Coorg Trek and 6th wing reunion

It all started with mails when we thought of a reunion. Plans were made and tickets were booked in advance. We decided on Coorg. Me, Langur, Laspal and Bunty from Chennai, Psycho from Hyd arrived at Bangalore on 24th morning.

TO BANGALORE
The train journey to Bangalore was peaceful. We woke up some arbit station and it was totally fogy. So went out and smoked a cig. No one to complain ;-) . There was enough cig left and the train started so I smoked the rest standing at the train door.




@MURALI AND GRANNY'S APARTMENT
Reached the apartment. Psycho's train was sometime in the morning. After sometime he came. The usual chitchats. Murali had a swollen eye because some mosquito had bitten him in the eye. It was nice to see wingmates together. We were not sure about Finger and Rapu. So had not decided on the Coorg Trek. Again it was time for some fresh air, so a few cigs burnt. Murali made some really nice tea for everyone. It was great with fag. After that it was time for lunch. Finally we decided to go ahead with the Coorg trip. Booked a TaTa Sumo for the trip. The plan, to travel whole night and reach there at morning. Murali was psyched,what if the driver crashes with the continuous drive.

We started at around 11 p.m. from Bangalore. Picked up a few beer and breezers on the way. After having one breezer Murali was saying, "Kya pila diya yaar burp aaraha hai" The fags were always there. After driving a long stretch the driver was actually feeling sleepy. So Granny drove a stretch and then the driver took over.






MORNING @ COORG
We reached Coorg at around 5 A.M. It was totally dark and cold. I had crashed through the journey, so was not feeling that sleepy. I , Langur and Bunty went for a small walk. There was no space inside the sumo to crash. So I decided to crash on the Sumo,and so did Langur. When I woke up Langur was not there. He could not sleep so went for a walk. It was a nice morning. It was a bit cold. Bunty arranged for some bamboo and wood. I lit a fire and the warmth was feeling great. Granny woke up and we smoked again.



THE TREK AND WATERFALL
We decided to go to the waterfall. It was a nice place with the water breaking into white streams. The trek was a bit dangerous with very little space to walk on. But it was full with trees and looked good. So we went ahead. Thanks to Bunty we have all these pictures here. After sometime we reached at the waterfall. It was a great place. Psycho and Laspal started on thier business of joint. The water was tempting to take a bath. Me, Granny and Murali went ahead and the water was hi funda. It was bathtub shaped and one can peacefully lie down and bath. If you go close to the rock you can see the water falling infront of the eye. Later Psycho, Langur, Bunty and Laspal jumped in. After that we had a few more fags and a few more snaps.

We were feeling hungry so trekked back to have some grub.

LUNCH @ COORG
After taking bath and trekking all the way back we were feeling really hungry. Had lunch at a nice restaurant. There was a marriage ceremony going on in the same hotel. There I saw the Coors style of wearing the saree which was really looking beautiful. After lunch went to see some sceninc beauty. Again took a few snaps and had some oranges with salt and chilli powder. First time I was having oranges like this.

GARDEN
Then we went to the garden where we spent some time. I and Granny did horse riding and the rest of the junta went for an elephant ride. There was nothing much to see around in the garden so we packed.





TIBETIAN MONASTRY

Next was the Tibetan monastery. Its one of its kind here outside Tibet. The place has two nice temples and gardens. Everywhere you can find Chinky guys moving around. There we spent sometime. After that we we went to the shops to buy a few key rings. Laspal is trying a nice knife. It was evening by this time and time to get back. After traveling for a long stretch we stopped at a restaurant and had dinner and after that some nice hot coffee at CCD and the usual fags continued. Finally we reachhed home tired and safe. Psycho and Laspal started on making another round of joints. Next morning woke up and were chitchating about the day's plans. Again Murali made some nice tea, it was really refreshing. Finally we decided to go to Forum.



FORUM
We had lunch at McD and roamed around at Forum for sometime. Had a few more fags. Psycho's train was there at 4 P.M. So he left. Then we headed to MG road to a bar. After the lunch I was full and had just one orange juice. Granny , Laspal and Langur had some nice beer. A few more fags burnt. Then we went ahead for bowling. It was fun. I came second ;-) Again we roamed around on the streets and decided to have some chocolate. Its called DBC (Death By Chocolate). Don't know how these guys thulped it, I had milkshake. After some shopping we came back to the apartment.

Our train was at 10:45 P.M . Packed everything and came to Majestic. Suddenly saw the weighing machine and decided to weigh. Guess what Laspal is 89, Langur is 56, I am 58 and Bunty is 62. Overall it was a nice trip and great to spend some time together with friends. Hope to have some more of these.

