"Lighter moments"...

"Understanding", as was written somewhere, is the bridge between human beings.
Friendship bridges the gap largely, but complete understanding is not always possible, and frankly, may not be necessary (always).

But, few friends can convince you that they understand exactly what you feel like.
And thank God (we all need someone to thank and curse alike after all!).
Thank God for such friends.

This is "Unparalleled". (Eponymous; so not exactly anonymous).

Few things are as painful as watching helplessly as something you value more than life slips through your fingers like grains of sand. Leaving no trace except the hurt in your heart which you know will never go away. You will be in a room full of amazing artefacts, but your thoughts will forever be stuck on that one thing that you wanted so so badly, but just couldnt have. It was plain and rusty and probably even ugly. But you couldnt have it. You got everything else, but you couldnt get the plain rusty thing that stole your heart. Nothing you have means anything to you. Nothing you've got will ever look as beautiful. Nothing you've got will ever make up for that one loss.

Nothing.

And that bloody hurts.
Thank You! Thank you for the lines. Empathy and Oxygen are both survival. The only difference is that the latter is evolutionary and biological while the former is pyschological without bothering to be logical.

Thank you....

For the sake of TheNamesake.

Currently, TheNamesake has lost his very existence, having gotten too close to the event horizon of a certain BlackHole called summer internship, he has emerged seemingly unhurt in an new universe, in keeping with the hypothesis that explains the behaviours of Black Holes and Baby Universes.

In short, if at all you were reading this blog and felt like reading more,, please carry on here:

http://krutakahridaya.blogspot.com/



Cheers,
WhoAmI?

If it is not about the legs, what was it all about then?

The mind, the brain, the brain-hand co-ordination that helps TheNamesake, as he types this post out, and the brain-leg detached attachment that while constantly and continuously instructs him to keep running. And at the same time, detached because the brain doesn't sense signals from his legs giving in due to muscle fatigue, until about half a day later.
If all this is not what its all about, the only part of the human body worth considering, is that pitiable, empathy and simultaneously sympathy producing organ - The Human Heart.
In a way, This, is all about the Human Heart.
This post, certainly is.
This blog, for the most part, is about the human heart too.
It may not be directly or in a straightforward manner be about the heart, but TheNamesake, can only confess this much - That, this blog has mostly been about something, that was the making of TheNamesake's own heart. He may not really be human, but he certainly had a human heart.
He is not heartless in the true sense now, but don't lose heart my friend; TheNamesake's sincere advise to the reader and non-reader alike is this - Don't lose heart - TheNamesake himself has sworn to never lose heart.
He says,

"People should be open to the idea of losing their heart, like I have; but they should never lose heart. "

Call it romantic hope, call it Quixotism ; You wouldn't be far from the truth; But you would probably never get to the bottom of it. For in a way, it is a bottomless pit.
May be what seems to be a bottomless pit, opens into an other universe, something of the sort he vaguely remembers reading about one of Stephen Hawking's initial speculation about Black holes and event horizons in "A Brief History of Time" - one of the first books he can recollect reading.
Now, this may need further elaboration -

Nothing can escape a Black hole - It has such a magnitude of Gravitational Pull, that even Visible Light or "Information" entering its "Event Horizon" will get sucked in, and will be lost to "The Universe" as we know it.

So, there are some people, places, ideas and objects that first catch our attention and attract us so much, that you kinda get dragged in, and you get lost.
If Oscar Wilde had to describe the phenomenon of being "charmed" in his own language, he would say this:

"I knew that I had come face to face with someone whose mere personality was so fascinating that, if I allowed it to do so, it would absorb my whole nature, my whole soul, my very art itself."

But here is the aftermath - well, all is not over just yet - So here is the current aftermath, and speculation about the future aftermath -

Stephen Hawking (before 2004) had speculated that, the singularity (hypothetical) at the centre of the Black hole, may have a bridge to a "baby universe" through which information passes - since technically information cannot be "lost".

Now, this is probably what has happened. There are BlackHoles around us, we would never be aware of - there is no way an unsophisticated village bumpkin can foresee their presence - TheNamesake's probably fell into it one fine day, sometime last year, and since then, "moved on" to another universe, a "baby universe", to use Hawkin's hypothesis.

Since then, I, the author of this blog, have been bringing his stories to you - the confused yet curious reader.

Stories of TheNamesake shall continue to be telecast - Please don't ask me to get into the details of how TheNamesake and I communicate with each other.

So, having, in a way confused the curious reader a bit more about
"What is it all about?",

I shall now leave you with the following message:

These are testing times. For TheNamesake, in more ways than one, these are testing times. Apart from the immediate testing times associated with "terminal" examinations, the testing times ahead are even more thought provoking and invoking.
Mark "invoking". It might help you understand things better. And then, the reader cannot complain that there weren't enough clues to answer that one big question in big font above.
Apart from the clues earlier presented to you, like the box right on top of the page, this is one other "clue".
If you still claim to have no clue of whats happening, you are technically wrong.
You can't claim to have no clues. In fact, you have two big clues now.

The testing times shall see TheNamesake through TheCapital and YeahRightBank, before cooling his head and legs apart from cooling his heels at TheCity. What happens during, and after those times is only something time could have told us.
Unfortunately, this time around, even time cannot tell us, since the BlackHole analogy involves a spacetime singularity - even time cannot tell us.

For now, until the less testing times are over, think about this -

If you thought "Time" hits you, or us, or them, or TheNamesake hard, permit me to, in the context of this discussion, suggest that Gravity hits us all the hardest.

To answer the question the title of the post asks, and the dismissive answer the title of the blog itself puts forth, here is a hint -

Figure the BlackHole analogy out, and you get very close (close to the event horizon as well!)
And then, figure the Horizon of this blog out, and you get closer. (Not closer to the Event Horizon, but closer to what this is all about!)

P.S: The "Horizon" as I last mentioned, just above, refers to you know what - the thing between the blue sky (the blue ribbon at the top of this browser content window), and the BlackEarth, the Black/Darkness surrounding this entire blog text/content). So, the Horizon, here, refers to the box. For once, think out of the box while thinking about the box ;-)

Whereabouts and wear abouts!

TheNamesake is currently on vacation. While he may or may not have moved on, he has definitely moved out, at least for a while, deciding to stay at his friend's place for a few weeks...
You'll find his friend here..
http://vishwasmysore.blogspot.com/

So long...Take care, and Good luck! ;-)

Blogs, Relationships. The forgotten one with Samiksha.

I, Sthiramathi aka Seizonsha, was reading an old friend's blog this evening/night and what caught my attention was that one of my friends, in one of his posts in one of his blogs (phew!), was drawing a parallel between Blogs and Relationships.
Let me attempt to "formulate" and "shape" his ideas in a more "readable" manner ;-)

1. Start new ones with so much "enthu" ;-)
2. Initially, there is so much charm that the blog/relationship has that we go on and on and on doing what we like together ;-)
3. Sooner or later, the charm starts disappearing, and then we "give each other some time"!
3-a) We either totally lose interest and go back to step 1
OR
3-b) Get back after sometime.

Now, The Namesake, who is a very good friend of mine, to make things clear for all my (Sthiramathi's aka Seizonsha's) readers,
The Namesake, is NOT in a relationship.

But, I have been in quite a few relationships.

Yes, I had been in a "relationship" even before my most recent relationship with "Samiksha", my Non-anonymous blog.
Earlier this year, on the 20th of January to be precise, I "broke up" with Samiksha. The break-up happened during the Semester vacation last December. We wanted to "give ourselves some more time". So, I have not spoken to Samiksha ever since. I really dont know when I will speak to her, if at all I do. You will find Samiksha here - http://vishwasmysore.blogspot.com/
Now, please don't ask me who this guy Vishwas Mysore is! You seriously don't want any more confusion! He is just another average Joe...Average Vishwas to be precise..Nothing more, and definitely nothing less! We'll rest Vishwas' case now, and carry on with mine.
So, yeah, where was I?
Me, Seizonsha had this relationship with Samiksha, and this was my second "relationship".
The double quotes are there because of this funny thing about the English language. The language is imperfect. There are many ideas that cannot be expressed easily without being misinterpreted.
Try reading this...something I had written a coupla years back, about "Relationships"...http://vishwas-mn.livejournal.com/1696.html

Again, summarising for the benefit of MY readers. (I = Sthiramathi aka Seizonsha)
I have had a few relationships (Blogs, and then this one, "one of a kind" relationship you will find described in the link above).
The Namesake, he has not been in a relationship. He is only into "Running" please; no running after anyone for him!

