Random Musings by Me

Collateral murder?

2010-04-06T22:27:00.004+05:30

It's chilling. In 2007, in Iraq, a dozen people and 2 Reuters press staff were killed in an aerial attack by the U.S. military. The U.S. military assessment of the incident was that the attack was justified according to the Rules of Engagement.

Unfortunately, the footage of this incident which was recently released in Wikileaks shows that at the very least, the Rules of Engagement could be flawed. The casualness with which the egging on for a chance to shoot down some more 'targets' as it is shown in the video is .. I dunno... scary?

A REUTERS report had a U.S. defence official confirming the authenticity of the video and the audio.

It's just plain chilling.

Of Cricket, IPL and development?

2010-03-22T18:01:00.006+05:30

It's funny watching the recent auction for the 2 new franchisees hike up the valuation ratings for the previous IPL teams by close to 200%!!! The cheapest team was the Deccan Chargers and they seem to be holding a GOLDMINE in their hands by the look of things.
It's interesting if you notice the 2 new teams to come in: Kochi and Pune (or Poona as some would have you say). Sahara Group won the Pune franchisee. The Kochi franchisee was won by Rendezvous Group.
Rendezvous group has Vivek Venugopal, Anchor switches, Rosy Blue Diamond, Mukesh Patel, Ravi and Sanjay Gaikwad as part of the consortium. (Info courtesty IPL Chairman, LKModi tweets). How did they get together? Our very own Tweet-Popular Minister of State for External Affairs, Mr. Shashi Tharoor would be credited over here.
Again courtesy of Mr. LKModi's tweets:
"Shashi Tharoor is a cricket enthusiast and always wanted an ipl team in his state. He was the galvanising force behind getting a group there. Shashi tharoor's role is just that and not that of an investor. He wanted a team in his state and he worked hard to get one. He managed it. Shashi tharoor worked hard to put this together and I must congratulate him in putting this together so quickly and swiftly."
Dr. Shashi Tharoor has always said he wanted to work towards making Kerala better. And how! He's utilised his position well! In an interesting article a couple of months ago, Dr. Shashi Tharoor concluded an agreement in principle with the Mayor of Barcelona for twinning of the cities of Barcelona and Thiruvanathapuram
This guy really makes sure he can do what he can for the development of his place. Unlike some others...
I mean, how many of us knew about a group called the IOR-ARC? That again is another interesting read.
Coming back to the IPL, with Kochi, it now means the 4 southern states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh now have an IPL team each! (P.S. did you know Dravida in our National Anthem meant Southern India? I didn't :( )
And with Sreesanth making public that he would not mind playing for the Kochi team next year, (Come on! It's obvious! Home boy for the home team!) I guess there would be quite the hunt around for some Fraud Mallus too as we so put it.
(Unfamiliar with the term Fraud Mallus? Look up the group on Orkut or Facebook! :P)

What's your Rashee?

2010-01-11T15:45:00.002+05:30

Did a little bit of blog surfing after a very long time and stumbled upon this very interesting description of star signs by WHOAMI.

What's your Rashee

Quite accurate too. It may be a stable generalisation that all know about, but something I really liked. Nicely put!

Wake up!

2010-01-10T14:48:00.002+05:30

I've been awfully quiet for a while. And it's taken someone to send a terse reply to my 'officially stiff mail' to jolt me out of my 'just existing' life!
It did make me go back and read up on a few of my previous blog posts and that being done it did leave me wondering why I stopped posting so often. Yes, I have been away at sea for a good part of the year but I've been home for almost 2 months now. And not a post till date. Inexplicable? Maybe. But probably just plain laziness.
In fact, there has been a lot happening recently that I just fail to look around and see. There was this trip that my friends and I had made to Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary last month. This awesome night drive I had up in North Goa driving by the beaches was something I really needed to do. And she provided the impetus for that. Been travelling around catching up with people and attending weddings and receptions. A quiet New Year on a quiet beach (don't get that often in Goa!).

Yet, I fell quiet. And it did affect me as to how I behaved with people around me.
Here's looking forward to a new day, a new week and a better perspective from the much-required-wake-up-call mail.
Thank you so much! :)

"Mr. Singh .... Manmohan jee"

2009-04-13T14:21:00.005+05:30

Time and again the press and the media claim that they behave with maturity and self-regulations and time and again they behave in a manner that somehow irritates you to no end.

