What just happened in the last few days? What was happening all over the TV? Was it a movie? Or was it reality? It simply took so long to settle in that it all seems like a Twisted Illusion to me, showing me something that I don't want to believe. Something that rightly suits the name I gave to my blog more than an year ago.
What a plot! As someone rightly put it, Two Birds with One Stone. The Terrorists attacking Mumbai, attacking foreign nationals in India is the perfect example of executing a dual operation with a single plan. But maybe I would call it, 3 birds with 1 stone. (1)They have attacked India , and (2)they have attacked the Rest-of-the-World and (3)most importantly, they attracted the media and got their message sent to the whole world, the message of spreading terror.
Everything is all over the news. What we used to hear about, is now coming out on TV, and Live. Every gunshot, every explosion, every movement can all be heard and watched Live. It's the height of reality... and something that is actually helping the spreading of terror. Within minutes of the siege, the whole world was watching...
I am posting a long time after it was all over. The reason? I was glued to the television. For 3 days, I don't remember doing anything else other than watching it all happen. The action, the grief, the heroic stories (The commandos, the hotel staff, etc.), the tragic stories (The deaths of Top officials, the young child who lost both his parents, the hundreds of deaths including important persons, etc.), the aftermath, the fear, the anger, the reactions, the reforms, it was all there...
Things now are settling down, but clearly they won't be settling down back to normal. Things will change. This particular incident has sparked off wild reactions in the country. People are angry. How is it that countries that previously experienced terror attacks never had such a nightmare again, and India has a major terror attack every month? How can things go so wrong in this country? Why do I hear that certain agencies already warned of such an attack? Where did that information go? How can we afford to let such things happen among the many layers of the government? Well, all such things can only be answered by an honest person who is stuck in those many layers...
Now there will be reforms, because this has shaken the very foundation of the country. But where will they be done? Only in Mumbai? Or the rest of the country as well? There are so many major cities that are so easy to attack in that perspective. Every attack is exposing a weakness in the security of the country. Bombs on trains, bombs in public places, bombs in market places, bombs in buildings, bombs in garbage bins, bombs in stolen cars, bombs on purchased cycles, illegal entries from sea-routes, etc. each of them showed that there was a flaw somewhere. Everytime we corrected a mistake, they found a new way. There will undoubtedly be a next time. And no matter what we do, they might still end up finding a way in. Maybe even by digging some underground stuff or whatever... why the heck should I give ideas??!!
And the biggest surprise to me is the technology that's available with them. How are they gaining access to all the high-end weapons, satellite communications, etc. And how are we not able to track them? Don't we have the equipment? Don't tell me...
Anyway, all that I say hardly matters, and it's the decisions of the 'important' people that matter in all this... but some general views won't hurt. Signing off, remembering the great job done by the commandos.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
So-Called Holiday
Exams are over. Good. Holidays are here. Good. But what do I do during the holidays? This isn't a question I should be asking myself. There are so many things to do, like planning out a Final Project, preparing for the 'other' tests, etc. However, there are many more other things that have taken up the priority spot.
I am finally back into some music. My guitar which was slowly getting rusted is now alive with some electricity flowing through it (Thank God, its not flowing through me!! Or else...). The one thing I noticed about Soccer and Guitar Playing is that, you rely on your form. If you are out of touch, even the simplest things feel extremely difficult. My fingers were moving like non-lubricated machine parts. Couldn't reach 3 frets down, when I could reach 5 frets down before my exams. Simply watching people shred on guitar and talking about it later is not a great thing to do. But ofcourse one can't expect every music freak to be able to play and create music. Anyway, coming back to my music status, Bad! Not being able to play simple chords is pretty damaging to the confidence level. So as of now, #1 priority is occupied by my guitar.
#2 is taken by my next favourite thing, Multimedia. Right from creating simple headings for my blog such as the one above, to my quest in learning Flash and more recently, 3D modelling, I am trying to be hooked up to the internet for every possible lesson I can learn. But ironically, the multimedia part on my browsers isn't functioning properly and that is proving to be a great hindrance.
