Hum do, hamare ... NO NO.

 

This is not about whether you should have the second kid or not. It's my experience of planning for a second kid. 

Why second child is always the first question, except your relatives in function or that uncle in WhatsApp who is worried about Hindu population. Ask your friends around, they can point to a zillion reason why second child, is not their option. More expenses, school fees, family cannot fit in a single row in a flight. So why did I plan for a second child, yes it was a planned decision. 

My family picture is a father, mother and two kids. 

That's it. 

The reason sounds emotional, it is too, but sticking to that decision is most difficult. Seeing your elder kid, throw the tantrums, you getting frustrated on your spouse. Thinking should I raise another child with this person, already I'm handling two kids in the house. Wondering if the wife can handle the birthing stress, wondering if you can handle her during pregnancy. Do you guys collective have the patience? I was not sure then. 

Hospital loot you. Can you really trust the doctor? All the answers formed the black clouds, around the idea. But the idea persisted, when the elder took amazing care of younger kids around, when the kid started being more independent - eat on his own, sleep without a fight. The light from the family picture,  was shining bright. The aura around the black clouds, lit up which gave hope. A hope that this family picture is worth getting complete. 

When the first kid is born, most men tear up in the operation theatre or when they hold the kid in their hands,me included. For the second kid, even with few complications, i wasn't teary eyed. It was after when I got the baby home and seeing my elder kid play with makes me love them more. Makes me a softy inside seeing them. 

The family picture is complete now, but the questions remain school fees are high, airlines seats are only 3 now. 

Dekh lenge. 

Hum do, hamare do hai na. 

Nostalgia

 Nostalgia is a bitch. It makes you travel in time- in a selective time where you remember the happy feelings only.

While stuck a jam near some old and familiar roads, i instinctively took a by-lane which was my daily route to and from college. 

Every block had a memory or a thought associated with it. Each memory  made me remember the people involved with it. 

Nostalgia makes you believe that if you call these people right now, it will be the same. 

Its not. It will not. 

Still i remember the people, i remember how I felt then and how I hoped they felt too. It makes my stomach full and soul satisfied thinking of all these memories. 

If you have time as X axis , and we moving along the axis from birth to death. Every memory is a part of us left behind at that time. As we move along the line, we keep losing few parts of us, sometimes we fill it with new parts of ourselves but more often than not it's left unfilled. That unfilled part, which were are unable to fill because of the past, are most difficult to fill. 

Sometimes we fill in the missing parts with new parts, but the new parts are only a derivative of the old parts. This is the nostalgia part, where we are new yet feel old in those parts and in keep travelling to those memories. 

This is all written while I am thinking to message the old buddies, whose houses I have crossed today and wondering if we will talk as new old friends or old friends talking new things. 

Cheers! 

Table for one please!

Drinking alone
Haa!  Everytime i see some guy drinking alone I used to wonder why.  Now i know why.  To be lost in thoughts. Not having anything better to do.
If you ask why to any of that then that's a different tangent.
One of humanities greatest curse is to be alone. What about introverts then you ask? Well as far as I'm concerned, i feel introverts are not this i-will-sit-in-dark kind of people. They like to talk, mingle but with a limited few; at a chosen time.
Being alone is the saddest part of human.  And the feeling of being alone when you are surrounded by people you know is even more devastating. Coz the people around you aren't in the same page.  They may have accepted your silence bit you cant accept their judgements.

Remember the night when you weren't able to sleep. You did everything you can - drank water,  walked around, slept on your stomach etc. -  bit your thoughts still linger on to being sad.  Wondering why you haven't talked to your school friend though you remember him so many time. You are alone in the silent night.

I guess people go high to be friends with the voice in your head. That voice in your head is the evil godmother - it will make you believe it is helping you but its only making you dependent on it. Else you will be alone in your thoughts.

Alone and lonely are different. Alone is when your voice in your head is your best friend. Lonely is when the only other voice you hear is the voice your head.

So a final cheers to all the alone/lonely uncles at the bar who have their alcohol and tip the waiter.
Cheers 🍻

Long Distance Friendship

Wine, women and wisdom seems great as you age - Some dead drunk guy who didn't make sense 

In this internet age... long distance is happening a lot. And makers of SnapChat are reaping the benefits.

:)

But the thing very few people realize is it is tough to be in a Long Distance Friendship than a Long Distance Relationship. 
I personally have been in both... still in LDF though :P 
Will know for sure if i get some hits for this blog from USA :)

It doesn't matter if you and your friend are in national roaming or international. Lafda sabko hota hai :)

At 22, your friend leaves. 

At 24 he comes for one month vacation. 

At 25, he cant. At 26, he comes for a one month vacation. 

At 27, he comes to get married. 

At 28, you get married and you don't care anyway :D

It is said to be difficult to make friends after a certain age. Even tougher to find best-friends,i guess.

