Sunday, September 23, 2007
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Waking up the BLASTed way
Well, after something like the blasts, I cannot think of writing on any other subject. 7 blasts that shook Mumbai, injured mercilessly, destroyed agonizingly, traumatized tardily and woke up instantly. Yes. Woke Mumbai up instantly!
Instead of raving about voices like “Look at the pain it caused”, I am going to jabber about “Do you need a blast to wake you up?”
Picture this. The bomb blasts take place on the 11th of July. And in the next two days, 26 communities on “Fighting Terrorism” Sprang up on Orkut (the popular friends network). And surprisingly, before the 11th not even a single community existed that raised a voice against terrorism or at least none showed up on my search results. Strange eh?
People talk about why it happened? How bad it was. And then a couple of days later, the whole city is patting itself on its back and grinning “Mumbai is unaffected, we can get back on track in a couple of days. No bomb blasts can shake us.” Well, I say ”You were unaffected because you didn’t lose a brother, mother or a father in the blast. You were unaffected because you have developed insensitivity towards the blast, developed by the frequency with what terrorism strikes. You are unaffected because you have to meet your deadlines, and you cant afford to take a day off because of some blasts.”
People may talk, people may cry. But if the same “people” look deep inside, they will see tainted souls that are deficient of the spirit of God. Did the blasts really affect you. What did you do? What about the hundreds who die on the streets because of Hunger? What about the thousands who die because of crime? What about the children who die as children, because their parents didn’t have enough money to get them treated? Why do we ignore the blasts that are happening everyday in the lives of the handicapped and the disabled? How many people prayed for the terrorists who did this? Don’t their souls deserve salvation?
Well the blasts were Gods way of telling a sleeping generation to get up. This is what I believe. Because we are a generation in slumber. A generation in sin. What are we doing as Christians? Do we need God to wake us up the BLASTed way?
Instead of raving about voices like “Look at the pain it caused”, I am going to jabber about “Do you need a blast to wake you up?”
Picture this. The bomb blasts take place on the 11th of July. And in the next two days, 26 communities on “Fighting Terrorism” Sprang up on Orkut (the popular friends network). And surprisingly, before the 11th not even a single community existed that raised a voice against terrorism or at least none showed up on my search results. Strange eh?
People talk about why it happened? How bad it was. And then a couple of days later, the whole city is patting itself on its back and grinning “Mumbai is unaffected, we can get back on track in a couple of days. No bomb blasts can shake us.” Well, I say ”You were unaffected because you didn’t lose a brother, mother or a father in the blast. You were unaffected because you have developed insensitivity towards the blast, developed by the frequency with what terrorism strikes. You are unaffected because you have to meet your deadlines, and you cant afford to take a day off because of some blasts.”
People may talk, people may cry. But if the same “people” look deep inside, they will see tainted souls that are deficient of the spirit of God. Did the blasts really affect you. What did you do? What about the hundreds who die on the streets because of Hunger? What about the thousands who die because of crime? What about the children who die as children, because their parents didn’t have enough money to get them treated? Why do we ignore the blasts that are happening everyday in the lives of the handicapped and the disabled? How many people prayed for the terrorists who did this? Don’t their souls deserve salvation?
Well the blasts were Gods way of telling a sleeping generation to get up. This is what I believe. Because we are a generation in slumber. A generation in sin. What are we doing as Christians? Do we need God to wake us up the BLASTed way?
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Nailed for me...
The church organ began churning out tunes of lamentation. Everybody sank into their seats to send up a small prayer (or at least they pretended to) before they started scurrying out to avoid the human traffic at the small door of our church. In a few minutes, the exit was cramped with people of different shapes and ages, all wanting to get out and go home. For most of them, they had finished their responsibility of attending church on a Good Friday, and all they wanted to do, was to get out of that place now. Some of the more religious souls stayed on to be a part of the Holy Communion. As I walked out of church, I could imagine the scampering that would follow, scampering to eat the bread and wine as soon as possible, and just get out of there. I wondered how many people actually meant what they were doing that day. It was a Good Friday, not too different from the others that had come and gone. But for me, this year it was different. The message had worked its wonder on me.
I trudged out on to the street, the noon sun glaring on to my face, the message from the pastor still fresh in my mind, when something suddenly made me look at the palms of my hands. Why was it scar-less? Why weren’t there painful holes in my palms? I felt the side of my stomach. I didn’t find any spear wounds there. I felt my back. The flesh of my back wasn’t torn. Still wondering, I ran my fingers through my hair. I didn’t feel thorns clinging on to my skull. The sun beat on my forehead, and I wiped off my sweat. My sweat was colourless. Why wasn’t it blood instead of water?
That’s when Isaiah 53:5 hit me like a brick on the back of my head.
“But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our infirmities, the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds are we healed.”
- Isaiah 53:5
I walked on, and before I knew, someone I disliked caught my sight. My heart was filled with abhorrence. Immediately I heard someone hammer on something. It sounded like a big nail being hammered into wood with a huge hammer, but on looking around I found nothing of that sort happening. I was stunned. Still in disbelief I walked towards the railway tracks, when a dirty beggar came up to me and grabbed my arms, dirtying my white shirt. The tragic expression on his face didn’t soften the anger that exploded in my veins. At that moment, out of nowhere, I heard whipping sounds accompanied by moans. This was crazy. My eager walk broke out into a desperate run. I was sweating and panting as I ran on the streets of my colony, I ran till I could run no more, I stopped under a tree and thought to myself...
