I finally found someone
That knocks me off my feet
I finally found the one
That makes me feel complete

It started over coffe
We started out as friends
It's funny how from simple things
The best things begin

This time is different
And it's all because of you
It's better than it's ever been
'Cause we can talk it though

My favouite line
was "Can I call you sometime"
It's all you had to say
To take my breath away

This is it,
oh I finally found someone
Someone to share my life
I finally found the one
To be with every night

'Cause whatever I do
It's just got to be you

My life has just begun
I finally found someone

Did I keep you waiting?
I didn't mind I apologise, baby that's fine
I would wait forever
just to know you were mine

You know I love your hair
Are you sure it looks right?
I love what you wear
Isn't it too tight?

You're exceptional
I can't wait for the rest of my life

This is it,
oh I finally found someone
Someone to share my life
I finally found the one
To be with every night
'Cause whatever I do
It's just got to be you
My life has just begun
I finally found someone

And whatever I do
It's just got to be you
My life has just begun
I finally found someone


Nothing else sums it up better.. Touchwood! :)

The Departed

Awseome movie..L & me had picked all the wrong movies recently.. movies where we wanted to run out midway..but didn't only because the tickets cost more than a meal..so after all the brain zapping movies it was such a relief to watch this kick-ass movie.. the background score..the dialogues..the tagline..the performances..all top notch..its an all start cast..you get to see martin sheen after a long time..there's Mark wahlberg..a superb performance as usual..a smaller role but meaty nonetheless..and he is superb every frame he is in..he gets to deliver some hard hitting dialogues too..literally..Leonardo..the look he has suits the role to a t..having done the irish immigrant roles before does help as you can see..he carries off the tormented mole part pretty well..Matt Damon..the cop working for the cartel..rendered as good as it comes..& the best player of them all..Jack Nicholson the kingpin..wine's not the only thing that gets better with age..
Scorsese is the perfect captain for this cops & criminals story..well shot..as always the play with words continued to thrill me no end as in all good gangster movies..
The story revolves around the Massachusetts state police & the irish gangster in town(nicholson) whom they been trying to nail for donkey's years now..matt damon is nicholson's mole inside the state police & leonardo gets to do the honours for the gangster club..Wahlberg & Sheen are the cops who recruit loeonardo for the covert act.. wahlberg is explosive in every scene he appears in..sheen as the composed older cop has underplayed his role to perfection..as fate would have it damon & leaonardo fall for the same woman..who ironically starts off being the shrink to one of them.. some of the scenes with the lady are the ones that have the best dialogues..& good background score too..imagine a pink floyd song in one of the steamier scenes..& the song has a cross reference to an earlier scene with nicholson..watch out..
The movie gets interesting when word is out that there are moles within the two organisations..& both the moles are now out to get the other's identity..who gets who first forms the rest of the fun which i shall leave you to find out..
a sampler of one of the dialogues: Jack nicholson meets leaonardo in a bar & asks him to come with him..when leaonardo stalls..he says"i'm not a cop..i'm not asking you"..subtle..& superb.. or maybe i'n not that hard to please:)

World trade Centre

Think WTC & what comes to your mind..the destruction..the mayhem.. the sheer magnitude of such an attack that put the spanner in the works of an entire populace..now if you want to make a movie of this..what do you want to show? obviously the above said stuff..but no.. the makers of WTC had different thoughts.. they picked 2 survivors & showed us what they went through..how they got buried while trying to go about their rescue work...& how they are rescued..filled in between by how they try & stay alive(which btw is not filled with inspiring lines at all )..the pain their families go through when they can't hear from them..the slow pace did not help at all..i am sure the same plot could have been dealt with more effectively with just half the running time..maybe it would have been more watchable then..
how can you make a movie on a disaster & not show the disaster..to give them credit they do show a couple of shots of the WTC going down..but all that was from footage that we already have seen a gazillion times from CNN to NDTV to i am sure some bizzare station in Timbuktu..
The story starts with our protagonists starting the day..ending up at WTC..obviously at the wrong time.. the building collapses & they are stuck in the rubble..pinned & at the mercy of fate..waiting for someone to rescue them..as you'd expect they do get rescued in the end..you see the WTC when they are going down & then when they are rescued you see the remains of the WTC as they are lifted out of it.. what happened in between is all left to your imagination.. what about the people who were stuck on the floors above?..what about the ones who jumped?.. none of that is shown..what about the other rescue people who went down? what about the impact of this on the city? I am sure that would have made for a more gripping tale..
i am sure the story as told now will tug at a few heartstrings.. but if only it was not such a narrowed down version of a huge story..
& there is a small last ditch attempt to garner some of the magnitude into the proceedings by scrolling some stats of the toll..if only they were more evident during the couple of hours i squirmed around in my seat..

