global recession and my train waitlist

...
h1: so you see, its a bad situation out there and everywhere.
me: hmm... economies and finances all on down-hill. how about your business?
h1: its slow in comparison. but in one segment its interestingly growing. the cause and effect is amazing!
me: and whats that?
h1: see, this is a healthy season, so sales is already slow of our pharma products. but in the market, Anti-depression drugs are doing quite well! because of recession, markets are plunging, business are taking hit, money is lost and so more people are in depression.
me: and so more of that drug is selling. great! i suppose same will be the case in cigarrettes and alcohol.
h1: presumably yes, if we can cross-check with the figures. its all the effect of macro-economy!
and not only that, this recession and the resulting depression is sending people here to the camps of those saints who teach yoga and other techniques to relax your mind. like that Ramdev baba! his shivir (camp) is booked for next two years!
me: and others must be going to some picnic spots and tourist destinations to take a break. oh! now i see, why my wait-listed train ticket to home is not getting confirmed! there's no room!
h1: hahaha. you'll be going home, standing, through the overnight journey by the blessings of Global Recession!
me: great! *sigh... hehehe. the market fall should have happened after i had reached home for Diwali

was just trying to help

i regularly check the tyres of my bike for any sharp objects that might have stuck in the rubber and may damage the tube inside while running. have recovered pins, sharp gravels, glass, nail etc.
this morning i parked my bike and just noticed a nail, buried half, in the rear tyre of another bike beside mine. so, with all good intentions, i went and started pulling it out. it was quite thick and used some extra efforts. but i was glad to work to prevent another puncture and a hapless rider!
then, when it was loose enough and about to come out, a faint sssss... sound started. the nail had already punctured the tyre! a late caution thought came up '*stop! this is a tubeless tyre. it won't deflate until the nail is in. leave it. atleast the guy can take it to a punture shop riding. pull the nail out and u'll pull all the air out and he'll be pulling his bike all the way! stop...!' but, as always, it was too late. the piercing had already started hissing and with a very slight tuck, the nail was out. i saw the poor man's bike slowly lowering towards ground, whisling tunelessly. i tried to put back the nasty nail in the hole to plug it but now it wont go in. withing seconds... flat!
no one noticed what i was doing at the rear of a bike in the parking lot. i placed the mighty nail on the seat and... ran for cover!
sorry buddy, was just trying to help!

must have songs

if interested in Hindi music, these are must haves in ur music library:
~ Pehla nasha pehla khumaar (Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar)
~ Ye jo des hai tera (Swades)
~ Saanson ki zarurat hai jaise (Aashiqi)
~ Dooba dooba rehta hoon (Boondein)
...

the list will keep growing

advertising myself

just remembered the infinite loop error. goto the following link! :)
http://wanderlust-gaurav.blogspot.com/
why not use this opportunity? have started writing 'prose'! (haha... as if i know how to write a plain text) of course am not at all good at it. just a break from the loop...
http://white-striped.blogspot.com/

they have sworn on my name

5 of my friends have sworn
its either me or himesh reshamia for them
they wont give any heed to this guy's any produce from any part of his body or its imagery. they would also try to avoid looking at him when he guest appears on their favourite reality shows.
two of them have even committed that they will try to mute or change the chanel in perfect sync so as to avoid him or his voice.
few have said that they will take a longer route for commute again to avoid the halls where his new movie is being screened.
they would also try to rescue their friends and friends of friends from his effect.
and just in case they are affected by him by any means, they will get their head shaved, have a bath with Gangajal and will goto a temple and perform a purification ritual.
my friends bestest!

no name :(

me: i love my bike
h1: why? it doesn't even has an original name!
me: huh?
h1: search google. bike primarily means bicycle or simply cycle
me: i love my motorbike
h1: still no individuality
me: it has another name! motorcycle!
h1: ahemm!
me: #@$%#%~*&~$$$%#%#@ i... i ride a noname thingy :(
h1: worse is how much you have spent on nothing till date