Who is Vishwas you ask?
None of us really know enough to be reasonably sure!

I only hope that after confusing the "average" reader enough, I don't let this current blog degrade into a "Relationship"!!!
So, this blog, Was never really only about "Running", not least as we know it.
Because, "It is not about the legs", you see :P
But, this blog, will continue to "run"...

If you are confused enough, take a break...
I am taking one too! And no, this is not "giving ourselves some time"....
Although this blog has not been like a relationship, I have done more posts than I did in one whole year! (http://vishwasmysore.blogspot.com/ )

I will be back soon....May be after/together with some serious "running", yes, real running....
So long....Take care! "God" bless!

I, banker, say Congratulations I-banker! Congratulations, Mr. I Banker! Congratulations, Mr. Congratulations!!! ;-)

Congratulations man! I mean, Congratulating someone whose very name means Congratulations is rather odd alright!
I mean, if I were to say congratulate you, addressing you by name in Hindi, it would appear that I am just calling your name out twice!
I will congratulate you anyway! You are an I-banker, and I, a banker ;-)
For latitudes may separate us, and even your altitude may do so, but some silly similarities like the "Banker" designation that will be common to us, and the common "New" prefix to the cities that we will spend our "Summers" in; I cannot ignore such seemingly "silly" things you see ;-)
And then, thank your stars that I did not follow you to B-school despite having the exact same Gee-Mat score, albeit with an expectedly lesser score than you in Math!
Because if I had followed you to B-school, "God" alone knows what my company would have done to you ;-)
As if two years were not enough!

At the risk of coming across as a sentimental idiot (which I very much am I guess!) in a blog post, writing about senti stuff about friendship, I can tell you that you're one of the best of friends I have ever had, and I cant forget how touched I was when you recollected all my stupid GeeTalk status messages and nonsense theories!
Major ego massage I tell you dude! And you for one, don't even have an ego that can be pleased!

I only hope that you, in keeping with your name, continue giving me opportunities to call you by your name, and congratulate you just as often ;-)
Good luck brother, but of a different father and mother ;-)
While I don't wish to take away anything from your brother, I wish we never forget each other, brother! ;-)

So what if you, or I for that matter will only be an "Intern",
We sure will have our turns to avenge all evil in turn,
So what if people think there isn't enough evil around,
Our friendship spreads enough jealousy and malice around ;-)

Yes! And Congrats, Little Sister.

If you started reading this post because of it's title without thinking twice, I will excuse myself saying that you should, by now have known better than that.
So, leaving out the "And", please connect the rest of the title with what follows, and you may even be able to follow! ;-)

Now what you see displayed on your left is, as far as The Namesake is concerned, just another StumbleUpon (No, I am not talking about that Web 2.0 service! If you don't know what Web 2.0 is, you are doomed! But here is what another Web 2.0 service has to say on StumbleUpon..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stumbleupon)
Now, before you lose track, let me put you right back on track...(And yeah "writeback", that famous OLAP jargon is something anyone has anything to do with Business or Intelligence cant afford to forget, forget Business Intelligence Consultants)..
So, the image was something he stumbled upon online, doing what he loves doing most, surfing, searching for something and all other things related and unrelated....What normally happens is that the line between (relatedness and "unrelatedness") and (belongingness and "unbelongingness") disappears when one starts following links to various things related at various levels and depths simultaneously..

Yes!
If you haven't so far understood most of what you just read, you can still read on..
What happens when all of a sudden the evening seems to be boring, and having finished talking to people who have to be spoken to and can be spoken to, there is nothing much left to do really!
And when nostalgia loses its Marginal Utility, Alfred Marshall cannot be blamed either!(yeah, that Father of Economics who hypothesised about the Diminishing Marginal Utility/Satisfaction; if you don't know about him or this, you are probably not an MBA student, and then thank your stars!)...
So, what happens when nostalgia too loses its charm when indulged in repeatedly (basically that is what I was trying to say above, albeit in a rather convoluted manner!)....
When something becomes boring, one does some other thing that one does when bored!
I suppose each one of us has this All Time Favourite Pastime and The Namesake had one too, that of thinking about something and then setting out to look for things related, ending up finding things unrelated as well ;-)
There is this bank that was the "Seed" that evening. He was going to be away in The Capital, for a full 6 months, and there was not too much time left before the fire of "The Summer" would swallow him...He had been banking on thinking all along, and all the same thinking about banking as well...
Only that, that evening (was closer to dawn really!), bored as he was, and bored as the others he spoke to seemed, he thought harder, taxing his bird brain, and started looking at The Bank's annual statement. After looking at the interesting things, he started "looking up" his style on where else than The Engine, that Search Engine that has these days become a synonym for searching as well as finding, although the latter two were indeed equivalent!
Web,News, Images...these mostly being the interesting modes of The Engine, he had found this image on that last mode, and decided to use it to show himself off on JeeTalk and a related Social Networking site.

Before anything including the dawn itself could dawn on him, he had then promptly forced himself to sleep, planning to sleep for more than 6 hours in order that on an average he would end up sleeping for atleast 5 hours over the last two "days", or two units of approximately 24 hours each.

I have taken this long to explain the "Yes!" and the image. God alone come to your rescue if you are reading on or are going to read on!

Little Sister would be the first one to notice the new image, and she tells him 10 minutes before he had fully woken up that it was "awesome"...Almost 3 years since he had received such praise for his display image ;-) Yes, the cartoon Avatar had received some praise, from who else than Little Sister herself!
Apparently, this image above is
"crude and assertive, to the point of being commendable",
"crude n assertive who doesn't need to speak"
" actions speak for themselves kinds"
and as if by carefully planned coincidence, "Congratulations", his thus codenamed friend now in New York comments although by "scrapping" him, that the picture seems to him as if The Namesake, our friend, had set off on a "Mounavritha" OR "I wont talk anymore" mission.. ;-)
If two people very close to him think that the picture is apt in that it eliminates the need for The Namesake to talk, we have enough evidence to conclude that he indeed talks a lot, or used to talk a lot in the past :-)

If a boring evening can lead one to conversations one would otherwise probably not have, and all after an interesting study of a balance sheet of a bank, one can rest assured that it could not have gotten any better!

Unfotunately, boring evenings can continue to encounter each of us, and we will still be left behind grappling with our "Struggles". ;-)

Such is "Life"!

International Women's Day.

My good friend, The Namesake wanted to make an admission today, and the T-shirt he wore was designed exclusively for that admission, only that he was making an admission on behalf of his good friend.
All the world is a stage, but the play is badly cast!
Sometimes, some people steal the show at the very last moment, and even if this were to happen inevitably so, it is indeed misfortune, unfairness.
But then, what one has to do, one has to do..and what one has been asked to not do, one must try never to do.
Forced by circumstances to do some work, especially of the "admissions" variety, he, The Namesake was left with very little time to come up with "original" philosophy that Saturday...

No!! He is not making excuses for not doing anything special on Women's Day. He had wished those who had to be wished, the previous night/dawn itself, and again wished the women (he knew) as he met them the first time for the day..

But, hold on...When one doesn't have to say much, one can reflect, and recollect...
Last year, this time.....

http://vishwas-mn.livejournal.com/8914.html

Wish all women I know a very Happy Women's Day!!!

Eat! And eat more than just people's heads ;-) Have some food....for thought, and otherwise...Otherwise...

Remember the times you, as a kid were reluctant to eat a dish your mom had prepared with a few unappetizing ingredients or unexciting and unacceptable vegetables ? And then, not being aware of options such as "eating out" or "eating something else", you would eat (humble pie!)...
The past few days have been comparable to those days; in the sense that the days have themselves been as if they were forced upon me by a Mother ( a Mother of all things, if you will!) I don't disagree with the fact that one can never expect to exercise full control of all events related and unrelated to oneself.
But, the point is that the kind of events that have happened in the last few days have only reminded me of those early days when I would not even protest (not that I even knew that I could or should protest!).
Yes, very young kids know not any protest; just like as ordinary mortals (and immortals alike), most human beings know not any escape from circumstances surrounding and hounding them.

