DO YOU KNOW ME?

So you people still do not know me completely.Here I come to post the "about me".It was the flavour of the season a few months ago.I know I am quite late in this aspect,however better late than never.I was in fact waiting for someone to tag me so that I could come up with mine.My first experience with tagging was horrible,which was reflected in that god-damn-awful short story and I have tried not to goof it up this time.I was tagged by Naren.I will slightly deviate from his "about me".Lets start the journey-

Three names i go by-
Rajeev
Desi {My nick in IITM which i acquired during the ragging session}
Raj {Most of my cousins/family members call me }
MoBo meaning Mottai Boss {Orkut gumbal calls me that}

Three screen names-
rajeevhere
rajeev_raghu
iamrajeev85

Three names i was given-
Badrinarayanan {Pseude name.. I like that}
Rajeeva Lochanan{dont like that. yuck:P}
Rajeev {I am not a fool to say i dont like this name}

Three phsyical things i like about myself-
My smile {Giving Shah Rukh and Preity Zinta competition for dimples}
Decently built{Yaa self-proclaimed}
Chubby cheeks {:P}

Three physical things i hate-
Obviously my height {Shortie..may be one of the reasons why i like Sachin}
Capricious nose which sends out hurricanes by the dozens. {Guess its sinus problem or some cold related stuff.Have to consult the doc.}
If the above thing does not qualify as a "physical thing" i will say -Not so strong legs.Fluffy types.
My hair is a mess

Three parts of my heritage-
Kumbakonam{Born there,my granny lives there}
Hyderabad {Brought up there.. spent a major chunk of my life. close to 18 yrs}
Chennai {doing engineering here}

Three things that scare me-
Street dogs.. Bloody dawgs {Had a tough time during my pre JEE days when i had classes at 5 am and had to encounter many barking dogs which chased me like a cop running behind a thief.. its better now out in Hyd.. }
Exams used to scare me but not any more as I have got used to getting screwed.Still failure in exams does worry me.
Human anatomy {Just cant imagine how medicos cut and examine}

Three things about opposite sex that appeal to me-
Nice colour,need not be snow white.{Ok now dont start things like due to morons like u the multi lakh "Fair and Lovely" industry is thriving}
Good conversationalist and a decent sense of humour{She need not evoke wide guffaws but i Just cant tolerate senti}
Chubby but not obese{mebbe like jyotika but not mumtaz/shakila :P} and obly not so tall

Three things i want in a relationship-
Mutual respect
Freedom to do what i want
Love {obviously}

Three places i want go for vacation-
New Zealand {LOTR effect.Wish I could go to all the places where that movie was shot}
Badrinath,Kedarnath and surrounding places around Ganga{had been to those temples.. more of a pleasure trip than a pilgrimage}
England {sit back and enjoy cricket at Lords}

Three all time favorite movies-
This is very difficult.I cannot answer this question.. so pass

Three of my everyday essentials-
Internet
Watch and cell phone
Shower

Three things i am wearing right now-
A gold chain
Imported shorts gifted by cousin,Sparkling white Crocodile vest{Ping me if you want further details :P}
Titan fast-track Watch {Passionate about watches.Will surely blow up a fortune on them once i start earning.}

Three things i want to do before i die-
Have a good collection of best-sellers and read all of them
Watch either Sachin tendulkar or AR Rehman live in action
Learn my mother-tongue Thamizh well and be able to read/write and speak fluently {Though i know tam reading and writing my tam sucks... of all the 4 languages i know i am least proficient in tamil.I am not at all proud of this thing}

Three reasons why i am posting this-
Naren tagged me
My blog lacks an intro
Naren tagged me

Three things i wish to change about myself-
Do away with the "lazy" tag
A care free I-care-a-damn attitude and have a direction/goal and make my life more organised
Improve my communication skills.

Three favorite foods-
This is a very difficult one for gourmands/gourmets like me.I will increase it to 5 as i dont want to do injustice to food.
All varieties of kuzhambu or sambhar with rice,spicy curry and papad.{I get to eat that only during the vacations.My life partner will surely have to excel at sambhar making}
The South Indian b.fast menu-vada,pongal,dosa etc {hate idlis though}
Many N.Indian gravies with a generous amount of paneer thrown in with Butter Naan
Another all time favorite is "chaat" in those ubiquitous push-cart stalls better known as "bandis" in Hyd.
Pizzas and pastries will occupy the next slot.

Three big time regrets-
Not continuing cricket and chess after 6-7th standard {He he.. India missed out on another Sachin or V.Anand you see .. NTPK}
Never learnt the art of attentively listening the classes.{Habits die hard.Was a back-bencher types candidate right from 4-5th}
Having studied in a boy's school {:((}

Three things i want to badly do now-
Go home {Its vacation time now and i am still sitting in IITM}
Party night long
Writing "Finish this post" is too tempting.Will change the 3rd thing to -Finish the books at hand namely-Ramayana by Rajaji,Naked Face by Sheldon,Day of the jackal by Forsyth

I have gone through many "know me" posts and its pretty obvious that some of the points have been found else where.I have tried not to use the usual cliches but could not help it on 2-3 occasions.