I just came out from watching the Prime Minister address a press conference in Bombay and one thing that kept catching your ear was HOW the reporters addressed him when they wanted to ask a question. "Mr. Singh, what do you think about so-and-so", "Manmohanjee kya aapko lagta hai....?" ... what the heck! Even if elections are round the corner, HE STILL IS THE PRIME MINISTER OF THE COUNTRY! Is it THAT difficult to address him as "Mr. Prime Minister"?

And at the end of the question by the reporters there would be a delayed pause before they said "thank you" almost as if it were and after thought or forced-out from them. Spurt in the number of media channels ... ok... you need lots of new journalists and reporters ... ok... but at least have them behave in a manner respectable of their profession and to accord respect to people who deserve it?

Valentine on the TV?

2009-02-14T12:19:00.004+05:30

Was talking to Ralph on Facebook chat... yeah yeah i Know, Valentine's Day and I'm on Facebook, SO SUE ME!
(p.s. for those of you who don't know... he's an eligible bachelor working in a leadership development programme and couple of years down the line should be a really really important guy)
Anyway, he started it by asking me what I was doing at home on Vday. Interesting query considering I asked the same of him. Quite an interesting reply he came up with... "hoping to meet my valentine online or on TV".
Told him to watch out else our beloved moral brigade would denounce his immoral ways and then go on to press for TVs and the internet to be turned off on Vday to 'protect' our culture.
p.s. Our champ is safe in Bangalore... where the moral brigade has said they will NOT protest in order to prevent embarassment to the state government. Rest of the state they will continue to protest (??!!)

Valentine's day and the days preceeding it....

2009-02-14T10:35:00.005+05:30

14th February 2009

I had so much to blog about in the recent past but have never seemed able to find the time to write about any of that.

Since then there have been attacks on women for visiting pubs and desecrating our 'culture' as the moral brigade would like to have it put. Even the daughter of a politician in power was not spared the ignomy of being assaulted and verbally abused.
To counter them, there was a group called 'A Consortium of Pub-going, Loose and Forward Women' formed which further started the now-famous "Pink Chaddi Campaign".
A further counter-counter group "The Pink Condom Campaign" has been started and the internet has already begun to get dirty with religion-based politics and slander.
The trouble makers from the SRS have now been taken into custody to prevent any trouble on V-Day, but it seems to be counter productive as if any of the members still out loose create trouble the moral brigade is bound to blame it on a rival political party trying to sully their image (like they even have one!)
A prominent political party associated with the moral brigade has gone to the extent of saying that a so-called-secular party in power was instigating the moral brigade and hence spoiling the name of his party (??!!)
Can things get any better in this blame game and "we-stand-to-save-the-culture-of-our-country-never-mind-that-education-and-development-takes-a-backseat" one-upmanship?

By the way, there is also another group on Facebook which calls itself "Kamasutra Day - A Truly Indian Cultural Event". They describe themselves as "In response to the Shri Ram Sena's clarion call that Indian culture is the only thing that Indians should celebrate, we have decided to declare the 1st of March as World Kamasutra Day."
A further clarification is added for those who wish to misconstrue this group: "NOTE: The celebration of Kamasutra Day is purely to get a message across. It is not, not a celebration of sex. And it will not be. If it happens, the whole purpose will be defeated.
People who want to celebrate sex please feel free to form a new group. Sorry, but there are people who feel strongly about KS Day not being misinterpreted."
The group seems to be growing in popularity with the membership now at 2100 and counting.

Oh yeah! Goa. The shiv sena group here needs to assert itself and be more prominent in the news or so they feel the need to do so. Else one fails to understand them addressing the press to ask couples to tone down their celebrations and keep the same in accordance with the Indian culture. Looks like they really want some attention... as recently when the screening of Slumdog Millionaire was taking place in Inox, they vandalised the multiplex and courted arrest. This, their unit president Upendra Gaonkar (who is this guy???), said was a "birthday gift" to their party supremo Bal Thackeray.
Aaaah! Why didn't they say so earlier? It's their party president's birthday and in order to show him that they are doing something keeping in accordance with the good ol' "shiv sena style" that they are well known for, they had to do SOMETHING...
so what do they choose? what else but VANDALISM of course!

