The System Administrator

It wasn't until 1997 that I got my first computer. It wasn't my first touch with the machine though. There was this beautiful language called Logo which is now a childhood shrine. I remember when I was in class 3, our strict computer teacher Mr. Haque used to take us to computer lab and ask us to take off our shoes and socks and quietly follow him inside the lab. Computer labs had such enigmatic and charismatic aura about them with the carpets, curtains and exhaust fans running wild. While we sat on carpet looking at the machine(was it 286?) with utmost bewilderment, he told us that he is going to log in and show us how it works. At that point of time, I only knew that he has some special access to the computer and he practically controls it using his secret password. He was the administrator. The System Administrator! The man who owns the machine and knows how to make it work and turn and twist it in whatever way possible. The man who uses his cryptic knowledge to interact with the weird looking wafers inside the machine. Oh, what a privilege!

After a couple of years, I frequented a certain computer lab to play games like Dave and run DOS commands like dir. Every time I went there, I was greeted by simple yet shrewd looking men who used to log in the machine with the username Supervisor. As a curious kid who asked "What's this?" and "What's that?" to everyone around, I couldn't stop myself from asking about it. With genuine nonchalance and as a matter of fact, he told me that he was the System Administrator. I looked around at the 10 odd computers(was it 386?) and marveled at this man who knew how to operate and administer all of them at once. Well, he was The System Administrator. The interface between mankind and the world of bits and bytes(this piece of information was acquired much later). Human with the magic wand! It wasn't even remotely an obsession but I started respecting system administrators and secretly yet fervently wished to be like them. There came the winter of 1997 when first computer(was it 486?) landed up in my home. A certain fat engineer came to do the settings and instinctively I knew he belonged to hallowed family of system administrators. He set the BIOS password and told me what it is. The desire deep down inside got me enthralled and I asked him to give me the BIOS password. He paused abruptly and gave me a suspicious bone-chilling look and smirked "No kid, you'll damage the machine.". Knowing that I couldn't complain to my parents "Look, this guy is not giving me password but I want to be a system administrator", I resigned to fate and restricted myself to simple dos commands, Windows 3.1 and the 8-bit games. School got over and college started and my new college had various labs with lots of computers(was it Pentium I?). I did a recce of the labs and I knew there would be guys around who would be system administrators for those machines. It felt good. During the initial few classes of structured programming, a professor having domineering personality told us about the passwords that we would get to access Linux machines. He was the master, the creator, the god of the machines: the superior of system administrators. System administrators were typically lean, mean and thin guys who often ate samosas in the corner and didn't interact much with the masses. Four years of college where plenty of time was spent in labs, I had this slightly empty feeling of not playing the role of system administrator ever. The guy who set the BIOS password in 1997 was still insurmountable.

My first job was at Hewlett Packard, an IT company with lot of system administrators. I got my desk, my machine(was it Pentium II?) and usernames and passwords. Alas, none of them had administrator privilege and this felt like a fleeting dream. I didn't pay much heed to it afterwards and continued with my work. I used to write shell scripts and ftp on servers residing in US etc. and many times I had to request someone with the admin access and that was just routine. That was just routine until one fine day my manager called me inside conference room for a talk. He asked me calmly "Do you want to be a system administrator for those servers?". When you look back at the your life and the incidents that happened and were forgotten, certain moments stand out leaving indelible marks on life. Those moments had plethora of exuberance and unmatched excitement and gave tremendous satisfaction. This was one such moment. This was it. The calm atmosphere inside the conference room felt unreal and suddenly all the chairs, round table, white boards vanished and it was like I am standing in space and from a different galaxy my manager is mincing the words like a robot running on low battery "Do- you - want - to - be- a- system- adm..inis..trator..". I suddenly shifted back to reality and wanted to blurt out "What? You're asking me if I want to be a system administrator? Don't you know all my life I wanted to be one? Don't you..". I said yes exuberantly. Since that day, every time I saw my manager at the coffee machine, canteen, outside his meeting room, lift and practically anywhere and everywhere, I asked him "Hello. When are you making me system administrator?". I am sure he grew suspicious and wondered what is wrong with me but one fine day I got a system generated mail stating my administrator username, ozak. I heaved a sigh of relief and walked around the office quietly and triumphantly. I looked at the Linux workstations around, the bash prompt and it felt surreal. I was the system administrator. I never bothered about updating resume regularly but I made it a point to add 'Linux System Administrator' to it. It was a system administrator role limited to those machines but what the heck, I was the system administrator. Every time I typed su on the bash prompt, I was overjoyed. Like all variants of happiness, this too was ephemeral and the initial euphoria subdued after a few days however the feeling of contentment lingered. It was probably a normal human psyche to be in control of things but more importantly it was coupled with a love called technology.

