Another adorable voice

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Back in B'lore

And man it feels warm! Not weather wise warm, but feeling-wise warm. The moment we entered Devanhalli, Aai went, "No matter where we go, coming back to Bangalore always feels like coming back home"! Life is good :).

Just back from a dinner treat - three massive pieces of chocolate truffle & black currant ice-cream for dessert - I feel like a beast. More on the month long vacation naalle.

P.S: Listening to Nat King Cole's Unforgettable (Damn! I should've had another piece of that truffle)

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'One lie short of true...'

Title - Honestly
Band - Cary Brothers

Think I’m goin home
I think I’m gettin lost for a while
Tired of getting stoned
And thinkin ‘bout you in the night

So I’ll file away all my dreams
Though I still believe in everything

I wished your love away
I wished your love away

Honestly over you
Honestly over you
One lie short of true
Honestly over you

Lookin for some hope
Polished off the whiskey tonight
You turned a man to stone
For lookin at you straight in the eyes

So I’ll drive away with all my things
Though I’ve a faint belief in everything

I wished your love away
I wished your love away

Honestly over you
Honestly over you
And I’ll tell the world
Honestly over you

I wished your love away…

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Visiting Relatives

Here's a question - "What is the meaning of life?" - Would love to read your answers.

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Inscrutable

Ever tried telling a professional baker that his pastry was missing an ingredient? I did. Last night. When I picked up Baba's b'day cake. Black-Forest.

Long, long ago (and I honestly mean a really long time ago), ladi-tai handed me a recipe for baking a Black-Forest cake. I memorized the ingredients. Not 'coz I thought I'd lose that piece of paper she'd written it on (infact I still have that ancient piece tucked into my recipe collection book), but 'coz those ingredients felt almost divine. Atleast in that era, it certainly did (Aai would NEVER use such exotic stuff in her cake preparations).

Last night ofcourse, on tasting my Rs. 20/- pastry piece (meant for making a choice among several pastries), I happened to tell the baker that there wasn't any rum in his Black-Forest preparation. The response - dumb-struck awe.

Picture this scene - In a town that's been introduced to the world of pastries only a few years ago, a female (maybe I should highlight that word), wearing a worn-out, unkempt, soiled pair of jeans, with an even more worn-out, unkempt, soiled T-shirt and a pair of slippers (ahh! disgusting!), orders for a black-forest pastry so she can decide if that's what she wants to buy and ends up complaining - it has no RUM!

I must say, the guy was truly modest when he recovered from that momentary breakdown and smiled gingerly, revealing his white Dabur-Lal-dant-majan teeth, and said, "No madam, no rum. Only sugar-syrup."

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Food for thought - 8

"Truth is not beautiful, neither is it ugly. Why should it be either? Truth is truth, just as figures are figures.

When man wishes to learn the exact condition of his business affairs, he employs figures and, if these figures reveal a sad state of his affairs, he doesn't condemn them and say that they are unlovely and accuse then of having disillusioned him. Why then condemn truth, when it only serves him in this enterprise of life as figures serve him in his commercial enterprises?"

- as answered by Owen C. Middleton in On the meaning of life, Will Durant

P.S: It's Baba's 58th birthday today. Not sure how we're going to celebrate it. Will need to hunt for a cake shop here in Amravati. He's celebrating a birthday in his native village after 30 long years :)!

Happy Birthday ol' man :P!

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Another 'Credit Crunch'

Albeit, a different kind...

Two planets eh?! That would be fun - I'd like to work on one, rest on another :P!

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Couldn't help...

...putting this up, after we (Ujji and me) noticed.

This picture's been going to and fro for some time now. The last time I saw it was in March, when Sudi forwarded the same. After a few text messages and a lot of arguing over who's who (Ujji thinks they've painted Mandela playing a flute and I think it's Kofi Annan), we realized that they've painted OBL right above GWB (right-hand, upper-half)! Heh! Nice!

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Food for thought - 7

"What is spiritual realization? The belief that you are a spirit? No, that's a thought.

(...)

Spiritual realization is to see clearly that what I perceive, experience, think, or feel is ultimately not who I am, that I cannot find myself in all those things that continuously pass away."