I had gone with a group of friends on a drive to Netravali yesterday and we had a discussion on these recent events.

Decision arrived at: Group needs to be formed.
Name of the group: The "Beat-Up-Any-Sena-Member" Sena
Objective: You see any Sena member around you. Beat them up. Any.
Final Conclusion: We need to change the name of the group else we'll end up beating ourselves up.

Have a Happy Valentine's Day!

Me Birthday!!! 27 years of age!!!

2008-12-22T01:49:00.005+05:30

Man!!!

3 calls to wish me for my birthday after midnight on 21st December 2008. 15 calls to wish me through the day and 47 scraps on Orkut for a Happy Birthday wish...

Fun eh?

A call from a certain buddy around noon and an 'enlightening' talk to his fiancee ... well I guess plans for dinner were set.

I couldn't have planned it better... Table at Martin's Corner, Mandar, Shamin, Alwyn (if the spelling is wrong blame Mandar, he gave me the spelling), Aditi and Vipul...

Couldn't have asked for a better Birthday. Martin's corner special, Tequilla shot (dance on the floor), Sex on the beach shot, B52 shot, (EVERYONE DANCE ON THE FLOOR), Kamikaze shot and another B52 shot.

Then Aditi didn't have her shot of the last B52 so I took it along with Vipul and voila! Add another B52 shot to my list!

Before the last B52 shots, ... A HAPPY BIRTHDAY SONG FOR ME!!! CAKE... (already cut!) and might I add ... just 3 candles! And Shamin lost no time in rubbing it in for the baby boy to notice that he was to be 3 years old!!!

Amazing gang... had a ball...

Drove home after all that. Sober enough to see my way through. Trust me I was.

To think I would have spent my time ... doing almost nothing...

I did what I loved... danced... was involved in sarcastic comments... and spent time with people who enjoyed the time spent...

Me thinks me gonna upload some pics real soon...

Yeah. Me would like that.

p.s. Me have been nominated as the guy with the sexiest name!!! Now how cool is that!!! Just wish that comment would have come from a gal who wasn't already committed huh?

(for those who think that was a joke, I HAVE WRITTEN PROOF!!!)

sarcasm et al??? [:P]

Lest we forget...

2008-12-13T22:13:00.004+05:30

It was in the evening of 23rd July 2008, in the small town of Murmansk, Russia. Our ship had been in the port for a couple of days and I was out with the deck cadet exploring the town.

This memorial caught my eye. I was able to find a young man who was kind enough to try and explain that it was a war memorial. My lack of understanding of Russian was the culprit here.

What was most striking about the memorial was the fresh bouquet of flowers present. This, the young man could explain saying that there would always be someone who would place flowers on that memorial. It was their way of showing they cared and they remembered those who had fallen.

Cut back to today.
13th December.
Anniversary of the attack on the Parliament.

All 12 of our politicians turned up.

This, from a whole assembly of politicians who had just a couple of days ago been unified in their voice to state that they would not forget the fallen soldiers.

Or was that ONLY for the 26/11 fallen men?

Yeah. We remember our dead. Sure.

Update on Hebei Spirit

2008-12-13T16:06:00.001+05:30

Came across this clipping which sheds a lot more light on the incident.

Lloyds List news

Hebei Spirit - Criminalisation of seafarers

2008-12-13T15:15:00.007+05:30

I'm a seafarer.

A Marine Engineering Officer.

I know EXACTLY how stringent rules and regulations are for us especially when it concerns marine pollution, and the most feared of them all "An Oil Spill".

The laws are so stringent that it is taken for seafarers to be 'guilty till proven innocent'. And so we are EXTREMELY EXTREMELY careful with regards to ANY form of oil related transfer.

But what happened in Korea recently defies all semblance of logic.

The following information has been taken from a blog created for the benefit of everyone who wishes to know more about the incident and what has been happening. The link to the blog has also been given in the name.

HEBEI SPIRIT FACT SHEET

Summary

1. The MT Hebei Spirit oil spill in South Korea in December last year was a major incident that had ongoing environmental and economic effects. It was the country’s worst ever such release. The spill was about one-third of the size of the Exxon Valdez release and occurred when a barge struck the Hebei Spirit, which was safely anchored. Despite having been found innocent of any negligence, the Hebei Spirit’s Captain Jasprit Chawla and its Chief Officer Syan Chetan remain in Korea awaiting the results of an appeal, during which they will again faced charges. The appeal decision will be handed down on 10th December.