The guy who set the BIOS password in 1997 and refused to share, hello, I too have admin privileges now.

Last Class

I had my last regular class as a regular student on 15th Feb, 2010 5:30-6:30 PM at the Auditorium. It was Strategic Marketing class by Prof Chandradeep Mitra. The class was about discussing the strategy by which Indian coffee was made popular in international markets. It was a combined class for both the sections. I sat with Virapandy ,may be in third or fourth row from the start. I had a class too next day at 9 AM but I had to bunk that for some unavoidable reason. Technically, I bunked my last class but I don’t like to construe it this way. I had to bunk it, not a choice, so my last class would remain the same 15^th Feb class. There was a video shown in the class which was a short film made to promote Indian Coffee. I quite liked it asked the professor for a copy of it. He didn’t disappoint me.

Class before it begins

Class Ends and People walk away

I clicked pictures. Lately this is the thing which is giving me most satisfaction- capturing moments.Now that I will longer remain a student, I will go out in the open world and find out the things that give most satisfaction.

Unanswered Questions

It's funny that I like to do things when I know exactly what little I can get. It's even more funnier that when I don't know what I will get, I still get on to do it and I get what I don't really expect. I know that I know a little of this world and by far I've been a pawn that has been ably supported. What lies ahead is question meant for strategists, forecasters, planners and the likes. Funnily enough, I like to be classified among them even though I'm at best a speculator. I seek answers all the time. I'm generally not really happy with things happening around or the way they happen or the way they are portrayed. I've little authority over the proceedings but I can obviously fight with myself for not being able to change or at least reason it out. The cliched peace of mind has been lacking perennially. With just few months of study remaining, I got to find more of what I can. Library is the place to be and books are the things to aid. Society and all of the existential trash will continue to haunt. History is not meant for archaeologists only but for everyone who treads on the same ground. Pure capitalism leads to pure hedonism, something that should be abstained from. After all, we're only ordinary men. Like fishes in a bowl, trying to jump to a bigger bowl and why? That's another question.

Leaving Behind

I generally don't like to hear to womens' talk but sometimes I just have to. It's not boring always. I was in a cramped up office last month for an internship. It was a govt. company with big files, red tapism and creeping slowness in every process. There were ladies working there for last 25-30 yrs and on the verge of retirement. They talked about everything but mostly it was centered around their kids, career and office life. They wondered how work at office will progress once they are gone. They picked each of the new guys and speculated how they will mature and take care of things that they used to do. They talked about their kids' studies, college and activities. They were worried about their daughters' marriage and contemplated if love marriage is really a good option. All the while I was pretending to work on computer with my ears all open. I hate to admit that I enjoyed doing that. Peeking into someone's life always gets me curious.

We all are leaving things behind. I hardly have few things in my life that I had five years ago. My hobbies(tv channels, fruits, games etc etc), idiosyncrasies, thoughts,attitude all have been altered to some extent. The people I talk to, spend time with or see around are all "new". I have forgotten and been forgotten by friends, acquaintances and relatives. I have done things which I wouldn't have liked to do. I am running a race from somewhere to somewhere, changing directions on certain outcomes which I do not control. I have changed address 14 times in last 9 years and I'm sick of it. I'm leaving myself behind. I wish to settle down somewhere sometime soon. I went home for 5 days and wanted to stay there longer. You miss so much in hostel- food, care, attention, discipline, comforts, festivals, celebrations and solace. I can say this after spending almost last 9 years in hostel at the prime of my youth. I wish things, I ought to make it happen.

