sick weak/week/year end

It had to be after I read A's post on "take care of yourself."
Don't remember the last time I was lying on a bed the whole damn day with only meal breaks in between. With nothing to do, the ceiling stretched itself like a canvas stretched across to flip images of 07 like in coverflow, though not in a very pleasant way, with my nose working overtime and tears that were neither from a state of extreme joy or sadness.

Of paths chosen, of decisions taken that deserve bravery awards, of actions that make me pat myself on the back, of thoughtless and stupid actions that bring a smile to my face, of action less weekends including this one, of super cool outings, of a healthy year, a thousand e-mails, a handful of interviews, and memorable conversations. There is a lot more, but not worth putting down at this point.

The coming year has 366 days. Wonder will that one extra special day, really make all the difference :)

blogger vs wordpress

It is always good when you are presented with an alternate. Else you would never know that things can really get better. I think I will soon make a choice.

Up next

Ok Christmas over
Next please

Better

One of the better "service" call (via SMS)
redbus.in is being covered by ETV Kannada at 8pm today.
We hope that you will watch the show. Thank you for your patronage.
Sorry to disturb you on a Sunday.

Makes stuff so simple and non irritating, rather than the usual, Sir we would like to offer you....blah blah blah

You and I

So different yet so similar
We were pretty much the same
You were blue, I was gold

You used oil, I used water
You rode an Atlas me a Hercules

Our letters slanted the same way
Our inks matched, after once you said Violet is here to stay
Our pencils matched too
So did our pens, from Flair to Hero

Grade 8 put me in D and you in C
Coz I chose something and you opted NCC
I do remember we three in 11th C
After that we never did see

Our churches were across the road
And the road has stretched between our offices too
Today when I saw you, you weren't a lot different
We started so similar yet ended so different

For Gauropop....

Feliz Navidad

I'll be home for Christmas
I'll be home just in time
I can't wait 'till I see you
Feel your heart next to mine
........

I'll be home for Christmas
I'll be home Christmas time
When you wait Christmas morning
I'll be there by your side......

perfectly fits into my current situation :)
because of an unfortunate event though...
Excerpts from "Christmas with Boney M" " I'll be home for Christmas"

users say, "

1. Life is only as good as you want it to be
2. I speak, I listen, I imagine, I dream. These define who I am, define all the irregularities and imperfections that are ME.

a sunset

Amidst two extreme realities, one with an iphone and one with a "hare ram" on his lips.
At a dizzying height, I took a flight. A mate once said, "Why don't you just book a flight?"
And I had muttered to myself,"Your father pays for yours right?"

DELAYED read the display. I smiled to myself and said, "I know that". But if not for the wait, I would have missed the sunset and the windows' little dance and sway. People were grumbling and mumbling and I was fumbling. The prayer man offered his help while the phone man showed a little dissent. Each of them flaunted in their own way. Both made conversations. One with the supernatural and one with the pseudo-natural. Along came a sadhu baba and asked the phone man "What is life without a mobile?" Next when I saw him pile up his luggage at the conveyor belt, felt like asking him "What is life because of people like you?" The prayer man was a little generous and sensed my need to connect with the view, which looked so much like one of the satellite maps. His generosity ended there. He would occasionally move back allowing me to have a look and then when he thought I had had enough, would give me a look that said, "Huh, bloody fresher". It pays to act with confidence even with half the knowledge. I acted on impulse and had decided I won't care what others think. And it paid off quite well. I didn't go too wrong. On another journey, bored of being asked if I was a student, just to see the reaction, I said "No". All conversation ended there. Nice idea if you aren't really interested to talk to an aunty, who thinks because you are a student, you wouldn't mind giving her your window seat. What goes around doesn't always come around, well, maybe it will. Anyway I wasn't going to ask prayer man for the window.
He probably would have killed me.

Towards the end, phone man was quite adamant that the plane be parked, only then would he move out of his seat. While prayer man was hell bent on finding his way past me and phone man. Then followed a small verbal duel which I quite enjoyed. Phone man said, "Where do you think you are going?" Prayer man said "Why, do you intend to go somewhere else?".....and blah blah blah. It was just like a flying bus. In between, lunch was served with a lot of politeness and care, which one of the passengers didn't think was great. He decided to call the host with a click of his fingers which the host obviously didn't particularly enjoy. I don't understand what is more embarrassing. To serve or to be served. Another host dropped a half finished meal in the aisle, which the hostess cleaned with almost home like dedication. Everyone has a job to do. It's the way you do it that matters.

