Hob's zeitgeist

2009-03-13T22:07:00.004-05:00

So I just watched Masoom (the Shekhar Kapur movie.) It was of course awesome.

Sadly the video quality on the DVD transfer left something to be desired. T-Series deserves some brickbats. And no subtitles! Terrible.

Mr. Kapur, your art needs a wider audience. And better DVDs.

2009-03-10T21:52:00.003-05:00

Gimme back that Filet-O-Fish

Gimme back that filet-o-fish
Gimme that fish
Gimme back that filet-o-fish
Gimme that fish
What if it was you
hanging up on this wall?
If you were in that sandwich
you wouldn’t be laughing at all!

My current ad obsession!

2009-01-13T13:21:00.004-06:00

Wow. 2009 is here and I haven't posted. Let's see what we missed.

A trip to Toronto and Montreal. A fantastic meal at Nota Bene for Red K's birthday. Another fantastic meal at Red K's house for Christmas. Another fantastic meal at Chez L’Épicier. New Years in Montreal.

And back to mercury-freezing temperatures in Madison.

On the positive side, there is going to be an India trip from Jan 30 to Feb 15. Awesome!

Movies seen have been Slumdog Millionaire (Don't miss!) and Gran Torino (80 year old Dirty Harry rocks!)

Books read have been The White Tiger (Booker winner. 2 days flat. Needs to be moviefied.)

2008-10-18T11:01:00.000-05:00

Tim Minchin - If You Open Your Mind Too Much Your Brain Will Fall Out (Take My Wife)

2008-08-26T11:13:00.004-05:00

Wow that's a long long time between posts.

Well, I figure I should start this one slow and easy. With topics that are in my comfort zone like books.

I'm currently reading Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters by Matt Ridley. And Shantaram: A Novel by Gregory David Roberts. I'm on chapter one of both books so I'm not sure I can comment with any authority. Genome is written in Matt Ridley's usual easy to understand and yet gripping style (See The Red Queen.) Shantaram is an interesting beast. The descriptions of Mumbai are familiar and nostalgic (especially when he reaches Colaba. I lived there for quite a while,) but his prose is slightly flowery so the book might start to feel heavy in my hands soon. (It is a heavy book. 994 pages!) Interesting both books also have subtitles. I've never quite understood subtitling. Must be a publisher driven trend.

In vacation news, I've been traveling all over the place. Let's write about the involuntary vacations first. A trip to Menominee that involved some driving, some bad driver/dongle issues and an almost-bought pasty from Schloegels. This was followed by two consecutive trips to Philadelphia. Both involved 12 hour work days and mysterious driver problems. (Stupid multicore processors and stupider driver developers who can't handle multi-threaded programming.)

The voluntary vacations were many but all restricted to Wisconsin. There was a trip to Wisconsin Dells and Lake Delton. This involved time spent at the Mt. Olympus water park, a drive-in theater, sushi and four missed exits on the way back home! (Four!) And a week or so later, Lake Delton disappeared. No kidding!

This was followed by a camping trip to Kohler-Andrae State Park. The water at Lake Michigan is freezing! But the dunes cord-walk was awesome and so were some of the pictures I was able to take of a red-winged blackbird.

After that was a nice long trip to Door County. This probably needs a post by itself. It was very eventful and involved trips to Potawatomi State Park, Peninsula State Park, Washington Island (where the wheat for Capital Island Wheat is grown!) Cana Island Light and Whitefish Dunes State Park. (The water at Whitefish Dunes wasn't that cold!) Lot's of pictures of gulls and terns.

Finally, there was some impromptu camping this weekend too at Governer Dodge State Park. We were pretty underprepared for this one as we weren't expecting to actually get a spot. So underprepared that we didn't even carry a flashlight! Of course, smart as we were we ended up purchasing a hand-crank lantern from Walgreens instead. It was ridiculous the amount of cranking we had to do for a small amount of light. Overall, apart from a spider-bite sustained by Red K it was fun. (At least we think it was a spider-bite. If she starts sticking to walls we will know for sure.) We also stopped by at the House on the Rock and the Frank Lloyd Wright visitor center but didn't take the tours (of the House and Taliesin) as they were prohibitively expensive. (Thanks to Red K for being my fellow traveler and navigator.)

2008-04-20T10:47:00.001-05:00

So there was this guy see. And once upon a time he used to read a lot of comic books and watch a lot of movies and read non-fiction and then he would write about it all, so his legion of readers could live vicariously through him. Then he started reading fewer comic books and watching fewer movies and reading fewer books and more importantly writing fewer times.

Where did the time go? Some of it was spent working longer hours and weekends, some of it was spent going out to bars and meeting new people and talking to them and arguing with them. And unlike comic books and movies and books, people were a lot harder to write about. So his blog started being updated a longer and longer intervals. Some readers called him out on this. Others, their lives equally busy and their blog updates equally delayed, understood. And yet the thought of stopping his blog never occurred to him. I think it was because he was never concerned about his readership numbers (although he did check his stats counter often enough) and he wrote his blog as a record for his future self. Anyway, our story pauses there because I have to tell you about what I did.

Yesterday, with RedK and her sister B, I went to Milwaukee, specifically the Milwaukee Public Museum to watch Body Worlds. (Don't click on that link if you are easily disturbed.) Body Worlds is a traveling exhibition of preserved human cadavers in various poses, displaying various aspects of the human body. The bodies are preserved using a process called plastination. All the exhibits had the skin removed so that musculature, bones and internal organs are visible. To display the circulatory system, red dyed plastic was forced through the veins and arteries and the body then dissolved. This was definitely an excellent way to spend 25 dollars and an afternoon. We spent the rest of the evening driving around Milwaukee (pretty but boring) and watching After Innocence (depressing) and Hot Fuzz (hilarious and surprising.)

Tonight, it's time for Samba and all you can eat meat for $33.

2008-04-01T14:31:00.002-05:00

What has happened since Feb 1.
Birthday. Flu. Emotional hijinks. Travel. More travel. Some more travel. Car wash. DJ Rekha. Spring. Rain.

Sentences. The next post, which won't take two whole months to produce, will consist of sentences and paragraphs.

2008-02-01T15:17:00.004-06:00

The Driving Rant Post

I make no apologies about admitting to the fact that I don't like driving. I grew up in Mumbai with it's excellent public transport system. If I'm traveling somewhere I would much rather be doing something much more interesting with my time like talking to friends, reading a book, observing the city or just plain day-dreaming. Driving is a drudge. You have to keep your eyes on the road, and hands upon the wheel. (Apologies to Jim Morrison.) Still, seeing as how public transport in Madison is so crappy, and how I have to occasionally drive to places that you can't reach using a bus or a taxi without paying out of your nose, I drive.

My car is the most expensive thing I own. Obviously it makes me want to protect it. Keep that resale value high and all that. And there is also the little thing of me happening to enjoy the fact that I am alive and not dead. So obviously all the other idiots on the road piss me off. And this winter, with its constant shit... sorry ice-storms and record snowfall, things which would normally just irritate me a little, have turned into things that make me vewy vewy angry. Here's a list of the idiots who irritate me and their internal monologues:

1. Mr. I am going to drive below the speed limit in the passing lane
I'm driving. And this is the lane I have decided to use. The passing lane. It's a free country and I have paid taxes all my life and I have now decided to drive in the passing lane. Yes, I know I'm going slower than the speed limit but I'm an American and I can do what I want. You can use the slow lane and pass me from the right but then I will glare at you and cough violently. And keep driving slowly in this lane. My lane.

2. Mr. I am going to drive about 6 inches behind your car
Right. So I'm in a hurry. A real serious hurry. And so I have decided to drive as close to your car as I possibly can. Because no matter what speed you are driving at being close to your car makes me reach where I want to go earlier. Like a whole 20 milliseconds earlier. And time is money. Of course, I know it's snowing and the roads are icy and slick, and if you have to brake suddenly then I will rear-end you. But those are the risks we have to take for my 20 milliseconds.

3. Mr. I have suddenly decided to take a left turn
Hey look! It's a traffic light. Here I am in the left lane. Waiting at the light. Obviously, as you can see I intend to go straight, because if I didn't I would have turned on the left turn indicator so you could have moved to the right lane. But I'm going to go straight. I have decided to go straight. Look, the light turned green! Oh my God!!! A left turn. Look, I can turn left instead of going straight!!! Holy crap! This so exciting! I'm going to turn left now. Watch me turn on the left turn indicator. And crawl up and wait for the oncoming cars to finish going straight. Then I can make my glorious left turn! What's that you say? You are stuck behind me because you thought I was going to go straight? Aw, don't be a wuss. I'm making a left turn. Be excited for me. (And sometimes in my excitement I even forget to turn on the indicator. Who cares. I'm turning left.)

4. Mr. I am going to slowly turn right without moving to the right lane
I have to turn right here. Clearly, if I move to the edge of the right lane you'll be able to keep going straight from the left and we can't have that. It's my job to inconvenience you as much as possible. Making you miss the light will be a bonus. So from where I am in this lane, I am going to slow down, and very very slowly turn right. Look, I almost crawling. Do you think I can possibly go any slower? Let's try! Oh why are you waving your fist at me? I'm just doing my job.

5. Mr. I am going to build up the suspense about whether or not I'm going to turn right
There you are waiting at the intersection trying to get out. I'm close enough to the intersection that you have to wait for me to make a sign before you can make a move. But I'm driving slow enough to torture you. And yes I'm driving in an ambiguous lane so you can't tell if I'm going to turn right into the intersection or not. Look I'm turning right. You could have gone anytime! Fooled you! Haha!!

2008-01-25T11:56:00.000-06:00

Hindi People from Goodness Gracious Me (A parody of Common People by Pulp)

Lyrics:

She came from Kent, her name was Lucy Parker
Her skin was white but she preferred it darker
That's why I, caught her eye
We met at York, she was a first year student
She wore a sari 'cause she thought it prudent, I thought fine
and then in 30 seconds time she said

I want to live like Hindi people
I want to do what ever Hindi people do
I want to sleep with Hindi people
I want to sleep with Hindi people like you
Well what else could I do, I smiled and said 'Do you want a vindaloo?'

I said I'd find a groovy gig and take her
I like The Verve but she said Kula Shaker their music's tops
Just like Cornershop's

She said I wanna live like Hindi people
I wanna eat whatever Hindi people eat
I want to dress like the bindi people
I want to wear mehndi on my feet
but she didn't understand
You just paint it on your haaand!

