THE LIFE OF PI

Beware: Potential spoilers ahead.

The words maths and sci-fi came to mind as soon as I heard about the book that goes by ‘The Life of Pi’. Long, complex looking mathematical equations started darting in front of my eyes whenever I thought of the book. I must mention that the book was recommended to me by a ‘maths-science-and works’ aficionado and I am sure you will agree that my mental imagery wasn’t unfounded. Of course, I couldn’t get myself to read such a book!...it wasn’t ‘my types’…

I don’t remember what exactly made me pick up the book, maybe, it was the knowledge of the fact that India featured in the novel or maybe it was the cover (it sure didn’t look like a sci-fi novel from its cover) or maybe it was just to satisfy my curiosity about the queer title. V started reading the book before me and whenever I’d ask “So what is the book about?” I would hear something like “Don’t know yet”. I decided to find out for myself.

How right he was….believe me, you don’t know where the story is headed till you finish part one of the book, unless of course, you have done some background reading about the book and tried to put the cover in perspective.

Some books get you hooked up from page one, and then there are those that you have to plough through till you get to the interesting parts. I would say Yann Martel’s Life of Pi belongs to the second category. The initial pages are not drab, but as a reader one needs to know where a story is headed no matter how entertaining the read has been so far. “Hang on till part one and then you won’t realize when you finish the book”, some friends had mentioned. So with that hope, I continued to read, page after page, and then I reached a point where I couldn’t keep the book down.

The book begins with the author’s note about the story behind the novel. He mentions meeting an individual in a coffee shop in Pondicherry, India who tells him the story that is now the novel. The references of people and places made me believe that it was a real story that I was reading. Silly me, actually started googling for Pi Patel (the main character of the story) hoping to find some clues about his existence and wondering how I had missed a story so fascinating. Alas, I found out that the novel is a work of fiction. I felt betrayed and berated myself for being naïve, but, full marks to the author for making the story so real and believable. Definitely worth reading!

A SILENT RAIN

Dear Baba,

I am sitting by the window of my apartment as I write to you. The weather forecast says, rain and thunderstorms are headed our way. I am excited; you know how we looove the rain! :)

The gusty summer showers that relieve us temporarily from the heat….the intoxicating smell of the wet hot earth ….sometimes there is hail and we would run to collect it…if the hailstones were small they would melt away as soon as they’d hit the ground….the bigger ones would stay and we would eat them…sometimes, one of them would hit us hard on the back, as we stooped to collect the ones on the ground.

The monsoon is a different ball game altogether…..the early showers are heavy and make a lot of noise…as if the heavens are lashing out at the earth…or like a child throwing tantrums….then the rain settles into a rhythm….a daily incessant drizzle….as if the heavens have made peace with the earth…. there is another phase of heavy showers before they are gone for good till next year…

I close my eyes and can hear all the rain sounds……the growling thunder…the howling wind……the rustling of the leaves…..then the different sounds of the rain drops…..the first few coming down tentatively tap, tap, tap…….tap, tap, tap, tap,….falling on the ground, on the road, on the roof and the awning outside our verandah….soon the drops would gather speed and before you know they would be coming down in torrents… when it stopped raining, the tip tip of water droplets trickling down from the trees or the window sill or the awning onto the ground…

The initial heavy showers would always mean a power cut; due to a fallen tree over the power lines, or, some other fault…..power cut or otherwise, we would huddle up in chairs in the verandah and soak up the view… sometimes we would need to rush inside to secure the windows, for the haphazardly slanting rain would send water through the windows inside the house…..we would speculate about the rains for the year, make phone calls to friends and relatives and excitedly exchange the rain info …..ginger and lemon grass flavored hot chai and bhajis would arrive from the kitchen….we would continue to talk for hours about this thing and that, until it got too dark to see the rain or, the mosquitoes shooed us away….you would turn of the light in the verandah, because it would attract scores of bugs that would dance around it till they died, and left a mess of their dead bodies on the floor…..you would play a beautiful rendition of some monsoon raga ……we would drift off to sleep listening to the sounds of the rain….