The lake house

Before you go any furthur.. spoilers here.. so if you're planning to watch this movie..skip this..come back after watching the movie..
Now.. under normal circumstances would i watch this movie? most probably not.. but then here i am in korea..alone..its the weekend..i am done with all my work.. have absolutely nothing to do... so instead of vegetate i go out for a walk.. there is amultiplex close to the hotel..i walk in & the only english movie playng is..you guessed it..The lake house.. I am not in the modd to walk anymore.. or go back to the hotel & be aware of the lack of company again.. so i decide to watch the movie..
This is the story of Kate & Alex.. kate moves out of the lake house.. an absolutely wonderful structure.. its right on the edge of the lake..the whole house is built on stilts..& is made of glass & wood.. a house that lacks privacy!..but beautiful nonetheless..so..kate is movingout of this house..& she leaves a note in the mailbox for the next owner to forward any mails that she gets..
the catch is that the person who lives next in this house..is actually the previous one..ok that surely left you confused..
by some time warp thingie..the letter reaches Alex..2 years before Kate moves out..eh? yeah.. 2 years.. the idea os sort of ok.. all mushy mushy.. but then with this you tend to get a lot of loose ends..which ultimately is the downfall of this whole thing..
The time warped mailbox soon becomes the connection between the past & the future..between alex & kate.. they soon realise that they like each other but cannot meet..since they are 2 years apart!..
but then..they have met each other in alex's present...in kate's past.. the story keeps switching between alex & kate..the future & the present..or the past & the present..which every way you prefer:) as one the lines go..they are having a long distance relationship..
alls well until the ending of the movie..kate prevents alex from death... because she is in the future you see & she can tell him what is going on...& this experience is from one of the times before she has started her communication with him.. so that is where this whole idea takes a hit.. if she has intervened in his fate..then doesn't that change the fate of a lot of other people too?
too many loose ends in this theory.. She asks him to wait for 2 years so that they coud meet up.. but in between he was supposed to be dead..
ok this won't make any sense.. maybe you should watch the movie after all & then bash it yourself...
the future has always been an intriguing thing..if you can see the future. you should obviously not be able to change it.. if you can, then what you have seen is not the future.. right?

How wierd!

I've been tagged by shub.. so here goes..

I always save the best for last..in almost everything i do.. this is especially when i am eating.. actually i do this with the morning paper too.. i normally save the comic strips for the end.. When checking mails..i check the ones from good friends last..ok that does not necessarily mean that the last one in this list is going to be the wierdest one...

When on rides..i normally tend to ride somewhere in the front of the pack.. at almost every break i go.."hmm that was fast..maybe i should ride the next stretch slow".. & then go & overtake everybody.. I just can't go slow on highways..

If i have a CD/cassette & happen to love a couple of songs..then the cassette is bound to get rewound( or CD track repeated) umpteen number of times.. till i can't take the song anymore..

College exams..papers were for 100 marks.. but the syllabus was for 160... i never could be at peace if i had not studied for the whole 160.. even if it meant i would not get sleep for 2 days..even if it meant that i would have to show up on d-day all red-eyed.. even if it meant that i would have to get a lift to get back home..even if it meant that i had to miss food!!

never carried a bag after school..all through till i completed engineering.. tried lots of alternative stuff...used to keep them in the handlebar of the bike.. used to carry them around in my arms doing a balancing act.. remember once i had lent some books & all of them returned them on the same day.. boy did i have a tough time carrying them in the bus!! even tied up my books with a belt sometimes...& in winter would tied my sweater around my shoulder with books precariously balanced between sweater & shoulder!!

had a pair of jeans that i was crazy about.. so wore them for three straight months without a wash.. finally washed them when a friend "mentioned" that they "looked a little dirty"..and mom refused to wash them..or get it washed by the maid.. so had to do the honours myself..

A friend & i had this wierd passtime.. we would go to the bus terminus.. get onto a bus.. without looking where it was going.. and ask for tickets to the "last stop".. get down there & figure out how to get back home.. managed to get ourselves stranded a couple of times!! this was before the cellphone days.. so no easy help too...

hmm... weird enough i guess ..maybe if written during my college days this would definitely have been more intersting!!..

..now whom do i tag?.. i can think of 2..C & U... & maybe U2...

Gangster...

Finally managed to watch this last night..Courtesy C.. I like the way the movie was shot..
the locations were used well to blend in the story.. if not for the sub title we would not have too many clues that this was Seoul.. the local flavour has been kept out of the movie..normally a difficult thing to manage..
The movie starts with the last scene & is then told in a flashback mode through kangana( for the life of me I can't remember the name of her character in the movie)..Akash(Emraan) & Daya(Shiny Ahuja)... form the other ends of the triangle.. A good story with the twists in the right places keep you interested enough..
Shiny is great as usual.. he does not have to mouth many dialogues & doesn't actually need to when he emotes so well.. He plays the role of the gangster who is married to kangana but is away from her & is a fugitive..Emraan is the quiet lover who carves a place for himself in Kangana's life trying to protect her .. & Kangana dons the role of the lover trying to drown her life & guilt in liquor.. a good performance by her, but could have been better... her voice was one jarring experience.. not sure if she was trying to imitate Meena Kumari's drawl.. but it didn't sound good..
The famed kisser in action was sort of funny.. it looked like both were trying to chew the others lips rather than kissing.. trying to capture passion? didn't look like it!!
Somehow the best scenes were when the protanogists had to look hurt & let down.Shiny when he learns that he has been stabbed in the back.. the feeling of helplessness & being let down could not have been expressed any better..& even that of Kangana when she discovers the truth..
A good movie..worth a watch.. If only Kangana had a good voice..