And there is no #3.
The End!
I am finally back into some music. My guitar which was slowly getting rusted is now alive with some electricity flowing through it (Thank God, its not flowing through me!! Or else...). The one thing I noticed about Soccer and Guitar Playing is that, you rely on your form. If you are out of touch, even the simplest things feel extremely difficult. My fingers were moving like non-lubricated machine parts. Couldn't reach 3 frets down, when I could reach 5 frets down before my exams. Simply watching people shred on guitar and talking about it later is not a great thing to do. But ofcourse one can't expect every music freak to be able to play and create music. Anyway, coming back to my music status, Bad! Not being able to play simple chords is pretty damaging to the confidence level. So as of now, #1 priority is occupied by my guitar.
#2 is taken by my next favourite thing, Multimedia. Right from creating simple headings for my blog such as the one above, to my quest in learning Flash and more recently, 3D modelling, I am trying to be hooked up to the internet for every possible lesson I can learn. But ironically, the multimedia part on my browsers isn't functioning properly and that is proving to be a great hindrance.
And there is no #3.
The End!
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Bridge the Gap !!
But how?
Ok, there are many gaps that should be bridged. Like the Rich-Poor gap, literate-illiterate gap, Developed-Undeveloped gap, etc... but the gap that I am talking about is within my head. Its the gap between my ideas and my work! I was too lazy to notice that before, but recently I did. And frustration is hitting me ever since I discovered the 'Gap'.
Everytime I sit in front of the PC, ideas run through me head like crazy. I open all the software I dumped onto the PC. All the PS, Flash, Maya, etc. As soon as I start working, my brain suddenly goes dry. I even forget why I opened the software. That's the gap I want to bridge.
Everytime I touch my guitar, a new tune runs through my head. I hastily make all the connections, open FL studio, set the recording mode, and finally forget the tune. Or atleast I start off with the tune, but somehow it all goes wrong once I start really working on it. It plays perfectly in the head, but comes out like a mis-made product. That's the gap I want to bridge.
Everytime I see the question paper in the exam hall, my head runs wild. Partly because I don't know how to answer the questions, and partly because my head already starts finding solutions to those vaguely-familiar-but-I-wish-i-learnt-more questions. Within 5 minutes, I have all the answers in my head, even to the questions that I don't know. But once I start writing, it's a different ball game altogether. It's either lack of planning or that "GAP" which I am talking about, which results in a very bad set of answers. When the exam is over, I start to doubt even the answers that I thought I knew very well. Somehow the answer rolls well in the head but goes out of order while coming out. I start off with a point that I was reserving for the end. I suddenly remember that I missed out a point in between and I squeeze it in somewhere later. All because of that 'Gap'. A gap that might lead to some really bad results this time! That's the Gap I want to bridge.
And this should happen sooner than later or else I would be left like a crafty workman without his tools. I just got an idea how to bridge it.... but how do I implement it????? Oh no! Back to square one!
Ok, there are many gaps that should be bridged. Like the Rich-Poor gap, literate-illiterate gap, Developed-Undeveloped gap, etc... but the gap that I am talking about is within my head. Its the gap between my ideas and my work! I was too lazy to notice that before, but recently I did. And frustration is hitting me ever since I discovered the 'Gap'.
Everytime I sit in front of the PC, ideas run through me head like crazy. I open all the software I dumped onto the PC. All the PS, Flash, Maya, etc. As soon as I start working, my brain suddenly goes dry. I even forget why I opened the software. That's the gap I want to bridge.
Everytime I touch my guitar, a new tune runs through my head. I hastily make all the connections, open FL studio, set the recording mode, and finally forget the tune. Or atleast I start off with the tune, but somehow it all goes wrong once I start really working on it. It plays perfectly in the head, but comes out like a mis-made product. That's the gap I want to bridge.
