Friday, September 30, 2011

On how the gold makes me see RED!

The other day, I was on Facebook when I saw some random mallu lady bedecked with an overload of jewellery in traditional Malyalee attire.

She was wearing so many necklaces that upon closer inspection, seemed stitched on. I've heard of affluent families having their bride wear as many jewels as humanly possible and have the other sets sewed onto the saree and have her look like she raided some elephant's hideout and wore the gaudy thingy mahouts put over their elephant's forehead to make them look grand.Refer to the piccie for further illustrations!

Looks good on the Pachyderm ,not on a human.
So, really...they have it and they flaunt it. What's the big friggin' problem, you ask? Seriously? I've no issues if people want to flaunt their entire bank lockers on their big day. I mean, come on! It's your day. You're getting hitched and you've all the right to look like an idiot if that's what you want! But just because someone sent their daughter away with enough gold that could be used to feed the whole of the starving children in Africa, does not mean I have to wear that when I get married.

HURR... DERP!!!!!111RAGE1
And I'm on the verge of losing my sanity when I hear the n-th dickhead ask how much gold I'll be given away with. Suck on this, asshole! I am a person. And as a person, I don't think my evaluation should be done based on how much Au my parents can provide for me. I mean, suuuure... I can almost hear those people bristle up in defence as they say the Gold's for my security when things get rocky. Really now! So, are you saying that the guy I'm marrying is actually a jerk who's not good at earning a living for his wife? Or that the family I'm getting married into will treat me so badly that I'll have to go my separate way, selling my gold to fill my stomach? Or are you inherently a douchebag?

I'm a person who's of the belief that wealth is not to be flaunted. Sure, your opinions are yours and mine are mine. But since this blog is mine, deal with it! Not all the gold in the world can equal to a single loving person . And if you're obtuse enough to know that and live by it, you deserve to be anally raped by a rabid Grizzly Bear.

P.S. I'm aware my recent post have been...er... a little on the brazen side. But whatever!


*The author is fuming right now. Please insert custom title here!*

There's been quite a lot of activity around these days. Most of those folks around seem to think that I'm learning Japanese for the LULZ and nothing more.

When will people be kind enough to actually stop opinionating about things they've no idea about?

I mean, sure. I've not an inkling of what some of you do with your lives but to just randomly go about and demean something that I really know is dear to you would make me a Douchebag of sorts, wouldn't it?

It's weird how people take offense really easily when someone demeans their hobbies, career, hair style, choice of deoderant and whathaveyou! But the very same people don't think for a moment before they shoot their mouths about other people's interests and passions.

And like they say,

災いは口より来る
(Wazawai wa kuchi yori kitaru) - The words that leave our mouths cause great harm.

And seriously though... for everybody that I know who seems to think that I'm wasting my time with Japanese, I've just two words -

Thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen!



Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Ugh... the dumb.... it hurts!

Dad and I are having quite the argument right now! Before people think we're not in talking terms, let me get this straight. We're as conversational as ever and aren't angry at each other but there's been an issue that requires immediate attention and somehow, the way he is planning on going about it is unfortunately..well... dumb!

Imagine that you have a video file that is 3GB in size. And you're required to transfer it to a relative of yours who lives on the other side of the world. Now, my dad seems to think it's best if we were to divide the files into chunks of data that are 25 MB in size and then send it as individual mails. And what about the fact that the person receiving it might not actually enjoy getting the file in so many chunks? Well, he wants me to number them all up so that the when the person there receives all the files, they can join 'em back together and view what one can only hope is the original video without any sort of mishap that might've occurred during the splitting or the transferring part.

I understand Dad is trying to be helpful. But he just doesn't seem to understand that what he's asking me to do is probably the most impractical way of transferring a file. If I had my way, I'd probably fed-ex the darned DVD to the person and if that's not viable, probably store it in Rapidshare or Megaupload and mail them the link! But Dad doesn't seem too privy to that idea for the reason that he doesn't know of these sites. Oy vey!