Goa--the lazy Days..

After the draining ride..& an amazing dinner.. we slept like logs..i remember waking up in the middle of the night hearing some noise.. & it was raining.. cats & dogs.. & the thatched roof amplified the noise.. somehow i find rain very soothing.. drfited off to sleep.. only to wake up late in the morning....The best part about the resort is that the cell signal doesn't stretch so far.. so no calls to disturb us .. the laid back atmosphere enveloped us soon enough & we lost track of time..bliss..
As soon as all were awake we made plans to head out for lunch.. there was this restaurant on the beach.. more of a shack that i really liked in Arambol.. so we hoofed the 2km on the beach.. the sun was blazing..but wading through the cool surf was good enough compensation..the beaches in this part of Goa tend to be very quiet & devoid of people..which is a very good thing.. no crowds to dilute the experience.. and it was the time of the year when monsoons are around the corner..so the place was much quiter than normal.. this was not that great after all.. cause the shack i wanted to visit was closed down for the monsoons.. but luckily enough we found an alternative..
Seafood..looking out on the beach..the horizon..the myraid cloud formations.. all these have to be experience to understand the sense of satisfaction it fills you with.. lunch in these environs was an affair of a couple of hours at least.. Sourabh & Smitha just love canines.. & there was one around to soak in all their attention..
The long walk back to the resort was just in motion when the skies decided to open up..after an initial sprint we realised that we were not going to beat the rain.. so might as well enjoy it.. packed in our cell phones & wallets into Sourabhs waist pouch & made merry.. Dusk was setting in & we all headed out to the beach as soon as we hit the resort..
Sitting on a beach when it is raining is something i've wanted to do for a really long time.. & at last the wish came true.. an hour on the beach was enough to tire us all.. soon it was time for dinner & a game of cards.. & of course lots of beer.. we talked late into the night & it must have been around 1:00 or so when we finally called it a day..
The next day.. i woke up early & decided to go for a jog on the beach..A very refreshing experience.. & the weather was just perfect.. was back & found only Anush awake..We had breakfast & he took off to vasco to meet some relatives..
Sometime after noon Sourabh, Smitha & me headed to Panjim for lunch..We discovered that all the restaurants were closed.. that's the tune to which we had lost track of time.. by now my bike had guzzled a lot of oil.. so we tanked up & decided to head to Baga or Calangute..we would definitely find some food there.. some of the beach shacks are open 24 hours..
A lazy lunch at Sam's shack.. & loads of beer.. some time on the beach & it was dusk already..as luck would have it just as we were to leave the place the skies opened up & the rain was powerful.. enough to keep us holed up in the shack for the next few hours.. with nothing else to do.. we played some darts.. & boy was it fun..or was it fun..
Soon it was time to get back to the resort & call it a day..
The best part about Goa is that you are so absorbed in the laid backness.. that you can drink like a fish.. the beer just doesn't seem to kick in.. or so i thought.. & was to be proved wrong the next day..

Caste-divide!!!

Read this & this today..

Somehow the partial journalism is not very shocking as it should ideally have been..all this corruption that surrounds us has just dulled our ethical reflexes to such levels.. definitely not proud of it..
everywhere you turn around there's something happening that dents the "i-am-proud-of-my-country" feeling.. its is in the hands of people who just keep filling their coffers & emptying our's.. more taxes for what joy? same old roads...infrastructure development at a snail's pace.. snatching opportunities from the meritous..
how can you but not lose faith in the system when you read about this every single day..
how can you but not nurture thoughts of running away from it all..
On the other hand that would be escapism..
Any change that happens needs to be started at the grass root level.. every one of us has to change.. but with the lines already being drawn.. do we still stand a chance?

The Biker test..