I trudged out on to the street, the noon sun glaring on to my face, the message from the pastor still fresh in my mind, when something suddenly made me look at the palms of my hands. Why was it scar-less? Why weren’t there painful holes in my palms? I felt the side of my stomach. I didn’t find any spear wounds there. I felt my back. The flesh of my back wasn’t torn. Still wondering, I ran my fingers through my hair. I didn’t feel thorns clinging on to my skull. The sun beat on my forehead, and I wiped off my sweat. My sweat was colourless. Why wasn’t it blood instead of water?
That’s when Isaiah 53:5 hit me like a brick on the back of my head.
“But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our infirmities, the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds are we healed.”
- Isaiah 53:5
I walked on, and before I knew, someone I disliked caught my sight. My heart was filled with abhorrence. Immediately I heard someone hammer on something. It sounded like a big nail being hammered into wood with a huge hammer, but on looking around I found nothing of that sort happening. I was stunned. Still in disbelief I walked towards the railway tracks, when a dirty beggar came up to me and grabbed my arms, dirtying my white shirt. The tragic expression on his face didn’t soften the anger that exploded in my veins. At that moment, out of nowhere, I heard whipping sounds accompanied by moans. This was crazy. My eager walk broke out into a desperate run. I was sweating and panting as I ran on the streets of my colony, I ran till I could run no more, I stopped under a tree and thought to myself...
“Whom am I running from? What am I running from? Am I running from the fact that Jesus was nailed on the cross for me. For every sin that I commit, I should be the one nailed through my hand. But in contrast, each sin of mine is like a blow to those huge nine-inch nails that almost crushed the tender bones of his hands as it inched deeper into the timber. Every blow must have sent raw agony down the spine of Jesus. Every lash must have ripped off a part of His determination to have the cup of sorrow.
Every thorn in that crown must have felt like a spear of torment embedded in his skull. Every second on that cross must have felt like a hundred years in hell. Every drop of spit that hit his face must have felt like boiling concentrated hydrochloric acid. Every centimeter he walked on the road to Golgotha must have felt like crawling on a 100- mile stretch of red-hot coals. And every time I sin, I rub his face into the burning coal. I hurt him exponentially more than he was hurt on the cross when i sin!!! Why am I so blind? Why…”
…. The church organ began churning out tunes of lamentation. I opened my sleepy eyes to find myself in church. What??? This was a dream??? The people around me got up and started scampering out of church. I just sat there, again in disbelief, realizing that I had missed the Good Friday message and I knew the late night movie I watched the previous day was the culprit. The church started emptying out. I just looked upwards and said, “That was the best dream I ever had.” I was somebody without a conscience when I slept in church, but the dream changed things. That day, I walked out of church determined to live for him, determined to make sure that the next time someone has to be nailed, it would be the guy with the tail. Three Cheers for Jesus!!!
Saturday, February 03, 2007
Caribbean Blues
I clicked this on Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles. This man stood in solitude as he played the sax, one of the instruments that i really admire & I wish I knew. This is on snap that I love.
I vote
I decided to vote.
Because I want to have a say in who rules my hood.
Because I want to be a part of the decision making process.
Because I can go and caste a vote that I am not pleased with any of the candidates.
Because I can show them that I am not ignorant of what happens in my country.
Because I feel that taking a half day off to vote is worth exercising your right.
Because I am an optimist.
Because I believe that little drops make up the ocean.
Because the ink on my finger reminds me that I am a part if it.
I vote because I can.
Can you vote?
Friday, February 02, 2007
Outback outreach....!!!
One of my most soul shaking journeys...2 days in Khopoli, reaching out to tribal villagers with men of God. Unbeatable!It started out with 8 of us (Bonny, Sheril, Edison, Ravi, Annette, Shimona, Serena & myself) friends deciding to participate in an outreach program to the tribal villages of Khopoli. The program was organised by our church. It was for the tough, adventurous and the brave kind of people. It wasnt a luxury camp that w
e were attending. This was something different.We started off by staying at bonnys house. We had to catch the 8:15 am Khopoli Local from mulund. As usual we were late and we missed the train. Basically we had to prepare our own lunch, & that is the reason we got late.
On missing the train, we had to find an alternate mode of transport. We decided to Bike it out! I called our pastor to ask him if we could ride to khopoli, and I got a very prompt 'No!' from him. The next train to khopoli was scheduled 4 hours later. We pondered if we should take a train to Karjat and then change trains to khopoli. But looking at the crowd on the platform, we knew it was going to be standing journey. So we decided to take the ST Bus.
The next ST bus for Khopoli was at 10:00 am. We decided to wait it out with 'wada pavs' from Kunj Vihar. Beleive me, they never come as big as they come in Kunj Vihar. The best Wada Pav the city has to offer. Lost in our Indian style veg burgers, ...(you guessed it right), we missed the 10:00 am bus to khopoli. Patience was morphing into desperation. With options running out for us now, we boarded a bus to Panvel. We thought we could catch a connecting bus from Panvel to Khopoli, and jumped into a Panvel Bus.
