Pr:Dtam...

Twelfth June

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Sun, 17 Jun 2018 21:54:00 +0000

12th June. This is when it all began. I took a life-changing decision, on this day, twelve years back. The decision to start my career, and that's how I entered this abyss. Does it get darker as we go ahead? For some reason, the flashlight on my phone doesn't really help here.

Rewinding to 12th June 2017, the day which broke the routine of 2015 and 2016. If years are calculated based on the significant changes in our lives, I'd be probably eight years old now. How nice it would be actually. People won't spam our timelines with Birthday wishes unless something significant happens. This is my problem, I get sidetracked easily. Let me focus on the date, 12th June - The day I entered Europe, or Deutschland to be precise. New country, a new assignment, and a new set of expectations. Sorry, I have to deviate from the date again to give you some background.

It's been a while since I wrote about myself on this blog. I think it will help you to get a perspective of my existence in this world. You can understand how much I have changed over the years. Read the first few posts on this blog, back in June 2006, which I wrote using SMS language. Half-baked sentences, trying to fit high vocabulary here and there even when it didn't make much sense, and just trying to be the typical Hyderabadi potta. Today, it has completely changed. I've remained short but grown more serious. You can still call me happy-go-lucky because I haven't done any major planning in life apart from deciding which movie to watch when and where. The platter was ready for the most part.

For the Cancerian individual, home is the natural habitat and when he steps into the wild, he will get anxious. In my case, people around me were more anxious. How is this tiny little vegetarian crab going to fight the mighty sea? What will it eat? How will it survive? I was surrounded by these fundamental questions of life when I had to travel to Malaysia on a long-term project in Aug'15. The missus was happy because she thought I'd learn to cook at least this way. Mum was like any other Indian mother, coaxing me to carry a pressure cooker. However, their plans didn't materialize because it was not 12th June. Little did they expect that I was going to live in a street named little India. I will stop here because my experiences in Malaysia deserve another post but, to give you an idea, I managed to survive without any changes to my lifestyle for another couple of years.

Here comes 12th June 2017 again. No more deviations this time. The day I arrived in Düsseldorf with enough "MTR Ready to Eat" stock for two weeks. I took a walk around my hotel to get the feel of the city, and I walked for about thirty minutes without spotting a human around. That was the first difference which hit me. The longer days were quite exciting. Watching the sun set at 10 PM was something special, the first time.

The initial challenge was to look for a house soon. Searching for that perfect house was and is the most daunting task. Translate web pages to English, read the nitty-gritty details carefully, shortlist options, email/call for appointments and wait for a date to see the house. I did all this but didn't receive any call or response from anyone. It was strange, very strange. I still don't know why. I moved twice since I came here and both the times I had to rely on "Indians in Duesseldorf" FB page to look for options. Oh, how good are the desis? An FB page or a local WhatsApp group always for your rescue. Are there similar pages like "Americans in Assam" or "Germans in Jharkhand" on FB? Of course not. We are special this way.

Then came another peculiar problem, haircut! Yes, this might sound stupid but this can get more complicated than you think. Let me put it this way. I am shy. I don't open my mouth in front of strangers unless I really feel comfortable. I was told that we need to fix appointments here for a haircut. I tried calling a salon when it was time, and they gave me a date next week. I was super annoyed. First, I was reluctant to call and second, they didn't understand a word I was talking and third, they tell me wait for a week? Who waits for a week to get a haircut? If you feel like getting a cut, you should be able to walk into a salon and get it done. Even if that means waiting an hour there reading Filmfare magazines, isn't it? And when you have colleagues who are almost bald, you can't expect much help from them either to know about these 'No appointment business-wala' salons. Disturbed Van Gogh cut off his ear in 1888. Disturbed Preetam cut off his hair with a trimmer in 2018. I almost shaved half of my head. Looking at the result, the missus was mad. To make it up and look better, I shaved it completely which made her even madder. Until my hair grew back again, I was too scared to talk to her. I have learned a life lesson. I am never going to play with my hair again.

If you are wondering why I arrived in Düsseldorf with enough MTR stock for two weeks, here is the reason. I am not a vegan but I am a Lacto-vegetarian or the so called 'Pure' vegetarian, which means no meat or eggs. I had to play safe because, if you didn't know, I don't consciously eat anything that 'may' contain egg too. If someone offers me a chocolate, I check the ingredients first. Also, Cakes, Muffins, Croissants, Waffles etc, which means I cannot take complete advantage of the complimentary breakfast at the hotels too. I had no escape. The fundamental questions of life were actually haunting me now. What will you eat? How will you survive? But this worry doesn't make much sense in the digital age. You can make whatever you need, whenever you want. That's how I discovered my love for cooking. I wouldn't call myself a great cook, but I enjoy the process. The process of making something with my own hands is gratifying, like a painting, and I think this new found love is going to stay with me for a long time.

And then the winter came. The days when I checked the weather app almost daily. Winter is nice to watch only in Game of Thrones. The best part about winter is I didn't have to worry about what clothes I was wearing. All my photos taken during the winter look the same. One jacket to rule them all. The season drags the life out of everything around here. Trees look haunted, people look sick, the air feels like the world is about to end anytime. Winter in India is much better any day because the summer here, when people go out the most and bike around a lot, is the winter back home.

Even if I keep the deadly winter in mind, the beauty of Europe is overwhelming beyond doubt. You just can't get enough of this place. You, nature, and nothingness in between. Such are my kind of places, and there are enough of such spots here. Sometimes even in a nearby park. The more I traveled, the more I wanted India to be like Europe. If every state can develop to its full potential, no other country can be as vibrant and as diverse as India. But that's just another story for later.

I haven't told you about any of my actual experiences yet, but this post already seems long. Maybe I should start writing more as and when I can to document my best memories. It's been a great year so far, and I am not sure how long is the journey ahead. I can only enjoy while it lasts. I don't know what 12th June 2019 has to offer.

Until next time.

I don't know

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Sun, 19 Jul 2015 19:07:00 +0000

Aren’t you feeling anxious, now that you’ve crossed 30?, my twin sister asked. Anxious about what? Don’t you feel life is running too fast and you don’t know if you will be able to do all those things you dreamed of? I never had many dreams or expectations in the first place, I replied.