Finally, the concept of weekends is history. The timetable is such that there are 2-4 classes everyday but the good thing is that it distributes the load. I moved to a new room at the ground floor and got bitten by an unidentified insect which caused random swellings that moved from finger to finger to stomach to neck to lips. That was a fun sickness to have!

25

I was tagged by Monica(although on facebook). I must honour a tag as it gives me an opportunity to update my blog. I'm supposed to tag 25 people henceforth but I don't want to burden people during recessions times (another lame recession joke). If you like, please go ahead and accept the tag.

To begin with,

1. I hate to talk about myself. :-)

2. I don’t know how to spit.

3. Speed comes naturally to me.

4. I can listen to the same song over and over again. Often, there is one song that is stuck in my mind.

5. I love to attend rock concerts.

6. I eat a lot (disproportionate to my structure).

7. I love standing in balcony and watching the traffic. The speeding cars, the lone walker, the people, the vroom sound and the randomness of vehicles thrill me.

8. There are an awful lot of things in my to-do list always and it keeps growing.

9. I enjoy the take-off of flight. It’s so enthralling.

10. I don’t do well in exams. If I correct a MCQ answer, I would mark the wrong one.

11. I am INTP – Introverted iNtuitive Thinking Perceiving as per MBTI.

12. A 65 kb file disturbed me a lot.

13. I love to take pictures. Also, I don’t like myself being photographed.

14. I smoke so less that I don’t qualify as a smoker.

15. The most riveting years this decade for me have been 2002 and 2006.

16. I love standing at the edge of the train door and tilting out a little. The feel of a speeding train, the katar-katar sound, the passing landscape, the continuous flow of thoughts, the setting sun and everything related to it is just amazing.

17. I am not too adept at tying shoelaces.

18. I spend a lot of time on facebook.

19. The last page of my notebook is full of all kinds of sh!t.

20. A late night talk on phone is a great thing to do.

21. A late night coffee and walk is another great thing to do.

22. I always look forward to next trek or trip.

23. I don’t enjoy parties much. But I like meeting people there.

24. I often hurt people but I’m first to say sorry.

25. I don’t like to wait for anything or anyone.

The Four Good Guys

Once upon a time, there were four good guys. They were intelligent, strong, full of passion and had dreams in their eyes. They thought they had clear objectives when they passed out as management graduates. It was the time to revel in their achievements and to throw hats in the air as a sign of their esteemed success. They passed out and promised to make it big in life and stay in touch, just like when they were staying at the same floor of the hostel. Rahul, Kumaresh, Pallav and Shivam cherished their times together and went on in their lives. Summers, rains, winters, autumn, work, office, malls, movies, girlfriends, wives, cars, football, kids, building house, hopes, desires, greed… time flew. Life took different course for the four good guys. There is randomness in everything that’s real. Is there a square? Can two sides be of same length till infinite points of decimal, or is there an exact 90.000… degrees that can be drawn? These are just the models by which we see a simplistic view of randomness that exists around. Life throws random things at us. The four guys were no exceptions but they were strong, strong enough to face any eventuality that might challenge them. It was a quest for money or material, fame or glory, love or happiness, satisfaction or what? They had little idea what they actually wanted and with the mad rush around they didn’t sit down to think. Was that a real mistake? Only time can tell.