I hereby declare that all the above facts are true to the best of my knowledge and if found false I am liable to be banished from the blogging world and/or a fine of posting 100 totally humourous/entertaining/captivating posts.:P

Thanks for this long journey and this is an open tag to all the newcomers to post an intro.I grant all newcomers permission to use my name saying "Rajeev tagged me"!!!!!!!!!
Cheers

IN THE LAND OF BIRYANI-2

I wanted to have a short nap after that helluva journey and headed to what I used to proudly call "my room" .It was defaced without an inch being spared and I was shocked to see that.A few months back SRK,Madhavan,Harry Potter,Brett Lee,Backstreet Boys etc used to stare at me and now my sister probably decided that I needed some change and decorated it with teddy bears,greeting cards and also some radium stickers!I no longer call it my room lest people have wrong notions about my interests and sexual orientation.So my room in my house is practically dead.

Picture this-You are sitting in a jewellery shop with only women around on a Sunday and the saleswoman eager to show out variety stuff and the customer doubly eager to try it out.Add a heavy lunch to the above scenario!Boredom,ennui,irritation and sleep!There was no one to even "put sight" and I had a tough time keeping sleep at bay.This shopping affair was after a distant relative's marriage which i attended for the obvious things-food,meeting cousins and you-know-what!The purpose of attending it was fully served in all senses and I was yapping non stop with my cousin.I made sure I went in early in order to have both breakfast and lunch.The rest of the day was spent in catching up with a few old friends.

Diwali,for which I had gone home, was simply great.After the traditional oil bath and bursting crackers before dawn we went to a temple and I followed it up with a visit to another friend's house.Then it was the usual wishing,meeting relatives,lunch,sleep etc .I spent the entire night bursting crackers with friends and family after a gap of 5 yrs.Bursting after 10 pm is illegal but who cares!Parents being with banks does help on the sweets count as we get many complimentary festive season sweet boxes.I devoured the sweets and savouries and I am surely going to have an extra inch of flab around my tummy.

My train to Chennai, which was on Wednesday was cancelled due to the floods and I decided to peacefully return on Sunday.I watched almost every ball of the Ind-SL matches which were being played that week and it has been a while since I had done that.My mom,needless to say,cooked some of my favourite dishes and stuff which i dont get to eat back in hostel.I hogged every bit of it.I also downed piping hot filter coffee daily{Yaa the Tam that I am,I love coffee} which is awful in our mess.I checked out a stupid sidey Hindi flick and a "once watchable" Telugu movie called Chatrapati with the "countriest" of crowds possible and IMO this is the way a movie ought to be watched.

It was a nice break from the monotonous life and homecoming was a kinda rejuvenation camp.The brief sojourn ended as I returned to Chennai on Sunday by bus.Guess what!It was raining cats and dogs when I landed in Chennai.Rain was my constant companion everywhere and if there is a drought anywhere now you know what to do!!!!!

IN THE LAND OF BIRYANI-1

Prologue:
It was slightly dark in the evening and there was a chill in the air.A phone call at 4 pm brought about a lump in the throat.He hurriedly scampered out of his room to inform his friends about the shattering message he received.Their plans were in jeopardy.The chilly atmosphere and wet weather could not prevent sweat droplets on the brow.Then followed a spate of phone calls and the 3 guys set out, braving the rain and the abominable weather.With a prayer on the lips,hope in the hearts and anxiety writ large on the faces they entered the place which was swarming with over thousand people.A small enquiry generated smiles on the faces and the 3 guys were elated and it was normal again.

Wondering what this is all about? OK i give it away.The phone call was from the Call Taxi bastard,supposed to come at 4pm, who called up at 3.55pm to say that his taxi brokedown and told us to look out for alternate means.The place-Chennai Central.Most of the trains were cancelled that day and the small enquiry with the help desk said that our train to Hyd was leaving on time and hence the happiness!

The train journey was not comfortable.The train pulled out of the station on time.The start was full of jerks akin to what you experience if you release the clutch lever in an instant after applying the first gear in a vehicle.Every time the train slowed down,it generated huge no. of jerks.Only after 2 hours or so did the train pick up full speed but with infinite no of stops at every arbit station.The only consolation was that it was a new bogie and so the berths,seats,lights etc were good.There were also a couple of good looking females but had to crane the necks and change the seat for a better view to watch them and so i gave up.5 of us in 3 seats did not help either!

It was 9 pm and we began to experience those hunger pangs.Little did we know that food would be the biggest problem in a train journey.I hog every small bit of junk that comes my way in the train but this time much to everybody's chagrin there were no vendors and thus began the vendor hunt.All the people looked out eagerly with high hopes at every station for the food outlets but the incessant rain all along the journey led to their closure.We survived on biscuits,chips and cool drinks that night.

I was immersed in Deception Point and thanks to Dan Brown the night passed away quickly ,which would have been a nightmare otherwise.The next morning was also similar and there was a huge clamour for breakfast at every station.It was exactly like a refugee camp where people jostled and pushed aside others for food packets thrown from helicopters!We got our first taste of proper food at 11am and inspite of the small quanitity it was one of the most satisfying meals in the recent times .Our train got delayed due to floods along coastal Andhra and reached Hyderabad after a cool 8 hours delay at 3pm.

I was greeted by rains once again in Hyd .That day was marred by accidents and destruction.In a few hours we got the news that shook the nation-the Delhi blasts and the train accident in Nalgonda which left more than 130 dead.The accident was one of the reasons for the delay and i thanked God profusely for being fortunate enough to escape such disasters as I myself was travelling through a rain ravaged route.

