Is the way humans think changing?

A group of friends and I, we are doing a discussion on Human thinking and how it changes. The seed for our discussion started with this article. In all, all of us felt the following symptoms:

• Cannot concentrate on a single task more than ten minutes - interestingly we found that we could concentrate if need be, but that the bar for need was set very high(way up near the sky!) so that most of our daily activities were below the bar. (You can say a deadline in an hour to be above the bar - but even then some of my friend just needed to check their text messages)
• Needed music in the background to give more productive work - I definitely need them to write better code but felt that when I'm writing articles and documents, the music is a hindrance! And some friends needed music even to study for exams! Heck! One of them even has a "Study time" playlist in his iPod.
• Cannot remember phone numbers - None of us can remember each other's phone numbers. I remember some phone numbers in India but that's about it. I don't remember my best bud's number in US though we talk to each other every alternate day. I'd be so lost without my cell phone and its list of numbers.
  
• Lesser exercise in strategic thinking for the brain - I think Google maps is really, really good making it easy to do all the figuring out for every shopping trip we do. We use the public transit for all shopping!! And my brain gets lesser exercise!! :(
  
• More skimming of articles - I cannot read any more serious prose or long poetry. Succinct is the word. Same with all my friends. Sometimes we wonder if the human brain is becoming more attention deficient. But my dad can still read long articles without batting eyelids! Guess the younger generation is the most afflicted with it.
• More web interaction - I 'talk' to so many of my friends through internet. Facebook, Twitter (though I don't use it much), Gtalk, Orkut, LinkedIn, etc, etc. The phone and face-to-face communication is becoming rare. But its fun and has become a way of life to get up in the morning and check messages on these mediums. I remember times when internet was limited to just half an hour a day and this was just 4 years ago!!
• More information, less knowledge, lesser wisdom - all of us are bombarded with information from all sides and in all forms. But it takes time to make it knowledge and that time is what we can't give to all information. It takes practice and time to make the knowledge into wisdom. But, we feel that transforming info to knowledge is possible for most of us but true wisdom is really difficult in this fast paced world. But I guess no one cares anymore - people have the internet and Google and Bing to bring the world's wisdom to their fingertips. If they can use that wisdom well, they'd be the kings of this world. But using the wisdom also requires practice. And that takes time!
• Change in lifestyle - I still remember the day my uncle took us to the bank to learn how it works. But now, everything is online and automated and more abstract than ever. My first bank trip to withdraw Rs.100 from my account required serious planning - go to the bank when it is open, fill in the appropriate form, wait in queue, etc. Now, all I do is, go to the atm, insert card and get the cash. Though it saves time, I'm not sure if the experience is worthy remembering in my day.
• Loss of older ways - We are so comfortable once things are set but in this fast paced experience, there is no settling down of things. My friend's daughter thinks that it is normal to chat inside the email but I remember times when that was not the case. And my mom still reminisces about the hand written letters and the joy they bring with every shout of "Saarrr! Possttt!!" but I feel disconnected about it (this might also be because my family stayed close and we never wrote letters to each other - I've never experienced the wait for a letter and thrill of seeing it in the mail box one day or the thrill of getting it from the postman).
  
• Speed - I need the movie to be over yesterday. My friend needs to tour Hawaii last month. Do you get it? We need everything to be done fast. Fast, faster! Once, I've caught myself thinking that the plane should touchdown as soon as it took off. With the influx of information at our fingertips, 'now' has become the norm. However, sometimes, it pushes people to the brink in coping with the pressures (have you felt the need to cross out everything on your to-do list?) and spoils their lives. It IS important to stop and smell the roses!

These are some of the ways we find that our lives are different from those that lived in the same position just five years back. I do see a big difference in the way we think, even between those in my age and those five years older to us or between us and those five years younger to us. The world is changing rapidly and the human mind is adapting rapidly as well. Hope this all leads to a balance and that the journey is interesting. Hang in there, mate!


What are your opinions on this post? Do you think our thinking is changing? Did your style of thinking change in the last few years? Any thoughts welcome.

My Hutch puppy!

Thought I left it in school, but oh no, it has followed me like the Hutch puppy!!



Long live our freedom!
Happy weekend!!

The Veggie challenge!!

I've been hounded by a friend of mine(I mean,literally hounded) who is a Vegan(Gosh!! How does he do it? No milk??? Mommy!!) to stop eating chicken and fish. I already don't eat red meat, because I don't like that taste much. But chicken, that is a different issue. And seafood is neither there nor here.

