Vagaries of a Vapid Vagrant

Resonance and all that jazz

2007-10-11T07:18:00.000-07:00

It all seemed so perfect...

He had a magnetic personality and she got attracted to him in no time. The force of attraction was so strong that it took all of her to resist the impulse to go and open her heart to him. Seeing him made her go weak in the knees and he could always make her see things in a new light. Space and time seemed irrelevant whenever she was with him.

The strain could be discerned clearly from her face. She was still unsure as to how she should disturb the equilibrium. But she knew where the momentum would lead them to, so she decided to accelerate things a little.

Finally she gathered enough courage and decided to call him. He was indulging in his favourite pastime - playing half-life. He picked up the phone after some ten rings and however hard she tried, she just couldn't broach the topic. He just seemed intent on going on a tangent. She gave up and said bye. Her head was spinning now. She didn't know what to do. She wasn't even thinking coherently. She decided to call it a night.

The next day, she woke up to find a message on her cell phone. It was from him. It read "I got what you were trying to do yesterday. I don't think it will work out. We're not of the same wavelength."

Worsht

2007-09-08T08:38:00.000-07:00

Saturday evenings might be the worst thing ever invented for guys like me. I mean, its not like Friday evening or Sunday evening. Friday evening you have the entire weekend to look forward to and lots of time to decide upon which movie(s) to watch. Sunday evenings are ok as you suddenly realize you have a pile of assignments to submit on Monday. Its not the best but still its not as bad as Saturday.

For most people of my age around the world Saturday evenings must be THE thing. Pubs to visit, dates with Gf/Bf and what not. For me, I wake up in the evening after having slept too much with a bloody headache and a growling tummy. I go to mess and my life hits a new low. You feel sick after grub and then you realize you have lots of work to do and an exam coming up but then there is Sunday.

Saturday evening is also that time of the week when you feel like doing nothing and to add to the misery, Manchester United is not even playing this weekend.

Worsht.

P.S Arbit Post written while feeling pained.

Rose Coloured Glasses

2007-08-23T09:18:00.000-07:00

Long ago in one of the many planets revolving around one of the myriad stars in the universe, lived a boy who we will call Optimus Maximus.

As far as he could remember he had a pair of spectacles screwed to this skull. Even though he knew that he looked grotesque, he was very proud of his gift. He felt that his parents whom he had never seen, must have gifted him the spectacles which no one else in his city had for some special reason.At the place where he stayed, his looks made him have little or no friendship and he buried himself in whatever books he could find.

When he grew up, the spectacles which were very big to begin with, made him look cute in some weird way. This did nothing to improve his social skills and he spent his entire day repairing an old broken down craft in the forest not far from where he stayed. Four years he toiled, trying one thing and another and then finally he succeeded in making the craft work. He decided to bid goodbye to the world on the night he turned 21, which was only a few weeks away. He had always wondered how the people at the place where he stayed knew his birthday, but he had come to accept it.

The much awaited night came and the craft which he had named Millenium Falcon based on something he had read took off from the planet. He travelled for a few weeks before he landed on another planet.

In this planet, he saw people wearing all kinds of spectacles and some people even had spectacles which could be removed and whose colour could be changed.

Optimus was found dead with his spectacles broken and wrist slashed the next day.

8RF

2007-08-20T06:04:00.000-07:00

I've been tagged by spank and here goes.
Here are the rules:
1. Players start with 8 random facts about themselves.
2. Those who are tagged should post these rules and their 8 random facts.
3. Players should tag 8 other people and notify them they have been tagged.

I am not going to follow rule number 3 as most of my friends have already been tagged.

1. I am morbidly scared of insects especially ones that fly. I hate those days after the rains when your house is full of bloody insects. Nothing scares me like a cockroach I guess, nothing other than wasps. I had always thought they wouldn't attack you unless you go and do something stupid. All this changed on the first day of my intern when I got down from my cycle and was immediately kissed on the ears by a wasp. A welcome kiss might never have been so unappreciated.

2. I can't seem to finish movies. There are 8 or more movies in my computer of which I have seen small fractions ranging anywhere from ten minutes to an hour. I just can't sit still and finish a movie.

3. I can't stand people who talk slowly. I get bored very fast of them. Just can't stand them. Realized this very recently. I have this big urge to go shake them up and make them talk faster.

