the challenge
the following is an excerpt from a chat i had with someone whom i shall refer to as doubting thomas (dt).
me : i wonder if i can get a hard tummy by the time i get bac to sg...
me : hmm... must develop an ab routine
dt : hahahahahaha
dt : thank you for that funny thot for the day :D
i am feeling slightly miffed that someone thinks i can't have a hard tummy. i don't care for washboard abs. basically a tummy without a "one loaf" (the opposite of a "six pack"). anyways that is the challenge. to get me into shape by the time i get back to sg (and no.. please don't tell me that round is a shape)
me : i wonder if i can get a hard tummy by the time i get bac to sg...
me : hmm... must develop an ab routine
dt : hahahahahaha
dt : thank you for that funny thot for the day :D
i am feeling slightly miffed that someone thinks i can't have a hard tummy. i don't care for washboard abs. basically a tummy without a "one loaf" (the opposite of a "six pack"). anyways that is the challenge. to get me into shape by the time i get back to sg (and no.. please don't tell me that round is a shape)
don't MESS with my heart?!?!?!
i am quite peeved. there is taking polical correct-ness too seriously. according to ryan seacrest, on american top 40, the black eyed peas latest single "don't PHUNK with me heart" got a name change to "don't MESS with me heart" because somebody with way too much time on his/her hands, decided that some DJs might mis-pronounce phunk as fuck. and having heard both the original and the "let's cover our ass" version, i think i'd prefer to be phunked with than messed with. i wonder if singapore would play the original version...
[edit: if you'd like to hear the original version, i can mail it to you. leave me an email add, in te comments section, that can accept attachments up to 10mb, or mail me your add at vishra_at_gmail_dot_com.]
[edit: if you'd like to hear the original version, i can mail it to you. leave me an email add, in te comments section, that can accept attachments up to 10mb, or mail me your add at vishra_at_gmail_dot_com.]
fear
the panting yields to deep breaths. the heartbeat sounds as loud as a jackhammer. pupils dilate in the darkness. every ambient sound is magnified hundred-fold. the hairs on his body stand on end. the train hurtling towards him seems to be crawling at a snail's pace. he tugs at his leg stuck between the rail ties. to no avail. the train is mere seconds away, but to his heightened senses it could be an eternity. as the train approaches mere feet away, he closes his eyes and accepts his fate. wondering what could be taking the train so long, he opens his eyes and watches the bumper a matter of inches away from his torso...
eyes open and he gazes at his surroundings. he's in his bed, at home. the sound of crickets chirping invade the silence of the afternoon. he sits up in bed, feeling his heart thub-thumping away. any louder and faster and it might just explode. he looks back to where he lay. a large, wet dark blue patch contrasts with the lighter blue of his sheets. he looks down at his t-shirt plastered to his chest. the back of his neck is beaded with cold sweat. a stench pervades the air. it is the stench of fear.
eyes open and he gazes at his surroundings. he's in his bed, at home. the sound of crickets chirping invade the silence of the afternoon. he sits up in bed, feeling his heart thub-thumping away. any louder and faster and it might just explode. he looks back to where he lay. a large, wet dark blue patch contrasts with the lighter blue of his sheets. he looks down at his t-shirt plastered to his chest. the back of his neck is beaded with cold sweat. a stench pervades the air. it is the stench of fear.
evermore @ manning
on wednesday morning, i was reading the union bulletin and keeping myself updated with the goings on in uni, when i saw a half page ad saying that evermore was gonna be playing in sydney uni the following evening. for those who are going "who the hell is evermore?!?!", the evermore song "it's too late" features in the closing credits of the OC. anyways, thinking that i ought to get something for my $260/yr union fees, and also since it would be something to keep me in uni for the entire period of my 3 hr tut from 2-5, i decided that i'd go for it. did i also mention that it was free?? anyways, i was lucky to find a friend who likes evermore's kinda music, so we turned up at 6.30 to get in.