Jogging my memory(and taking my mom's help when I can't), I was a pure vegetarian till about 8 years old. Then started my love affair with chicken. I started eating chicken livers and moved on to real chicken pieces(the one with bones - apparently I became a big girl, big enough to handle bones!). Then, I stopped again due to non-encouragement at home. Actually, non-encouragement is a vastly different word from lack of encouragement. But I digress... And seem to have given some not-to-be-mentioned statements to my family! They love pulling my leg for it!!

Back to my Non Veg story. I started eating chicken again once I was in college when the doc said that I had to get some iron into my body to become Lady Shaktiman! (sadly that never happened - chicken went in but iron got spent more. And Lady Shaktiman? The hope is dimming!). And, as a result, I started trying out different chicken dishes(mmm... the Arunachalas and the shops near my college where we got this yummy grilled chicken!! They won over any hesitations that I had!!) and even started cooking some of them(And this was greatly aided by AS). The triple K's sure had some fun times cooking chicken dishes, right from chicken biriyani to chicken curry. And I became an expert at making Chicken Chettinadu, so much so that I started cooking chicken every week(!!).

Now I stand at eating chicken almost every other week. Been into discussions with different friends about veg/non-veg issues over the past one year. And finally got nailed by one of my friends who said that I should try only veg for a month and if I think that I don't feel a difference at the end of one month, I can get back to eating chicken as I like. He offered the piscatarian choice(veggies + fish for a month and then veggies for a month - he knows I can't/won't cook fish! And schemed to make me live on veggies for (almost)two months!! Aha! Now that won't do!) but brave that I am, I jumped on the veggie challenge directly!

The challenge is to eat only vegetarian diet(meaning veggies, fruits, rice, lentils, grains, dairy products, etc) for a month... That is 3*31 = 93 meals!!

Mmmm.... There I said it. The reason to put this on my blog is to chronicle my experiences with it so that I can judge easily at the end of the month. Since I haven't had chicken today, I'm taking today as the first day of the challenge. Oh God!! I can already see butter chicken mocking at me!! Give me the strength to overcome this challenge and prove the world that chicken eating is actually good for health! Or wait, maybe veggies are better!! Oh! Just prove whichever is better... so that I can stop having these arguments again and again with so many people.

P.S.: All words of encouragement/condolences to my state are welcome. Any support/personal stories are double welcome! But no flame wars please. And certainly no sending yummy chicken dishes home!!!

Demons of Time!!

She was happy
She was singing
Suddenly
She heard the Voice cry

She was flabbergasted
She hadn't encountered it before
She didn't know what to do
She called to the Voice

She wondered
Wondered about what was wrong
She worried
Worried about how to set it right

The Voice came
The Voice was sobbing
Slowly
The Voice told her the reason

"My friend died
Died of skepticism
Died of overdose of cynicism
Died of lack of care"

The Voice quivered
Quivered with sorrow and fear
The Voice waned
Waned so much that listening became harder

She was shocked
Shocked to see the Voice's waning voice
Of present, of the moment

She remembered
Remembered the Voice's exuberant voice
Of past, of yore

She realized
She had drawn upon the Voice
To pull her through trials and tribulations
She had leaned on the Voice
Through troubles and thunders

She realized
The Voice needed her care now
To bring it back to its past glory
The Voice required nourishment
Lack of which, it would wane to forever

She was afraid
Afraid if she was worth the task
Afraid if she had it in her
To pull them both through this ordeal

She knew
Knew that she can do it
Knew that the time has come
To put the Voice's teachings into practice

She rose to the task
The task that will raise them both
The Voice followed this time
Happy that it had done a worthy deed

The Voice was sure
That it was in good hands
She was determined
To heal the wounds of skepticism

She and the Voice
They battle the demons of time again!
Let us wish them the best
For they need it, in their own ways!

[Mourning the loss of a friend's Voice.... er, Voice's friend!! Amen!]

Michael Jackson

Michael Johnson, the King of Pop is best known to me as the first "foreign" artist I knew at the age of 7 or 8. Ever since hearing his "Thriller", I've thought that "western music" was always awesome. But as I dug deeper into his other albums and that of other artists, I found that the expectations set by "Thriller" are very very hard to be matched, let alone exceeded!

My second brush with him came during my pre-teens when we were ardently discussing "Backstreet Boys" and "Boy zone" and of course, comparing them with the enchanted MJ, as we all called him. We've spent hours discussing them yet none of the other albums still created the magic of Thriller for me. Then, as I grew up, I moved away from MJ's music and completely lost touch with it. But, now, after hearing his death yesterday during our mixer party, I felt a sense of loss, the loss that comes when your first pop icon is no more. I looked forward to going to one of his concerts ever since I was a kid. Yeah! One of those fans that were mad for him and his songs! Sadly, I'll have to take it off my "100 things to do" list. Sure, I can replace it with any other artist's concert. But nothing would match that of MJ's.