Rahul was a simple guy who was worked hard. He knew how to derive little pleasures of life which people either ignore in their bigger pursuits or consider them to too petty to be cherished. He finished his education and went ahead to work in a big firm in Mumbai. He was open and accommodating and so he didn’t find it much difficult to cope with corporate culture and likes of that. He worked hard as he always did and stepped up the ladder at a convenient pace without stretching too much. He wasn’t exhausted or burnt down by his own expectations which were always kept at an obtainable level. He returned back from office at 8 PM and spent in company of friends or computer games until he got married. Is marriage a big deal? Well, yes for some people. Some people don’t compromise on what they think is the single largest factor that decides life and the course of it. Some are too picky and have exact constraints to be fulfilled. Some are just not really bothered about it and play it cool. Rahul probably himself didn’t know what category he falls into, but as he was open and candid he didn’t find it too difficult to settle down. Everyone wished him and he rode on his path steadily. Often he called up Pallav, Shivam or Kumaresh to know how he is doing. How is his wife? And children? Did you go somewhere for a trip? New car? Remember the hostel parties? The discussions were in short sentences and then to monosyllables and often ended with a bye and a promise to meet. All were busy and had their own problems, who will talk at length and where’s the time to meet? But those thoughts never surfaced, they were hidden deep down. Time flew, kids were born and they grew up. Rahul had a kind of life - 10 hours job, fat salary, a good wife, school going kids, social status, circle, gadgets, quite some time to pursue hobbies, yearly trips, hopes, desires… He was leading what the author calls White Life.

Kumaresh, are you still a geek? How’s your son? Pallav wondered when he had a talk with Kumaresh after 3 years, one fine Sunday in 2021. Kumaresh whisked away his question with a laugh and told him about a new technology or product that he is involved in at work. Kumaresh worked in a big firm after his graduation and loved to deal with technical things. He gladly accepted when his firm decided to send him to US for 5 years on a mission-critical project, although he wondered why just five years? He enjoyed his work and the the kind of life he was leading. Never a relentless speaker, he knew how to self-contain and work was never a big worry for him. He was pushed for marriage and he reluctantly married and started a new chapter. His life went smoothly, with occasional events of family happiness and outings and a great satisfaction in terms of personal interest. He made big bucks, became very rich but it didn’t had any significant effect on him. His family-wife and kids were happy and he was as calm and composed as ever. He had a kind of life where he worked 13 hours a day, earned tremendous money, lived in luxury, pursued his interests and all that may be at a little expense of personal life? He wasn’t the most romantic person around and his family often wished if he had a bit more of time for them. He had small refreshing talks with his other three hostel friends and he was a big man, leading what the author calls Blue Life.

Pallav never had a silent mind- one thing or the other was always turning topsy-turvy in his grey chambers. He had a philosophical outlook and preferred to stay content. It wasn’t difficult for him to adjust in the new found corporate life after graduating. He was curious- he learnt new things and being a hard worker, it was almost a cakewalk for him to do good continuously. But he wondered why to do all this? What is that I am going to achieve after all this? He was peaceful and his curiosity took him to new places. He evaluated his life and seeks answers for his questions. Is there a soul-mate? What is next for me to achieve? Seeking an objective view of life, he pondered while he worked and as always, time flew. He got married and settled happily. He didn’t run after big money but he kept the work and life balanced just at a point which always left him in bewildered- a little this side or that side? Leisure has a cost, if I work more, I will earn more and I will keep my family and myself in comfort but ultimately ended up doing otherwise. He enjoyed his evenings and waited for them the whole day. Office work was easy for him and he was popular and progressed at an easy pace. He kept the balance which was important for him and valued his time off the shelf. Kids grew and he was content looking at them. His thoughts never kept him idle and he had a kind of life where he still had a lot to do, sufficient money, great loving family, nice job where he wasn’t bogged down, thoughts and hopes and a little concern about future, a seemingly decent balance, maybe? He was leading what the author calls Green Life.