This is an easy statement. It sounds like I’m taking an easy route for a living. It sounds like an escape. It’s succumbing more than enduring. Success and failure are mere bodies, minus the soul, in these transitory moments. I’m still looking for answers to the most basic questions. What do I like? What makes me happy? Is success rated by weighing your high vs low moments? Like a see-saw, except, when one entity starts weighing more than the other the fun is all gone.

I’ve become too boring and philosophical over the years. I can’t believe I just wrote an entire paragraph defending my laziness. This is what happens when the mind contradicts the heart. What am I trying to say here? Nothing but the usual, which is always incomplete.

HER

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Fri, 13 Feb 2015 19:40:00 +0000

She wanted me to write something about her. It seemed like a mountainous job, for I didn't know what I've been feeling ever since I married her. There were no butterflies in stomach, never day dreamed about her, hardly spoke on the phone for hours. Do I really love her? What is love? Is it the feeling I had when I saw my first crush in school? Or is it the feeling that drives us to do the craziest things on earth?

Holy moly! Why did I marry her then? She asked me this question a hundred times but never got a satisfactory answer. Do I have an answer? Can there be a reason behind marriage? If yes, does it become conditional? 'Do you love me?', she asks. I stare at my own thoughts.

It's been almost two years now. Neither my life nor my lifestyle has changed. She let me be myself. I know no one loves me the way she does. How do I know? I just know. What does she do to make me feel that way? Nothing much. She screams, she fights, she does what she wants. Then how does it make me feel good? Because that's exactly how I want her to be. She is not my better half. She doesn't complete me, because I hardly start anything for her to finish. She does it all by herself. I love her not for what she does, but for what she is.

Happy Valentine's Day, my opposite!

There was a cold day...

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Thu, 29 Jan 2015 23:28:00 +0000

I haven't experienced snow. I haven't experienced sub zero temperatures. I never lived in antarctica. As a hyderabadi, I never thought i'd rant about weather. This winter has been exceptional though. I always loved winters but this season I realised how much I underestimated the power of winters. I even wore thermals for the first time ever.

Every object lying around is cold. I get down from bed and the floor sends a cold current through my legs. I struggle to stand near the wash basin while brushing my teeth; although most of us like to walk around the entire house while brushing teeth. Hot water becomes cold too soon and clothes, instead of offering us protection, have become lethal.

I had been to agra last week and the experience was no less than a nightmare. It looked like Sun had asked rain to hold the fort while he went on a long vacation. A very bad choice, I must say.

Soon as I came back to hyderabad, I saw people wearing surgical masks and talking about vaccinations to prevent swine flu. I don't think the ground situation is too bad, yet these hospitals and clinics are exploiting our suspicion. Give a chance, they might even quarantine cases of common cold.

Hoping for a deadly summer this year.

Trivia

Q: How did the English guy ask his Hindi servant to open the door?

A: There was a cold day!

As Good As Dead

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Fri, 16 Jan 2015 22:54:00 +0000

When I started writing blogs, almost 8 years ago, my only aim was to entertain the reader. I dreamt of creating 'energy' through this medium. I had a quote on the sidebar, back then on blogger, "one post a day keeps boredom away". I had so much to write when I was in college. I thought my readership will grow once I start working as I assumed an entire organization might start following my blog. How stupid was I. Things changed..err, in fact my thinking changed after I started working. I had more to complain than to write. Frequency of my posts came down year after year and the inspiration to write further took a beating when some guys suggested that I should write columns for Deccan Chronicle or The Times of India, because I always considered them as substandard. I know my language skills aren't that great too. These days I write because I have a blog and I don't want to delete it. I'm supplying it with enough words to survive but it's as good as dead. Will it come back alive? Sachin Tendulkar knows!

Kya tho bhi!

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 11:08:00 +0000

Any event that is being discussed more than required starts to annoy me. A lot of such events/processes are already discussed at work which are unavoidable. You like it or not, sometimes, you have to be part of a never ending conversation. That's the problem with words. A picture with a beautiful caption attracts more eyes than a picture with no caption. Over the last few weeks, there have been many such events that went viral. Terrorist attacks, Dhoni's retirement, outrage over PK, New Year, etc.

Is it really so important to have an opinion on everything? The moment you choose to be silent, it's misunderstood as being ignorant. I've seen expressions on few faces which are like 'how can you be so calm and not react?'. You like it or not, you got to have an opinion. Debating about an event on any social platform is just pointless. It just never ends. There's just so much anger everywhere. The 9 PM news hour is one of the best example. Our approach itself concerning. We need people who can make a story out of nothing, who can engage audience to run a show, like big boss, that is of no help. There are just so many things. Not sure if i'm over-reacting or the world has indeed become a weird place to live in.

Interstellar

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Sun, 16 Nov 2014 21:15:00 +0000

Before watching Interstellar

While watching Interstellar

Climax of Interstellar

After watching Interstellar

The Phuket Diary

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Mon, 06 Jan 2014 11:10:00 +0000

There’s an adage in Telugu that says ‘dongalu padina aaru nelalaki kukkalu morigayi anta’, meaning, ‘the dogs barked six months after the burglars broke in ’. Likewise, I took out sometime, after six months, to write this post about my first videsi trip.

Soon after I tied those three knots, the countdown started. Planning sucks more than travelling and there’s an extra amount of burden after marriage because you want everything to go as per the book. Considering the bank balance and leave balance, my wife and I decided to spend our most interesting days of marriage in Phuket. I was anxious, excited and partially naive, but that didn’t stop me from going with the flow. We took the Thai airways flight which had nothing great to offer and they bored us to death with a continuous loop of ‘Just for laughs gags’ episodes. It seemed more or less like any domestic flight with bland food.