He was to my previous generation(and to some extent, ours) what Elvis Presley was to our parents generation. I don't think any other artist can beat him in his dance moves, the famed "moonwalk", his freeze-shots, etc. He is the only "phoren" artist millions of people in the villages of India knows. Even today, you can see people comment "Nee enna periya Michael Jackson nu nenaipaa?" to someone trying out different dance moves! Imagine being known to people who have no idea of America, no idea of dancing and certainly no idea of western pop music!! Ah! that is fame, that is immortality!

MJ, you'll surely be loved for the magic you created with music and dance! Thanks for letting us share that magical world with you as you took that journey! Now, at the end of the journey, hope your soul rests in peace. Amen.

What can you do with Rs.500?

What can you do with Rs.500 (or little over $5)? This link was on a friend's gtalk status and I couldn't help sharing it over here:



Lets do our best to give kids education and a safe childhood, the childhood that we were all privileged to get. We owe it to our future citizens and the world at least this much!

This is a topic close to my heart. Lets aim to give at least Rs.5 per month(is it $0.1?) for a kid's education (any kid, it can be your housemaid's daughter trying to finish her 10th standard, it can be your locality watchman's son trying to get books for school, it can be even kids from the local school). Just go and you'll find the needy kids in every corner of India. Or, give to one of the NGOs that are working towards this cause. I'm sure our small help to a kid would radically change his/her path in life. Lets join hands to eradicate poverty and work towards education for every kid!

Moved Neverland successfully!

The last few weeks have been frenzied. I had to move Neverland and set it all up again. Phew! Dismantling and rebuilding, especially Neverland, is a thing I really don't look forward to. Though setting up a new home is always fun, I find that I've become a creature of habit and was trying to capture the Neverland in its last state. I realized this last night when I spent some two hours (two hours that should've been used to work or atleast catch up with stuff - We ALWAYS have that, don't we?) trying to rearrange the furniture (read, a bed, two shelves and a box - I'm yet to get a table or chair) and all the small stuff in different positions. Finally, I got so frustrated that I decided to get it all back to the original position. I then realized that I was trying to recreate my old room and moved the lights and shelves a bit to accommodate it. Now, if only I can raise the height of my bed to get the window view...

On a related note, I'm going bed-shopping before this weekend is over. For without the window and the draft hole over my bed, I got so bugged yesterday (yeah! its the summer in Neverland! I'm only thankful that I didn't go to some other places where I know I be fried like pork chops!!) and woke up so many times that finally my roomie had to restrain me from touching the AC control (she is a light sleeper and I would have switched on/off the AC atleast 15 times). The worst part was I was feeling very sleepy yet couldn't sleep. If hell was possible, it was that. I had to call quits and called V for a night chat. Our chat was fun as always but my work day loomed large and I had to force myself back to sleep. Oh! How I wish I was still a student in this regard.

PS: Though I've kept up with most of your posts, I've not really had time to write the posts. With regard to this post, I had some interesting and insightful chats with fellow bloggers. That led to different paths and I'm willing to test some of them. So, hang on and we'll glide through to see what is present on the other side. For I am as curious as you are :)

Miss you, Nands!

She was a great friend of mine,
She helped see the world and life,
Still a source of fun and frolic
Though far, yet close to heart.
Miss you Nands!

This is her favorite hero and song. I chanced upon it in another friend's orkut album and that triggered all sweet memories of school, innumerable badminton matches, the fun life of 7th, 8th and 9th standards, the final farewell party at her place, dance practices, Guides club planning sessions, crush talks and of course, our farewell to our seniors! Man! I miss those days!



And yeah, Dino Morea still looks good in this song :D

Where do we go from here?

Blogging, for me, has been a really fun thing to do. I've come a long way from the first post to now. I've done some really good posts and some bad ones. But overall, I see that my writing has become better and more importantly, I love doing it! But, as I move from being a college student (that thought is still so new to me!!) to a professional, I feel that I need to make a few changes to my blog. And I need your opinion on it. 

I want this blog to follow my life experiences and my opinion on anything that I think is worth it. But, at the same time, I value my privacy. I blog anonymously for that same reason. However, I know that my blog is frequented by my friends (and I love hearing their opinion!) but certainly, one part of my reader base is tainted with preconceived notions of me. I think that a mind without any preconceived notions is the best receptacle that an author can hope for! 