4. During my summer intern I had the opportunity to go to the beach and sit there alone. I just loved it. All the people around, the gentle breeze and nobody giving a damn as to what you're doing. It was an excellent feeling to sit just close enough to the water so that it takes the sand from underneath your feet but doesn't reach you.
It's just not describable. Try it!

5. I always used to think that I am a loner but recently I have come to realize that I am not at all one. I do like being alone but not to the extent of being stranded on an island.

6. I read books very fast. I am just so caught up in the book that I can't wait to find out what happens in the end with the result that I often skip entire pages. I just can't seem to relish books at the first read.

7. I eat ice creams very very slowly. I can't remember the number of times during school and after that my friends got pained with me for not even being halfway through an ice cream when they're all done. You just have to let the ice cream melt on your tongue and not gobble it up. Great feeling it is.

8. I don't trust people easily. Never in my life have I had a best friend. Somehow I always seem to keep my distance from people.

Anyone who feels like taking up the tag can do so. I refuse to tag other people.

Had to link this

2007-08-12T03:25:00.000-07:00

Happened to read this post on Gk's blog and felt I had to link it.

The Kite Runner

2007-07-18T04:41:00.000-07:00

Moving story.
Read!

Long time

2007-05-05T12:32:00.000-07:00

I just happened to visit my blog and voila! its been a year and two months since I last blogged.
Time does fly fast.
The past one year sure has been eventful with probably my best year in college so far. I so hope that next year beats this year by a long way.
Hope I can write something sensible in my second innings.

P.S one of the reasons why people blog must to be able to go back and laugh at how stupid they were! Tis surely an online diary.

So long then

The Simoqin Prophecies and the Manticore's Secret

2006-03-03T19:50:00.000-08:00

The Simoqin Prophecies and its sequel The Manticore's Secret are part of a satirical Science Fiction Fantasy Trilogy called the GameWorld Trilogy by Samit basu an IIM Calcutta (Kolkata) dropout.
It has elements from Ramayana, Robin Hood, Arabian Nights, Lotr etc. Before you think this is just another one of those rip off fantasy books, i would like to tell you that it has a story of its own.

The author is extremely humorous and the sarcasm involved is just too good.

So if u haven't read these two books go buy (Nicest try i would do that) or just ask Sandeep like i did to lend them to you.
Thanks da Maadher

Why oh why?

2006-02-20T04:35:00.000-08:00

We got our Netsys quiz paper today.
Was shit pained that i managed to put below average in such a peace paper.
Guess its guys like me who help others put good grades by bringing the average down :(

Dialogue

2006-02-17T02:09:00.001-08:00

Prof in today's class " we will talk about statical dynamics later"

One of the best experiences of my life

2006-02-09T22:52:00.000-08:00

Rang De Basanti

2006-02-08T01:19:00.000-08:00

Happened to see this movie on my trip home this weekend.

Its a nice movie which compares the attitude of youth in present day India with those of the freedom struggle days. It also raises a lot of questions about what patriotism means in the 21st century.

It also has a pretty good musical score by A R Rahman and some humorous scenes.

The references to Bhagat Singh and other revolutionaries is obvious.

All in all worth seeing once

INQUILAB ZINDABAD

'Crush'ed Opportunities

2006-02-01T21:45:00.001-08:00

I have spent a lot of time over the last 4-5 days thinking whether i should put this up. Well what the heck i am just gonna do it.

Now this goes a few days back. Back when the grass was greener and the mind still held hopes of striking it rich(you know where). Yeah i'm again talking of Saarang(Oh no not again!)

I saw 'The One' for the first time on the day of the LM show. She was standing in a group of some ten girls in the queue in front of family gate. I was with my sister and some school friends behind their group.

The one was wearing some orangish colour churidar and was chatting within her group in tamil. It was the glow of her face in the yellow light of the sodium vapour lamp that caught my attention. The One wasn't exactly what you might call filmstar material and all but she was pretty in a different kind of way. Her face seemed to invite someone to caress, the skin looked so smooth. The one didn't need to wear mini skirts and show off her shapely calves to catch your attention like a girl in the parallel queue had to do. The scantily clad one did get the attention of most of my friends for the entire time we were in the queue. In the meanwhile I was trying to get a good look at The One.

