Meet the Newest Member of the Brat Pack

There are Brat 1 and 2 and then there is Brat 3. So meet Brat 4 now.

Chhavi is 2 and the Newest of the Brat pack.

We brought her home an hour ago. She has already traveled with me and Sesha from Chandigarh to New Delhi and she is an angel. I mean she met me really for the first time (we saw each-other briefly two weeks ago for maybe 15 minutes) and yet after the journey I have the energy to blog. We are extremely lucky to be able to adopt her in just about 5 months since we started the process.

I think it will take us a week to turn her into a brat. But I think I can pull her out for travel sooner rather than later given her performance today.

An Unusual Start to the Day!

A Rainy Day at Gurgaon

For the second day the rains have continued at Gurgaon and at one level thank heavens for that! But at another level commuting becomes one complicated affair. Sesha decided to come with me today as he was not too keen to drive in the pouring rain. I dropped him to his office (which is a small detour for me) and then went to the mall where I park my car. From there I travel half of the way with a colleague.

While waiting, I saw these two men on the road with the 'raincoats' that become such a common site on a rainy day.

The Lift near the Roof, a Mall in Gurgaon

A while later I decided to park my car in the basement of a mall and wait inside it. By now the mall folks recognize me as I use their parking on every working day. And then I saw the lift going up. I liked what I saw and clicked it. This lift has a robotic announcing 'ground floor,' 'basement 1' etc at every stop.

Barista, Just Opening in the Morning

I was a little late today and my colleague was still some distance away because of various traffic jams. I was wondering what to do? I was quite glad to see that in spite of the chairs resting on the table, there was a person at the counter of the Barista Coffee Shop. I am usually not a big fan of these overpriced coffee shops but decided to have one today. He put the chairs down and cleaned the table and took my order.

And as I am not good at waiting idly I decided to open my laptop and do something. I quickly uploaded these pictures from my camera and added my signature, etc.

An unusual Cup of Coffee in the Morning

I hardly grab a cup of coffee in the morning that too in a shop at a mall! In that sense it was a most unusual day. And then I opened the word document named Orchha that was blank. I have done this so many times but I have realized for the first time that each article actually started from a blank page !

Reactions to the Barog Story!

The Water Compartment at the Kalka Shimla Train

I was showing my Barog story to Brat 1 and Brat 2 and I wanted them to pay particular attention to the last photograph where Steve has written the following caption-

Mridula Dwivedi with Dilip and Sunil, also known as Brat One and Brat Two

The brats reacted, we will give Bua (aunt in Hindi) a name on our Face Book!

Then on this Barog trip we were taking a train back from Solan to Barog where we barely had standing space. Brat 2 had put his hands against the wall over me in aisle and he could so easily place it over my head. Brat 1 was standing next to Brat 2 quite close to the door.

I mean it feels only yesterday when they were knee high and just by standing in front of them I could block them effectively from taking a basket ball shot.

Then I remember the younger one standing in front of a guy who was six three with his hands raised to prevent him from taking a shot at the ring and his hands would not even reach the other player's shoulders.

And today they are polite to me and me take my shots at the ring or else they just have to stand in front of me!

PS. There is a coach on the toy trains that takes water to Shimla from other stations because there is a shortage of water at Shimla. When the train gets full people travel in the water compartment too!

Burning some Midnight Oil!

Burning some mid night oil without Coffee

One good thing about this week is that I get to travel at the end of it. Though the way my next week is shaping .... I would rather not think about it now.

What does 'Being Yourself' Mean to You?

I must admit Steve started it. It were his lines that made me pause-

I had devised a title, "Houston Texas: A Great Place to Be Yourself" which I liked. I think what took almost three months was the line, "Being yourself sounds like a simple proposition, but in my experience, it's not; ...

How I agree and I would say some of us may not even know what does it mean to be 'yourself'. Then I read VS and his post on accepting emotions!

I think the only place that gave me scope of showing my emotions was the playground. I could be thrilled (and jump up and down) when I played a shot well and scream to shatter eardrums when I made silly mistakes. And it would be still alright, almost always. And that too went away because of my long commute now. And nothing else gives me the same scope, to shatter eardrums I mean.

