In the mirror

Theres this girl in the mirror,
I wonder who she is.
Sometimes I think I know her,
and sometimes I wish I did.

There is a story in her eyes,
lullaby and goodbye.
When she's looking back at me
I can tell....Shes hurting inside.

How God owns a chip producing company...(Author requests readers to shut down their processors while reading this)

God happens to be a bioscientist as well as an engineer! With so much time in his hand( about a few million years approx), he has had ample amount of time to study cell biology and robotics etc.
When god graduated, he wanted to start a manufacturing unit. But he realized that he lacked man power, there being only one god. So he went ahead to learn theory of omnipresent and omnipotent, and hence he could be in several places to do several tasks. So he started with the building of a universe gradually by exploding some raw materials that he could accumulate in his journey around the cosmos(BIG bang). There still remained one problem, god being only god, he still had to have his share of personal time, which was not liberal considering his ambitions with the manufacturing unit and the rate at which it was growing,(it is not easy to master all knowledge and keep it contained, and god was fond of experimenting). His manufacturing unit being more like an IC Fabrication facility of today, he needed automation. This led the almighty to learn physics and automation, and he could now program things to work by themselves, and raise an alarm only when there were critical issues.

God owned a few lab notebooks, in which he had recorded every study or experiment that he had done in his ENTIRE life. One particular day, when god was making an encyclopedia of his studies, he came across an idea of Positive and negative feedback control in his manufacturing unit. This led to the theory of sins and good deeds. Whenever Sins>>deeds The negative feedback loop would kick in, and if good>>sins, positive feedback would function. During the process of evolving his lab, god realized that there was a lot of debris being generated from failed experiments, malfunctioning and dead devices, and updated versions led to the elimination of the older versions( like the homo sapiens took over and he had to get rid of all the neanderthals and so on).
At this point god figured that he needed an apprentice, one who could take care of all the debris. He sent out an advertisement and the only candidate who turned up was one Dr. Satan who had been following god's experiments and results on a famous journal (appears he had eliminated all other contestants in order to acquire the job himself!). God realized that he had no other option but to accept this new burnt complexioned guy as his apprentice. Satan was a unique creature, he was suffering from OCD(Obsessive compulsive disorder), and hence whenever god's mess would get out of hand, he used to set fire to the entire amount of debris. God being a knowledgeable person, feared for asthma and fire damage to his property and lab, and hence made a pact with Satan that he would have a filter system in his garbage chute where he would filter the garbage from the negative feedback to a separate furnace house, and Satan would be the manager of that unit, and he also taught Satan certain parts of omnipresent( but not the omnipotent) theory, so that Satan could manage the garbage disposal unit! He told Satan that he could contact god anytime he had doubts regarding anything!

The debris from the positive feedback were recyclable, so god used it in his experiments after some processing!

One day, while god was on a holiday, Satan called him to tell that one particular chip, called Earth, was resulting in a lot of negative feedback debris. God realized that this was one of those chips in which he had manufactured several units of homo sapiens after a lot of trial and error with their genetic makeup, unlike in mars where he had different units with the same basic functions (More like BJT and MOSFET). Homo sapiens had evolved to function by themselves, multiplied randomly, and were in a stage where they were even figuring out that they were all parts of an experiment, some of them had gotten a glimpse of god when he was trying to set things right and monitor their development, and some heard god when he was reading out loud from his encyclopedia, and they picked up bits of god's knowledge. They had even started sending out optical probes(space bots) to see who could be watching them. While some species on other chips, had figured out that they were part of the experiment, but had decided to let god work in peace by not disturbing him. The fact that earth was generating a lot of negative debris meant that there was some malfunction in the way god had programmed the homo sapiens. Apparently they were becoming some sort of cancer in the chip called Earth, and were trying to abort the chip function with their byproducts!
Now god realized that this experiment was not a failure, but a success. He had re-programmed a variable called commonsense with two other variables called EGO and selfishness, and thus the value of sins became >>>>good! this resulted in the loop of negative feedback with a large path gain value and thus excess debris!