the doors were meant to open at 6. by the time we got there, the line was snaking around the block for about 100 something metres. not a most encouraging sight, i must say, but when we finally got in and made our way up to the bar, it wasn't jam packed. at least not the carpeted normal seating area, which for the day was reduced to standing only. the dancefloor though had been converted into a pit. thank god it didn't turn into a mosh pit. there were 2 other quite sub-standard bar bands warming up the crowd for the evermore set which was scheduled to start at 8.30. the first was the panda band, which looked and sounded really crappy. their set lasted from 6.30 til about 7.10. they were followed by love outside andromeda who were slightly better, but their frontwoman started sounding really boring 2 songs into the set. not to mention that she was perpetually off pitch. finally they got off at about 8.15 and evermore's sound tech did his sound check. this was when the crowd started milling around the dancefloor. of course the hardcore fans had already booked their piece of real estate in the pit yonks ago. finally, at 8.40, the hume brothers, who make up evermore came onstage.
most of their stuff has been relatively unheard of, since being an indie band, they don't really get that much of airplay. so i guess it's good that i'd actually heard about 4 or 5 of their songs prior to that set. they opened with their first single, slipping away which segued into their latest single, for one day. the rest of their set comprised of songs from their debut album, dreams. the 2nd to last song was "it's too late", which had the crowd singing along. beautiful it was, when the band stopped singing during the chorus, and the crowd picked up the refrain.
their set formally finished at 9.40, but they came back for a 1 song encore. the crowd had a good charge going, since the band really knows how to work a crowd. what i like the most about their music is the keyboard. with the long echo and bagpipe sounding synthesizer, it has a rather haunting sound. a sound that's left echoing in your head long after the band has stopped playing.
the doors were meant to open at 6. by the time we got there, the line was snaking around the block for about 100 something metres. not a most encouraging sight, i must say, but when we finally got in and made our way up to the bar, it wasn't jam packed. at least not the carpeted normal seating area, which for the day was reduced to standing only. the dancefloor though had been converted into a pit. thank god it didn't turn into a mosh pit. there were 2 other quite sub-standard bar bands warming up the crowd for the evermore set which was scheduled to start at 8.30. the first was the panda band, which looked and sounded really crappy. their set lasted from 6.30 til about 7.10. they were followed by love outside andromeda who were slightly better, but their frontwoman started sounding really boring 2 songs into the set. not to mention that she was perpetually off pitch. finally they got off at about 8.15 and evermore's sound tech did his sound check. this was when the crowd started milling around the dancefloor. of course the hardcore fans had already booked their piece of real estate in the pit yonks ago. finally, at 8.40, the hume brothers, who make up evermore came onstage.
most of their stuff has been relatively unheard of, since being an indie band, they don't really get that much of airplay. so i guess it's good that i'd actually heard about 4 or 5 of their songs prior to that set. they opened with their first single, slipping away which segued into their latest single, for one day. the rest of their set comprised of songs from their debut album, dreams. the 2nd to last song was "it's too late", which had the crowd singing along. beautiful it was, when the band stopped singing during the chorus, and the crowd picked up the refrain.
"ride on… ride ‘til early morning turn
ride on… like the dawning of the day
It’s too late
to let all your feelings show
Go on ‘til the night is swept away"
ride on… like the dawning of the day
It’s too late
to let all your feelings show
Go on ‘til the night is swept away"
their set formally finished at 9.40, but they came back for a 1 song encore. the crowd had a good charge going, since the band really knows how to work a crowd. what i like the most about their music is the keyboard. with the long echo and bagpipe sounding synthesizer, it has a rather haunting sound. a sound that's left echoing in your head long after the band has stopped playing.
viva il papa!!!
after all the talk of the church liberalising and coming into the 21st century, by electing a non-european as pope, il papa ends up being an arch-conservative. frankly, it isn't very surprising. quite a few of karol wojtyla's policies hadn't been implemented and some issues had been left hanging, so who better to finish the job which he started, than his consigliere. and looking at his papal name, benedict xvi, which was inspired by benedict xv, does not fill me with much hope for the progression of the catholic church. (god... please prove me wrong). the reason for my surfeit of hope is that one of the things benedict xv is remembered for is is anti-modernist stance, as stated in para. 25 of his ad beatissimi apostolorum encyclical.
