Grave thoughts....

Did that sun sign change thing make any difference?
Why did BJP commit political suicide with it's Ekta Yatra when it was in a good position against the govt on corruption and governance issues?
Do all those temples, mazhaars, fountains, lakes that claim to fulfill any wish really work?
Kalmadi fired from CWG OC post or saved from being directly implicated?
There must be better way of marking Republic Day / Independence day than playing 'deshbhakti' songs and movies?
Watever happened to Lucky Ali? Lovely singer....
Given my need (ok, greed too, but then we all work for it ,ok??) for money, will it make sense to take a few steps back ...or should it be an all things considered move?
Who will win the ICC WC 2011?
Whats with the Padma awards being given to a 1000 ppl, at this rate i'll get one in some time.... I wonder why it would be - sensless blogging, being materialistic or somthing meaningful?
How important is numerology, apart from kundlis, vastu and so on? ( btw, what happens to all the kundlis matched earlier if the new sunsigns are allocated - is the believer shaken or in denial?)
Will Test cricket survive.?
It took the killing of an IAS officer to become aware of a adulteration scam? And am i supposed to believe R.R.Patil when he says no neta involved?
Will i ever go on road trip on bike?
Will i do that by car - u bet!
How rude will i have to be to be rude enough for the guy to know i hate him.... Yeah yeah, I know guys dont take hints - obvious, strong or otherwise....

These are the things I am wondering about as I am about to sleep - at a time when your brain is supposed to go to sleep, my brain works overtime. My ex - boss used to say he is a second shift worker, works post lunch. I am a graveyard shift worker (this fact should help on the few steps back decision). Hmmm.....

Animation movies.....

Till about last year, I wasnt really one to watch animation movies. Thought them childish. I think the only animation movie I had seen (in a movie hall ) was Krishna,in 2006, and that was also to while away time till the next show of Munnabhai started. For some reason I always think of Avatar as an animation movie. That was my first 3D movie too. Since then I have seen a few 2D/ 3D animation movies - How to train your dragon, Toy Story 3, Megamind, Tangled etc. Not all were seen out of choice, but now its kind off likable experience.
Saw Tangled today. This one was more 3D than any other 3D movie i have seen. As in, I could clearly get the that were supposed to jump onto me!

Someone I know used to say : we are all products of what we are exposed to. This is kind of true.

While there were some kids my age too, the hall was full of kids under 10 and their parents. Going by the questions, interpretations, perceptions thesr kids showed, i can say this generation is smarter than previous ones. Maybe our elders also thought so. But the only difference is the kind of things each generation is exposed to.

Anyways, the joy of animated movies is always in the colour they offer. That is always kind of lost in those 3D glasses. And its all shaky if you remove the glasses.

Has there been an animated movie with 'decent and civil' storyline more suited to adults?

Out shopping for stuff……

Shopping they say is like a therapy. Or a massage. It ends up leaving you feeling good. Women feel it more than men do (though i know a few men who also feel good after a shopping session).

People have different takes on this. One friend says the process of trying on clothes and shoes and accessories and so on and the realisation that they look good in those makes them feel good. Window shopping has a similar effect it seems, just that there is some imagination required.Fair enough, but then how do you explain happiness when you buy beer or electronic goods or cell phone? There has to be more right.

Another friend says she feels happy when she spends money, that it gives a sense of power and joy when you are able to buy what you want  - my only problem is will she feel happy buying medicines....secondly, will she be disappointed, sad if she doesn't have enough money to but what she wants.

For me, getting something new was exciting but did not really help change a state of mind or so i believed will happen. Another friend says it doesn't really matter – after some days you are back to normal mindf*&^ing life. So i don't know.

In an interesting blog, Bhargav seems to be saying real happiness comes from not overvaluing the value of money and time in our life. Its about being content with what you have got or can get. The acquisition of wealth (and hence effectively shopping) are just superficial joys, especially when coupled with  time, which we can run out of all of a sudden .But it seems to discount personal ambition, wishes and responsibilities.