binary sugar cubes

h1: two teabags?
me: less than this, i dont get the taste of tea and its just like hot sugary drink.
h1: ah... i recall, whats that 'sugarubes are binary thing' on ur page?
me: see these sugarcubes. they are either one or none. unless you try and break them and thats not easy.
h1: hmm, my coffee is either too sweet or too plain. they should keep sugar and spoon instead.
me: my tea is just right. i applied the fuzzy logic to the binary cubes!
h1: how?
me: i put in two cubes, stir a little and then pick out one which is half dissolved and throw it out.
h1: cool! but its national wastage you are creating
me: i'll create more of a moral wastage by cursing the cube makers and other people around me after having a very sweet or very bland tea
h1: hmm... hey! then teabags are binary as well (*wink) got you here! ... wait... no, (*sigh) you can soak them as long as you need
me: u have a fuzzy logic but of no use

crap

tere ishq mein dooba rahe (fine, talking about love)
shaam-o-sahar mera rom rom (ok... normal)
hari om hari om hari om om... (duh! huh!!! whaaaat??!! brrr... run)
nasal guy sung this

a Rhino on my Wrist

was saving money for a Titan Octane. 6k was the price. although the price tag is secondary but 6k for a watch was too much. but i have a fascination for watches so was ready to shell out.

then last week read about this launch of WWF range of Titan watches. In collaboration with World Wildlife Fund, 13 models, marked with 6 endangered wildlife species of India were launched as collector's edition. Part of the sales will be used in the conservation programs by WWF.

auspicious combination! watch, wildlife, limited edition, contribution.

impatient i am, so ran for the nearest store and picked up a Rhino watch! and am boasting it proudly

tahaan and other movies

most of you wont like it. "its waste of time and money" you'll say.

its a small story. a kid, his donkey, few people, and kashmir. the kid's persual reminded me of another kid's movie Halo, came long back, there this little girl fought for her dog.

Tahaan. in the interval i commented "aah! after a long time me seeing a non-metro movie. no buildings, no urban lifestyles, no mumbai, no bombs or guns, no flying cars, no stars, no slapstick double-meaning humour. simple story, simple people and beautiful Kashmir. relief to eyes and mind"

The real treat was... beautiful kashmir and the camera in Santosh Sivan's control. superbly great cinematographer. each and every frame was a photograph, a wallpaper in itself. i can watch it a number of times just to relax my mind. and yes, Halo too was Santosh's creation. seems like only him and Vishal Bhardwaj think of kids these days.

then we saw A Wednesday. i knew there was nothing more than say a few scenes for me in this movie. and actually only the last 10 minutes, and that too the lines; no action, was worth some money of the ticket. a sheer waste of talent of Kher sahab and Shah sahab. any other heavy voice could have done the jobs. well, if a criminal could pee in his pants just seeing Jimmy Shergill, the movie could have been completed with Vivek and, say Sohail replacing the senior actors.

Wall-E. eagerly waiting for the DVD release.

Welcome to Sajjanpur. one time watch good entertainment. no need to keep the name Shyam Benegal in mind anywhere. though you can tell the expertise in nitty gritties.

re

after long, pouring some bit

intention and gesture

the hall was half full. all were standing as the Tricolour fluttered on the screen and Jan Gan Man played. there was minor, almost negligible movement among people. almost all were well poised. i felt good. could even hear a few humming and me too let out my slow voice. a phone rang in front of me and this guy cut the call!

and the next time we people stopped at the entrance itself coz we could hear the anthem there.

i presume, in fact believe, this act of us was not out of any sort of compulsion. everyone knew what one should do and was doing it. and this was in contrast of all other activities we consciously or unconsciously take pleasure in doing when we are told not to. like parking at no parking or spitting at do not spit.

of course we all had a respect for the anthem. maybe we all remembered the teaching in civic, how to respect our national anthem and flag. "We should do this" was what we were taught. i think we never took this as an instruction or a rule that we would enjoy breaking. and if we ever thought so, maybe we were also thinking that atleast lets not break this rule.

now i dont expect we all would be doing the same if we heard the anthem when we were on street or in a meeting or in a restaurant. we would feel a bit sorry and will continue with our chore. the intention will be more important then than the gesture. like i always touch my parent's feet whenever i meet them after long but maybe i'll miss doing it if they stood there with open arms and we hug. no one would mind!

well, though i do feel bit awkward to see some players of our cricket team with their hands on chest in american style when they should be standing attention. either don't do it or do it properly? an immature thought! hehe.