Besides, the Church demands from those who have devoted themselves to furthering her interests, something very different from the dwelling upon profitless questions; she demands that they should devote the whole of their energy to preserve the faith intact and unsullied by any breath of error, and follow most closely him whom Christ has appointed to be the guardian and interpreter of the truth. There are to be found today, and in no small numbers, men, of whom the Apostle says that: "having itching ears, they will not endure sound doctrine: but according to their own desires they will heap up to themselves teachers, and will indeed turn away their hearing from the truth, but will be turned unto fables" (II Tim. iv. 34). Infatuated and carried away by a lofty idea of the human intellect, by which God's good gift has certainly made incredible progress in the study of nature, confident in their own judgment, and contemptuous of the authority of the Church, they have reached such a degree of rashness as not to hesitate to measure by the standard of their own mind even the hidden things of God and all that God has revealed to men. Hence arose the monstrous errors of "Modernism," which Our Predecessor rightly declared to be "the synthesis of all heresies," and solemnly condemned. We hereby renew that condemnation in all its fulness, Venerable Brethren, and as the plague is not yet entirely stamped out, but lurks here and there in hidden places, We exhort all to be carefully here and there in hidden places, We exhort all to be carefully on their guard against any contagion of the evil, to which we may apply the words Job used in other circumstances: "It is a fire that devoureth even to destruction, and rooteth up all things that spring" (Job xxxi. 12). Nor do We merely desire that Catholics should shrink from the errors of Modernism, but also from the tendencies or what is called the spirit of Modernism. Those who are infected by that spirit develop a keen dislike for all that savours of antiquity and become eager searchers after novelties in everything: in the way in which they carry out religious functions, in the ruling of Catholic institutions, and even in private exercises of piety. Therefore it is Our will that the law of our forefathers should still be held sacred: "Let there be no innovation; keep to what has been handed down." In matters of faith that must be inviolably adhered to as the law; it may however also serve as a guide even in matters subject to change, but even in such cases the rule would hold: "Old things, but in a new way.
the gist of it is there'll probably be no change of stance on homosexuality, or abortion, or that stupid vow of celibacy, which i think isn't observed by quite a lot of priests. i personally know a few priests who are fathers in more than the clerical sense. oh well... i guess it'll be another 10 or so years before the church has te opportunity to revolutionise.
p.s. i estimated 6 rounds of ballots in my previous post. they only took 4 rounds of ballots this time. this excerpt from the nytimes throws light on why papal elections have been fastrtacked.
"The longest conclave took two years, nine months and two days. It ended with the election of Gregory X on Sept. 1, 1271. Gregory, not surprisingly, wrote new rules to speed things up. If no one was elected within three days, he decreed, rations were to be cut to one meal a day. After five more days, the cardinals would be restricted to bread and water."
Besides, the Church demands from those who have devoted themselves to furthering her interests, something very different from the dwelling upon profitless questions; she demands that they should devote the whole of their energy to preserve the faith intact and unsullied by any breath of error, and follow most closely him whom Christ has appointed to be the guardian and interpreter of the truth. There are to be found today, and in no small numbers, men, of whom the Apostle says that: "having itching ears, they will not endure sound doctrine: but according to their own desires they will heap up to themselves teachers, and will indeed turn away their hearing from the truth, but will be turned unto fables" (II Tim. iv. 34). Infatuated and carried away by a lofty idea of the human intellect, by which God's good gift has certainly made incredible progress in the study of nature, confident in their own judgment, and contemptuous of the authority of the Church, they have reached such a degree of rashness as not to hesitate to measure by the standard of their own mind even the hidden things of God and all that God has revealed to men. Hence arose the monstrous errors of "Modernism," which Our Predecessor rightly declared to be "the synthesis of all heresies," and solemnly condemned. We hereby renew that condemnation in all its fulness, Venerable Brethren, and as the plague is not yet entirely stamped out, but lurks here and there in hidden places, We exhort all to be carefully here and there in hidden places, We exhort all to be carefully on their guard against any contagion of the evil, to which we may apply the words Job used in other circumstances: "It is a fire that devoureth even to destruction, and rooteth up all things that spring" (Job xxxi. 12). Nor do We merely desire that Catholics should shrink from the errors of Modernism, but also from the tendencies or what is called the spirit of Modernism. Those who are infected by that spirit develop a keen dislike for all that savours of antiquity and become eager searchers after novelties in everything: in the way in which they carry out religious functions, in the ruling of Catholic institutions, and even in private exercises of piety. Therefore it is Our will that the law of our forefathers should still be held sacred: "Let there be no innovation; keep to what has been handed down." In matters of faith that must be inviolably adhered to as the law; it may however also serve as a guide even in matters subject to change, but even in such cases the rule would hold: "Old things, but in a new way.