Comb your hair and be polite
Do your homework every night
Don't smoke fags and don't play pool
Do extremely well at school
Take a medical degree, graduate at thirty-three
Move back in with mom and dad, even though they drive you raving mad...you sure

You wanna live like Hindi people
You wanna see whatever Hindi people see
You wanna live with Hindi people
You wanna watch your films on Zee TV

But you'll never comprehend 'cause for you it's just a trend
Dressing up like the Hindi people
In your favourite georgette salwaar
Dancing round with the Hindi people
Telling me that you want to learn sitar
but you'll never score with me 'cause I was born in Coventry
Coventry oh yeah!

2008-01-14T16:31:00.000-06:00

Sad sad sad.

2008-01-08T10:35:00.000-06:00

Taking a cue from KitKat's post about privileges, here is my list (Bolded items apply to me):

1. Father went to college
2. Father finished college
3. Mother went to college
4. Mother finished college
5. Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor
6. Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers
7. Had more than 50 books in your childhood home
8. Had more than 500 books in your childhood home
9. Were read children’s books by a parent
10. Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18
11. Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18
12. The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively
13. Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18
14. Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs
15. Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs
16. Went to a private high school
17. Went to summer camp
18. Had a private tutor before you turned 18. (For stupid Hindi!)
19. Family vacations involved staying at hotels
20. Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18
21. Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them
22. There was original art in your house when you were a child
23. You and your family lived in a single-family house
24. Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home
25. You had your own room as a child
26. You had a phone in your room before you turned 18
27. Participated in a SAT/ACT prep course
28. Had your own TV in your room in high school
29. Owned a mutual fund or IRA in high school or college
30. Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16
31. Went on a cruise with your family
32. Went on more than one cruise with your family
33. Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up
34. You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family

More interestingly, here my mom's list (I'm only guessing and remembering here but I think I should be pretty accurate.)

1. Father went to college
2. Father finished college
3. Mother went to college
4. Mother finished college
5. Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor
6. Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers
7. Had more than 50 books in your childhood home. (Maybe ??)
8. Had more than 500 books in your childhood home
9. Were read children’s books by a parent. (Maybe ??)
10. Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18
11. Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18
12. The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively
13. Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18
14. Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs
15. Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs
16. Went to a private high school
17. Went to summer camp
18. Had a private tutor before you turned 18
19. Family vacations involved staying at hotels
20. Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18
21. Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them
22. There was original art in your house when you were a child.
23. You and your family lived in a single-family house
24. Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home
25. You had your own room as a child
26. You had a phone in your room before you turned 18
27. Participated in a SAT/ACT prep course
28. Had your own TV in your room in high school
29. Owned a mutual fund or IRA in high school or college
30. Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16
31. Went on a cruise with your family
32. Went on more than one cruise with your family
33. Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up
34. You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family

And here is my dad's list (Again guesswork) :

1. Father went to college
2. Father finished college
3. Mother went to college
4. Mother finished college
5. Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor
6. Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers
7. Had more than 50 books in your childhood home
8. Had more than 500 books in your childhood home
9. Were read children’s books by a parent. (Maybe ??)
10. Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18. (Maybe ??)
11. Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18
12. The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively
13. Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18
14. Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs
15. Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs
16. Went to a private high school
17. Went to summer camp
18. Had a private tutor before you turned 18
19. Family vacations involved staying at hotels
20. Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18
21. Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them
22. There was original art in your house when you were a child
23. You and your family lived in a single-family house
24. Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home
25. You had your own room as a child
26. You had a phone in your room before you turned 18
27. Participated in a SAT/ACT prep course
28. Had your own TV in your room in high school
29. Owned a mutual fund or IRA in high school or college
30. Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16
31. Went on a cruise with your family
32. Went on more than one cruise with your family
33. Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up
34. You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family

Of course, I would argue whether certain items in the list would count as privileges. Like "Were read children's books by a parent." Is this question about whether your parents could read or not? And I would argue whether certain items are really indicators of privileges in India, like "Went to a private high school", as far as I know, all high schools in India (we call them junior colleges) are private and relatively cheap. The media portrayal question is moot, I don't think anyone is portrayed negatively except criminals and the corrupt.

2007-12-02T19:27:00.000-06:00

It was a weekend of snowstorms, ice and musicals.

It began as a quiet Friday evening that consisted solely of staying home, watching maybe the first 4 minutes of the movie Ghost Rider with Ms. Non Sequitur and then turning in early in anticipation of the coming snowstorm from hell.

Saturday began with a quick ride to KitKat's house in the wilderness to pick her up. I left my house at 9:15am with no sight of snow and returned by 9:45am to white streets! The storm had begun.

The snow continued all the way to 6pm, turning into little particles of ice at around 4pm. Driving was going to be impossible but we had to get to State Street to watch Rent at the Overture Center. After a lot of debate (Hob: "No way we're driving! I don't wanna die!", Ms. Non Sequitur: "Hob, you are such a wuss!", KitKat: "Hob you are the biggest wuss I have seen.", J: "There is no way I am walking!"), we all decided to call a cab.

The cab was late, but the driver was a someone who wasn't even the least bit fazed by the condition of the streets. I rode shotgun and man was it a scary ride. The cab skid, skid again and skid some more. But luckily we reached Paul's Club with no incidents. A quick Miller Lite for everyone (Cousin Q, JR, The Bowman and Akon joined us at Paul's,) and off we went to the show.

Rent was ok. The music was catchy most of the time but the lyrics seemed forced to fit the music. (Vice versa sometimes.) But then again that's a feature of all musicals. Overall, I felt that it lacked something. Specifically, a small carnivorous dinosaur, like a velociraptor or deinonychus, that would eat cast members sometimes. Now that show I would pay top dollar to see.

(If that last paragraph seems bizarre, I would like to add that I actually thought of the dinosaurs during the show. Also a hip-hop musical with rapping instead of songs would be wicked!)

2007-11-05T21:47:00.000-06:00

Music Video

Scary Movie

Cool Book
Red Queen

2007-10-15T11:46:00.000-05:00

Sour Death Balls
This was one of my favorite short films shown on MTV India in the early 'nineties.

What American accent do you have? (Best version so far)

Northeastern

Most people don't know it but this is actually what dictionaries are based on. If you don't believe me, pick up any American dictionary and look up "source" and "sauce" and you'll see they are written with the same vowel pronunciation.

Click Here to Take This Quiz
Brought to you by YouThink.com quizzes and personality tests.

2007-06-11T09:24:00.000-05:00

This morning I had another nightmare. I don't have nightmares too often and when I do it's usually a nice brand new one. But there are some nightmares that seem to come back and say hi. A bit too often.

Failing Math

Specifically, failing math in Final Year Engineering (that's Senior Year to my Indian-culture challenged readers.) This is the nightmare that woke me up this morning. It usually begins with a realization that I have goofed around all semester and the exam is in a few days. I clearly don't have enough time to learn everything. Most of my fellow students seem to know their shit. My mind starts to think of how I haven't failed anything in college so far and how this will ruin my career. Good bye USA. Good bye cushy software job in Bangalore. Then I curse myself for procrastinating all semester and being overconfident. The exam is tomorrow. The exam is now. I don't know anything. Wake up, Hob, wake up!

I wake up and reassure myself that I already passed undergrad, with no KTs and we didn't have math in final year!

Raptors and T-Rex

For some reason this dream usually begins in a parking lot. I'm getting into my car. Or perhaps getting out. It's a bright beautiful sunny day. And hey look! It's a bloody T-Rex eyeing me. Run, Hob, Run! I start running and T-Rex follows me. Somehow I get into an enclosed space. Safe! And that's when the velociraptors show up. No jokes. I dream of velociraptors. Those fast, hungry, mean, clever little dinosaurs with sharp sharp teeth. Wake up, Hob, wake up!

I wake up and reassure myself that dinosaurs and humans never existed at the same time. Bible science be damned!

Panthera

This is the worst of the lot and happens the most often. I'm walking from Churchgate station to my house at Lion Gate, right by Oval and Cross Maidan. Across the street I see a tiger. I real, live tiger, walking. What! What's that doing here! Ok, don't panic, keep walking slowly and try and reach home. Except a hundred meters away, right in front of you, basking under a tree is a lion! Not good. Perhaps I can cut between these guys. That's when I start noticing other large cats, strolling across the streets. My final memories are about being stalked by a panther, that's following me up the stairs of my building. Wake up, Hob, wake up!

I wake up and, well, can't really reassure myself that this can't happen. Because it can!

2007-06-05T16:30:00.000-05:00

Happy Fun Times again!

Friday was Russian food at Arbat followed by beer at the Great Dane in Fitchburg with Little A. The Scotch Ale at the Dane rocks!

Saturday was chilling at home, a cookout at Uncle Js place and a crazy crazy after-party at Lucky's Tavern. (So crazy that I paid for only one drink but people kept buying me more drinks, I walked home not quite in a straight line after having learned what a Scoobie Snack is and what happens when the barmaid decides to tip a bottle of flavored vodka directly into your open mouth! I also met a Steffi Graf/Gwyneth Paltrow lookalike!)

Sunday was Ultimate Frisbee practice at Brittingham Park with Little A's friend Crazy A. I love the game! If only Ms. Non Sequitur had been a better salesperson before I would have definitely joined the summer league. Now it's nail-biting tension as I wait for replies to my forum post on the MUFA website to see if any teams need a player. If not, feck it! There's always sailing at Hoofers and the possibility of drowning in Lake Mendota!

2007-05-30T13:04:00.000-05:00

The best science related story I have read in a while:

“The majority of the world’s designers focus all their efforts on developing products and services exclusively for the richest 10% of the world’s customers. Nothing less than a revolution in design is needed to reach the other 90%.”
—Dr. Paul Polak, International Development Enterprises

More details at the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum.

2007-05-29T14:13:00.000-05:00

Multi-parter coming up.

Part 1: Cairo, GA
I reached Tallahassee on Tuesday. The drive to Cairo took half an hour longer than expected (Damn you, bad-directions-Enterprise-car-rental) and spent most of the day working. Wednesday. Work. Thursday we went to Crystal Seafood for some much needed dead animals and I ate like a king. A very hungry king. Alligator tails. Lobster tails. Shrimp. Baked potatoes. Hushpuppies. Cheese grits. Corn-on-the-cob. A very hungry king indeed! And to top it all I spent the rest of the day at the bar of my hotel where they were having karaoke night. Small town (Pop. 9,239) bars are fun! Everyone knows everyone else. Except you! And you spend all night making new friends.