We think the problem  in a long distance friendship, is that you are somehow more complacent of the relation. 
                   But the REAL problem is you and your friend both are evolving with times, and to share the same moments like before is difficult since both of you are unaware of each others situation. 

This I guess is even more tougher when the BFF's are male. 

Enter MALE EGO. 

( Cue Music: Yeh toh hona hi tha.... )

Also my expression when I read my posts

Bhaiya point yeh hai. 

Ki jab dur desh jayoge, toh dosti ko sambhalo! 

Kudh Sambhlo - aur dosto ko samjho ! !

But in this process don't forget your gf/bf boss !! 

Nahi toh... 

Forever Alone

-------------------------------------------------------------------

How I lost my phone .. Coz I thought I was smart.

"I make mistakes like the next man. In fact, being — forgive me — rather cleverer than most men, my mistakes tend to be correspondingly huger." -  Albus Dumbledore.

It is said that the more smarter you think you are, you are more likely to fall for dumb tricks. I fell for one such trick. The oldest one in the book - and lost one of my most favorite things in the world - My first Android Phone. 

To give you the back story - I was gifted a Samsung Galaxy Ace by my friends on my birthday. I was thrilled and excited. I was ( still am) an Android fan-boy and loved the new phone. As time went by, i loved it and hated it. I loved it because of the ease of sharing things with the wonderful choices I get from the Android Eco system and hated it for the battery consumption. I was a power user - 2 hrs of screen ON time  + 1 hr of talk-time and that phone wasn't built for my case. 

Nevertheless I rooted my phone and installed custom-ROM many times.  And loved it for that.

So one fateful day, when I was returning to IIT after my bro's wedding. I was crossing the road and going over the local station to catch the train to IIT. A guy on a bike came and asked me for directions for Anna Nagar. The guy 'looked' educated and 'nice'. I told him I didn't know, then he asked me if he can use my phone to call his friend. 

                       The first thing which ran in my head was, what if he runs away with my phone? Then I laugh it off saying maybe i should trust people.

I gave him the phone, he was on his bike trying to call a number and was also trying to make small talk, asking me which college I was etc. 

                    I was staring at his bike keys and debating with myself - should I pull out his bike keys, just to be safe. Would it be too weird? Am I over reacting?

Ultimately I decided to step down the footpath and be closer to the bike so that IF he tries to escape i can catch his brakes and the bike may topple :)

Just then a bus honked behind the bike, he told lets just move aside, I moved and he fled. 
I was shocked,stunned for a sec. I smiled , I actually was laughing, cursing myself what an ass I am. 
I didn't even have the time to shout anything. 

                    The only things i remember is his bike - A white Yamaha FZ. 

Later I did give a complaint at the nearest police station. The constable told no use of the complaint, u may never find it as generally they take the phone apart and sell it in different states. 
For a couple of months, whenever Ii slept the scene of FZ zooming past me flashed in front of me. 

This happened almost an year back. But why am I writing it now? 

Because I realized the importance of having important stuff on your phone backed up that day. 

The moment I lost my phone, I only remembered a few numbers and called them to let them know that my phone got stolen. But all my contacts were synced with my Google account. So technically I lost no contacts. 
Since I just came from a wedding( one of the best one also),I  thought I lost all my photos but thanks to Dropbox app I had all my photos synced and in the cloud. So i lost none of my photos/videos. 

My next phone was an Android ( no surprise there :D ) - Motorola Defy+ 

And Google Play actually installed all my previous apps which I had installed on the other phone. So with just a change in launcher - my new phone was as good as the old phone. 
I still miss my Ace but Android helped me a lot in seamless switch to other phone. 

I did learn my lesson though, and to safeguard your  phone I suggest the following points - 

• Put a lock screen - All your friends may know it but it still acts as first line of defense at-least
• Install backup apps - Dropbox for your photos, Evernote for your notes n all. 
• Titanium Backup - If you have rooted your phone, always backup your apps and its data often. And save it on your local disk as well periodically. 
• Google contacts sync - One of the best ways to sync all your contacts in the cloud. 
• Sim lock - Many sim lock and anti theft apps are available. My fav are avast anti- theft and Prey. They may not be fool proof but they sure can help you a lot. 
• Plan B - This app you can install after your phone is stolen and it sends you the GPS location of the phone. 
• Be aware - last but DEFINETLY not the least be aware of 'innocent-looking-educated' scamsters. 

Also remember it's not very easy to get your phone back once its stolen, as generally the phone is switched off. But being cautious is always better esp. when you have sensitive data and pictures on it. 

Sennai Spesal

An year long in Chennai;the city i never wanted to be in.Some of you will be really wanting to know what I would tell about Chennai,as many of you have heard my rant on why 'I hate Chennai,blah blah'.