God decided that he had to isolate this chip, else it would start affecting the neighboring chips. So he took out his plasma arc weld and started removing the chords connecting the chip to the experiment, at that time there was a large surge of current and the sparks from his weld fell as meteorites on some parts of the chip! God rushed to the tap and got out a cup of water to put out the smoke! but it was too late when he realized that the particles were destroyed due to his unintended annealing process! This was not a failure in the experiment! God now knew what not to add in his variable database to have a proper functioning chip!

As for Satan, he got an entire chip(EARTH) to chuck into the furnace, and keep the lab neat and tidy. So all ends happily (for god and Satan that is!).

Mumbai Rain!!!

Third day of rain in Bombay.
News says that half of Mumbai is drowning, but I am safely huddled in the depths of IIT Powai. Monsoon is indeed a blessing here!
11th June, my star birthday. This time of the year I am usually with my parents in Chennai. Star B'days at home are synonymous to, wake up early, go through the daily ablutions, and go temple visiting with mom and dad and get blessed by the gazillion relatives!. This year is a bit different though, as its the first time am away from home for my special day, But duty beckons!
I start at 7 Pm for the local Devi temple in IIT, the sun sets at around 8, so it is kinda bright!. A slushy start, but once I enter the gulmohar gardens I realize u need more than a good focal camera to enjoy the beauty of mumbai rain!
The usually water-scarce gullu pond is now overflowing with water, and the periphery is surrounded by fallen red leaves, making it look like a still from an autumn movie!!..
A family of Mongooses (4 in number) are happily walking across the lake road in a line!..and there is a low mist hanging above the powai lake!.. further on, to my surprise, the dry canal which I assumed to be a sewage pass is now akin to the a small river with gushing water!
Am not the only surprised being! Every passerby has to stop to watch it! Even the dogs and cockroaches didn't miss the view!. The lake road is bordered by the lake on the right and small cascades of waterfalls from the rocks on the left! little birds taking refuge in the trees and new colorful insects crawl out of their homes!
These are a few things I couldn't catch on my 2 MP phone camera, but my eye caught them pretty well!

Celebrating World Cup Victory at Mumbai!

My destination of the day is the famous JUHU beach. Another unplanned venture taken up by Vikas, Agniz and me! We decide to head out by 4 in the evening on a sunday.

At kanjurmarg station..ten minutes for the next train to Dadar, Vikas is late, so here goes another 15 minute wait at the station for the next train!

The trains are less crowded on weekends, but this is not any other sunday! Last night India won the 2011 cricket worldcup!

Guess we were not the only ones on an unplanned trip to the beach.

Out routemap covers Kanjurmarg, Dadar, then a shift of trains to Villeparle station.

As you exit the station, the first thing that catches your eye is the sandwhich stall! I din believe bread could get so huge till this day, and each sandwich's cost is as bamboozling as its size! :P..Rs 80, and you are filled for the rest of the day. Just next to this extravagant sandwhich shop is another down to earth place, also for sandwhiches! :P..grab one and get into an auto, then head for the beach! A 20 minute ride takes us to its shoreline entrance, which is hidden among the various buildings, one of which happens to be the bachchan's residence. You cant miss this spot. It has a throng of ardent jobless fans outside the gate 24/7!

Once we reach the beach perimeter, the smell of food is immense, when you overcome the urge to eat, the not-so-clear waters of the juhu come into sight!..This might not be the ideal place to take our typical hygenic neat freaks! But for a day of fun with just friends, its a great place!

Unlike my experience at the Marina beach in Chennai, the crowd here mind their own business! That implies no one is going to look after your bags and slippers while you are in the water. We had to take turns to jump and waddle through the water!

Apart from the dirty water there is another factor that might be disturbing! If you trip and fall in the water, you'll land face first on a couple o shoreline rocks!:P..even if you dont end up falling there is no way to escape getting your feet scrapped by the submerged rocks and stepping into uncomfortably squishy slimy stuff on the sea floor :P...

But the overall experience of beach with buddies is enthralling enough for me to overcome the pain of a few scrapes and squishies!(Note: we still missed two of our good friends at the beach!)

The mind boggling sunset at Juhu is worth the travel in itself! After getting drenched through the sunset, we walk out carrying the load of sand on our feet and clothes to the kulfi shop by the shore, Rose golas seem more appealing today, and we settle for a rose gola each, giving ourselves a natural devilish-pink lipshade.:P..The air around the beach is cold by this time, so we find a cozy warm car bonet to park ourselves while eating the golas! :D...Then head off to the Villeparle station and back to kanjurmarg.