The journey back was interesting. I was on four flights! Tallahassee - Orlando, Orlando - Greenville, Greenville - Cincinnati, Cincinnati - Madison. Sadly, only on the Tallahassee - Orlando leg did I have any company in the plane - C! I got home at 10:30 in the night. Said hi to Katie who was staying over at Ms. Non Sequitur's and plopped into a deep slumber in bed.

Part 2: Six pubs. No idea how we got there.
Saturday. Me, Ms Non Sequitur, Katie - go! Stadium Bar? Church Key, Paul's Club, Piano Bar, Paradise, Madisons.

Part 3: A surfeit of Y.
Sunday was spent lazily. I got Katie and Ms. Non Sequitur hooked on Y: The Last Man. New converts to the graphic novel club! Ice cream at Micheal's for dinner!

Part 4: Bonus Monday!
It began nice and lazy with phone calls to desh. And a lot of Chuzzle. (Warning: Do not click on that last link unless you want to be horribly addicted. I dream of Chuzzles and it is not funny!)

Then it was me and Ms. Non Sequitur. Lunch at Noodles. 28 Weeks Later at the Orpheum. Half-price Margaritas at Frida's. Knocking on Cousin Qs door! (There's a story here ;) Renting Little Miss Sunshine. Becks, where Cousin Q and BF N joined us. Becks has the most awesome jukebox ever. I just walk over and there are free credits in there! I love drunk jukebox patrons!!

2007-05-21T10:02:00.001-05:00

This was such a boring weekend. Not.

Friday was the Hoofers Social which was on the lake front! Saw a lot of people in daylight for the first time. I was relieved that they didn't burst into flames under direct sunlight. No vampires! Met Sailor M after a long time. Challenged her into eating a double scoop of ice-cream on a waffle cone at the Union. She struggled but finally finished it! Then I browbeat her into buying me a glass of wine at Barriques.

Saturday begin with sailing on a Colgate 26 with Jerry and Joy from Hoofers. It was a race! My first race and we won! (We won because we were the only boat in our class but let's not get technical.) After spending a couple of hours hiked up (and losing one my brand new gloves to a wayward swinging boom,) my back was a little sore.

Nothing a little beer can't fix! It was a graduation party for Ms. Non Sequiturs cousin RaHa and her friends Bri and Ann. It's a little hazy now but there was a half-keg of Coors Light involved and some Red-Headed Sluts! And a lots and lots of food. Reached home at 1.

Sunday was a chill day at home, spent nursing the sore back due to the sailing.

Tuesday, I'm back in Florida on another involuntary vacation!

2007-05-14T11:18:00.000-05:00

I got a cold and a bad one too
It made me sick like Winnie the Pooh
But the doctor, he made me fit
By prescribing antibiotics

Yeah, clearly my poetry skills have deteriorated along with the lining of my throat. This was a bad one though, and it kept me in on Friday. I watched Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace and Music (The Director's Cut) and what a great documentary that was.

Saturday, after spending the whole afternoon at home, moping and ripping CDs, I went out and watched Spiderman 3 with Little A. A little Argentinian Cabernet Sauvignon at Barriques Wine Cave finished off the evening. Spiderman 3 is a must watch if you are comic geek. And it's a must watch even if you aren't. And before going to bed, I sipped a warm cup of Theraflu which knocked me unconscious.

Sunday, I was feeling much better, and spent most of my day bugging the crap out of KT and Ms. Non Sequitur who were trying hard to get their papers done. I'm now half a music educator and half a PhD in development studies. I need to leverage this unholy knowledge somehow and make more money. I also spoke to Gary who said she was sick and sleepy and had had a 36 hour shift. Doctors work way harder than engineers. And finally I watched Salaam Bombay which I had never seen before. I miss Bombay.

And Tall Mike has movie night tonight, where we shall watch the last two episodes of Dexter Season 1! Serial-killer cops rock!

2007-05-07T09:48:00.000-05:00

Kissing was invented in India!!

2007-05-06T15:29:00.000-05:00

Another weekend, another post!

Friday was a tossup between the Hoofers social and an Indian classical performance. Gary said on chat that I should go for the Indian classical. Well, I was too late for the Indian classical, and seeing as how I had a big Saturday coming up, I decided to spend a quiet Friday evening at home. Wow! Haven't done that in a while have I?! So Friday began at the comic book store, followed by a quick trip to the library for some music. TV on mute - check. CD in player - check. Sofa clean and comfy - check. Falafel sandwich - check. Comics - check. Quiet Friday evening - check.

Saturday began with some party stuff shopping. Hats, streamers, Happy Birthday banners, party poppers. Book in Indian cooking for the birthday girl. The birthday girl was R and the surprise party was organized by her boyfriend J and Ms. Non Sequitur. The party was at their beautiful house (I need a house now...) Lots of people, a keg of Leinies, lotsa wine, tons of food, damn this was a great party! And it was only the beginning of Saturday!

After the party, it was a night of karaoke at the Karaoke Kid with my buddy KT and her coworkers. KT had long islands and I stuck to my default whiskey-cokes. Yes, as usual I sang - Bohemian Rhapsody and With a Little Help From My Friends. A funny thing happened too with the second song. I asked for the Beatles version. Of course they had to pull the switcheroo on me, and play the more famous Joe Cocker cover which I had no idea how to sing! What do I do? Nothing much, I sing like a maniac anyway with KT doing the scat bits (Can we call them the scat bits? What do you call the bits of lyrics sung not as part of the main melody? Ms. Non Sequitur?) and me the choruses etc. Yeah, I could tell people thought I was a little crazy after that little performance. And then we did sake bombs!

Finally, I walked (read dragged) KT home and got her into Ms. Non Sequitur's apt. Hangovers galore the next morning!

Sunday. No hangover for me. I think I'm just blessed. Breakfast at Mickey's with these two crazy women (KT and Ms. Non Sequitur.) Fafafel and gyro sandwiches from Campus Biryani for lunch. Right now I'm listening to Dave Matthews Band and listening to KT tell me to finish this damn post already so she can read it. Ok, done.

2007-04-29T09:59:00.000-05:00

This is a slightly premature what-happened-on-the-weekend post.

Friday. Dinner at Maza with Little A (Maza is the new Afghan place that's opened on State Street.) Chapali kababs. Searching for Angelic. Deciding that the Great Dane is a better option. (Mmmmmmm Honey Blonde beer!) Eternal Sunshine for the Spotless Mind.

Saturday. Breakfast at Mickey's Dairy Bar. Cricket World Cup at Union South. Ice-cream with Ms. Non-Sequitur at Union South. (Mmmmmmm Orange custard chocolate chip!) Cook-out at Uncle J's place organized by Cousin Q. Holy crap a food festival! Barbecued short farmer's market ribs. Barbecued Mexican-marinated pork. Beer and lot's of it. Tossing the frisbee. All kinds of dips and finger food including Cousin Q's looks-bland-but-has-a-kick chili dip. Made from habanero powder! More beer. Tossing the ball for the dog. Watching a looong croquet game. Barbecued chicken and veggies (including pineapple!). Brats! Sitting my the fire and identifying movies from their soundtrack. (Who knew that Baby Got Back is in the Charlie's Angels soundtrack!)

Sunday. So far, I've just got this post. I better come up with something quick!

2007-04-26T13:12:00.000-05:00

Two funny movies that illustrate the basic differences between American and British humor.

Blades Of Glory with Will Farrell and John Heder is an over-the-top comedy about men's figure skating rivals who are forced to dance as a pair. This is typical watch, laugh and never think about again stuff. Funny but forgettable.

Hot Fuzz with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost is British cop-comedy. High-strung cop is sent to small village where he uncovers a swan and a conspiracy. This will become a cult classic or should anyway.

The good folks at Chin's have figured out how to get repeat customers. Just say nice things in fortune cookies. Last two times I've been there, my fortune cookies have read "You will become an accomplished writer." and "You are going to have a very comfortable old age." Yeah, I need to go there more often.

And in science news these two articles caught my attention Sluts and vermin and Smarter people are no better off

Everything's coming in pairs... strange.

2007-04-20T16:11:00.000-05:00

The Blame Game
By Chris

In case you were wondering who’s to blame for the Virginia Tech massacre, I’ve created a list this morning to keep track. Feel free to send in any that I’ve missed.

There are no words. Just sadness...

2007-04-18T11:29:00.000-05:00

I saw Ravi Shankar and Anoushka Shankar in concert last night with Ms. Non Sequitur, Kitkat, her hubby Bongoli M and by boss A. The whole experience was awesome. But there was a distinct difference in the two performances.

They were both technically flawless. But everyone, including people like me who haven't really studied Indian Classical, agreed that Ravi Shankar's performance was on a different level from Anoushka's. And I think I know the reason- it's because unlike Anoushka, Ravi was letting himself be moved by the music. Somehow, that added something special to his performance.

I guess Anoushka will get in time too.

2007-04-02T13:25:00.000-05:00

Weekend.
Friday. Hoofers Sailing Club social at Hawk's. Maduro's with crazy P and his crazier friends. Home at 4 after mac and cheese pizza at Ian's.
Saturday. Early phone call from London T. Sleep deprivation. Shopping at the mall. New garage for car. Storm. Canceled plans to go Cocoliquot. Crappy pizza from Rocky Rococo's. Music and helping Ms. Non Sequitur pack for her trip to Puerto Rico.
Sunday. Gym. Calming Ms. Non Sequitur during a last minute pre-trip panic. Dinner at Dotty Dumpling's and drinks at Paul's Club with Little A.

Current music to trip on: No Quarter and When The Levee Breaks by Led Zeppelin. Why are all the best bands English?

2007-03-28T18:01:00.000-05:00

Accidental trippy music. I was listening to Spaceboy from the Smashing Pumpkins album Siamese Dream. I was also opening random links on Digg and opened What We Still Don't Know - a documentary about origins - in a background tab with the intent to checking it out later. (I didn't know when I was opening it that it was a video which would start playing automatically.) I was also coding. The result was some extremely mellow alt rock layered with some trippy words discussing life, God and science. Maybe I should post a mashup on YouTube...

2007-03-25T20:23:00.000-05:00

And we don't know
Just where our bones will rest
To dust I guess
Forgotten and absorbed into the earth below

-1979, Mellon Collie and The Infinite Sadness, The Smashing Pumpkins

2007-03-25T14:27:00.000-05:00

This the 200th post! Wow, I lasted for a lot longer than I though I would...