The ST journey was decent, considering the fact I slept through most of it. On a few occasions, we were thrown a couple of feet into the air and woke up in our neighbours seat, but other than that it was a peaceful journey. Off at panvel we had to wait another 45 minutes before we got a connecting bus to khopoli. The driver in the bus was nuts. He had 'I cant be second' syndrome and also seemed to suffer from elephantitis. His heavy foot never seemed to get off the accelerator & his nutty brain kept telling him, 'you got to be first, dont let anyone overtake you'. The innocent victim - Me. I never could stand even looking at a merry-go-round, let alon
e riding one, and this fellow was rollercoasting me all the way to Khopoli. If my vomit would have started its upward journey in the Bus itself, I would make sure that the driver got a good taste of my 'reversed excretory process output'. But we just reached khopoli on time. I rushed out of the Bus, only to find Rev. Shalom waving at me. Semi-dazed and in a envioronment conducive to puking, I waved back weakly and managed to hold back my half digested wada pav from kunj vihar. When I got to my senses, I looked around. We were in Khopoli!And this is where the humour in my write-up ends...
God had helped us overcome all the difficulties and arrive at khopoli... and I wondered... why?
Some of us were driven to a church in a large ambassador. The rest of us took a rickshaw. It was a small nice church where we put down our bags and joined the session. In this session, some
people from the villiage gave their testimonies. We also had an orientation session where all of us were taught, how to behave while talking to the villagers.After this all of us shared our lunch that we had brought along with us. It was a nice time of sharing we had. Once we were done, we were to set out on our trip to the village. The village was around 25 kms from the church, in the interiors. And our mode of transport was a truck. This was one of the most awsome journeys that I have had for a long time. A truck full of youngsters, chugging away to an interior village on an outreach ministry.
It was the 26th of january, and on that day, the police are strict about large processions moving about the
place. The police wouldnt like to see a truck full of noisy youngsters and would have 
possibly stopped us and questioned us. The truck being an open air truck, would make it easier for the police to spot us. But we had a strategy. When the bus neared the check-point, someone from the back screamt out loud - 'Phatak!!' and all of use sat down and shut up. There was absolutely no place in the truck. People all crapmed up, but silent. We couldnt afford to make noise. It reminded me of how life would have been for those guys who lived during the 'War ages'. It reminded me of how the missionaries must have travelled.The truck rolled to a groggy stop at a rustic little village. We jumped out of the truck one by one, slightly uncertain of what we were going to do in this rural setting. We were directed to a small
house where we were given water. Then we were sent out in groups to visit members of the villiage. We visited believing homes of villagers.We walked through the alleys of the village that consisted mainly of mud houses. We were taken to a house where a woman welcomed us with a warm smile. When we entered, I was asked to pray ... In Hindi! I had never done that before! And I realised how difficult it was to pray in another language. But God helped me with the prayer. He put words in my mouth. We were then offered a seat on a sheet spread over the ground made of dried dung. We sat down. And we started talking to the lady in the house.
We had to speak in marathi to the village woman. And this was a great challenge for me. Speaking in marathi!! No way! We were guided by bro. Nilesh on what to speak and where to take the conversation. My team members could speak marathi, and they were the ones who were talking to the lady. I was just a quite spectator, with storms brewing in my mind. The lady had simple faith. She was simple. No complexities. She did not worry about doctrines and debates, logic and knowledge. All she bothers about was her relationship with God. And that is what touched me most. For every question we asked, her answer was positive. It was like a mirror that I looked into that day. A mirror that showed me what I am and who I am. It was terrific.
She did not have riches nor did she have money. She did not have furniture in her house. Her
furniture were the two goats tied inside her house. She did not have a cell phone or a Computer. But she had happiness and contentment. Though to the world she was poorer than me, I knew she was actually much richer than what I was. I realised that life is not about money. Life is not about material things. God will provide my needs and fulfill my desires. All I needed was to trust on him."Seek Ye first the Kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you" Matthew 6:33
We walked out of the lady’s house after taking a picture with the lady, with stirred souls and repentant hearts. We then assembled in the village courtyard, where Sheldon shared his experiences with us. Truly touching experiences of how God changed his life. And how he lives as a soldier for Christ. God bless you Sheldon, for your zeal and your encouragement.
It was then time to evangelise on the street. We performed skits on the road for the villagers. We sang songs, prayed and rejoiced on the street. What an experience. And my dense beard got me the role of Jesus in the Skits. I wish I could be more like him in real life! It was a joy to work on the streets reaching out to people.
Once we were done with skits, we were back on the truck to the church where we were put up. In the evening, all of us helped in making dinner. The girl’s cleaned the rice while we cleaned the garlic. We had a good time of praise and worship too. And then we wrote down in pieces of paper all the things & sins in life that pulled us behind. These pieces of paper were burned in the bonfire that we had in the night. Again it was an awesome time of praise and worship that we had around the bonfire.When it was time to sleep, we were again driven in truck to a house nearby where we could
sleep. I think it was the house of the pastor of the church. The ride to the house late in the night in an open truck was terrific. Something I have never experienced before. At one point of time, the truck driver slammed on the brakes suddenly and all of us fell flat backwards, as we were all standing with our backs to the driver. All of us flat on each other. It was fun.The next day we were up early and back in the church. The morning praise and worship session was totally awesome. It touched my heart and tore my pride and my flesh into bits. I felt one with God. I cried like a child when I visualized what a sinner I was in front of Jesus and how small I was. I cried because he sacrificed his life for me on the cross. I cried because I knew he loved me even though I was an insignificant and unworthy person.
