I contemplated a bit on what to write; and then a little more on what the name of the post should be but figured that when I have a random post after a hectic week it’s better to be general than specific. So here comes my first nameless post, so to say.

For starters, I was very wrong in my previous post. I wasn’t going to get away with a lighter week at work. I must accept though that the work was lighter. It seems almost ridiculous that you end up doing reports and more reports for the work you’ve done; almost taking up a big share of the time you spend at doing the actual work itself. You need it though to convince the big bosses about how good you are at your work lest they don’t feel the need of you being there! There is a tendency to overplay, rant and display credentials of yours which actually make you feel stupid. And, you don’t even know if your audience is keen on picking the nuances you want to convey. But then you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do (even though it sounds very cliché). That summarized the week for me – there was a presentation which hogged most of my week; and a promise of more to come in the coming week. Have to go now. More later.

After a busy week

It's really been that way all week. Although I have been coaxing myself to write something; and although I had a few thoughts in mind I haven't been able to get to it. I couldn't really wind down to pick something to write for now but figured that I should post something for the week - random thoughts from the week; especially things that I heard and read.

This summer has been a scorcher already. I live in a penthouse and find it hard to survive without the air-conditioner. I can't watch any more television because the living room literally blows me dry. It was the same news around office. There were colleagues researching on the best deals on air-conditioners; talking to dealers who could deliver a product quickly; the very same people who felt that they didn't need one till last summer. Well, is it really getting hotter or are we getting too comfy living our lives primarily in enclosed cubicles in offices? Either way spreading usage of air-conditioners is not very ideal I know. How much warmer can we get our World? I am reminded of a scene from a Telugu movie called 'Aditya 369' where the protagonists travelling forward in time discover that they cannot stay on the earth's surface due to heat and radiation and live underground. That's not a good place to be. Sighs!

Sania Mirza's wedding with Shoaib Malik seemed to have caught the headlines. While we shouldn't be commenting on somebody's choice of love I do think they hogged a lot of unnecessary media space. All the talk of which country she should be playing for is uncalled for. Thinking outside the realms of nationality she must be termed as an under-achiever. All that promise; looks, combined with a fiery forehand hasn't bought in many trophies, has it? Why don't we look elsewhere? Recently, Saina Nehwal got bracketed amongst the top five badminton women players in the World. That didn't get as much space as the wedding did. Glamour does rule.

Also, the IPL fiasco between Lalit Modi and Shashi Tharoor begs a mention here. After several accusations between them they seem to be getting into trouble with the big bosses. I have a feeling that they are a few skeletons in the closet here. We'll wait and watch for things to unravel.

As I write this piece there have been a couple of explosions at Bangalore just outside the cricket stadium hosting an IPL match. The authorities decide to go through with the match even while it posed a risk to the 40,000 people at the facility to watch the match. A bigger risk though was to the nation itself. Bowing down to such fear would have lent a major success to the perpetrators of this incident. It's an act of courage by the public, authorities and the players to not bow down under such fear. Any of these people were very well within their rights to not proceed. They choose not too and send a strong message to whoever it was. It also proved that our security system is still a little too lapse and gives a few brownie points for a few people making claims that all's not well with the state of security in our country. I am sure they'll make sure this event catches a lot of headlines.

Otherwise, I am headed for a pretty low-key weekend. Little bit of stuff to take care at home after which I am headed straight back to work the day after. I look forward to a lighter week next, and perhaps some more chirps in here. Rock your weekend. Ciao.

Perfecting myself at a sport

Table-tennis is a game I enjoy immensely. My tryst with the game started while I was young at school but I never got much of an opportunity. My classmates were the champions of the school and perhaps even did well at inter school competitions. I for one was too shy and timid to even approach a table-tennis board and let them know I wasn't as good as them. There was also a question of access. My school had a single board and far too many people vying for time. That was when we started plying our trades at a crude form of squash and we became pretty good at that too. All our recess times were spent playing the game and I remember that I even pestered my mother to allow me to take lunch to school in order to allow more time for me to play.