the gist of it is there'll probably be no change of stance on homosexuality, or abortion, or that stupid vow of celibacy, which i think isn't observed by quite a lot of priests. i personally know a few priests who are fathers in more than the clerical sense. oh well... i guess it'll be another 10 or so years before the church has te opportunity to revolutionise.
p.s. i estimated 6 rounds of ballots in my previous post. they only took 4 rounds of ballots this time. this excerpt from the nytimes throws light on why papal elections have been fastrtacked.
"The longest conclave took two years, nine months and two days. It ended with the election of Gregory X on Sept. 1, 1271. Gregory, not surprisingly, wrote new rules to speed things up. If no one was elected within three days, he decreed, rations were to be cut to one meal a day. After five more days, the cardinals would be restricted to bread and water."
game of the day
if you're extremely PC and cannot abide religious processes being mocked, ignore this post.
the game of the day is "who wants to be the pontiff". very exciting game it is. there'll be a lot of backroom deals going on. do you think only politicians indulge in "i scratch your back and you scratch mine" deals issit? don't forget, the vatican is also a country. but of course it is god who inspires the cardinals as to who will be elected the pope. which is why they'll burn the ballots half a dozen time before god FINALLY decides to converge to the choice. i wonder if got any dimpled chads over there.
and channelnewsasia tries to liven it up by likening it to some big sporting event. i mean, the vatican is set to kick off its papal conclave today... WOW!!! anymore excitement and those geriatrics might just get a collective heart attack and die.
p.s. why are only cardinals below 80 allowed to vote? because if they made it below 70, there would be like only 20 who would fit that criteria (and i'm probably being generous)
the game of the day is "who wants to be the pontiff". very exciting game it is. there'll be a lot of backroom deals going on. do you think only politicians indulge in "i scratch your back and you scratch mine" deals issit? don't forget, the vatican is also a country. but of course it is god who inspires the cardinals as to who will be elected the pope. which is why they'll burn the ballots half a dozen time before god FINALLY decides to converge to the choice. i wonder if got any dimpled chads over there.
and channelnewsasia tries to liven it up by likening it to some big sporting event. i mean, the vatican is set to kick off its papal conclave today... WOW!!! anymore excitement and those geriatrics might just get a collective heart attack and die.
p.s. why are only cardinals below 80 allowed to vote? because if they made it below 70, there would be like only 20 who would fit that criteria (and i'm probably being generous)
sunday afternoon thoughts
one can get an insight into a person's soul from the outpourings of a keyboard. whether the computer/typewriter keyboard or piano keyboard. though there are times when words fail to express the extremes of joy and sorrow that we experience. in such events, music is better able to encapsulate the emotions. if you could read my heart, what would you read? can my feelings at this moment be contained in a few lines, or a few pages, or would it require a tome or more? we say "i know how you feel" to show our empathy. but do we REALLY?? in a very general sense i guess we can relate, but it's in the details that we are alone.. so alone.. noone will ever grasp the extent of our feelings. our lives are meant to be lived by us.. noone else's path will be exactly the same. and noone else will feel the emotions you do. that's wat makes each and every live a unique experience that is a one-off affair.