Men in general seem so dumb these days! Why oh God?! WHYYYYYYYYYYY?!

Saturday, September 24, 2011

Aaaaargh!

It's not everyday that when you wake up, you feel sick enough to find a shotgun and end the suffering with just a pull of the trigger! I was feeling that way this morning. Thanks to a late night movie and the unpredictable weather, I suspect I might have caught a cold or worse... a throat infection. This is horrible. Now, I cannot comment on the stupidity I see around me and can't sing along with Keiko Kubota when she croons Houseki in my iPod!

Ugh... and just for the record, my Dad is a hypocrite. When we were heading out to the movie, he complained about how people did not have the patience to wait for the lights to turn green. And then, when we were heading back, he shot a red light just because it was late and nobody was coming in the other roads! Seriously... does it matter? A rule is a rule and breaking it whether anybody is watching it or not does not make a difference! I've lost hope on Humanity in general today. Indian roads will be infested with idiots and surprisingly, my dad is one of them... ashamed to admit it... but that's the truth.

Friday, September 23, 2011

Gossamer keepsakes of yesterday

Today, I slept... I slept like a baby! And as I did, I left all my worries behind... wrapped in gossamer bundles, embellished with pretty ribbons with the hues of the rainbows. And yet, a few, I carry with myself. A keepsake from yesterday. Have they not warned us enough of forgetting our past? And in those treasured bundles of the figments of bygone times, I hold all those moments that were almost perfect. As I grow old, maybe these bundles shall be the treasures that might hold me together.


Keepsakes from yesterday...

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

The Exorcist... and my views on Evil.

Disclaimer: This post does not condone to any sort of religion in particular and are based entirely on my views. I express my deepest apologies in advance if this post hurts anyone reading it.

I saw The Exorcist yesterday. It's touted to be one of the scariest movies of all times! And well, since I've always been game for a scary movie, I decided to watch it alone. Unfortunately, I found that the movie did not scare me as much as I'd expected it to. It all comes down to the person watching it, I suppose. As an Advaitin, I follow the principles that there is no absolute Good or Evil and that if something exists, it's because we perceive it. I've has so many friends who've tried to get me to fear the Evil One and have also gone as far as saying I'm an idolater. I have no issues with people having their own version of Good and Evil. But when someone decides to push their views onto me, that's when I really get wild.

Abrahmic religions have such a wealth of wisdom that there are times when I find no wonder in believing that the world's most practiced religion happens to be one derived from the same source. But then, there are times when I wonder why people of a particular religion would have to torment followers of another just for the sake of proving them wrong? I'm talking about centuries of torment, stigma and hatred that people of the Church had for anyone who did not follow them. I really doubt if the Inquisitors of the Dark Ages are really in Heaven at this moment. But then again, according to me, there is no Heaven and Hell... just complete realization of the Truth. Maybe this is why I find it extremely difficult to have Horror movies affect me too much. Sure, I get the inital chills and then I have my spiritual Guru (Swami Vivekanada) kick me in the rear and warn me that there is no absolute evil and all of it is subjective, and then I smile.

The second thing that got to me is the fact that how the Church had taken it upon themselves to demonize almost any deity that stood as an opposition to their progress! Coming to think of it, Ishtal, Baal, Ra, Kali and numerous other gods who were portrayed as deceivers. But to give the early church it's due, the Christians were also pretty much persecuted by the Jews and the Roman Empire, so it could all have been done in the mode of revenge. Though I understand their emotions of wanting others to see how wrong they are, it would've helped them to actually try seeing things from the other's point of view. Oh well, that's water under the bridge now, isn't it?

Anyway, if one were to ask me, I'd say people were a lot close minded in the Dark ages and it's sad that their lack of understanding (or their blatant refusal to try) has painted many philosophies with the dark taint of Evil. If only they could've understood that everything leads to the same destination and that everyone was getting there in their own way...