SHAASTRA AND DUSSEHRA

Shaastra is our tech fest.This time it coincided with Navrathri as a result of which i got 4 full days.Else it would have only been a single day off on Vijayadasami.I utilized the first two holidays in the best possible way- eating,sleeping,music and watching movies.I never slept so peacefully for two consecutive days in the recent past.Actually i went out to see what shaastra was all about at around 12 on the 2nd day and found out that the registration for all the events was over.So i decided to wake up early the next day, which was a Saturday.I did wake up at around 8 and was in time for a few events.I participated in "Make things Work" and the prelims was a written test which covered the fundas and basics of engineering in daily life.I teamed up with an elec friend of mine and started solving the paper.We answered a few non mech/elec questions.After hazaar brain scratching and recalling and putting pseude in the paper by writing Bernoulli's eqns i realised later that it was wrong. We gave the paper and i did not even bother to find out whether we qualified for the next round.

Last year we did quite well-We almost qualified for the finals after clearing 2 rounds but our thing was rejected and we seriously suspected some foul play then.Last year i also solved many questions in the daily puzzle championship .This year it was too tough.There were a few lectures by eminent professors but the topics did not seem interesting.Once again a good excuse for avoiding.Only one interesting event was left-automobile workshop and i found out that the registration for that was over long ago!I did a few innovative things though- went to the daily quiz,took the paper,came to my room and started googling.Some of the events {physics quiz} started before time ,totally redefining IST- Indian Shrinkable Time.I fully participated in only one event- movie on Saturday.So another tech fest has passed away.

Coming to what i did for Dussehra.Well we had a holiday on Wednesday and i still do not know the exact dates of Saraswati Puja{i think it falls on the same day as ayudha puja} and Vijayadasami.My mom just called up and said for "us" vijayadasami is on Thursday!We are told not to study on Saraswati Puja-this thing totally beats me.Wednesday was like any other day.The only consolation-I took bath in the morning.In fact Vinayaka Chaturthi and Janmashtami were also like any other holidays.The only ritual which i still follow perfectly is the changing of poonal{the sacred thread} and the Gayatri Japam on Avani Avittam.This time I want to go home for Diwali as i have not spent Diwali with my parents and friends since 2000. '01 and '02 my parents were out of town and i was also supposedly studying for JEE .In '03 and '04 i was in Chennai where i combed the entire hostel to find a few bijili crackers{single red bombs}.The ultimate thrill lies in throwing the red bomb in the air after lighting it.

Other developments - 1)Acquired a good Altec Lansing 2.1 speaker which is awesome compared to my dabba mercury speakers.Actually my friend from Hyd who was here for shaastra purchased it in Richie Street here at a throwaway price and has left it in my room.I may have to return it in December,but will enjoy blasting music and pain my neighbours till that time!MORAL- It pays to be in touch with your old friends!2)Bought GATE form.The exam is in February and i have absolutely no idea as to when i am going to prepare for that.
Wishing you all HAPPY DUSSEHRA!

TAGGED

Oh my gosh!I have realized this startling and shocking fact that i am kinda addicted to messenger when i was not able to log in on Friday and Saturday.One of my friends said that he had two wives -messenger and the bed!OK no double meaning and offense intended here.It is only for some light hearted humour and i am not interested in polygamy either!! So my old yahoo id is trapped inside a firewall thanks to the institute's whims and fancies.They keep toying with the proxies and people like me become bakras in a totally hitherto unknown manner.So what happened was that i was using GAIM {another form of messenger} and chatting away to glory when out of the blue got disconnected on Friday.It simply refused to connect inspite of trying out various permutations and combinations of the proxies and port numbers.Since i did not sign off i am now seen online for eternity!Thanks to this even yahoo refuses to sign me in saying "you have been signed off as you have logged into a different device" or some stuff like that! I was forced to create a new one as i was getting many sms's and scraps saying "Why are you not responding?".Anyways i never knew there were so many out there keen on talking to me :P{NTPK}.I was forced to create a new one and have to use this for the time-being.Ok no more flying off on a tangent.I am actually hitting the keyboard to write a short story[in 55 words :(] as i was tagged by Kesavan and let me see what i can cook up.It does not seem peaceful.Here it goes-

She was so damn good-looking,milky white and cute, befitting an angel.My eyes were fixed upon her and she too was watching me.Suddenly a young man descended from nowhere and she went away with him.She was not a kiddo,as you might have anticipated,but a 20 something and i was single again.

I know its pathetic but had to write some story or the other to save my skin!Else i run the risk of being called a non-sport!A bad story is better than a bad nick-name. If i were to rate this attempt i would give it 3/10.Inflicting pain is contagious.So i am tagging ASHA and VAISHNAVI.. I am sure it wint be as pathetic as this!! Write it at ur leisure...

NTPK- An acronym for a Tam saying which has attained cult status thanks to its extensive usage by Kesavan which means -If you think too much of yourself it will lead to self destruction.And kesava next time gimme something easy dude..

ODI TOURNEY AND TESTS

ODI-One Day International
This is not another ubiquitous post on cricket or the ASHES which have been flogged to death in most of the sports sites.After completing ,and of course performing poorly in most of them, yet another set of internals{called quiz here..1st QUIZ} i found it quite similar to cricket,which till recently was my passion.The passion has fizzled out thanks to the incompetent performances of INDIA over the past 2 years.