But as much as i don't like to live in Chennai right now,there are things which will make me live in Chennai.

[Before you start to brand me a hypocrite,I would like to confess that most of the things I declare I have hated,I have ended up liking from Social Media;Red color;texting to Salman Khan and C-language]

Things i like about Chennai:


1.Awesome transportation -  

The city is well connected,either by bus or by train.The train service extends almost till 12 in the night as well as the bus service,which is almost 24 hrs a day.

2.No Nonsense people -

I haven't seen one fight in Chennai on the roads,the first reaction of theirs is not to have a fight( and I mean physical),i might be wrong and i think i can be proven also,but i haven't seen anyone having as much frustration as I have when I'm in  a crowded bus,which is not the same in Hyd at least.

3.Safe- 

Touch wood!No terrorist attacks yet.

4.Beach-

 Some people complain the beach is not as good as in Pondy,or in Mumbai or Goa or Vizag.But most of them are travelers.I think the beach adds sophistication to    this city,no matter how unclean it is kept it is still one of the best places to hang out in Chennai esp during sunrise or sunset.

5.Police Cover -

I was amazed to see police people in almost all times in all areas which were crowded,sometimes when my mind wanders off thinking - what if i mug someone  here and run away? - i see a policeman in the distance.{Don't ask me why i would think like that.:D}

6.Music - 

People here are musically inclined,right from the barbers shop to Murugan Idli fellow.Somehow i think all of them like classical music(that can be exaggeration).And also Chennai has a very good culture of rock bands and rock shows,and i am sure all the things accompanying it.

7.Banana - 

 First thing i observed here was that there were no pan-dabbas and all the blue sheds which were like a South-Indian versions of them had bananas,of all sizes and shapes [ No pun intended ]. And being a health freak i loved it,i learnt and observed that many people brought it pretty often too.Though the skin was never thrown in dustbin.But Chennai is still in India right. [Pun Intended]

Yet even after heart-warming ( not because of the weather :D ) post about Chennai,I would say Chennai can be a place for me to settle down but only after i do two things:
(a)Learn Tamizh ( thats the real spelling of tamil btw)
(b)Learn to wear a lungi and learn to travel all across Chennai in it too.

Wishlist...

After  lots of searching i could finally dust off this blog and make a blog entry again...
So this time i am giving my wishlist,no this is not a 'bucket list' and i am not going to die ( ok not true :P )
This is my wish-list of materialistic gifts i NEED some1 to GIFT me as i cannot buy the said right now: ( plz no jokes on "u cant buy these ever","dude get a life","i wont gift u","ur crazy","i love u" etc...)

1.An electric scooter
2. Big SRK/Bhoomika poster 11x7 feet minimum
3. Sony Xperia Play
4.An Android app created on my name
5. VW Beetle(even for a day is fine for me)
6. A trip to Las Vegas
7.3-D chess set
8.Louis vuitton suit (for men)
9.One day-night in  Burj al-Arabl,Dubai
10.Tickets to Wimbledon Final
11.A 1:32 model of Concorde/F-15 fighter
12.A Silk Necktie
13...... is to be lucky ! :D


P.S: For all those who really want to buy me any of the above.....
                                                                                                Really ???

Placed !

Engineering life is very different from what it was in early 50's,when it all first started,and how it is right now.An engineering life is chosen for the kind of merits it gives after getting a degree,its rarely chosen for the 'engineering' aspect of it.
Though majority of people join for 'placements' offered in the college,only half of them lie saying that it was for the girls they joined :P
I dont personally like the concept of placements in a college.They distort the nature of an engineering college for the very fact that the driving force for choosing any course is the 'in-thing' or the 'evergreen' courses.These courses are evergreen as companies would recruit people from these streams anytime and EVERYTIME.(sadly it's true !)
Why cant there be the 'best' institute but with no placements??Will that  make the institute a 'bad' one then??

I.I.T,is a good example.Students here have the best exposure compared to other normal enginering college and yet they face the same kinda dilemas any engg. grad faces at the end of his 4 yrs,he has to succumb to the fate of attending placements and getting a minimum score for it all through his engg life.
Any IIT or normal engg coll guy would say that he aims for so n so % or cgpa as he is eligible to sit for placements only if he gets a minimum % or cgpa.This invariably determines how much he SHOULD study!! Karam kar,phal ki aasha na kar any1 ???
Though i dont blame the students,if i had a cup-cake in front of me i would naturally eat it.But imagine  if i had to eat a cup-cake i must always go to a shop first and buy it.Then there is a chance i might think why should i buy it in the first place?? (P.S: cup-cake == job)
So instead of placements students must be encouraged to go into the market and search for jobs.
I feel this kinda attitude will give some amount of encouragement to people who want to do different things and not just care about money(though which is not bad either but still...) The attitude of "u-need-mba-to-be entrpreneur" or "u-have-value-if-u-have-PG-degree" must be frowned upon rather than agreed on.If an engineer cannot choose the kind of work he wants to do,what use is he studying in a engineering course ?
For all those ppl who(know me and)are thinking if i would sit in placements...
                                Karam kar,phal ki aasha na kar any1 ???