And if you want more, more musings by the sea shore by Lakshmi.

But more tricksy (as JRR Tolkien would say) to answer what does it mean to be myself. I have to say I am left scratching my head. I honestly have very little clue and I am quite bewildered with this state of affairs.

So what does 'being yourself' mean to you?

Finding Shade at the Domestic Airport, New Delhi

Finding Shade at New Delhi Airport

I took this picture sitting inside the flight that was bound for Jabalpur. It was so hot at 11.30 am that this employee decided to take refugee inside the empty cart. I was wondering why was he sitting so still and why in this empty cart. I was wondering if he was in distress or what. But soon his other colleagues came and they all entered the Jet Airways plane you can see in the background. And I could see they were chatting and laughing a lot too. It must have been the heat that made him very still and quiet while he was waiting for others. When I came to Delhi a few days later, they announced in the flight that the outside temperature was 44.5 degree Celsius.

And the water in the taps has been hot on its own even at the night. Today there is a wind and some clouds outside. I wish it would rain!

Walking Away!

It was my last working day at the current job. Walking away was difficult due to various reasons but I think it was about time. I spent 4 years here (OK, one month short) and played TT almost everyday after office hours. I sat down after the game today for a while and chatted, a thing I almost never do. I am starting a new job week later and looking forward to it.

It is Getting so Hectic

Some Pretty Corner in Oxford, UK

I have so much work to finish before I can think that I am traveling. The thing that I dread most is the final piece of grading that is yet to done. So tomorrow I have a date with lot of copies. God!

Finally!

Bunch of Flowers that Alka, Amrit and Vasu gave to Me

Finally, I have a passport that is valid for next 10 years and got the UK visa too, today. They said it would take a minimum of 4 working days (I have been to UK before so the processing time is less, otherwise they say 10 working days minimum) and I got it on the forth day squarely. So next week, for a short while, I am off to UK. I don't know why, but I still want to keep the fingers crossed!

PS. This bunch of flowers were delivered at my office address and were such a pleasant surprise. When I got them I told the person who was carrying it that surely is not meant for me! But they were and it just made my day.

Regional Passport Officer of Chennai Arrested Today

I wonder what to make out of the news of the arrest of the Regional Passport Officer of Chennai Ms. Sumathi Ravichandran. Many newspapers are reporting it today. The Express Buzz reports that the action was taken on the complaints of Mr. Lakshmanan who works with an NGO.

Lakshmanan managed to get the passport despite  being unable to produce all the necessary documents. He was asked to pay Rs.12, 500 to “speed up” the process. The amount included the Rs.9,000 to be paid to the RPO, Rs. 2,500 to be paid as tatkal passport processing fees and another Rs.1,000 as “services charges” ...

My question is why only her when it is such a common practice across many regions! Who did she displease or is it that the person who complained was connected enough to get this action taken. Or is it that I am being too cynical?

The Passport Saga

I tried calling a friend from IIT Kanpur days as I needed his help to get my passport. I got his number from another friend. He of course did not pick up my phone, it was an unknown number for him. I had not been in touch with him for past 7 years! I had been calling people left right and center in the hope that someone would help me in getting my passport reissued and he was not even my best hope.

I applied for the renewal of my passport in early March after taking an appointment online. I had relevant supporting documents and they accepted my application after a token protest, which is the hallmark of many a government employees. Still, this was a pleasant experience as I said when I blogged about it earlier.

Then someone managed to get my police verification done. And I thought I was all set to get the passport soon. But that was not to be.

There were many people who tried to help me out. Some said my police verification has not been received and some said that it has been! To cut through all this confusion I decided to use a travel agent. He initially asked for a lot of papers and said he would try. Each day gone by was bringing my proposed travel date to UK even closer. So, I was waiting anxiously to hear from the travel agent on Tuesday when he said with a lot of regret in his voice that it could not be done unless I could get a form signed by a government official verifying my address. My police verification report was stuck somwhere.