Another fun day spent away with friends! I'll remember this day as the after match celebration!

The unexpected fun...Mumbai contd.

1 March 2011;

I was out walking last night, till two AM!...So you can guess what happened in the morning!

I had to run to the lab at 10.30, grabbing a few slices of bread!. I wait for my prof. to turn up..but he doesn't, so I kinda have rest of the day off!..Thats when the surprise strikes...A trip to the MARINE DRIVE!....

A train from the local Kanjurmarg to Dadar, then to Marine line.. This time I miss two of my awesome friends!:(...its always been our dream to go MARINE together!but what hell! its still fun!...getting down at marine lines and a short walk across the pigeon cluttered road takes me adjacent the beach..lesson one on the beach, don't go down the rocks near the water, its dirty, and climbing back is a real pain! :P

lesson two..try not missing weird love notes all over the walkway! they are hilarious!...(I am planning to add I LOVE ME to the list next time I go by!)

One side of the walkway is a vast expanse of sea, while the other is a vast expanse of BMW cars! :P

Places to see, the revolving restaurant, Air India office..( a match box like building that my humble friend Agniz pointed out like 10 times!), Trident, then comes the place to visit, Naturals Ice cream place(courtesy Agniz) ..U get to taste a wild variety of flavours..ranging from normal black grape to a crazy Coconut flavour!

The walk is pretty long, so be sure to carry a water bottle and less luggage!

The end of the walk is the place where Munnabhai sits in the movie..or so I was told :D..it does look like the place so am convinced!

Not much to see here, unless you are interested in a lot of couples ( which prompted me to name it the smooch drive :P) and buildings with a dirty water backdrop! The walk is worth it though!

We missed out one location on the way..An aquarium...So do try it out...I will soon!

Then comes the my epic walk to the gateway of India(GWOI)..our tour guide of the day was a little lost here! Hence we end up taking the round about way to GWOI.(with sugarcane juice to clear our minds!).Information for newbies..take the road adjacent the high court...it leads straight to our destination..asking pedestrians will only send you on a wild goose chase!...but if you are interested in some shopping, try the longer route..you get to see some cool Victorian buildings.

The beach there ain't great either..its just the magnificent gateway and the even more magnificent TAJ!( famous for the shoot out! :P) ...To those who like riding on these fancy tongas...horse carriages..this place is filled with them...then to those who don't like me..walk back and hail a cab! Something else that the place is filled with...FAT PIGEONS!..like millions of them..u find more pigeons on a tree than leaves! :P

Our next destination is the VT( Victoria terminus) now known as CST(Chatrapathi Sivaji Terminus)..basically the train station...

As mentioned in the earlier blogs...trains here hold half the population of mumbai! ..Fat chance of finding a place to squat! :P

The spot of interest near the station would be the pav bhaji stall opposite the VT..take the subway to reach it from the station! It rocks!

With this I board the train to thane and head back to Kanjurmarg ..parting with my buddy at 7Pm, I head for IIT powai..A call from my father reminding me to go to the temple as it is Tuesday! :P...next stop, to visit Durga in the campus..back to the hostel number 10 for my dinner! Walking sure gives me a good appetite!

Another awesome day ends with me typing away on the laptop!...Thanks to the LAN here!

Night all!

New girl in the city..continued

There are these guys from sastra...says my friend Preethi. Though its 10pm, its IITB..so who cares, lets go meet em!

Its a long walk where we miss each other in the dark twice, and somehow manage to stumble across near the coffee shack!..The guys are Vikas(straw), Vyas(Mass) and Muthu (not yet decided...), also doing their internship here!..these are real nice guys who have been around Powai for a month now, and know the local hang-outs. Our tourguide from this lot is Mr. straw.!

Best places travelled so far, a tour of the entire campus, from main gate to the very end where there is the Pyramid entrance to the underground MESS!:D The lake side road at midnight..with a view of the headlights beyond the lake!

The the IIT main corridor, the quarters, and the unforgettable trek to the hill in the campus ( It is rumoured to have panthers roaming after sunset!) !