Then the villagers from afar came and visited the church. It was a nice time of praise and
worship with the villagers. Their loud drums and maharashtrian styled marathi songs really got us jumping. It was an environment of joy and happiness. The villagers danced and sang with joy. We were all so happy. In the last session, we all prayed for the villagers, laying our hands on them. It was a joyous experience. Youngsters praying for old men and little children. I prayed for an uncle after which I was assigned the job of capturing people praying on my camera. I guess my ministry was to show the world what happened that day.In the end we sat together and had our lunch. I did not have high hopes on the quality of food at khopoli before I went there. But the food was awsome. It was such a nice time that we had out there. We returned home that afternoon, and straight headed to our local church with our bags. All eight of us testified in our churches and fellowships that evening. I really praise and thank God for those 2 days in my life.
In khopoli, a spark set off a fire. The fire will be passed on. It will consume the evil of many. It will spread. For this is the consuming fire of God...
THE LAND LIES OPEN BEFORE US, LET US GO AND CLAIM IT TOGETHER WITH JESUS!!!
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Shucks
Shucks, My exams, will they never end. I am tired. After more than 20 years of education, it is'nt over. The instinct for survival pushes me on. I probable will have to stay awake throughout the night to complete my syllabus. God save me.
This was a blog break that I took. And i need to get back to my studies soon. Anyway, watched a documentary on the 'Lion v/s Tiger battle'. Keep visiting, ill be posting an interesting article on the 'Lion v/s Tiger battle'.
This was a blog break that I took. And i need to get back to my studies soon. Anyway, watched a documentary on the 'Lion v/s Tiger battle'. Keep visiting, ill be posting an interesting article on the 'Lion v/s Tiger battle'.
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
The Wind farmer's farms
This is one of the best pictures i've ever taken. This was taken on the way to LA from a moving greyhound. I was seated on the fourth seat in the bus, & shot this pic through the windscreen of the vehichle. All thanks to my Cannon Powershot S2 IS. The Pic was taken on full 12X optical zoom and 5 MP resolution.
Desire of an Ordinary Man
These are from one of my earlier writings... Found this old write-up, hidden in one of my PC backups after really long, and I decided to publish it on my blog. here goes....
---
"It about time I actually did something significant. About time I contributed to society. About time I made a difference. About time I got up from my slumber" I thought to myself. "But... How?" Hmmm... a question that actually made me scratch my head as i crossexamined my life. What was I doing with it anyway?
Soon my mind was flooded with questions triggered of by "But ...How?", and I soon realized that I had simple answers to these baffling questions.
Q. Who am I?
A. A mere commoner.
Q. What could I do to serve the world around me?
A. Maybe give a beggar a rupee or abstain from pissing on the roadside walls (however bad the pressure may seem).
Q. Do I Have the money to start something?
A. No.
Q. Do I have the guts to go out and battle it out?
A. No.
Q. Why am I writing this?
A. Probably an outlet for my frustation...
Q. Can writing help?
A. Maybe...
Q. Should I stop putting up these stupid questions in my article?
A. YES!!!
I could go on and on, but lets move on to things of more substance.
After I grilled myself with those questions, I soon realized that a contribution to society would be something that would need my energy & efforts. I am lazy. Well ... what the hell!! everybody is! Set aside some guys who think that jogging in the wee hours of the morning is better than tucking your head into that cozy old pillow. The point is I have the energy inside me, but didnt have the will to gyrate it into something that could make a difference.
Therefore I decided that "I need to change." I took up jogging for starters. And when I did that, I knew why the early jogger running around a park like a nut loves that routine over precious sleep. I also went out and got a pair of dumbells. You get them at reasonable rates at a roadside shop in Ghatkopar west. Go get em!! I was soon pumping my arms whenever I got the time.
I also decided that I would be more religious. I started carrying the Bible with me. I stopped doing things I shouldnt be doing. And I decided to be a good fellow... and blah blah blah!
So will doing these things (that seem so right) actually help me out in my endavour to save the world? Maybe. Maybe not. But more likey "Maybe". Therefore I continue to do these things. And is it easy? No. Infact resisting something that your concience tells you is wrong is tougher than climbing mount everest, atleast for a weakly willed person like me.
Next, I decided that I would write. I always knew that my fingers speak better than my mouth. And I started exercising my fingers on the Keyboard. I started with short articles and extensively long letters, and a poem here and there. Well, reading was always a part of me, and it did help me write. And I wrote. I am still writing and it really helps me release all the crap that is stored inside me.
And then I decided to put up what I wrote on the internet. I decided to have my own blogs. Thats how this article got online.
So getting to the meaning of this write up "Desire of an Ordinary Man". The Ordinary person is me. Simple old me. Been just over a couple of decades since Ive been walking the face of this planet. My desire is to "To contribute positively" to anything that I can. From helping my mother grate coconuts, to saving the world from a devastating meteor. It could just be anything.
I have started my journey. Maybe I will succeed, maybe all my efforts would be in vain, but I atleast would have the satisfaction to say "I tried". This was a proclamation write-up to annunciate the arrival of ME.
There are many ordinary men like me who have similar desires. This is to encourage them to take up the battle against the dark forces that tend to push one and all down. Follow your dreams. Wake up and take up your swords. And let us return from the battle field victorious. Lest we perish, from one drop of blood of an ordinary man would arise a million more. And it takes just ordinary men to peform extraordinary feats.