Then as I was telling myself that all this not gonna come to anything and that you are not even going to learn her name, the show started with Shankar singing Breathless. Now this song has always been one of my favorites and I was so pained that he sang it first while I was left outside in the queue that I shouted out "ONCE MORE".
At this The One turned back to me and said we'll go inside and shout Once more. I asked her how in the world is he to know that we are shouting for Breathless and not some other song. The One gave me a sheepish smile as her reply. Soon we entered inside and I forgot about her in the excitement of the show.

But I couldn't get her out of my mind that night.

For the next two days i tried looking for her but in vain. I had all but given up for there was one more day to go.

Then on the fourth day afternoon while i was watching some event in clt, I saw her again.My heart leapt for joy. She was sitting in one of the back rows but due to my good luck there were a bunch of my year guys in the front row. Shit man! Talk about luck. I decided to wait for a better opportunity.

But alas :( the opportunity never arose and here I am, my thoughts occupied by someone whose name I don't know and who in turn doesn't even know I exist.

Bliss

2006-02-01T08:46:00.000-08:00

There are times in your life when you feel elated by the smallest of things. Today was such a day. I had gone out shopping with my sister and on the way back she said she'll drop me at my hostel. Suddenly inside the campus i told to her to stop and told her i'll drive. Oh man what a drive it was!! The insti roads you feel are tailormade for people to speed on a chilly night.

I am still kind of high after that drive. It even gave me an idea- that i could apply for permission to drive a vehicle from the dean citing my injured leg as reason.

Saaaar........

2006-02-01T00:22:00.000-08:00

One of the first things that strike you when u land up in Chennai is the smell. I mean the train from Aleppey reaches here at 7 in the morning and I dont need an alarm to get up at all. One will be awakened from one's sleep by the sheer aroma (Yeah rite) that greets one on his entry. And the moment you look out you see nice black asses crapping near the railway lines. Welcome to Chennai. Chennai rocks (Snorts)

Soon you've gotten used to the smell and decide to go to Insti.

Scene 1 Outside Railway Station

Me : Saar IIT ponam. Evalo?
Saar : 120 roopa thaange saar.
Me : pona vaati 80 than saar kuduthein.
Saar : athonum enakku theriya venda saar. Varela illaya?
Me : Illai.
Saar : Evalom tharuvel saar?
Me : 90.
Saar : sari 100 roopa tharungo saar.
Me : sari.

Well so after some fight I reach insti. I spent a few weeks roaming around, playing comp games, watching movies etc etc.

Then the strap of my chappal comes loose.

Scene 2 Footpath

Me : Saar intha cherippu repair pannanam.
Saar : (After a good look at my chappals) 30 roopa thange saar.
Me : 20 roopa tharein.
Saar : Enna saar (taps on his stomach).
Me : (reply by a tap on my stomach).
(Saar gives me a pained look and starts work on my chappals)

Scene 3 Foopath Bookstore

Me : Saar Davinci Code evalo?
Saar : 80 rupees saar.
Me : Vena.
Saar : evalo tharuvel saar?
Me : 50 roopa tharein.
Saar : 60 thaange saar.
Me : sari

If u were anywhere close to being observant you would have noticed the number of saars that were used in the dialogues. The first and foremost rule in Chennai - call everyone saar. By everyone I mean right from the auto driver to the mess worker to the roadside shoe repair guy.

Now I dont know how this practice of calling everyone saar came about. Must be a throwback from the British Raj days when it was respectable to be called Sir.

But I find it very funny that the title 'Sir' has to be earned in Britain while if u come to Chennai everyone calls you that even though the word itself is pronounced in a funny way.

Just a jobless me laughing at the ways of the world.

Gigaaaa Messssss

2006-01-31T07:10:00.000-08:00

The only thing which is right about this Himalayan blunder is the name given to it by students- Giga Mess. Now i dont need to tell you guys that Giga is a really big thing.
So you get the order of magnitude of the blunder.

Now for the uninitiated Himalaya is the new common mess that has come up in the campus for men's hostels.It is a three storey giant with lavish space for parking cycles and everything.It is close to 300 metres away from my room and you know what my weekend breakfast is gonna be.