The Office Blocks near India Gate, New Delhi

That is when I was making a lot of phone calls. When my friend did not pick up his cell phone I wrote a SMS to him saying who I was. Within two minutes I got a call back. I must have not been making too much sense to him because one of the first things he told me was, "please take out that panic from your voice, your work is done". Then he asked me, "Now tell me what is to be done?" I tried explaining to him about Annexture F, he said he don't know which form this is but he would get it done by tomorrow if I was willing to run around a little! He told me to meet a friend of his in the office blocks in front of India Gate. He would arrange for my entry into those office blocks.

He knew I was very nervous and told me, "if I do not pick up my phone for a while tomorrow please don't panic, I sometimes go out of my room and leave the phone behind." But when I called him the next day, he picked up my phone promptly and coordinated every minute till I got into the room of this lady officer who looked at all the relevant documents and then gave me the letter I wanted. I gave it to the travel agent in the afternoon and got the passport by next day evening.

The moral of the story is that apply in the Tatkal (immideate) scheme if you can get the Annexture F made. That takes out the hassle of police verification. Because when I went to collect the passport in the evening there was a gentleman standing in the line in front of me who had applied for the passport in January and still not got it!

When I was standing in the line to pick up the passport on Thursday evening, the counter did not open till 5.20 pm. The notice above the counter said the distribution time was 5.00 to 5.30 pm. There was a very pretty girl in the line who could not speak (along with a fatherly figure, they were talking in sign language) and almost in tears. The gentleman in front of me went inside the office and came back with the reassuring news that they do not go away without distributing the passports that have been promised that day.

By 5.45 I had mine. Next day 8.00 am I was at the VFS UK and it was so orderly out there. Get your token (I did not had an appointment this time), wait your turn, submit your documents and go back home. I am still keeping my fingers crossed though, after all I was quite optimistic even when I successfully submitted the passport application form.

The biggest surprise in this entire episode was the friend from IIT Kanpur. I mean maybe someone else too would have done the work for me but the speed and consideration he showed to me has left me speechless. I have thanked him many times and he has never failed to tell me that the pleasure is his! And that when we would have talked at IIT only a few times and I was making this call after 7 years of no contact.

I can't name you my blog, but then whenever I will travel for the next ten years and hold that passport in my hands I would ask the folks up above to grant your every cherished wish. Thank you, without your help my passport would still have been stuck in some dark corner of an office.

PS. Why can't the police verification report be scanned and sent online? Would make our lives just a little bit more easier.

And there is a possibility of doing an edited book on the experiences of getting the passport issued in India, I am sure many of us have stories to share!

Susan Boyle- What a Stunning Voice, Even for Someone as Tone Deaf as Me!

When it comes to appreciating the finer aspects of music I am really not up to it. I am tone deaf literally. But then, when I watched the Susan Boyle Youtube Video, even I was blown apart! I came to know about it from Alka.

By now it is all over the internet that how we should not judge a book by its cover. But I thought that Dennis Palumbo at Huffington Post has a deeper argument on this issue-

What would the judges and the audience have thought, and said, had her voice been a creaky rasp, or an out-of-tune shriek? Would she still possess that "inner beauty?" Would we still acknowledge that the derisive treatment she received before performing was callous, insensitive and cruel?

The unspoken message of this whole episode is that, since Susan Boyle has a wonderful talent, we were wrong to judge her based on her looks and demeanor. Meaning what? That if she couldn't sing so well, we were correct to judge her on that basis?

On the Edge!

Sitting on the Edge, Which Way to Go?

(Picture taken at Itmad Ud Daulah's Tomb, Agra)

One Live Update From IIM Lucknow

I am through with my paper presentation and that is always a relief. I did manage to generate a little bit of discussion where I said people on the messageboard report that Agra City is not attractive at all even though the Taj Mahal is fabulous. Well the quote that I was using was a little stronger but the message was the same. Created some offense to some people.

Have to be more careful how to phrase these findings. There was a debate on my methodology and in India it still feels that if you have not done a quantitative research you have not done research at all! I was a little surprised with that. In the evening I was checking with a senior academician about what should I do differently next time and he said, "You are doing fine." That was quite enouraging.