If you've been following my blog closely in the past few months, you would see that I had tried a variety of things. I tried stories, poems, technology, finance, link posts, opinion posts, about-me posts, forwards posts and even the Voice series. Though I liked all of them, there was nothing (save the Voice posts and opinion posts) that I really loved writing. Frankly, stories and poems are good but I need to wait for that creative streak to come (that type of creativeness is rare in my case! I might still belt out an occasional story or poem.. but thats about it!). Technology and finance, I think I'm more suited to reading about them than writing about them (for there are already experts in these fields who can write them better - I might bring in my opinions and usage reviews but not much else!). Link posts are good but I feel that they don't really come under 'My posts' category and certainly do not want my blog to be a bunch of bookmarks!!

Opinion posts!  Ah! Here comes the Pandora's box! I basically have only one tenet that I live with "do whatever you want to as long as it doesn't affect others' lives in a big way!". So when I apply this tenet to all the problems in this world, it sometimes ends with solutions that are not accepted by all in this world. And that has led to some fun wars offline!! :D I really want to hold peace with my friends and hence don't think that it is a good idea to put all my opinions on my blog and get rap for it. Why ruffle feathers when you don't have to do so? I can live with my opinions, the other person can live with her opinions and we can still be friends. We wouldn't discuss politics or abortion or any other touchy issue when we meet in real life. So, why do it in the blogworld? I've seen that most people (me included!) become a tad defensive when our beliefs are challenged. We may be right or we may be wrong, but we turn defensive. And try to come up with reasons to hold on to our beliefs even when we are proved wrong! Sadly, losing graciously is a quality that most of us have to learn. And its hard to make someone change their opinion on any issue when they don't have an open mind (too much work and too less returns!). So, I don't think I'd want to fill my blog with it. Maybe, I'll pepper my blog with it just to spice things up occassionally ;)

About-me posts, these are among the really easy ones to write (well! who would find it hard to write about their favorite subjects, themselves? :D) but of late, its becoming harder as I don't feel really comfortable writing about myself. Call it growing up, call it being cynical but it's a fact. I'd rather write about something I saw or heard or read than something I felt or wanted or liked. It does change people's opinion of you. Once, I had a friend refer to one post of mine and ask me something at a party. It was ok but I was a tad annoyed. It was right out of the blue and I wouldn't have willingly shared all that info in real-life setting. Further, I think its not necessary to tell all about yourself to the anyone and everyone in the world. Some things are best kept off the line. Else it takes the spice off life for there is nothing to explore about the person! Though, sometimes, its really good to get people understand without you being explicit! But it's too much a price to pay for this convenience. So, this would be minimal from now on.

Forward posts, they are easy to do too. But, sadly there are very less forwards or articles that I feel are really worth sharing. Not that others are not good or something, but I don't feel like putting them up. And, they have the same horror of link posts - not really coming under "my posts" category! So, this too would be occassional from now on.

Voice series, now, here is something that I'm sure would still remain in my blog. It is a nice snapshot of various emotions that I see in life. It's quasi-personal in that I can tell about people's emotions without really telling about them and endangering their privacy. But I'm sure that a blog with just these posts would be similar to a poem blog and I don't want that monotony in mine. Or, rephrasing, I don't think I'm that passionate about it yet. For, posts in Voice series are more spontaneous and they just "strike" when I see an emotionally charged situation. I can't wait around for the mood to strike. So, using only these posts is not a good idea.

So, it brings me back to the question: What do I do in my blog now? Any ideas? Anything that you'd like to see more/less/added/removed/changed? Do give your suggestions and we'll try each of it out. Oh! this is going to be fun and I'd get to try out different stuff. So, readers, pour in your ideas!

PS: On a personal front, I'm moving NeverLand from B__ to R__ in a few days. So, I'd be busy moving stuff, walking the 'Walk' to get my degree (at long last! Phew!) and spending time with family (I'm so glad they are making this trip! I'd get some more time to spoil my nieces :D). I did a really good farewell trip to most places in and around Neverland, met with almost all friends, did all the stuff I wanted to (too many last-time-points in these days). So, I'm all set after the farewell trip. Nothing like a good farewell to make you get ready for a good welcome! I'm going to miss B__ for it has been my home for the past two years. I've learned so much, grown a lot and had various experiences that made life interesting. In all, I'm glad I decided to come here and do my MS. I'm proud to be part of this great university, its people, labs, traditions and all. With this, I'm signing off! See you next soon!

The 'Indian' Way!

Interesting Article!

Would you want to do things the 'Indian' Way?
For me, I'd love it if we can have both the state and people working towards our goals. But I guess that day is still a distant dream!

Secret Seven!!

Being under hibernation, I hadn't filled up a tag from a friend. Now, being the VO of Neverland, I finally dug into the forgotten to-do list and brought out the tag. Here it goes:

Tag rule: Tell seven things about yourself that you want to share! (he had just listed some characteristics of his... So I made this up! You can make it spicier/saucier/sexier when you do this tag - no restrictions!) And pass it to 5 friends!!

