Haiku by a foodie

Diet:
Quiet day working out
No more carbohydrates
Suffering existential angst

Sometimes...

it is really embarassing to be Indian.

Mysteries of the Universe

In the movies, handsome men propose to their beautiful ladies on bended knee. The event usually takes place in a beautiful restaurant and the ladies usually say yes with a certain sense of surprise. All that is wonderful and acceptable. Ho Hum!

I'm really interested in knowing how the men know the size of the ring for the woman. Wouldn't it be really embarassing if the ring is too small and it doesn't go on? And wouldn't it be equally silly if it slips off as easily as it slips on. Therefore the man must know the radius of the woman's ring finger.

So how did that happen?

I'd Love to Invent This

I was driving home with some friends, playing the music really loud and enjoying life in general. As I increased the bass to chest thumping levels I just had an idea that would not only help people but also make a little money while you're at it.

The problem: Deaf people cannot dance at night clubs because they cannot hear the music.

Solution: Create a wireless device to be worn on the chest that detects the lower frequencies and creates physical vibrations that peak synchronously with the beats of the music. It's easy to imagine a club in New York where they play music (without complex beats) where the lights act like equalizers and a large crowd, deaf and otherwise, is able to enjoy the music and dance.

If I wasn't a lazy bum, I bet I could sell this idea.

The Problem With Reading Malcolm Gladwell's Books

.....is that his books are basically a set of hypothesis being validated by evidence chosen by the author. There is no criticism, no referee, no counterpoint and a complete lack of desire to consider that even if as a rule the hypothesis is true exceptions may exist. They do, however, make for very entertaining reading.

I am amazed at how little of our information in the public domain goes through a process of verification and validation. The worst culprits in the case are the Indian media. No matter how baseless the story, if it sells, it's a story. There is little hope of change anytime soon. Money talks.

On the other hand, this represents an ideal that we cannot even dream of. (Source: Amit Varma) .

The Most Haunting Piece of Music I have Ever Heard...

....has to be "Any other name" from the American Beauty soundtrack. I have heard this track at least a few hundred times over the last few years. Each time I listen to it and I close my eyes, I am enveloped by this feeling that there is nothing left in this world worth living for. I feel like curling up and being left alone to die. It's as if everyone I ever cared for has left me and disappeared. I feel lost, alone, desperate, cold and forgotten. I cannot recall any music that has moved me so much. I am also amazed by the sheer consistency of the effect after all the years of listening to it.

The composer of this music, Thomas Newman, is one of the musical geniuses of our times. Many people will recall listening to his scores in the soundtrack of "The Shawshank Redemption", "The Road to Perdition" and "Pay it forward". I've been a fan of his ever since I saw American Beauty.

Joie de Vivre - The Joy of Living

A couple of weeks ago I met my nephew, a happy-go-lucky, optimistic teen with an ever present smile. I barely spent twenty minutes talking to him about life and most of the discussion was about girls.

He spoke about how he likes skinnier girls and when he starts dating he hopes his girlfriend will be beautiful and fun to be with. His eyes betrayed his optimism and the joy he felt at the thought of being in a relationship, having someone to call his girlfriend.

There was an innocence and sincerity in his words and in his demeanor reminded me that I shall never feel that again. There was no artifice, just sincere and honest desire. It made me see how I have been corrupted by my experiences, how my weaknesses have stripped me of my last shreds of innocence.

And yet there I was basking in the joy of his youth. I felt alive for a while. It has been a long time since I have desired the warmth of a woman I can call mine. But for those fleeting moments, I felt like it wouldn't be so bad. I felt like I would do alright.

One could reason that it was the warm sunshine on a cool day, or the wonderful lunch we just devoured, it could even be that my loneliness was catching up reality. But the truth is it was the innocence of youth, the uncorrupted lust for a beautiful life. It's just been so long since I experienced it within that I had forgotten what it was like.

The Power Paradox

I'm tired of the indian media constantly analyzing how great the western world thinks we are and how powerful we have become.
When we stop bothering then we will have arrived.

Mumbai

It's a love affair where
I didn't have any
choice but to submit
Mostly she doesn't
love you back
Stinking, rude, unbending
But when she feels like it
she'll show you
what she can be,
what she can do
She taunts you
she teases you
She shows you how
she's a better mistress
to her moneyed lovers
and reminds you
that if have no
hidden pile of gold
you don't quite belong
Just go away, she says
You're a slave to
the real masters, the pigs
that rule the roost
Maybe it's one way
traffic and someday
you'll really go away
But then she'll seduce
you from the distance
Some love affairs, they,
just are that way.
Bloody fucking hell.

One of my favorite pieces of music

Ithzak Perlman and Yo-Yo Ma playing one of my favorite pieces of classical music. ( I know I don't listen to much classical music but...)

My Nature

I was driving to Pune a few evenings ago. Two lanes out of four on a stretch of road were closed for construction. Those of us heading east had to drive in the lane meant for oncoming traffic. I was irritated that west bound vehicles didn't give us enough space. The next evening as I was returning, now heading the other way, I cursed the east bound vehicles for slowing me down.