Well i play an ODI on the eve of a test!The batting is done throughout the night with the primary intention of saving the test.The innings starts somewhere around the break of dusk where the notes are procured and photocopied {Hazaar thanks to the guy who invented that}. The next 30 min are spent going through the notes and trying to find out the corresponding pages in the text-book.Probably this could be called the warm-up session.The batting starts with great enthusiasm and verve.Obviously a well begun job is half done and soon its time for some "well left" which i call the SIEVE THEOREM!! Somehow i just cannot fathom/digest the fact that whatever is "well-left" by me surely appears in the exam.So much so that at around 2 am many of my friends gather in my room to find out what is left by me.Then there is the inevitable drinks break.It is coffee for me to rejuvenate my drooping eye lids and get ready for the post drinks session(or post tea session).It is quite surprising that i am able 2 cram so much into my head on the night before the exam.The lurking fear of a Gangulyish score provides the necessary impetus i guess.Of course i end up getting one,but that's a different story of epic proportions altogether.

The perfect example of "inductive effect" is witnessed at around 2 am where a single yawn by a sleepyhead spawns multiple yawns among the neighbours .Coffee is not available at that time and i dance to the tunes of the capricious sleep without any control.Generally i manage to complete the portion by around 4am,albeit with many parts being "well left",which stare at me in the question paper like a menacing fast bowler the next morning.In the 1st QUIZ the irony was that i did well in the tests with minimal effort,which included conf and orkut, while i totally spoilt the test for which i even did "net practice" apart from batting throughout the night.This has deeply entrenched some nonsense in my head regarding exam preparation.

The papers will be given some time this week when it will be time for some introspection again.As of now i have plans of playing a test-studying atleast 5 days for each exam,for the 2nd QUIZ.I am quite sure that this will soon fade out.But still NEVER GIVE UP!Like September for March flunkers there is 2nd QUIZ for 1st QUIZ flunkers.There is an end sem also to revive the sagging fortunes.Lets see what this sem has in store for me!!

OBSOLETE BLACKBOARD

Firstly let me clarify a few things before i go about cribbing in what is one of the few meaningful posts by yours truly.I am not the typical first bencher in class with a never ending urge to park himslef right under the nose of the teacher and I dont listen to most of the classes.I pay attention only to certain professors,few classes etc which is fn(enthu,hrs of sleep the previous night,the guy who sits beside me).

My first point is the usage of power point presentation in the classes.It is not bad to use it to assist the teacher but it certainly gets on my nerves when the teacher uses only ppt.The poor, old blackboard is relegated to the 2nd position.This is an explicit case of technology misuse or abuse.The primary drawback is that we dont get enough time to write down notes.The prof in most cases just reads out what is there on the slide.If by mistake the prof says "I shall give slides" thats it.It is assumed that we have the notes with us and so he can proceed at his will, oblivious to the fact that class notes are quite important.I have personally faced many problems in the FEW classes where i jot down notes.The teacher is the only one who is benefitted by the ppt.I have also heard of "computerised teachers" or "robotic teachers" or some crap like that where the talking is also done by the comp.It is absolute gibberish/nonsense.The age old method of using the blackboard and the dusty,white chalk is the best in my opinion.I might sound like an octagenarian or a primitive man who is against technology invasion but i do have a valid point here.I am not against ppt per se but i am pained because it is ruling the roost in every classroom these days.It is incumbent now to use ppt and hi tech gadgets at the cost of the blackboard even in kindergarten.I have been and will be a proponent of 'CHALK AND TALK' always.No qualms about it.We did not have these ppts in school and some of my best teachers have used the blackboard with far more superior effect and most of them will vouch for the fact that it cannot be replaced.

In my opinion 'chalk and talk', with usage of ppt to lay emphasis on the finer points or to depict complex diagrams,graphs etc would be the best way of teaching.Let not technology take away the joys of listening in the class,the screeching sound of the chalk on the board,the duster etc which are integral parts of the student life and let it be used in a better manner.My dear readers,if any of you wanna take up teaching as your profession please follow the age old teaching practice.This is my only request.

PIECE AND SLICE

I love "chat".If the thing that strikes you on hearing that word is 'yahoo messenger' then good.I am a chatter-box and a 'mouse potato'{akin 2 couch potato!}If it reminds you of those unhygienic stalls doling out lip smacking fare then all the more better. But if you think 'chat' means licking{In hindi} then i am sorry.Not a day passed off without me indulging in chat,but that was in my good old school days in Hyd.Ok digress. I was reminded of an incident which took place long ago-2 yrs to be precise.The fact that it has been evoking wide guffaws ever since bears testimony to the timelessness of that!