This week has been interesting. Work was the focus of things until Thursday. Then on Friday it was cricket time! Streaming video works fairly decent on Shoutcast TV. Unfortunately as is always the case, the Indian cricket team decided that if Hob is going to watch, we better lose. Badly.

With that bitter taste of defeat in my mouth, I decided what better way to cheer myself up than a couple beers at the Union with people who have no idea what cricket is :) I met KitKat and her friends from development studies (or something... Humanities is all fluff according to me... KitKat is going to kill me when she reads this.), Ms. Non Sequitur and her friend the linguist (or something) and Musical JA and his friend Roberto! After getting slightly wasted, it was pizza at Gino's. I think pizza tastes better if you're drunk. And the waitress noticed my Amsterdam T-Shirt. She was Dutch. Or something.

Saturday, after an insane 20 minute jog on the bike path behind my house, I decided to head to Union South and watch the Australia-South Africa match. That was so much better than in India-Sri Lanka game. After South Africa started to lose, I decided that I'd had enough cricket for the weekend.

Then I went to watch 300 with Sailor M! The movie is violent, cartoonish, picturesque and has some of the worst dialog in recent years. You should watch it. It's like Kill Bill meets the Gladiator meets the Lord of the Rings. We followed this up with dinner at Casa De Lara and a pitcher of frozen margaritas! After this Sailor M had to go to her friend's birthday party, I hope she got home ok :)

And this morning, I watched the second half of Altered States, a completely crazy movie about a researcher who does ayahuasca while in an isolation tank. Thank you i-me-moi for your insane recommendations!

2007-03-18T13:37:00.000-05:00

It's 1:38 pm on a Sunday afternoon and I'm at work. There's no one else here yet. I have just finished my extra-hot habanero burrito from Qdoba. So why am I not ranting?

It's because I spent last night dancing like a junglee at the High Noon Saloon to the great sound of The Kissers! An Irish rock band and Guinness in my blood, what more do you need on St. Patrick's Day? Others to partake in the festivities were Ms. Non Sequitur, Sunny D, Laid back C, their friend StayC, and later in the night Smiley R and her husband J. I'm so sore from all the head-banging today, my neck ache has a neck ache!

2007-03-16T23:38:00.000-05:00

Drunk Post Warning: This post was written while inebriated.

Just got back home from a session of crazy dancing at Madison's with Q and her crazy friends. We danced to the likes of JT, Fergie and all kinds of crazy chick music like Avril and Kelly Clarkson. It was totally awesome!

Before that it was Gomeroke at the High Noon Saloon!. I was the closing act of the night with my rendition of Hotel California by the Eagles. I forgot the song midway but didn't care and sang out loud anyway! I rocked the house! (Humility clearly isn't my forte.) I'm totally doing this again... Before me, apparently Q sang and was, according to her uncle J, number 3 for the night. (According to uncle J, I wasn't quite in the Top 5 'cause I forgot the lyrics, but I "did good".)

And my apologies to Ms. Non Sequitur for choosing such a long song and killing her chance. I promise I'll let her go before me next time.

2007-03-15T16:12:00.000-05:00

The adoring public demanded it so here it is... a brand new post!

What is Hob listening to?
Interstate Love Song by The Stone Temple Pilots. If I sing at Gomeroke (Live band karaoke) this Friday (contingent on whether I get to go for it - horrible horrible work) then it's a toss up between this and You Can Leave Your Hat On by Joe Cocker. (Actually looks like they may not know either of those songs.... hmmmm... well there's always The Beatles... maybe something like Come Together or Helter Skelter?)

What is Hob touching?
His shiny freshly shaved head. Here's the deal on shaving your head:
a. Shaving the front is easy with a Gillette Mach 3, shaving the back using an extra mirror is slightly disorienting at first but you get used to it.
b. Day 1: Your scalp is like sandpaper and catches on everything!
Day 2: Your scalp is now has a slightly rough feel to it. Your sexiest looking day.
Day 3: Now there's this absolutely delightful fuzz that feels so good to run your hand through (for both the hand-runner and hand-runnee)
Day 4: Uh oh! Beginning to look like hair again! Time to shave... tomorrow!

What is Hob smelling?
a. Nivea Aftershave straight from India. This seems to be unavailable in the US and I didn't pick up any more during my visit... I wonder if Nivea makes cologne?
b. Clean fresh spring air. Holy crap Batman! I had forgotten what spring was like over here.

Who is Hob leching?
Ana Beatriz Barros as usual. And all the hot women in Madison who seem to be enjoying warmer weather by bringing on the spring fashions. I like. (That "I like" to be said like Borat.)

What is Hob tasting?
Success! And Harvest Cheddar Sun Chips! And beer, glorious beer! (St. Patrick's Day this Saturday!)

2007-03-02T17:29:00.000-06:00

You feel the wind. Really feel it.
You realize just how many times you would fidget with it (A lot.)
Most people who know you will do a double take. But some won't even notice until much later.
You will do double takes in the mirror.
The strangest people will call you names.
People who have threatened you with dire consequences if you ever did it, will basically just say "whatever" and get on with life.
Most of the time you'll forget you've done it, until you see yourself in the mirror or touch it.
When you imagine how you look, you won't imagine that you've done it.
In a shower you quickly realize why it evolved in humans in the first place - to keep suds out of your eyes.

Things you notice after shaving your head for the first time...

2007-02-18T22:11:00.000-06:00

India update 4
16 - 18 Feb 2007

Let's begin with some more general vegetarian goodness. I was in the mood for spicy stuffed bell peppers (capsicum to Indian folk) and my mom indulged me! Along the way I also learned how to make them. I was planning pictures at each step but the battery on my camera gave way and needed to be recharged. Well here they are anyway , along with matki chi usal - a dry curry of moth bean sprouts, ambat varan - a sour garlicky daal, bharleli kashmiri mirchi - bell peppers stuffed with spiced chick pea flour, shrikhand - a yogurt based dessert and karela - fried bitter gourd.

What happened next was a puja (Satyanarayan puja) at our house. Of course this meant the mandatory fast before the puja - fast of course, being a relative term as you can have your fill of sabudana khichadi!

And after the puja was over there was a veritable feast served in the traditional banana leaf shaped dish (Ideally you serve in a real banana leaf but it's hard to find large clean ones these days!) Traveling clockwise in that plate we see salt, lemon, cucumber roasted peanut salad, green coconut chutney, yogurt, puran - sweetened boiled chickpea mash, fresh cashew curry - these aren't your run-off-the-mill roasted cashews, these are fresh from the fruit, soft and creamy and utterly delicious, and tragically unavailable anywhere in the US, lightly sauteed fresh okra, rice with varan dal, chapaties, and masala dudh - milk flavored with saffron, almonds, pistachios etc. etc.

I'm thinking of having another puja before I leave, just for the food...

Anyway, after that on Sunday, I had my buddies over for lunch and there was more great food. Unfortunately I didn't take any pics of the food, but I can list what was on the menu - chicken curry, dry chick pea curry, jain style potato curry, faras bean curry, an assortment of chutneys and pickles, and for dessert dudhi halva - a halva made of dudhi, an Indian gourd, shira - a halva made of semolina and ice cream!

Later that evening I went for the Roger Waters concert at the MMRDA grounds in the Bandra-Kurla complex. I didn't have any great expectations from this thing so was blown away by how good it was! The lights, the sounds, Dark Side of The Moon! He finished with Comfortably Numb! I'll post some pics later when my friend has a chance to get them off his camera phone.

We ended the night with roomali roti - a soft-as-velvet flat bread that's made by tossing it into the air (roomal is the Hindi word for a silk handkerchief), bheja fry - fried brains, chicken bhuna - roasted chicken curry and seekh kababs at Bademiya's at Colaba! Eating on the street, off the hood of your car that's been propped up by a Coke bottle (sorry Thums Up bottle) has it's own unique charm that cannot be reproduced anywhere else!

2007-02-15T22:49:00.000-06:00

So this is going to be a giant mash-up, I'm going to try and use the EXIF information on the pictures to try and figure out what was ravenously pounced upon when... Forget it, let's forget dates, let's just say that I ate this between...

12 Feb - 15 Feb 2007

First up, some unpleasantness. The dreaded potato stir-fry. This bhaji is my mortal nemesis but dad and bro love it, so it gets made anyway. Needless to say I took a picture of it the kadhai, but it never got on my plate. (That's a lie, I did eat some with rice. It tastes nice but it's generally too dry for my palate. I like juicier things!)

Here's a random picture of a street vendor taken from my terrace. Look at the fresh vegetables that we'll never buy! (You don't buy from the vendor in front of your house unless you're lazy. Like a good little Indian you go to the market and bargain with all the vendors there...) The black stuff in the basket on the right is grapes. And there's tea (I think) in the aluminum container.

Here's our carrom board. My dad's a champ but I beat him sometimes...

Here's something I like! It's curried scrambled eggs with green peppers (or capsicums as we call them here!) Along with are some fresh fulka chapaties!

Next up, liver curry! Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm! This contains all kinds of offal like liver, heart, kidneys! Very incredibly tasty! And it's being served with jwarichi bhakri - a special flat bread that's exclusive to my state. Nutty, salty, with a texture that's unlike any you've ever had! My mouth exploded when I had this!

And now for something which is exclusive I think only to my village, possibly only to my extended family! The Maharashtrian version of breakfast cereal - chaha-pohe! Chaha is tea and pohe is flattened cooked rice! Dunk pohe into a saucerful of hot tea and scoop up spoonful after delicious spoonful. Caffeine and vitamins in the same dish!!

My mom asked me what she should make for dinner.
I said "Sabudana vada!"
"What? That's just a snack!"
"Not if I have a dozen or two!!!"
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, last night I had two dozen hot off the frying pan sabudana vadas with green chutney and Maggi sauce!
And to the uninitiated, sabudana is well explained in Wikipedia, vada simply means fritter. Sabudana, potatoes, peanuts and chillies! I am going to make this when I get back to Madison!

And finally to finish off on a sweet note, here's pictures of two of my favorite desserts - on the left, malai sandwiches (Imagine two flattened rasgullas with sweet heavy cream in the middle!) and on the right, halvasan (I'll need to research more and find out exactly what this contains, suffice is to say that it's delicious!)

2007-02-15T11:53:00.000-06:00

So I've slacked off, so sue me! Big update coming tomorrow morning.

2007-02-10T23:28:00.000-06:00

India update day 2 - 11 Feb 2007

I slept for almost 12 hours. That was probably the last of the jet-lag!