Everytime I see the question paper in the exam hall, my head runs wild. Partly because I don't know how to answer the questions, and partly because my head already starts finding solutions to those vaguely-familiar-but-I-wish-i-learnt-more questions. Within 5 minutes, I have all the answers in my head, even to the questions that I don't know. But once I start writing, it's a different ball game altogether. It's either lack of planning or that "GAP" which I am talking about, which results in a very bad set of answers. When the exam is over, I start to doubt even the answers that I thought I knew very well. Somehow the answer rolls well in the head but goes out of order while coming out. I start off with a point that I was reserving for the end. I suddenly remember that I missed out a point in between and I squeeze it in somewhere later. All because of that 'Gap'. A gap that might lead to some really bad results this time! That's the Gap I want to bridge.
And this should happen sooner than later or else I would be left like a crafty workman without his tools. I just got an idea how to bridge it.... but how do I implement it????? Oh no! Back to square one!
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
No Interest Yet again !!
There's no interest to say anything but this is just to keep things alive here. My exam talk will come later which is as unstable as it ever was. And the new craze in India, the Audi R8 which was posted an year ago on this blog and which was released as a concept(leMans Concept) much before that. My friends were surprised I was discussing this car just 10 minutes before the exam. But the fine thing today is, it's my Mom's Birthday.
Saturday, November 08, 2008
Diwali 2008
I am posting this very late and at a time when I should have been preoccupied by books. But I love to waste time when it's not supposed to be wasted. That's me and I can't help it. Anyway, as usual, my experiments with photography never get exhausted and this Diwali, just like last year, gave me a lot of scope to experiment. However, this time I was somehow very unfortunate in timing. And most of the photos got distorted. Or in a creative sense, we could say they got tweaked. The end result is that, I don't know what angle or zoom level I was in, for more than half of the photos. They were almost random and almost unplanned. At least, I had not predicted them to come out that way. But still most Master Pieces are made 'by mistake' (that is, if you would ever care to call them master pieces).
This Diwali was spent more or less with the camera and hardly any time actually celebrating the occasion with fireworks. Here are some of my 'better' shots which are actually mistakes but the exposure setting on the camera turned into images that seem to have been edited in Adobe Photoshop. But let me remind you, not one of them has been edited... It's time to let the fireworks take over.
Don't mind the extra long post because of so many photos.
Some evening shots to capture the colours of the setting sun.
As usual, lamps form an intergral part of the festival.
We brighten up the air, but we always forget the smoke that's left behind, and the trash that's strewn on the ground...
The rise of "Fire Trees" from the ground.
I don't know what the camera orientation was for these shots.
This ain't no Photoshop.
The Flowers from the "Fire Trees".
And then there's a chaotic end.
This Diwali was spent more or less with the camera and hardly any time actually celebrating the occasion with fireworks. Here are some of my 'better' shots which are actually mistakes but the exposure setting on the camera turned into images that seem to have been edited in Adobe Photoshop. But let me remind you, not one of them has been edited... It's time to let the fireworks take over.
Don't mind the extra long post because of so many photos.
Some evening shots to capture the colours of the setting sun.
As usual, lamps form an intergral part of the festival.
We brighten up the air, but we always forget the smoke that's left behind, and the trash that's strewn on the ground...
The rise of "Fire Trees" from the ground.
I don't know what the camera orientation was for these shots.
This ain't no Photoshop.
The Flowers from the "Fire Trees".
And then there's a chaotic end.
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
The Last Lab
Today was the last time I attended a Lab Exam in Malla Reddy. And it felt like the first. The same old tension (in fact, more!), the same old confusion (more again!). This set of labs were supposed to be easy for me as they were both software related in my favourite field of 3D modelling and CFD analysis. But these 2 exams left such a mark on me that, I am almost beginning to recoil from the words, '3D modelling', 'Analysis', etc...
And all this was only because of the external viva questions. The first exam was easy but the viva was destroyed without even the presence of an external. The lecturer who taught me for 2 years asked questions that I couldn't answer. I could only get 1 of 3 answers and he asked me to leave. I am pretty sure the score is as bad as my expectations.