• Midnight bugs taste best.
• Saddlebags can never hold everything you want, but they CAN holdeverything you need.
• NEVER argue with a woman holding a torque wrench.
• Never try to race an old Geezer, he may have one more gear than you.
• Home is where your bike sits still long enough to leave a few drops ofoil on the ground.
• You'll get farther down the road if you learn to use more than twofingers on the front brake.
• Routine maintenance should never be neglected
• It takes more love to share the saddle than it does to share the bed.
• The only good view of a thunderstorm is in your rearview mirror.
• Never be afraid to slow down.
• Only Bikers understand why dogs love to stick their heads out car windows.
• Bikes don't leak oil, they mark their territory.
• Never ask a biker for directions if you're in a hurry to get there.
• Don't ride so late into the night that you sleep through the sunrise.
• Pie and Coffee are as important as gasoline.
• Sometimes it takes a whole tankful of gas before you can think straight.
• Riding faster than everyone else only guarantees you'll ride alone.
• Never hesitate to ride past the last street light at the edge of town.
• Never mistake Horsepower for staying power.
• A good rider has balance, judgment, and good timing. So does a goodlover. (AMEN!!!)
• A cold hamburger can be reheated quite nicely by strapping it to anexhaust pipe and riding forty miles.
• Never do less then Forty miles before breakfast.
• If you don't ride in the rain-you don't ride.
• A bike on the road is worth 2 in the shop.
• Respect the person who has seen the Dark side of motorcycling and lived.
• Young riders pick a destination and go... Old riders pick a direction and go.
• A good wrench will let you watch without charging you for it.
• Sometimes the fastest way to get there is to stop for the night.
• Always back your scoot into the curb-and sit where you can see it.
• Ride to work-Work to ride.
• Whatever it is, it's better in the wind.
• Two lane blacktop isn't a highway-it's an attitude.
• When you look down the road, it seems to never end-but you betterbelieve it does.
• Winter is Natures way of telling you to polish.
• A motorcycle can't sing on the streets of a city.
• Keep your bike in good repair: Motorcycle boots are NOT comfortablefor walking.
• People are like Motorcycles: each is customized a bit differently.
• If the bike ain't braking properly, you don't start by rebuilding the engine.
• Remember to pay as much attention to your partner as you do your carburetor.
• Sometimes the best communication happens when you're on separate bikes.
• Well-trained reflexes are quicker than luck.
• Good coffee should be indistinguishable from 50 weight motor oil.
• The best alarm clock is sunshine on Chrome.
• Learn to do counterintuitive things that may someday save your butt.
• The twisties- not the superslabs- separate the bikers from the squids.
• When you're riding lead--don't spit.
• If you really want to know what's going on, watch what's happening atleast 5 cars ahead.
• Don't make a reputation you'll have to live down or run away from later.
• If the person in the next lane at the stoplight rolls up the windowand locks the door, support their view of life by snarling at them.
• A friend is someone who'll get out of bed at 2am to drive his pickupto the middle of nowhere to get you when you're broken down.
• If she changes her oil more than she changes her mind--follow her.
• Catchin' a June bug (or yellowjacket in your goggles or honeybee downyour shirt) @ 70 mph can double your vocabulary.
• There's something ugly about a NEW bike on a trailer.
• Hunger can make even roadkill taste good.
• Sleep with one arm thru the spokes and keep your pants on.
• Practice wrenching on your own bike.
• Everyone crashes. Some get back on. Some don't. Some can't.
• Beware the biker who says the bike never breaks down.
• Some bikes run on 99-octane ego.
• Owning 2 bikes is useful because at least one can be raided for partsat any given time.
• You'll know she loves you if she offers to let you ride her bike.Don't do it and she'll love you even more.
• Don't argue with an 18-wheeler.
• Never be ashamed to unlearn an old habit.
• Maintenance is as much art as it is science.
• A good long ride can clear your mind, restore your faith, and use up alot of gasoline.
• If the countryside seems boring, stop, get off your bike, and go sitin the ditch long enough to appreciate what was here before theasphalt came.
• If you can't get it goin' with bungee cords and electricians tape-it's serious.
• If you ride like there's no tomorrow-there won't be. (Okay all youPower Rangers - pay attention!!!)
• If you want to complain about the pace being set by the road captain,you better be prepared to lead the group yourself.
• Gray-haired bikers don't get that way from pure luck.
• There are drunk bikers. There are old bikers. There are NO old, drunk bikers.
• Thin leather looks good in the bar, but it won't save you from "roadrash" if you go down.
• The best modifications cannot be seen from the outside.
• Always replace the cheapest parts first.
• You can forget what you do for a living when your knees are in the breeze.
• No matter what marque you ride, it's all the same wind.
• It takes both pistons and cylinders to make a bike run. One is notmore important than the other.

So, how many of those made sense? For me each one of those brings on a smile or a memory!

Goa Biking..Day 1

Goa..that wonderful place.. clean beaches..the laid back pace..just perfect for a relaxing couple of days..& it could not have come at a better time..work was getting to be very hectic..So when Smitha started planning a bike ride to i was all ready to grab it.. it did take me a couple of days to make sure I had the holidays & was done with the work..So the last couple of days before d-day became quite hectic...After the initial drop outs & the hiccups we finally had a plan.. we were to leave early on the 25th..make it to Goa the same day & then the next couple of days would be bliss..The final four were Smitha,Sourabh,Anush & moi.. We were to meet up at around 5:15 am & start off at 5:30..hit NH4.. we would have breakfast somewhere beyond Sira..have lunch somehwere just after Davangere..& make it to Dharward by around 4:00 in the evening.. from here we would take the state Highway to Londa.. & then on it would be NH4A all the way to Panjim..another 30km & we would be at Riva..the resort where we
had booked ourselves in...we expected to be sipping Some beer on the beach by 10:00pm.. if only we knew what was in store for us..