I dont remember exactly when and where it happened,but this is a true story.I was with this group and we were newbies to Chennai.I had been to Chennai before but was confined to my relatives' places and did not roam around much so i was as good as a newbie,albeit with the knowledge of the local language.We decided to have chaat in some store{it was already 25 days without chat then}.My friends were apprehensive after seeing the shop and the uncouth surroundings but i always advocate this policy "dingier the better"!I have had some of the best food in joints which were much more smaller and unhygienic and came out unscathed,so i felt this wont do any harm and took the plunge.It was a small fast food joint and i thought of having some concrete food first and ordered "pease barota masala"-- note down the spelling.I thought it was "barota"-which is similar to a "paratha" with a side dish which had "peas" {or "mutter" in Hindi} with some masala would be the gravy.After the usual banter to kill the hunger our item arrived.I was shell shocked to say the least.It was like mini idly-hazaar "barotas" in a plate.I could not fathom that.Also there were no "peas" around.I called the waiter and asked him what it was and he said the same.Later i realized that it was "piece barota masala" wherein that barota was butchered to hazaar pieces,some reddish paste{that was masala for u} smeared on them and served.Phew! Needless to say i ate just 2-3 pieces and discarded it.Probably "pee"se barota masala would have been a better name.I just wanted to have some cool drink and escape as soon as possible when my friend told me to wait.He was already in splits seeing the food{that dawg was not hungry} and decided to order another dish just to have a good laugh.We ordered "pani puri" {it is one of my fav}. I was shocked again when i saw that!There was "puri" in it-once again smashed to a thousand pieces,akin to a glass window being smashed by a cricket ball and pieces strewn all over the place. OK there was "puri" but no "pani" in it.It was a concoction of smashed puri and "channa".It was baffling,i mean no water in pani puri!Did someone say water shortage in Chennai? Well i never knew that the situation was so grave.Huh! I was afraid even to order a cool drink.Probably he might have given us glass-which is a super cooled liquid in its liquid form and say cool drink!Or maybe smash it,which is his forte,powder it,put it in cool water and say "cool drink". My friend ,needless to say ,was having the time of his life while we were fuming.The only thing which was decent was the bill.I should have torn the bill to "pieces" after paying it.It was cheap and for once my policy of "dingier the better" failed and i had to bear the non stop rebuke of my friends as it was my suggestion to go to that place.Mea Culpa!

Fortunately i have never faced this "piece" thing again.Peace!That bad experience dissuaded me from going to such small joints,but only for a few months.The stomach ruled over the brain again in a few days and i was happily back to square one munching and downing 'pani puris' at the same rate and in equally uncouth,inadequately furnished joints .I have dined in many star restaurants but stuff from a push-cart vendor gives me the ultimate thrill even to this day.I also ended up puking and singing LM{scratch ur brains and find out whats that} many times,took a resolution- not to eat in those joints and invariably found myself downing junk the very next week!!And what will i do if i have a stomachache again-Well i dont have it now so deferred to another date!Till then enjoy ... Anyone willing to accompany this gourmet,gourmand,glutton and connoiseur???

'TRAIN'ING ON A WEEKEND

My last post was on Independence Day which of course had nothing to do with that day .There has been a brief lull mainly due to nil activity out here and also due 2 lack of topics.So u might have guessed it that this is going 2 b a totally aimless one and irrelevant,with the only aim being updating my blog!Shall start off with a round up of the weekend.We r supposed 2 have free noons on friday but as tuff luck wud have it v had an Industrial lecture,that too 2 of them.The timings were 2 to 3-15pm and 3-30 to 5 . I shud say i was pretty happy.Inspite of it being the peak siesta time i managed 2 listen to a prof from Malaysia.Probably the word 'Malaysia' brought about a renewed interest.But the irony was that i peacefuly slept throughout the next one inspite of downing a coffee at 3-30!Evening i just whiled away time and chatted with a couple of frnds.

The title comes into picture now.At around 10-30 my friend got a call frm Hyd saying his granny had expired and so he had 2 rush home.3 of us chumma embarked on a wild-goose chase to the Central without knowing wat v were doing.There are hazaar travels lined up near the Chennai Central and like a 'black' ticket in a theatre 15 min before the show v got a black ticket for a train 2 Warangal @ 11-15,obviously at a premium that too 100%, and 11-30 was its departure time.The next few minutes v were simply running on the road like thieves being chased by cops at 11-20pm and a bag with one of us{Gabbar Singh} made the picture perfect! Also v were boarding a train and it looked like a straight lift from a Bollywood 70's flick.Gabbar and his 2 assistants{we},totally drenched in sweat, entered the train with the booty bag{i mean his clothes bag} and the co-passengers needless 2 say had some kinda unknown expressions on their faces.We heard the announcement and jumped out of the train and Gabbar went away peacefully 2 warangal {and later caught a train 2 Hyd}.It was 11-30 pm and now v had 2 go back to IIT. We decided 2 save some dough and go in the electric train,which had its last train at about 12-30.Also it being late in the night the frequency was quite low and bad luck embraced us once again as the train pulled out jus as v bought the ticket.We had 2 wait for another 30 mins
for the next train and the mosquitoes had a field day{rather night} feeding on our blood and the sweaty environs only made things worse.Add 2 that non stop smsing by a crack pot friend of mine asking "wat happpened... whr r u" etc.We reached IIT at about 1 am and had 2 cycle all the way from gate 2 hostel which is about 4 kms.I was totally drained out and exhausted by the time i reached but i had this sense of triumph having been able 2 help a friend in distress,that too when no solution seemed possible at that hour.I patted myself and said "Good work da Rajeeva!!!" and crashed.

Saturday was bad-vheri vheri bad because net was down{I know u did not expect that reason} till 7 pm.The good thing was that i completed a decent portion of "Tell me ur dreams" which would have been impossible otherwise.Had some insipid food as usual and came back.I was elated when i found out that net was back.Kewl! As usual replied 2 my scraps and was on duty non stop.Ob u know wat duty means-chatting,orkutting,music,movies.Now dont say vacation means studies as vacation is for enjoyment and studies-well no comments.I chatted with a few close friends till about 3-30 am and crashed.

On Sunday again i was on duty.I thought of taking a break{studies} but work pressure{:D} was too high and so no break till evening.Later I completed that novel and did something which was related to engg for about an hour.I wud not like 2 dwell much on Mech fundaes,not because u might not understand it, but i myself will not know wat i am writing if i do so!