It was during my engineering days that I got full access to a table-tennis board and started playing the game regularly. I did well in departmental competitions too. However, sport is very fickle. It makes you feel you're the king one day, only to show you unfathomable troughs the very next. Is it just a lack of practice? No. I remember we spent endless hours at the college hostel practicing specifically each different shot, a backhand here and a forehand there. Of course the chances of me doing well at a random game were good when I practiced but even so there were times when I felt helpless. I either found the net or the ping-pong hit my opponent instead of the board. It feels crazy when that happens.

Years later, I now play the game almost every day even if it is just for half an hour. Though I don't practice or take everything as seriously as I used to do earlier I still love the game like I used to earlier. However, knowing the different ways things pan out while I am at play makes be reinstate the fact I stated before. Things can get as fickle as ever. There are instances where things are a dream; the ping-pong can land wherever I want leaving people dazed. There are days like today when nothing seems to work alright. Even the pretty basic don't turn out well. Its days like these when I retire earlier than usual and spend my energies at something else, like this blog today.

However, it's a game I love a lot and I keep going back, hoping to conquer it someday.

How important is your cell phone?

Ever thought about it? Do you have the habit of not remembering any contact numbers depending wholly on your cell phone? Well, I think it's about time we changed that attitude. I was cruelly reminded about this a few months back. My cell phone was stolen. Well, in fact snatched away as I was talking by somebody on a speeding motorbike. I could be nothing but a 'blind' spectator. It was a hopeless situation because my spectacles got pulled out together with the phone and I was at that moment as good as blind. I was in luck that I was near home and could get back without the need of them spectacles. I was dazed for a moment or two before it hit me that I was robbed.

There it was, all the contacts I had, numbers of all my friends and family who seemed to always be there on speed dial, all but lost. There were some that I faintly re-collect but I had to send out an email to all I knew to send me their contact numbers. The lazy people we all are, they were just a handful who responded. I don't fault the rest because we don't have time.

This little big incident made me despise myself a little bit. Here I am, somebody pretty good with numbers, not bad at all with memorizing them too. Why do I have to depend on something which I can lose, or go broke anytime? Storing them on your cell phone memory doesn't do our memory any good! I am making an attempt to remember numbers. At least it prepares me for something similar or better still, makes me less dependant on a machine.

A weekend at Vizag - a trip down memory lane

The thought of Vizag always brings memories of the beaches, the cyclones, the lazy lifestyle and the wonderful people. It's been almost a decade since I was there so when I got a chance to go there one weekend recently I was fazed. Fazed, because my memories of Vizag are vivid childhood memories which one would never like erased by any sort of change. I was almost sure that the Vizag I knew is not probably the same anymore. We humans tend to hold the best things in our life close to our heart, forever cocooned from the perils of change. Since I wasn't going to visit much of the city I wasn't too perturbed though. I took the plunge.

We choose to stay at Rushikonda which though a little outside the realms of the city doesn't require too much commuting from the railway station. Besides, I had heard far too many good things about the bay views from the resort to leave out such an option. The views of the sea as expected were breathtaking. The resort itself was on a small hillock and it provided fascinating views of the Bay of Bengal for the occupants. One look at my room and the money we paid for the accommodation was all accounted for. Watching the waves seemingly pushing back the land, sipping a cup of chai was an awesome feeling. The unknown expanse of the ocean reaching the skies at the horizon seemed to put things in perspective. I needed that view of the ocean to remind me of the fact that we are nothing before a possible fury of nature.

It was a blessed weekend topped by rain towards the end of the weekend. It made us loathe the fact that we didn't have any more time before we returned. That said, I was happy I went back to Vizag. Inertia had set into my being - I went back once after I got a job, only once did I go back once to my school after I passed out, only once did I meet my teachers from school. All, things I want to set right. There is a sense of wrong I know but those hallowed memories are too sweet to be touched, too sweet to be spoilt by anything that doesn't confirm to what it was. Till today it was too much of a risk to take.

Passing by the city I saw lots of traces of change. There is perhaps a lot more in places I haven't been too but I kind of got the feeling that the inherent being of the city is intact. It's not just the infrastructure that makes up a city, the people do too. As long as the city doesn't become a metropolis swarming with people from all over the country (maybe even globally) the attitudes and the culture don't undergo any drastic change. It is here that Vizag doesn't seem to have been affected as yet. Hopefully it doesn't happen for a little longer. I understand that it's not good (or too much for) to wish on my part but let's hope the 'City of Destiny' stays in its being, as it is. Touchwood.