Our next stop! Hiranandani, the concrete jungle...pleasant and populated with European building style?! It is the hub of all eat-outs and local malls..ranging from Pizza hut, KFC, mini chat shops that are awesome, then the chilli's place, ribbons and balloons( Must try out the chocolate Mousse here!)

If you are the electronics person, then the must go place here would be E-Zone!For the book lovers theres the crosswords (something like the landmark bookstore) to spend the time!

Day time entertainment is scarce here, so I just spend it in the lab.. but once the sun goes down, the city awakens..its time to hit the streets! And here, "The more, the merrier" would be just apt!

"Mumbai's lifeline is in the local railway system!" A quote by my wise friend Agniz Sharma, who was wise enough to get me a train timetable!...Its true.. Half of Mumbai's working population travels by the local trains...which amounts to the huge crowd in every compartment, except the first class coaches, coz no one bothers to get a ticket that costs ten times a normal train fare!!

Trains are less crowded on weekends and afternoons..and ones approaching the city are less crowded at night! So if you are looking for a pleasant journey, get a train timetable and plan your travel around the less crowded hours!

My first weekend visit was to Agniz's place at Karghar...two hours from the kanjurmarg station, with a train change at Thane. A pleasant journey when with friends. else it will just bore your life out!...Music is always a solution though!

Food from home after just a week of stay at powai..is still a blessing to someone who lives in a hostel!

The sweet home atmosphere, and friendly faces is a kind of relaxation that you start craving for once you have had a taste of the city.! A wonderful experience with trains and Navi Mumbai, thanks to a wonderful friend!

Returning late( 10pm) from the days trip does not prevent us from getting a Vadapav from a stall near the station..the staple food of everyday Mumbai..something I have grown to like after coming here!

As of now I'm done for the day!...just solid sleep awaits me now..so good night all!...........

New girl in the city..

My first time in Bombay...the city that never sleeps..

Getting off the train at 6 AM , yet the station at DADAR is all alive and buzzing!..lesson 1, The cabwalas know that you don't belong here generally...so don't take the first cab that is offered to you..its mostly triple rated. Hail a cab from outside the station. After your pranams to Hanumanji at the mandir outside the station..

The roads are clean all the time, the only thing that makes it dirty is the peak hour traffic! Something remarkable about MUMBAI, the autos and taxis actually follow the meter reading! Man I love this place!...

Chembur is my first stop. The local residential area, where morning walks go for both kids and dogs!..the place wakes up earlier than rest of the city...

To begin my stay here with something auspicious I gota go to a temple. the right place is jus close by. The Ahobila Math...Abode of the pious bhramin! :P..I know I wont be visiting many temples that often..so let me do it now! :P

I start off for IIT Powai at 10.30...auspicious on that particular day, according to my dad!

45 minute travel by the fast cab, and eureka..the gate is lost somewhere on the main road! Its a task to spot it...so you need an experienced taxi driver!

Campus entrance has a check...That was the first and the last time they checked for anything while getting in or out of the campus! No one gives a damn if u disappear for days from here!

My room in hostel 10..the new building! It rocks big time! Rest of the hostels are trashy..so I can just consider myself lucky! My new roomie is this really sweet girl from Delhi...Savita..my companion for the next 5 months..apart from my buddy Dumeel that is!

My hostel has an elevator..so spared of the trek!

Next stop is the Coffee shack..The favourite snack place for tired IITans..then comes the Gullu( Gulmohar) Cafeteria..(This place is the 5star hang out!) even a lousy dosa is freakin expensive...but if u r loaded..this is the ideal place!..a sit out in the open and food is served at ur place!

Sandwiches are an expensive yet good choice here at gullu!..grab one and be off to the Powai lake..But make sure u are equipped with mosquito repellent! ...or ul be eaten first. This lake is a sit out, study out, flirt out common place..for kids, students, and oldies! The common dress code of the place..Bum shorts.. be it a girl a guy...it will take time getting used to!..early morning, you walk out of the room to find a bunch of scantily clad guys?...dear god..save me.!.

At some point of the day..youll have this craving to unleash your tamil..so start looking for anyone who remotely resembles a tamiliam!(I am a tamilian, so here I go!)

...will continue soon! once I find the outlet for my TAMIL!!!!