Once upon a time, there was a beautiful and mysterious place. It was filled with wonders never seen or heard of before. Strange yet very hospitable people inhabited this land. Tales of its vast riches spread far and wide, twists and contortions in the stories portraying this land as the el dorado.
All was not well in this land, however. Just beneath the surface you could see insane rituals and practices rule the day. Then came the british. And began the process of murdering and modernization.
In the glorious struggle for freedom from this tyranny, many lives were lost. But we emerged victorious. So emerged a new age India, one that was free from the shackles of the past, one that would look forward and emerge as one of the foremost nations in the world, one that would regain its lost and plundered glory, one that would be the epitome of prosperity and happiness.
Keep dreaming.
Maharashtra state finance and planning minister Mr. Jayant Patil has come up with yet another ingenious idea. He wants to bring in another quota system in jobs. Only this time, the quota stands at a stagerring 80 % . 80 % quota for the locals in all industries across maharashtra. Can you believe these ludicrous schemes, the extent to which these numbskulls will go to increase their chances of staying in power ? Having stayed in mumbai all my life, i am definitely one of the so called beneficiaries of this junk of a rule. That, however, hardly makes it any rosier. Now that maharashtra has come up with such a quota, how long will it be , till other states that are to go to polls follow suit ? The most irritating part is that due to coalition politics, the central government, that boasts of stalwarts of the indian economic revolution like chidambaram, the PM himself, etc remain dumb to these insane ideas that their allies dream up, no doubt helped by the string of defeats that the Ruling party has sufered in various state polls over the past year. Blinded by this lust for power, the long term goals lay forgotten.
Perhaps India is the only country in the world where people fight, struggle and even kill to be branded under-developed or under-privileged A lot has been said and debated on reservations. While the time for abolishment of reservations is no where near in the foreseeable future, having 80% quota defies human logic from any angle.
Few things get me as worked up as reservations. It is steps like this that make me completely disillusioned with the future of this country, or lack thereof.
The british were better, one would be inclined to think.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Monday, May 26, 2008
The garden in the pig
There is a certain chill in the air. Almost mocking the intense indian summer, a slight shiver runs through the body at the peak of the afternoon time. I remember, about the same time, 5 years ago, when i was on a trip from trichy to chennai, a similar chill, one that cannot be banished by sweaters and wollen clothes and jackets and the like, made its presence felt like never before. That was one of the longest journeys of my life.
Of course, my time has gone. I am inured to the chill. A hardened soul, if i may say that.
At least, thats what i thought, until today afternoon. Thats when i found out, through some rumour doing the rounds, and then verified via the omnicient internet, that the 10th std CBSE board results are gonna be announced tomorow. Quite a shock, seeing as it wasnt expected until the 29th of may. No, i havent retrograded n all, its my sis who's given those boards. For some really unknown reason, this apparently hardened soul is starting to feel the jitters. It is reminded of that fateful journey, from trichy to chennai. Maybe those first jitters have made a comeback.
It was ominous from the begining. The results were to be announced at 5 pm. I boarded the train at a time such that i would be at chennai, and hence have the internet at my disposal, a full 2 hrs before the results were to be announced. However much i try not to be a fatalist, the quirks of fate were enough to convince me that everything was beyond anything i could do. The train, much to my dismay, and to the delight of the millions of butterflies flitting about in my stomach, was 3 hrs late. Bloody three hours ! That poor little 15 year old kid, having to undergo all that trauma ! I boarded the train, trying not to think. However, just as it happens when you are desperately trying not to do something, fate hands us that very thing in various disguises. In my case, it was nightmares. Only, i wasnt sleeping, and it wasnt night time. Haunted by the much feared number that magically seemed to bind itself to my thoughts like viscid glue, 78%, i spent the journey oblivious to all the comforting that my mum was trying to give me. Afterall, it was my first brush with the board exams. And how was i to know that it would have little or no bearing on anything in the future ? Subsequently of course, the air came gushing back and i heaved a sigh of relief when my atthai ( aunt ) , there to pick us up at the station, beaming, and to the enormous relief of everyone on the train, informed us that i had done quite decently. The coming years would then make me so indifferent to such exams, however, that until today, i had not thought it possible for any such result to take the wind right out of me.