After waking and playing zombie for about 10 minutes, the smell of hot dosas drew me to the kitchen. My maid Sujata was making dosas. I pigged out and had 5! And 2 idlis! All accompanied by the special green chutney that accompanies dosas.

And it's just 11 am. I'll update this again at the end of the day. I smell a feast coming on! I'm off to watch the India - Sri Lanka one day match!

And here we are at the end of the day! I had mutton curry for lunch. Delicious! And mutton curry, bheja fry (fried brains) and gaboli for dinner. Followed by rasgullas for dessert! I'm in culinary heaven right now.

And as an added bonus, here's pics of some Narayandas laddus that my mom made.

2007-02-10T23:01:00.000-06:00

India update day 1 - 10 Feb 2007

I got home 1:30 am on the 10th and ate kheema-pau after getting home. Kheema is minced goat meat which is usually curried. Pau is simply bread. Here's a pic!

As I hadn't slept at all on the Amsterdam-Mumbai leg (I watched Little Miss Sunshine - awesome!! and Walk The Line - also awesome! and one episode of the Office - always great,) I beat the jet-lag pretty well and got a couple hours sleep in.

Waking up, I had more kheema-pau. Then my mom pop's the surprise on me! She had frozen Alphonso mangoes and Mahabaleshwar strawberries since summer! Whoa! Here's pics of the mangoes and strawberries thawing out. As you can see they lost firmness in the freeze-thaw process, so we decided to convert them to aamras (mango juice) and strawberry milkshake instead.

For lunch we had palak paneer (green spinach curry with cottage cheese) and valacha birda (curried brown bean sprouts) with fulka chapatis fresh of the griddle!! (In my gluttonfest I forgot to take pics.)

Yum yum!

As soon as my jet-lag leaves me, I'll step out. Update for day 2 is next!

2007-02-04T16:01:00.000-06:00

It's time for the annual adventure! This Thursday, I fly to the Greatest City in the World - Mumbai!

Here's hoping I can meet up with all the readers and lurkers and hanger's on of this blog. So please email me (address in the top-right corner,) and I'll send you my contact info (and also reveal my secret identity to those who don't know it yet!!!)

2007-01-24T15:44:00.000-06:00

I was in West Virginia over the weekend for work. Here's the story...

WV was just so ... boring. The only exciting thing on the whole trip was the first day when I was driving from the Charleston airport to this factory in Sissonville which is about 15 minutes away. So anyway, I had directions from Google Maps and they seemed to be panning out ok, until right in the end where it asked me to take this road called Tolley Hollow Road and claimed that 1 *** Drive would be at the end of it.

So I turn into Tolley Hollow Road and it's this tiny little single lane road which seems to snaking higher and higher into the mountains. All I see along the way are these little trailer homes right out of Blue Collar TV and I think to myself, "Something is wrong here but then again Google Maps seems to be saying I'm on the right track." After about 10 minutes of a road which just kept getting worse, I look ahead and see that it's not paved any more!! I stopped and after maybe 3 tries succeed in turning around. This old Southern gentleman had stepped out of his trailer home and was curiously watching this Indian guy driving a red Mitsubishi Galant struggling to turn around.

So I say to him, "Hi sir, I seem to be lost, I'm looking for the factory of *** corporation."

"*** Corporation, haven't heard of them."

"They make spark plugs"

"Ah! You mean the spark plug factory, yeah, just follow Tolley Hollow Road all the way back to CR21, go past the highway bridge and turn right on River Bend Road."

"Thanks so much, I had directions from a computer but this is where they got me!"

Anyway, it turns out that Google Maps was not just a little bit off but more than a mile off, in the wrong direction! Next time, I plan to use MapQuest. You should too!

The rest of the WV trip was boring. We had some snow/rain on Sunday which made driving a mess. Apparently there were a lot of wrecks but I missed all of them. I spent Sunday and Monday night at the bar of the hotel and explained to a couple of Australian dudes the finer points of American football while watching the Colts comeback and beat the Patriots!

2007-01-02T11:15:00.000-06:00

Happy New Year 2007 to everyone who's reading!

After a great time in Las Vegas and a lot of thinking during the long flights (I was just traveling for the whole day, on the 29th and the 1st!) I decided on quite a few things.

Goodbye Internet. It was nice knowing you but I need to get out more in the real world. No more hours spent on Slashdot, Digg, del.icio.us and scans_daily. That time shall be spent in the gym, at bars, and generally out of the house.

I'll still update this blog but it's going to be much fewer and far between. And the updates will be about stuff I did out there!

2006-12-20T10:33:00.000-06:00

Well, I finished Epileptic. I had to take a break halfway through as it was just too difficult to digest in one sitting.

In other news, people have been getting engaged and married left, right and center. I'm still single though.

I tried to read Pop Gun War but I'm just not in the mood for such fantastic stuff right now.

And I'm looking forward to New Years in Las Vegas!

Viva Las Vegas baby!

2006-12-04T01:51:00.000-06:00

Well, I couldn't really recover any of my data from that hard drive. It's a pretty brick now. I did get a new one a week before Thanksgiving. It's working out just great. I had inadvertent backups of most of my important stuff. Like when I had burnt CDs during trips when I needed a copy of photos my friends had snapped. I lost all my music but that's replaceable.

I didn't go anywhere special for Thanksgiving this year. Did get a great Thanksgiving dinner at my boss's place though. Of course that heavy dinner made me sleep right through the Black Friday sale. I awoke at 11 am after all the really fancy stuff was out of discount. Ah well, there's next year I suppose.

I'm currently reading Epileptic after i-me-moi's recommendation.

Snow is back in Madison after an unseasonably warm week. It's bitterly cold again. I've been traveling like crazy this week. Phoenix on Wednesday and Thursday and Detroit on Saturday. I don't want to travel again for a while.

I just finished watching another brilliant episode of The Shield. This is how a police drama should be. Not like CSI and Law and Order. It's just so much more realistic.

Also, it's been pointed out to me that I pronounce my W's like V's i.e. with my upper teeth touching my lower lips instead of using rounded lips. Which is odd 'cause I learnt 'em right. Heck, I even got the prize for phonetics when I was in kindergarten (or Nursery as we say back in India.) (Also, stupid Firefox underlined learnt as a spelling error. Turns out, it's learned in American English and learnt in British English.)

2006-11-06T23:23:00.000-06:00

Catastrophic hard drive failure on my laptop. Everything's gone. Had backups for a lot of stuff. Some little tiny stuff gone. Let this be a lesson to everyone else today - backup, 'cause you never know when hard drives are gonna let you down.

2006-11-04T19:05:00.000-06:00

My eyes are covered by the hands of my unborn kids,
but my heart keeps watchin’ through the skin of my eyelids.

- Neighborhood #4 (7 Kettles), Funeral, The Arcade Fire

It's so nice to finally listen to a band that not only got excellent sound but also beautiful lyrics. So yeah buy, beg, borrow or steal this record.

2006-10-24T21:01:00.000-05:00

Why is the whole world so incredibly stupid? No, really, I mean, for God's sake people, why are you all so stupid?

You know what we need? We need more smart people. How can we get more smart people? Well, one plan would be for smart people everywhere to start making babies. Lots and lots of smart babies. Chop chop you married smart folk! More smart babies right this minute.

And all you stupid people need to stop meeting other stupid people. C'mon, snare a smart person, at least your kids will be halfway smart. Also, while you're at it, could you also stop reading safety labels?

Well, I guess it's another Tuesday rant brought on by reading this crazy post by Jean Valjean. And of course all the news from all over the world.

I wish I was more ambitious, then I'd rule the world with an iron fist. Who wants to vote for me and my iron fist? I swear I'd fix this place up good.

So remember, whenever you get a chance to vote for anything, vote for Hob Gadling!

2006-10-17T01:09:00.000-05:00

The Postal Service - We Will Become Silhouettes

No video? Get the DivX Web Player for Windows or Mac.

Another strange song with a strange video.

2006-10-12T02:07:00.000-05:00

And more.

2006-10-03T14:55:00.000-05:00

India's Censorship Craze

It's stuff like this that makes me want to consider settling in the US.

2006-09-28T17:57:00.001-05:00

The New Pornographers - Use It

No video? Get the DivX Web Player for Windows or Mac.

Just experimenting with the DivX Web Player. This is way better quality then YouTube. Double click for fullscreen. And once the video has finished caching you can right click and save it no fuss. Nice song too! I've written about it before. That video is hosted at Stage6 which has seems to have videos by a lot of other indie artists.

Apologies to my Linux-based blog readers. On the other hand the .divx file pointed to seems to be an avi wrapping DivX MPEG4 video so perhaps the MPlayer Mozilla Plugin could be configured to handle the video/divx MIME type.

2006-09-20T01:06:00.000-05:00

So Vik book tagged me. And I wuv being tagged! Onward!

1. One book that changed your life?
Got to say The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. Yes, it's preachy and long and filled with sociopathic protagonatists. Doesn't matter because the core idea, the one that gets to you once you look past the tedious three page descriptions and the one-dimensional characters is still pretty powerful and it's one we weren't really exposed to as kids growing up in socialist India in the '80s. Capitalism.

2. One book you have read more than once?
Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie. Because let's face it, I hate growing old. And everytime I read that book it makes me feel like I'm reading it for the first time like in did in fourth grade.

3. One book you would want on a desert island?
I'm going to cheat here and choose the Collected Works of William Shakespeare. That's a fairly large and diverse set of fiction and spans humor (The Taming of the Shrew), tragedy (Othello), and gratuitous sex (Venus and Adonis). What more does a guy need? Besides the language being all funky means it's going to be a bloody struggle to read so I won't be able to finish it in a hurry even if I wanted.

4. One book that made you cry?
It's going to be bad for my tough bastard rep if I let on but what the heck, maybe the ladies will appreciate the fact that I have a sensitive side (Yeah! Right!) It was A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway. That last part when Catherine is in the hospital and Henry prays.

5. One book that made you laugh?
Ah! One? Just one? My life revolves around books that make me laugh and asking me to choose one is like asking me to which one of my thirty seven illegitimate children should live. The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy by Douglas Adams, The Inscrutable Americans by Anurag Mathur, Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson (ok, not one book but who cares?), The Farside by Gary Larson (again, who cares?), The Dilbert Principle by Scott Adams and I just realized that this list won't stop unless I tell it to. Stop.