Often I think of the monsoon as a naughty, undisciplined brat, up to some mischief or the other, but, completely unbothered by its acts….yet, I like this brat…..it never fails to evoke a rainbow of emotions; joy and exhilaration mostly dominate the spectrum……it has opened hearts; mine to other people and other people’s to mine….I have noticed a surge in my creativity in its presence …..Alas, I don’t know when I will enjoy the Indian monsoon next… :(

Nothing can compare to our monsoon….O….it has started raining…here the doors and windows are all securely closed; not a sound can be heard, unless, I strain my ears, to hear above the drone of the heater…..neither can I smell the earth…….there seems to be a lot of wind for the trees are shaking violently, but of course, I don’t hear the wind….The rain here is nothing like our rain…..it is disciplined, just like the people here…..it never makes an unexpected call….it arrives on time like a punctual guest and never lingers…there is no informality…..no liberties are taken or given….its well manneredness hurts, seems fake and it fails to reach my soul….

Oh well….is it just me or …? ……..Maybe I should open the windows and try to listen…

~A

WALLS

These walls have seen me grow......they have seen me toil and plough....they've been spectators to the celebrations.....to the trials and turmoils....to the melodrama that has unfolded within their bounds....as I leave this haven for far-away shores, these are the walls that I am going to miss the most....

RELIANCE SUCKS

Of late, I have been dishing out small pieces which I consider to be my feeble attempts towards fiction. But this post is very much real and as you will soon realize, about an issue that is close to my heart. Without further ado I will get to the heart of the matter. Please be ready for my rant mode for this post.

Pardon the profanity in the title. However, I am sure anybody in my position would be driven to such extremes. A few months ago we signed up for a broadband internet connection through Reliance. Since we signed up as a group (a bunch of people from my colony) they threw in a free intercom service and waived off the activation fee. We were elated! What the dodo in me failed to note is that we had ended up signing for their phone service for which my family had no real use. Hence, I decided to terminate the phone service and upgrade my broadband to a much better plan.

So pronto I did the needful; switched the broadband plan and put in the request to terminate the phone connection (14^th July 2007). Apparently only a supervisor level individual can take the termination request. So 1^st a regular customer care dude, verified my identity and then put me on hold for 30 minutes at least (seriously, no exaggeration there) so I could be transferred to the supervisor dude. Apparently all the supervisors were busy just the time when I wanted to put in my termination request. I gave them the benefit of doubt and tried to be merry listening to the music track that they play when they put you on hold. O BTW the music really really gets too you as the time you spend holding the call increases. At last, after what seemed like eternity the supervisor came on line. I had to repeat the same verification details, provide him with reasons as to why I want to terminate the connection, etc. I was informed that somebody from another team would contact me to take an appointment so they could visit and take away the phone instrument and finish the other formalities. I provided him with an alternate number to call. I was told that the timeline for the completion of the request would be 14 working days; that’s like half the billing cycle. Oh well! Maybe their motto is: “Our customer is our GOD (spelled backwards!)”

When I came home next day, ma informed that the Reliance folks had called. Unfortunately I had not clearly updated folks at home, so ma ended up telling them to call later since she did not have a clear idea about the termination request. Of course they never called back. I called up Reliance customer care that same night and I must say they are either out of their mind or have a really crooked sense of humor. I was informed that we had communicated that we want to retain the phone service!! Wallah…how they twist the customer’s words. I admit that I really admire their skill of interpreting new meanings from seemingly simple statements. The only option that I was left with was to put in a new request (as outlined above).

It is well known that I need a lesson in anger management. The prospect of being on call listening to crappy Reliance on-hold music was quite daunting and I guess that proved to be the last straw. I sort of raised hell as I put in my request the second time around. Only this time, I decided to do better than listen to their on-hold music; I utilized my time by making some pending phone calls and caught up with people that I needed to catch up with. After much tantrum throwing (no that did not help, my call with them still lasted the customary 45 minutes) I had put in my 2^nd request. I got a call from the other team on my cell within a couple of days. I was not in a very cordial mood (when am I you say? ;)) and so ended up telling them point blank that I wanted to terminate my phone connection ASAP. I also informed that I was tired of giving reasons. A week or so elapsed, no follow up signs from Reliance and I began to get suspicious.