I caught an initial glimpse of Phuket from the flight window, and it looked exquisite. Small islands spread across the huge ocean and sunlight streaming through the gaps in clouds. Phuket gave a good first impression. Clean roads, moderate traffic and greenery all around. Our accommodation was five star so no complaints there. The drive from airport to our hotel was long which gave us a decent chance to scan through most parts of the town. Nothing appeared extraordinary or amusing within the city except the famous Thai massage shops, which were almost on every corner of the street. We didn’t have much to do on the first day as we checked-in late and the only event that we were able to catch was the ‘Phuket Fantasea Show’, a cultural theme park showcasing the heritage and culture of Thailand. The show happened in an auditorium named ‘Palace of Elephants’, and if you ever go to Phuket, don’t ever return without watching this show. I’ve never seen elephants, goats and even chickens perform so well in harmony.

I still remember the name of our guide, King Kong, who took us through Phi Phi and Krabi islands the following day. I was lucky enough to sit on the front deck of the boat which offered a great view of the huge rock islands spread across the ocean. We had a brief snorkelling session in the afternoon which wasn’t as great as expected but still gave us a good chance to swim with the fish, which are tourist friendly. The best part was the time I spent travelling on the sea, with the ocean breeze hitting hard on the face while the sun took care of the rest. Almost gave a ‘Life of Pi’ feel. It was also the worst part because I had first-hand experience of sun burns. Never underestimate the power of a common sun. :P

The third day we covered the Phang Nga bay, where we saw islands, islands and more islands including the legendary James bond Island which was too crowded in my opinion, and a typical place for a patel shot. Every island is unique with its own freakish shape and size. Later that day, we passed through few magnificent sea caves, on a kayak, that lead into the center of its many karsts. These lagoons can get quite interesting depending upon the size of the tides. A low tide can almost reduce the lagoon to mud. I came to know later that kayaking happens only during mid-tide when the water level is low and steady, else it’s not possible to enter those caves during high tides.

A great experience overall. Little bits of skin on my face and hands started to peel off by the time we returned to Delhi airport. It was there, the aerial view of Phuket, right on my face. Thanks to the sunburns, I got a complete facial peel for next to nothing.

The first day

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Wed, 01 Jan 2014 21:36:00 +0000

Are we good now? It’s 2014.

It’s the first page of a fresh book. We start off tidily and by the year end it’s all shabby. That is precisely why I stopped writing in a notebook. Instead, I’m using a word document to make sure all pages look good. Now all I have to do is to just wait and see how good this year is going to be. Don’t you think it’s high time we should start following a new calendar? Or at least, let December be the first month of 2014 and January the last. Hell yeah, if the whole world can agree to this, it’d be amazing. If we can’t change anything, then what’s all the excitement about?

Not sure how many of you seriously took the advice I gave in my previous post but I certainly didn’t. Even though I made no plans to ‘do something different’ and ‘go somewhere’, it all happened by itself. When you are not understanding anything, you stay calm and eat. I, along with a few of my cousins, found a good restaurant in town to party. It’s a different story that we spent more time there taking pictures than eating food, nevertheless, the ‘go somewhere’ part was taken care dutifully.

Year after year we aimlessly celebrate the arrival of a new beginning, and we all know it’s boring to stick to a routine. Just because we danced all night long on 31^st December 2012, doesn’t mean we will have to do the same for the rest of our lives, every year. We are humans and humans hate routine, which is the reason why we can go to any extent to ‘do something different’.

By the time we finished dinner and came out of the restaurant it was past midnight. The traffic looked heavy, and few passionate souls on motorbikes were racing and shouting on the streets. They all looked so happy and united. You can find such performances on the road only when 1. It’s a new year 2. India wins a world cup. While I drove back, random dudes on the streets waved hands while wishing my wife, ‘Happy New Year’ and they didn’t even care to look at me. It looked as if their aim was to grab the attention of every girl on the street. Even the security guard at the restaurant, while we were getting into the car, shouted ‘Happy New Year Madam’, overlooking me blatantly. Then I realized that all these are in fact brave, forever alone, souls who made plans to 'do something different’. That’s when I decided, to do something different, you have to wish other people’s wives. Next year, maybe, I too shall give it a try.

New Year's Eve

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Mon, 30 Dec 2013 21:17:00 +0000

To deal with expectations is one of the most daunting things in life. From India winning an overseas series to passing that effing exam, we tend to expect. Expectations go high during festive days, holidays and weekends. Why do we get so high on friday? Because we expect to 'freak out' during the weekend even if that means sitting home all day and watching tv. That's the problem.

New Year's eve is one of those problems. No one is sure what to do and yet we try to do 'something' because it's a new year. Sulk the whole rest of the year, it doesn't matter, but we need to start the new year with a bang is the premise. I'm stuck in the same situation not knowing what to do. I've asked few friends for advice and the responses were like, 'Go somewhere' or ‘Do something different'. One girl even suggested me to watch 'Dhoom 3'. That's when I stopped seeking for more advice. My initial plan was to go to an exotic place nearby, and I'm tired of looking for such exotic destinations around Hyderabad. I don't drink, I don’t smoke and I don’t eat non-vegetarian food, which filters out most of the regular options and raises the most obvious question, how do I enjoy if I don't drink, smoke or eat non-veg? Going to a movie or restaurant is a usually weekend thing which doesn't qualify to the 'Must do things on new year's eve'. Wow, I got a reason for everything.

I can still convince myself and do nothing but I have a partner under the same roof who wants to 'go somewhere, do something different and freak out'. Handling these expectations can be daunting.
In any case, one advice to fellow victims, Keep calm and sleep.

Knot Knot!

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Thu, 03 Oct 2013 02:20:00 +0000

I promised my wife long back that I would write a post on her. How foolish can I be? How did I say that I’d write a post on her when we all know that it’s not possible to confine the characteristics of a woman to a single blog post? (Oh! such a male chauvinist I’m) Anyhow, since I’ve already made a commitment, I’d try to describe my journey so far post marriage.

Some old guy, even before I was born, said that marriages are made in heaven and people kept believing ever since. I guess that is the reason why people wish to enter heaven after death, so they can dress up prettily and eat free food. Who wouldn’t be happy then?

I rarely attend weddings, not because I don’t like people getting married but I lack patience to sit through the entire ceremony. I don’t know what time zone this heaven follows, but when my time came God tested our patience by fixing the “muhurat” (the auspicious time) at an ungodly hour. Half of my cousins were happily dozing while I was getting married. Now that I recollect these moments, I can relate a bit of India’s history to my wedding.