Having said this, I would like to briefly recollect The Namesake's childhood stories of escaping from food when not escaping from circumstances.
He would never like Pongal (no, not that sweet dish; the sweet kid he was, he would equally sweetly devour anything as sweet, just as sweetly as ever!).
And from as back as I can recollect having known The Namesake, I remember that he would somehow manage to escape from the dish, (yes, Pongal of the spicy variety) using some or the other tantrum. But for this, he was not a kid who really threw tantrums, and that is probably why he got away with the tantrums he threw over Pongal.
He would have bread, if available at home; and if bread were not available at home, he would ask for a tenner, which would be given to him as soon as he had finished asking. And the fact that he was in Class 5 or Class 6 would not hold him back from wanting to "eat out" in one of those fast food joints on his way to school... Spoilt kid, did I hear you say?
Well, if he was given this option at that young an age, may be you could assume/presume that he was trusted to be mature enough to have his way, and have food his way, on his way... Because, except for this one "aberration", there were very few tantrums he ever threw! And yes, since I have known him for really a long time now, you can indeed take my word for it!
Growing up, he would have better options such as making Instant Maggi Noodles for himself. He would by Class 8 certified at home as the best Home-Maggi Maker. The extra butter, extra spice and garnish, and the extra love and passion which went into preparing something as seemingly simple as Instant Noodles would make it delicious and hence, deserving of that appreciation.

Now, life is exactly like this, if you ask me or The Namesake.

If you don't like the food that is available, you "eat out". And since you cannot eat out all the time, you force yourself to eat food that is available and at the same time edible (even if not exactly relishable!)..
Eating, like sleeping is a healthy thing to do, and one must do it in proportions and quantities as required.
One should not consciously make an effort to change the very required measure itself.

And when one fails to do this.....Well....you know, many things can happen...

Acidity, gastroenteritis, constipation, nose bleeding, headaches....generally, any manifestation of sickness.
This is what will await any person who attempts to evade food as if they were events which human beings so easily try to evade and avoid.

Think about this...This is food for thought....

And if you haven't already figured out, this post, while tangentially being reflective about situations and circumstances and how we try to "deal with" them, it is essentially about something else.
The metaphor of circumstances has been used only to indirectly talk about people's eating habits, or lack thereof! :P

And, this goes out to two of my very good friends. What about The Namesake himself you ask?
He is of course a very good friend, but he has enough food...for thought, and otherwise. Otherwise....

March Forth.

This one is for you Dad ;-)

Samiksha, The Namesake, move over all of you..
As the author of this blog, Sthiramathi aka Seizonsha needs some space to talk about his Dad...
Any idiot gets to post what comes to his or her mind anyway! And not like I am any different!

Why reserve it for Fathers' Day? ;-)

Dad, today's date reminds me of one of the various things you had told me when I was an innocent kid :)

"What day of the year sounds like a sentence?"

Much as it might seem like a trivial thing to talk about today; I may be a "grown up man" about 25 years of age. But all that doesn't matter...Today's date reminds me of what I had heard about it from you, and with it, all of what you used to tell me :-)

Saying "Thank You Dad for all that you have done for me" is not going to be enough. But, I am going to say it anyway!
I still remember all the things you would tell me and teach me...You were my second teacher, but second to none else in what you have taught me!

I still remember how happy you used to be when I combined words with effort and your help to complete reading a newspaper! I still remember how happy you used to be when I used to recite Shlokas that Grandma had taught me...

I still remember reading your student diaries and the quotes and expenditure records...

At the risk of coming across as a sentimental idiot, I started writing this post...But I have to close it now, and what can be better than the quotes you used to read out from your student diaries!

"The heights by great men reached and kept, were not by sudden flight. But they, while their companions slept, were toiling upward in the night."

And then the one we both liked the most!

Peace of mind is a treasure,
of greater worth than gold;
More precious than a jewel,
and if this prize you hold;
You're rich beyond all telling,
For even if time may prove unkind,
it cannot rob you of the treasures,
Of a peaceful mind.

Light Boy!

Now, one of the advantages of "moods" is that things and thoughts you least expect happen to you...
The Namesake had decided to stay up until daybreak that night...and finally gave up after sunrise...

Choosing to go red on Jeetalk has its own advantages, and one of that was the good news that he heard late that night/early that dawn...
LightBoy had been a great friend during college days; not that he is not anymore today, but distance always takes away the camaraderie of the friendship. He had been thinking of LightBoy just the other day, and how "the gang" had really influenced each other (I should talk for myself the most!)...One's friends always go a long way in shaping one's thoughts, and even personality and outlook if you will...

So, LightBoy who had gone away in search of greener pastures was coming back for about a month.
If that was not good news enough, he had also landed an internship, and was more than happy with what he had got.

But, Light Boy has changed a lot apparently! He can now cook, and he talks of saving money!
You've made me proud my boy, Light Boy! After all you used to make fun of my making fun of you for spending/splurging money on original Reebok bags ;-) and what not!
See, even if temporarily, you will need to go into "saving" mode some or the other time in life, and then you should remember friends like The Namesake who used to be frugal at least in college ;-)
By the way, The Namesake still maintains his expense register and promptly records expenses on his cellphone when travelling, just so that he can later transfer those entries to his expense register...

Coming back the Light Boy; He and The Namesake exchange "cross border current affairs" and then talk about "product offerings", "bundle of benefits" rendering the customer speechless, and then how they both need to "identify gaps in the market" and draw "market entry strategies" to "time the market" and gain marketshare as well as mindshare.

So,
:-) May Mysore get to be in Bangalore in May :-) .............and "May" good sense prevail over "Er... What's 'in' a name!"... "Light Boy" is a nice guy after all..So what if he is not a "Good Boy"....He is a nice guy after all!!!

Too much of a good thing is not a good thing after all...

"I knew that I had come face to face with someone whose mere personality was so fascinating that, if I allowed it to do so, it would absorb my whole nature, my whole soul, my very art itself."
- Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray Ch. 1

That is what he was reminded of when he first set out that night...
He doesn't really know why he was reminded of that line; it at least seemed out of place because he hadn't really come face to face with anyone that evening...It was the weather outside instead...The mist was in the air ;-)
Believe me, the weather has a personality of its own, as he discovered that evening; He is not as good as Oscar Wilde...nowhere as good..That is his justification for popping quotes at the slightest opportunity...But then, he has a better alibi...That words; Words do injustice to most ideas and experiences - The moment one starts describing an idea or experience in words, one already dilutes the intensity...So, it is better to rely on others' words..especially in the manner Oscar Wilde has put together above ;-)
And apart from the weather having a personality of its own, it struck a "chord" with his personality...It may seem outlandish...But ask the weather of that evening and all you'll get is complete agreement ;-)

He really must thank "Cloudy" for telling him about the mist outside..He may or may not eventually have seen it for himself if and when he went out for tea...But, he did go out for tea soon after being told..And then he would use the tea break to decide if he wanted to waste more time outdoors...I mean, one really has to weigh his options about how one apportions one's wasteable time between indoors and outdoors ;-)

He first set out walking, and having decided that the experience should be as long as possible..If it can't be a Test Match, it should be atleast a One Day Match...Not a 20-20 match..But a "match" nevertheless...So, he walked back and set out again on his "Nitrogen" - his bicycle, aptly named "Dwichakra".. Little did he know that he would return only 2 hours later...
He cycled past the circle near the Bharatiya Institute of Technology's main office - and did what he does every single time he goes past that board which reads "Dedicated to the service of the nation"..a level under the institute name.. (Don't ask me what he does..Ask him!)
He then reached his School building..The digital clock above read 12:04.
He cycled beyond without stopping by or pulling over to the side...

The prison cells part of the Detention Camp always had their charm for him, and so what if it is past 12? He wanted to see if he would be scared by the combination of solitude, mist (reduced visibility of only about 12-15 metres) and a night past 12...
He cycled back a while later...The digital clock had promptly moved 40 minutes ahead..It read 12:44 and he pulled over to the side to smell the flowers near the School's building...