6. One book you wish had been written?
A critically acclaimed bestseller in comic book format. Frankly that one breakthrough graphic novel that makes the everyman give this medium more that just a second look. There have been great graphic novels written already but none have yet broken into the mainstream and frankly it's the mainstreams great loss. I guess I look forward to the day when a freshman can enroll for Comics 101 just as he or she can for Art 101 or Literature 101 today.

7. One book you wish had never been written?
Honestly? Any religious literature. Because I'm sick of watching the bastards twist, manipulate and misquote it to fuel their fires of bigotry, hatred and ignorance.

8. One book you are currently reading?
I just finished reading Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud and The Book of Bunny Suicides and Return of the Bunny Suicides by Andy Riley. Scott McCloud's book is a serious examination of the comic book medium as a form of communication. I'd say it's recommended reading for anyone who's in the communications industry (Hint! hint! Vikster!) And the Andy Riley books are sick sick tomes upon reading and enjoying which you get a first class ticket straight to Hell. I have mine and I hope to see lots of you there too. (So far, it looks like Hell will be a lot more fun and interesting place than Heaven seeing as how all the people I know and love already seem to be sinning like there's no tomorrow.)

9. One book you have been meaning to read?
Holy crap! This list is big. An awful lot of crap by James Joyce. People say he's really good. This book of short stories by Ernest Hemingway that's been sitting on my shelf for almost 3 years now. So much non-fiction that I feel almost ashamed: Maximum City by Suketu Mehta, Design Patterns by Erich Gamma et. al., Doors of Perception and Heaven and Hell by Aldous Huxley (been sitting on my shelf for years too.) In short there's this huge work of glorious human achievement out there that I have been too lazy, bored and ADHDed to read. It'll get better. I hope.

10. Tag five people.
That's easy. I-me-moi, Saket, M. Valjean, Thë Là¢ke¥ and /<0usik. Update: Also tagging DivSu who I caught up with after a long time yesterday!

2006-09-14T19:37:00.000-05:00

Your results:
You are Iron Man

Iron Man		85%
Spider-Man		80%
The Flash		80%
Hulk		75%
Supergirl		65%
Green Lantern		60%
Superman		60%
Robin		55%
Catwoman		50%
Wonder Woman		45%
Batman		40%

Inventor. Businessman. Genius.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Test

2006-09-11T01:12:00.000-05:00

Damn, I feel a post coming on. Now to wait patiently on this Sunday night for the words to coalesce into sentences. Hopefully this one will have more structure and form than my usual balderdash.

So, what bothers me tonight. There are some people I cannot call, cannot talk to, whose Orkut profile I don't visit, whose number has been erased. Sometimes acquaintances who don't know any better will talk about them and I'll stumble awkwardly and explain that I don't talk to them and don't talk about them and don't care what they're up to.

"But why? You guys were really close na?"

Yeah we were but things happen and people change. Heck. I've changed. People who I used to talk to everyday I haven't spoken to in years now. Sometimes it's mutual avoidance. Sometimes just forgetfulness. Sometimes you grow up and don't know what you saw in someone that long ago.

I wish I could say that I'm more mature than I used to be. That I've grown up. To be honest I don't feel that much different from the skinny guy who came here five years ago, from the shy guy from ten years ago.

I was talking to a friend yesterday (one of the old ones who I've stayed close to) about regrets. I have a few. Not too many and not to bad, but I do have them. That's life I guess, a bundle of hopes and regrets. (Damn cliché.) I must say that I learned from my mistakes though. Didn't make the same stupid ones again and again. Heck no, I made brand new ones!

It's so damn fleeting isn't it. Life. And yet I suppose we are the lucky ones. We're watching things change around us at a rate our parents didn't. Our children will be even luckier. I envy them already.

A good deal of you are married or about to be. The rest are dancing that intricate ballet that is Finding Someone. I wish you well. It's a fun dance to be sure but sometimes you fall badly on your butt and people stare. It's fun to stare. It's even fun to fall.

Did you dream when you were little? Do you dream now? Hold on to that dream because in a few years it will seem to fade away. It hasn't gone anywhere. It's just hiding around that corner waiting for you to dream it again.

2006-08-27T22:45:00.000-05:00

Wow! That was a long long time without an update. I've been busy but that's no excuse as I've been busy before but always updated this blog!

Anyway, I've been reading. I discovered a branch of the library pretty darn close to where I work. To celebrate I read Runaways Vol. 1 and 2 and Ex Machina Vol. 1, 2 and 3 by Brian K. Vaughn and illustrated by Adrian Alphona and Tony Harris respectively. Mr. Vaughn writes a great story and his books are always based on a brilliant premise. I've raved about Y: The Last Man before which is about the last surviving man on an earth where the entire male species dies suddenly and violently. Runaways traces the fates of the children of a group of supervillians who after having discovered what their parents do for a living run away. Ex Machina is about a superhero who prevents the plane from crashing into the second tower on 9/11, and goes on to run for mayor of New York to better serve his city.

I've been listening. I discovered Franz Ferdinand. Their eponymous first album is fantastic but their second effort, You Could Have It So Much Better, isn't as good. Also listened to a bit of Katie Melua who's ok. I guess she needs to grow up a bit.

I drove up to Detroit and Kalamazoo. I had my first sailing lesson and bruised my shin!

Ganpati Bappa Morya!!!

2006-08-07T00:19:00.000-05:00

I read a "real" book last week - Life of Pi by Yann Martell. More impressively, I finished the whole thing over just a weekend, something I haven't done for years. You can clap any time now.

2006-07-25T20:08:00.000-05:00

The Eisner awards for this year are out and they were good. Nice to see Grant Morrison winning for Seven Soldiers and All-Star Superman! I just wish Superman Returns had been based on All-Star Superman instead of the older movies.

2006-07-20T22:08:00.000-05:00

Nice post Vicky.

But do you really think that a life in suburbia with a nice white picket fence and 2.3 kids and a black labrador is what you want? I'm not so sure because if that's what you wanted then why were you in love with Bombay to begin with? Unless you're really rich you ain't never gonna get a picket fence in Bombay. But you know that already.

A life in Bombay does unfortunately involve flooded streets, bus strikes and the kids begging on the trains. Those aren't the things that endear anyone to Bombay. And the things that do aren't really that easy to pick out. Maybe it's the thick black smoke that causes pretty girls' faces to break out into acne, maybe it's the humidity that makes summers unbearable and that standing bus ride from Churchgate to Borivali all the more hateful. Or maybe it's the first shower in June that catches you unaware, ruining your favorite expensive silk tie but still leaving you happier because it's cooler now and your nightclothes won't stick. Perhaps it's the claustrophobically closely spaced buildings, that make open spaces seem special and sacred. Maybe it's khau galli or perhaps it's the little transistor radio's that everyone carries on the day that India is playing Pakistan. Maybe it's diwali chakli and besan laddus and shankarpali and chiwda or all those crazy kids running after those damn kites during sankranti. I don't know.

But I do know that if you choose the picket fence your life will never have that. It will be one day after another with the man of your dreams, in the same house, in the same neighborhood, attending the same cultural events, raising your kids and tolerating their bratty friends. It will sure be safer. But somehow I get the feeling you'll spend those years when your kids go off to college sitting and remembering Bombay. Smelling the smoke, tasting the garlic chutney in the morning vada-pav.

I don't know. Maybe I'm saying this because I'm safe here in Madison and I'm that much younger than you. Maybe it's because I miss Bombay, miss all those things that you take for granted. But on that Tuesday morning when I got an email from my brother telling me "everyone is safe" I never felt more helpless in my life. And when my mom got home at 10 pm and told me that she had been in the next compartment from one of the bombs, I swear I couldn't think straight for the rest of the day. I just wanted to hug her. But I couldn't and won't be able to for months. Because I'm safe here in Madison.

I guess I've rambled on. And probably not very coherently too. But really, don't make a decision that big based on a random act of terror pulled off by morons who don't value anything that decent people live by. If you are going to move, make it for something else.

2006-07-17T10:10:00.000-05:00

Indian gov blocks Blogspot, Typepad, Geocities blogs!

Fantastic! That's all we need, the worlds largest democracy censoring the Internet, joining the likes of China, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Ethiopia.

In any case, there are ways to get around the block which include the following:

Use the Atom feed via a web based RSS reader
Coral Cache
PkBlogs
Babel Fish Proxy
Google Translate Proxy (Though I'm not sure this is working.)

Of course, all this is contingent on being able to read this post in the first place :(

Update: Apparently the blocking is not related to the Bombay blasts but rather to curb the spread of religious propaganda! This means the ban probably will not be lifted anytime soon. On the other hand, assuming that the ISPs have been asked to block specific blogs on blogspot, it would be up to the ISPs to ensure that they don't block the domain blogspot.com. (If the ISPs have been asked to block the entire blogspot.com domain, then India does really fall into the same league as Pakistan.)

Visit Chennai MetBlogs and NDTV for more details.

Update 2: Blog blockade will be lifted in 48 hours says Rediff. Quoting from Rediff:

"He [Amitabh Singhal] acknowledged that some ISPs -- he insisted it wasn't all -- mistook the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) notice and blocked entire blog domains, adding that it was technically feasible to block a sub-domain and leave others still accessible."

Last Update: So the domain level block on blogspot.com is gone but the block on a few specific sites remain. This makes us better than China and Pakistan but put us firmly with the likes of Germany, the UK and France. I guess we're not quite up there with the US yet when it comes to freedom of speech. But I have hope.

2006-07-12T16:21:00.000-05:00

Andrew Sullivan posted this email from someone in Mumbai on his blog:

Not-so-Dear Terrorist,

Even if you are not reading this we don't care. Time and again you tried to disturb us and disrupt our life - killing innocent civilians by planting bombs in trains, buses and cars. You have tried hard to bring death and destruction, cause panic and fear and create communal disharmony but every time you were disgustingly unsuccessful. Do you know how we pass our life in Mumbai? How much it takes for us to earn that single rupee? If you wanted to give us a shock then we are sorry to say that you failed miserably in your ulterior motives. Better look elsewhere, not here.