Dreams Unlimited

I have known this guy from the day I stepped inside IIT. A brilliant sportsman and an equally creative person. When most of the IITians run around with resumes to get the top notch job in the final year, this guy was running around with a camera, chasing his dreams. You will hardly find an IITian who doesn't take a job and instead starts a career in film making. That too without any Godfather. Without much of resources. And he has made it. That's Rabi Kisku. He bought a video camera after borrowing money from friends. He made a small interesting video on iit life and it was the stepping stone for his film making career. He made a few ads also for NGOs. Next was the most happening stuff. A movie on IITians. There is a Five Point Someone moving around in the market. Suddenly Chetan Bhagat made the simple story of three underdog IITians popular. But making a movie with almost no resources was not child's play. To keep the budgets to minimum he went ahead with the Digital Format. The characters are the regular IITians. So you will see the real IITians in this movie. Airtel, Honeywell and AMD were the three big sponsors for the movie. But it was not as easy at it seems. There were times when he didn't have any money with him. He borrowed money from various resources. And at the middle of things, there was a cash problem. But he went ahead with the movie. Finally it has taken shape and now is due for release. Watch out for this one guys, the movie is going to be fun. Sometimes I tell him that, when he becomes a big director after a couple of films, I will make a documentary on his life ;-)

All the best dude

Break Free

Life is becoming a little bit more monotonous. I am not complaining about that. But somewhere down the line I miss the variety. The blood rush, the excitement. I am searching for the escape. From what I don't know. To where I don't know. But I want to escape. When I saw The motorcycle Diaries , I just thought how different people live life differently. Some are happy earning lots of money, so much that they don't even have time or ways to spend them, or rather I would say enjoy it. There are many who just manage to meet both ends. But is money all that we want? Why don't people take a long vacation, go for something adventurous and do things they always wanted to do, but never do just because they are so busy with work. Is it that important. I don't know. Probably because I have not yet started working and I don't know how it feels to work. But one thing I have noticed is, they just work and work and almost do nothing else. Their way of spending time is either the weekend beer with their beer buddies or just go home tired and sleep as much as you can, probably compensate for the whole week's sleep loss. Is that what they thought they would be doing when starting with their professional life. I don;t think so. Everyone dreams of going for some outdoor activity, to join a gym , health club, most common being to be health conscious and start on a jogging program, but after the initial euphuism everything boils down to just one excuse, "I don't get enough time.I just get tired." Probably people actually become busy, and that's the price they pay for earning those mega bucks. But is it that difficult just to overcome this and start doing things you always wanted to do. These are small things which bring small happy moments and we cherish them. I am sure there are many who might have passionately thought about doing photography, or painting, or writing or reading books, go biking, spend sometime in the wild, visit and explore a new place and many more such activities. But with time they die a silent death. You see your dreams dying infront of you. That's definitely sad. You and only you are responsible for this. And only iff you want,you can overcome this. Its a well laid , traditional trap which everyone knows and everyone falls prey to but there are very few who either don't fall prey to this or come out of this. The choice is yours. I hope I'll never fall into this trap. But this urge to break free is burning more and more inside me. I don't know where will it lead me. I am myself confused. All I want is to break free, to escape. A different escape. May be future has many more things for me to discover. Someday I will break free.......Very soon.

Break Free..&.. Escape

How Does It Feel????

How does it feel to get hit by a bullet? Piercing through the body, just for a micro second and it kills. So small, yet so deadly. How does it feel to dive into sub zero waters. The whole of the body experiences a current, a chill runs through the body for a moment. As in Titanic Jack says, water that cold, it hits you like a thousand knives stabbing you all over your body. You can't breathe can't think. How does it feel just before you meet with an accident. Just a few moments and you know that you are facing an accident, and for a moment everything seems to be out of control, you are there in the middle of things and keep watching, though for a small instant of time, you actually sense what's going to happen and yet your body becomes numb, you can't do anything. How does it feel when someone gets a life sentence and is going to be executed. Waiting for death itself can be killing. Every moment passing with anxiety and strange thoughts. And on the final day just before the death, how does it feel?

Small moments, yet they are so powerful. They can take the breath away. Just in a few moments life can change. So how does it feel in those small moments, when the brain stops thinking anything other then the event. In some cases it even stops thinking. Life just comes to a halt for a few moments. Stand still.

No Desires No Loss

No Regrets No Obligations

No Withhold Of Assent For No Cause

A Curse

Pause....?

Happenings

Of late I have started doing a few things. Like jogging, have become a little more health conscious, trying to quit smoking and many more things. Running 2.5+2.5 km everyday and doing some stretching is feeling really great. I am almost on the verge of quitting smoking and I hope by the year end I will quit. And when the sem starts swimming will provide the required relaxatation. Planning is so easy, difficult part is to make it work. But the occasional drag during a booze party is hard to resist I guess. That's may be once in a month. Thankfully smoking has not affected much of my stamina. I hope I stay fit like this. There are plans of a 6th wing reunion, so looking forward to that. So obviously there will be booze and smoke and lots of grub. But what I am looking fwd to is some wild trekking or visiting a new place. I don't know why, but booze seems to be a major factor whenever there is a reunion. May be its the mellow feeling that comes with booze , sitting with friends, gossiping anything under the sun. I don't know why but now a days I don't get the enthu to booze. There was a time when on any given day a booze party happening was exciting. Now its the occasional GRT beer. Another pondicherry plan is also coming up. Lets see what's there in store. Again it will be some nice Bacardi and Smirnoff.