But the worst of all is I have a badly upset stomach and I can hardly eat anything. After writing this, I am wondering who will read this at home and get worried but then I am taking my chances. So, I am dead tired by now. See you all.

Will catch up with all the comments when I come back. Thanks for them a lot, they are a real morale booster.

Not Today

Suffering from Bad Cold.

Meeting Naina Kapur

Naina Kapur, Supreme Court Lawyer, One of the Key Person responsible for Vishaka Judgment

It had to happen today when I did not had my point and shoot and the picture taken on the mobile has only this kind of clarity. Naina is one of the key persons responsible for the Vishaka Judgement that deals with prevent of sexual harassment at workplace. And I saw it first hand how difficult it is to talk about sexual harassment in India even in a roomful of women only where almost 35 out of 40 had a doctorate degree too!

I asked Naina if I could take a picture. She consented. Then I asked her if I could use it on my blog, she thought for a moment and said only if I say nice things or she would sue! On the more serious note she said yes I may use it and no, I could write anything I wanted to write about her, she would not sue me.

I have to say she is a very impressive speaker and she is quite accessible to her audience. She narrated a call center story that remained with me. She said a young girl in her cab put her feet in the laps of a guy sitting opposite and the guy started rubbing her feet. The girl filed a sexual harassment case. Naina said even though she wanted to say what an idiot you are to the girl and what a moron you are to the boy, she just asked them one question, "Do you think your behavior was professional?" The girl went back agreeing with her that her behavior was not professional, taking back her complaint. And that traning helps in behaving in a non-judgemental way in such situations.

It Felt Like Flying

Sea Bird at Surathkal

As promised yesterday, I played TT today and it felt wonderful (as if I had got wings) . In reality I was actually not able to move much (let alone fly). And in a doubles game (that is what we play mostly) not being able to move well is a huge liability.

I have said before and I repeat, long time back I have played TT competitively and represented my state. So I give people on the other side of the table a tough time. And usually all of us give our 200% while playing. But today people did consider my injured ankle and played in a relaxed manner and that was quite surprising.

One of the strategies my colleagues used was to hit on the extreme opposite from where I was standing and so many times I could just stand see the ball whizzing by! Another of their strategies was that if my partner is to pick up the ball hit it close to me, as I would be unable to move out of the way! That too was successful to an extent. But all in all it was good fun, and as I am writing this there is a huge grin on my face!

And when of my colleagues got a phone call, two of us (and let me grant it my opponent is just slightly ahead of being a beginner) quickly played a singles. Now in singles (quite unlike doubles) I can cover a lot of table by standing in the middle squarely. So whatever fond hopes he had of taking advantages of my injury, actually the outcome was not very different. I won 21-7 (yes we still play games of 21 and have not switched to games of 11 with two serves each).

But then all that is besides the point. All of us just had a good time.

Sea Shells and Pizza

Pizza and Sea Shells, is there a link? Very minor, they were part of my extremely hectic and tiring day today.

I had a long class, one where students interact a lot on their own in the seminar (with me as the mediator) and they went on for half an hour more than the scheduled time. Yes, they sometimes do that.

Then I managed to go for lunch.

No, the pizza was not for lunch.

Next I faced a table at office that is so chaotic as of now that there was not a space to put my tea cup even. The day also felt the same.

Sea Shells

Then I was looking for something in my shoulder bag (the same I was carrying on the Surathkal Beach) and two coins fell out. Irritated I went down to pick it up and then saw that the shells I had picked up at the beach, one of them had fallen out too! That was one soothing incident incident in an almost out of control day.

Then it came to dinner and I had promised my nephew that we will have pizza today and pizza it was.

Domino's Pizza

We had pizza after a very long time and it was fresh and tasted nice. Looked colorful too, so I clicked a picture as well. Brat 2 was asking why are you taking a picture of a pizza, it is not even lazy Sunday! Wonder when does he takes a peak at this blog.

But I have left the best part for the last. My ankle is almost normal now. So, I am going to play mild TT tomorrow! Yes, I am going to do it, in spite of any sensible advice that would come my way.