“At the stroke of midnight hour, when the world (my cousins) sleeps, India (I, me, myself) will awake to life and freedom. A moment comes, but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to the new, when an age ends, and when the soul of a nation, long suppressed, finds utterance.”

Totally apt, isn’t it? Marriage did give me a new life and lot of freedom and I did step out from the old to the new. Oh! And of course, the desire of a man, long suppressed, did find utterance :P So, it’s all good, however, it also depends on the way we see it. My wife is surprised at her own commitment levels and I still turn my head whenever I come across a pretty lass. 126 days since I started this journey, and in spite of the fact that we have a long way to go, one thing is for sure…end of the day, if my partner's head is resting on my shoulder, even for a few silent minutes, I know all is well.

Neither a winner nor a loser

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Wed, 31 Jul 2013 15:07:00 +0000

So this announcement of a separate statehood has made me come back to the blog. Of all the things happening around, the news of a new state has changed the state of my mind. So 29th state it is. Now what?

People of telangana have won. I'm a telanganite, but I don't feel like a winner and I don't feel like I lost something valuable either. I still have to fill those 9 hours at work and I still have to work my ass off for a better living. In fact, we all have to.

I didn't like one thing though. The new proposed map of andhra. If your kid brings weird diagrams to home, don't panic, it might just be this. The map of telangana looks better though, like a crooked tortilla chip.

Is this a good news or a bad decision? That is something I won't break my head on. If we do our part, we don't have to worry about different parts of the world. 😜 Until then, peace!

అచ్చ తెలుగు లేఖ

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 01:44:00 +0000

ఒక మంచి తెలుగు సినిమా కి తెలుగు లో రివ్యూ (రివ్యూ ని తెలుగు లో ఏమి అంటారో నాకు తెలీదు, అందుకు క్షమించండి) రాయకపోతే , అది మహా పాపం.

ఈ మధ్య కాలము లో మా నాన్నగారు ఇంటికి వచ్చిన ప్రతి బంధు మిత్రువుకి చూడమని చెప్పిన చిత్రము మిథునం. మొదటి సారి చెప్పినప్పుడు, సరేలే పెద్ద వాళ్ళు చూసే సినిమా ఏమో అనుకున్నాను. రెండో సారి మళ్ళి ఎవరికో చెప్తుంటే, తనికెళ్ళ భరణి బాగా తెలుసేమో అనుకున్నాను...మరి మూడో సారి చెప్తుంటే ఈయనకి చాదస్తం బాగా పెరిగిపోయింది అనుకున్నాను. ఇంతగా చెప్తున్నారు కాబట్టి అసలు సినిమా దేని గురించో చూడాలి అనుకుని, ఇంటర్నెట్ లో ట్రైలర్ (ట్రైలర్ ని కూడా తెలుగు లో ఎం అంటారో నాకు తెలీదు) చూసాను.

"మరి ఇద్దరేనా సినిమా లో" అనుకున్నాను. కాని ట్రైలర్ కొత్తగా అనిపించింది. చూస్తేనే అచ్చ తెలుగు సినిమా అని అర్ధం ఐపోయింది. అయిన ఇది ఏమైనా పవన్ కళ్యాణ్ సినిమా నా మొదటి రోజే చూడడానికి ఆనుకుని ఇంక దాని మీద ఆలోచన మానేస. కొన్ని రోజులు అలా గడిచాక, మా ఇంట్లో పెద్దవాళ్ళు అందరు సినిమా చూసి బాగుంది అన్నారు. నా తమ్ముడు, నా లాంటి వాడికి అయితే ఇంకా నచ్చుతుంది అన్నాడు. " ఏంటి అప్పుడే నేను వాడి కంటి కి ముసలి వాడిలా కనిపిస్తున్నాన?" ఆనుకుని ఖంగారు పడ్డా. సరేలే ఈ గోల అంతా ఎందుకు సినిమా చూస్తే తెలిసిపోతుంది కదా ఆనుకుని ప్రసాద్స్ సినిమా హాల్ కి వెళ్ళాను.

సినిమా లోకి వెళ్తూనే ఉచితంగా మంచినీళ్ళు ఇంకా పాప్ కార్న్ ఇచ్చాడు. ఆహా! సినిమా గురించి దేవుడు యెరుగు, ఈ ఆఫర్ మాత్రం బాగుంది అనుకున్నాను. ఒక సారి హాల్ మొత్తం చూసా ఎవరైనా నా వయసు కుర్రాళ్ళు కనిపిస్తారు ఏమో అని. అక్కడక్కడ బియ్యం లో రాళ్ళు లాగ ఉన్నారు తప్పితే, మిగితా జనాభా అంత 40+. నిజం చెప్పాలి అంటే కొంచం ముచ్చట వేసింది.

ఇంక అసలు సినిమా విషయానికి కి వస్తే...చాలా రోజుల తరవాత కడుపు నిండా భోజనం చేస్తే ఎలా ఉంటుందో, అలా అనిపించింది. చాలా మామూలుగా, చాలా అందంగా ఉంది సినిమా. చిన్న కథ, కథ లో చిన్న ఇల్లు, ఇంటి చుట్టూ మొక్కలు, ఒక ఆవు దూడ, ఒక బావి, ఇలా చిన్న చిన్న విషయాలలో ఎంత అందం ఉంటుందో ఈ సినిమా లో చూడచ్చు. మన పని మన చేతులతో చేసుకుంటూ, చేసిన పనిని ఆనందిస్తూ, సుబ్బరంగా భోజనం చేస్తూ, కొట్టుకున్నా తిట్టుకున్నా కలిసి మెలిసి ఎలా ఉండచ్చో ..ఇవన్ని చూసాను. అసలు ఇలాంటి materialistic (ఈ ముక్కని ఎలా రాయాలో కూడా తెలీదు తెలుగు లో) రోజుల్లో ఇలాంటి సినిమా రావడమే గొప్ప.