Shivam was a dynamic guy and good at almost whatever he did. He was enthusiastic and never shied away from responsibilities. Probably, that’s why he achieved so much success after he graduated. He put his best efforts at work and reaped the benefits straight away. He got good job, made good progress, earned a lot and moved on in life without worrying or thinking too much about issues on which he didn’t exercise much control. He was practical and focused and soon after he married and started the new life. Again as it was said, he never worried about the finesse but went on doing things which were to be done at the given time. Somehow down the line, he became puzzled about life. He started remembering those good old days when he was a good sportsman and wondered why he can’t do it now. He realized the burden on his work responsibilities, clients, files and likes of that. He wanted to know if he had taken the right decisions until now. But who knows? The real mistake which was hidden until now has suddenly surfaced, maybe for all four of them equally. He, just like his other three friends, still enjoys the five-star hotels, the luxury and benefits but wants to achieve more- not just in terms of money but also in personal life. A good family life and wonderful kids is what he has at this time, 2024 AD and he is bullish about the further prospects. He couldn’t be brought down by difficulties and he loves to fight on. He has a kind of life which is full of dynamism, may be frequent travels, luxuries of all sorts, big money, contacts, big house, a happy satisfied family life, desire to do more, and the ambition that doesn’t die down. He often enjoys his small phone chats with Pallav, Rahul and Kumaresh and remembers the convocation day and how different people went on different tracks. He stays happy with his kind of life which the author calls Red Life.

It’s 2024 AD and the story doesn’t end here.

PS- The characters mentioned are author’s figment of imagination. It is just the imagination not the perception necessarily. The author himself is a friend of these guys and shared the same hostel, once upon a time. White, Blue, Green, Red or something else, is there any answer to this?

.

I just called it quits. :(

A Journey

I feel bemused as I sit in my comfy room on top of a Malabar hill and type this out. It has been a scintillating journey which sprang surprises at every instant. The run of events over past two years drives me crazy when I sit and ponder about it. Tomorrow it will be one year since I left my first job ever and it seems it was eons ago. When I joined, I was in a regretful mood for not being able to do well in CAT05 and convert the few calls that I had. I wasn't much hopeful about the job but I was pleasantly surprised due to a lot of propitious occurrences like getting the best division and company of new college friends. I met new people and enjoyed working or going out with them. Time flew. I got bored and started looking for a change. I made profiles on monster.com and naukri.com and explored the opportunities and it was October when I finally got through a good company of my choice. Again it was unexpected and the while the dust settled I had moved to an entirely different place away from family. I settled and there were mighty changes and once again CAT and interviews took over and as a consequence, I’m here. This sudden bout of nostalgia poured in because of CAT 08 which is scheduled on this Sunday. It will be the first one in last 4 years for which I won’t be appearing. CAT had ruled my mind probably more than deep crushes that I had and I can gladly look back at it as a humbling experience. After coming to IIMK, it was been a joyful ride with just a few glitches. I organized the hostel party day before yesterday and it was fun. I have a free (almost) weekend ahead and a few parties too.

Of Fading Memories, Cricket & More

I remember standing in a crowded school bus somewhere in the 1996 summers when I overheard someone saying “India has finally got two good players- Ganguly and Dravid”. Today one of them decided to call it a day and few others who have been omnipresent on television screen are going to do it soon. I’m not a big fan of Ganguly or Sachin or anyone (except Lara) but I’m more worried about the void that will be left behind. The sight of these players doing the stuff they are known for, for years, is so deeply engraved in our minds that the feeling of ‘what next’ isn’t really pleasing. The passage from childhood to present times has shown me a lot of new things in life but not as much as I would have liked to satiate myself. I was born and brought up at a place where even electricity was a luxury (I faintly remember kids in neighbourhood screaming in joy whenever power came). The TV shows like Chitrahaar and Saturday/Sunday cinema on modern DD-1 were the spikes of entertainment in the barren feudal land. There weren’t any computers (and we can’t think without internet?), songs, dance videos, porn, video games, flash games, rock stars, pop stars, junk stars, flirting, x-day cards, y-day cards and xy-day cards for the kids of our times and sports meant cricket, just cricket, unless you could raise appreciative glances from your uncles by playing the great Indian and apparently intellectual game of chess. The emptiness due to all the historical and sociological factors made cricket the real entertainment and probably that’s the reason why I feel the void so wide that it signals the end of an era- not just of cricket, but more of me as a puppet-show watcher. It’s the pace that makes me uncomfortable, of course things moved at the real gentle pace, probably I wasn’t as fast.