I missed my friend's sis' marriage on 10th dec at sambalpur and another marriage on 5th dec. Most of my skool friends were there and had a really great time. It has been a long time since I have met my skool friends. The internet and cellphone has made life a lil easier to be in touch. More on other happenings in some other post.

Well, yes, ma'am, I do... I mean, I got everything I need right here with me. I got air in my lungs, a few blank sheets of paper. I mean, I love waking up in the morning not knowing what's gonna happen or, who I'm gonna meet, where I'm gonna wind up. Just the other night I was sleeping under a bridge and now here I am on the grandest ship in the world having champagne with you fine people. I figure life's a gift and I don't intend on wasting it. You don't know what hand you're gonna get dealt next. You learn to take life as it comes at you... to make each day count.

2005 - 2 - 2006

I know its a bit early. There are still 24 days to the new year. I never do any newyear resolutions. Because they can be made at anytime. But mostly ppl give up on them after sometime. So it doesn't matter. For me whether 2005 was a great year or not I don't know. But definitely it was a year full of events. A year which will be written in bold & italics in my pages of history. There are a few more years like this but lets not get into them. Surprisingly I am feeling more mature and grown up at the end of this year then I was earlier. I don't know what were the events which brought this little change in me. For me its difficult to pinpoint. But nevertheless they are there in 2005. Now life seems to move so fast and unnoticed. Deviations seem so great. May be its the time when the mind thinks of something but never overcomes it and goes the usual way, giving in to the things which come with a tag of safety, traditional and "that's how it is". Interestingly its not difficult to overcome them, but definitely it takes a lot to take the first step. Somehow I am feeling it in me. I don't know what will it lead to. But whatever be the outcome I am going to enjoy it. The journeys are as exciting and joyfull as the destinations. I know its going to be tough and will come with a lot of hesitations from people who care and also from people who don't care. Even writing this piece of blog was something which I didn't want to do, but I am writing it because it really doesn't matter to others what I feel. So, dear reader if you have come up to here and are clueless as to what's all this, then just forget it. I can neither explain to you , nor will explain to you. Coming back to me, the year 2005 brought experiences from which I learnt a lot of things. Still I have not been able to actually apply them to the real life and make use of it. But as I said I am feeling a change in me and I hope its going to work. I have not seen the year 2006, but one thing I know is this is also going to be one of the years which will be written in bold & italics in the pages of my history. Its going to be one of the memorable years. Sometimes there are these gut feelings which come true.

More on 2005 in detail near the newyear's time. There are still 24 days and anything can happen in these 24 days. And as I said I don't try resolutions, they can be done at anytime.

The beginning

Luck with Luckshmi

There are times when we get lucky with cash or something . Here are a few

France World Cup 98- Wrist Watch with the Mascot

A T shirt in a trade fair where every hour they announce a winner from the junta, the entry is the same as the gate ticket just 2 bucks

A pressure cooker at home. We don't take the oriya newspaper, but our newspaper wala gives a copy if he finds an xtra copy. Now this particular newspaper guys come with camera and banners and ask if we show them their newspaper of that date we will win a gift. My mom just tells them that sorry we don't take this newspaper. I just checked that day our paperwala had given that xtra copy. I showed it and we won a pressure cooker :D

Hidesign Belt. I used to take Economictimes when there was no internet at room. One day I got a catalogue of Pondicherry and there was a contest at the end. The answers were there in the catlagoue and it was easy to find out. I just mailed it from four differenet e mail ids. Don't know which one clicked, I got 1000 /- gift voucher and bought two belts.

Ya now the Luckshmi part. There are many instances when I have been lucky. A few memorable ones

Goa.. roaming around and two of my friends' roll finishes. So we go to the shop and they buy two rolls, but the uncle didn't cut much price. Just then I checked my camera and it was about to finish. So I went and asked for a Kodak roll. The printed price was 115 I guess. I asked it for 100. Uncle ji finally gave it for 110. I gave him a 500 note and he gave me 440 , an extra 50 :)

Last summer when I was in insti I stayed in the hostel for one month and 20 days. The mess bill should have been a minimum of 2500. When I came and checked it was 250. I just ran to the ATM, paid 250 and got my No Dues Certificate.

Once I made my bank balance negative by 600 bucks.

There was this xerox shop wala who xeroxed some extra copies and was asking me to pay for that also. It was 7 bucks. I was getting late so I just gave him a Rs 50 note and told him to listen carefully how many copies the customer wants. He returned me 93.

And there are N small instances like this.

Cellgebra

It goes like this.
August 1st week first recharge .Balance 1000 /- (Full Talk Time)
Inbetween a top up recharge 180 /-
Present Balance 75 /-
Total time 1080 mins
Outgoing 400 mins
Rental @1/day for four months 120 /-
Avg outgoing call rate per minute (1000+180-75-120)/400 ~ 2.46
Avg spending per month (1000+180-75)/4 ~ 275
sms 2910 , avg 24 smss per day

Things I want to do

Do lots of Black & White Photography
Learn keyboard
Learn Cooking
Travel a lot on a Bike
Do Scuba Diving
Do Interior Design