her and her present understanding of phonetics, it A for Aa, P for Puh and L for Luh. Her reasoning ofcourse is very good, and she is correct in spelling it so.
And like she rightly said to me : "There is no second P and an E at the end ! Why is it there ?"
And as usual, child intelligence prevailed over adult stupidity, as i sat there dithering about how someone made up the spellings earlier, and however crazy they may seem, we all need to learn them the way they are spelt.
Now its obvious that if i gave her the liberty to spell the way she wanted, no self-respecting teacher would accept that. And the reason being - "Thats the way its done"...."We cant change that"....
The way we perpetuate our own stupidity confounds me.
According to her and her present understanding of phonetics, it A for Aa, P for Puh and L for Luh. Her reasoning ofcourse is very good, and she is correct in spelling it so.
And like she rightly said to me : "There is no second P and an E at the end ! Why is it there ?"
And as usual, child intelligence prevailed over adult stupidity, as i sat there dithering about how someone made up the spellings earlier, and however crazy they may seem, we all need to learn them the way they are spelt.
Now its obvious that if i gave her the liberty to spell the way she wanted, no self-respecting teacher would accept that. And the reason being - "Thats the way its done"...."We cant change that"....
The way we perpetuate our own stupidity confounds me.
Friday, June 30, 2006
GERMANY VS ARGENTINA
Today 30th June 2006 Germany plays Argentina in the FIFA world cup quarter finals.
I like both teams, and irrespective of whoever wins today, it will break my heart...
I've been so excited all day in anticipation of the match, and cannot wait to watch it.
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Thursday, June 22, 2006
80s Music
2 nights ago I began downloading a whole bunch of music from the 80s. Mostly the period between 1985 and 1989.
Recently it seems I cant relate to the music that’s being produced, excepts unless it has the (by now overdone) – Retro feel, or a rehash of an earlier track.
Either the music industry is running out of originality or I’m moving up by a generation. Makes me understand what the 60s thing was all about.
So what was my music preference like during the 80s ? Mostly POP ish, mostly British, TOTP ruled !!
For many years I pretended I wasnt really into POP, but I guess I’m out of the closet now and can freely admit that I loved it !! Everything about it, including the weird hair, funny clothing, corny lyrics / titles ( French Kissing in the USA ) and trashy music videos.
What do you expect ?
Hey, I was a teenager! I couldn’t be held responsible for clear minded choices. I went with the mainstream. I was “with it”.
My hormones were responsible.
I fell in love with the idea of falling in love. You know how it is…
Then I actually fell in love. And some of these songs date back to very very special times in my life, as some of you who may be reading this would know.
Its my personal time machine now.
To this day when I hear these, I go back to the time. To when I feel I could do anything. Rebellious and omniscent. I owned the music, and the music owned me.
Heres a small listing –
The Commodores – Nightshift
A-ha - Hunting High And Low
Billy Joel - Uptown Girl
Cameo - Word Up
Peter Cetera - Glory of Love
Nick Berry - Every Loser Wins
George Michael Wham - Everything She Wants ( this track was before its time )
Jennifer Rush - The Power Of Love
Johnny Logan - Hold Me Now
Mr. Mister - Broken Wings
Prince - Purple Rain
Prince- When Doves Cry
Don Henley – Boys of Summer
Tracy Chapman - Baby Can I Hold You Tonight
Whitney Houston - Saving All My Love For You
Madonna - True Blue
Madonna- Open Your Heart
Dire Straits – Sultans of Swing
Dire Straits – Walk of Life
and another 100 more........
( oh by the way, if theres any particular track from the list or from that time interests you, let me know, i might have it on MP3 )
ALISHA ASKS 003
This morning on the way to school - which by the way, is the time Alisha and I have some of the most amazing conversations; she asked me :
"Papa why are there birds ?"
( Explain the existence / usefulness / purpose of birds in this world )
I tried with starting to quote from one of my childhood favourites :
All things bright and beautiful
All creatures great and small
All things wise and wonderful
The Lord God made them All.
I admit that this was a bit lame, as it merely describes that they were made, but still doesnt address the "Why" part.
And she wasnt too convinced either.
So i went on to try and give her a bit of history, which usually has me start by saying :
"In the old days....."
And i tried to explain carrier pigeons and the like to deflect her with the novelty value rather than the true merit of my explanation.
Contemporary Classic ?
Recently i saw a billboard in town, advertising something as :
"CONTEMPORARY CLASSICS."
Isnt that an Oxymoron ?
"CONTEMPORARY CLASSICS."
Isnt that an Oxymoron ?
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
FIFA WORLD CUP 2006
Halfway into the world cup, and its been fun so far.