The Punjabi Idli

Once there was a farmer in Orrisa, poor and had a family of four.His wife,his mother and two children;a boy and a girl.Everyday he used to go to work ,though he didn't like to,but he had to as he was under bonded labor for life.His father had taken a loan from a local landlord and he too had to undergo a similiar fate ,as he was uneducated.He had no way out of his 'slavery' to the landlord and he no idea or the inclination to be out of it too.He had accepted his fate as his life.
                            The landlord,Ramsingh was not that bad, he had a daughter and  had only one for that matter which was a great thing in itself as it is considered a burden to have a single girl-child in his village.He gave her a life of  freedom.His daughter,Khusboo,completed her graduation and was now writing her CA exams ,as well helping her father in financial  matters.
Ramsingh was an open minded man but the closed society in which he lived had already taken a toll on him.He had become selfish and greedy.He was nice as long as he had his own benefit involved.Her daughter ,like her mother,was generous and simple.And she had  fallen in love with the village postman's talented son,Kahaleel
                                   The boy,Kahaleel was very talented in arts and was an efficient painter.He used to paint anyone or anything just by having a glance at it.He also could paint by closing his eyes and just listening to a description of anything told to him .One such painting was hanging in Khusboo's room,which Khallel had painted closing his eyes and thinking about her,as a gift on her birthday.

One day the District Governor arrived in their village,and everyone from the village was present there.After the initial huff-puff the crowd returned back home and so did the Governor.The Governor was from Punjab,Jagjeet Jogi and he used to make the best Idli in all of his town
Ironically Jagjeet Jogi was Khusboo's neighbor as well as postman's neighbor too.One day when he made his delicious idlis;Khallel painted something and Khusboo went to his house then Khallel followed her to Jogi's house.
The delicious aroma of idli made by Jogi..
                                                            the beautiful dress Khusboo wore..
                                                                                  and Khallel's painting which made  sense to all of this.. It was at this very  moment..




































THAT A COMET HIT THEM AND THE TOWN WAS DESTROYED,it was 12/12/2012

Please Do not Die.........

One day I walking near the edge of a hill ( all of u who wish i had jumped from there,haa! i didn't ) and saw one of my friends trying to jump off the hill....

I asked him "hey dude ssp?"

nothing much man,just trying to commit suicide.

"Oh but why?"

coz of u

"what did i do?"

dude its coz of who u are .... what u do ... ur jokes.. ur theory ... ur arguments... u beard....u name...
u .. U U !!

"ok! that is clear.Wait.. wait... before u jump dont u want to know why u should live ?"

no

"oookaay! dude just listen else i have to tell this to others and they might jump too,u can save a life or many lives"

OK.FINE.but be quick.its getting late...
i dont like dying at night.im afraid of the dark.

"U shouldn't die coz :

1)Ur not a politician : dude you are an Indian .... cmon man !! the onli guy u wud want to die is a politician .... and ur not a politician !!! u cant die...!! u shouldn't die !!!

anoop... ur not helping.no anups logic plz.

"dude its anup.. not anoop"

"OK.OK ...
You shouldn't die coz of:

2.Military attitude: U have tolerated me,listened to me,tried to understand me... and u didn't die yet... ur just one step away from being the worst greatest guy/gal with the highest amount of tolerance.Your would shine in the most toughest situations... with ur great mental tolerance levels !! \m/

hmmmmmm.... maybe !

"You shouldn't die for:

3.Your girlfriend : No not because u love her ,because in this age going to US ,getting a IT job and buying a plot is easier than maintaining a gf.The moment ur out of sight she is gone man.The sex ratio is really low !!! save ur girlfriend "

I don't have a girlfriend.

"Oh! then you shouldn't die for :

4.3G technology: Man its Internet on ur phone i.e its like porn in your hands man .... like Pamela in ur palms and u wouldn't want to die without experiencing that man ! Or imagine farmville in ur kitchen,bedroom,cinema hall and everywhere.... u really wouldn't want to die without experiencing that ,seriously !!!

I don't play farmville.I don't watch porn.

> if u don't have gf and don't play farmville or watch porn ,ru sure ur alive ?? <

what u thinking?

"nothing..nothing... OK this is the best reason.plz don't die coz:

5.A member less: I will have a member less in my fan club ! already the numbers are so low !! :(

[jump] aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh.... thud!

So guys plz don't jump coz i am really lousy from preventing you from it... and my fan club really has low head count !!!
cheers !!!