2. The ITF is very concerned by this example of the criminalisation of seafarers in an incident for which they bear no responsibility. Together with world shipping industry bodies, it has constantly pressed for the men to be allowed to return home pending the new trial, but to no avail.

The Incident
3. At about 7:30 local time on December 7, 2007, a tug-towed crane barge owned by Samsung Heavy Industries collided with the anchored Hong Kong registered Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) Hebei Spirit, which was carrying 260,000 tonnes (290,000 short tons) of crude oil. The incident occurred near the Port of Daesanan on the Yellow Sea coast of Taean County. The barge was floating free after the cable linking it to the tug had snapped in the rough seas. Although no casualties were reported, the collision punctured three of the five tanks aboard the Hebei Spirit and resulted in the leaking of some 10,800 tonnes of oil. Considerable public outrage and concern followed. Korean fishing communities and fishers’ livelihoods were seriously affected.

4. On December 20, the Korean Coast Guard completed an initial investigation. According to their conclusions, blame was shared between the tug captains, the barge captain, and the officers of the Hebei Spirit. The tug captains and the barge captain were charged with negligence and violating the marine pollution prevention law. The officers of the Hebei Spirit were charged with violating marine law. On June 24, the trial concluded. The Hebei Spirit officers were exonerated, as were the personnel on the barge. The two tug captains were found guilty. Barge owners Samsung Heavy Industries were also fined.

Continued Detention of Officers
5. Despite their exoneration, the Hebei Spirit's Captain and Chief Officer continue to be detained in Korea. They are currently awaiting decision of the appeal court because the Korean prosecution appealed the case. The Appeal Judge will give the decision 10th December, after which it could go to the Korean Supreme Court. Korea's detention of the crew has generated worldwide controversy and protests. The crew’s release has been demanded by the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) and the shipping fraternity nationally and internationally.

6. We are troubled by accusations that Korean maritime officials, prosecutors and Samsung lawyers have colluded in the retrial of the two senior officers. Roberto Giorgi, President of management firm V Ships, visited South Korea to meet with the detained Hebei Spirit crew. He told the press that he is concerned at recent developments "which point to collusion" between the Korean authorities, prosecutors and Samsung Heavy Industries, operators of the drifting barge that collided with the oil tanker, and that efforts of Samsung and prosecutors "look to be designed to ensure that the master and chief officer are found guilty on appeal," Giorgi said. "I am worried that the captain and chief officer may not get a fair trial this time around."

Statements and protests
7. “There are a number of cases where seafarers have been criminalised and their basic rights denied. In our experience, detention or inability to leave the country where the investigation is taking place – has the sole effect of creating unnecessary psychological and physical discomfort which ultimately can damage the detained seafarers’ health.”

8. The Indian shipping fraternity comprising of National Union of Seafarers of India (NUSI), Maritime Union of India (MUI), Foreign Owners Representative and Shipmanagers Association (FOSMA), Maritime Association of Shipowners, Shipmanagers and Agents (MASSA) and Indian National Shipowners Association (INSA) have conveyed to the government and authorities of the Republic of Korea their surprise, disappointment and great concern at the news that Korea’s courts intended to continue to detain the ship’s officers, calling this move “unjustified, unreasonable and in contravention of the men’s rights” and reminding the authorities that the trial had determined that another vessel was wholly responsible for the incident.

9. The ITF Seafarers’ Section Conference meeting in Hong Kong on 18-19 November 2008 resolved to make “every effort to secure the immediate release of the Captain and Chief Officer of the Hebei Spirit and an end to the injustice they have been subjected to.”

Well that was all the news going around till the 10th of Dec 2008. This was the news that came out that day.
On 10 Dec 2008, almost after a year being in Korea for the proceedings, both were proven guilty, declared CRIMINALS and given imprisonment for 18 months & 8 months respectively along with monetary fines. They were HANDCUFFED and taken away. What is also a grave matter of concern is the Criminalisation of seafarers round the world after an accident, as if the seafarer has done a deliberate heinous crime. Same was the case with Capt. Jasprit Chawla & C/O Syan Chetan, who have done all they could to limit the level of pollution. This can be proved as Capt. Jasprit has been awarded and honoured by the Lloyd's List and Nautical Institute for his actions after the accident. The court's verdict was otherwise. The court felt they could have done more better.