He then cycled around in circles - First, the big oval route which runs around most of the campus; and at each circle(junction) on that route, he branched off and resumed only traversing the path to the edge of each branch...On one of those branches, some of the street lamps go off or come on all of a sudden...Just like he had seen with his friends the other day when they were joking about ghosts!
This time around, his laughter might have scared any ghosts around ;-)

On his first round on the Oval, he had found some dogs and on unplugging from the music device had realised that they were all barking. Slowing down, he had thought about how dogs were a real scare compared to the imagined scare of ghosts...He thanked the good sense that had dawned on him - the one of cycling around!
And, as evidence to the fact that when Life has come full circle, things would be different..He did not see the dogs there during his second round...
Even at the end of the second round, he had found all the cyclerickshaw wallahs asleep in the rickshaws..the imagined comfort of the rickshaws...

Now, two rounds of the Oval had been completed and he had spent two hours outdoors in all..

Two much of a good thing is not "a" good thing after all..
Too much of a good thing is also not a good thing..

So, he decided to go back after a cup of coffee at "Eggies".



How much I love you! You do not know...
But I can't live without you...

I have heard that people "lift" the pangs of separation
I don't know how people pass the time of their life..
Even a day seems like a year here!

How much I wait for you..You do not know...
But I can't live without you...

If someone else "sees" you, my heart would burn;
And after a lot of difficulty, my heart regains its "balance"
What all I go through and undergo - How would you know!

My heart is so restless..You do not know...
But I can't live without you...

Old music has its own nostalgic charm..(Translate the above to Hindi please!)
As the above song drew to a close, he sipped his coffee and left...With a sense of satisfaction of wasting time well (spending time well if you insist!)...

Whats up? How are you? So, whats news? :-)

Disclaimer: At the risk of being accused of "running away" from running, this post might appear to be a deviation from "Running".. It might appear so...But then what is life without "Reverse psychology"? Or "Reverse engineering" for that matter? ;-)


So, whats up? Wassup? Sup? How you been? How are you? :)

That last one, I tell you! That smiley, it is one of the most used, overused and abused expressions I have ever known.
But then, what does one expect when one asks "Hey! How are you?"
People would say they're fine no matter what they're going through. Atleast, most people would be.
I have had very few friends who have frankly admitted to me that they're not fine.
No, I am not claiming that I have very good friends who are very frank with me. I guess this would be the case with only people very close to you. You wouldn't tell them exactly how are you as soon as they ask you that innocuous expression of courtesy, "How are you?".
And to be fair to people who ask such questions, what can they do! Asking is better than not asking at all!

And that smiley! SMSese and computerese have so affected us, that we use this combination of keystrokes to pretend a smile. And why shouldn't one? Not only is it easier to hide one's true emotions behind an SMS or a chat message, it is less burdensome when one feels the need to pretend smiles.
What I mean is this: When you're talking to a person face-to-face, pretending is not all that easy. You can't easily hide your thoughts and emotions. You cant hurl abuses at them much as you feel like doing so.
On the other hand, that smiley, as you type it you can recall the choicest of abuses, or make the most intense frowns, depending on what kind of a person you are.

Now, I really don't know why I was and have been thinking about this recently; but we can rest this for a while.
Or, may be I do...

At the risk of being accused of indulging in obscurantism (now, I have to atleast tell you what this means- Obscurantism is deliberate evasion of clarity) - At the risk of being accused of indulging in obscurantism, I will now indulge in weaving Finance "fundas" into what's really on my mind...
As you will see, I have tried to keep it as basic and simple as possible. It is not the ability to understand Alpha and Beta, but it is the analogy I use for the investment that will leave you consufed (confused)! But then, remember, this blog is mine, and I had promised to mix fact, fiction and fantasy together....So, here it goes....

For the benefit of those who don't have even a nodding acquaintance with the Alpha and Beta of Investments and Finance (not that I have more than a nodding or nodding off acquaintance!), Beta is the risk associated with an investment when the investor is passive (merely invests, doesn't take an active role in the business/investment) and Alpha is the risk associated with an investment when the investor takes on an active role in ensuring higher returns from the investments.

Now, one of the sources of Alpha is what one might call activism. This means using financial resources to create, or obtain control over, real assets and to use that control to change the payout obtained on the financial investment. A venture capitalist who transforms an inventor, a garage and an idea into a fully fledged, profitable and professionally managed corporation creates alpha. Otherwise, Alpha is in general very hard to generate. since most ways of doing so depend on the investment manager possessing unique abilities – to pick stocks, identify weaknesses in management and remedy them, or undertake financial innovation. Such abilities are rare. How then can untalented investment managers justify their pay? Unfortunately, all too often it is by creating fake alpha – appearing to create excess returns but in fact taking on hidden tail risks, which produce a steady positive return most of the time as compensation for a rare, very negative, return.

Now you will see why I take sides.
Not only is alpha hard to generate, quite a few so called alpha generators are fakers.

Phew! Now that we are done with understanding Alpha and Beta, please let me elaborate on my theory...

That Alpha and Beta, and investments, can be extended to the ideas of Hope and events in Life in general.
For example, each one of us would want certain things to happen or certain events to occur.
We can either actively work towards making those things happen or just sit back and Hope that things happen.
Please don't get me wrong! I am not making the case for people to resign themselves to Fate and Destiny.

There are always situations one comes across in Life, when despite wanting to do something about some things, one cannot. I am not making the case for excuses. But, there are barriers to doing what one would want to do. Not all barriers are visible or perceivable.

Let me further explain this with an example, just so that it is clear that I am not making the case for people sitting back and let Fate take over.
Consider for example a situation where one of your friends is in trouble. And offering to help, while being courteous, is nothing much. In these situations, you can only hope that your friend gets what he or she wants, or gets out of trouble in this example. This, in my opinion is a classic example of a Beta investment in Hope. You are an investor nevertheless, because you took a position on the occurence of an event. You speculated that the outcome will eventually be favourable. You invested your Hope in it.
Of course, if you are a deeply religious person, a "believer", may be you would even "pray".
With all due respect to Believers, this business of praying in in my opinion is not exactly a "pure" investment. It is a derivative investment, a sub-ordinate form of investment if you will, because you are expecting that this person called "God" will generate the alpha necessary for the favourable outcome.

I honestly believe that in all situations that we can, we should be alpha investors, especially if we are speculating about ourselves. We will be better off only if we try to be better off ourselves. Yes, some help and hope from friends never does one harm, but I wouldn't use Hope or Luck for myself.
I have known a Beta investor myself. He hopes for the good of his friends and others around him. He does not do anything for others really. But, believe me, he is a very rich investor. He has a huge amount of Hope for others. That, he calls his wealth.
As long as investing in matters concerning himself, he is an alpha investor. He does everything possible to generate desirable and favourable outcomes for himself.
And in situations where he can help do the same for others, he does everything possible for them.

But, in situations where he cant do much more than expect a desirable and favourable outcome, he assumes the role of a Beta investor.
He pledges his share of "Luck" or "Hope" in the name of his friends when they need it.
He says something as seemingly silly as "You can have my share of Luck for today".

But, believe me, it works! I have had a lot to learn from him, and I have known it to work when I have done the same....Hope....

Now that we have exhausted Alpha and Beta by metaphorising Investments with Hope, let me bring/take you back to the title of this post...

"Wassup" is not all that superficial as it seems after all....When you cant do much more than ask, asking is what you will do..Exactly the way you hope when you can't do much more than that...
But, in all other situations when you can, be an Alpha investor....In style! ;-)


For now, I will leave you with a song that The Namesake was incidentally and coincidentally listening to the other day on the train...This was just one of the times he was thinking of doing some Beta investment....Hoping that all the violence and fear in the name of religion, land and region end...He wouldn't know then that there would certainly be other avenues for investment....But then, such is life!