The butterflies have mysteriously reappeared, doing all they can to remind me of that day. Needless to say, my sis is in a much worse condition. She's currently gone for a walk to take her mind of things, but i doubt if its going to succeed. Its after all her first one too, and magnanimous that i am, i have so far refrained from making things any worse for her. ( by of course not reminding her again n again about the impending doom of results ) . I dont think i have the stomach to do it even if i wanted to. For some wierd, unheard of, nonsense reason, im at least half as nervous as her. And i have no idea why. Of course, she's never shown any outstanding promise for expecting anything out of the ordinary from her, but one hopes, again the fatalist tendency creeping in, that when things are out of our control ( and here the optimist takes over ) , the least they can do is take shape for the better.
Well, we'll know for sure by tomorow 5 pm. Till then, ill continue to be a haven for those damned butterflies that are having the time of their life.
ps: dont ask me the results :P
Of course, my time has gone. I am inured to the chill. A hardened soul, if i may say that.
At least, thats what i thought, until today afternoon. Thats when i found out, through some rumour doing the rounds, and then verified via the omnicient internet, that the 10th std CBSE board results are gonna be announced tomorow. Quite a shock, seeing as it wasnt expected until the 29th of may. No, i havent retrograded n all, its my sis who's given those boards. For some really unknown reason, this apparently hardened soul is starting to feel the jitters. It is reminded of that fateful journey, from trichy to chennai. Maybe those first jitters have made a comeback.
It was ominous from the begining. The results were to be announced at 5 pm. I boarded the train at a time such that i would be at chennai, and hence have the internet at my disposal, a full 2 hrs before the results were to be announced. However much i try not to be a fatalist, the quirks of fate were enough to convince me that everything was beyond anything i could do. The train, much to my dismay, and to the delight of the millions of butterflies flitting about in my stomach, was 3 hrs late. Bloody three hours ! That poor little 15 year old kid, having to undergo all that trauma ! I boarded the train, trying not to think. However, just as it happens when you are desperately trying not to do something, fate hands us that very thing in various disguises. In my case, it was nightmares. Only, i wasnt sleeping, and it wasnt night time. Haunted by the much feared number that magically seemed to bind itself to my thoughts like viscid glue, 78%, i spent the journey oblivious to all the comforting that my mum was trying to give me. Afterall, it was my first brush with the board exams. And how was i to know that it would have little or no bearing on anything in the future ? Subsequently of course, the air came gushing back and i heaved a sigh of relief when my atthai ( aunt ) , there to pick us up at the station, beaming, and to the enormous relief of everyone on the train, informed us that i had done quite decently. The coming years would then make me so indifferent to such exams, however, that until today, i had not thought it possible for any such result to take the wind right out of me.
The butterflies have mysteriously reappeared, doing all they can to remind me of that day. Needless to say, my sis is in a much worse condition. She's currently gone for a walk to take her mind of things, but i doubt if its going to succeed. Its after all her first one too, and magnanimous that i am, i have so far refrained from making things any worse for her. ( by of course not reminding her again n again about the impending doom of results ) . I dont think i have the stomach to do it even if i wanted to. For some wierd, unheard of, nonsense reason, im at least half as nervous as her. And i have no idea why. Of course, she's never shown any outstanding promise for expecting anything out of the ordinary from her, but one hopes, again the fatalist tendency creeping in, that when things are out of our control ( and here the optimist takes over ) , the least they can do is take shape for the better.
Well, we'll know for sure by tomorow 5 pm. Till then, ill continue to be a haven for those damned butterflies that are having the time of their life.
ps: dont ask me the results :P
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
No straw, damnus
I think i have finally got the hang of this world. So i propound a theory which actually fits in with the various ongoing lame attempts that try to explain everything that happens. Well, in order to justify such a claim, i must substantiate it with some solid proof.
Ill begin by predicting the future.
For example, heres tomorrow's news:
1.) Financial calamity may trigger mass panic
2.) X company buys Y company
3.) Idiots kill innocent victims
4.) rich spoilt pop star does something interesting
5.) Politician does something illegal
6.) Research proves that this discovery may affect the way we live
7.) Govt screws up some goal
8.) Someone wont play some sport for some time because of injury
In fact, its the day after tomorrow's news also , and even the day after the day after tomorrow, and the day after that, n so on.