Hmmm.... so yet another topic highlighting my joblessness and guess i am going overboard.But relax guys!I shall try 2 post something decent next time.We have an Industrial visit lined up this weekend and i seriously have 2 dust my books if i entertain any hopes of getting something into my head.Shall try 2 post about that next time. In the meantime i shall try 2 review some books which i have read recently.

WEEKEND-COUSINS AND NOSTALGIA

Isn't it quite surprising that the tears of yesteryears bring about laughs while on the contrary those laughters bring about tears today?I felt the same this weekend.My uncle called me up on saturday saying granny and a cousin had come down to their place and told me to come there.I spent the noon watching a movie ,chatting with a couple of friends and then left for their place in the evening.

I was meeting a couple of cousins-one after a few months and the other after a few years.They were F-20 and F-18 respectively.{Of course if it were M i would not have mentioned}.After spending some time with my granny one of them called me and thus started a long chat session.Initially i did the usual leg pulling but after a few minutes i was no match 2 their wits.2 females completely outmatched a male and on many occasions i was left speechless and also fuming.Probably "Revenge of the sis"!They also managed to convince me 2 take them to "Mangal Pandey" and/or lunch the next day .Frankly i feel girls have mastered that art{no offense intended plz}.Then we recalled our childhood days . I have a great bunch of cousins ,both paternal and maternal, and in summer it was only destination Kumbakonam{Thanjavur district,TN} for all of us from the maternal side.It is a huge,ancestral,century old building with wooden balconies and a green courtyard which houses many trees.We continued the discussion till about 9,gorged on granny's goodies and resumed our session which went on till abt 2 am!

The next morning granny treated us to a sumptuous breakfast.After a futile visit to the theatre i was in no mood to dine out and we returned back.We resumed our "bheegi bheegi yaadein" - Kumbakonam. We also had great neighbours there and they being of our age added to our joys.For boys it used to be 24*7 cricket while the girls used to sit indoors playing carroms or watching TV. Lunch/dinner was the meeting time and it used 2 b chaotic and commotion all around,with the boys teasing the girls and getting blows from the elders.We had a jumbo sized wooden swing and boys and girls used to fight for it daily and invariably someone had to intervene to solve the dispute!Each of us had a tale to tell and it was sheer ecstasy when we recalled those moments.We recalled our visit to Kodaikanal{1995} and a visit 2 the theatre to watch 'jeans' {1998}.We also talked about each others' school crushes,college life etc.It was evening by then and one of them suggested calling up a few cousins.We revived some of those memories when we called our cousins in Banagalore{2 sooper kewl guys},Thanjavur{3 robust naughty guys},Surat{2 sweety sisters} etc.We decided to meet atleast once evry year and this time most of them have confirmed their participation in december at Kumbaks.Granny left on Sunday night and one of my cousins also had 2 leave.The other cousin had some meeting in college the next morning and so i returned 2 my room on Monday at 11 am.

It was an amazing weekend for me with great memories which i will cherish throughout my life.They called me up and wished me all the best and i too followed suit.I am now lying in a pensive mood in my cot.Wordsworth{in Daffodils} came to my mind- "those memories change my solitude to bliss".My eyes are already moist now and i do not wish to wet my cheeks with tears{it has not happened for the past 5-6 years} so i will be putting a full stop now.I have only one crib-I should have taken my sweety sisters out to lunch.
KOI LAUTAA DE MERE BEETHE HUE DIN.....

FIRST DAY OF 3RD YEAR

MONDAY MORNING BLUES

Aaargh...Yawn.. The alarm was screaming at 7 am and i peacefully shut it down and dozed back. At abt 7-45 i realised that i had not yet done my "boni"-attending classes so far this yr.Tom Sawyer's invention of "ills" came 2 my mind but here i was my own master and all i needed was "determination"! Classes officially started on Friday but for lazy bums like me it had not yet started and i did not want 2 procrastinate the "boni". I jumped out of my bed and completed all the daily chores{minus of course taking a bath} and managed 2 reach jus 5 min late for the 8 am class. As expected it was half empty{for proponents of optimism well -half full}.I was happy that i belonged to the better half of the class.

1st hr- The prof let us in with a warning saying "First time xcused". No sooner did i park myself than i found myself being drawn into the whirlpool called sleep. I tried 2 take help frm my neighbour but he was already down by then.The classroom seems 2 b having soporific properties embedded in it-thats wat i feel. After trying few things 2 keep sleep at bay i gave up and thankfully went unnoticed.

2nd hr- A young man with a crumpled T-shirt entered in and i thot that some M.Tech or Ph.D muggu came in 2 assist the prof . To my surpise he turned out 2 b the prof. He started off with a world map showing where he grew,studied and stuff . Probably he found it amusing or interesting but v thot it was stupidity. He gave us a gift and dropped a bomb too. Gift:-no attendance-- I beamed like a child who was given an unexpected toy;Bomb:- No reference book,no notes,only classroom... -- I was as angry as a child whose chocolate was snatched away!! Started something vague which was overhead transmission-OHT.

3rd hr- I was determined 2 atleast scribble something. Managed 2 scribble a decent amt.I wish 2 emphasise-decent by my standards.I felt on top of the world.

4th hr- Due to my misfortune entered late so had 2 sit in the 1st bench beside a "My-day-incomplete-without-teacher-licking" guy. He ,hold ur breath,had a pencil,red pen,blue pen and a scale.Phew! I did not have that even in my school where neat notes mattered a lot. Again that hr was OHT and time was ticking away at a snail's pace . I managed to stay awake but ob was not listening. Once someone asked Dharmaraj "Wat travels faster than light" and he said "the mind" . It was quite true as my mind had encompassed the entire universe in that hr except the classroom!