Another round of calls confirmed my worst fears. Their logs show that I confirmed I want to retain their phone service! Now either I have forgotten how to communicate or they have some serious mental challenges. With no other option I put in my termination request the 3^rd time around last night (3^rd August 2007). If a phone call to Reliance customer care entails termination of service, then be assured that their supervisors will be busy (which means you are on hold indefinitely) or that their system will be down. (which means you have to call back later)

These incidents coupled with some previous sour experiences with Citibank have led me to believe that customer care around here is customer, don’t care. They come kissing at your feet to activate any goddamn service, but when you need to cancel the same, you are at their mercy. Often customers are plundered by signing them up for unnecessary services. Agreed it is the customer’s duty to thoroughly verify what they are getting into. But often, time seems to be the challenge and hence such minor plundering is either ignored or most times goes unnoticed. These service providers don’t seem to value the customer’s business or their time. Their contorted processes are proof enough.

Have any of you had similar issues with Reliance or for that matter any other customer, don’t care service? I urge all those sailing in the same boat as me to not give up on such issues. Hopefully our follow ups will yield the desired result someday!

Moral of the story:

Be extremely careful before signing up for anything that requires your money, because it takes a lot of time, patience and mental agony to get out of it. (Take my word for it, will ya?)

To Reliance:

GET WELL SOON. My flowers are on the way!

BON APPETIT

I was browsing Mridula's blog where I learnt about 'The 5 Hilarious Travel Photos Contest'....As I saw Mridula's posts for the contest, I was reminded of all the funny/weird pictures that never see the light of the day. The contest sounded like a lot of fun and although I knew I was way past the deadline I thought, "why not??"....So here I am looping through my digital photo collection, trying to find the right pictures...turns out I have way too many funny pictures of myself rather than pictures that would be funny minus me...I found some interesting pictures during my search that I thought would make a better post than hilarious pictures of the self...Oh well, guess this preamble is good enough..

I spotted this shack on my hike to Lohagad ...it seemed to have sprung up in the middle of nowhere just to cater to the hikers w/ a multi-cuisine appetite...the location of the shack and also the hoarding left me amused...


This picture has been taken during a trip to Rishikesh last summer....We were roaming around in the market when this man, face painted and sitting outside the resturant caught my eye...what an interesting way to attract foodies to the restaurant I thought...

Although I was amused by the places and the people running them...I think I am impressed more than amused.....I think there is a lot that one can learn from these people....Being passionate about one's work, faith, hardwork, creativity, ingenuity, understanding and providing for customer's needs, to name a few...What say??

May these joints have all the customers that they can serve!

CLOUDED

When will we learn to look at things objectively?... When will we put aside religion and think straight while analyzing people, things and situations?..... Will we ever realize that we are being fogged by the miasma of our narrow-minded exhales? Too bad it is sun salutation this time..

FAITH AND PATIENCE

The human mind is a funny instrument. Most times it comes across as a rational device prone to logical thinking. Yet, there are times when it makes you comply with the seemingly absurd and unimaginable. During such times these requests can be attributed to intuition, blind faith, desperation, frustration, or may be sort of a last-resort. These were the thoughts that crossed my mind when I heard my Dad announcing a trip to Shirdi. While there is nothing weird in visiting Shirdi, it does raise eyebrows when it comes from a person who has always stayed away from rituals, god-men, and fervent displays of religion; whose focus has been on practicality, whose principle in life has been ‘Humata, Hukhta, Hvarshta’.

We found ourselves in Shirdi an hour before noon amidst a multitude of devotees. Apparently we were late to gain entry to the holy chambers, in spite of having passes arranged for. Dad was ready to make a turn-back, but Granny persisted. (She isn’t the one to give up so easily.) So after some phone calls, we were put at the end of a queue that seemed to be progressing quickly. The women and men were separated just before entering the holy sanctum. The chamber was resonating with a soothing chant of ‘Aum Shree Sai Nathaya Namaha’. It took me a while to get used to my surroundings; women shuffling around me to get a better view of the idol, people chanting and murmuring prayers, unoblivious of everything, regulars acknowledging each other or explaining newbies like me what to expect next, little boys crying at being separated from their mothers. The chamber was ornate with designs embossed on silver. The benign idol of Sai Baba looked upon us as multiple air-coolers and fans kept us cool. In the meanwhile, the stage was being set for the daily aarati (prayer recital). The aarati started at noon; my hands folded as an automatic response to the recital, but leaving that I was not sure how to behave.