Sticks & Stones

Words & Music by Trés

I can see * The possibilities * Destiny * Is not written in the stars * How can we * Avoid responsibility * When who we'll be * Comes from who and what we are * The time has come * There's no place left to run * Time to choose * Will we win or loose

Sticks and stones will break * What is it gonna take * Don't you dream of something more * What are we fighting for

Don't let the hate * Take control of your fate * We have to bend * Or the violence will never end * We can win * It's not giving in * Who cares who's right * When all we do is fight * How many lives * How many children have to die * Because we teach * An eye for an eye

Sticks and stones will break * What is it gonna take * Don't you dream of something more * What are we fighting for * What are we fighting for * What are we fighting for

I can see * The possibilities * Destiny * Is not written in the stars * How can we * Avoid responsibility * When who we'll be * Comes from who and what we are * How many lives * How many children have to die * Because we teach * An eye for an eye

Sticks and stones will break * What is it gonna take * Don't you dream of something more * What are we fighting for * What are we fighting for

Running away! Bank runs! Carry on running....

Hmmm....So its been a week since he ran the show here, so here it is... "The show"
He, or his friends for that matter, were not really running away from the Mid semester examinations, since they would have to appear for the reexaminations on their return...
So, he, along with his friends, were only running around for permissions until the very last moment...just so that they could run after their pursuits...contests, if you want to call them that...
They had all been invited for the second rounds of races, of a few different varieties..Paper presentation, HR case study, and Operations case study events, some 2000+ kilometres away, at a Symbiotic Bschool in the Western region of The Country.
Now, 30 hours on a train in Sleeper class was a first for him...It would only be ruined towards the end by a drunk idiot who would be semi-silenced by The Namesake and his friends...
The two days they all spent in "Punya Nagari" were not fruitful...in the sense that they could not win hearts or laurels....The only fruitful part of the entire trip were the oranges they managed to buy at that railway station of a city famous for oranges...
Now, they had met people during those days....and learnt lessons..
They had together laughed, slept, studied, all to the extent possible...
They were a bit frustrated since apart from not being able to return victorious, they had not even been able to take time out to enjoy the good things part of the B school fest; They were not even able to eat or pack things for their friends back in the Detention Camp...
What's worse was that...their return train journey...another 30 hours was along with several people...
People running for their lives..
Now, at times like these, sympathy and empathy soon take over any amount of collective or individual selfishness....When you see that 4-5 people don't mind sitting in the loos on the train...for the want of any other space to sit, anyone who has even a pacemaker in the place of a heart would melt...
They all somehow managed to study and sleep amidst these things and people around them....
They would naturally spend some time thinking through what was causing the exodus...

What is it about language or culture or anything else that incites people?

Why do politicians exploit such human emotions, such tendencies of ordinary individuals to equate their identities with language and culture?

Why are human beings so vulnerable fear?

Anyway, "Banking and Insurance" was waiting to be studied, and The Namesake would discover that even Banks run! One of the "takeaways" from that entire trip, was "GoodTaste"..How much he had learnt about the importance of "GoodTaste" and the importance of thinking through all aspects of an issue at hand...He would not forget the GoodTaste for a long time to come...
It's another thing that he Adored and Worshipped Thought...But then...A GoodTaste is something most people desire to develop...

Thinking about Thinking, and GoodTaste brought him to some important questions..

1. Why do people run after things or people?
2. Why do people run in the first place?
3. Why do people falter or fall?
4. Should they consider giving up running?
5. And what is this obsession with running all about? ( I mean, hold on! Even this post and blog is obsessed with running!)

The Namesake has only one answer...

Life....has to go on...
Some races never end...Some pursuits remain just those - pursuits...
He....He, has to carry on running....

Running towards "running things around"...Running away from things and people...
Running after "pursuits"...
Running - in all its forms and variants...

Barbering at the gate ; The Spherical Market.

Aaah....Let me stop you right there...The World is still flat...The Spherical Market our planet earth is, we will apparently continue to reel under Globalisation...Reel under Globalisation's Ghost as well ;-) (I seriously hope my fellow YemmBeeYays pick this last sentence up!)
So, the Spherical Market is the most happening market in this part of the world, which we shall call "The Village", or "The Detention camp" as the situation demands ;-)

And Barbarians at the Gate continues to be unread beyond a few pages; Barbers at the gate were closed today, Monday being a holiday for barbers, grocers, and pharmacists alike!

So, our man, swung by the swing of his mood, decides to cycle out to "town", down, to the Spherical market....So what if it is a few kilometres away? When certain thoughts clog your mind, individuals other than just The Namesake would also say
"Its not about the bike"...And you thought only Lance Armstrong could say that!

Rupees 10 for a haircut service is an experience every man should consume, at least once in a lifetime.
In memory of all the thoughts that crossed The Namesake's mind before, during and after the cycling, this blog will now observe a moment's silence...............................................................
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(Yes, holding back can be good at times; Not holding thoughts back; but holding back from expressing them can...Especially when one doesn't really fully understand oneself, one's thoughts or thoughts of people around...Trying to get into the minds of people(including one's own mind) can be an exhausting (so what if interesting) experience...)
Thank the oscillation (mood swing, if you please!) and the forces behind the oscillation for this relatively brief post...In the true spirit of the primordial Deception-Perception balance, this post is hopefully "Deceptively simple, yet perceptibly complex!" !!! :-D

Congratulations, Valentine's Day, Nostalgia... And then of course, trying to remember the future...

Congratulations!
Yes, it was Congratulations pinging him after a loooong time... Congratulations had been his colleague at this CompleteGood place where they had become best buddies, working in the same office for 22 months...
Well...actually, Congratulations is someone who wouldn't mind his identity being revealed, so for those who don't have even a nodding acquaintance with Samskrit, Abinandan, "The Hero" had spotted The Namesake "going red" on JeeTalk, and so what if The Namesake's timezone said 4 am...So what if he was averaging less than 4 hours of sleep the last coupla days....
Anytime and any length of time is good to speak to friends...those who "almost" know you inside out..
So, Congratulations had caught our man, the Namesake online while the latter was working and reworking on his paper meant to be sent as an entry for a B school contest...
After closing the conversation at 5:30, The Namesake had gone to bed that day hoping to hear "Congratulations" on Valentine's Day...Only that it would be something on the lines of "Congratulations! You are now invited to our B school for the next phase of the contest"..
Its another thing that he, the Namesake heard the Congratulations a full day later, this evening....And it wasn't even for that paper he had been "banking on", but for the Case on human resources...The paper "could wait" he was told..

So, Valentine's Day had been a complete non-event, as eventful as it had been the previous years....
And having "run" around all evening trying to get permission to attend the festival, even if it meant missing the Mid semester examinations and returning mid-way through the mid-semester examinations...
So, having run around all evening and cycling and walking around a bit, he had talked around as well...Talking generally gives people a sense of confidence...that all's well...especially parents...
So, having talked around, he should ideally have started studying or doing something productive and worth while...He even tried it and did it for a while..
But soon another friend caught pinged him from that Land that Vespucci discovered and they got started on talking about their "eventful" Valentine's Days... They remembered their pasts and futures together...
And then The Namesake went back, trying to dig deeper and remember the past better...

Valentine's Day had been thought provoking the previous year as well, and although largely unevntful, it was around the time he had been preparing to get into the place he is in today...

http://vishwas-mn.livejournal.com/8350.html

Wonder what 2009 has in store! I for one cant remember how it will look like...But I am sure The Namesake has a vague idea... ;-)

Sweet Dreams...His, his Little Sister's...

"Damn! You should have been here to see for yourself! And now, they don't even let me talk to you in private! When you were around, we could sneak into each other's rooms no matter anytime in the night while they were asleep...and talk to our heart's content...Even now, they're trying so hard to listen in on our conversation!"

"Anyways, why I called you earlier; didn't know you had classes even on Saturdays now! I called you to ask you this...Would you ever, if you end up decide to get married, especially in the arranged marriage or rearranged marriage fashion...Tell me, would you insist on "seeing" the girl walk past you again in a different attire, especially a saree? I told Mom and Dad that I would ask you this, and if you answered in the negative, I would be justified in holding that one thing, among other things of course against the guy who is coming down to "see me" this evening".

If it was his "best friend" the previous day, it was Little Sister late this afternoon; the 20th century invention, the cellular telephone, again making distance and physical presence almost irrelevant...

But it was the advise, that his Little Sister gave him was what he probably will never forget...