"It is the Desire of an ordinary man that can move in the world in extraordinary ways".
---
---
"It about time I actually did something significant. About time I contributed to society. About time I made a difference. About time I got up from my slumber" I thought to myself. "But... How?" Hmmm... a question that actually made me scratch my head as i crossexamined my life. What was I doing with it anyway?
Soon my mind was flooded with questions triggered of by "But ...How?", and I soon realized that I had simple answers to these baffling questions.
Q. Who am I?
A. A mere commoner.
Q. What could I do to serve the world around me?
A. Maybe give a beggar a rupee or abstain from pissing on the roadside walls (however bad the pressure may seem).
Q. Do I Have the money to start something?
A. No.
Q. Do I have the guts to go out and battle it out?
A. No.
Q. Why am I writing this?
A. Probably an outlet for my frustation...
Q. Can writing help?
A. Maybe...
Q. Should I stop putting up these stupid questions in my article?
A. YES!!!
I could go on and on, but lets move on to things of more substance.
After I grilled myself with those questions, I soon realized that a contribution to society would be something that would need my energy & efforts. I am lazy. Well ... what the hell!! everybody is! Set aside some guys who think that jogging in the wee hours of the morning is better than tucking your head into that cozy old pillow. The point is I have the energy inside me, but didnt have the will to gyrate it into something that could make a difference.
Therefore I decided that "I need to change." I took up jogging for starters. And when I did that, I knew why the early jogger running around a park like a nut loves that routine over precious sleep. I also went out and got a pair of dumbells. You get them at reasonable rates at a roadside shop in Ghatkopar west. Go get em!! I was soon pumping my arms whenever I got the time.
I also decided that I would be more religious. I started carrying the Bible with me. I stopped doing things I shouldnt be doing. And I decided to be a good fellow... and blah blah blah!
So will doing these things (that seem so right) actually help me out in my endavour to save the world? Maybe. Maybe not. But more likey "Maybe". Therefore I continue to do these things. And is it easy? No. Infact resisting something that your concience tells you is wrong is tougher than climbing mount everest, atleast for a weakly willed person like me.
Next, I decided that I would write. I always knew that my fingers speak better than my mouth. And I started exercising my fingers on the Keyboard. I started with short articles and extensively long letters, and a poem here and there. Well, reading was always a part of me, and it did help me write. And I wrote. I am still writing and it really helps me release all the crap that is stored inside me.
And then I decided to put up what I wrote on the internet. I decided to have my own blogs. Thats how this article got online.
So getting to the meaning of this write up "Desire of an Ordinary Man". The Ordinary person is me. Simple old me. Been just over a couple of decades since Ive been walking the face of this planet. My desire is to "To contribute positively" to anything that I can. From helping my mother grate coconuts, to saving the world from a devastating meteor. It could just be anything.
I have started my journey. Maybe I will succeed, maybe all my efforts would be in vain, but I atleast would have the satisfaction to say "I tried". This was a proclamation write-up to annunciate the arrival of ME.
There are many ordinary men like me who have similar desires. This is to encourage them to take up the battle against the dark forces that tend to push one and all down. Follow your dreams. Wake up and take up your swords. And let us return from the battle field victorious. Lest we perish, from one drop of blood of an ordinary man would arise a million more. And it takes just ordinary men to peform extraordinary feats.
"It is the Desire of an ordinary man that can move in the world in extraordinary ways".
---
A road in Mumbai...
If you are a Mumbaite, you probably would know how the roads in Mumbai are, unless you are a fortunate train traveller. Well i wont be sarcastic, and would write about train travel in another blog, but right now lets sympathise with the roadies.
From beautifully carved potholes to puddles that give you that tingling feeling in your stomach. You really dont know whether you would make it out of that puddle alive. You dont know how deep it can be. Maybe it is the grand canyon in disguise, or maybe it is just a mirage (you shouldnt have had that extra peg the previous night). To sum it up, the roads in Mumbai are abominable. I dont say that all the raods all over mumbai are bad, there are some roads that are a pleasure to drive on. But the bad ones, ... they are now a cultural heritage of Mumbai. NGO's should take up initiatives to actually preserve these one in a million beautifying structures.
Sometimes I just cannot encompass as to why the government loves digging. Every single employee of the government does. From digging for bribes to digging up the roads and digging their noses. If they adore digging so much why cant they dig into the fact that they are spoiling it not only for themselves, but for every person around them. Or should I call them gravediggers? Somebody get some sense into their blinded minds !!! Anyway getting back to the dug up roads, there always is a dug up road in mumbai around every corner. Probably for laying some telephone cables or some other stupid wire. And before they have finished filling up one hole, some other contractor has already started digging up the other end of the street.
Isnt it about time we coin a new term - "dughole". Potholes are holes caused by natural conditions and traffic. Dugholes are caused by the great indian diggers.Wow!! At this rate, we can say that "for every road in mumbai, there is a dughole".
And nowdays we have seen a spurt in conversion of the existing tar roads in Mumbai to the much stronger and durable concrete roads. I was really happy to see these developments. Atleast the digging business would slow down (anyone would have to think twice before digging a concrete road). But strangely, the western countries have realised that asaphalt roads are better than concrete roads. The are easier to maintain and the amount of noise a vehichle moving on them is considerably less as compared to concrete roads. Hope they dont decide to scrap all the concrete roads and get back to Asaphalt! On second thoughts, i dont think so. Concrete is more suitable for Indian conditions. cause even before they are completed, asaphalt roads look like the cheek of a pockmarked pirate.