- A New Earth, Eckhart Tolle

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And you thought...

...only your 'kind' could blog?!! I think NOT! Following links on Amit's blog, I found my way to this page.

Not long before we have more competition on blog-o-sphere, eh?!

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Slouthful

My blog isn't the only 'thing' that has suffered in recent times due to my sluggishness; my trips to Crossword have been a rarity as well. Work seems to have taken a backseat and my search for 'The Seven Ages of Rock' DVDs, is almost a closed chapter.

But guess what?! I ain't complaining. And you know why?! 'Coz I've spent all this time reading books. Books that I knew made up my dad's collection, but were more often than not, ignored. And it would be drastically understating if I said, "It's been fabulous!"

Lying on a cozy bed, a quilt to protect from the occasional chill, some drizzles, a few heavy rains, warm sunshine here and there, not a soul intruding (:P!) and books! A few too many of them. No particular subject. Or actually, maybe there was - soul-searching - if that qualifies for a subject.

I think I could do this forever.

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Looking for I Need...

...Serenity...

'...Where do we go when we just don't know
And how do we relight the flame when it's cold
Why do we dream when our thoughts mean nothing
And when will we learn to control...'

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Cheap Thrills

Enjoyed this tag on Deepti's blog. Too lazy to put it up here and read your answers (*yawn*). So, pliss to be doing honor - read, fill-out and let me have a laugh.

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Couple o' things

• Baba's moved from wearing traditional pajamas to tracks
• Aai's moved from humming Pal Pal (Lage Raho Munna Bhai) to Socha hai (Rock On)
• Sheru & Munnu have shifted base from a one-room-kennel to an entire alley

Nice.

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Hola

I've been trying to think of a reason as to why there have been no posts on my blog recently. And the best I could come up with is - I didn't feel like it. Hmm. Go figure.

Anyways, this video on Heather's blog, changed the procrastinating me. I absolutely HAD to put this up here for all those who haven't had a chance to laugh their heads off. (I would love to hear her views on the crashing financial sector! *guffawing*)

P.S: It might seem stuck, but the video does work. And while you're at it, check out the ads too (Heh!)

In other news, Santosh had this tag up and here are my favorites -

1. "The difference between a person and an angel is easy. Most of an angel is in the inside and most of a person is on the outside." - Mister God, this is Anna
2. "The only true law is that which leads to freedom," Jonathan said. "There is no other." - Jonathan Livingston Seagull
3. "The world has no existence whatsoever outside the human imagination. It's all a ghost, and in antiquity was so recognized as a ghost, the whole blessed world we live in." - Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
4. "The best love is the kind that awakens the soul; that makes us reach for more, that plants the fire in our hearts and brings peace to our minds." - The Notebook
5. "Experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted" - The Last Lecture
   

All those who stop by... you've been tagged.

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Gung-ho?!

Two days after Heather posts this (...and for which I'd put all my bets on her, if she ever entered American politics - Heather, you absolutely rock!...), Obama comes out with this statement. Smashing or what?! He'll probably get a lot'a Indian fan-fare following him for that one statement! Think it's time to celebrate yet? No?! Well, here's another reason for Indians to raise their glasses tonight - the NSG waiver! MUHAHAHAHA... Baba and me were wondering last night as to how Dr. Manmohan Singh must be perspiring profusely after having put everything at stake for this deal. Well Mr. Prime Minister, we sure hope you sleep well tonight!

And if none of that brought a smile on your face, maybe this will... You've probably heard this number -


You can find the lyrics here. 

So I'm standing next to Aai in the kitchen helping her prepare dinner, when they play this track over the radio. Everything's normal until chorus starts; and Aai goes - 

"Bembi I love you, Bembi I love you..." 

(for the Marathi illetrate, Bembi translates to belly-button)

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Google's next assault on MS

It's called Chrome. As explained in the instruction guide, this new web-browser promises improved speed and responsiveness.

It's been years since I used IE. Firefox is almost second nature. Yet, I'm looking forward to try my hands on Chrome - I like the name :P!