I loathed the way Indian media ill-treated these players and pushed them towards retirement. India media probably considers itself as the force that brings change. However for a change, they show reports on commissioner’s lost dog and shiny flying objects but otherwise they are the harbinger of all great things that happen in the country. Commercialization is okay but being so fake and interfering and then overdoing to gain viewers’ attention is criminal. Indians on field were as arrogant as Australians but these things aren’t portrayed the way they should be. And I’m preaching like politicians, which doesn’t serve any purpose.

Getting back to reality, I had an amazing-cubed bike trip to Wayanad and nearby areas. It was a welcome break after the midterms and we really enjoyed to the local maxima after the excruciating mid-terms. A 300 km bike trip in a place like Kerala can at best be described by pictures; still it will be far from reality because you can’t feel the wind in your hair.


Its the path we followed to and fro..

Quixotic Dreams

It was pretty fast. I could still hear the whooshing sound as it passed by. Some things accomplished and some left to desire, fair enough, the game is not yet finished or rather it has just begun. In the game of life, you never know where exactly you stand because you don't know when it will come to an end. It's difficult to make precise calculations about what you've got and what you need to have more. Some dreams remain quixotic but what is hope for? Oh, I have to study.

Insomnia

From facebook minifeed,

Amod joined the group I Stay Up Late and I Don't Do Anything Productive.

1:15am

Doesn't it say it all?! It all started in class XIth, when I stayed up late to study for engineering entrance examinations. College was the place where this insomnia blossomed and remained so ever since then. Gossiping with friends, taking long walks in the dark, tea, coffee, internet, chatting, downloading, talking on phone, making castles in air and what not, I do after 12 AM. I guess I'm not going to be normal anytime soon. That is the way, and I'm okay with it. Too early to sleep now, let me find something to do.

H-life

HYDERABAD MEMOIRS

Dusty streets of Madhapur|My home with 3-side balcony|Parties@ Café Latte | Flashy Biking at Jubilee hills, road no. 36 and Banjara hills|Traffic Police haunting|Frequent trips to McDonalds at City centre (often with Nitesh)|Get-togethers at IIIT|The Ayyappa society road for daily shopping|Parathas@ Rajasthan Food House|Cousin’s trip|Trips to Bangalore for interviews|MMTS, Hitech City Railway station|CL Ameerpet and Workshop at Ragala resorts|Riding back to home for lunch|Winding streets|Pearl shops|Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani|A moment that changed equations|Late night talks on phone|A wonderful experience to remember|Naveen's Village|New year's get together at JD's room|...

sinking

X: ok

wish our 3 yr old frenship ended on a better note

but i hav to be slefish at dis point of time

me: i wish it never ended

ok

Trivia

Tagged by Naresh!

1. LAST MOVIE YOU SAW IN A THEATRE:

Krazzy 4! Quite Krazzy, was good as long as it lasted.

2. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING?

Everytime I hear this question, I feel like a duck! Whatever I read is on net.

3. FAVORITE BOARD GAME?

Chess, always, forever! After Bhavesh introduced me to Baba's chess, I am quite hooked on to it.

4. FAVORITE MAGAZINE?

Refer #2!

5. FAVORITE SMELLS?

Coffee. Petrol too.

6. FAVORITE SOUND?

Sound isn't music, right? A roaring aircraft sounds great. Screeching tyres is another one. Wind chimes are awesome.

7. WORST FEELING IN THE WORLD?

To come all prepared and then don't get or rather make an opportunity to do something.

8. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU THINK OF WHEN YOU WAKE UP?

"Snooze. I'll get up at next alarm ring for sure." :D
If I know I have a busy day ahead then I'll get up quickly.

9. FAVORITE FAST FOOD PLACE?

McD - better than KFC even though I'm a chicken-lover. Roadside foods rock as well!

10. FINISH THIS STATEMENT. "IF I HAD A LOT OF MONEY I’D...?

travel, attend concerts and buy stuff. Can't think of anything right now, in short, live lavishly.

11. DO YOU SLEEP WITH A STUFFED ANIMAL?

No, Ants aren't stuffed animals.