People always say, It is you who should make a difference. Could someone guide me as to how I should make a difference in this situation. How? How? How Freakin How???
quote unquote - imagination
'There is a boundary to men's passions when they act from feelings; but none when they are under the influence of imagination'.
- Edmund Burke
Five point Someone...
This review comes in a bit too late, but better late than never.
A story about three youngsters at IIT. This is what the book is all about. Nothing more, Nothing less. Still, when you pick up the best-seller by Chetan Bhagat, I bet that you wouldnt be able to put it down till you have run through it. You Just have to complete the whole book at a stretch.
The book is simple, amusing, interesting, exciting, romantic, inspiring et al. Chetan Bhagat has scripted this simple story out in such a wonderful way that you can actually step into the lives of the three main characters this book revolves around - Hari, Alok & Ryan. The book starts of by raking up some nostalgia from within you, and moves on on to completely captivate you with three very average characters, with dark shades moving in and out at parts. The storyline also has a lot to offer and in combination with the writers ability, has churned out what Outlook termed as 'a book that could acheive cult status'.
The writer has a fresh new style of writing, and has in a very creative way, made the book autobiographical using the character 'Hari', who is the axel around which the book revolves. It starts with Hari's admission into IIT, an takes you through all the semesters and the ups and downs that Hari goes through. THe bonds of friendship that exist between Hari & his close buddies, the teasing, the friction between them and all their doings and undoings would surely strike a chord. Not too heavy, not too light, this book is a perfect blend of all the basic human emotions that push you on.
A must read for all those who have gone through college & hostel life and also those who havent!
A story about three youngsters at IIT. This is what the book is all about. Nothing more, Nothing less. Still, when you pick up the best-seller by Chetan Bhagat, I bet that you wouldnt be able to put it down till you have run through it. You Just have to complete the whole book at a stretch.
The book is simple, amusing, interesting, exciting, romantic, inspiring et al. Chetan Bhagat has scripted this simple story out in such a wonderful way that you can actually step into the lives of the three main characters this book revolves around - Hari, Alok & Ryan. The book starts of by raking up some nostalgia from within you, and moves on on to completely captivate you with three very average characters, with dark shades moving in and out at parts. The storyline also has a lot to offer and in combination with the writers ability, has churned out what Outlook termed as 'a book that could acheive cult status'.
The writer has a fresh new style of writing, and has in a very creative way, made the book autobiographical using the character 'Hari', who is the axel around which the book revolves. It starts with Hari's admission into IIT, an takes you through all the semesters and the ups and downs that Hari goes through. THe bonds of friendship that exist between Hari & his close buddies, the teasing, the friction between them and all their doings and undoings would surely strike a chord. Not too heavy, not too light, this book is a perfect blend of all the basic human emotions that push you on.
A must read for all those who have gone through college & hostel life and also those who havent!
Know my phone, the N73 ME.
One of the most balanced phones. The best you can get today.
I recently brought the N73 Music Edition and I am really glad with my buy. The performance of the phone has surely been beyond my expectations. My review is based on my personal experience & my research on the internet before buying this phone. Hope it helps...
The N73 ME is a smart phone that strikes a perfect balance between Ergonomics, looks, Photography, music, & basic & advanced phone functionality
What extra does the N73 ME have over the N73?
- An additional 2 GB Memory card.- An additional music adapter for 3.5 mm headphones(any headphone that can be connected to your PC).- Widened stereo balance.- Black coloured exterior body- Upgraded firmware- Additional software functionality + added applications for music.- Rs.1500 more in the cost
In all other aspects, the N73 ME is similar to the N73.
Ergonomics & design of exterior body:
The N73 Music edition comes in just one colour, Black. And it looks much better than the normal N73. The phone has a very sleek and compact look from the front. Not too large I would say, but on the larger side. Weighs around 116 gms. Lighter than all other N series models. Just 6 gms heavier than the 6233. The keypad is small and one of the negatives of the phone. After a while you would get used to typing on it though. There are additional four buttons that surround the main keypad. These are 1.Menu Key 2.Edit Key 3. Clear Key 4. Music Key. These keys are really thin & small. You will have to almost press those with your nails. If you put on a crystal case on your phone, it would become all the more difficult to operate these keys, especially the clear key. The joystick is OK. I didn’t have problems using it, though it is smaller than the average phone joystick size. It seems a bit feeble though. Avoid playing games on this phone, especially those games that need a joystick. You don’t know when it will pop out. i say this because I have personally seen and heard instances of the joystick of the N73 coming out.
The backside of the phone looks good. It has a sliding flap that protects the lens. The flap works fine. People complain that it may seem a hint loose, but I haven’t had any problems regarding it.
Camera & Photography:
This is what makes the camera cost so much! The excellent 3.2 MP Camera with Carl Zeiss lens. Today, no other Nokia phone can capture better still photos than the Nokia N73. The photos are really rich in colour. In fact the colors are unreal, ie. brighter than the actual colours. Photos of flowers and really bright coloured objects can become an eyesore sometimes, but different people react differently to the pictures. Personally, the N73 takes the best day photographs in the world (Even better than the SE k800i Cybershot phone). But the N73 cannot beat the K800i on night photography. The k800i xeon flash is too much for the N73 to compete with. But The N73 has a decent flash for the night. In the night portrait mode, the flash flashes harder and the photos come out quite good.