Google's first screenshot of Chrome

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Rushing through

Million things happened over the last week. Here are a few, that didn't go unnoticed -

1. McCain picks Palin (OH. MY. GOD.)
2. Mamata Banerjee steps in to rescue Bengal farmers (ROTFL!)
3. Sheru provokes Munnu for a fight and accepts defeat even before they begin (Nope. They're not pedigree dogs.)
   
4. Aai sits through 'Rock On' and actually enjoys the story-line (The ONLY 40+ person in the entire theatre!)
5. I manage baking some 'Carrot Cake' (and that's not what Sheru and Munnu were fighting over - hmpf!)
   

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I guess you have to be Indian...

...is just one of the comments posted on this site. No offense taken. I hope none given either :).

Imagine shopping at your favorite mall - dabbling with 'this-piece-or-that', or eating-out at your favorite restaurant - relishing every 'sinfully-tasty-bite', when your neighbor's phone goes - "condom, condom"! Damn! I'd choke!

*rolling on the floor, laughing*

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Self-inflicting torture machine

Ever seen this episode of F.R.I.E.N.D.S? Yes, this -



Well, if you thought epilators were better - take my word for it - they're worse! WAY, way, worse! Atleast waxine doesn't go - 'one-at-a-time'!

In other news, here's the cover-page for the latest edition of Sports Illustrated -

Mamma mia

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R. I. P

LeRoi Moore (September 7, 1961 - August 19, 2008),
Founding Member, Dave Matthews Band

"It's always easier to leave than be left" - Dave Matthews, DMB

Agree.

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The Economics of Love

Of late, I find a lot of my friends talking investments, returns, bonds, shares and all other buzz words associated with the 'economics enchilada'. I guess it's the age. I've done my bit too, I must admit. And I'm willing to go all the way to get my wise returns.

So while on the topic, I'm browsing other blogs and as usual, find interesting stuff on Amit's blog. Economics being the current state of mind, I am directed to this page.

Gyaan from this view point, makes it SO much simpler for a numbers crazy person, doesn't it?! So all the young-at-hearts - go invest! Wisely, if I may add.

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Food for thought - 6

"Who would the 'believer' be without the 'unbeliever'?"

- Stillness Speaks, Eckhart Tolle

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Ironies?

A few days ago, news channels broadcasted the verdict on how a young couple were banned from aborting a 25-week old fetus. They aired discussions between a large divide - from doctors, to priests, to law-makers. Apparently, the court thinks the couple and their gynecologist were unable to prove that the child would face a substantial health risk. Honestly, I'm speechless.

During the same time, I came across this news article. A perfectly healthy child, almost pushed into substantial health risks, by another couple, elsewhere. Now I'm flabbergast!

If you're thinking - different country, different rules, different people - hold that thought right there. Just this one time, overlook boundaries, rules, systems; and maybe ask yourself - is any of this making sense?! If yes, help me understand. If no, where are we going wrong?!

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Gardening Bouts

I'm not a plant-person; animal-person - yes, but not a plant-person. Someone wants me to tend to dogs, cats, horses, birds, if I get lucky - snakes, wild cats, primates, etc. - I'd do it without a blink; plants - and I'm a complete dodo - no offense to the bird. Aai on the other hand is a vehement plant-person. You can find her singing to them at times! She treats them like her own babies!

Over the last two days however, we've had some role-reversal. She's been cleaning up after my dogs, and me - getting my hands dirty in her garden. No, we're not in a mother-daughter bonding phase, it was more experimental - for the lack of a better word. I think her intention was to keep her garden clean. And mine, to explore earthworms. I've enjoyed it - I must admit. I can't say the same for her...

The part that made me sit down and make this post, is our common weakness for cleaning. Yup, cleaning. We both enjoy it tremendously. Infact, Ujji has gone far enough to say - "If you were tied up with some mafia crowd tai,... you'd make a perfect handler"... From animal-person to handler - Hmm... quite a transition you think?

On a side-note, here's something that's been playing in my mind over-and-over again -



Incase you're interested in the originals... here they are -
Somewhere Over the Rainbow - Judy Garland
What a Wonderful World - Louis Armstrong

P.S: Happy Friendship's Day!

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