12. STORMS-COOL OR SCARY?

Super cool! A light storm makes me feel better.

13. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CAR?

Fiat

14. FAVORITE DRINK?

Milk shakes. (not Alcohol )

15. FINISH THIS STATEMENT, "IF I HAD THE TIME I WOULD...

be touring Rajasthan and Kerala comprehensively.

16. DO YOU EAT THE STEMS ON BROCCOLI?

Broccoli, I know!

17. IF YOU COULD DYE YOUR HAIR ANY COLOR, WHAT WOULD BE YOUR CHOICE?

Any further experimentation could worsen their already dilapidated state. Just to mention, violet.

18. NAME ALL THE DIFFERENT CITIES/TOWNS YOU HAVE LIVED IN.

Bhagalpur-> Muzaffarpur-> Ranchi-> Gandhinagar-> Bangalore-> Hyderabad
Delhi/Mumbai is next preferred choice!

19. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH?

I love watching them all. Racing, cricket, football..

20. ONE NICE THING ABOUT THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU.

The guy believes in himself. This belief takes one a long way through.

21. WHAT'S UNDER YOUR BED?

A thin microscopic layer of air.

22. WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE BORN AS YOURSELF AGAIN?

Definitely yes!

23. MORNING PERSON, OR NIGHT OWL?

No Fear of the dark!

24. OVER EASY, OR SUNNY SIDE UP?

If I've understood the question correctly, then it's sunny side up.

25. FAVORITE PLACE TO RELAX?

Coffee/Tea, Computer with internet, fluffy mattress, music etc. are the prerequisites. Best place is home, I wonder if anybody would differ on this?!

26. FAVORITE PIE?

Hot Apple Pie! Vanilla scoop over it.

27. FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR?

Love them all. I prefer fudges (chocolate, almond, cashew anything)

28. OF ALL THE PEOPLE YOU TAGGED THIS TO, WHO'S MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND FIRST?

Amiya and Jayant. Wishful thinking :D

The 80s boy

The 80s boy is at crossroads. When he grew up enough to understand his surroundings, he saw light-bulbs, scooters, telephones( where you put a finger in and rotate till the end, causing a zirrr sound), none of them functionally existing now. The 80s boy was sent to school where he learned and made friends. Every morning he watched his father with his squint eys, who woke up leisurely, did his daily and household chores, read newspaper and went to office on a scooter. The 80s father returned back in evening and enjoyed a cup of tea, watched TV and discussed politics with an occasional guest. A simple dinner, little bit of family discussion where the 80s father told his son to study, cited examples of successful people with a hope that the son would reach there too. Then they all called it a day. The 80s mother loved her child and wanted him to study and become a successful person. The 80s boy was told to stay ahead in the race. The 80s boy took all this seriously and he looked around and pondered about his life. He thought when he will grow up he would live a simple life like his father, but he found that his surroundings, his house, his town inspires him to achieve something bigger which leads to a "better" life. This pursuit of 80s boy changed his world.

The 80s boy studied and became active at school. He participated in different activities, sports to see how good he can be. The 80s boy saw the 80s girls. He was inquisitive, painfully shy and slightly frightened by this foreign creature. Co-existence brought the fact to him that this new kind of human isn't much different except for her long hairs, candied voice and un-boyish choices. Unwittingly, the 80s boy was attracted to the 80s girl and tried to find out why she smiled or flipped her hair, asked a particular thing and did stuff that was weird from his perspective. The 80s boy was dreamy and wanted to learn more about the outside world which he hadn't seen. His curiosity was his inspiration and his dreams were his motivation. The 80s boy wanted to excel wherever he laid his hands, just like his peers. The small battles became fierce and it fuelled a high degree of self-esteem that sometimes bordered with egotism. Competition, politics, finding shortcuts, peer rivalry, shrewdness were the order of 90s and later, the 80s boy soon got accustomed to it and went on without much difficulties. The 80s boy was headstrong, adamant about what he wanted. He knew he had to swim or he will be drowned in the ocean, either by his incompetence or being pulled down by other. He knew he had to cross the ocean, but what lies on the other side? He could just dream about the other side.