Once, my boss had asked me why buying a car is so important for you. I just said its a landmark. Car by this time, house by that and so on. That's what drives me to office everyday, that what makes me work. but about a year back, i seem to have lost that drive, Various reasons. But just lost that will.

I finally decided to buy a car. Ok, i know i have decided earlier too.... But this time, i have booked it! So now, all of a sudden, i have regained focus. Cos I cannot afford to be fired from my job, in fact i need the growth more than i did in the last one year. There is a again a spring in the step, a reason to go to office and get on with work, a reason to move on to in life. I don't know how to explain this to my bosses at the appraisal time or to anyone else, but that what it is.

Now its just the wait for it to come. excruciating.

In the meantime, here is a glimpse of how it will look. Got it from a current user. Interesting reviews and pictures.

:)

Nidradevi, where art thou....

In 10th or 11th, we had this chapter called Nidradevi Aaradhana ( A prayer to the Goddess of sleep). Cannot remember who wrote it, but vaguely remember it was a funny take on the authors love for deep slumber or a quick nap in the afternoon. Apparently, he could sleep anywhere, anytime. Just close his eyes and he is asleep.
There are people i know who do this. They say when you are under some pressure or trouble : raato ki neend ud gayi! . But that dsnt affect such people. People stay overnight in office planning to work but go to sleep. In buses, flights and trains, the minute the settle, sleep.
They say 6 hours sleep is essential for a person to stay fresh and alert rest of the day. In my case, its 8 hours - for 2 days. So, since i slept well for 6 hours or so last night, its unlikely i'll sleep for more than 2 hours tonite. In buses and flights, I can sleep only if I m dead tired - otherwise my time is spent hitting something or the other with my feet, knees, elbow and head which dsnt get the headrest, In trains, the constant motion and space crunch doesnt really let me sleep peacefully.

Not that I really mind the insomnia. Just love the silence, the peace of the night. All by myself, no noise, no comments, no instructions, no distractions. To look at the space around you. The world outside, the moving traffice, a solitary soul walking about. In a more independent setting, I would have probably set out for a stroll myself. Have done that a couple of times in Nagpur, Ahmedabad. In Mumbai, ofcourse it has been a late nite long drive!

One possible reason why I got into this habit is that I know its difficult for me to wake up once i do sleep. So if anything is to be finished, i'll try and do it before i sleep. People say wake up and do it with a fresh mind but I cant open my eyelids!!
Which is what will happen tommorow also i guess.

Mom suggests I should wake up early and then i'll get in the habit of sleeping on time. At some point I have tried that too. Some people have suggested yoga, meditate and i have tried that too. (infact isnt insomnia like meditation, i have cut myself from everything and m trying to focus? I think driving a bike is like meditating. You have to focus on balance and i generally end up a bit relaxed after a ride.). Even reading all night doesnt help. Another suggestion mom would give when we were kids : chup chaap aakh band karke so jao!(Shut your eyes and sleep!). As if I intended to sleep with eyes open.....

Anyways, i'll try to sleep again and hope to wake up healthy wealthy and wise!

Change is here again....

Dunno if for better or worse. But decided its time to brighten up the blog a bit. But just dont like anything beyond black,white, silver or grey!

Still changed the layout a bit - just swapped places! Font is uniform now, the posts read most in the last 30 days are displayed as against 7 earlier, labels are in alphabetical order. I know you can see all this but i think i need to keep my mind occupied when I just cannot sleep. Hence putting up a post.

Which, by the way, is easier now. I can just send an email and bingo! So i can type out things on my phone and send ( as i am doing with this one) from anywhere - bus, flight, airport, client meet, office or the loo!

In a show of increased confidence have added a feedback tab and a share tab. So if you like it without having anything really to comment, just tick! Feel like sharing, share. These are on trial basis though.

Feedback welcome.
Rachit

Sent from Rachit's phone

....And here's why we listen.

When I was 13 or 14, I was tall and lanky. Athletic. Actually used to be the fastest runner in my colony and till this date, they call me 'ghoda'. It was only when i was 16 om 17 that i started gaining weight and wasnt any longer athletic.