Tag:
1) I think I'm going to end up with the nice-girl-of-the-town title (I don't mind that as long as I have fun) and hope I don't finish last.
2) I can't stand people who are hypocrites. If you stand for something, do stand for it till the end. Don't change it ever so often. And stand for your principles even if it hurts. I'd respect you more a person for sticking up to your beliefs even if I see you have been in the wrong. If you change your principle about something, do so only on the basis of a solid reason. Don't change it for every whim and fancy! Please spare the world from it!!
3) I want to give everyone a fair chance in explaining what they did and why they did something. Everyone has a reason to act as they did! And certainly no one is stupid, just that the priorities are different! We should respect the differences and give people a fair chance! Seen too many breakups because of lack of it.
4) Am fairly easy to get along until you try to encroach on my private life. Just because I talk a lot to you doesn't mean that I give you permission to discuss other parts of my life(unless I explicitly do!). I prefer to keep different parts of my life secluded from one another (mixing never helps!).
5) Despite having a HUGE friends list, the number of close friends is less than 10 at any point of time in life. You need to have traveled with me in life for a considerable distance of life's journey before you can hit that list.
6) I love to eat anything red: right from strawberries to beetroot(my mom would be tired of making beetroot poriyal ever so often when I was a kid!). I think that anything red is lot tastier than others.
7) The basic things of my life have remained a constant despite all the experiences I've got. I'm glad I got them right the first time.

Tagging: Aths, Arun, Madhan, King Vishy and Dream Chaser.
Others, if you are interested, tag yourself and leave a link in the comments section.

P.S:He! He! You thought this was a post about my childhood-favorite detective gang? (though, I'd love to do it).

Incredible India

One of my friends forwarded Aamir's Incredible India video link. After some more youtubing, I came across another one that more closely resonated with what I think is a better glimpse of India's myriad differences. Our country truly stands by the slogan "Unity in Diversity". Here is the video:


India has so much to give, so much to share and so much to live for!! Missing every fibre of it! Love India!!

That's a dog??

One of my friends sent this picture by mail. Kudos to whoever thought it up!

Captures people's different perspectives beautifully!! Just my $0.02!

D-day results!

Aatha naan paasaayiten!!!

[Finally done! Now its Alpine, M.S.!! Two years of work bore fruit... looking forward to 15 days of laziness!! Thanks for all your wishes and prayers!]

போனால் போகட்டும் போடா!!

I might hit myself on the head later for writing this post today. But, I'm still going to write it. Yesterday, I was all strung and needed a friend to take me to coffee and give some gyan (அதாங்க, அறிவுரை!). I even started writing a post about the list of things I was glad for (ugh! what was I thinking? I mean I can write such a list but it was dripping of sap, I tell you!). Something sane stopped me from actually publishing it and becoming the laughing stock of my blog world.

Today, I'm all fine and ready to handle the matters of the world. The day started with some code handover (என் code படிச்சா எனக்கே immediateaa புரியாது (genius code னா அப்டி தானு சொல்றீங்களா? அதுவும் correct தான் :D), இதுல என் ஆசிரியர் அத படிச்சு புரிஞ்சு... ஒரே கூத்து தான் நடக்க போகுது!) followed by a presentation session. Finally, I was confident that I can do well in the D-day (இன்னைக்கு தான் நானும் pass ஆவேன்ர நம்பிக்கை வந்து இருக்கு... நேத்து வரைக்கும், செம பயம் தான்! அதான் sappy mood!). Now, here I am, sitting in the library (one of the least used spaces during my grad life; more on it later) with an iced tea in hand and trying to remember what else I need to get done.

Some senti stuff: I saw a friend of mine (அவங்களுக்கு என் பாட்டி வயசு! அப்டியே என் பாட்டி மாதிரியும் இருப்பாங்க... ஆனா, friendnu தான் சொல்லணும்) today and got all the more confident (ஒரு நெனைப்பு தான்! பாட்டியே வந்து "நீ நல்லா tear பண்ணிடுவ"னு சொல்றது போல இருந்தது). Also I saw exactly 3 CGs but yet to see my favorite one still(I don't think I'll see my fav CG for its been a rare sight to do so this sem! But the day is still not over! ) (Normally, 3 per day is a high rating for my university. Either, its the day or my mood or the weather!!) .