" walk away from emptiness, walk away from sorrow,
walk away from yesterday, walk away tomorrow,
walk away from anger, walk away from pain,
walk away fron anguish, walk into the rain..."
- "Dead Man's Rope" by Sting
" walk away from emptiness, walk away from sorrow,
walk away from yesterday, walk away tomorrow,
walk away from anger, walk away from pain,
walk away fron anguish, walk into the rain..."
- "Dead Man's Rope" by Sting
avocado & salad dressing
does anyone else think that the taste and texture of pulpy avocado is almost like that of mashed hard-boiled egg with a touch of mayo? you know, that distinct egg taste without the smell.. along with the creamy-ness of mayo.. i haven't always been a fan of avocado. i still can't eat it on its own. need some kinda seasoning.
here's a nice dressing i've learnt to make which i find goes well with salads with avocado in them. actually the dressing goes well with almost any garden salad, but i find that the tartness of the lemon helps mask the over-creamy-ness of the avocado.
before i list the recipe, please note that some soya sauces are saltier than others, so adjust the amount of soya sauce according to taste.
ingredients:
1 tbsp soya sauce
2 tbsp syrup (i.e. 2 tbsp water mixed with 1/2-1 tsp sugar)
1/2-1 tsp lemon or lime juice
1 tsp fragrant sesame oil
1/2 tsp roasted sesame seeds
the amounts given above are guesstimates, so experiment a bit and try it :)
here's a nice dressing i've learnt to make which i find goes well with salads with avocado in them. actually the dressing goes well with almost any garden salad, but i find that the tartness of the lemon helps mask the over-creamy-ness of the avocado.
before i list the recipe, please note that some soya sauces are saltier than others, so adjust the amount of soya sauce according to taste.
ingredients:
1 tbsp soya sauce
2 tbsp syrup (i.e. 2 tbsp water mixed with 1/2-1 tsp sugar)
1/2-1 tsp lemon or lime juice
1 tsp fragrant sesame oil
1/2 tsp roasted sesame seeds
the amounts given above are guesstimates, so experiment a bit and try it :)
waking up techniques
i woke up at the same time today as i did yesterday, and i went bed at the same time today as i did yesterday (no typo there since i went to bed after midnight). the difference being that yesterday, i was yanked from deep sleep to the land of the awake extremely rudely by my alarm going off. however, today i woke up of my own accord... technically not of my own accord since my bladder woke me up :P so ya... i've come to the conclusion that in order to wake up before my body wishes to wake up, all i need to do is drink water. i'm thinking that there will be an inverse relationship between amount of water drunk and time spent in slumberland, but not sure if the relationship is linear or if some other archaic formula needs to be applied. further empirical research shall be performed. anyways i'm guessing this technique should work for most people as long as you aren't the bed-wetting type. does anyone else have any techniques that help ease them out of slumberland? techniques that leave you feeling grouchy after waking up, or totally disoriented are not needed.
art vs science
my mind started on this tack whilst reading sophie's world (yes, i know i'm a bit behind the times). some people denigrate art and propagate science saying that art is useless because it has no benefit in the here and now, whereas science produces tangible results. but do they not realise that a lot of revolutionary (what we now call scientific) theory was borne of philosophy, which as far as i know is considered an art. those who have read philosophy, bear with me. theories about atoms and biology were the fruits of philosophical wondering. so i guess 1 could say that scientists are the technicians of philosophers. they prove or disprove theories and improve upon those theories that are proven, through a process of evolution.
i do believe that quantum leaps of progress will be caused by art. simply because of this. science looks at things at a micro level. arts on the other hand tend not to concern themselves with the minutiae and see the big picture. thus the arts are more amenable to paradigm shifts.
I guess the following 2 sentences sum up my conclusions vis-a-vis art and science.
science is precise and EVOlutionary. art on the other hand is abstract (relative to science) and REVOlutionary.
disclaimer: the above mentioned half baked ideas are either someone else's ideas which i have corrupted or mine. if you think they are wrong, feel free to correct me. either by commenting or mailing me at vishra[at]gmail[dot]com.
i do believe that quantum leaps of progress will be caused by art. simply because of this. science looks at things at a micro level. arts on the other hand tend not to concern themselves with the minutiae and see the big picture. thus the arts are more amenable to paradigm shifts.