If thats not enough, ill predict some future scientific discoveries, which will be made based on groundbreaking research.
1.) If a black cat crosses ur path in the morning , it may not mean bad luck for the day.
2.) The probability of taking bath twice a day is increased by being shat upon by a flying bird.
3.) Jogging during an earthquake increases the risk of a panic attack.
4.) Cockroaches may rule the earth one day if treated well.
5.) In 50,000 years, there may not be enough straw on earth to feed our cattle.
Nostradamus would have been put to shame.
So now that it is clear that i possess, at the risk of sounding braggy, a phenomenal gift that has eluded scores of geniuses , here goes my propounded theory.
warning : this is not an original one. Many variations of this have been prevalent in the past, lets call it coincidence, a supreme piece of good fortune for some madmen, who have the good fortune of concurring with me
We are all pawns in a game. An alien kid has got this universe ball that he can control. All the tiny random events that occur are us. He can, however, assume control of anyone of us, and direct them to follow strange commands. As this transmission is in a format as yet undiscovered by us, we think it is our subconcious that decides what we do. Most of it is artificial intelligence, but sometimes , some wierd deviant behaviour is the fault of that stupid kid who cant yet get this game figured out.
Once he does figure out however, he'll know what a waste of alien money and time it is, and he'll flush it down the toilet. Welcome, big bang/crunch.
This certainly does explain my sudden yet inexplicable enlightenment. After all, we are all AI. All that was needed was by some quirk of fate a change in my wiring to make me receptive to the transmission mechanism, which of course was performed unwittingly by that stupid alien kid.
So what exactly is my point here ?
why, nothing of course.
Ill begin by predicting the future.
For example, heres tomorrow's news:
1.) Financial calamity may trigger mass panic
2.) X company buys Y company
3.) Idiots kill innocent victims
4.) rich spoilt pop star does something interesting
5.) Politician does something illegal
6.) Research proves that this discovery may affect the way we live
7.) Govt screws up some goal
8.) Someone wont play some sport for some time because of injury
In fact, its the day after tomorrow's news also , and even the day after the day after tomorrow, and the day after that, n so on.
If thats not enough, ill predict some future scientific discoveries, which will be made based on groundbreaking research.
1.) If a black cat crosses ur path in the morning , it may not mean bad luck for the day.
2.) The probability of taking bath twice a day is increased by being shat upon by a flying bird.
3.) Jogging during an earthquake increases the risk of a panic attack.
4.) Cockroaches may rule the earth one day if treated well.
5.) In 50,000 years, there may not be enough straw on earth to feed our cattle.
Nostradamus would have been put to shame.
So now that it is clear that i possess, at the risk of sounding braggy, a phenomenal gift that has eluded scores of geniuses , here goes my propounded theory.
warning : this is not an original one. Many variations of this have been prevalent in the past, lets call it coincidence, a supreme piece of good fortune for some madmen, who have the good fortune of concurring with me
We are all pawns in a game. An alien kid has got this universe ball that he can control. All the tiny random events that occur are us. He can, however, assume control of anyone of us, and direct them to follow strange commands. As this transmission is in a format as yet undiscovered by us, we think it is our subconcious that decides what we do. Most of it is artificial intelligence, but sometimes , some wierd deviant behaviour is the fault of that stupid kid who cant yet get this game figured out.
Once he does figure out however, he'll know what a waste of alien money and time it is, and he'll flush it down the toilet. Welcome, big bang/crunch.
This certainly does explain my sudden yet inexplicable enlightenment. After all, we are all AI. All that was needed was by some quirk of fate a change in my wiring to make me receptive to the transmission mechanism, which of course was performed unwittingly by that stupid alien kid.
So what exactly is my point here ?
why, nothing of course.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
ta;fapfhak;fnaipghak;
we all have invariably done it sometime. Irritating to some, natural to others. But all have their own style.
I first noticed it when i was as usual starin at that giant time-killing application, DC++, trying to type some answer for the king of all timepasses - trivia, when i just realised that my typin was a lil too slow for gettin any benefit out of the otherwise us3less bit of information that i had stored in my head for some god-knows-what reason. This of course , was followed by a series of apparently random letters spewed into one bigass word that nobody in this wide world gave a damn about, not even myself, and everyone just went about their business of doin whatever it is that people do. o[agjaeo[gjaeo[
they have all kinds of personality tests today. Some utterly randomly bullshit questions that u would like nothing more than to shove it up the question-setters ass , try to give you an over all picture of what you actually are, based on a few questions that will gauge you better than all the years of experience of you have having put up with yourself.