Finally at the exit phone man was asked how did he find the service. He had to act himself. He said, "Generally bad". My turn. I could only manage a smile. Maybe next time I said to myself. Climbing down the stairs I knew a little about what "Baking your cake, and eating it too" meant.

Quite liked this one

You have two ears and one mouth.
Remember to use them more or less in that proportion.

Christened !!

inspired by "movingfingers"
Sand took me back to one of my first nicknames.....wonder how it was related
But are nicknames supposed to be related anyway? Most of mine start with the soft and curvy S, an alphabet I hardly like. I like 'A' and for some strange reason, I used to carry a key chain with an A in my graduation days. Well, my friend gave me a nick with a Z.....not very far from A, is it? Oh yeah, I did have one with A, but it doesn't really qualify for a nick....it was "Ahmednagar"

sannya (coz sunny was same 'ol same 'ol)
sannadya (sunny grotesque)
sandy (no clue where that came from)
sunday (hahaha)
nelson (it was actually major anthony nelson...the whole thing)
zunil (one of my favourites)
nilsu (by the above author)
su-nile
linus (like linus leumas....i used to consider naming my studio that)

sam bhai (by Y bhai)
sam (if i don't say that on phone some of them act strange)
samdya (when in need :)
sam boy (usually when something nice came up)
samda (used rarely)
fr. samuel (father)
sunya, sai-mu-al (written in devnagari...marathi influence)
sammy, swamy (samuel was just too difficult)
santulay > santulam > santul (no relevance whatsoever....it's special)
sam-ya

semuel (my login...g style)
sun sunio
sunio (PG graphics)
saam veil (chennai version)
sameo (probably didn't know the name)
subi (for a secondnamesake)
pinchu (for one mistake)
samu (could have been more creative)
mighty mouse, F9 (the A-305s)
man (courtesy other men)
sunilsamuel (always said together...quickly...with a lisp)
well, back to square one....almost

I like odd ^

in reverse chronological order

3A-53A
7th
CA/2005/35453
6202053
5202052
3202053
9822446549 (53)
1202057
MH-16-W-1115
52
35
3
1

Footprints in sand...

Swirls and twirls and lines and dashes,
Made me run in mud and in the ashes,
All these made up the walks in new shoes
To the school and back, I loved my new shoes

I kept looking back for my footprints in sand...
Kept comparing them to my sister's at hand
I looked for them on my way back
But layers of sand had covered them back

My new shoes are made up of three straight lines,
But sadly they hardly leave a twirl or a line
I walked to the office, the day went fine
I forgot looking back for my footprints in time...

From "Today's big hits"

I think I need a sunrise
I'm tired of sunsets

Weekends gone by

These are straight, but

this is just too wound up......

Jobs again

"I do, what I can't say"

This day

Writing the "trails" post took me back to the trails of another escapade......
This day that year......."push" your mind a little....
Dedicated to A,A,M,T :)

Fall..if you have to

Sri today said,
"If it seems that you have done everything right in your life,
then probably you haven't done anything new"

I re-quote Steve Jobs,
"We are here to make a dent in the Universe, otherwise, why even be here"

Trails

Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten, yeah


Sorry, can't get over the song.
But it sure was an inspiration to make that trip into the hills where people go in huge groups to seek solitude and get some so called fresh air in their lungs. I don't really believe it happens that way. The most unplanned trip for me atleast. Was left with nothing to wear but the branded Y! t-shirt which was already worn "two times" before (that's for you A), a sweater (thankfully) and the other basics which I don't think anyone would be interested in reading. Stayed over at "the" place which A calls Hotel California, and then got up atleast twice in a confused state to check time and ensure that I didn't miss the bus. Happens with me, only when the prospects are exciting enough. Up at 6, I reached the pick up point on time, only to realise I was far from being picked, allowing me enough time for an early morning "tea" on the roadside. My cellphone was dying, so I kept memorizing P's number just in case it gave up on me which it eventually did. I realized I'm bad at that too. The idea of being left out in the cold on a weekend morning was bad, more so since I had already woken up early.