I am a believer; I believe that there is a supreme power and that man does have his limits. I am okay with calling this supreme power God. I haven’t thought much about God beyond this simple belief that I hold in my heart. So I don’t think twice if I have to bow before Ganesha or Shiva or any other Hindu deity. However, this was a new experience. The idol which everybody was worshipping here was that of a mortal human being; just like me. I don’t know much about the life and work of Sai Baba and so feigning zealous devotion was a far cry. My mind was coagulated by a million thoughts….

The pictures in the museum portrayed Sai Baba as a simple man. Now, his idol was seated on a silver throne, dressed in a jazzy purple (!) kaftan and his head adorned a gold crown. “What an irony..,” I sighed. “The time and money invested in this enterprise could move mountains,” I said to myself. “Baba, do you approve of all this?” Oh well, I’ll save my rant for another post….

As I tried to find my way out of this mental maze, I noticed two words on the silver embossing “Shraddha-Saburi” (Faith-Patience). That was the Eureka moment. I waited outside for Dad after the aarti. He seemed happy and relieved at the same time. “Faith and Patience, Daddy,” I exclaimed as I hugged him. He understood.

THE BEST GIFT

The holiday season and cheer are long gone. This is generally the time for merry-making, gift-shopping, and also to an extent thinking about the past, taking stock of the present and weaving new dreams for the future. Ever wondered about what would be the best and most cherished gift that you could gift somebody and anybody? .....LIFE would be it.

Recently I happened to read 2 articles about organ donation. The articles made me aware of the sorry state of organ donation in India and the need for the masses to be educated about the this concept. I was all fired up about pledging my organs after the reads. However, I think the decision will require some more study and contemplation.

I thought it might be a good idea to trigger your thought process towards organ donation. Here are the articles that impacted me....

The Gift of Life
A New Life

NICO-TEENS

Their boyhood is slowly graduating towards manhood and there are tell-tale signs of the same both physically and behaviorally. This is the age when all external advice and goodwill is promptly warded off as voodoo. Ironically, it is often at this blind turn on the life-road that they discover cigarettes, drugs and the works. I often see a group of young boys smoking at the road-side shop on my way to work. While they fantasize about their future looking dreamily into the swirls of tobacco smoke, I despair and sigh for the young lives being wasted……

NOTES TO MYSELF

To read-write more, surf less…
To listen more, babble less…
To absorb more, be stubborn less…
To exercise more, sit less…

To be patient more, swear less…
To be open more, rigid less…
To care more, be self-absorbed less…
To love more, hurt less…

To appreciate more, criticize less…
To respect more, be insolent less…
To understand more, fight less…
To thank more, complain less…

To focus more, diverge less…
To be organized more, haphazard less…
To think-ahead more, be myopic less…
To venture more, be afraid less…

To follow these notes to my very best!

HEART OF GOLD

San Juan Islands, WA

Songs seem to have their days....somedays you wake up w/ a song....or sometimes you run into them; just like running into an old friend in the market or someplace.....at times the songs linger on....and other times they are gone no sooner than they came.....on somedays its just one of them running in repeat mode in your head, while on others, its more like a random song playlist......a song has been playing in my head since yesterday.....don't know why!.....here it is for you....

Heart of Gold

LIFES LIKE THAT

Friday Harbor, WA

Life is interesting......Sometimes it leaves you w/ no choice and frustrates you and some other times, teases you w/ choices and confuses you.....at such times, every option seems like the right thing and one is tormented w/ trying to find the best out of all these rights......life, they say, is the result of the choices that one makes and so the process of making the right choice stresses you out........hasty decisions work best at times whereas at times the problem itself seems to disappear if one continues to sit on it......Slow is fast and fast is slow...what to do.....lifes like that!

CONTEMPLATE

Beach, Friday Harbor, WA

2006 is almost over. Overall its been a good year...mostly good things have happened....the bad things have been stumblers that I have been able to recover from and have taught me a lesson or two.....as the year draws to a close, I yearn for some time and peace, to sit back and contemplate about the past year and also plan for the coming year....

SUCCESS IS GOOD FUN

Diveagar beach - Konkan, Maharashtra

Dear M,

"Success is good fun"...announced a hoarding on my way home..."Sure," I thought in my mind and smiled....Its funny I had never noticed the line or the hoaridng before..maybe it was the reflection-effect...your perspective/attitude decides the way things appear to you....the world seems like paradise to a person in love..everything seems yellow to the jaundiced eye...types.. you know..I have learnt from you that success is as much a function of hard-work, practice, excellence as of mental positivity, the belief that "I can win"...about the unyielding faith in the self and the fire that doesn't allow you to give up...I hope that I remember these lessons and apply them to other aspects of life as well....I am not too worried about forgetting..because even if I do...I know that you will be in the lines egging me on till the finish line...