P.S. I found the demon's name Pazuzu from the Exorcist too funny to be scared... poor dude, if he were in India, he'd be teased like there's no tomorrow. For, you see, pazuzu rhymes with kakkoozu. And Kakkoozu means... well... google it out, why don't you? :) Oh, and Pazuzu was once again an Assyrian deity who was later "demonized".

Power Plants and Protests

There's been a lot of hullabaloo about a proposed Nuclear Power Plant in Koodamkulam. The project has been under construction for quite some time now (more than a decade ago!). But recently, thanks to the Fukushima incident in Japan and the erstwhile Chernobyl. I cannot deny the fact that a Nuclear disaster is a really horrible thing to happen and if one were to happen, it could do a lot of damage!

But this particular protest smells very fishy. For one, the protesters did not protest when the project was initiated a decade ago. And contrary to popular belief, an investment of these proportions (U.S.$ 3.5 billion) is not just carried out on a whim. The people who protest are citing Chernobyl and Fukushima. Sure, they are horrible reminders of what happens when Human negligence happens or when Nature decides to take the upper hand. But that's hardly a reason to stop work there. The fishermen around the area claim that the effluents from the power plant would contaminate fishes and the ilk and reduce their livelihood in the area. Fair enough... only that they knew the power plant was coming up so long ago. And if they had a problem with it, they should've brought it up way earlier. And saying that a Nuclear Power Plant is a disaster waiting to happen is almost similar to saying "Putting on a light switch would kill you!" There are adversities everywhere and when one sees the advantage of greener energy and better power distribution, it almost seems silly to think of stopping Nuclear power plants for some person's unfounded stigma about it. Do they think that a project of these proportions would be implemented without proper research and safety precautions?

I suspect that this entire protest has a political tinge to it. And if that is true, it's sad. Being a science student, I know how much of an advantage having a Nuclear Power Plant would be. Then again, there were folks who thought switching on the LHC would bring about the end of the world! Oy vey, it's a sad time for science, folks!

Monday, September 19, 2011

Someday... you just wait!

Condescension... that's one of the worst things a person could throw at another person. And right now, I'm having this ugly little critter thrown at me left right and center!

Right now, I'm being condescended by people who I'd hoped would never in my wildest dreams would and so, it's a little disconcerting. But I'm holding my ground! Oh yeah! They can be all high and mighty and treat me like I'm nothing! They can just assume that I have it easy. They can do whatever the goddamned hell they want and I just am not bothered about it.

So... if I'm not bothered about it, why the post, you wonder? Good question.

Because, in the heart of hearts, I am a little. I find condescension something that's extremely insulting and demeaning. And so, cannot stand it at all. But rather than feel little or depressed, I tend to scoff at the condesender and give them the symbolic "finger".

P.S. I can't cook well and all that's fine! But if anybody is expecting a "kitchen slave", they're going to be in for a nasty surprise, aren't they? >=)

Sunday, September 18, 2011

JLPT N4! Here I coooooooome!!

Today is the day! Oh yeah.... Today is the day! Today I'll have my way. Oh yeah! Today is the daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!!!!!

Ahem...As most of us on this side of the planet struggle to get our peepers open so early on a Sunday morn, I'm full of beaming energy! Today, I submit my JLPT N4 application form! There's another reason why I'm so super-cali-fragalistic so early in the morning! Yesterday in class, I was actually able to understand the Kanji and the context of the story more easily than most in class. It could be because I knew the story of Urashima Tarou beforehand but still... I feel elated that maybe I am not as hopeless in this new class as I had feared! And, I also  realized that the few who were really good (one guy who seems really nice but is a little "show-off"y at times) actually was taking this class for the second time! And yesterday, Swarna-san and I managed to garner some attention towards ourselves in the positive sense! There were enquiries of where we did our N5 (though we mentioned it at the first class itself!) and how long ago we'd started learning! Swarna-san was able to crack N5 with just two months of preparation! Hah! Take that, you people who think we're not good enough in what we learn!