The second exam was easier, but the viva was screwed again. The external who had a look that was impossible to read, and a face that looked like a hybrid between an Egyptian Pharaoh and Barack Obama (Congratulations, President Obama), asked the stupidest questions I ever heard in my life. Stuff like, "Can you design that pencil box you are holding?" or, "Draw an airfoil or else, I'll personally make sure you fail" (was that a question or an order??), or "What is the difference between these 2 toolbars?" (Now how the hell can one point out differences between tool bars??? Commands are different??)... I somehow lived through the psychological game with him and got out as soon as I could.
The last ever Lab Exam made sure I would never forget it, or that face! I might forget CATIA in a week, but I won't forget his haunting face...
And all this was only because of the external viva questions. The first exam was easy but the viva was destroyed without even the presence of an external. The lecturer who taught me for 2 years asked questions that I couldn't answer. I could only get 1 of 3 answers and he asked me to leave. I am pretty sure the score is as bad as my expectations.
The second exam was easier, but the viva was screwed again. The external who had a look that was impossible to read, and a face that looked like a hybrid between an Egyptian Pharaoh and Barack Obama (Congratulations, President Obama), asked the stupidest questions I ever heard in my life. Stuff like, "Can you design that pencil box you are holding?" or, "Draw an airfoil or else, I'll personally make sure you fail" (was that a question or an order??), or "What is the difference between these 2 toolbars?" (Now how the hell can one point out differences between tool bars??? Commands are different??)... I somehow lived through the psychological game with him and got out as soon as I could.
The last ever Lab Exam made sure I would never forget it, or that face! I might forget CATIA in a week, but I won't forget his haunting face...
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
When Ferrari was (b)eaten alive!!
Ahh! It was a sad day for me yesterday! Early in the morning I opened the paper and found a picture of Lewis Hamilton celebrating and the text under it saying Hamilton won the Championship. My mega-sad cable operator never gave me a chance to know that the F1 Championship was coming to an end. It was the paper that told me the result and brought my blood to a halt.
Lewis Hamilton winning the title in the last few metres of the race? That was crazy, but true. The overtaking in the last lap when Massa was looking forward to celebrate a well-fought Championship literally brought me down to my knees and I cursed, "How could this happen!". Suddenly Hamilton looks like a villain to me. He's awesome, but he's a villain...
What more can I say about it... it's over this year.
Lewis Hamilton winning the title in the last few metres of the race? That was crazy, but true. The overtaking in the last lap when Massa was looking forward to celebrate a well-fought Championship literally brought me down to my knees and I cursed, "How could this happen!". Suddenly Hamilton looks like a villain to me. He's awesome, but he's a villain...
What more can I say about it... it's over this year.
Fright Night Chilly Night
Burr! It was cold and creepy. I got a call from Natarajan and he asked me to come over to his favourite hang-out place in the jungles of Osmania University. It was only 7:30pm, but it was pitch dark, and the place looked creepy under the headlamps of my vehicle. I couldn't hold the handle straight in the cold, I was shivering. I somehow reached the place, and I found him waiting there. And I found the monster waiting there...
The new Yamaha FZ. It was gleaming in the dark, and I immediately jumped onto the bike. Mine was taken by Avinash (who was also present), and we started roaming around. I got to ride it and it was awesome, though I was shaking like crazy, half due to excitement and half due to the cold. I had some good fun on the bike, trying to know all the technicalities of it in a single gulp. 2-3 passersby looked on and asked questions about it, as they could make out the distinct shape in the darkness.
Then plans began flowing and friends started pouring in. It was getting late now, and I was expected back home within an hour at worst, and it was well beyond that. But with nearly 6-7 people present now, the drinks came out. I modestly took one and we kept chatting and joking, and a pair of headlamps approach from nowhere...