But when i was 13, India had hardly any fast bowlers. Kapil Dev had just retired,Javagal Srinath was toiling on and there was some support from (supposedly) quicks like V.Prasad, Manoj Prabhakar, V.Kumaran, Tinu Yohhann, Debashish Mohanty and someone called David Johnson i think. But generally we had no fast bowlers.

At that time, there was no concept of IPL or ICL too. The era of paying the cricketers well had just started. Apart from the top players, most were dependent on a job or family for existing. A government provided flat would help if you are a stalwart, and if you are respected one, yoou would be allocated one 'benefit match' where a part of the proceedings from a certain match would be given to you. The advent of Sachin Tendulkar and commercialisation lead to players being paid better. By the 2000s, any player who played a few seasons of the Ranji Trophy would have sufficient for a lifetime, if not squandered. Then came IPL etc and we all know how well these guys are paid. Today, the IPL 4 auctions took place and moderate talents like Ravindra Jadeja, Manoj Tiwari, Aaron Finch got contracts in crores for the next 3 years. Lets not even talk about the big guns.... With my current job profile and education and all that, its unlikely I am earning anything like that anytime soon.

One of my more tiresome uncles arranges a family get together once a year. Uncles, aunts, cousins and so on meet up and fawn over you - kitna bada ho gaya hain....!
In the year when I was 13, when i was tall and active, i went to such an event and then went for a game of cricket with his friends and whacked thier best bowlers for boundaries. One of my uncles got the idea that I should start training to be a fast bowler and develop into an allrounder. He actually wanted me to be a fast bowler, cause in India we produce batsman by the assembly line. He was sure there will be a need for one in the future and i was at the perfect age to gain the talent and I should go ahead make the best of the height and athleticism God has given me. All other uncles agreed. Even dad nodded and mom agreed.

For some reason, i did not listen to them.

If I had, there is a chance I would have been rolling in money today. If not as IPL player, then maybe as coach, commentator, anchor, county, Ranji or some senior league player. Maybe even a reporter like Derek Pringle.Because cricket is no longer just a sport. Its a proffession.
But I did not and see where I am.

There is a chance i would have failed as a cricketer. But lets be optimistic for arguements sake.
The point is when they say you should always listen. They have nothing but thought of your good in their heart. Believe it or not.

Things they say.......

Just listing out some of the lines TA and its friends have heard in the recent times.

1. Tumhara kuch ho to pehle hi bata do. Varna hum dekhna shuru karen. – Prelude. You are screwed if you say yes, screwed if you say no. And screwed royally, if you say yes after saying no.

2. You have given me immense tension by saying this. I have started feeling uneasiness. You need to understand this is not acceptable to us. – Emotional blackmail, level 1.

3. If you cannot be sensible, at least be responsible. – In effect saying you are an idiot. Be responsible, do as I say. Now who is to explain it’s the responsible part that is causing all the friction.

4. There are a thousand things you need to look at before deciding these things; you cannot just go ahead based on someone’s fancy. – Classic. This came out of nowhere. Unplayable, like the Sreesanth delivery to Kallis. Try to do anything, you are out. I know, this was said in my presence.

5. In our family, we do not do these things. – Emotional blackmail, level 2. Involves entire family, elders you respect and so on. This was described as a net cast to trap you and create a situation where you yourself refuse what you want and toe the family line.

6. 2 years back you were jumping for it when you were not even settled. Now what’s the problem?- Past comes back to haunt you. No one is above using your own words against you. The motivating factor valid in the past conveniently ignored.

Like good guys, we have all let these influence our lives and the f$%#up is we are still counted as the bad guys.

There are many more, and this will not be the end. You must have guessed who says these things and in what context. Diplomacy at its best. You are always wrong, rather they are always right. You got to give it to them – they have seen more New Year Eve’s than me and Clinton together. (It was at the New year eve dinner that we decided to list out these lines. The barking black Dog may contributed to the decision. But as in Wanted, so in TA – ek baar commitment de diya to hum apni bhi nahi sunte – as long as they approve!! )

Feel free to add experiences.