If I can teach standing, I can as well play TT. And it is only today I realized (again) how much I rely on TT for releasing my stress.

PS. What a ghastly background I chose to take a snap of the sea shells!

Off To A movie Today!

Probably Slumdog Millionaire.

People at work are taking pot-shots at my ankle, asking if I would play TT in the evening even after my pronounced limp and crape bandage in evidence.

The students are happy, thinking I may actually cancel a class. But they are in for a surprise, I would not cancel any!

Bits and Pieces

Block Printing Pieces at Jaipur

Sprained ankle

Classes to take

A change in schedule for next week

Plans for a movie tomorrow

Still no TT, tried walking for a small stretch and realized that no TT actually!

NO TRAVEL in FEB, it looks like!

So lots of cribbing.

When Forced to Sit Still!

Railway Tracks at Sunset

When forced to sit still (ankle sprain right now) I miss walking and traveling with a vengeance! And I am as cheerful as a bear with a toothache.

I have had sprained my ankle on numerous occasions so it is not a new occurrence for me. This one is also minor compared to two sprains I had in the past. The second time around I was in college and staying at a hostel so there was not too much scope to sulk. The first time around I was at home and studying in school. I wonder how my family would have coped with my foul mood, that one was a prolonged injury.

At present Brat 2 (my younger nephew) manages to keep me entertained. He stands near me and always behaves as if he would jump on my ankle or smash his fist on it and I keep shouting at him and release some of my pent up energy. Right now he has gone to play football and I am feeling quite irritated.

OK, he just walked in and is now fighting with me unnecessarily, that tennis (that I like to watch on TV) is a useless game and football rules the world!

I was so agitated a while ago that I looked at my blog to see what I was writing last year about same time. In 2008 aournd this time I wrote about food in Spiti and plans to head out.

Taking a Tumble!

Restoration at the City Palace, Jaipur

I have to admit the title of my post and the picture above are partially misleading. The painter on the platform did not take a tumble.

It is me who took a tumble today. And got it in my left ankle. A minor sprain but probably enough to make me miss a few of my evening TT sessions and I dread that. TT is the best stress buster I know of.

But I guess I was asking for this. Off late, I was really pushing my-self hard and unnecessarily maybe at that! So, while I was walking outside in the lanes where I live, with the merest bend in the road my body weight went on my left ankle, and here I am!

And then I realize my younger nephew (Brat 2) is also limping and he is quite sure he can play tomorrow! Gives me some hope, though I have to remember that he is just 18 where as I am not!

Them Doggies Again and a Few Cows as a Bonus

Cow with Big Horns

Today evening when I was coming home, I stopped on the way to pay my phone bill (I still don't pay it online but that is another story). It took me a while to pay it in person. Still, I decided to buy some Sweets (Jalebi, there goes my watching weight again) and Samosa to take home.

It is a typical corner street sweet shop with a lot of people standing there and eating stuff. Suddenly I heard a girl shrieking at the top of her voice. I turned around and saw a dog with collar around that girl, she was eating a rasmalai along with a young lad. Both of them came near where I was standing.

That got me a little worried. If the dog would have followed them, it would have been my turn to skriek as I am equally scared of them doggies. Luckly the dog decided to sit exactly at the same spot and I started to hurry along. Suddenly two stray dogs moved in our directions and the young girl started running ahead and shrieking at the top of her voice once again.

Then the unthinkable happened. The girl was so miserable (and the guy not to be seen around amid this chaos) that I held her hand and told her nothing would happen, and that she should clam down. I added, "I understand, I am equally afraid of the dogs." That caught her attention and she stood still. Then I asked, "where is your friend?" She was still incoherent. So, I asked her if I could drop her somewhere. That is when she regained her senses and said she was fine and smiled.

I moved on. And then nearby I saw the cow (see the picture above) with the big horns! I often meet such cows when I am driving. But today I was on foot and had the Nikon Coolpix in my handbag (it was too dark to take a decent picture with my mobile). So as a bonus, I clicked the cows and came back home quite happy. I mean it has never happened before that I consoled someone because she was scared of dogs!