There are 8 modes of photography, like scene mode, macro mode, night mode, night portrait, portrait etc. And other photography options really make this a great camera phone. You can take wonderful pictures of moving objects using the sport mode. The macro mode really works wonders on close-up photographs. The night mode is perfect for dim photographs of night scenes without flash. The night potriat mode will flash a flash that will blind you. You get decent photographs at night too. There is also the sequence mode that lets you take continuous pictures by holding the camera click button down. I have taken upto 15 pictures non stop. The k790i/K800i claims to take 9 pictures in that mode.
Autofocus really helps and can be fun to use. You can 'half-click' and focus before you click. This ensures that there are no smudgy images. But unlike how autofocus should work, it captures the photo 2 to 3 seconds and a few frames later. Ideally half-clicking should give you the image that you see on the display when you click all the way through. This is one defect that probably may be corrected in the future versions. (Which I am not too hopeful of)
Videos:
The video capabilities of this phone is decent too. It captures videos at 15 frames per second. Televisions have a minimum of 30 Fps to avoid flicker. But I wont complain as phones havent reached that level except the N93 which can capture videos at 30 fps. The video capabilities are better than that of the SE K800i but not as good as the N93 which is an exclusive video phone. But note that the N93 cannot capture as good images as the N73.
Music:
You cannot compare the music of the SE walman phones to any others, but the N73 isnt far behind. It has decent stereo speakers, not the best though. And you get a 3.5 mm jack adapter, that is nice. This allows you to attach headphones to the mobile. Any headphone that you connet to your PC would fit on to the adapter. The music OP is good. If you can get the earphones of the walkman series, the music experience would be better. Or if you get headphones like seiheiser or some other brilliant band, the music experience will be worth it. The 2GB memory card that comes with the phone enables you to store ample songs. I even found some hindi songs already on the phone, but I couldnt play them as their licences had to be updated. I dont know how much the cost of upgrading the licence is.
The N73 ME phone is supposed to be a music phone, but this is like Nokia has tried to make a football player play cricket. Photography will be the prime feature of this phone and music will be the secondary feature.
Battery Life:
The battery quality of the phone is decent enough. A whole day of flash photography and the battery is still full. Though talking a lot and listening to music can eat the battery, you can go one days with full usage. If you dont talk much or dont listen to music, i say that you can go longer, upto 3 days. The official standby time is 350 h and the talk time is up to 6h.
Sound Reception:
The sound reception of the phone is good. No problems at all. Never had problems with any nokia phones on the Sound reception side.
Image Gallery:
The phone sports a cool image gallery. The animation is nice. It lets you edit the image. Lets you add cliparts (funny stuff like moustaches, ties, hairstyles) on the images. You can create muvees(something like videos created using vindows movie maker) using your images. Also the image gallery is very slick and impressive. Nice animation. The only thing is you cant hide images from the image gallery. It picks up all the images on your phone memory and memory card.
Address-book:
The phone has a great phone book. Very easy to use and nice. Well equpped.
Software availabiliy:
The software availability for this phone sporting Symbian OS 60 v 3.0 is not that great. Though I was able to install all .Jar files, 90% of the .sis files could not be installed. But I guess this should get better with time with software availability becoming better.
The Price:
The price of the phone can burn a hole in your pocket. I think it should have been priced at 20,000 max. But the N73 ME costs above 24,000.
Overall Conclusion:
This phone is an awsome phone and one of the best equipped phones today. It has all you want. Ranging from terrefic music capabilities, to large storage memory, a good processor (one of the faster smart phones, faster than the 6233 which i didnt expext), Symbian OS which multiplies the capacity of the phone by infinity (this is the one feature that Kicks SE ass). But best of all the awsome camera and the functionality that you get with it. Overall, I would go in for this phone, though i think it is overpriced, cause its really got everything that you want.
If you are gonna be really using all the features of the phone, then go for it. If you are just gonna talk on phone, then you will find phones at cheaper prices that looks quite better.
I recently brought the N73 Music Edition and I am really glad with my buy. The performance of the phone has surely been beyond my expectations. My review is based on my personal experience & my research on the internet before buying this phone. Hope it helps...
The N73 ME is a smart phone that strikes a perfect balance between Ergonomics, looks, Photography, music, & basic & advanced phone functionality
What extra does the N73 ME have over the N73?
- An additional 2 GB Memory card.- An additional music adapter for 3.5 mm headphones(any headphone that can be connected to your PC).- Widened stereo balance.- Black coloured exterior body- Upgraded firmware- Additional software functionality + added applications for music.- Rs.1500 more in the cost
In all other aspects, the N73 ME is similar to the N73.
Ergonomics & design of exterior body:
The N73 Music edition comes in just one colour, Black. And it looks much better than the normal N73. The phone has a very sleek and compact look from the front. Not too large I would say, but on the larger side. Weighs around 116 gms. Lighter than all other N series models. Just 6 gms heavier than the 6233. The keypad is small and one of the negatives of the phone. After a while you would get used to typing on it though. There are additional four buttons that surround the main keypad. These are 1.Menu Key 2.Edit Key 3. Clear Key 4. Music Key. These keys are really thin & small. You will have to almost press those with your nails. If you put on a crystal case on your phone, it would become all the more difficult to operate these keys, especially the clear key. The joystick is OK. I didn’t have problems using it, though it is smaller than the average phone joystick size. It seems a bit feeble though. Avoid playing games on this phone, especially those games that need a joystick. You don’t know when it will pop out. i say this because I have personally seen and heard instances of the joystick of the N73 coming out.