Day 1:Woke up at 4:30.. i knew i should have not hit the snooze so often..but then the warm bed was not so easy to give up.. managed to kick start myself & the bike by 5:20.. reached the venue to see that I was the first one there.. 5 minutes & Sourabh & Anush rolled in.. Daybreak was already here & the sun was coming out..we would have to leave soon..Smitha rode in
soon enough & we were all ready to start off..until this moment it had not yet sunk in that we would be biking to Goa..all the hectic work had robbed me of the excitement..It finaly sank in now ..So off we went..first pit stop was at the ATM & the next one was at Nelamangala..to warm ourselves with some tea..i was the self appointed ride captain & was egging the others
on.. not letting them take too much time on the breaks..The sun was just peeping out & the morning was pleasant..this helped us ride quicker.. we knew we would be in for a tough time when the sun came out.. managed to reach close to Sira by around 9:30 & stopped for breakfast.. its a four lane highway all the way & we were almost maxed out with the throttle lots of times.. Anush though had to curb his speeding as he was still running in his bike.. but the rest three had our fill of "throttle lock"..Breakfast was a little longish affair..we spent more time than we had planned for but the roads ahead were good & we knew we would be able to make up for it..& so we did..Our next destination was Chitradurga..this is one windy & dry place...making
good use of this is the windmills project here.. on the mountains on either side of chitradurga they have these HUGE windmills..which generate quite a bit of power..you can actually see the windmills from at least 50km away..we drew close to these windmills..& this was our next break..by now Sourabh,Smitha & me were reliving our Mumbai ride.. we were passing
through all the places we had some memory attached to..the next stretch from here had a lot of detours..the roads were still being built & this slowed us down.. The stretch beyond Chitradurga is a very dry stretch..there is hardly any vegetation & you can see for miles on end on both
sides of the road..very distracting if you like to admire cloud formations..& the heat was also beginning to get to us..We reached Davangere by noon..but none of us were really hungry..so we motored onto Haveri for lunch..so that meant another 80km or so of barren land..The deccan plataeu has such sparse vegetation..Sourabh kept comparing it to a desert & was not far
by a lot..Haveri..Lunch..It is always a wonderful thing to stop at some town..get off the bike & examine the looks on all the people watching you.. you find some that have their mouths open..some itching to come up..take a closer look..but staying back on account of being shy..but some others who actually come up & decide to give you some gyan..& those that do talk.. seldom
fail to understand why we were on bikes travelling so far..Almost everwhere we got mistaken for army guys..we were wearing camouflage trousers after all!.. & all the reactions were heightened when they saw Smitha get off her bike.. now if they could not fathom why we crazy guys were on bikes.. a girl on a bike..that too a bullet..was enough to send them reeling..Post Lunch we were all sleepy.. but then the next stretch woke us up with a rude shock.. windy was an understatement.. the winds were blowing across the road from left to right..& sometimes crosswinds too..it was so strong that the bikes would not cross 80kmph..& we could feel the bike shifting from left to right.. overtaking trucks was becoming a daunting task.. when passingthem we would enter a sort of vaccum region thanks to the wind getting blocked.. so we would get sucked into this pocket..& just as you com eout..the front wheel would get shaky.. & would push you more onto the wrong side.. it took quite a bit of skill to avoid running into oncoming trucks..
4:30 & we were at Dharwad..right on schedule.. & we were happy that we we had just finished a horrible stretch..all of us were already imagining ourselves sitting on the beach guzzling beer... We were just about 160km from Goa & we did not expect to take more than 4 hours to cover it.. Started off at 5:00 & we soon reached the turn to Londa..All of us were running low on fuel..so we had to go into Dharwad town to tank up.. locating a bunk that accepts credit cards ate into a lot of our "beach-time".. dusk was setting in & we hit the state highway.. we expected the road to be a little ill-maintained & were prepared to encounter the occasional pothole..but none of were prepared for what lay ahead of us..instead of the occasional pothole there was the occasional piece of road..We motored on hoping that it would get better..After some time we just had to take a break..the road was killing our backs.. met an old man here.. he told us that the road was worse ahead.. he had this heavy accent.. so could not figure out everything he said.. & he had already had his quota of his toddy..so i was not really sure if we should beleive him.. he even went on to tell us that the road was actually in much better condition now than before..& ahead of us there were potholes that were knee deep.. We found out the hard way that everything he said was true.. the stretch upto Londa was one of the toughest I have rode so
far.. there was no trace of a road..it was just a path with lots of loose stones..mud..and very dusty..& to boot it all darkness had set in.. the icing on th ecake was when we realised that this was in a forest..ater a few km we hardly came across anybody..the perfect setting for a horror movie..I was ahead of the others & decided to switch off my headlight just to check how dark it wa.. & it was freaking pitch dark..immediately switched the lights back on..in the one second delay that the light took to come back on..i think i must have missed a heart beat.. but this was also an adrenaline rush.. so tried this a couple of times more..realised that it had been some time since I had seen the others in my rear view mirror..so decided to stop.. slowed down the bike & realised that the place was too scary to stop..it was just soo dark.. imagine a
narrow road..pitch dark..trees covering it on both sides..freaky..kept going slow until i could see a headlight far behind me..luckily it was Anush.. both of us went ahead together & reached Londa.. we parked on the side & waited for Sourabh & Smitha to show up.. man it was going to be tough on her..as soon as they made it all of us were thankful that we made it so
far without any mishaps.. all it would have taken is a snapped cable to put a spanner in the works..we would have had no choice but to abandon the unlucky bike & retreive it when daylight was back..It was around 8:00 & we had about another 100km to Panjim..We were on NH4A now & expected the rest to be a breeze..our biggest worry was only the blinding light from the oncoming traffic..man we were again under-estimating what lay in front of
us..The road ahead looked very good..heavan compared to what we had left behind us..plus winding roads.. nothing like it.. picked up speed & had set into a good groove..& then the road started going bad again.. & soon there was no road again.. boy this was very irritating..to boot we had to deal with these oncoming trucks & some sandy slippery stretches..I was thankful that
it did not rain..else we would all be in a soup.. literally..at the end of another hour we regrouped & saw that it was close to 10:00 & we had only managed 30km so far..it took quite an effort to keep going..Ahead of us lay some ghats..we did not enough energy to even check the name..all that mattered to us were the milestones to Panjim..all of us were going through the ghats & visibility suddeny went down..i asumed it was dust..but to my surprise we
discovered that it was FOG!! fog late at night..on ghats..wher one side of the road has a sheer fall of a couple of hundred feet..yup you guessed it..luck was not with us..Smitha is too freaked about fogs & so sourabh was guiding her along..when suddenly we lost track of her.. he had to go back & make sure she was alright..Since Sourabh & me had done lots of night
riding before we knew how to survive..we managed to make sure that Smitha & Anush did not have any issues on these roads..Regroupe after another 20km..& by now it was 10:45..another 50km to go & we were all out of energy..the mind was not ready to
give up though..it was now a battle of mind over body.. all of us were now running on our reserves..Sourabh is the best night rider I have seen.. so he would be the lead now..Smitha would be right behind him..with me following her & Anush bringing up
the rear..& we would make sure that we kept track of the rider behind us..This last stretch had to be the best of the whole day..the roads were empty & winding..perfect for using all our riding
skills..& all the time each of us were not more than 500metres apart from the next rider..We finally made it to Panjim just a little after midnight..crossed the mandovi river & stopped on the other side..word would not describe how tired & releived we were..1 am & we were at Riva on Mandrem beach..Luckily we had thought of ordering our food earlier & it was waiting for us..Luck had now decided to be good to us I guess..we knew that we might expect some rain in Goa..& rain hit us just as we found Riva..now such luck we could definitely use..The day ended at around 2:00am with all of us being too tired to talk anymore..We had covered 670km in a day..longest for all of us.. .and we had been on the road for 19 hours! & for more than 16 of those we had been on the bike..one of my most gruelling rides...ever..