Back 2 hostel. Had something seemingly similar 2 the aloo,sambar,dal shown in the train in 'ANNIYAN' . I had a surprise in store as there was no 5th hr and i had a short nap. I was ecstatic when i found that there was no lab in the noon and the very thot of a free noon on the 1st day lifted up my spirits.Wow!!

I attended 2 some small jobs only because orkut was not functioning. Evening passed away slowly bereft of any activity.It was time 2 dig into some food. A few freshers were sitting with us in our table in the dining hall and suddenly i saw a worried lookin guy with a bag running around here and there. He came 2 our table and asked the freshers "hey did u write down chemistry notes" and at the other end few guys were talking of something called vector product. I was immediately transported 2 the days wen i used 2 religiously write down notes ,and it seemed some years away. Me and my frnds jus shook it off with a toothy grin and came back 2 our "bindaas" days which is something i am not at all truimphant about.It is something like law of dimishing "interest". If u draw a graph of my "acads enthu and interest" vs age it wud b a perfect sinusoidal curve with the peak being my 11th and 12th class days.I am one of the few "celebs" who gave up studies in the very 1st yr but the situation is better these days.

My only aim as of now is 2 be in time for Tuesday's classes and i have taken a resolution 2 listen 2 the prof's lectures and make notes atleast for 1 full day. I am jus hoping and praying it does happen........

CHENNAI vs HYDERABAD

CHENNAI vs HYDERABAD: A candid assessment of the 2 cities

3rd post in 3 days..jump start 2 my blog!
I jus cannot fathom y most of the Hyderabadis call it "hydra-bad" ,which they claim is the anglicised version as in "calcutta- kolkata" or "bombay-mumbai" , with the bad part being pronounced in the same way as the antonym of good-"bad". The other "bad"s do not suffer this ignominy namely Ahmedabad,Ghaziabad etc. If it were 2 b a purely posh,Anglicised name I wud have rechristened hyd as "Hydra good". Okie i wont go abt extolling the greatness of Hyd now.

I grew up in the wonderful,laidback,Nawabi city Hyd. My stay in Chennai -where "barota","bajji" and "sundal" stalls r as ubiquitous as "chaat bandis" in Hyd, is {and will certainly be}relatively very short compared 2 that of Hyd but enuff for this blog. Also innumerable visits in my childhood do supplement the comparison.

The first thing that strikes u on landing at the Chennai Central is the unbearable stench emanating from the umpteen gunny backs filled 2 the brim with fishes. Ppl say "singara chennai" but i feel "Stink aara Chennai" wud b better .The other thing is the perfect discipline which the coolies diligently follow. They never enter the train unlike their hyderabadi counterparts where a plethora of coolies simply barge into the train oblivious 2 the troubles of the disembarking passengers and the air full of "maa ki.." and "behen ki .." stuff!!. Of course the coolies do charge exorbitant rates and that is their forte. The modus operandi is 2 pick out the bakras-non tams, frm the trains and convince them in a smooth,genteel manner in a "khichdish" lang infested with tam wrds and a few gult words being thrown in here and thr. For eg. he will offer 2 carry ur baggage till the auto stand and quote an outrageous,out-of-the-world 3 digit figure which will leave u shell-shocked. More shocks at the taxi stand where the guy will quote exactly the double of the prev 3 digit and triple if u have a comp which is a kinda ' white elephant' . If ur a tam, well all u can do is a bit of bargaining and reduce it slightly but u do run the risk of being rebuked in the choicest of tam expletives wen u have reached ur destination, on not complying to his demands! The autowallahs also deserve a mention here . The state-of-the-art digitalised meters in the autos will surely catch ur eye but wait, they r purely for decorative purposes and agreeing 2 a pre-fixed flat rate will not burn that big a hole in ur purse as against metered fares. I do not recall any instance of entering an auto or taxi with equanimity in Chennai.

The N.Indian stuff in the restaurants will leave u fuming and leaves a lot 2 b desired. Very few hotels dish out quality stuff and it is beyond the reach of students. Did someone say "Be Roman while in Rome"?? Well the "roman" stuff or "chennai" stuff namely idly,vada etc er quite good in the eateries . Regarding entertainment the theatres r not at all good and this is very disappointing for movie buffs like me. On many occasions i have seen movies in black with many empty seats indicating a tie -up. I badly miss the 35Rs ticket in Hyd!!

After all the flogging-to-death time for goody stuff akin 2 my first post. The traffic sense is amazing and a hyderabadi driver will never find it easy here. The theatre{drama} circuit is quite bright and the reverence of Chennaites towards religion and God is well known. The city is up by 6 am with evrbody sporting "vibhuti" unlike the laidback attitude of hyd.The hyd attitude of "chalta hain" or procrastination has caught up with me big time and i am one of the innumerable victims of that attitude. An evening near the beach will rejuvenate ur spirits and the tides have washed away my worries many a time. The transport network is xlnt and the local trains have an amazing frequency at a very cheap rate. So i do not loathe Chennai too but do have certain points against it.