I guess the following 2 sentences sum up my conclusions vis-a-vis art and science.
science is precise and EVOlutionary. art on the other hand is abstract (relative to science) and REVOlutionary.
disclaimer: the above mentioned half baked ideas are either someone else's ideas which i have corrupted or mine. if you think they are wrong, feel free to correct me. either by commenting or mailing me at vishra[at]gmail[dot]com.
we're off to see the raja of england!!!
as we know, prince charles is marrying his horse. anyways here is a human interest story based around the upcoming nuptials. for those who don't know here is a definition of a dabbawallah.
anyways, i only got 1 lousy guess at where that conscious soul post originated. anyways, it's a nitin sawhney song, chetan jeevan (conscious life).
anyways, i only got 1 lousy guess at where that conscious soul post originated. anyways, it's a nitin sawhney song, chetan jeevan (conscious life).
civilised society?
disclaimer: the following is based on anecdotal evidence, so they may not be representative.
does anyone think that we are becoming more mercenary as a people? based on my experiences in singapore, courtesy is part of the service package. you'll get smiles and the arsewiping from people in the service industry simply because they want your money. it's a quid pro quo arrangement. for my bowing and scraping right NOW, i expect you patronage right NOW. and you hardly ever get sales assistants recommending that you direct your custom to their company's rival, because they offer a better quality product or it's cheaper. you tend to get recommended elsewhere only if they've exhausted all inferior substitutions. and is it so bloody hard for people to say "please" and "thank you"? sure, the customer is entitled to service, but that does not mean that sales staff are treated as minions, to carry out te customer's every whim and fancy. and if the person executes their job well, is saying "thank you" gonna cost you anything more than a second or 2 of your (the customer's/client's) precious time? people complain about the quality of service in singapore. it takes 2. you get what you give, and all that jazz.
ok, the reason for this post is basically i've been comparing the above situations to my own experiences here in sydney. on a regular basis, i've had sales staff telling me to get what i want from elsewhere. basically they recommend what they themselves as educated consumers would do. and when you board buses, quite a lot of drivers do say greet the passengers, and the passengers thank the drivers as they alight. greeting passengers and saying thank you to the drivers have no tangible value, but it does aid in decreasing the detachment we feel from our fellow humans, i believe.
after all, did jesus not bid his followers to love their neighbours as themselves? and don't read it literally. neighbours refers to anyone who comes in contact with us.
does anyone think that we are becoming more mercenary as a people? based on my experiences in singapore, courtesy is part of the service package. you'll get smiles and the arsewiping from people in the service industry simply because they want your money. it's a quid pro quo arrangement. for my bowing and scraping right NOW, i expect you patronage right NOW. and you hardly ever get sales assistants recommending that you direct your custom to their company's rival, because they offer a better quality product or it's cheaper. you tend to get recommended elsewhere only if they've exhausted all inferior substitutions. and is it so bloody hard for people to say "please" and "thank you"? sure, the customer is entitled to service, but that does not mean that sales staff are treated as minions, to carry out te customer's every whim and fancy. and if the person executes their job well, is saying "thank you" gonna cost you anything more than a second or 2 of your (the customer's/client's) precious time? people complain about the quality of service in singapore. it takes 2. you get what you give, and all that jazz.
ok, the reason for this post is basically i've been comparing the above situations to my own experiences here in sydney. on a regular basis, i've had sales staff telling me to get what i want from elsewhere. basically they recommend what they themselves as educated consumers would do. and when you board buses, quite a lot of drivers do say greet the passengers, and the passengers thank the drivers as they alight. greeting passengers and saying thank you to the drivers have no tangible value, but it does aid in decreasing the detachment we feel from our fellow humans, i believe.
after all, did jesus not bid his followers to love their neighbours as themselves? and don't read it literally. neighbours refers to anyone who comes in contact with us.