GOA ahoy..

Very few pics.. attributed to..

too involved in the riding experience..
forgot to take camera along while travelling in goa...
Plain lazy...
alcohol content in blood preventing operating a camera...
drizzling..raining..pouring...basically not good for the camera...
bad...pathetic.. horrendous roads..preventing us from stopping...
Riding in forests at night..too scared to stop:)

Our Democratic Secular country!!!

What a farce...secular government..democracy...in the interest of the people..
all those khadi clad morons have left no stone unturned in trying to make sure that India will take a couple of steps backward instead of being more competitive..
what a bunch of cowards.. not one has the guts to come out & say that this whole reservation is a big mess.. why can't we have somebody at the helm who can bring in better resolutions..
How is reservation going to make a difference? Why can't we have better infrastructure & try to help the people who deserve it..
The easier path is not necessarily the best path.. why can't there be enough reserach on this before implementing such a rule?The man who proposed this is clueless about the logistics of the whole thing.. read more here

My main grouse is that this takes away what a meritous candidate has fought & worked hard for all his/her life.To lose out to somebody who is not as qualified, especially when the means are readily available to both, is just too de-moralising.
Ask me how i know...

reservation should not be just because of what you were born into.. it should be for the people who have the potential but not the means to achieve it.. that is when this will have value..

All this is going to do is create more vacant seats.. so the khadi weasels go ahead & make more seats.. how is this going to help.. this my friend means that to meet this 8,000 crore fund..you & I will pay more tax.. yes you & I who did not get through reservation.. why can't this instead be used to provide better infrastructure..

..& this is surely going to create a lot of unrest between the masses.. & some speak of social harmony..

How does this reservation even make sense.. is this like an eye for an eye?.. if yes..then what about in another 50 years.. will things reverse? & will every fifty years after that be a see-saw about who gets reservation..

What about all the vacant seats/posts that were marked for reservation? So many of these are under utilised.. isn't that like taking away the chance somebody had at a decent livelihood?
Some guy with merit could have made use of it & probably made ends meet & fed a family..
isn't that injustice?

the need of the hour is to better the education standards in government schools.. identify the ones with merit..& provide them with the means to go ahead in life..
not this farce of a solution..

is it any surprise that we still have brain drain?
how can somebody not go to greener shores where their merit is rewarded?
..where you don't have to listen to all the white lies about secularism?..about rights..

..& I just can't wait for the next elections.. I just hope this momentum carries through...
I can't help but lose faith in our system each day..

Ankahee...