Hmmmm yet another exhaustive post. Bears testimony 2 my "vettiness"..
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So which is better?Without an iota of doubt PHIR BHI DIL HAIN HYDERABADI

VACATION MUSINGS

A 3 month vacation exists only in dreams for any engg student and even i was quite surprised{and elated too!}when i heard of it. But now its part of my life. Like any other vacation even this time my parents had audacious plans ,only that it saw light for the 1st time in many yrs. V planned a trip 2 N.India with granny and few rels but i did not even have the slightest idea that it was gonna b a purely pilgrimage trip though i shud have envisaged that coz with granny around it is given. I was done with my 2nd yr eggjams on may 11 and had 2 park myself at a diff place daily in chennai{ i mean have hazaar rels so daily a different house} till 20th.Then began a long and ardous train journey 2 delhi.After scanning the entire compartment i found out that there was no F 18-22 so all the more boring!But i managed to complete "Da vinci code" {ya a bit late } during the journey.
Delhi was soooper.Evry house boasted of 4-5 cars and it was quite evident that they led quite a flamboyant lifestyle.Replete with sparkling roads, sensational gals,sprawling malls etc Delhi did not seem like the India v know.For a while i thot i shud have opted for IIT DELHI!!! After the usual sight seeing in Delhi{double meaning also 2 b added} and stuff v started off 2 Haridwar.It was a kinda package tour with 100 ppl in 4 buses and much 2 my displeasure it was full of 60+ "mamis" and naamam sporting "mamas". I never knew it was gonna b an out and out iyengar trip. I had great hopes of finding some good company for "kadalai" but all my hopes came down crashing and i had 2 bear the non stop pestering of those oldies. For the next 7 days or so it was only "Hare Rama Hare Krishna" , Carnatic music and other typical iyengarish activities.I thougt my walkman wud save me frm that but my sis who is an ardent music buff brought in the same things saving a few non carnatic cassettes which lightened up the scene somewat.Even the food was jus abt ok but i pardoned the organisers after i learnt how difficult it was 2 go to Badrinath.
Comin to the trip it was amazing 2 say the least. Those serpentine ghatroads with the Ganges flowing deep down in the valley was breathtaking .My heart was filled with child like joy {donno y!!} when i saw real snow for the 1st time and it was an exhilarating experience.The badrinath temple amidst snow clad peaks was awesome and i was thankful 2 my parents as it turned out 2 b a "pilgrimage cum pleasure " trip.The Ganga was biting cold even in the peak summer .After purifying my body and soul with innumerable ganga snaans at Haridwar ,Rishikesh ,Devaprayag etc v went back 2 Delhi. I was hell bent on visiting the Taj but my granny was dead against! Her take was that it was a "tulaka samadhi"{muslim's grave} and the devout Hindu that she is ,she refused 2 budge an inch frm her stance and i lost out another opportunity. The irony is that this was my 3rd tip 2 Delhi without a glimpse of Taj :(. V went to Mathura,Brundavan,Gokul {again "dhaarmik sthaan"!} and came 2 the fag end of our trip.
It was back 2 Hyd on jun 3rd after a memorable trip and my only crib was not goin 2 agra and kedarnath,{which is a non vishnu temple and ob my granny was against}. I was ready for a fresh foray into the big bad world and i was a total "aawara" in hyd. I watched, hold ur breath ,13 movies and my mom obviously was quite indignant and had 2 face her wrath after umpteen untold visits 2 the theatre! Visiting the net cafe became an almost daily affair and at one point of time i ran out of dough due 2 my lifestyle! But it was good 2 b at home enjoyin mom's delicacies and catching up with frnds and stuff. I did miss lunch and dinner on many occassions and was severely reprimanded for that. Also my sis was preparing for JEE so cud not watch much TV at home and that kept me outdoors for most of the time. The only positive outcome was the reading habit which i restarted after a 3 yr hiatus.I did manage 2 read 3-4 books which is quite decent by my standards as I am quite infamous for my reading pace!
All said and done it was a good 3 months . Now it is back 2 sq one in my hostel and i had 2 do a lot of cleaning and stuff yest. Classes will commence in full swing by 5th and it will b a good 4 months before i go back 2 "home sweet home". I do miss HYDERABAD !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HOSTEL LIFE

In my 9th and 10th classes like any other young teenager even I was very eager 2 enter college and have a posh bike,a great gang of frnds and a hep lifestyle. Little did I know that I was 2 enter a world where the vroom of a bike and the smoke that it gives out wud rusticate u frm college!! Of course rusticate is 2 big a word , powered vehicles are banned in our campus and v r fined heavily for riding one. All I have is a solitary cycle now which seems 2 crib often these days and is always in danger of being stolen !! I hope it is safe now as I have not seen it for the past 3 months.
A typical day starts at 8 am { how I envy u guys whose classes start at 9-30 or 10} and I am certain that not more than 5-10% of the students wake up before 7-30 and I do not fall in that category. A visit 2 any of the hostels at that time will surely have u in splits. The cacophonic sound of ‘n’ no of alarms blaring out is the first thing which one will notice. A glance towards the wash basins will show sleepy faces inching their way in and out and cursing the long queue!. Chennai is infamous for its water prob and our campus is no exception. You will have a super sensational start 2 ur day wen u discover that there is no water that morning and find only air rushing out of the tap! Freshers religiously take bath in the morning and v have 2 put fight 2 dig the fact into their heads that doin so will leave the late risers with no water and so the 1st thing one does in the ragging sessions is 2 take a word from him saying he wont take bath in the morning.I pity the guys who r caught in the loo in such horrible situations. Fortunately I was not a victim so far and hope not 2 be one in the future!!! Other idiosyncrasies which all the guys follow religiously are- taking bath only in the evenings; generously applying deo and wearing crumpled,battered,wo