"Remember, whatever you do or try to do, never feel weak. Not one wee bit...Remember, you are my strong brother ;-) The Big Brother ;-) No matter what happens, don't let weakening things happen to you. You have been your own boss, and don't let that change. Mom, Dad, or me, or anyone else should not be able to change that. Not as easily as others let that happen to them...You are the only person who is going to be your own best company for life as you have more than often claimed, and don't ever forget that...And trust me to speak from experience ;-)"

The Namesake: "Ok! I can't disagree with you, on this, for now. But, I have dreams...sweet ones.."

Little Sister: "Oh! No poetry again! Not now! Please! I am off now, they can be here any moment..."

End of conversation

Our man, The Namesake, having "stumbled upon" Elvis Costello returned to listening to "Sweet Dreams"...Elvis Costello had only recently caught his attention, and having downloaded his music from that famous "Data Collection Plus Plus", The Namesake was lost in his Dreams...Sweet Dreams...

Sweet Dreams

Sweet dreams of you, every night I go through
I should hate you girl the whole night through
Instead Im having sweet dreams all about you

You dont love me its plain
I should have known youd never share my name
Why cant I forget you girl, start loving someone new?
Instead Im having sweet dreams all about you

Why cant I forget my past, start loving someone new?
Instead Im having sweet dreams all about you

Sweet dreams of you, every night I go through
I should hate you girl the whole night through
Instead Im having sweet dreams all about you


Disclaimer: "Sweet Dreams" belong to Elvis Costello and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental, and frankly, pretty confusing! Apart from being confusing, it could be more interesting than almost any other piece of fiction you have ever read!

Stock markets? Fall or rise, the speculation shall go on...It's a poort sort of memory that only works backwards..

At 3:30 pm on a Friday afternoon, if you overheard this conversation, you would be excused for mistaking it to be about the stock markets...After all, the ups and downs, in recent times; more often than not, inexplicable seem to be understood only in retrospect.

Before I talk about the conversation he had late this afternoon, let me take a detour to what lead to the conversation...

Lewis Carroll once said that "It's a poor sort of memory that only works backwards".

Now, our "The Namesake", (For the want of a better name, we shall call "Him" thus from this post onwards...)...Our Namesake,
He had read this quote while reading random stuff online a few years ago...But, his thoughts were provoked recently by a really gentle man who, among other things, said that
"Everything happens for a reason".

Now, if there really was no such thing as coincidence; if everything was predetermined, one would automatically be curious to know more about what would or would not come one's way in the near, far and far-fetched future. One would even consider expending efforts towards changing what is to come, if Destiny was really all that believable.
However, "Everything happens for a reason" is something that got him thinking the previous evening, and tempted him to interpret it under the current circumstances and recent occurrences (and non-occurrences alike)...

That one statement, apart from sparking so many thoughts, raised several questions, three of which are worth mentioning; the rest of the questions being worth not mentioning although they were nowhere close to being "unmentionable" in the colloquial sense of the term...

Questions:
1. If Everything was really happening for a reason, what really were the reasons for whatever was happening?
2. More importantly, what was the reason for everything that was not happening? Especially all that he would ideally like to be happening?
(Desiring is not the same as deserving, he was told; but it is very human to desire, and for once, or once in a while, let us suppose that he is human ;-)
3. And, most importantly, what "all" or "everything" was going to happen? And for what "reasons"?

As would "happen to him" more often than not, that one statement "Everything happens for a reason" sparked off so many thoughts and questions, that all other things that were spoken, by that Steely Human, The Vice President of Resources; a man who appeared to have a heart of gold although he could make Steel...The Vedas, "Deserve, then desire", "Shut up and listen"..were all gems, more precious than steel or any other metal...
(If all this is too confusing, imagine the VP-HR of Tata Steel delivering guest lecture in a free flowing question-answer format, and your imagination will not be far from the truth!)

So, the previous evening had generated these random thoughts and questions..But this "raw material" had set off some "work in process" in his mind, and in light of the time constraints and scheduling specifications, he had decided to inventory the work in the "warehouse" that his mind was...
Attempts to make the conversation at 10 30 am the next morning (this morning) had failed...And he was wondering if and when the conversation would happen..
Finally, at 3 30 pm, the constraints seemed to have all disappeared, and it was time to "reduce inventory".
So, while his legs pedalled the bicycle on his way back to "the room", there was, in his mind, now room being created for some fresh air and fresh thoughts alike...

Conversations with friends can sometimes help "reduce inventory", and remove bottlenecks that often unnecessarily and unfortunately choke people's minds...
Now, this friend was "special" in the extra-ordinary sense of the term. "Extra" ordinary only because they could talk and joke about anything..With most others, it would be "talk and joke about almost anything"..But, with her, it was anything...
You could even be excused for concluding that friendship between a man and a woman, when qualified by that most abused adjective "special", almost always means that there is something "brewing" or "cooking"...
But, if you were to know that they had been over a decade now, you would probably consider labelling the relationship "Platonic"..
Well, it was more of a tonic than Platonic, because he could border on being flirtatious, only there would be no room for misunderstanding. The understanding was such that the Platonic or tonic nature of their relationship would almost certainly never change...
Again, "almost certainly", only because, the conclusion of that conversation was that
"Everything happens for a reason" is a debatable assertion...The arguments favouring the assertion were not infallible as they discovered that afternoon...
They agreed that the debate would be inconclusive, but, they nevertheless concluded that the assertion was debatable, especially in the context of the circumstances they were in...
Cities can separate friends physically, but one of the greatest inventions of the 2oth century, the cellular telephone, helps conversation addicts like him and her to continue to live with their innocuous addiction.
Innocuous, it really is, because, the conversation would normally comprise of anything from daily life, to work life to life in a Bschool, to philosophy, to flirting with the idea of flirting, to dreams and desires...basically (am sure you got the point sometime back!) everything.

So, everything happens for a reason. The reason for the conversation about everything was that he heard this one statement the previous evening..
"Everything happens for a reason"
So, while you are totally confused with how everything, including a conversation about everything happens for a reason; the reason being the very statement, let me now tell you about one of the most interesting parts of the conversation...

After all, this post was supposed to talk about stock markets right? Or so you had thought and then initially you had been told that the post was not about stock markets although you would be lead to believe that if you had overheard that part of the conversation...

So...now for that conversation about the stock markets...Remember, this is all light hearted, and conversation for the sake of conversation, in the true spirit of friendship and conversation...

Holy Beauty:
1. Would you show even be a 100th as concerned or caring if you had known that I was not keeping well?
2. Would you have been as caring to me?

The Namesake:
1. But, I never had the opportunity Holy Beauty! We were both staying in our homes, enjoying the care and comforts of our families and homes!
2. And I know that its a bad excuse....but its the best I could come up with spontaneously ;-)

Holy Beauty:
Yes! That's a lame excuse if you don't mind me saying that...And then you say "Its not about the legs"!! How ridiculous!

The Namesake:
But then I had made so many advances. You spurned all my advances ;-) ;-) ;-)
My life was like the bear "run" in the stock markets..
More declines than advances!

Holy Beauty:
Hahaha! (Please imagine a train that speeds past the stations of "Chuckletown", "Giggletown" and roars past "LaughterTown")..
So, where is the "Index" headed now? If the face is the index of the mind, how well are you doing the face-reading?

The Namesake:
Aaah well! Its the Sensex you gotta be talking about...After all it stands for the "Sensitive Index" doesn't it?

Holy Beauty: Hmmm...

The Namesake:
The Sensex has been fluctuating widely these days man...All indexes are, in fact! There is nothing I can say for sure...

HolyBeauty:
Patience is a virtue Mister...Although you have enough, these are testing times for you..


The Namesake:
So, it is Optimism and Quixotism yet again! The best things to "fall back on" that I have ever known!

Holy Beauty:
Look forward to the bright future...
Remember, "It's a poor sort of memory that only works backwards" :-)

End of conversation

So, an "MBA in the making" and a "software" engineer can talk about stock markets alrite!
You wouldn't even know about such interesting conversations about the stock markets...Unless I had overheard it and put them here, in a long, possibly boring, and quite confusing post ;-)

If you now ask me
If "It's not about the legs", what is it really about?
What is this blog all about?
What is this post all about?

I would say, "You tell me!"..Scroll right back to the top of this page; Read carefully whats right above that Google Ad..
And yeah, "it" is not even about the Google ad ;-)...It is only above that Google Ad :-P

Running away from home; "Independence Day"...