నేను బాగా భోజనం చేశాను..మీకు బాగా ఆకలి వేస్తే ప్రసాద్స్ వెళ్లి భోజనం చేయండి, అంతే కాని పక్క వాడి అప్పడం లాకునట్టు, ఇంటర్నెట్ లో చూడకండి. సెలవు.

అర్ధం కాకపోతే మన్నించండి, తప్పులు ఉంటే క్షమించండి!

An offer you can't refuse.

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Thu, 12 Jul 2012 01:26:00 +0000

Yes. If there is life on Mars, please transport me straightaway. I can no longer breathe on this planet. I will be the caretaker of Mars and decide who should move in and who should stay back on earth. I wish we had more planets on which life exists. Imagine having a planet for each family. Wow, the thought itself is so amusing. One can imagine how our facebook/twitter posts would be like. I don’t mind starting my life from scratch at the age of 27, on a different planet. After I’m done with the initial setup on the planet, like arranging basic needs, I will keep transporting all the newborns over to Mars. Gradually, I will form my own empire. I will copy the tunes of AR Rahman and compose music over there. The newborns or the next gen kids will grow up listening to my music and they, too, will feel that I’m god of music. Yes, I will copy lyrics too. I will be the Christopher Nolan of movies. I will steal Monalisa and add my signature to the painting. I will make sure the Martian kids read about me in school. In short, I will acquire all that is famous on this planet and show off as my creation on that planet.

If I transport you fools, there will be no difference between Earth and Mars, and the story is back to square one again. But then, you know I can’t do this all alone and so I’m planning to take few grown ups along with me and start what is called as collective exploitation. If you want to travel with me, you better start pleasing me now. My birthday is coming up in six days and the individual who pleases me the most will be made the Steve Jobs of Mars. I will claim all iProducts as your invention. Hurry up! Offer valid till my good mood lasts.

Oh, lord! I just can’t wait to start my new life.

Weight of the Genes

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 00:06:00 +0000

I never knew what was getting into me or what already went through. They think it’s in the genes but it doesn't pass just like that. Does it? May be, I've got a long way to go.

Going back to history, when the English guys were all around us, my dad's father or my grandfather, whom I wasn't blessed enough to see, was an inspector of police. Earnest, steadfast and truthful, my dad says. A lot of those (the qualities, and not the post) passed on to my dad. Yes, it's the genes quite obviously. Before the English left, they honoured my grandfather with one of their surnames, Peet. That meant something to the society. Grandpa played his part well. He earned his reputation by contributing a piece of his life to the nation and it was my dad’s turn to live up to it.

Six years after India's independence, when the country was still fine-tuning the term called freedom, when we were too ignorant of the term and didn't know what to do about it, my father got his independence from the womb. Although I haven't observed my dad's childhood, I knew what he went through. Sometimes from my mom, sometimes from the immediate family, I heard what he was made of. I won't go into the details now. This is my story. Like his dad, my dad, too, earned his reputation. Being a news correspondent by profession, he directly & indirectly contributed to the society. It's the blood, you know. Both, grandpa and dad gave a piece of their life to the masses. Although my dad didn't have any additions to his name, he made sure his name produced enough sound. He's been receiving rewards and recognitions left, right and centre. People recognize my dad when they hear my surname. I hope that explains how much weight I carry. Most of them assumed, I too, had it in my blood. I will tell you how.

Two years after India won its first cricket world cup, when the sport was slowly turning into a religion, when people started talking about the little master's retirement (even then), I made my entry along with my fraternal twin sister. The year was designated as the international youth year by the United Nations. This, too, had its own impact accidentally. For the first 15 years, I didn't realize the amount of history my blood carried. I felt light until a school teacher made me realize what had got into me. He asked if I was going to be like my dad. Immediately, with that question, my weight increased by 10 pounds. I didn't answer him then, but I wondered what made him ask that question. That is when the genes came into picture. People who knew my background expected me to do something big. Naturally, with so much weight around, I was supposed to throw some of it on the society. Since then I got used to such encounters. I still don't know if I have it in my genes. I've inherited the physical length perfectly but I'm not yet sure of the mental abilities. Did the nurse swap me with someone else when I entered this world? My suspicion grows stronger when I look at my fraternal twin. The question doesn't bother me. It's too late to even think about it now. Even if I'm the wrong child, I can't escape from the clutches of karma. I've got to do my part no matter what.

So here I'm today, still carrying the weight of my blood, working in a closed cubical and building up the web history for now. This is much easier. Although I earned my own share of rewards, none of them really made an impact to the outside world. I might have made a difference to the organizations I worked for, but it’s not what I really yearn for. There is a difference between domestic cricket and international cricket. That doesn’t mean I aim to be a revolutionary. All I want to do, before I kick the bucket, is to pass on this weight of my blood and make my kid(s) curse me for adding additional weight to this already bulky piece. How they deal with it might eventually create another story.

Casual post

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 17:53:00 +0000

I shouldn't be writing a post today. I'm having one of those moods where one doesn't feel like doing anything. absolutely nothing!

After a hectic weekend and not so great start to the week, I decided to take an off and do justice to the so called term 'casual leave'. it's been a while since I skipped work without any reason. No, i'm not a workaholic. I'm just consistent, but I hate to work over time. Even though there are perks, IT sector has already taken 50% of my social life and that made me very possessive about the remaining percentage. My brain waves have calmed down after a month long tsunami. I've decided not to think about anything. Career aside. Interests aside. Passion aside. Dreams aside. Eating not aside. Food is always on mind. And so, I laid back and uploaded pictures of the outing I had with Stalwartz at Deccan Trails. The place is much better than what I expected. Definitely worth the money unlike other resorts around Hyderabad, where I usually find people getting high, and ending low in a pool. I also came to a conclusion that I'm not a photographer. I'm neither a Facebook photographer nor a professional photographer. I'm assuming that you all know why I classified photographers into two categories. Never-mind, if you didn't. I enjoy photography but I'm just lazy.

Laziness. A lot of them are showing interest on my laziness these days. I think they are just jealous seeing me like that. No, seriously! i'm lucky to be lazy. Please don't take it personally. I fought my own battles to be at this stage. It takes a lot of hard work to be lazy in today's world. It's a dream come true.