I say this is a better way to assess whatever it is that personality tests aim to assess. Everyone DO seem to have their own style, innit ?
moreover, they have the added advantage of being a tol for instant topic change, stopping whatever it is that you wanna stop for whatever reason, and begining afresh. Like now.
[aogjaiphgi[aoghip
this is mine . Whats yours ?
I first noticed it when i was as usual starin at that giant time-killing application, DC++, trying to type some answer for the king of all timepasses - trivia, when i just realised that my typin was a lil too slow for gettin any benefit out of the otherwise us3less bit of information that i had stored in my head for some god-knows-what reason. This of course , was followed by a series of apparently random letters spewed into one bigass word that nobody in this wide world gave a damn about, not even myself, and everyone just went about their business of doin whatever it is that people do. o[agjaeo[gjaeo[
they have all kinds of personality tests today. Some utterly randomly bullshit questions that u would like nothing more than to shove it up the question-setters ass , try to give you an over all picture of what you actually are, based on a few questions that will gauge you better than all the years of experience of you have having put up with yourself.
I say this is a better way to assess whatever it is that personality tests aim to assess. Everyone DO seem to have their own style, innit ?
moreover, they have the added advantage of being a tol for instant topic change, stopping whatever it is that you wanna stop for whatever reason, and begining afresh. Like now.
[aogjaiphgi[aoghip
this is mine . Whats yours ?
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Wakation
One of my previous posts durin the last vacations bore a similar topic. The difference, was a question mark at the end.
This post is dedicated to my newfound joy of waking up early in the morning ( ! ).
Well, the final serious (?) comprees are done with, dreaded CDCs over, a PS2 to look forward to,
things do seem to be lookin up, dont they ?
Well, no actually. Theres also this thing that iv met some fello bitsians for prolly the last time in my life. No matter how much complainin we'v done, how grudgingly we'v gone bac to campus after vacations , its still like a void, this realization that a quarter of my batchmates ill hardly meet again.
And then theres this GRE comin this july. God knows wat im gonna do, havnt started properly yet.
enrolled i have for some much needed C++ coaching, Cp1 n 2 were obviously a joke. So this vacation looks just as full to me as any.
hope i do, that my ps station will allow me to take a few days off so i can visit teh campus during waves or zephyr. Just one last time.
But now, is the time for nothingness to fil in all the void. The time for relaxation, for just dreamily watching wafting leaves in the wind from the window, waiting for all the awesome food to be digested, n drift off to sleep with no worries about anything, thinking of nothing remotely close to anythin but nothing. At least till my mum comes n tells me to do sumthin useful with my life. Like right now.
anyways, this is a pointless post, almost a re-inaugural of this dead piece of webspace. Ill post soon simply cos iv nothing better to do. till then, adios !
This post is dedicated to my newfound joy of waking up early in the morning ( ! ).
Well, the final serious (?) comprees are done with, dreaded CDCs over, a PS2 to look forward to,
things do seem to be lookin up, dont they ?
Well, no actually. Theres also this thing that iv met some fello bitsians for prolly the last time in my life. No matter how much complainin we'v done, how grudgingly we'v gone bac to campus after vacations , its still like a void, this realization that a quarter of my batchmates ill hardly meet again.
And then theres this GRE comin this july. God knows wat im gonna do, havnt started properly yet.
enrolled i have for some much needed C++ coaching, Cp1 n 2 were obviously a joke. So this vacation looks just as full to me as any.
hope i do, that my ps station will allow me to take a few days off so i can visit teh campus during waves or zephyr. Just one last time.
But now, is the time for nothingness to fil in all the void. The time for relaxation, for just dreamily watching wafting leaves in the wind from the window, waiting for all the awesome food to be digested, n drift off to sleep with no worries about anything, thinking of nothing remotely close to anythin but nothing. At least till my mum comes n tells me to do sumthin useful with my life. Like right now.
anyways, this is a pointless post, almost a re-inaugural of this dead piece of webspace. Ill post soon simply cos iv nothing better to do. till then, adios !
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