I got to finish some stuff at the library and am sitting in the till-now-never-used-by-me alcove in a plush chair (இந்த super எடத்த இவ்ளோ நாள் miss பண்ணிடெனேனு இப்போ செம feelingaa இருக்கு. சரி அதுக்கு என்ன பண்ண முடியும்? இன்னொரு semaa படிக்க முடியும்? போனால் போகட்டும் போடா தான்!) And, I had this attack of non-library-usage-in-the-past-two-years. I would've taken more story books and novels from here than tech books (I refer tech books online. எப்டி தான் அந்த காலத்துல, மக்கள் libraryku வந்து books எடுத்துட்டு போய் refer பண்ணி research pannangalo? Research flow மறந்து போகாதா? இருக்கிற எடத்துல இருந்துட்டே, googlela search பண்ணி, மறுபடியும் codea பார்த்தா, எங்க பார்த்தோம் எதுல விட்டோம்னு யோசிக்க வேண்டியதா இருக்கு... இதுல libraryku போய், தேடி எடுத்துட்டு வந்து, research code adikarathuna, அப்றோம் நான் degree வாங்க, atleast 5 yearsaavathu ஆகும்... அந்த காலத்து மக்கள் great தான்! நம்ம generationku தான் attention diversion ரொம்ப ஜாஸ்தி ஆயிடுச்சு! ஹ்ம்ம்! எல்லாம் technologyoda side effects தாங்க! நம்ம சொல்லி குத்தமில்ல!) and have been introduced to various new authors(from Russian to Korean to African). I wouldn't have explored their writing unless I had a ready place to do so.

But, seeing the thousands and thousands of books neatly stacked in shelves over 6 floors gives me the guilty feeling of not having used even a millionth of these available resources. (நான் இதெல்லாம் use பண்ணாமயே படிச்சு passum ஆக போறேன்! கஷ்டம்! சரி, எல்லாம் ஒரு talent தானு வச்சிகோங்க!) But as I think of other resources like the GamePlace, GymPlace, EatPlace, LabPlace, GradPlace, Buildings and ConfPlace (I've changed the names of it all - யாரும் இப்டி எல்லாம் பேர் வைக்க மாட்டாங்க - இது என் Neverlandla மட்டும் தான் இருக்குது - copyright, சாட்ஷாத் நானே தாங்க!), I see that I've not really used any of their resources fully. True! I've used some more than others and some less. But not all of it! (குடுத்த காசுக்கு use பண்ணோமா, இல்லையே? இதுல, சில பில்டிங்கு உள்ள எல்லாம் போனது கூட இல்ல - coz அந்த majorkum எனக்கும் ஸ்நான ப்ராப்தி கூட இல்ல.)

But I also think that I've spent all the two years in grad life to the hilt. I've had fun in all those places. Conclusion: Though the resources are available, my usage of them is limited by my time, priorities and the opportunities that come through. I have memories of all of them and its these memories that would keep me linked with Neverland. Love Neverland!

[அட! அட! அட! என்ன conclusion! புல்லரிக்குது! Effect of thesis work! But still, எல்லாம் உண்மை தாங்க. இந்த enjoyment periodla, சிலது எழுதி இருக்கேன், பலது எழுதினது இல்ல. இனியாவது எழுத idea! வெட்டி Officera இருக்கிற போற timela இதெல்லாம் பண்ணனும். Atleast எழுதலைனாலும், கொஞ்சம் நெறைய round அடிக்கற வேல வச்சு இருக்கேன்! So, எல்லா இடமும் போய் நல்லா பார்த்துட்டு, ஒரு good bye சொல்லிட்டு வந்தா தான் மனசு ஆறும். இனி வர்ர கொஞ்ச நாள், ஒரே மலரும் நினைவுகள் postaa தான் இருக்கும் nu பக்ஷி சொல்லுது. எல்லாரும் அத poruthukonga. முடிஞ்ச அளவு மொக்கையா இல்லாம பார்த்துகறேன்!]

PS: [இன்னும் கெளம்புவேனா, இல்ல இங்கயே settle ஆவேனானு தெரியல! அது D-dayku அப்றோம் தான்! ஆனாலும், pass ஆயிடுவோம்ற நம்பிக்கைல, அடுத்து என்ன பண்றதுன்னு மூளை இப்போவே பிளான் பண்ணுது! என் ஆசிரியர் இத பார்த்தா, tension ஆயிடுவார். ஏன்னா, அவர் எனக்கு வேற வேல வச்சு இருக்கார்! அது ஏங்க, நமக்கும் நம்ம ஆசிரியருக்கும் sync ஆகவே மாட்டேன்து? ஸ்டில், எதுக்கும் ஒரு குட்டி plan நல்லதுதானே? இதெல்லாம் think panrapovae, சீக்கிரம் வேலைய முடிக்கணும், இதெல்லாம் பண்ணனும்னு தோணுது... still, பாப்போம்! D-day வந்தா தான் தெரியும்!]