Dreams. Why are they always so close and yet so far? Moments of happiness and despair lie between the shutter speed of our eyes.

That's pretty much the casual talk on a casual leave. Peace!

Talk time!

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:58:00 +0000

Out of 24 hrs, how many hours do you talk on an average? Include talks with friends, colleagues, family and any stranger that you come across. Don't consider the chat conversations or your facebook comments. Only oral talks. If I include them all, I think I spend about 7-8 hours talking on weekdays and about 10-12 hours on weekends. Yet, I had days when my talk time went less than 2-3 hours a day, and believe me that's not a pleasant feeling for a guy like me, who needs people around. As luck would have it, I talk less and I’m not a great conversationalist and have the ability to bore people to death but I still need people who can make me talk. So, I was wondering what would be the average talk time of a normal male/ female. No offense but I think females dominate this domain.

It can also depend on the profession or phase we are in. Take the radio jockeys and tv anchors for example, who talk for a living. Their average talk time would be much higher, and I don’t have to tell you about those koochikoo pairs who can tick hours without any reason. On the other hand, there are these nerds who feel talking is a waste of time. They are the ones who read these kinds of posts and leave without any comments. :P

So, what’s your talk time?

Conversation with a good friend

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 18:20:00 +0000

There are good friends and there are bad friends, and then we have few worst one’s like me. Even though I’m not pokerfaced, my language is pretty impassive. This is what happened when a good friend tried his best to have a conversation with the worst one..

Good Friend: hi
Good Friend: how r u ?
Preetam: hi
Preetam: how r u?
Good Friend: how did u celebrate ur festival
Preetam: how did u celebrate ur festival
Good Friend: u repeat all that i say ?
Preetam: u repeat all that i say ?
Good Friend: why?
Preetam: why?
Good Friend: ha ha
Preetam: ha ha
Good Friend:
Preetam:
Good Friend: copy & paste.............
hmmm....
Preetam: copy & paste.............
hmmm....
Good Friend: good option
Preetam: good option
Good Friend: this is hights
Good Friend: stop it now
Preetam: this is hights
Preetam: stop it now
Good Friend: u r gone nuts man
Good Friend: not any more
Good Friend: bye
Preetam: u r gone nuts man
Preetam: not any more
Preetam: bye.

Good Friend left the chat

Disconnected.

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Sat, 09 Jul 2011 23:20:00 +0000

Well…well…well! Look who’s here. That is how wordpress looked at me when I logged in. She thought I was almost dead. Yes, wordpress is a she. Obviously, it wouldn’t be nice if you press a he, right? (sick joke, puke!) Now that I’m here, let me quickly start off and say what I’ve been doing lately, apart from work. Symbolically I can leave a blank space below which explains most of the stuff pretty much. However, since I’m here I will tell you few things before I disappear again. Give me a quick second to go back and check where I’ve stopped. Oh my, we are still hanging in Hazare’s time when the Baba’s time is also long gone; lots of catching up to do.

So I’ve been thinking about myself lately. I’ve become such a loner after coming to Bangalore. Any kind of social activity seems like a marriage function where I just wear a plastic smile and hang around till they serve food. I don’t say all marriages are the same but most of them. Anyway, we are deviating from the topic. Ah well, I actually don’t have a topic. My social life is a null set because I’m out of facebook (thanks to my 350 odd friends who still think I exist there), I hardly talk on twitter (few good friends started unfollowing me because of the same) and I’m still waiting for a G+ invite. The only platform where I ‘m striving to exist is Blipfoto and that too because I get to see few good photos among my bad ones. To sum it up, I’ve been talking less. In fact, as I type right now my mouth is covered with the collar of my round neck t-shirt. It feels like I’ve spoken every word and number that exists under the sun and I hardly find anything interesting.

To engage myself in some kind of activity I bought some cool gadgets and few good books last month, although I haven’t turned a single page and finished one complete game till now. Then what am I doing? I hate that question. The only question I don’t like in English language – what’s up? I use it sometimes as an exception though. If I feel like catching up with social activities, I visit Hyderabad; thanks to stalwartz and gachpich, my two best friends group where I can check-in and check-out for free anytime. Eh, I’m getting emotional now. I guess that will be all then.

To whomsoever it may concern: Thank You!

Melting movements.

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 03:06:00 +0000

I assume we all know who Anna Hazare is by now. 2 weeks ago, I didn’t know who he was and what he was fighting for. I didn’t know what Lokpal bill was all about. Over the days, I learnt what he was fighting for and what the bill is all about but I don’t see the future. I don’t know what change this country will undergo after passing the bill. It was good to see so many young supporters joining the movement; so many voices, so many quotes, so many likes on FB and so many comments and so many candles, all in unison to end corruption. Woah! and finally the government bows. Yes, we did it! Everyone says the corrupt will not be spared but they will be scared. At last, something good. Isn’t it?

Let me be very honest here. I showed no support to this movement in anyway. Probably, I may have liked a link of FB but apart from that I did nothing else. Yes, I accepted an event on Facebook which said ‘show support by lighting a candle in your city ‘and according to FB, I attended that event in a virtual world. Yes, I know many of us did the same and few of us are even proud to have attended the event in reality. So what’s the point? Is it done?

“I see people reacting to the Anna Hazare movement, posting links and talking on how we all should support the cause and all that. Why do we need someone like that to awaken the patriotic spirit in us? Why we only get inspired in bits in pieces and then lose steam once it is out of news ?”

This was the question asked by Snehith on Facebook and everyone reacted just like the way they should. Few said, we need leaders to awaken us, we do not have clarity and it can only be achieved with the help of people like Hazare. One guy even said, when someone is striving for good there is no bad in supporting and no one is stopping anyone from doing anything independently too, and if we are trying to tell everyone that they did not do this before, he feels that is how the world runs. Few say the pain is not felt directly and the ground reality is completely different. All these points are so very true and I completely agree. Yes, that is how world runs and we just forget mere facts and move on because we have a life to lead and we just go on the hunt. If we hear a voice out of the blue against injustice or corruption, we shout, stand and light a candle perhaps, and move on. I’m not trying to make a point here by saying what is right or what is wrong. I’m just wondering if our thinking is right. We all are matured enough to understand the difference between right and wrong but are we really harsh on it? I don’t think so.