Its good to see whatever few fans in office and around, talk of something besides cricket; which in my opinion is getting highly overexposed, more commercial and less exciting.
My top favourites for the season are Brazil ( of course ), but they seem to be playing some weird game. England has been playing like the pussies that they are, with one exception CROUCHing Tiger who is a Hidden Dragon. 3 yellow cards in one game. With a height similar to Kilimanjaro ( 6ft 4 inch ) his name is “Crouch”, can you believe that ?
Germany has been alright, with Australia showing some very good fighting spirit.
But Argentina looks like they’ve really got it together, and I’m putting my money on them.
Meanwhile the FIFA officials have made the match very tame, and seem to be giving fouls, and yellow cards left-right and centre.
Remember the movie GIANTS OF BRAZIL ? Now that was real football.
The other day I was discussing this with a Swiss client, who said that they've now begun playing BARRY MANILOW outside Swiss stadiums to keep the hooligans calm and under control !! I dont know how far its true, but that would be self-defeating in my opinion...Barry Manilow for Chrissakes !!
At home I’ve pretty much hijacked the TV and remote for the month. When I sit to watch a match, Alisha tries to understand what the big deal is about ( the last World Cup was the year she was born, which makes it all the more special that I should be watching it with her. She also asks very detailed questions about the game to figure it out. Armaan sees them running and has figured the game is about “RUN” and “BALL” as well as “BOOMBA” ( falling down ).
Deepa has joined in the hooliganism, and is propounding a centre-field strategy which largely involves off-sides. She and Ronaldo must meet up to fully explore this.
Its good to see whatever few fans in office and around, talk of something besides cricket; which in my opinion is getting highly overexposed, more commercial and less exciting.
My top favourites for the season are Brazil ( of course ), but they seem to be playing some weird game. England has been playing like the pussies that they are, with one exception CROUCHing Tiger who is a Hidden Dragon. 3 yellow cards in one game. With a height similar to Kilimanjaro ( 6ft 4 inch ) his name is “Crouch”, can you believe that ?
Germany has been alright, with Australia showing some very good fighting spirit.
But Argentina looks like they’ve really got it together, and I’m putting my money on them.
Meanwhile the FIFA officials have made the match very tame, and seem to be giving fouls, and yellow cards left-right and centre.
Remember the movie GIANTS OF BRAZIL ? Now that was real football.
The other day I was discussing this with a Swiss client, who said that they've now begun playing BARRY MANILOW outside Swiss stadiums to keep the hooligans calm and under control !! I dont know how far its true, but that would be self-defeating in my opinion...Barry Manilow for Chrissakes !!
At home I’ve pretty much hijacked the TV and remote for the month. When I sit to watch a match, Alisha tries to understand what the big deal is about ( the last World Cup was the year she was born, which makes it all the more special that I should be watching it with her. She also asks very detailed questions about the game to figure it out. Armaan sees them running and has figured the game is about “RUN” and “BALL” as well as “BOOMBA” ( falling down ).
Deepa has joined in the hooliganism, and is propounding a centre-field strategy which largely involves off-sides. She and Ronaldo must meet up to fully explore this.
Don Quixote
Downloading music, I found Nick Kershaw don Quixote ( ..."your mind can play tricks, makes you what you want to be )…
Remembered a faded acid trip around 1987.
The Nik Kershaw poster and the track by Simply Red - Holding Back The Years…….. And while I currently am reading NLP.
Rating 1/10
Remembered a faded acid trip around 1987.
The Nik Kershaw poster and the track by Simply Red - Holding Back The Years…….. And while I currently am reading NLP.
Rating 1/10
Thursday, June 15, 2006
From Thus Spake Zarathustra
And Zarathustra spake thus unto the people:
I TEACH YOU THE SUPERMAN. Man is something that is to be surpassed. What have ye done to surpass man?
All beings hitherto have created something beyond themselves: and ye want to be the ebb of that great tide, and would rather go back to the beast than surpass man?
What is the ape to man? A laughing-stock, a thing of shame. And just the same shall man be to the Superman: a laughing-stock, a thing of shame.
Ye have made your way from the worm to man, and much within you is still worm. Once were ye apes, and even yet man is more of an ape than any of the apes.
Even the wisest among you is only a disharmony and hybrid of plant and phantom. But do I bid you become phantoms or plants?
Lo, I teach you the Superman!
The Superman is the meaning of the earth. Let your will say: The Superman SHALL BE the meaning of the earth!
I TEACH YOU THE SUPERMAN. Man is something that is to be surpassed. What have ye done to surpass man?
All beings hitherto have created something beyond themselves: and ye want to be the ebb of that great tide, and would rather go back to the beast than surpass man?
What is the ape to man? A laughing-stock, a thing of shame. And just the same shall man be to the Superman: a laughing-stock, a thing of shame.