intention above gesture my friend! intention above gesture! and we all have good intentions... atleast for one thing. and its great to see this :)

yourself

you break trust on yourself when someone whom yourself trusted breaks your trust on him

what's important than what?

i hushed her coz she giggled and made a comment when i was engrossed in the scene which was playing. then all of the concentration broke and mind moved over. i hushed one of my best friend just for a giggle and honestly, the hush was indeed salty and her mood went off.

friends are important, a few are more important than others and very few are still more. but does this importance varies according to a situation? of course! when i am alone, any friend is important and when i am with these 'just' friends, the best friend is most significant.

what about other material things? is a really good movie powerful enough to make my best friend less significant? why do i leave my best friends behind on their own and myself rush and jump in jungle or waters without bothering whether they will be coming after me or not or whether they accept me leaving them? the same friends without whom i cannot enjoy any moment.

maybe its the change in the surroundings which changed my mind and shuffled the rankings. that movie and that theme. maybe some new stuff about which i never thought when i was virtually prioritizing everything. "yaar, aaj tu uske saath auto se chala jaa na. mujhe akele bike bhagaane ka mann kar raha hai. please!" there was no bike before.

so there is a new realization. i'd prefer eating roadside paani-puri even in rains or climbing those trees or roll on the grass or hike to that fort on the top of this hill alone rather than staying down with my 'best' friends who cannot come along. i may even say "balls to you"!! see... importance changed!

so the list gets shuffled. relativities change. some changes are temporary and others are permanent.

but the exceptions. is there anything whose place wont change ever? i think most of them are at the bottom of the list. but as we move towards top, its all cloud. positions change frequently, as quickly as situations.

after much thinking, the pre-conclusion: parents are the exceptions. they are the most important. irrespective of situations.

conclusion (in general, not necessarily pertaining to above lines): since there are exceptions in everything, there are exceptions in exceptions as well.

p.s. true friends never mind

Why do people risk their lives for others

an important conversation.

in the episode #70, at the funeral of The Third Hokage

Naruto: Iruka sensei. Why do people risk their lives for others?

Iruka sensei: When one person dies... he disappers. Along with his past, current lifestyle and his future. Many people die in missions and wars. They die easily and in surprisingly simple ways. Hayate was one of them. Those who die have goals and dreams. But everyone has something as important as those. Parents, siblings, friends, lovers... people who are important to you. They trust and help each other. The bond between the people important to you ever since birth... and the string that binds them becomes thicker and stronger as time goes by. It's beyond reason. Those bound to you by that string will do that. Because its important.

Naruto: Yes... I think I understand, somewhat. But... it's painful when someone dies.

Kakashi sensei: The Third didn't die for nothing. He left something important in all of us. You'll find out what eventually.

Naruto: Yeah, I think I understand that too, somewhat.

Iruka Sensei: (thinking) It seems like the small leaves in the Hidden Village of Konoha have inherited that fire of will you spoke of, Third. The fire on the leaves will eventually burn greater and stronger. It will flash its light and protect this village.

special day

yesterday my friend said "sunday is father's day". tv channels were showing gifting ideas and bachchan dad and bachchan son. i asked him when's mother's day? he told me.

i remembered something and fetched the newspaper again. there were a few articles telling and talking about child labour. it was 'Anti Child Labour Day'. but i was of no use by then for this day. scanned through tv channels... they are as it is of no use.

prayed after a long time and slept.

conclusion

after a long time which was spent in observing and analyzing, deciding and refusing and with all the surviving remnants of thoughts involved in these activities, I hereby conclude and state:
"'Its all in the mind' is the third truth of life."

good, bad, choice, must do

woke up at 10 in the morning at boss' call... told him won't be coming to work as  doc instructed to rest for a day or two. saw those strange orange balls covered in thin small fluffy white petal like things on the tree outside our window. those were there a year ago as well but i could never see them closely. but now i have a gadget. i took my camera and zoomed in to see what it was. a beautiful orange ball, the surface like a honeycomb and from each groove was coming out a small white petal. felt good, obviously.

searched for some more thing before the sunlight gets hard for good shots and saw this. a crow had just hunted a grey pigeon and was devouring it. i zoomed in, curiously, then felt bad, obviously.