Hmmm.... Shimizu-sensei was so happy for Swarna-san that I still grin like an idiot when I think back at how her eyes shone with pride when she gave her the mark scores! And I seriously cannot let her down! So, henceforth, I am going to become the bushi of Japanese and shall take down anything that stands in my way of complete Japanese mastery! :D

On a completely disconnected note, the folks who're staying as tenants at our place seem to be intent on breaking the doors before they leave! There's this really old man with them and by the gods above! If he weren't old... I swear I would've given him quite the lashing for all the garbage he spews around the house! *sigh* I shalln't spoil the good mood I'm in right now and shall reserve these issues for another post.

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Japanese classes and my random ramblings

Today in Japanese class, for the first time that I can remember, we dealt with an actual story rather than the usual "dialogue" format of sentences. Does this mean we're actually being gauged as capable of handling more than three sentences at one go and not have our head explode? That's a daunting realization to say the least. For I don't believe I'm quite as good as they hope I am.
Anyway, today, we dealt with the story of Urashima Taro and Otohime of Ryuugu castle. For those who're unaware of the story, you can read all about it here! (Though they refer Ryugu as Rin Gin there!)

Now, when Sensei was explaining what Ryugu was, he told us that almost every kid in Japan would catch the drift the moment the name Ryugu was mentioned and that kids in India aren't so when someone tells them of some mythical place from Indian folklore. And it got me thinking... is it because we don't value our traditions and the folklore that comes as a part of it as much as the Japanese do or is it just because there are so many religions around and every religion has a set of folktales and everyone knowing one thing is quite... impossible! Aanyway, it was interesting and I should say that the story caught my fascination so very much! :) And to finally be able to understand the nuances of the language in the form of a story... it's amazing! So very different from the usual fare!

And the strangest thing happened today in class! On my way there, I was wondering what the Japanese word for crow was and I'd made up my mind to look it up once class was over. And then strangely, out of the blue, sensei remarked that the Japanese word for crow was karasu (). I might be wrong but it almost seemed like the one thing I was searching for had come up to me. Clearly something beyond human comprehension was at work there... the quantum universe perhaps heard my call for information and supplied it to me? Or maybe there are kami out there who listen to mortals and aid them in ways both little and big. I would never know!


La Tomatina in India? Oy vey to Oh yay!

Remember when I told you guys they were planning on having the La Tomatina festival in Bangalore?

Well, thank God the government had the sense to ban this atrocity in the name of revelry! The Deccan Herald carries a detailed report on how it happened.


Strangely though, no news of this ban seems to figure in the official webpage of the event and somehow, I feel they might be thinking of going along with it in spite of the ban. I know I hate stereotypes but has the Yuppie culture really gotten to us as well? I sure hope not!

Image Courtesy: Wiki Commons

Friday, September 16, 2011

Major rehaul ahead!

As a few of you must've noticed, my blog's down to the basics once more. I'm thinking of rehauling the whole thing once more and as with any rehaul, I'm finding more kinks wherever I turn! So, until then, please bear with the ugliness, if any! :D

Thursday, September 15, 2011

La Tomatina in Bangalore...what were they thinking?!

If anybody has even heard of the name "tomatina" before, I'm sure they'll have visions of people drenched in Tomato pulp, throwing the crushed tomatoes at each other by the cartload!

Yes... it's fun. But when you have a festival like that happening in India, where there are so many people out there who die of starvation and a majority of those hapless victims being children, I wonder if anyone can actually throw those vegetables with the same grin as from the brochures they're supplying.

The supporters claim that they're helping farmers when they buy the tomatoes. But if their intentions were to help them, they could do it in another way where the produce that the farmer takes pride in actually satiates some child's hunger than lie discarded on the roads! I understand that watching recent Bollywood flicks has people going gaga over foreign customs but they need to realize that there's a limit to how much one can emulate of what one sees on celluloid!

What's next? Strapping wailing children on ostriches? Having a homeless man fight a beast for the goddamned crowd to jeer? Does an increased earning mean one can do as one pleases? People... when did we lose sanity to the Devil?