Not having breakfast is beyond the problem.What i dont understand is the problem this new mess is going to solve.If it is the lack of hygiene in mess then we will have to wait and see.But this is a problem which can be solved in hostel messes.Then again quality of food can also be solved right here in the hostel and if reduced cost is the answer well let me tell you this thing is actually costlier.Atleast that's what the menu thingy shown by mess sec had to say.

Now for the problems created by this new mess.

Gargantuan queues for both breakfast and lunch requiring getting up early and going.
Finding your cycle among a group of a thousand cycles and i am not even talking of the agony experienced when you find it under fifteen other cycles.Then there is the pain involved in walking the distance on weekends and at night to have food.

I just don't know how the student secretaries and the senate agreed to wasting such a lot of money on such a wasteful venture.

Maybe next years batch will just take it in their stride as they start at Himalaya and will never experience the mess in hostel concept.

The only people who might be happy at this move are the Music enthu guys in the hostel who don't have to go Sac to practice as the hostel dining hall will be converted into a music room.

The Shivers.......

2006-01-31T02:10:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it....

Spanky's weather monitor shows 84 degrees in Chennai and 82 in Blore and to top it its 15:47 in Chennai.

I don't remember anytime during my second sem when i had to switch off the fan and sleep trying to get my blanket to cover my legs.Its a welcome change anyway and am now dreading the advent of the Chennai summer.Any sign of clouds in the sky and my heart skips a beat ever since a friend told me that the day the real summer starts it will rain and from then on there will be no respite from the heat.He told me this during my second sem and it proved to be true.Let's hope the summer is really late this year

The extent of the chilly morning strikes you only on the way from the shower to the swimming pool in the morning. I was really shivering and my teeth were chattering when i entered the pool.Then I decided to take the cold head on and did a few breadths in the pool.This proved to be a not so nice idea as i ended up sleeping in all my classes and even bunked the 4th hour and slept from 11:15 till 13:15. The only consolation was that i was not alone since Spanky missed the first three hours due to the enthu he put to wake me up and come swimming. After the long nap i got up and went to mess to have lunch, which as usual was give up, and then walked all the way to Lab theory class only to wait ten mins there and start on my way back since the prof didnt come.Talk about luck.

Next up Himalaya, our new mega mess , the most painful change effected by the higher ups in the institute.

Colours

2006-01-30T05:33:00.000-08:00

Saarang 2006 like the previous edition left me with fond memories and expectations for next year.

This Saarang was a step ahead in many ways.

Like last year i made many new friends,took part in many events, ogled(Slisha gives a better picture than leched) at babes,dunno whether that should have come first ;) and enjoyed myself thoroughly at the proshows, well almost.....Dean or the police whoever was responsible just screwed the climax.
The main reason why it was a step ahead was the renewal of many old friendships ;) . Another being the fact that atlast i managed to qualify for the finals of a Saarang quiz (A.V with Knushi and Ganup ) and What's the good word (Knushi).
The finals were a let down though with us putting joint fourth in both events.And another year passes by without a single quiz victory or even a little bit of cash :(

But now for the bright part.

Proshows

This year's were better than last year though not by much. The rock show was a significant improvement over last year though the stairway extended only till 'Trishanku Swargam'.The Shankar show was good though here again luck played spoilsport with me left in the big queue outside family gate while one of my all time favs Breathless was going on inside(Damn you Murphy).The classical show was pretty good though like Spanky said Airtel Customers 'Expressing themselves' diverted attention from the stage.The LM and WM finals which i missed last time were also very good and the french band and their folk music was also nice.

Quizzes

Though i missed the finals of India and SpEnt quiz, The prelims of SpEnt at Saarang was much better than the litsoc one and AV Quiz especially the finals were very well set.Kudos to the Bofi Pota team. Main quiz as usual lived upto its reputation of being the quiz were the mental tenacity of the quizzers is tested to the limit with a finals from 11pm till 6:15 am.Some of the questions like the long visual connect on the portmanteau left me pulling my hair after i had got chunnel and sitcom and one more (dunno which). I am a real dumbass not to have got the 30 connect question on Colours earlier it was Saarang after all. The answer fits in perfectly with Saarang which is why The Bofi and Pota renamed the quiz the Mardi gras AV quiz.
Now you know why the post is called Colours.