The 80s boy kept on fighting for the best things. He won many and lost many. A loss hurt more than a win pleased, because his pursuit made him feel that winning is just habitual while losing is disastrous. He became mechanical and quantified many facets of his life, which shielded small pleasures that were meant to be just felt. The 80s boy didn't rever the cool breeze falling on his face in the evening, his mind was preoccupied with the work that he needs to finish at night. Time flied and the 2000s arrived. The 80s boy came out of his teens and joined the rat race to achieve "something" wilfully, as if he were not already a part of it. He ran after elusive things and was run out. He went after something aggressively and was stumped. He tried to score maximum but was caught somewhere in between. He was given yellow card for his perceived pugnacity, aptly or otherwise. But, the 80s boy was clever and found his own ways to score in the game of life. Every failure made him shrewd and tougher than ever before. He won battles, one after another until he was bemused about the final outcome. What's there at the end, the other side? He remembered his father living a simple yet satisying life, and look, he himself is living a complicated and a no better life, after all this turmoil. The 80s boy wondered about this world, wondered what went wrong either with himself or with the system? The 80s boy, now in his 20s(so-called quarter-life) is perplexed what is worth running after that keeps him going and most importantly, contented? He earns a lot in this globalized world, still he yearns to earn more by putting up some extra fight. He looks unidimensionally at other 80s boys who are ahead of him and so he never realized that he left many behind him. The big things of 80s like aeroplane, AC, car are commonplace now. There are more luxurious and branded things now, though the 80s boy is fully aware of what he wants and what he doesn't. Still, he's just a part of the race. The 80s boy is at crossroads, once again.

Portrayal

"I'm on my quest to demystify this surreptitious world which is increasingly turning hostile towards my feelings. I wish to strike a balance between my idiosyncracies and the societal trends. I wish to know more and more people all over the world. I wish to get hold of my randomly flowing thoughts and save them, that's why I'm here."

This is how I have depicted myself for last three years on my blog. While it is still not utopia for me, I believe it is high time to express myself in a different way.

my school

1992-2000
:)

Six up!

That's something easy- to pen down six points, six idiosyncrasies of mine that are not very common.

Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself. Tag six random people and let them know they've been tagged.

1. I like the mobile no.s that have 2 as their sixth digit. The first four digits are are just codes where you can't do much. Fifth digit depends on the era when you were born.Sixth digit is special. Seriously, I think such mobile owners are amiable person. I have myself chosen such a number.

2. I am always short of one rupee change. If Rs 8 is needed, then I would be having coins worth Rs 7. I dispose off coins from my wallet as soon as possible, hence the vicious cycle goes on.

3. I like sun-set pictures and save them almost compulsively. I prefer sun-set over sun-rise.

4. I save old tickets, passes, receipts etc. I have 3-4 polythene bags full of such things. When I relocate to a different city(which I do so often), I carry them to the new place.

5. You'll not understand my photography skills. I take pictures with a philosophical angle, but alas very few can appreciate that. My friends generally have a good laugh seeing my clicked pictures of empty roads, tree branches, bushes etc. I will quickly take out my mobile and take a picture of something, leaving the person accompanying me bewildered about my interesting find.

6. I frequently and obsessively track things. That means, if I send a courier, I will be checking the consignment no. on website frequently and see where my courier has reached so far. If I have a waiting ticket, I will be checking PNR status every six hours! If I have to transfer money online, I will first transfer a small amount to see if it reached the other side successfully(same amount, importantly).

7. [BONUS POINT] I am obsessed about one song at any given time. It's something that will be running in my player all the time, much to the chagrin of people around me. These days it is "O re piya" by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan. Prior ones were Execute the Sounds by POD and Tum se hi.

I'm (over)done with the tag now. I'm not going to tag anyone, people who haven't done this tag may go ahead and be nice. I'd just like Steve to take up this tag as he hasn't written anything for a long time. See you sooner, Adios!