He had always been an insomniac. We have known each other since our early childhood days, and from as far back as I can remember, sleep was something that would often elude him.
Most stay-at-home or work-from-home moms find it really hard to "contain" their kids during the summer vacations. The kids want to play out all the time, and Moms generally have a tough time ensuring that the kids don't play outdoors at least during noon times. The hot sun, in their collective opinion, harm the kids. Be that argument as it may, he was not one who would be happy playing indoor games as a kid. Not on all days at least! If he felt like playing outdoors, he would find a way out..Whether or not he had any likelihood of finding good or bad company to play, he would run away from home.
His mom would ensure that he and his Little Sister had a heavy meal every afternoon during those summer holidays. The heavy meal, she thought would be sleep-inducing enough. She would then try and put them to sleep, so she could do some work or get some rest herself. She would even threaten him (his Little Sister would only be too happy to sleep you see) with the black thick rubber gasket that actually rightly belongs to the pressure cooker...
With due respect to the electric cooker gasket and his mom, he would pretend a semblance of sleep...Waiting for his mom to fall for his pretence...He would only have to wait for an opportune moment later, and then..
Run away from home ;-)
Teenage was no different; afternoon naps were unknown to him. Even if he did nothing else or nothing useful, he just could not bring himself around to sleeping!
Sleeping, as he would say is a very healthy thing to do, and why, one must sleep for a minimum of 6 hours each night to stay healthy.
Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to fool you or anyone else into believing that he never slept beyond 6 hours.
The only point I am trying to make here is that he would never sleep unless he needed sleep; and that if he didn't feel the need to sleep, he would even run away...
Running away from home is what really brought back memories of his sleeplessness to me now...And the fact that his sleeplessness persists even till this date, and even so these days, is the other reason that "sleeplessness" and "running away from home" can be inter-related.
And as luck would have it, he has kinda run away from home now, and continues to have sleepless days and nights...
As he was speaking to his Mom this evening, he related to her about how he felt being away from home. Only that this time, he convinced her that this running away from home was justified in more ways than one...
He is out there now, playing in the sun...He had to play this game..So what if he was a grown up now? A "fully grown man" that he may be, this running away from home was the best thing that could have ever happened to him...
He has had many "Independence Days" as a result of this running away...There will be many more "Independence Days" in Delhi. Yes, May through November, including the 15th of August.
All in Delhi, "Independent" in the truest sense of the term...

And then finally he remembered that, apart from summer holidays, he used to run away from home even on August 15th every year ;-)

Running up and down.. Running around.. "Not so merry" go round!

Well...He did not want to complain really...After having "stumbled upon" the concept of "Victim mentality", complaining is the last thing he wanted to do...
But then, when one is made to run around, run up and down, challenged to cut through red tape, the feeling is no more akin to "Victim mentality"..It is more on the lines of anti-establishment.
"Isn't it counter intuitive? " is the one question that kept crossing his mind today.
After a point, rules don't make sense any more. May be this was all designed to test his patience.
While rules, patience tests are all very well, the one point he wanted to make was that life could be so much simpler without the red tape. Ideally, he should be the last person to complain. Some of his friends have cut through "redder tapes" ;-)
But then, he is not exactly "complaining". He very patiently did the running around and the running up and down.
And he wasn't alone. Two others for company; they were exchanging smiles amongst themselves, each one of them knowing that a B-school should ideally be the last place where one has to cut through red-tape.
But then, he was not complaining as I told you earlier.

He was only saying that it was "not so merry".

And before others thought that he was running out of "running", there he was, running up and down for a good part of the day, and that is when he thought about how he hadn't given up on running. "Running" was not to let go of him that easily either! ;-)

She...

Disclaimer:

1. No. I didn't post this Elvis Costello songs' lyrics for the want of something better to post!
2. I stumbled upon Elvis Costello in a pink newspaper; I don't really have a great taste for music, poetry otherwise.
3. Yes, I set out looking for a different Elvis Costello song after reading what was quoted of it in the pink newspaper.
4. No, I haven't watched the movie despite having been asked to by some friends, including my Little Sister.
5. Yes, this is part of the "But its not about the legs" idea; but don't ask me how or why!
6. No, its not because of any of what you think it could be; I don't know why or how myself ;-)
(Aah....well, I don't know fully well or for sure...I guess "I'm too confused" is convincing enough..like the "escape velocity" equivalent of statements ;-) )
7. Yes and No; this may or may not have caught my attention because of a few spicific thoughts..We ll now rest the disclaimer and get on with Elvis Costello! :P



She
May be the face I can't forget.
A trace of pleasure or regret
May be my treasure or the price I have to pay.
She may be the song that summer sings.
May be the chill that autumn brings.
May be a hundred different things
Within the measure of a day.

She
May be the beauty or the beast.
May be the famine or the feast.
May turn each day into a heaven or a hell.
She may be the mirror of my dreams.
A smile reflected in a stream
She may not be what she may seem
Inside her shell

She who always seems so happy in a crowd.
Whose eyes can be so private and so proud
No one's allowed to see them when they cry.
She may be the love that cannot hope to last
May come to me from shadows of the past.
That I'll remember till the day I die

She
May be the reason I survive
The why and wherefore I'm alive
The one I'll care for through the rough and ready years
Me I'll take her laughter and her tears
And make them all my souvenirs
For where she goes I've got to be
The meaning of my life is

She, she, she

-Elvis Costella.

And should you have any questions, especially about why I've put such a poem up, please read/reread the disclaimer, especially points 2 and 3 which basically imply that "Elvis Costello" was himself a "stumble upon" thanks to a pink newspapers, and on reading about him and looking for what else he had written, I was too tempted to post this, and I kinda yielded to the temptation ;-)

Beginning from the beginnning. I mean, the running...

The onset of spring was marked by rains, and his shoe laces had come off. He is tying those shoelaces back in place, and will probably take some time before he starts running again..
But, while he was tying his shoe laces, he was beginning to think about the beginning...of running..

When did he start running?

Like most normal kids, and although he was not really normal, he would pass for a normal kid, so we will spare him the agony and embarrassment of questioning his normalcy!
So, like most normal kids, he too had started crawling at first, and appeared to be a pro at that (I am told), since he would seemingly be very careful, avoiding a flight of stairs downward, right outside his house, while he moved on four limbs to his neighbour's house on the same floor. He must have subsequently learnt to walk before he started running.

The earliest of his memories of running he could recollect, was of days when he was about ten years old. A few younger and older kids would get together, and start off on their 4 kilometre jog around this lake in the Garden City. Having varying stamina levels, they would keep switching between running, walking and jogging during those early days. And then there would be days when they would all time themselves and do "pure" running, on a proper running track within a certain "MEG" grounds...

There have been instances when he has run after four wheelers and three wheelers alike...
It was not even "teenage rush" since he had run behind a three wheeler a full year ahead of teenage. But why would one run behind an auto rickshaw? Unless it had something to do with the passenger or driver (take your pick!) and it was the same passenger everyday ?
It was the same auto rickshaw everyday, and unlike other "school auto rickshaws", this one was meant for only one person...
Now, there are things all of us do...Some of these are very smart things to do...and others are...probably.... Aah..well, as I told you, he was not even a teenager then! It may not also be all that weird to remember the registration number of the three wheeler, but yes, he does remember....After all, most of us do some stupid things we cannot afford to forget ;-)

So, there has been a history of running...Of course, history is just what it is...Only that he has been running is consistent with history.
He hasn't been running after the same people, or different people...And has definitely not been running after automobiles...Adolescence, fortunately increases significantly his understanding of "pursuit"...Chasing dreams has been more interesting since those days of innocence (or call it childish stupidity if you will!)...
Running, for him, these days, is inspired by different reasons and motivators....and at times, it has been an "inspired" form of running, in the complete absence of any evidence of any reason or motivation...But then, absence of evidence, as his favourite line claims, is not evidence of absence...
So...while you sort the absence and evidence out, let him continue to tie his shoelaces back in place...We all know it shouldn't take too long to tie one's shoelace; but then, what if it keeps coming off? ;-)

But then, its not about winning either...