PPS: [எல்லாரும் கடவுள்ட நல்லா வேண்டிகோங்க. உங்க Alpine, சீக்கிரம் நல்லபடியா pass ஆகனும்னு! Will keep you posted!]

The seed!

This is a forward from one of my friends. Though I've read this one a number of times already through forward chain mails, something about it struck me today. Guess that since I'm in the reaping stage in one way and sowing stage in the other that makes it striking. Have fun!

A successful business man was growing old and knew it was time to choose a successor to take over the business. Instead of choosing one of his Directors or his children, he decided to do something different. He called all the young executives in his company together.

He said, "It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO. I have decided to choose one of you. "The young executives were shocked, but the boss continued. "I am going to give each one of you a SEED today - one very special SEED. I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have given you. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next CEO."

One man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others, received a seed. He went home and excitedly, told his wife the story. She helped him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the seed. Everyday, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about three weeks, some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow.

Jim kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew.

Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still nothing.

By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn't have a plant and he felt like a failure.

Six months went by -- still nothing in Jim's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing. Jim didn't say anything to his colleagues, however.
He just kept watering and fertilizing the soil - He so wanted the seed to grow.

A year finally went by and all the young executives of the company
brought their plants to the CEO for inspection.

Jim told his wife that he wasn't going to take an empty pot. But she asked him to be honest about what happened. Jim felt sick to his stomach, it was going to be the most embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right. He took his empty pot to the board room. When Jim arrived, he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other executives. They were beautiful -- in all shapes and sizes. Jim put his empty pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed, a few felt sorry for him!

When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted his young executives..

Jim just tried to hide in the back. "My, what great plants, trees,and flowers you have grown," said the CEO "Today one of you will be appointed the next CEO!"

All of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered the Financial Director to bring him to the front. Jim was terrified. He thought, "The CEO knows I'm a failure! Maybe he will have me fired!"

When Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what had happened to his seed - Jim told him the story.

The CEO asked everyone to sit down except Jim. He looked at Jim, and then announced to the young executives, "Behold your next Chief Executive Officer! His name is Jim!" Jim couldn't believe it. Jim couldn't even grow his seed.

"How could he be the new CEO?" the others said.

Then the CEO said, "One year ago today, I gave everyone in this room a seed.. I told you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled seeds; they were dead - it was not possible for them to grow.

All of you, except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you. Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief Executive Officer!"

Just remember that what you sow, you will have to reap it later. It applies for happiness, sorrow, kindness, anger, etc. Hope everyone has a good weekend!

Stock taking in Neverland

Been a crazy week, with nothing to do on the Monday and a pile of work to do on the Friday. But I caught up with some of the things in life and am really glad for the breathing space just before the D-day arrives.Yup! I'm waiting for the D-day. But more on it as the day gets closer. A quick run of what's going on in Neverland (yeah! that is where I live!):

• We had yet another last event, the Vishu potluck which was nice. I made only rice for I had forgotten all about it and didn't have time to cook in the end (if AS hadn't reminded me, I would have missed a potluck! Damn! that is a terrible sin in grad life and I was about to commit it!). But thankfully, my friends needed rice and I was glad my forgetfulness turned out for good :D
• The movie and chai after the potluck at a friend's place was good too! I got another glimpse into the complexity of people's lives. Just a word: Nice!
  
• I had another last, my last staff meeting at my workplace. It was kind of good but I started feeling detached (might be because of some ruffled feathers that I saw in workplace). Though I was sad, I am ready to let go. More on my workplace in a later post! But they surprised me with a sweet gift! :) So thoughtful of them!
  
• I learnt the same lesson yet another time. Guess I'm becoming too stubborn a student to even remember a simple lesson from life. Totally yucky!
• Got to hear C sing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". In her voice, the song is all the more sweeter. She made my day! Guess I'm going to pamper her all the more as she grows up :D
  
• My last cabinet meeting and delegate meeting got over this week. I'm happy for all that I got to do in it. It was an exciting time and I got to meet a lot of American grad students and find what they think/talk/do in life. Its a small slice but I'm glad I got a chance to explore it!
• My last official pg meeting also got done last week. I'm sure going to miss it. But I guess some more tweaking to its structure would really help everyone a lot more. But who will bell the cat?
• My budget board meeting is wrapping up this week. It was a fantastic time with them and impressive to see how money is being allocated across the Neverland. Talking about huge amounts here! No wonder that money tends to become numbers beyond a point! I can now easily think in terms of 100,000s as I did with 100s. But it is yet another experience to let me grasp the real finances going on. And I'm glad for it!
  