Cheers to us :)With Love!

HELMET

Lord Ganesha helmet awareness poster

Received this poster in my email and thought it was worth sharing, considering the traffic sense that we display, the road conditions and last but not the least for the creativity, humor and the instant appeal that is inherent to the poster.

There was a lot of hullabaloo over the decision that made helmets compulsory for two-wheeler drivers in the state. After all the protests, debates and tomfoolery the decision remains unimplemented; wearing a helmet still continues to be an individual decision/preference.

Friends, please…

• Drive safe. Driving rashly not only puts your life at risk but also that of the numerous others who are on the road. I know many examples who have suffered fatalities due to the rash driving of others.

• Respect time. From my own experience I can say that I tend to drive rashly if I am running late. I think about it often. Now when I am running late and driving I tell myself, “Your super time management is causing you to drive rashly and sooner or later you are going to pay for this.” Sometimes the driver in me heeds to this sometimes not. I have learnt that most of the times human beings initiate change only after something bad happens to them. Anyhoo, I am trying!

• Follow traffic rules. “Nobody follows rules. Why should I??? There are more chances of getting hurt if I follow rules!”…yea I can hear you saying that but, surely we can turn around the situation if each one of us thinks otherwise.

• Wear Helmet. (when on a two-wheeler ;)). That is the least that you can do to ensure your safety on the road. Stop giving lame excuses like – I hate to carry it around, ruins my hair, etc. If you can’t, go get yourself a car or take a liking to public transport. I am serious, no kidding.. :)

Reading this might help in interpreting the poster.

WINTER

View from Science Museum at St. Paul, MN

Winter is slowly creeping in here.....the hot dry days of Oct. are over.....the mornings and evenings are crispy cool.....and the urge to snooze the morning alarm and snuggle in my soft blanket is on the rise with every passing day.....WINTER.....bouts of allergic cold....the joy of sipping ginger flavored tea.....the itchy feeling of crackling skin.....soft smelling moisturizer lotions.....the sun bathing in the garden reading a book and watching the chirpy birds go about their chores.....the campfires and all the yapping done sitting around it...thats my winter......Although I am glad to be away from the snowy wintry places.....I guess I will miss the anticipation and the sight of the 1st snowfall and will surely miss the joy that early Spring sunshine brings.....

Whats your winter like?

WHEN ITS TIME

Himalayan Peaks as seen from Kausani, India

Rain clouds gather and the temperature drops.....there is an excited anticipation in the air.....earth, men, birds, animals; all are eagerly awaiting for the water to succumb to gravity.....will it rain??....it will, but only, WHEN ITS TIME.....if it is NOT, a gentle breeze will be sufficient to carry the rain clouds far far away.....and WHEN ITS TIME the rain clouds will be summoned from their abode even on a hot sunny day and rain it will, even though you least expected it....so keep in mind this 'lil mantra..."WHEN ITS TIME".. :)....and then you will realise that denials are just delays...

Herez a song that says just this....To Everything Turn Turn Turn

Njoy!! :)

CELEBRATE

You are probably thinking...."Whats so great about this pic?"....I see a dancer in this dead tree; standing erect w/ arms outstretched, ready to take a twirl.....nature teaches us so many things if we care to observe and ponder....the lesson I learnt from this tree is 'celebrate life'.....another line that comes to mind when I look at this picture is.."Don't cry because its over, smile because it happened".....

Anyhoo....herez wishing you a very Happy Diwali!

Cheers! :)

MISS YOU

Mountains surrounding Logan, UT

A new place and the start of a new race....bewildering yet exciting....a perfect setting to take me tumbling down....but these mountains made me home at once...their constant towering presence; like the watchful eyes of mom...like the friend who is always there to listen...like dad's smile that says.."ain't no mountain high enough"....O lovely Mountains, I miss you!!

GAMES PEOPLE PLAY

Edited version of the original below. Courtesy Shyam

In this temple of God…some pray….for health…for wealth…for mental peace…some fool themselves by pretending to pray…..some decide to quit and just lie here…cursing fate or whatever…..while some heal each other by unloading their burdens off of each others shoulders……