At the outset, I ll have to admit that this post is at least in part inspired by a suggestive speculation of what one of my future posts could be titled ;-)
Frankly, I did not want to use it up this early; but I guess, sooner or later, runners and walkers alike realise that its not all about winning, despite the fact that its not all about the race in the first place.
So, its not about winning.
Now, that automatically leads one to exclaim that its not about losing either...I ll probably "reserve" the contemplation on losing for later.
Right now, all I can say that, its not all about winning.

We'll have to ignore losing because not all games are zero sum games! ;-)
Or....thats probably what he convinced himself to conclude ;-)

But then, it's not about the race either!

What happens when the rules of a game are changed all of a sudden?
All preparation goes for a toss!

He had been running distances, building stamina up first, and then later working on his speed.
But today, the race was actually held, given that it had stopped raining the previous evening and hadn't rained since then.

But, when the rules of the game are changed all of a sudden, such as reducing the already namesake of a marathon from 5.5 kilometres to 2.2 kilometres, all preparation looks stupid.
This is probably just another example of our expectations and how they can, and often will, prove to be wrong.

He had no excuses to offer for being the 38th in a race of over hundred people; Maybe stamina and speed are altogether different. Maybe he was lacking in speed. Or maybe, he was just not prepared, although in a way he was really prepared.

But then, its not about the race either!
In the meantime, not having run really hard in the last few days, there was in him today a sense of incompleteness...But then, hadn't he always felt incomplete?
What was even more confusing was the fact that of all days, today was to be a day of feeling good...about getting out of his jinx of not having one a single B school contest so far...
But, isn't an optimal amount of confusion always required to keep things interesting; to force readers of this "Running series" to return to read more such "incomplete" posts? ;-)

There are other races coming up, apart from the human kind, but remember..

It's not about the race either!

Running, apparently is not as much fun when it's raining...

He had been running all these days, working on building his stamina and persistence up, for this day.
The "Youth Marathon", a 5.5 kilometre run was to be held today, conducted in association with PCRA, the Petroleum Conservation Research Association.
But then, over the last two days, it had been raining for most part of the day.
People who are serious about running, although they may run for different reasons, don't really mind running in the rain.
But, alas, it was not to be!
Apparently, running is not as much fun when it's raining. I really wonder about who ever thought so, and why?

So, the marathon is "indefinitely postponed".
The running around later in the day sorta made up for the morning's lost opportunity. Things could have been much better, but they could also have been worse, so he better not complain!
Some verbal duels could be rewarding, as he would discover that evening, when he engaged in one, as part of a B-school contest and stood third...
He is probably looking forward for some more duels in the future; Rewards are inconsequential really...
He is also probably looking forward to running in a race now...Or maybe what he really is looking forward to is some running...

Elsewhere...

Lost and found! But then it never was about the bike either...

He had walked around with and without his bicycle on Tuesday, and had even climbed trees, jumped off them, broken free from prisons to live upto "Hijli Break"...But none of that would leave him lost..Not lost enough to lose his bicycle...He had parked his bicycle in the usual spot in the bicycle stand...
So what if he did not use or see his bicycle on Wednesday?
Why wouldn't he find his bicycle on Thursday morning then?

A few hours passed before his bicycle was found. Some prank or attempt at robbery it appeared, the cycle was found in another parking lot which he didn't even know existed! So, with a sigh of relief he reassured himself that he had indeed been sane and not been absent minded or lost in thought on Tuesday. He hadn't been sleep walking or sleep cycling either!
Sleep cycles are already screwed up in the Bharatiya Institutes of Technology..

So how did it really matter to him if he had indeed lost his bicycle? He would have lost it.
He may or may not have bought another one. He may have bought a new one, or a used one. He may have taken to walking instead of cycling.
But Dwichakra was special. Still, it was not about the bike. If he had lost the bike, he would have lost his mind! What all had he dreamt of doing with the bike! But then, it was not about the bike again! It was about what he was planning to do with it...What he could have done long after he had stopped using it for commuting...
Dreams, plans, ideas, thoughts..Call it what you may...
Words dilute most objects the moment we begin to define, describe or explain.
One can only imagine what it was all about, if it was not about the bike.

And sometimes people cry when they are happy. He was happy to have found his bicycle...Happier still, to have found "this" by cycle.

Need for speed.

6.6 kilometres in a little under 30 minutes. In the context of the lost opportunity to "Go take a walk" in excellent weather. I am not sure which of the two was troubling him more.
The point is that both were troubling nonetheless.
The point is also that there is still a lot of scope for improvement. And it is not as simple as that computer game called "Need for Speed II".
He used to drive his car at times with near total neglect; near total lack of fear. He must have been really lucky to have avoided all potential "accidents". But then, what is life without thrills. Most of his friends labelled them as "cheap thrills". Cheap they were, but of course, because there was very little to lose! And then there are very thin lines that separate confidence and over-confidence. Only that sometimes, a chain of thoughts blur such boundaries.
Running, on the other hand is a much safer proposition. Not as thrilling as playing NFS2 or driving a car like crazy.
But running like crazy, and running for a craze and running by virtue of being crazy are all quite thrilling! And then, when one is not earning any more, these thrills come very cheap apart from helping one stay fit. If it is all even indirectly directed at running for a cause, its even better!
Petroleum Conservation Research Association sounds good enough for a cause.
The real cause, aah well, will only be a mystery. An intriguing and interesting mystery. A mystery that unfolds only as part of some wishful thinking.
A lot of wishful thinking in fact....

Go, take a walk. For a change!

"Sometimes, whenever time permits (actually even if "time doesn't permit"), we should take a walk. Not exactly the way one uses the phrase "Boss! Go take a walk"; but then, even if it were to be in that tone, taking a walk helps!
And that is because, at times, walking around can be better than running around...And walking, strolling in fact, is almost always better than running away."
Now, this is how he was feeling this evening, having missed his rounds of running.
But then, if walking, pacing up and down the prison of his mind eventually helped him break free, he would, in retrospect feel happy about having walked around instead of running. Walking around prisons in spring, with flowers and good company..can be more than just relaxing!

Of course, there are other, seemingly more rational reasons for walking once in a while.
After all, when he was a kid, he had first learned to walk before he could run or run away.
With time, he would go on to first learn to run, and then run after...

Running after is a subject matter of risk, just like Insurance. One should carefully read his thoughts before running.
Now, since this was a post dedicated to "Walking for a change", other unrelated ideas such as "Running after" will have to wait...
So long, "Go, take a walk!" ;-)

Running around; Running inside an IIT; The running inside an IITian!

He had often been asked to keep his expert comments and opinions to himself. After all, "You don't run things around here!" expressions written on the faces of people were not too uncommon for him. But then, what if he didn't run things around? Nobody could stop him from running around after all. Or running after all either!
One can even ignore the fact that his nose would often give him company while running.
He never really ran after an IITian. Why would anyone in their so called "sane" mind do that?
He never really ran after an IITian. But, now, after he had become an IITian himself, he ran.
He ran even after he had become an IITian.
An "IITian", he had earlier been mistaken to be anyway! So, it doesn't really matter that he was not a "proper IITian". He was not a "proper IITian"; he was a fractional IITian anyway, and, may be you could get away with calling him an "improper IITian" with due respect to improper fractions. He was improper even numerically, since most numbers would hesitate to "divide" him fully...
So, this improper IITian, he continues to run around...And while running, more often than not, thinks about running things around... And at other times, running away from himself and/or others.
And then there are times when he runs after people and dreams...Those are the times when he runs really hard and for long. Until he has to stop...Stop in order to be able to
"Run another day"

Run...another day!

Running.

This is novel stuff. I mean, all that I plan to write on this new blog is not entirely new, but it's something that can with some effort be fit into a novel.
But, remember, it's not about the legs.

I am not new to running, be it in any of its forms, especially running away. And then of course, there is always running after... ! But what prompted me to create a whole new blog centered around running is the fact that I have taken to running again recently.

Where do I run (to) ? And why do I run?

Well, these are questions which can only be answered indirectly.
So, read between the lines.
Remember, this is novel stuff. So, you'll find a cocktail of fact, fiction and fantasy here, just like most novels. I may be an amateur and immature novelist, but that doesn't stop me from creating a blog and posting what I consider novel material.

Also, remember, "But, it's not about the legs!"