I believe this is the first time I'm seeing a party, proven guilty by the lower court, joining the prosecution in a higher court against a party proven innocent by the lower court.
The question being raised now is whether justice will be served. The continued detainment of these 2 seafarers even after being pronounced innocent by the lower court goes against human rights.
Calls are being made now for seafarers to abstain from ships going to Korea and for companies to follow suit. In fact a couple suggestions have come out to boycott all SAMSUNG products.

Will that help in getting our seafarers back?

Do what it takes. We need to get our Hebei Two (as they are now referred to as) back.

Moving forward?

2008-12-12T13:40:00.003+05:30

Wow! It feels like AGES since I've been back and I've ALWAYS been thinking to myself that I need to blog about my travels and experiences, about a real pain-in-the-neck Captain, back-breaking hours ...

But all that was forgotten when I was in Kerala the weekend that the terror attack was carried out in Bombay. T'was in a panic that I tried calling up people who I knew were in and about V.T. Most were fortunate. They were in their respective hotels which weren't in the terror zone. Others... well, at first I couldn't get through them. The next day I found out they were at V.T. station and were caught in the firing. God bless their souls. I wanted to say so much more but ...

There has been immense fury at the complete apathy towards the situation and the insensitivity of the politicians while trying to push themselves as the good for the people.

Yesterday, for once, there was a united front expressed by our politicians at the Lok Sabha session. Will it last? Time will tell.

Been trying to follow what I could on the blog front concerning the attacks and the feedback from the 'aam aadmi'.

I liked what I saw on the 'Rebuild India' Mission. Will it last? I don't know. It's a start. I'm following it up regularly. Recommendations and opinions were collected from a lot of bloggers. They've now moved to an online survey which is intensive as it is thought-provoking.
'Rebuild India' Online Survey is an interesting move and I would request all those who care to just give it a go. It might just see the light of day.

Finally back here again!

2008-11-14T00:08:00.003+05:30

10 months later and here I am...
Another ship, another trip round the world, different countries and new experiences.
Now ain't that something...
Came back on the 10th of October. Since then I've been busy literally travelling about.
Ain't complaining though. Does help keep the mind occupied.
Let's see... and short introduction on where I've been the last few months...

Signing-on flights: Goa - Mumbai - Dubai/Fujairah

Ship: Fujairah - Goa(yeah I went home within 10 days!!!) - Singapore - Lanshan(China) - Adang Bay(Indonesia) - Pagbilao(Philippines) - Battangas(Philippines) - Haypoint(Australia) - Cosipa, Santos(Brasil) - Tubarao(Brasil) - Hamburg(Germany) - Murmansk(Russia) - Port Bury, Wales(U.K.) - Kamsar(Guinea) - Las Palmas(Spain) - San Ciprian(Spain) - Tubarao(Brasil) - Point Lisas(Trinidad & Tobago)

Signing-off flights: Port-of-Spain(Trinidad & Tobago) - Caracas(Venezuela) - Charles-de-Gaulle(France) - Mumbai - Goa

Phew! Over 7 months on-board Giovanni Della Gatta and half that time under a not-so-pleasant Italian captain can be a very very long time.

Since I've been back, I've spent the first weekend at home. The next weekend in Bangalore, the next at home and the one after that was spent on meeting friends as it was the Diwali weekend and people were coming down for the extended weekend. Since then, last weekend I was in Pune and this coming weekend might in all probability see me in Delhi with the next 2 weekends seeing me in Kerala. And I say I get bored! Jeez! Talk about making EVERY TRIP planned at the last moment!
But there's always a fun element in a last moment put-together trip huh?

Whaddya say?

Political Farce

2008-01-17T20:11:00.000+05:30

Goan politics comes to the fore once again. The musical chairs scene has started once again. Rumour has it that the government is to fall because the Chief Minister is scrapping the SEZ while his detractors have much to lose from that decision. Big money staked on the constuctions by the builders... damn this gets dirtier and dirtier.
Will the government fall? Will the NCP support the government again? The people just don't want to go to polls again... what is it with switching political alliances at their whim and fancy?