We were pretty casually talking until we saw the sign on the jeep. The sign that nobody wants to see when drinks flow in a lonely, dangerous area. It was 100. It was the Police. I suddenly became dazed, numb, and partially unconscious, not because of the drink, but because of the sight that unfolded. 4-5 people jumped out, slammed the doors and got instantly aggressive with us. They thought we were upto something. They found the weakest link, Me. One man grabbed me and started pulling me toward the jeep. The others were also being dragged. We were trying to explain, but they were in no mood to listen. They started checking the smell of our breath. One by one, the facts started to pour out. It was suddenly hot, very hot. I was shivering. I was sweating, I was boiling, yet I was shivering. They snatched our bikes' keys. Were we begging, we were pleading but they knew what they had to do. The drama went on for about 15 minutes. We were made to enter our names, addresses, and phone numbers. We readily gave them. They asked us a hundred questions. We answered them truthfully. They never gave in. They never gave us our bikes back. Finally, when some of them started forcing us to get in, we begged like nobody on earth would have begged. We were in The Good Cop-Bad Cop situation. We begged the good cop and he told us crazy stories about the great happenings in that area where we were standing. After a lot more pleading, he finally asked us to go towards the bad cop and plead again. We did that readily. And he finally gave in and asked us to fork out a 1000 cash. We somehow managed to collect 450 and thrust it into his hands. He thrust the keys in our hands and asked us to get out of there and never be visible again. We promised him that, and escaped as fast as we could...
The cold, creepy night turned into a bad, scary night for all of us, and I hope we learned the lesson of venturing out at such times. Everyone were visibly shaken and extremely pleased to have been let go. We all took off to our homes soon, and it was the end of the 'night'...
For 5 minutes I enjoyed on the Yamaha like I never did, and the next 20 minutes were hell beyond reason. Maybe Pleasure does lead to Pain!!
P.S: To whoever read this, "Please don't talk about this to me or anyone, within 10 miles radius of my home!!"
The new Yamaha FZ. It was gleaming in the dark, and I immediately jumped onto the bike. Mine was taken by Avinash (who was also present), and we started roaming around. I got to ride it and it was awesome, though I was shaking like crazy, half due to excitement and half due to the cold. I had some good fun on the bike, trying to know all the technicalities of it in a single gulp. 2-3 passersby looked on and asked questions about it, as they could make out the distinct shape in the darkness.
Then plans began flowing and friends started pouring in. It was getting late now, and I was expected back home within an hour at worst, and it was well beyond that. But with nearly 6-7 people present now, the drinks came out. I modestly took one and we kept chatting and joking, and a pair of headlamps approach from nowhere...
We were pretty casually talking until we saw the sign on the jeep. The sign that nobody wants to see when drinks flow in a lonely, dangerous area. It was 100. It was the Police. I suddenly became dazed, numb, and partially unconscious, not because of the drink, but because of the sight that unfolded. 4-5 people jumped out, slammed the doors and got instantly aggressive with us. They thought we were upto something. They found the weakest link, Me. One man grabbed me and started pulling me toward the jeep. The others were also being dragged. We were trying to explain, but they were in no mood to listen. They started checking the smell of our breath. One by one, the facts started to pour out. It was suddenly hot, very hot. I was shivering. I was sweating, I was boiling, yet I was shivering. They snatched our bikes' keys. Were we begging, we were pleading but they knew what they had to do. The drama went on for about 15 minutes. We were made to enter our names, addresses, and phone numbers. We readily gave them. They asked us a hundred questions. We answered them truthfully. They never gave in. They never gave us our bikes back. Finally, when some of them started forcing us to get in, we begged like nobody on earth would have begged. We were in The Good Cop-Bad Cop situation. We begged the good cop and he told us crazy stories about the great happenings in that area where we were standing. After a lot more pleading, he finally asked us to go towards the bad cop and plead again. We did that readily. And he finally gave in and asked us to fork out a 1000 cash. We somehow managed to collect 450 and thrust it into his hands. He thrust the keys in our hands and asked us to get out of there and never be visible again. We promised him that, and escaped as fast as we could...
The cold, creepy night turned into a bad, scary night for all of us, and I hope we learned the lesson of venturing out at such times. Everyone were visibly shaken and extremely pleased to have been let go. We all took off to our homes soon, and it was the end of the 'night'...
For 5 minutes I enjoyed on the Yamaha like I never did, and the next 20 minutes were hell beyond reason. Maybe Pleasure does lead to Pain!!