If someone asks, what is good / bad we are ready to differentiate but not ready to contemplate if we have the authority to judge between good /bad. Yes, it’s very difficult to move on if we look into every detail in our daily life and wonder if we are doing good / bad because we are in a very ugly and complicated system, but are we trying to cut it down from the roots? Do we know that we are the roots? One of the comments in FB said, are we doing our part by submitting the correct IT proofs? We take it easy because we feel the amount we earn is nothing when compared to what politicians earn in a scam. We are not afraid to do what is wrong. Even the finance department guy who approves those claims/proofs knows that fact. If Suresh Kalmadi must go to jail for submitting false receipts during CWG, then even we should go to jail for submitting fake receipts. This is not only about submitting proofs but the question to be asked is, when we are in a position to take an advantage, how many of us would really do what we are supposed to do and not what we are not supposed to? Cross your heart and think, you will get the answer. So when we are corrupt in bits and pieces, so is our inspiration towards such movements is in bits and pieces. Support is very much needed for such events and its good that we all turned out in large numbers but if we cross-check these points and make sure we are ethical in our own way, do you really think a person like Hazare needs to stand up? Let’s just not be the wax in a candle, instead let’s be the light!

Just wondering…

The Change

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 02:05:00 +0000

Ideally, I should have blogged on 1^st of September 2010. Keeping the reason apart, things have pretty much changed both professionally and personally since then. I anticipated my life would take a U-turn and so it did and here I’m, alone in a place away from home trying to express myself in more than 140 characters at 6:02 in the morning.

So let me go back to the month of November when the action started. I was desperately looking for reasons to change because I had lot of crazy ideas which I wanted to implement while serving the notice period of a job. If I look back now, it seems as if I resigned only to experience those funny little moments and not because of the actual work I did. 25^th of November was the day when I officially resigned and like any other company, it took less than a tick for the news to pass across the floor. Few told me it was a risk considering the good chances I had in the company and few encouraged me to quit considering their situation in the company and few didn’t even bother. I took a decision and the result of the decision is why I’m here, alone in a place away from home trying to express myself in more than 140 characters at 6:14 in the morning.

I started dreaming about my future and made beautiful sketches in mind on how I would lead my life and how things would eventually fall into place. Images of my best friends, family, new colleagues at work and the kind of work I would do started rolling in front of my eyes much before the 1^st day of my second job. The month of December went exactly how I wanted and even though I had many questions in mind, they slowly slipped into the back of my mind because I had better things moving in front my eyes. The negative energy called ‘doubt’ was killed with a positive energy called ‘Hope’ and sometimes greater energies like ‘confidence’ and ‘trust’ went overboard and made me blind but when reality strikes, it strikes hard on your face and erases all those fancy sketches making us realize the god of all energies called ‘experience’ and the result of such events is why I’m here, alone in a place away from home trying to express myself in more than 140 characters at 6:23 in the morning.

After I started working again in the month of January, life was kind enough to offer me two viewpoints. Looking at the short-terms goal, I made minor changes to all those images and thoughts described above and tried to convince my mind by assuming better things and ignoring certain facts. The long term goal however remained unchanged. The overall picture was hard to digest because all those rosy images turned into real objects of existence which gave my life an entirely new look. To keep it simple and straight, I wanted to draw a horse but it turned out to be a dog. I was not only forced to move out my comfort zone but also from my little world, just like a frog jumping out of the well and here I’m, alone in a place away from home trying to express myself in more than 140 characters at 6:32 in the morning.

It took a while to understand and get into the lifestyle of a new city and I started spending more time in contemplating my thoughts which slowly got aligned giving a better clarity. I had tough time exploring the neighborhood and I totally blame it on my association with Gachpich and Stalwartz, two major friends group back home, as they increased my expectations and made me search for those familiar characters among strangers. I realized I had very little space for new friends in my life found most of the people around to be stupid. Not sure if I’m being one in thinking so, which could be one of the reason why I’m here, alone in a place away from home trying to express myself in more than 140 characters at 6:44 in the morning.

Today, I feel good and thank the Almighty for giving me enough confidence and power to remain balanced and grounded in a world where it is easy to get carried away. The ‘change’ is a good experience beyond doubt and I’m not concerned about the end result because it helped me realize the significance of certain aspects in life which I took for granted. I’m sure there is more to follow because the ride has just started and here I’m, alone in a place away from home trying to see life beyond 140 characters at 7:01 in the morning.

Any doubts?

I QUIT.

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 11:36:00 +0000

There were days when people used to say that they feel good after reading my blogposts. I always took that as a compliment but lately I understood what they actually meant. Their actual thought was like ' THANK GOD! I can actually write better'. These days my posts are more or less like bed time stories. You might fall asleep or just close the darn window. Ive been thinking why this change and how I can get over it and so I finally found an answer.

The answer is STOP WRITING!

ps: just a test post from my mobile. I will be back. Later :-)

Man vs. Nature

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 08:49:00 +0000

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious- I don’t know the meaning of this word but I sure know the feeling behind it.

As said by Rudyard Kipling –‘The first condition of understanding a foreign place is to smell it’ and I was literally sniffing like a dog when we reached Kondivade village, the base for our monsoon trek to Rajmachi and just like the letters in English alphabet we were 26 guys in total who made it to the trip planned by HydVentura. It was not a foreign land but it was me who was a foreigner to that place and I planned to see things as they are instead of thinking how things might be. I had the company my best pals and few strangers (now friends) when it all started. As expected, it was raining non-stop and we had to cover a decent distance to reach our base camp in rajmachi. The route we took was definitely not the easiest one, so we were constantly off balance. That was the best part of a trip, it pushes you to trust strangers on the path who later become great friends and nothing is ours except the elementary things – air, rain, sleep, dreams, the sky and the hills- all the things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it.