conscious soul
I have lived life until now to the height of enjoyment
My physical body accompanied by a conscious mind
Endless desires swirl outside of me
HE is also taking me along his cosmic path giving me experience of seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling and feeling
I feel content while sleeping, crying, laughing, eating and drinking
Day and night I think that there must be some purpose to this life
I have come to understand joy and sorrow due to lust, anger, greed, attachment and ego
I have started to think about what is the characteristic wont of life and about what is the uncharacteristic wont of life,
about what is benevolent use of mind and words and what is harmful use of mind and words
and about what is sin and what is virtue
Thus no more desire or expectation for past, present or future remains with me
My mind has gone beyond past, present and future and beyond the rational intellect of imagination
I see that I am beyond birth and death and am enjoying mind in a state of samadhi
can anyone guess the source of the above without googling? tentatively, i shall reveal the source in 2 or 3 days.
My physical body accompanied by a conscious mind
Endless desires swirl outside of me
HE is also taking me along his cosmic path giving me experience of seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling and feeling
I feel content while sleeping, crying, laughing, eating and drinking
Day and night I think that there must be some purpose to this life
I have come to understand joy and sorrow due to lust, anger, greed, attachment and ego
I have started to think about what is the characteristic wont of life and about what is the uncharacteristic wont of life,
about what is benevolent use of mind and words and what is harmful use of mind and words
and about what is sin and what is virtue
Thus no more desire or expectation for past, present or future remains with me
My mind has gone beyond past, present and future and beyond the rational intellect of imagination
I see that I am beyond birth and death and am enjoying mind in a state of samadhi
can anyone guess the source of the above without googling? tentatively, i shall reveal the source in 2 or 3 days.
writing tips
pranay gupte, late of the straits times, and presently employed by the new york sun gives some tips on writing for an audience.
mini AP in sydney
i am quite dismayed to learn that certain people seem to think that i whine more than enough as it is. anyways since i'm on easter hols this week, i decided that i'd apply for this 2 day traffic survey job. when i get the call asking me what day i'm free for and which briefing time i can attend, the guy inserts some indian sounding phrases (i thought it was hindi) here and there. forgive me for not figuring out WHICH language, since his phonecall woke me up from a nice nap. so yes, i must have figured something was up from that hard-core FOB yack-cent. anyways i turn up on tuesday for the briefing. out of about 40 odd people who were there, at least 12-15 were machine gunning away in telugu. that's when i see the co-ordinators of the survey. 1 is a laid back white old man who briefs people. the other, was the guy who called me. anyways all those who spoke telugu (inevitably), ended up in the hyderabadian's group. he was about to give me the briefing sheet for is group before he went "telugu accha?" which i took to mean "telugu, yes?", to which i replied "no.. tamil", (even though i am telugu, i figured the language i speak was more important) and i practically became persona non grata. he yanked back the sheet and told me to see the white guy. oh well, at least it's better to be hearing english which i DO understand rather than be stuck with the biggest bunch of telugu speakers out of andhra pradesh (or AP for the cognoscenti).
yesterday was the first day of the job. when i turned up, i found that there were sooo many goltees ( in tamil if you switch around the spelling of telugu around, you end up with goltee, and dersh, let's just forget that you used to keep referring to me as 1). anyways getting back, there were so many (i.e. more than half) that some had to join the other group. so basically more than 1/2 of the required 140 surveyors was a goltee. never knew that the goltee population of sydney was that big. oh ya.. the work itself was quite boring, but it was easy money, so i ain't complaining.
yesterday was the first day of the job. when i turned up, i found that there were sooo many goltees ( in tamil if you switch around the spelling of telugu around, you end up with goltee, and dersh, let's just forget that you used to keep referring to me as 1). anyways getting back, there were so many (i.e. more than half) that some had to join the other group. so basically more than 1/2 of the required 140 surveyors was a goltee. never knew that the goltee population of sydney was that big. oh ya.. the work itself was quite boring, but it was easy money, so i ain't complaining.