After watching Ankahee.. Someday. I hope i meet Vikram Bhat..i'm gonna make sure that i can get my money back!! & twice over for this excuse of a movie.. hardly a wonder that lots of people left mid-way..all of them must have gone in search of Somebody to beat up in lieu of Vikram Bhatt.. C & me are lucky to get away unscathed after recommending this & dragging V & S to the multiplex..
The story is very arth'ish.. the other woman factor looming large..Somewhere down the line it felt like Bhatt was justifying his stand.. & not a very convincing one at that.. the acting is just passable..Amisha is either all sugar coated..or glycerine-coated..both too much to digest.. Aftab has three expressions & variations of that throughout themovie.. Esha is maybe just a tad ahead of the others..the wide psychotic look maybe helped..
The story could have been treated much better..with some more intelligent dialogues to hold the audience's interest...Sadly this department has been the one that has let us down miserably..The dialogues are as unimaginative as they get.. the arguments by aftab & easha were as far from convincing as possible. it was difficult not to wince at some of the poorly writen lines..
It looks like there was not a lot of effort that went into the making of ankahee.. watch it closely & you can see that continuity of the sets has gone out the window.. one of the scenes has a telephone that is not wired!! All excusable if the story had been worth it..
The saving grace though has to be the music.. an amazing score & superb rendering of "tumse yu milenge.." by Kunal Ganjawala.. just can't get this song out of my head.. wish the movie had been half as good.. But a lesson well learnt.. don't judge a movie by its promo!!

Secular country?? Yeah right!!

Where else..but India..
A movie that's good enough to open Cannes.. needs to be banned here..

The reunion..

Sunday was defintely a memorable one.. hope it was equally
so for all of us who caught up...tracing back i guess it
all started off with a few of us getting touch over the
net.. small pockets of us had kept in touch but never th e
whole group.. amazingly we hardly ever bumped into each
other the last three years.. & boom.. all of a sudden the
time is right & all of us meet up at college..10:30 was the time we planned to meet up.. & all of us
trickled in at our versions of 10:30.. was there by around
10:40.. Found that i was the first one there.. Shilpa had
text'ed that she was on the way .. returned Supreet's call
to find out where he was.Took a walk around college..going over all the memories
associated with each staircase..corridor..hangout.. Shankar dropped in soon & we thought we would check out
the medico "babes"..too bad none of them had turned up on
sunday.. Supreet rode in on his kinetic & all three of us
made ourselves comfy on the entrance stairs.. "Titanic"
was the initial venue for all of us to meet up..but then
the place was just too hot..So the shade it was.. So here
are the three of us trying to catch up on years & we see
a familiar looking girl walk by..& its Rashmi.. she did
not look very different apart from the pair of glasses
perched on her nose..This got us started off on our 3 year
updates again..which was all repeated when Ashwini
appeared in a couple of minutes.. We called up Divya & she
was still at Queen's road waiting for shilpa.. So all
prepared ouselves for a long wait..KC was the next to
arrive..kicking off with his jokes..he has certainly not
changed.. the next appearance was something unexpected..A splendor
comes in & parks right under our noses.. & lo and behold
it was our HOD.. a sort of uncomfy moment..mainly because
we had not expected this.. he wanted all of us to make it
to his chamber before we left.. he was insistent.. so we
decided to wait for the others & meet him at one go..Soon shilpa, Divya & suhas joined us..followed a little
later by Abhishek.. & how could we give up on this photo
op..got some good snaps of all of us.. ironially we had
not thought of such stuff in all the 4 years of college..
& here we were after 3 years..drowning in nostalgia..
Kicked off our search for the HOD..finally located him &
waited for him to finish his work before talking to him..
..all we wanted to do was to just head out for lunch.. so
all of us were looking to keep this meeting as short as we
possibly could..All of us trooped into his cabin..prepared to nod in
silence for a few minutes & then head out.. none of us
were prepared for what lay ahead..The HOD started off by
updating us on what was going on in college.. the new
ventures the college was thinking of.. the results..etc..
& soon we were ready to run... but then something
changed.. we all realised how much respect he was showing
us.. he was genuinely happy to see us...not saying
anything just for the sake of it..from then on not many of
us realised how time flew..All of us did not mind butting
in with our ideas..we were surrised at how much he
remebered stuff about us..a pleasant surprise..it was a
very healthy discussion which showed us a side of him we
did not knew existed.. a person concerned about his
students..not afraid to criticise the system he was a part
of.. all of us soon opened up & it was our turn to update
him on what we were doing & what we wanted to do.. time
just flew..it was more than an hour when we bid our good
byes to him.. promising to return in a couple of weeks
with more of our old comrades..
By now we had decided to head out to a resort on
Kanakapura road..& boy it was hot..made it there in about
a half an hour..& a filling lunch it was..the food was
really awesome..Here is where we get to the icing for the
day..midway through lunch..Divya could not find her camera
anywhere..so retracing our steps we reasoned that we must
have left it behind in the prof's chamber.. so called him
up & he offered to meet us back in college in about an
hour..all of us prepared to head back & what do we find?
The camera was in the car all the while!!.. so this meant
another call to thank the Prof.. & apologise for troubling
him..but then... Divya realised that she had "found" only
the camera case & not the camera..so another call by Suhas
to the HOD to tell him about the fiasco..By now Diva is
all flustered..the lost & found & lost again camera was
expensive.. so the tension was palpable.. A couple of minutes more & KC gives her the case & the
camera is mystically inside the case!! boy she was ready
to throw the kitchen sink at us..she would now have to
call up the prof AGAIN to explain the whole thing.. that's
when we break it to her that Suhas had faked the call & we
had hid the camera.. the expression was priceless.. & is
soon going to be posted here..as long as Abhisek decides
to send across the pic soon...None of us really wanted to end the day I guess.. we
headed back to college & talked some more.. finally called
it a day when people remembered that it was late & there
was much work to attend to the next day..Defintely a memorable day & looking forward to seeing all again..soon..