Tidbits

2008-01-14T18:59:00.000+05:30

Attending an oil tanker course in Bombay for the last week and it's running this week as well.

Lecturer gives out a few anecdotes while trying to make the class interesting.

Guy 1: When I wake up in the morning I feel totally invigourated. I have a hot shower and after that I feel rosy all over.
guy 2: Please introduce me to Rosy. I too would like to feel her all over first thing in the morning.

He was explaining about the catwalk on the oil tankers. "Don't mix it up with the fashion catwalk. That's a totally different type of pussy... sorry, cat."

Of course, he seems to have a soft corner for Mallika Sherawat. Keeps on bringing her up while interjecting the lecture with anecdotes. Today, we asked him why not Bipasha. Someone asked about her age. Another responded with "somewhere in '79". He shot back with "you talking about date of birth or size???"

21st December 2007

2007-12-23T15:58:00.000+05:30

I turned 26 on this day. Didn't do much. Spent time at home receiving wishes over the phone. Spent some more time online and checked out my Orkut scrapbook as well to reply to those who had wished me. Some of them did wish because they saw the birthday reminder on Orkut. Others did so because they remembered. You normally are able to differentiate between the two.

Couple of pals called up the next day as they were either traveling or had too much on their mind to attend to (Bakri-Id was also celebrated that day). It didn't bother me. Just glad they called.

Spent quite a bit of time by myself introspecting on where I was headed. What I had become. What I was doing to myself. What I was doing to others.

Nothing like some quiet time to yourself to just have it hit you smack on the forehead. Frustration at the amount of time it's taking to get back on the job. Loss of patience, which was one of my stronger points earlier. Takes very little to snap at someone now. Almost like I'm waiting for someone to commit an error and then leap to rip that person to shreds.

I like listening to sad songs now. I've got plans for new year with my friends to go out to one of the beach shacks for a party. Got incredible number of weddings to go for in this month and in the next couple of months ahead as well.

Seems like a farce.

NO to Da Vinci

2007-12-16T00:13:00.000+05:30

Been meaning to blog for a long long time. Everytime I think I'll blog there's either an exam to prepare for or a trip to Bombay. (15 round-trips to Bombay in 7 months!!!)

And recently I've noticed my tolerance levels seem to have dropped considerably. Earlier I wouldn't say a word if someone cut the queue in front of me or had someone come down the wrong side of the one-way street. These days I seem to be the first guy upfront to rip them apart.

Of course, what I read today in our local newspaper "HERALD" was AWESOME!
Goa against screening of Da Vinci
This, because of the religious sentiments that may be hurt!!?????

WHAT A LOAD OF CROCK!

So what the "minister" is trying to say is that if the movie is screened any other time of the year, sentiments won't be hurt. But during Christmas season, sentiments are vulnerable?????

Why doesn't he just concentrate on development? Oh yeah! I forgot. In the name of development, they already put up half the state for sale!

Would love to type out a letter to our beloved ministers:

Dear Minister,
PLEASE. For the love of God! Shut up!
You're the minister! Just ensure your department works efficiently and the public gets its due for voting you to "power".
Thank you.

p.s. I saw the movie today afternoon. My sentiments were definitely not hurt!