If you're one of those who believes this is an atrocious waste of money and not to mention good tomatoes, please spread the message. Sure... it might not be "cool" to dislike this sort of fun but there would be some starving kid out there who'd thank you for your abstinence. 

Of Viral posts and the beehives they stir,

It all started when a friend of mine decided to share a link to a rant about some random person thrashing another person verbally. Well... it was a funny read. But then, I found that the post has gone viral and suddenly, that post alone has comments that've crossed one thousand. There are a few of my friends who seem to think that the post is offensive. Well, there were a lot of stereotype bashing. And I've always been a person who never believed in stereotypes. So, I found the post funny but not exactly the type to have me wetting myself with excitement (I've never had anything that garnered that sort of reaction...ever!).

I'm sure the person who posted the rant probably had someone who fit the stereotype be rude to her and this is probably her way of reacting to it. Well, good for her! But to take that post as a blatant standard for how everybody in a place would behave... that's taking things too far. And that reminds me of my post on why I hate the French language. I should say, that was just my way of reacting to how french was introduced to me. For the record, French might be the best thing after Toasted Bread. So, I'd rather not go there. And thank you to every single person who did not take that rant out of context! :)

Coming back to this issue, sure... I hate a few people. If I had my way, I'd have them commit Seppuku every day! But that does not mean I hate everyone who has a cultural or academic background similar to them. If that's the case, I'd probably have to hate three quarter of the world's population! And that's a lot of hate.

Now, what am I getting to? Well, I'd just like to say that the blogger of that particular rant is probably wondering whatever made that post go viral. And if people found it interesting enough to share, power to them. But one cannot say that it was silly of people to have done so. If that was the case, everything that went viral wouldn't have gone so. Let's take these things with a pinch of salt and a tumbler of good old filter kaapi and let things be!

Saturday, September 10, 2011

Ah Lord, Take me... NOW!!!!

I've been observing a lot lately.... A LOT!

Isn't it weird that mostly on Indian roads, the folks with the really expensive cars sometimes behave like they have not an ounce of dura mater up their heads?! I mean, seriously! Here are folks who're rich enough to own a Porche or an Audi. But fey fate! They weren't exactly blessed with a matching common sense to drive these cars on the roads! It's almost like they have an inner voice telling them that if they were "smart" enough to get some really awesome cars, they're smart enough to flout rules and do as they please on roads. When I see people with that sort of mentality, I have this picture in my head!


When will people ever learn?

On another note, if you're getting a weird font for some inexplicable reason when you view certain websites, you might find this discussion useful!

Serif font appears weird!

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Rants... nothing more!

When someone is getting married in your family, it involves so many chores! So many Goddamn cleaning chores!!!!

And I'm absolutely hating the fact that almost everybody in the family is pushing their chores towards me just because I don't run around with the preparations! I mean, come on! They say they need to go somewhere and have me do it or wash half a window and then sit down to watch TV while I have to work their parts as well! This sucks! This sucks so bad that if I had a shotgun right now, I'd be on a random shooting spree! (mostly avoiding all living creatures, :P) Just this morning, I had to hang onto a goddamn window like a goddamn monkey to clean it while my sire so stupidly decided to blow off the cobwebs with the goddamn fan on! Now, I've to clean the whole goddamn room! I did try telling him doing it with a goddamn cloth will be better. But did he listen? NOOOOOOO! I still had to use the goddamn wet cloth anyway so right now, I miffed, royally pissed and wish all the stupid and uttery stubborn people of the world could be whipped within an inch of their lives!

Aaaaaaah.... I feel much better now! :)

P.S. I have no idea who the actual artist behind that image is. But if you know the person, do let me know! Just looking at that image made me calm down! :D

Monday, September 5, 2011

Don't you just hate it?

Everybody has a list of pet peeves that they can't seem to get along with! These things make people really see red sometimes! And I, being as pervious to those emotions of the Human Psyche as ever, have quite a list of pet peeves!