Fog on the Road, Cobwebs in the Mind

Fog on the Roads

Last week, I got quite thick fog twice in the morning when I was driving to work. I used to be quite terrified of driving through it when I was new with my car. Now I somehow manage without my face turning chalk white.

Now I can't show you a picture of cobwebs in the mind! But I saw them quite clearly today when I watched the women's singles final of the Australian Open Tennis. There is no other way to describe Dianara Safina's game in the final against Serena Williams. And it was quite painful to watch, because self-doubt is something I am no stranger to!

I plan to watch more fog on the road, rather than cobwebs of my mind in 2009. It has been very busy January and quite satisfying too.

Footprints on the Sands!

Footprints on the Sand, Surathkal Beach

I wonder what do you think when you see your own footprints on the sand? I know the thought process might go in so many directions! Some of it I must have read somewhere, like the fragility of my efforts. After all, for the waves, it hardly takes any time or effort to wipe them out!

Then there used to be this very famous poster (in other people's rooms) when I was at IITK (Ph.D days) where in the most troubled times there are only one set of footprints visible on the sands of time! Heck even in this picture only one set of footprints are visible but those are very well mine and these are sands of Surathkal beach and not sands of time! And I guess it is better that way (I wonder how will I feel if I look at this picture say even 5 years from now) :D

By now you must have realized that I am a miserable flop when I try to philosophize! So what were my real thoughts when I tried to compose the shot above? That I thoroughly enjoy walking, footprints be damned, but they sure do look good in a picture! I only wish I was a better photographer and the picture was a little sharper.

So, what are your thoughts about the sands of time?

Can You Draw or Paint?

Flowers against the Sky at Bangalore

I got into a conversation a few months back that was about painting. I was declared a bad painter, I was actully painting future scenarios! I have no objections to that. I was remembering the incident today and I thought I would talk about another related stuff.

When I was in school, drawing was a compulsory subject. I almost always stood second in the class! The girl who stood first would score around 76 in drawing and I would score 36 to 40 (33 were passing marks). That too because the drawing teacher knew I was good at other subjects and probably she had a kind heart and was disinclined to fail me. The final difference between the two of us would be 2-15 marks, but then how much could reasonably I cover from that 30+ handicap in just one subject?

When drawing was out of the syllabus I was so, so happy. But it dawned on me suddenly today that my situation is not so hopeless. I can take pictures and I actually enjoy taking pictures a lot! I mean like the picture above, I can never paint like that, but hey taking pictures is also quite exciting!

PS. I know for sure that Bindu can draw. And take pictures too!

Lazy Sunday Photo- Sea at Surathkal

Sea at Surathkal Beach, Mangalore, South India

You know things are hectic when I am unable to reply to the comments that I love to get. I wonder when do I get to walk by the sea again!For the past 15 days it was quite hectic, I was often missing on sleep. I thought I would not do much this week but then the way things turned out, it is going to be more of missing on sleep at least for the coming week too!

What a Day it Was!

Surathkal Beach

The first week of the semester is the most difficult one but today was just so tiring. It is so difficult to believe that just a week before I was on a vacation and sometime last week I was also on a sea beach! Sometimes it is better not to relive a tiring day, so I would not crib about it anymore.

I was also just asking my nephew if we should go somewhere in the long weekend that is coming along January 26th but he refused, saying he does not want to miss his gym sessions!

Running, Gadgets and the Like

Such a Lovely Walk, Many used it for Running (Thames Walk- Oxford, UK)

The biggest problem at blogging from another place is that your gadgets would not talk to a new computer. So, even though I have three cameras I cannot make them talk to this computer. As a result this week, the pictures are going to be from my Picasa web albums only, all old ones.

Yesterday after a very long time I went for a small jog. I have lost some weight and I do not want to gain it back with eating a lot and sleeping through the day. I have not felt like running since a very long time. It has been ages since I left athletics. I was a pretty decent athlete and used to work really hard. Running something like 10km (when I was 14-15, seems like a lifetime ago) was easy at one time. Then my coach got transferred, there was no replacement. The good person that my coach was, he would send me my training schedule in letters and I would follow it up. I was in 11th standard then. It was a tough schedule. I was a middle distance runner and would run in the morning, go straight to school and in the evening run some more. I was quite regular at studies so managed to score good marks even with all the practice and tournaments.