of course i didn't captured it, there was no reason. but then i thought, to get into good photography and while capturing this beautiful world, i'll have to encounter a lot many more of such sights. i cant be selective. i cant escape and have to get used to these. some of these shots i wont keep but some i'll have to preserve. coz those some will be the face of some fact of this world. maybe i wont have choice of what i'll see but i sure will decide of what to remember.

i should have taken the shot of the crow atleast, its movement, its caution. i could have chosen some angle so as to hide the dead pigeon behind the grass or anything while shooting.

have to be less emotional. ...? only for such situations.

papa said...

a task-less mind in a lazy body on this sunday afternoon recalled this...

jan '08, we were having tea and snacks with all other chats at one of my father's friend's place. papa had just told him about my job, earnings, my staying at mumbai and uncle was all praises for me. it seemed as if it was one of the greatest thing for him to meet a guy who's an engineer, MBA and now earning good enough to live in mumbai and gift his dad a swanky mobile phone. it was not that uncle was from some lower middle class family to think this way. he owned a car, a duplex house, all those good interiors etc. but still, meeting me was a muse for him.

his 12 year old boy came down from his room, switched on the tv and fixed himself onto cartoon network and immediately got a scream from his dad "go from here and study. all this time you were playing computer games and now watching cartoons. look at gaurav bhaiyya. he used to study a lot when he was of your age" (don't know how he discovered this) then turned to my dad and said "bhaisaab, i am fed up of him. all day watching tv, or busy in computer games or playing cricket. if not these then he will be doing some mischief or just roaming around with other guys in neighbour. ask once to study and then look at his face, as if we are harassing him! don't know what he will do in days to come." obviously, my presence was adding salt to his frustration.

and then this happened. papa laughed, looked at me and then said to uncle "arre, its his time to play and get involved in all this. let him. all will be fine when he will grow up. look at gaurav now. honestly telling you, he was worse than your child at this age! but today..."

i didn't heard what more he said. i was awed, deaf and speechless... was only staring at papa. all those years and all my deeds zoomed in my mind within seconds. yes, i was spoilt, worse, and being the elder child, my parents were really too worried and many a times hopeless about me. yes, i remember well.

but i did well with their help to make it till here. added to all, i was an example now!

if you are average, you'll take average time to progress. and then you cannot compare your's to the pace of a fast horse. but then maybe, knowingly or unknowingly, your stroll will convert into gallops!

i love my parents most. have to set more examples.

LOTR dvds

a 12 dvd edition of The Lord of The Rings is out!

we shall buy it, yesss... soon a copy will be mine, mine, my own, my... preciousss ;)

i'm ok i'm fine... yesss...

after a while

sure i'll call it 'after a while' only. 27th oct was last, so its around five and a half months. no i don't have time to count it to the week and then the day... a know a guy who always does that and each time i don't appreciate.

though its only a while as per me, a lot many things have happened since... just justifying the pace of happenings. blog was a new muse but i got a newer one. took the courage to buy the camera, the price of which actuated eyebrow raising in whomever hearing it and then to make this very expression even more difficult for them, spent a few grands more on its accessories. umm... one stuff is still due... ehh!

then, two of my bestest buddies got married. i still don't believe it today and neither do they themselves, even though we were all personally present at both ceremonies. i did a better job than the official photographer... sigh!

the biggest event was my younger brother's Passing Out Parade from NDA, Khadakwasla. this one thing i cant describe, sorry. my parents and he flew in an airplane for the first time and i felt proud and bad when papa said thanks to me at the arrivals. i just bought tickets for them which were even cheaper than my camera and for that papa said thanks!

more responsibilities came up in job as few colleagues left. am still in picking-up stage for those responsibilities. immediate boss is a good guy :)

will copy-paste from my latest facebook status... o yes, created a facebook account too! copy-paste: Gaurav was doing 33.6 meters in a second when he finished 10k kms with his Pulsar! lets leave this self-explanatory.

new gadget: iPod classic 80 gb. it is quiet only while charging or updating songs and from 30mins of my falling asleep to about an hour of me waking up. when i told mom i bought one she said "i thought you were already having it! how come you were doing without any songs in your pocket??!!" on orkut they should change it to 'Six things you can't live without'

so... all this while i was not idle, just that i didn't peeped in here!