I absolutely hate it when -

  • People talk with food in their mouth. I mean, come on! I do not want to see the initial processes of digestion, thank you! So, if you'll just keep your food to yourself and your words afterwards, I shall be eternally indebted to you.
  • People who don't wait in a line. It's utterly irritating when someone who comes in after you and a gazillion people before you and automatically assumes that it's okay to just go up to the front and get whatever it is they want. This happens so blatantly in India that it's almost an accepted norm these days! I absolutely cannot stand when people just decide to disregard laws when they see fit.
  • People who're basically hypocritical. Follow what you preach or preach what you follow. And if you can't, just don't bother telling the others around about your double standard idiosyncrasies that we've no use of!
  • Arrogant know-it-alls. Has it ever occurred to you that when you're in a classroom, there's always this person who just has to answer all the questions? Well, there's absolutely nothing wrong being a know-it-all. I mean, I laud your thirst for knowledge. But it is when they start being all high and mighty about it that it starts to bug me. The one who go as far as flaunting their grads while putting down the less fortunate ones seriously need some help in the department of "Life"!
  • People who just cut in when you're talking. I am a person who patiently waits for the other person to finish speaking so that I can put my views across. But if I'm cut off abruptly, it can be assured that I shall be seeing the most vivid red in the whole wide world! I've had the misfortune of having to endure this behavior with my own family and I try being civil in pointing it out... but to no vain! They think I'm being impolite. Oy Vey!
  • People who don't understand a thing about what you go through but still assume they know you well enough to give you shitty advice about it. I've had so many instances when friends and relatives have thronged me with unwanted advice on all topics thinkable! And I generally tend to listen to them with a patient ear even if I don't intend to follow through some of them. But the one thing that gets me all worked up is when some random person decides that they shall take it upon themselves to actually micromanage your life and see to it that you do things as they see fit. This also includes those instances when they put down something you hold closer to your heart even when they don't have a clue about what they're talking about. This, I'm afraid, is one of my worse peeves ever!
  • People who can't keep up their promises. If I had to choose one peeve that I absolutely cannot change, it would be this! I hate it when people break their word. If only those who can't keep promises were a little apologetic about it, but I hate it when they think it's okay to have broken their word and your trust in them at one go. I hate it when people get all angry when you question them about this behavior of theirs. I ABSOLUTELY HATE IT when someone expects something from you and then promises to do the same but just walk away with nary a word of explanation. People like that are the worst!
Ah.... was that a long enough list? Then again, there are a few other "tiny" things that get me but all of that falls within these points so, it would be redundant expressing them again.


Sunday, September 4, 2011

Ai Elbereth Nuin Oiolose!

Well, ahoy there! As my previous post indicated, my system had finally lost her fight with the demons of Circuit board malice inspite of a valiant fight.

Thank goodness for External Harddrives! But too bad that most of my program setup files were in the internal one and right now, I'm using a borrowed one from the PC repair guy. And well... I can't install random porgrams that I might find useful.

This sucks... and to make matters worse, my Japanese N4 level classes are being a little trying on the cerebrum! My new sensei is a really nice person. But I can't say the same for the other people who've come to learn there. There's one guy who seems to be hellbent on disproving everything the sensei says and well... it's a little irritating at times. Ah... what I wouldn't do to have my old class back... Madhumitha-sensei and the three pupils who treated each other with respect and didn't scorn others and always had a smile for the others.

There was an affinity before that was almost spontaneous from our first class that seems to be missing here... almost like Swarna-san and I are looked upon with a tinge of suspicion. Or maybe I'm just being paranoid here. I'm hoping that's the case!

Right now, I don't like what's happening around me much. I can't seem to find what's annoying me so much but I just wish I could be done with everybody around and crawl into a cave and practice Kanji till I feel better! :D

P.S. The next person who belittles the fact that learning Japanese is not very easy will be promptly kicked and thrown to rabid Nyan-kitties!

Thank you, RevolverOfTheLoom, for this wonderful piece of illustration - it proves my point here! :D