What's the good word?

This event finals was also well set except for Chin cupping in the cows and bulls round and the last round being a little (yeah rite) unfair to Rg and Bus who were the consistent performers in the event.

Babes

Well this is one department which in my opinion showed a marked improvement this year.This year there were maajar number of hot chicks though as usual urs truly was content to just look at them and salivate like an alsatian after a long morning jog with its master.Talking of saliva, a number of babes this year were seen chewing gum (dunno if this is the gals way of replying to guys faggin away to glory).

Newsletter

This year's newsletter was nice with many guest articles. I especially liked the articles by Q on connect questions and the one by Petro and Madballs on the beginning of Saarang. Fudu's article was good and it was also nice to see a Stella Maris girl (Manasi)having such a high opinion of IITians though Ducky might be a small reason for that.

Saarang as usual was a story of high expectations, broken dreams and memories to cherish.

Here i go again

2006-01-21T09:45:00.000-08:00

Me a Greek God ???!!!!! Are you out of your mind?

2006-01-21T09:36:00.000-08:00

Morpheus

?? Which Of The Greek Gods Are You ??
brought to you by Quizilla

Truly Jobless

2006-01-21T09:35:00.000-08:00

You are Form 4, Gargoyle: The Fallen.

"And The Gargoyle mended his wings from the
blood of the fallen so he could rise up from
imprisonment. With great speed and
resourcefulness, Gargoyle made the world his
for the taking."

Some examples of the Gargoyle Form are Daedalus
(Greek) and Mary Magdalene (Christian).
The Gargoyle is associated with the concept of
success, the number 4, and the element of wood.
His sign is the new moon.

As a member of Form 4, you are a creative and
resourceful individual. You are always
thinking of possible solutions to problems you
face and you generally choose one that is
right. Much of your success comes from your
ability to look at things a little differently
than everyone else. Gargoyles are the best
friends to have because they don't always take
things for face value.

Which Mythological Form Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Kryptonian ....... Yaaaaaaaay

2006-01-21T09:28:00.000-08:00

Your results:
You are Superman

Superman		85%
Hulk		80%
Supergirl		65%
Robin		62%
Spider-Man		60%
Green Lantern		60%
Batman		55%
Iron Man		40%
Wonder Woman		35%
Catwoman		35%
The Flash		30%

You are mild-mannered, good,
strong and you love to help others.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Quiz

The Curse of the Gangino

2006-01-21T01:26:00.000-08:00

It has happened again.......

Ganga failed to qualify for Schroeter footer leagues for the ninth time(if what a senior told is true) in a row.

What happened at the match? I dont know because i didnt see it.
Seems we played better than the opposition but one small mistake cost us the match.
I thought i should pack this match because then

Murphy's Law

would come into the picture so that Ganga wins and i end up missing a great match.Anything for Ganga

Then again If the law applied Ganga should have qualified last year itself because thats when my knee

ligament

got screwed and my playing stopped.

Well lets just hope that the curse doesn't last for 84 years and that we qualify next year.Hopeully my knee would get better by then.

There is also a Man utd Liverpool match tomorrow and i am hoping man u thulps the reds.

Void Ma(in)ge

2006-01-21T01:21:00.001-08:00

Hey what happened to all the includes???????

find your element
at mutedfaith.com.

Procastination

2005-11-07T06:56:00.000-08:00

Ah well......
The word that describes much of what i do or should i say don't do ?
The word itself comes from the latin cras meaning tomorrow and if u didnt know what it means it means defer action for later.
Now why i thought of writing a blog on procrastination when i have procrastinated blogging after april is a question that needs to be answered. i was going through my friend's blog instead of studying for my endsems and asked myself the question why am i doing this ?
Then the answer the struck me. Isnt this what i always do? i mean deferring action is something that i have been doing all my life and i thought well what better way to start blogging than by writing one on procrastination.
So here i am and hope you too are procrastinating if u are reading this.
Keep Procrastinating

Introduction

2005-04-20T10:17:00.000-07:00

Hi World,
My name is Vijay Shankar and am right now a first year student in Indian Institute of Technology Madras.
I hail from Thrissur in Kerala and am pursuing my Btech in Engineering Physics.
This blog was created by me to speak out my opinion on different issues and also to give vent to my frustrations.