Compound sentences..

Saw this...

..and this

...on the great wall of china..

..and if you are wondering about the title.. here's the background story...
A teacher is done explaining grammar to her primary students..and wants to know if anybody can come up with a compound sentence.. so one bright lad gets up & quips.."please do not stick bills on this wall" :)

Before & after...

..and after about a year.. same place..

Prime..

watched this movie on the in flight entertainment yesterday.. really well treated movie.. uma thurman & meryl streep have put in really good performances.. here's the story.. Uma,37 has just gone through a painful divorce & is undergoing therapy with Meryl. She is getting back to her life, when she meets Dave,23 & both strike up a chemistry..in spite of the age difference..here's the clincher..Dave is Meryl's son.. so the mother is now caught netween 2 worlds.. counselling Uma to grab at opportunities life throws at her & wanting her son to marry a good Jewish girl!! & she is now in need of therapy!! if you think i am giving away the plot.. then watch this & check out for yourself:) the movie explores the relationships & how equations change.. with such finesse..its filled with very good dialogues.. some that stuck out.."you are making me nervous in a way i am not really faimilar with" Dave tells Uma this when they have just started dating..and then there was the "you love.You learn. You move on.."the best part of the movie had to be Meryl's acting.. how she reacts when her patient tells her of the sexcepades she had with Dave..in detail!
watch it..

Getting Back..

The simplest solution.. but then again.. its the tougher path!!

Singapore-Diaries-1

The Singapore trip was on the cards for about a month or so. I was just hoping that it did not interfere with the Rider Mania plans I had..but as things turn out..Murphy.. i am gonna get you...I had to come to singapore & miss out on the RM'06 ....so when i get back i am just gonna plan a ride as soon as i can.. So gettingback.. RM06 apart..i was looking forward to the trip..would give me a chance to check out the place.. I had 2 weeks & i was gonna put it to good use.. i was gonna be flying Jet to chennai & then change flights to singapore..The bangalore to chennai was at 6:45 in the morning..sunday morning..so that meant i would have to give our saturday night party a miss.. darn... another fun sucker moment.. anyways gave me a chance to have a nice family dinner.. So the next morning..there i was at the airport right on time..& surprise surprise..my flight was cancelled because of bad weather.. so that was an eventful beginning to the day alright.. & what's more... now i wouldn't have to worry about the long stop over at chennai!! Finally they managed to put us into an air deccan flight.. which managed to take off by close to 8:30..that meant i would land at 09:30 & have just an hour & a half to get to the terminal ..& get through immigration..fun fun fun... so there i was in the chennai airport..lugging my luggage to the departure terminal..after a 10 minute half sprint half jog..i was at the terminal.. out of breath.. so here was the difficult part.. managed to get the baggage checked in in record time..& was on the way to immigration.. & they would not let us join the queue unless we filled in the forms.. now thats pretty schoolish.. but what the heck.. you just can't beat the system.. so managed to fill in the forms.. Stood in line... got to send a few sms'es to C.. & sailed through immigration.. i had not let the delays get to me.. so managed a couple of jokes & could draw a smile from the sour looking immigration officer also.. then was the securit check.. by now i was pretty tired of all the running around & not paying a lot of attention.. was following the majorit of people.. Thankfully they check your ticket before letting you board the plane.. i almost got on to the one going to colombo!! now that would have made the day REALLY interesting!! Got to my seat & reliased that i still had a good 15 minutes.. called home & got in the good byes.. & the ..yes ma..will watch what i eat.. yes ma won't forget to call/mail.. won't run away with any good looking gori!! A glass of white wine.. nice lunch & a nice book.. & singapore is already here.. this airport is a familiar place.. so did not have much trouble finding my way out..& caught a taxi to the hotel...must say.the taxi's here are pretty inexpensive.. a ride of about 12-15 km.. set me back by about 16S$.. in a merc that too... the city looked very well planned & very clean.. the sky scrapers looking out on the marina bay was quite a sight.. & my room had a view of the bay & the sky scrapers.. pretty neat.. fairly affordable are also the SIM cards here. got one at the airport on an offer.. would help me immensely in staying connected to back home.. sent out a few mails.. called the people who were waiting for news of my landing.. & then moved on to the unpacking.. Dinner was at a nearby KFC outlet in the HUGE suntec mall bang opposite to the hotel..Well tomorrow is going to be the big day..

Rang De Basanti...

AWESOME..what more can i say.. brilliant score.. brilliant acting..brilliant direction..& beautifully shot.. maybe the only grouse was the semi-idealistic ending.. but i am prepared to buy it..
for me the best parts were when each character goes through his internal change..the moment of awakening is treated brilliantly.. for example Atul's character realising that the man whom he thought was an idealist is also a mere mortal.. the sudden realisation by DJ that his friend lost his life for nothing..GO WATCH IT....