Once on the bus, it was catch up time with breakfast providing an ideal time for exchange of status reports and for some to comment on a few local dialects and traditions. Destination 1 was reached with ease with a pit stop for lunch. Rain announced itself and off we hopped into the bus, with plans of the summit looking grim. Reached base camp amidst rain and clouds. Finally the brave few decided to just go out and make the climb and eventually everyone joined in. Not that it was an uncharted trail but it seemed desolate. But worth it was. Somewhere briefly I drifted away from everyone else and thought my mind was audible to me and even a whisper seemed like a shout. I could hear myself breathe. The "ting ting" of cowbells coming from the cloud laden hilltop took me a few years back in time, but I was back in a second when I heard familiar voices which seemed quite recent. We decided to spoil the silence a bit by doing the 1..2...3....oooooo to hear the valley echo back in its full glory. Done with almost 2/3 of the climb...the thought of getting back to the waiting bus made us change our minds and retreat back. Couldn't actually savour the moment, and it was like just there and back. Of course, then it was picture time...how can that not be? But as a few of the unenthusiastic, unintersted discussed other things that eyes could see, the trigger happy carried on.

Coffee at the base camp and a might-fall-off-the-cliff-anytime journey took us to what looked like a perfect setting for a typical movie where friends go out for a trip and in the night one by one all of them go missing. Well, we had our hero-heroine with us who would eventually crack the mystery ;) No power made the otherwise decent cottage look haunted and did we have a choice? Dinner was a quickie in the restaurant on the upper level of the rugged terrain. Settled into the 2 rooms quite snugly we prepared ourselves for the night ahead, not before gathering in the central room. Talks were brief and mostly bordered around issues, situations and people who were not present.

Morning was unusually early and surprisingly everyone was up to the call. Restaurant said no breakfast till 830, but not to be deterred by that we decided to walk across to the non-existent Z-point. What seemed like an enormous walk, got only better with the clouds playing hide and seek along the road which treacherously reduced in width as it went on. I enjoyed watching everyone follow the trail from a higher level. As we scaled greater heights and finally reached the top, a serene sea of clouds seemed to form right below our eyes making each one almost wish they could board the clouds for a joyride. A few of the adventurous ones went that extra mile to the cliff which involved a little climbing off the rocks. I wouldn't call it showing off, but it was good fun to be there. The walk back was, or seemed quite quick and we were back at the bus. Whatever happened after that isn't quite worth the record. And yes the climb to and from Z point also brought with it a lot of leech adventures. I felt "smart" deep inside for having opted for shoes, until one of them decided to drive back with me to Bangalore in my shoe. I was the last victim. One for the road.

Uncle Sam

Feel like 26 today
Was called an uncle yesterday
The kids don't bother
They are at play
For them it's just another day

B2B

Close to a month in B and a bagful of stuff already. Well, literally too
After having lived on the edge for the past few months, few things have suddenly started having more meaning to them than I can think of. Like getting up at 630 in the morning, feeling the not-yet-winter cold breeze here, trying to help cook, the need for a place to stay, thinking of how to spend the weekend fruitfully by doing something or rather anything other than mall walking. Drives to and from the office, though not really drives serve as a pleasant reminder to appreciate what you get, especially the cool breeze unlike A.

After having made the decision of moving to B rather than B, though the period is only 6 months, I wasn't too sure of what I was doing. Not that I am even now. But I've already met a few amazing people, had the best of homemade food and a wonderful time, though I hardly understand what these 8 crazy guys keep talking . All I do is smile and respond when each one of them says "Hi Sam" after I return home everyday. Strange it may be, but somethings are just meant to happen to you. I came to B thinking I would brush up on my mother tongue skills, but have already started learning something else altogether. "Yenaku konjum konjum Taamil teriyu. Though it is romba kashtam as of now. Tamil nalla eriuku". It is similar even on the work front. My first love is a little distant and I might have to two time her for HTML, CSS, indexing and a few other not so PYTs. Meanwhile the "unwritten" song is some sort of an addiction in addition to "boost" and chips at the cafeteria and sambhar at home.

Y! may be far behind G in terms of its innovative powers and simplicity. But when the co-founder of one of the top 5 IT companies to work for, comes for an internal event and is as enthusiastic as the participants, meets them, sees their work and congratulates each and every team member, then it definitely shows a human side of the corporate world. Ok ok I'm not playing an advocate of Y! here, just giving a first hand account.

And now I hear that I might have to shift to another Y! office on the 9th floor of a new building. It is the newest sibling of the Y! family at B. One thing, the view from there is awesome. If it was one thing that could motivate me this has to be it.

Oh btw, I'm leaving home today :(
Thanks for all the laughs, the food and a lovely time
Dedicated to : Anna, Arun, Aaya, Pmk, Ram, Kamti, Savan, Adham, Prabhu.....adaa paavi....2 times!!