We are not Hindus and Muslims or Gujaratis and Marathis or Punjabis and Bengaliies. Nor do we distinguish ourselves as owners or workers, govt. employees or private employees. WE ARE MUMBAIKERS (Bombay-ites, if you like). We will not allow you to disrupt our life like this. On the last few occasions when you struck (including the 7 deadly blasts in a single day killing over 250 people and injuring over 500 in 1993), we went to work next day in full strength. This time we cleared everything within a few hours and were back to normal - the vendors placing their next order, businessmen finalizing the next deals and the office workers rushing to catch the next train. (Yes the same train you targeted)

Fathom this: Within 3 hours of the blasts, long queues of blood donating volunteers were seen outside various hospital, where most of the injured were admitted. By 12 midnight, the hospital had to issue a notification that blood banks were full and they didn't require any more blood. The next day, attendance at schools and office was close to 100%, trains & buses were packed to the brim, the crowds were back. The city has simply dusted itself off and moved one - perhaps with greater vigor.

We are Mumbaikers and we live like brothers in times like this. So, do not dare to threaten us with your crackers. The spirit of Mumbai is very strong and can not be harmed.

Yeah, that about nails it. I hope all the readers from Mumbai and their loved ones are safe.

2006-07-10T22:07:00.000-05:00

Following Vikster's lead here's some YouTube crazy for you:

Spiderman: I had just about started going to school when this was on DD. I remember singing the theme song with gobbledygook made-up English during kindergarten in front of the whole class! This was when I had just about barely started to understand the alphabet, a full year before I could read a single word!

He-Man: Everyone remembers He-Man. Probably the most memorable intro ever. And I'm sure everyone's parents remember the toys which they had to buy. This version on YouTube is botched in the end though.

Giant Robot: Although the official English translation of the name is Johnny Sokko and his Flying Robot everyone from India who got DD2 in the '80s remembers this as Giant Robot. The high point of this show used to be all the crazy monsters (and the crazy homemade names we would come up with for them.) Memorable ones were the Eye Monster, the Ball Monster (which was a rolling ball with spikes it could stand on), "Sandwich" (which was a monster which could split into two pieces and sandwich Giant Robot), and of course the Other Giant Robot which was more powerful than our hero but couldn't stand up for some reason. I'm sure everyone remembers doing the steps - swing arms left ("kachink"), swing arms right ("kachink"), swing arms in front ("kachink"), load finger missiles ("chink, chink, chink" etc.), fire!

Switching gears from the '80s to the '90s (or rather from Before Cable to After Cable which I'm sure is the best way to categorize Indian television), here's some Prabhu Deva dancing to some kickass Rahman.

Chikku Bukku: I remember the first time I saw this video I was simply dumbstruck. It just seemed impossible to dance that way and yet the dude was doing it! I don't think I've seen better dancing anywhere else actually. And of course the most frustrating aspect of this video was how little airtime it actually got.

Urvasi Urvasi: After Chikku Bukku, Prabhu Deva was famous (the lone picked-on Tamilian in school made sure of that actually!), and when Kadhalan was released (as Humse Hai Mukabala in Hindi) everyone knew who he was. I prefer the dancing in this video to any other in Kadhalan.

And to finish you off on a happy note, some psychedelic trip-hop from the 2000s

Nice Weather for Ducks: I discovered Lemon Jelly completely by accident. I was watching Eurodance videos at viva.tv (I miss Eurodance!) when I stumbled upon this gem of a video. Watching it once is all it takes to get hooked. (And don't blame me if you find yourself singing the chorus in public.) (All you engineer geeks will also notice that it stretches the video codec to its limits and then breaks it completely!) This is some of the happiest music ever!

2006-06-25T00:53:00.000-05:00

My blogger code: B8 d- t- k+ s+ u- f- i o+ x e- l c+ (decode it!)

Yeah, I've been kinda busy hence the lack of posts.

2006-06-20T17:37:00.000-05:00

Hilarious quote from a thread on Slashdot:

There are no women on the internet! Everyone knows that! It's the place where men are men, women are men, and children are FBI agents.

2006-06-18T19:17:00.000-05:00

I've read the first chapter of Dubliners and I can tell this is going to be a difficult read. I will finish it.

I just had a long conversation with a friend.

I bought a new phone. It's my first flip-top. I usually buy candy-bar phones so I feel dirty. Although I spell it flip-top with a hyphen, I'm not sure what the correct spelling actually is.

There was a tornado watch today. I would never take these watches and warnings seriously until my car was damaged with golf ball sized hail. Now I stay indoors whenever there's a problem. It's nice and sunny now though.

There's ivy growing on my windows. It goes.

Stupid France let South Korea equalize. Zidane got a yellow card. Now, this could very possibly be his last match. It's such a thrill watching football on the telly! It won't last for too long though.

They've already started advertising for the fall TV season. Too early according to me.

I miss Scrubs and Grey's Anatomy.

2006-06-08T19:36:00.000-05:00

Do you know who Jim Woodring is?

He's crazy. He makes comics. He has a blog. If you ever get your hands on a Jim Woodring comic, be afraid, be very afraid.

It will swallow you whole.

2006-06-06T22:44:00.000-05:00

A surfeit of reading. That's what's happened in the last couple of days. I have read more than 15 graphic novels! Let's begin shall we:

The Golem's Mighty Swing: Set in America in the 1920's, this stark black and white piece is the story of a Jewish baseball team that tours smalltown USA. As a gimmick, they decide to include a 'golem' on the team - the sole black player. Things go awry. Read the excerpt. (Click on "Search inside this book" under the picture.)

Love and Rockets: Created by the Hernandez brothers, Gilbert and Jaime, Love and Rockets is a series of about 15 graphic novels originally published over a span of a decade. Jaime writes about Locas (crazy women!) and Gilbert writes about Palomar - a fictional village in Central America. I could go on but it's easier to link to one of them on Amazon and let you read an excerpt yourself. (Click on "Search inside this book" under the picture.)

Also, currently valiantly trying to read Dubliners by James Joyce.

2006-05-25T22:58:00.000-05:00

I finally did something I should have a long time ago. I created a technology only blog on which I can go crazy and spew out as much techy stuff I want without boring the regular readers of this blog.

So here's to Surfin teh Interweb!

2006-05-23T08:33:00.000-05:00

Seeing as how I seek to convert more and more people to the church of comic books, here's an excellent list by J.D. of Graphic Novels for People Who Hate Comics.

As I note in the comments, the only significant omission is Will Eisner.

2006-05-17T23:57:00.000-05:00

Just watched this on Conan tonight.

SAT Analogies

Warren Buffett's favorite stock pick :
Johnson and Johnson ::
Clay Aiken's favorite sex position :
Johnson on Johnson

2006-05-17T23:25:00.000-05:00

...
One and one-half wandering Jews
Return to their natural courses
To resume old acquaintances
Step out occasionally
And speculate who had been damaged the most
Easy time will determine if these consolations
Will be their reward
The arc of a love affair
Waiting to be restored
You take two bodies and you twirl them into one
Their hearts and their bones
And they won't come undone
...

-
Hearts and bones
Paul Simon
1983

2006-05-14T17:38:00.000-05:00

Sometimes, I think that the only thing I seem to persistently follow through with in life is this blog. It's the only thing I have been doing for more than a couple of years with no extended breaks. It's true that quite often the content has suffered (too much nerdy stuff or comics) and in recent months it has turned into a place where I end up recommending things to readers but all in all, I'm just happy that I'm still doing this.

Now talking about recommending things to readers. A couple of hours ago I watched half of the season finale of Grey's Anatomy. The other half is to be televised tomorrow. Grey's Anatomy is one of the three shows that I seem to be regularly following. And it's not because of all the emo stuff on it (though that's done well too), it's because of the medical stuff on it. Makes me want to wish I had got better scores in biology and become a doctor myself. Though knowing my fragile memory I wouldn't have done too well in it anyway. Yeah that's me. Smart enough to be a doctor but with a memory only good enough to be an engineer. Because a doctor wouldn't inspire too much confidence in his patients if he kept needing to look stuff up in his programming manual on the Internet!

The other two shows I watch are Farscape and Scrubs, but I've said too much about them already.

Now changing the topic to books, I am struggling through the third book in the Ringworld series - Ringworld Throne. Perhaps it's because there is too much going on at work and other fronts. Perhaps, it's like the reviewers on Amazon said, it's just not as good. Hopefully I'll finish it. I also have with me a signed copy of Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys, but I haven't ready more than a few pages of it. I guess since I own it, I feel I can probably read it whenever I want.

I can't remember which comics were on my list this week, which is not a good sign, as it means they weren't interesting. Haven't heard anything interesting for a while. Except for Baba Lagin. Don't ask.

(Yes, my grammar seems to be deteriorating. I can't seem to put the commas in the right places. I need my copy of Wren and Martin again.)

2006-05-08T00:32:00.000-05:00

Alan Moore is a genius. I've read a lot of graphic novels. And I've read a lot of books. And even if I consider and critique all of what I've read at once, the conclusion remains the same, Alan Moore is a genius.

If you get a chance you should read everything he's written. It's not so much that Alan Moore plots and writes a good story. It's that he plots and writes a superlative story and then makes it all seem so easy. Neil Gaiman creates a magical place in the The Sandman. Warren Ellis fleshes out some plausible yet terrifying science fiction in Transmetropolitan. Grant Morrison moves us to tears in We3. And yet, Alan Moore finesses them all, in everything he writes.

Some of what he writes is difficult reading. His prose is profuse and calculated. Not a word is used unnecessarily. But he brings out the best in the artist illustrating the story. I've yet to see a badly drawn Alan Moore story.

So what's the tragic bit in all this? He's retired.

2006-04-30T22:28:00.000-05:00

And what have I been reading?

Ringworld and Ringworld Engineers by Larry Niven. Classic science fiction from the Seventies which stills reads good today. And adds great new words to my vocubalary like tasp and rishathra!

My regular quota of comics which hasn't contained anything good for a while. I did buy Superman Chronicles which is surprisingly good for a comic book made in the 1930's, but which I haven't had the patience to finish reading.

And what have I been watching?

Finding Neverland and Final Solution. The latter has been one harrowing ordeal to watch. It was banned in India for a while, but the ban was lifted in October 2004. Indians should watch this. (But be prepared to lose your lunch.)

2006-04-26T21:12:00.000-05:00

So Jim Emerson came out with this list of 102 movies which you should watch if you want to have a meaningful discussions of any kind about movies. Like the words of a language which everyone should know to understand each other.

I've seen 16, half seen 7. I saw The Godfather while growing up in India. Not having cable while you grow up sure sucks. i-me-moi, Saket, Jean Valjean, Vikster, Là¢ke¥, /<0usik, bluegreenflysplat, I hope you guys do better.

Legend:
* = I've seen it
+ = I've seen maybe a quarter or half of it (hangs head in shame...)