The backside of the phone looks good. It has a sliding flap that protects the lens. The flap works fine. People complain that it may seem a hint loose, but I haven’t had any problems regarding it.
Camera & Photography:
This is what makes the camera cost so much! The excellent 3.2 MP Camera with Carl Zeiss lens. Today, no other Nokia phone can capture better still photos than the Nokia N73. The photos are really rich in colour. In fact the colors are unreal, ie. brighter than the actual colours. Photos of flowers and really bright coloured objects can become an eyesore sometimes, but different people react differently to the pictures. Personally, the N73 takes the best day photographs in the world (Even better than the SE k800i Cybershot phone). But the N73 cannot beat the K800i on night photography. The k800i xeon flash is too much for the N73 to compete with. But The N73 has a decent flash for the night. In the night portrait mode, the flash flashes harder and the photos come out quite good.
There are 8 modes of photography, like scene mode, macro mode, night mode, night portrait, portrait etc. And other photography options really make this a great camera phone. You can take wonderful pictures of moving objects using the sport mode. The macro mode really works wonders on close-up photographs. The night mode is perfect for dim photographs of night scenes without flash. The night potriat mode will flash a flash that will blind you. You get decent photographs at night too. There is also the sequence mode that lets you take continuous pictures by holding the camera click button down. I have taken upto 15 pictures non stop. The k790i/K800i claims to take 9 pictures in that mode.
Autofocus really helps and can be fun to use. You can 'half-click' and focus before you click. This ensures that there are no smudgy images. But unlike how autofocus should work, it captures the photo 2 to 3 seconds and a few frames later. Ideally half-clicking should give you the image that you see on the display when you click all the way through. This is one defect that probably may be corrected in the future versions. (Which I am not too hopeful of)
Videos:
The video capabilities of this phone is decent too. It captures videos at 15 frames per second. Televisions have a minimum of 30 Fps to avoid flicker. But I wont complain as phones havent reached that level except the N93 which can capture videos at 30 fps. The video capabilities are better than that of the SE K800i but not as good as the N93 which is an exclusive video phone. But note that the N93 cannot capture as good images as the N73.
Music:
You cannot compare the music of the SE walman phones to any others, but the N73 isnt far behind. It has decent stereo speakers, not the best though. And you get a 3.5 mm jack adapter, that is nice. This allows you to attach headphones to the mobile. Any headphone that you connet to your PC would fit on to the adapter. The music OP is good. If you can get the earphones of the walkman series, the music experience would be better. Or if you get headphones like seiheiser or some other brilliant band, the music experience will be worth it. The 2GB memory card that comes with the phone enables you to store ample songs. I even found some hindi songs already on the phone, but I couldnt play them as their licences had to be updated. I dont know how much the cost of upgrading the licence is.
The N73 ME phone is supposed to be a music phone, but this is like Nokia has tried to make a football player play cricket. Photography will be the prime feature of this phone and music will be the secondary feature.
Battery Life:
The battery quality of the phone is decent enough. A whole day of flash photography and the battery is still full. Though talking a lot and listening to music can eat the battery, you can go one days with full usage. If you dont talk much or dont listen to music, i say that you can go longer, upto 3 days. The official standby time is 350 h and the talk time is up to 6h.
Sound Reception:
The sound reception of the phone is good. No problems at all. Never had problems with any nokia phones on the Sound reception side.
Image Gallery:
The phone sports a cool image gallery. The animation is nice. It lets you edit the image. Lets you add cliparts (funny stuff like moustaches, ties, hairstyles) on the images. You can create muvees(something like videos created using vindows movie maker) using your images. Also the image gallery is very slick and impressive. Nice animation. The only thing is you cant hide images from the image gallery. It picks up all the images on your phone memory and memory card.
Address-book:
The phone has a great phone book. Very easy to use and nice. Well equpped.
Software availabiliy:
The software availability for this phone sporting Symbian OS 60 v 3.0 is not that great. Though I was able to install all .Jar files, 90% of the .sis files could not be installed. But I guess this should get better with time with software availability becoming better.
The Price:
The price of the phone can burn a hole in your pocket. I think it should have been priced at 20,000 max. But the N73 ME costs above 24,000.
Overall Conclusion:
This phone is an awsome phone and one of the best equipped phones today. It has all you want. Ranging from terrefic music capabilities, to large storage memory, a good processor (one of the faster smart phones, faster than the 6233 which i didnt expext), Symbian OS which multiplies the capacity of the phone by infinity (this is the one feature that Kicks SE ass). But best of all the awsome camera and the functionality that you get with it. Overall, I would go in for this phone, though i think it is overpriced, cause its really got everything that you want.
If you are gonna be really using all the features of the phone, then go for it. If you are just gonna talk on phone, then you will find phones at cheaper prices that looks quite better.
Monday, January 08, 2007
Growin fatter!!
Im growing fatter by the day! Help me God! And I have decided im gonna shred grams by the kilo this year. I pray that he would hear my prayers. Started with walks & badminton. Lets see how it goes....
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