Then just for fun, I was playing in a basket ball match for my school. I twisted my ankle quite badly and went out of training. A year before, when I was in 10th standard I represented my state in National School Games, I stood first in High Jump, second in 800m (the girl who stood first later went on to win a bronze in Asian Games 10 years later) and third in 400m in the state meet. The next year I wanted to do even better. But with the injury my training went haywire, and during the state competitions (held in Roorkee) during the month of November, I caught bad cold, and no instructor accompanying us was willing to buy me a medicine promptly. I stood third in all the events. After training so hard without a coach third felt like such a blow at that time. I left running after the competition (I started playing TT, and I do so till date) and never really went back to it. Even at IIT I refused to train for running, even though I would play every other sport every day and win almost everything at the Inter-IIT meet. I wonder if in some sense I stopped dreaming after I stopped running.

That is why I felt so happy when I decided to run yesterday. I actually went out for a walk, telling everyone that I do not want to gain weight. When I started walking, I thought let me run. Then I thought let it be, so many people around, hardly used to a woman running alone. Then I told myself that half the time it is just me who is stopping myself from doing things that I like. And then I went for running for a while!

Monkeys at Work!

Monkeys Near Jaigarh Fort, Jaipur, Rajasthan

I was reminded of this post by Lakshmi looking at the monkey picture that I took recently near Jaigarh Fort.

Has it ever happened to you that you have encountered monkeys at the close quarters? During my Ph.D. days there were a lot of monkeys at the college campus. I remember that I was coming down the stairs, quite late at night along with another student. I had a hand on the railings of the stairs. Then I suddenly froze, as next to my hand was a monkey merrily sitting on the same railing and dozing off! The other student told me not to panic and just to keep walking. Thankfully the monkey went back to sleep again and let us walk off peacefully.

Then after quite some time I was walking around the campus market with a friend . She was munching on a chocolate and I a cream roll. Remember how buying such things used to be a feast in the college? Well, we met monkeys soon again on the road. They gave us quite stern glances and terrified I threw away the cream roll frommy hand and the monkeys went after it. In the meanwhile my friend put the cholocate in her pocket and once again we walked off. In comparison to the monkeys at my campus, the Jaigarh monkeys were extremely well behaved and left me and Sunil pretty well alone mos of the times.

So what is your monkey experience?

York Police Band Playing at Royal Armories, Leeds, UK

York Police Band Playing at Royal Armories, Leeds, UK

I watched this performance last year (November 2007) in UK when I went to Leeds to attend a conference on tourism. I went to an academic conference after a gap of four years. I remember there was Champagne before the dinner at the Royal Armories (a fabulous place) and even though I was alone I decided to celebrate that conference with Champagne.

I also very clearly remember saying to someone that I wonder what is round the next bend, it can't always be Champagne. I really wonder what is round the next bend! I wonder how 2009 turn out to be. Remember I said I would swap the December mood with October!

No More Tag

I tagged Steve a few days back with a long list of books and now I got tagged back. The question in front of me is-

What if you learned that you would soon be no more and you wanted to pass along all the lessons you have learned about life to a young person you care about. What would you say (or write)?

Sounds a little scary isn't it?

Whatever I am writing would be for my nephews (my niece is too little to be bothered). I think sometimes life does not make perfect sense. Heck, at some points it makes no sense at all! It is at times like these, if you could find just one reason to stay positive, that is enough.

And whether I am able to understand it or not due to some inexplicable reason life is beautiful.

That is it folks. My words doesn't sound to be full of wisdom! Please feel free to pick this tag up if you wish.

Naini Lake at Sunset, Nainital

Naini Lake, Nainital, Uttrakhand

I rarely indulge in nostalgia but today is one of those days ... thinking about the travel of the last year, what I was working academically on ... Maybe I will swap the December mood with October!