• Whenever I cook chicken, the dish comes out different. That is the boon and bane of cooking! But I guess I'll start liking to cook sooner rather than later. Its fun to experiment and all the more fun to get someone else to eat it and go ga-ga [evil grin]. But seriously, now I make basic good food (something I thought was NEVER possible) and am ready to explore the more exotic ones (effect of being with AS, my roomie and K, my next-next-block mate). Gee! I'm waiting for Summer.
• Cleaning and sorting all through the week is a BORING job. But I came across a lot of stuff that I forgotten and they reminded me of Alpine two years ago. Some were nice, some were not (as in they didn't go as I expected them to) and some sprang a surprise. But it was a heaven of a journey (is there such an expression?) and I wouldn't trade it! Glad I took time to sort through stuff before I move the Neverland.
  
• I met an Indian freshman here. When she heard that I was finishing up, she said "Wow!!" and THAT made me feel old. Damn! I had given the same expression to my seniors (all the final years and third years of 20**, I'm really sorry!) and they had brushed it off. Guess its payback time! Ouch! it does hurt!
  
• Its always nice to fall asleep and have a friend wake you up at odd hours to talk to you. My friend would have wondered why I was not coherent for the first five minutes and how I could speak philosophy in the next ten minutes. And I dropped a bottle of water on my bed in the process! Its overloading the sills, I tell you! Any connection between the two events is purely coincidental :D

Now that the stock taking is over, I guess I'll get back to some more chiseling of the iceberg in my room (aka) catching up with long-lost stuff that I conveniently forgot in Neverland. Ciao! till then and wish that I come out unscathed this D-day!

Upside down?

This is in reply to one of my friend's requests. He has put up a picture on his blog and asked some of us to come up with suitable poems. Here is mine:

I woke up from my sleep

The breeze was caressing me

I unfurled my petals

The world smiled in glee

I saw a pretty girl

Talking without a care

She exclaimed

"Its blue up there"

And I looked up

All I saw was green

With some brown

in the 'tween

Am I looking up

And the world looking down?

Or is the world right

With me upside down?

-Alpine path

Another last!

Last Saturday, we had Tamil New Year celebrations at my university. Last year was a lot of fun and I had a memorable time with friends. I also got to host an event, plan for it and do impromptu stuff that was also on the lighter vein. The lighter vein was a first for me.

This year, again came the Tamil New year celebrations. And, I got to host that event again. It was so much fun and I got so sad at the end because it would be my last participation in this event. Yup! I wouldn't be here next year. Some observations on today:

• Each year, the flavor is different. I liked both this year and last. But my position had changed. Last year, I was the person running around doing stuff. This year, I can happily see the batons changing hands. And, the juniors ran around now! Yay! I love this part of graduation.
  
• There were some incidents that would have made me queasy last year. This year, though, I brushed it aside and did what was possible and best for all. I finally learnt a teeny weeny part of the lesson "You can't expect people to change, lite it and move on!"
• I couldn't help everyone to participate in it but I sure wanted to... It was loads of fun though!
  
• Last year's show dragged a bit, but this year, the show was lightning fast. And I had hoped for a lightning show last time (because I was so nervous) and a longer show this time (because I wanted one last time to do it). Well! Life gives you what you wish for... just at a different time! Talk about Time's warped sense of humor!! 
• The co-hosts' flavors also made a LOT of difference to the show. Last year, again, I was learning the ropes and had G teach them to me. This year, I was teaching it to DS. The funny thing is, both were classmates in college. I have SOME connection with their batch. I get to do loads of stuff with their batch.
• There are still some people who infuriate me. I want to bash their heads. Grrrr!!!
• I got some great acquaintences that night. It was fun sharing things with them!
• There is a lot more I need to learn with regard to balancing things.  It is amazing how some people get Stuff done and are still happy with personal life. Kudos to them!
• We did our usual Tech snap :D Can't finish without it!! 

In all, it was a memorable experience. I'm sure I'm going to miss it in future! But I'm also satisfied that I did my part in making life more fun for all of us and look forward to other opportunities. End of one part of my life at B! Sigh! Another Last!

Reviews, reviews and reviews!

If I had thought writing was not much fun, reviews are even less so. Though my friends and advisor are working with me to get things into shape (read keeping the grain and burning away the chaff in the thesis - otherwise, how to reduce 90 odd pages down to 60?), its still mind boggling in that I have to concentrate on so many small details and make sure each of them is 'just' right. I'm literally sweating the small stuff :D. But the thought that I'm just weeks away from my defense motivates me to go through it all. Yup! Unless things go south (badly south!) from here, I should be done soon!
Dreaming on.....