List:
+ 2001: A Space Odyssey
+ The 400 Blows
8 1/2
Aguirre, the Wrath of God
* Alien
All About Eve
* Annie Hall
Apocalypse Now
Bambi
The Battleship Potemkin
The Best Years of Our Lives
The Big Red One
The Bicycle Thief
The Big Sleep
* Blade Runner
Blowup
Blue Velvet
Bonnie and Clyde
Breathless
Bringing Up Baby
Carrie
Casablanca
Un Chien Andalou
Children of Paradise / Les Enfants du Paradis
Chinatown
+ Citizen Kane
+ A Clockwork Orange
* The Crying Game
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Days of Heaven
Dirty Harry
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
Do the Right Thing
La Dolce Vita
Double Indemnity
+ Dr. Strangelove
* Duck Soup
+ E.T. -- The Extra-Terrestrial
Easy Rider
* The Empire Strikes Back
* The Exorcist
* Fargo
* Fight Club
Frankenstein
The General
* The Godfather, The Godfather, Part II
Gone With the Wind
* GoodFellas
* The Graduate
Halloween
A Hard Day's Night
Intolerance
It's a Gift
It's a Wonderful Life
Jaws
The Lady Eve
Lawrence of Arabia
M
Mad Max 2 / The Road Warrior
The Maltese Falcon
The Manchurian Candidate
Metropolis
Modern Times
* Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Nashville
The Night of the Hunter
Night of the Living Dead
North by Northwest
Nosferatu
On the Waterfront
Once Upon a Time in the West
Out of the Past
Persona
Pink Flamingos
Psycho
* Pulp Fiction
Rashomon
Rear Window
Rebel Without a Cause
Red River
Repulsion
The Rules of the Game
Scarface
The Scarlet Empress
Schindler's List
The Searchers
+ The Seven Samurai
Singin' in the Rain
* Some Like It Hot
A Star Is Born
A Streetcar Named Desire
Sunset Boulevard
* Taxi Driver
The Third Man
Tokyo Story
Touch of Evil
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
Trouble in Paradise
Vertigo
West Side Story
The Wild Bunch
The Wizard of Oz

2006-04-18T17:36:00.000-05:00

For those who came here looking for the congested Indian street video because the original blog (It Rocks Everything) seems to have reached some bandwidth limits, here is the direct YouTube link.

2006-04-11T22:32:00.000-05:00

Dr. Kelso (to Perry): Oh Perry, you're so edgy and cantankerous, you're like House without the limp.

Scrubs, Season 5, Episode 18 - "My New Suit"

Scrubs: 2, House: 0

2006-04-10T21:32:00.000-05:00

There's this Pakistani restaurant on Monroe Street called Campus Biryani and Kabab. It opened a little more than a year ago. The owner serves excellent chicken and mutton biryani, chicken haleem,and mutton chapli kabab. Also available is the ubiquitous chicken tandoori and mango lassi. And this weekend after much goading from me and his other regular clientele he served falooda.

Highly recommended if you hanker for authentic Indian/Pakistani food and are sick of the homogenized crap available in pretty much every other "Indian" restaurant in the US.

2006-04-10T00:49:00.000-05:00

So I remembered what I had to post about. Playboy names UW No. 1 party school. And of course, Wisconsin Comes Back to Win N.C.A.A. Title.

2006-04-08T20:56:00.000-05:00

See now, I knew I had to blog about something, but for the love of me I can't remember what!

2006-04-01T02:24:00.000-06:00

Yes, I'm gay. It should have been obvious to everyone by now. The incessant obsession with comic books, television, movies, music, technology, food, poetry and just plain emo, should have been clues enough.

Actually to be precise, I'm a lesbian trapped in handsome man's body. So any hot babes out there suddenly gripped with a strong sense of pity please help ...

(Yes, yes, an April 1 post. What can I say, I'm still juvenile enough to make fun like this. Make fun, make more fun!) And mucho apologies already to my token gay reader.

2006-03-31T07:27:00.000-06:00

It's 7 am. Why am I awake? Why am I at work?

2006-03-12T03:48:00.000-06:00

New post for no rhyme or reason.

In other news, I am greatly gladdened by the fact that Aeryn Sun is alive and did not indeed die as I had feared. But the fate of Zhaan who brought Sun back from near death is still uncertain. Hopefully she won't die either.

Haven't heard from Rommie, Dylan or Tyr lately, nor from Xander or Willow. Hope they're all okay.

Also, Steve Rogers was freed from illegal imprisonment by Janet Pym. Clint Barton was able to free himself, and Tony Stark was able to save himself from an assassination attempt. These guys will bounce back.

(Bonus points to readers who can tell what I'm talking about.)

2006-02-28T21:34:00.001-06:00

Elliot: ... let's just go home and watch Grey's Anatomy.
JD: I love that show. It's like they have taken our lives and put them on TV.

Scrubs, Season 5, Episode 11 - "My Buddy's Booty"

Scrubs: 1, Grey's Anatomy: 0

2006-02-28T00:23:00.000-06:00

Daily dose of timepass.

Slashdot
del.icio.us/popular
Digg
Boing Boing (Occasionally not safe for work)
Snopes - What's New
scans_daily (Occasionally not safe for work)
The Old New Thing
Jensen Harris: An Office User Interface Blog
The Daily WTF
hydrogenaudio

Yeah, I surf a lot. You really don't want to know what my weekend URI set is.

2006-02-19T22:27:00.000-06:00

My adventures in TV land.

Mondays are usually CBS. Two and a Half Men is on in the evenings. There used to be another comedy right after it called Out Of Practise which seems to be cancelled, because I haven't seen it on for the last couple of weeks. It's been replaced by Courting Alex which isn't as good.

Tuesdays, it's Scrubs on NBC. A full hour of Scrubs, two new episodes back to back. Yeah, I guess you can tell that I really like Tuesdays.

Wednesdays, I don't remember. I don't think anything good is on.

Thursdays, it's My Name Is Earl and The Office. My Name Is Earl has been pretty inconsistent so far. Some episodes have been pretty funny, others have bored me to tears. The Office on the other hand is one of the funniest shows on TV.

Fridays, I don't remember. Which is odd, considering that I'm sure something good is on. Damned if I remember though. (Oh, yeah, I've been watching Beauty and The Geek. Please, don't tell anyone.) Actually Friday's there's a pretty good chance I won't be home, it being a Friday and all.

At this point I should also add that most of the time I'm not watching the stuff listed above, I'm almost certainly either watching PBS or surfing (or a watching a stray episode of That '70s Show or Yes, Dear.) And every night, I watch Conan (especially if it's a new show or a particularly funny old one.) One of the advantages of living in the Midwest is that Conan is on at 11:30 pm instead of 12:30 pm like the rest of the US.

Saturdays, I try and get out of the house. If I can't (-18°C anyone?), I usually watch PBS, unless there's something funny on the other channels. Incredibly, PBS has recently been showing the original British version of The Office on Saturday. Watching Ricky Gervais and Steve Carrell in the same week playing the same role, is a lot of fun. (Another funny show on PBS is My Hero, which chronicles the adventures of Thermoman!) If I'm home, I may also watch Saturday Night Live. Much later in the night Fox will have Farscape on, which I watch religiously.

Sundays, I may watch a little bit of Desperate Housewives especially if Gabrielle is doing something fun. Otherwise, I will wait until 9 pm and then watch Grey's Anatomy. That's a good show. It's one of the few serious shows on TV that I can stomach. All that hot doctor action sometimes makes me wish I had done medicine. And to cap off the week, Fox will show another episode of Farscape.

And if you haven't realized by now, you should know - I don't have cable!

2006-02-06T23:04:00.000-06:00

Weekend reading.

The Essential Wolverine, Vol. 1 and Black Widow. Both essentially forgettable. I only picked them up from the library because they were there.

Watchmen by written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons. I've written about this graphic novel before, but you can never shower too much praise on it. Every time I read this, I discover something new that I missed the first time around. The only analogies I can draw are to good wine: subtle, layered, complex.

The Cook's Illustrated Complete Book of Poultry. If one has to use a single word to describe any cook book written by the editors of Cook's Illustrated magazine, than the word has to be 'complete'. This book is no exception, and contains an almost encyclopedic collection of recipes for chicken, turkey, quail, duck and other poultry. What appeals to the engineer in me is how scientific their approach is. Each chapter is about one particular preparation method. Roasting, broiling, sautéing, frying, even chicken curry, is given the treatment. My mom taught me how to make chicken curry. This book explained what each step does to the chicken and why it's needed. Recommended.

(And yes, in case you haven't noticed over the last few posts, I'm a food voyeur)

2006-02-02T11:36:00.000-06:00

After installing Firefox 1.5, I was upset to notice that the minimize-to-free-memory trick from version 1.0.7 stopped working. Here's how to get the old behavior back.

Type in about:config in the address bar.
Right click on the list and select New -> Boolean.
Type in config.trim_on_minimize as the preference name.
Set the value to be true.
Restart Firefox and tada!

Now, if Firefox memory usage rises too much (if you open too many tabs etc.), simply minimize Firefox and the memory usage will drop dramatically (usually to around 5-10 MB.)

2006-01-28T19:18:00.000-06:00

Three graphic novels read last weekend.

Invincible is a relatively new comic book series written by Robert Kirkman and illustrated by Cory Walker and Ryan Ottley. I read the first 13 issues collected in graphics novel format as Invincible: The Ultimate Collection (Volume 1). Invincible is about what it would be like to grow up as Superman's son. Essentially a well-written combination of science-fiction and the O.C.

Then I read three volumes of The Walking Dead also written by Kirkman (Illustrated in horrific pen and ink by Charlie Adlard.) This is a zombie book, which opens suspiciously like 28 Days Later. Pretty quick however we see that this book is about a lot more than just zombies. It's one of the most plausible portrayals about how people would actually act during a world-wide catastrophe. This book has bigotry, sexual politics, mania, and everything else that makes us human.

And finally, I read a book which quickly finds itself in the list of the greatest graphic novels ever written, right up there with Persepolis and The Watchmen. The Tale of One Bad Rat, written and illustrated by Bryan Talbot. The story of a young girl with a pet rat, on the run, that will break your heart and give you hope. The art, lush and beautiful, illustrates Mr. Talbot's mastery of all the literary devices of modern graphic novel, quite a few of which he invented himself, in his earlier work The Adventures of Luther Arkwright. (Hat tip to Warren Ellis for introducing me to Bryan Talbot.)