The Time is Almost Up, About Time I Got a New One!

It has been almost ten years, the passport has to be renewed. While any thought of dealing with the Indian bureaucracy sends a chill down the spine, what is to be done, is to be done. I have been such an infrequent traveler that even after ten years I do not remember my passport number! The Canon has given me company only on the last two UK trips but I just included it in the picture.

The first trip abroad was Singapore, I was still a Ph.D. student and in fact ,when my first paper was accepted I had apply for the passport in a hurry. I got it in time to make the trip. I stayed with people we knew and was always escorted everywhere, so I only negotiated the airports on my own at IGI, Colombo (transit) and Changai.

Then came Athens via Dubai. First trip really alone, meaning I knew no one there and what an adventure it was! It was a culture shock not in terms of how others behaved but how dumb I was!

The third one was to the Netherlands. By now I knew some of the ropes but still Amsterdam is one of those places ...

Then came Italy (by the way all these trips have been related to work, I have never taken a vacation abroad nor do I think we will take one apart from maybe doing the Everest base camp one day) and a trip to Venice. Truly enchanting and also alone! Venice is not the place to go alone.

Then came a four year drought when I was caught in some lousy jobs, a time when there was no research, no travel, only many good students, at least at the last place, and a few even before.

Finally the last two trips to UK with the Canon in hand! The highlight of the first was a trip to Saltaire, UK. And then Oxford and London.

The second one, the most recent one, walking in Oxford has been a pleasure.

That is all, sums up the last 10 years when I used my passport! I hope there are a few more such trips in store for me in future!

Reflection on the River Thames!

Reflection of a Duck on the Thames River, Oxford

It was that time of the year in Oxford, UK (June 2008) when light used to be in abundance and it was easy to catch reflections on the river Thames. I love catching reflections in my photographs.

Also, in the British college curriculum (BBA) there is a heavy emphasis on reflection as a technique of self development. I mean, in one of the courses I teach my students get video recorded while giving mock interviews (among many other things) and they can see the tapes and reflect on what went right and what needs to be changed. Now I as a student never had any such opportunity and made all my mistakes live.

I remember I once appeared in an interview for sports journalism with the Indian Express Group. I was just about to finish my Ph.D. and on a whim I made a CV and sent it across. In the interview I was asked, "Why Sports Journalism now?" And like a fool I said, "Because I wish to take a break." Now when was anyone interested in sponsoring my break? Anyway, I learned my lesson.

At the moment, I do not have to teach and I have some great writing assignments lined up. Academic writing does not comes easily to me, it is lot of hard work, slogging but it is also something that I like a lot. However the resolve to see them through wavering at times! Which would be suicide.

It is time to pause, to reflect. And get things going.

Lazy Sunday Photo- Being Silly!

Being Silly- Jumping Down a Pile of Bricks

I really like the picture above, my nephew and his friend jumping from a pile of bricks (when they are a little too old for this!) and my elder nephew clicked this picture. I mean when do we grow up so much that there is no time left for silly things?

Trafalgar Square, London

You know why I say this? I remember walking past this stone lion in Trafalgar Square and I actually wanted to go and sit there but then didn't risk it for the fear of being too silly. Next time, I am going to act silly at least 3 out of 10 times when I feel like doing so.

A Picture Every other Day- Sitting Duck

Sitting Duck- Picture Clicked at Best Western Resort, Manesar

After looking at this picture I can understand why a sitting duck is considered an easy target! The bird looks so peaceful, unconcerned with the world and without a care in this world. Or is it hiding behind the rocks from everything that is to be avoided, hence this peaceful look? Depending on the mood, both the interpretations would feel correct! Either way, it does seem like an easy target.

Suhana Safar Aur Ye Mausam Haseen!

View While Walking from Komik to Demul

I don't know how this Spiti picture escaped my notice for such a long time. Komik to Langza was the longest walk on this trek but the day was so beautiful, there were clouds and I think the song 'suhana safar aur ye mausam haseen' (it is a pleasent journey and the weather too is pleasent is the poor translation of the song in English) fits the mood perfectly.

I found the video of the song on Youtube.