Ye have made your way from the worm to man, and much within you is still worm. Once were ye apes, and even yet man is more of an ape than any of the apes.
Even the wisest among you is only a disharmony and hybrid of plant and phantom. But do I bid you become phantoms or plants?
Lo, I teach you the Superman!
The Superman is the meaning of the earth. Let your will say: The Superman SHALL BE the meaning of the earth!
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Did You Know 001
Did you know that if you go to the BSNL Telegraph office, you can pay your phone bill anytime......24 hrs a day !!
I discovered that today; and frankly I'm impressed.
I discovered that today; and frankly I'm impressed.
THE 'TWEEN SIZES
My waist currently measures 35"
Which speaks about my sedentary lifestyle, and possibly my love for the nice and greasy KFC which has recently opened downtown.
I was 36" for a short while, but then that troubled me, and so i unconsciously began to bring it down. But now I'm stuck here.
At 35.
Which is not so bad in itself, but these darn clothing companies make trousers in increments of 2 inches, so its 34 or 36.
Guess where that leaves me.
34 clearly shows my midriff protrusion, and 36 slides down to "half-bum". Unless i tighten the belt a notch further, in which case it gets bunched up around the butt, and i begin to look like a hood from Chicago in the 60's.
Now i have to either lose an inch, or gain an inch and love myself either way...
I also worry about how this is going to impact my already dis-jointed wardrobe.
( I'm moving back from the half-sleeved "Chennai corporate office" look, to the pin striped-with-tie Milan look )
Which speaks about my sedentary lifestyle, and possibly my love for the nice and greasy KFC which has recently opened downtown.
I was 36" for a short while, but then that troubled me, and so i unconsciously began to bring it down. But now I'm stuck here.
At 35.
Which is not so bad in itself, but these darn clothing companies make trousers in increments of 2 inches, so its 34 or 36.
Guess where that leaves me.
34 clearly shows my midriff protrusion, and 36 slides down to "half-bum". Unless i tighten the belt a notch further, in which case it gets bunched up around the butt, and i begin to look like a hood from Chicago in the 60's.
Now i have to either lose an inch, or gain an inch and love myself either way...
I also worry about how this is going to impact my already dis-jointed wardrobe.
( I'm moving back from the half-sleeved "Chennai corporate office" look, to the pin striped-with-tie Milan look )
ALISHA ASKS 002
Thursday, May 04, 2006
ALISHA : Papa why is the signal light red, yellow and green ?
Me : it’s a standard people decided it should be like that
She : Why didn't I get to decide ? ( why was I not part of the decision making ? )
Me : I wasn’t either, it was before you or even I was born
She : When I grow up can I decide ?
Me : Sure.
ALISHA : Papa why is the signal light red, yellow and green ?
Me : it’s a standard people decided it should be like that
She : Why didn't I get to decide ? ( why was I not part of the decision making ? )
Me : I wasn’t either, it was before you or even I was born
She : When I grow up can I decide ?
Me : Sure.
ADOPTION
I had this thought about a month back.
Why is it that when we think of adoption, we only think of parents adopting a child ?
Why cannot the reverse be true ?
Why cannot a child adopt a parent ?
And suddenly instead of feeling helpless, I felt empowered with the thought that I can adopt parents of my choosing !!
It seems like a wonderful and liberating concept to me.
Suddenly life doesn’t seem as depressing.
Why is it that when we think of adoption, we only think of parents adopting a child ?
Why cannot the reverse be true ?
Why cannot a child adopt a parent ?
And suddenly instead of feeling helpless, I felt empowered with the thought that I can adopt parents of my choosing !!
It seems like a wonderful and liberating concept to me.
Suddenly life doesn’t seem as depressing.
Monday, May 22, 2006
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Sunday, May 14, 2006
Self Portrait 01
So here I am, trying out this new Inspector Closeau type self portrait.
A bit Dorky, but I like it !
Self Portrait No : 1577
So here I am, trying out this new Inspector Clouseau type self portrait, in another version.
Saturday, May 06, 2006
K-K-Kiran
Just as I was deleting name "Kiran" ( of RMF) from my cell ph book, at the exact same moment Kiran ( of RWS ) calls to ask if I’m really leaving and where im going. [ And I met a GMR Director called Kiran 2 days ago. ]
Rating 4/10
Rating 4/10
Monday, May 01, 2006
Colour
Thinking in MONOCHROME sounds easier than it really is. I've known that, and have been putting off doing any work in B&W.
Anyway, today I decided to start somewhere, though the colour kept creeping in ( see two shots below ) and I think its somehow hard-wired into our brains to see and think in colour.
Street-side Vendor; Colourful Stall
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