We took small breaks in between to munch 5-stars and the thepla’s we carried in our bags. We used raincoats to cover our bags and we walked re-establishing the original harmony which once existed between man and nature. We reached the rajmachi village sometime in the evening and dumped our bags in a hut where we planned to spend the rest of our night. We planned to visit the twin forts on the hills of Manaranjan and Shrivardhan but managed to visit only one due to poor light conditions. We were almost at an altitude of 2700 feet and the entire view around us was breath taking. I wish I could explain each detail but no matter how much I describe I will not be able to do justice because it is more than seeing of sights; it is a change that goes deep and permanent, where a man can lose himself.

The night stay in the hut was a fantastic experience. It was the time when everyone in the group sat together under the light of a lantern and made fun, shared stories and had appetizing dinner of nimbu achar, roti and dal made by the owners of the hut. Though few of us had difficult time sleeping because of the bedbugs, we managed to pull it off. One of the most pleasantest experience is to wake up in a strange place in the company of great friends. We were treated with early morning breakfast and it was Poha + tea after which we started the trek downhill. Since we cannot avoid the calls of Mother Nature after having such breakfast, I managed to finish it off in some bushy corner of the hill. We took the Lonavla route to get down which was comparatively easy but had great exotic locations, much more than what we saw a day before.

I experienced many emotions during the trip, sometimes as I walked alone and sometimes as I walked in a group. I saw nature the way it is, not the way I imagined it to be. I fell down and slipped few times and was compelled to come to grips with the laws of nature because not every path is same and I believe that is how character is built making us self-motivated, self determined and take those little risks which gives us first hand encounters with nature.

By the time we boarded the return train at lonavla, we were almost worn out and few of them suffered from the india gate syndrome (call me to know more about this) but our energy levels were still high and it was overall Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

The Barista way.

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 00:42:00 +0000

Did you know Barista means a person who makes coffee? He is no less than a doctor, at least in our office. Just like we consult a doctor for different problems, so do employees in our office approach the barista outlet depending upon their psychological conditions. They take advice of the barista guy as seriously as a doctor’s prescription. If you are too tired at work, just walk up to him and say ‘ bhai, one coffee for headache’ and he gives you coffee + advice explaining the proportion of milk and sugar included in cappuccino double shot. If you just want to enjoy some hot coffee in a lovely weather, he would suggest Hazelnut or if you want to feel drowsy he would give you Irish. We find it easy to explain our state of mind than to go through the menu and think which one to experiment. I feel it’s more of a psychosomatic feeling than the actual effect of coffee. Whatever the case may be, there were days when I used to start my day with coffee but now I prefer irani chai. Simple solution for all complex issues.

Thank you for calling…

noreply@blogger.com (eternaljeeva) — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 06:33:00 +0000

Heard the news about charlapalli BPO unit? If not, you can read it here.

This bpo would be manned by educated prisoners who are serving their terms. On a lighter note, this can be very exciting and risky as well. I would say the government should have a stern follow up and monitor all the calls they are going to handle keeping in mind the consequences customers might have to face. If you are not sure why, take a look…

Scene In a regular BPO:

The call taking agents are trained to be courteous on calls and maintain professionalism. Even if the customer barks wildly, they are supposed to control the call and explain things efficiently.

Agent1: Thank you for calling …..how can I help you?

Customer: My monthly bill is incorrect. I never used your services this month and how can I be charged without usage?

Agent1: can I place you on hold while I look into this?

Customer (Loud tone): NO! I need an explanation right now and I hate that stupid music of yours.

Agent1: I’m sorry sir, you’ve been charged just the monthly rental which is as per the plan you purchased and doesn’t depend on whether you use the service or not.

Customer: F*** YOU!! This is insane.. Why should I pay for not using it? I have the same problem every month and you guys are just dumb doing nothing but giving brainless reasons. **** YOU

Agent1: I can understand your frustration sir, but I’m afraid this is how the data plan was made and we cannot make any changes or exceptions to it.

Customer: Screw you guys, like I said you are fit for nothing and you better ***beep beep ***

Hangs up!

After the call….

Agent2 to Agent1: wht’s up bro?

Agent1: Bad day dude..first call of the day I get to hear shit.

Agent2: chill dude…don’t take it personally. ..

Agent2 to Agent1: **pat on the back**

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Scene in charlapalli BPO:

Agent1: Thank you for calling 420 services..how can I help you?

Customer: My monthly bill is incorrect. I never used your services this month and how can I be charged without usage?

Agent1: 1 min..i will check it.

Customer(Loud tone) : NO! I need an explanation right now and I hate that stupid music of yours…

Agent1: sir wait, I’m looking and I will not play music OK?

Customer: What? I can’t understand your accent? Can I talk to an American?

Agent1 to agent2 ( while the call is on hold)- “ Mama eediki American kavali anta…item gadu”

Agent1: Sorry sir, no american here and I see that you’ve been charged just the monthly rental and nothing extra which is correct as per the plan.

Customer: F*** YOU!! This is insane.. Why should I pay for not using it? I have the same problem every month and you guys are just dumb doing nothing but giving brainless reasons. **** YOU

Agent1: Saar! Talk properly, I told you there is no mistake in the bill.

Customer: Oh yea, are you going to teach me how to talk? Then I will teach you how **** you dumb moron.

Agent1 (loses his nerves) : Saar!! Do you know who I’m?

Customer: eh? Who?

Agent1: I ‘m here because of 49 murders and making it 50 is no big deal.

Customer: where the hell are you? And are you threatening me? Am going to sue you and make your life miserable.

Agent1: Hahaha! Saaley…sue me and I will stay where I’m. Count your days, I’m going to be released tomorrow.

Hangs up.

Agent2 to Agent1: emaindi mama..

Agent1: saaley gadu..manake dhamki isthunadu..

Agent2: sumolo manshulu pampi lepedhama?

Agent1: ponira bi...repu release ani cheppina..ipatike sachiuntadu..em peekaledu.

Agent2 to Agent1: lol..** high- five**

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PS: Imagine the resume of the candidate when he applies for a job after being released- Word exp- 5 years in charlapally (better take me in)

PPS: on a serious note, I appreciate this initiative of the government and seriously feel this is going to help them gain work exp even in prison.. . my full respect to the people involved in this project.