P.S: To whoever read this, "Please don't talk about this to me or anyone, within 10 miles radius of my home!!"
Sunday, November 02, 2008
For The Biker
A few years ago, there was nothing on the roads. Just the usual autos and buses and a few 'motorbikes', cars and plenty of 'scooters' and walking people. Overnight, all that changed. Those weird looking Italian-like scooters gave way to 'bikes' as we call them. With engines running new technology, high capacity and high efficiency, bikes became the rage. The newer releases attract not only with fuel efficiency, and technology but also with looks. We all know of the famous Pulsar-Karizma war which became almost funny with controversies. Ofcourse, I am not the biker type and the only bikes I ever drove were a Fazer and a Hero Honda Passion. So I can't really compare bikes by their handling characteristics, road grip, engine pickup, etc. But I did have a certain idea about most of the happenings, by watching and listening.
But yesterday was a different story altogether! I cruised on the best I ever saw or drove in India. It was the Yamaha FZ 150 that Natarajan bought recently. It happily discourages a second seater which is a great thing for long-trip bikers. It was dark and I couldn't see it properly, but I could feel the presence of a monster. The huge fuel tank, the low placed headlamp, the curves, the lines, all of them give the bike a look that was never seen before on Indian roads! The ultimate stunner is the Yamaha Logo at the back that glows red in the night! It's expected efficiency is an amazing 45-50 which is almost shocking! The reason it has the potential to beat every other bike in India is that, it's tailor-made for bike-crazy people, and it fits the fuel-efficiency range which is typically an Indian requirement. The feel, ride and handling of the bike is way too awesome. It feels as if the bike's connected to your brain wirelessly and its listening to every touch you make on the accelerator. The comfort as far as a single person drives it is too good, though a pillion rider might feel uneasy and a third person's chance is totally eliminated. The road grip as according to Natarajan is beyond the wildest dreams as he actually got the footrest guard (i mean the guard that guards the footrest while extreme bending) to scrape the road while bending. All of my friends, and me have been blown away by the looks and performance of this bike and the orders for this bike are touching the sky. The Yamaha FZ is the newly crowned 150cc king of Indian Roads!
It's not for college going students who want to save money by traveling 3 at once. It's not for crazy long-dyed-hair guys who want to impress every other girl on the road. It's not for boring office going people who want to jump over every other pothole and zip in the narrowest cracks in traffic. It's for bikers! It's for Biking and it's a way living!
But yesterday was a different story altogether! I cruised on the best I ever saw or drove in India. It was the Yamaha FZ 150 that Natarajan bought recently. It happily discourages a second seater which is a great thing for long-trip bikers. It was dark and I couldn't see it properly, but I could feel the presence of a monster. The huge fuel tank, the low placed headlamp, the curves, the lines, all of them give the bike a look that was never seen before on Indian roads! The ultimate stunner is the Yamaha Logo at the back that glows red in the night! It's expected efficiency is an amazing 45-50 which is almost shocking! The reason it has the potential to beat every other bike in India is that, it's tailor-made for bike-crazy people, and it fits the fuel-efficiency range which is typically an Indian requirement. The feel, ride and handling of the bike is way too awesome. It feels as if the bike's connected to your brain wirelessly and its listening to every touch you make on the accelerator. The comfort as far as a single person drives it is too good, though a pillion rider might feel uneasy and a third person's chance is totally eliminated. The road grip as according to Natarajan is beyond the wildest dreams as he actually got the footrest guard (i mean the guard that guards the footrest while extreme bending) to scrape the road while bending. All of my friends, and me have been blown away by the looks and performance of this bike and the orders for this bike are touching the sky. The Yamaha FZ is the newly crowned 150cc king of Indian Roads!
It's not for college going students who want to save money by traveling 3 at once. It's not for crazy long-dyed-hair guys who want to impress every other girl on the road. It's not for boring office going people who want to jump over every other pothole and zip in the narrowest cracks in traffic. It's for bikers! It's for Biking and it's a way living!
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