Do-it-yourself Bank

2007-11-12T23:14:00.000+05:30

Just read an article which had appeared in the newspaper a couple of days back about ICICI bank being fined Rs. 55 lakh for unruly means of loan recovery. About time something like this was done!
I had a car loan taken from ICICI bank and during the process of applying for the loan I was assured that they would allow swiping of my cheques with those of my dad's, who was also a co-applicant in the loan. In spite of continuous reminders that the cheques had to be swiped after two transactions, six transactions were taken from my account with no sign of the swiping being done anytime soon.
That being done, I went to the Panjim office to see what was causing the delay in swiping the cheques. Unfortunately, the person who I dealt with had been transferred to mumbai. To my consternation, the lady behind the desk said that the cheques WOULD NOT be swiped and that the ENTIRE loan would have to come from my account. When I confronted her with what I was told when taking the loan, she replied, to my UTTER DISBELIEF, with 'you have been deceived by that person. You deal with him about that problem' ??!!
They both work for the SAME COMPANY! This is how you talk to customers?
When I asked her for my father's cheques to be returned, I couldn't believe my ears when she replied that my cheques were in mumbai and she had NO IDEA where my father's cheques were. I couldn't even complain against the callousness and complete lack of customer service of that person because the manager wasn't in and there was no proper complaint register available.
I decided to go to mumbai and imagine my shock when they informed me that they had no problem swiping the cheques and that they would do it right away. When I told them about the complete lack of information in the Panjim branch in Goa, I was asked to fill in a feedback form. So I did, Named the branch. Named the lady. Named the problem. No idea what came of it.
Anywa, the previous cheques handed over by my dad were misplaced by the bank and so they had to be blocked while new cheques were issued and swiped. Therein ended the saga of a simple swiping of cheques.
To ANYONE who reads this and handles loan operations in ICICI, PLEASE read up your loan DO's and DON'T's before sending your customers on a DO-IT-YOURSELF trip to mumbai.

'15 seconds of fame' ???

2007-10-06T13:50:00.000+05:30

Every person wants his shot at fame. No matter how frivolous a situation, one can always find a means to ensure an allegation can be made. In this case, a lawyer has filed a case against our winning T20 team for disrespecting the national flag.
The lawyer, Arvind Sharda, filed the complaint before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Varinder Aggarwal under the Flag Act 1871 for violating the flag code of India.
The magistrate has fixed October 23 as the date for recording evidence by the complainant in support of his complaint.
Jeez mate! We're celebrating a win! We won the cup! We're proud of being Indian! We drape the flag around ourselves! We spray champagne on each other!
There's a thin line between joyous patriotism and fanatic patriotism.
And though I would love to go on and on about this, there is only so much I can write for now. When I get back, this will be delved into much much more. Damn! I WANT TO DELVE INTO IT SO MUCH MORE!

A train journey to remember....

2007-10-04T20:47:00.000+05:30

This was one of my oh-so-frequent train trips between Mumbai and Goa which occurred last month. I had actually penned most of this down in the train itself, as I was beginning to wonder what to do with the incredible amount of time I suddenly had on my hands.

With a sigh of relief as I finally got the bookings for the exams done, I stepped out to book my train ticket for the journey back to Goa. Should have seen it as a sign of things to come. The online booking, a 15 minute process, took an unusually long 50 minutes. After finally having got the ticket for the train I left to complete the other formalities of picking up a couple of books from my regular roadside bookstall and finally, checking out of my room.
I reached the station at 2230 hrs as the train was scheduled to depart at 2300 hrs. Just then, there was an announcement that the train was rescheduled to depart at 0020 hrs! Like, wow! And due to non availability in the sleeper seats that I usually travel by, I had to book a seat in the A/C 3 Tier compartment and that too under tatkal quota... (what else could I have expected after going to book for the train ticket that evening?)
Wonder of wonders! The T.C. came in and told me that I was UPGRADED to the A/C 2 Tier section! (Upgraded. Made me feel like an outdated piece of electronic equipment) I got to my seat and next to me were a group of 'youngsters' chatting away to glory with a very thick gujju accent. Guess I've learnt to detect it from the innumerable 'saas-bahu' serials running on television. All of a sudden there appeared this bevy of beauties who looked to be travelling WITH the 'youngster' guys. Seemed that they were married couples! Looked like kids! Come to talk about that, one of them had a little baby girl! So yeah! One of the guys wanted to borrow a pen. 'Dost' he said. Funny. I've never heard anyone refer to a stranger that way. I mean I've heard of 'Boss', 'Patrao', 'Bhaiyya', 'Bhaisaab' and 'Mahashay'. (For the uninitiated, first two are common in Goa, next two are common almost everywhere in the northern part of India, and last in Kerala) This was a first. He was 26 yrs old and he was a father of a beautiful baby girl. And it seems his honeymoon was in Kerala. Though I didn't seem to get the gist of why he called it his 'first honeymoon'. And the look he had on his face when he was talking about Kerala? Dreamy. Almost like he had the best time of his life there. Well, why wouldn't he? He had his honeymoon there!
All things moving on, we seemed to have been moving unusually slow since early morning. I presumed it was because we were moving through the landslide affected area which was demarcated as a 'slow zone'. An hour later we stopped right in the middle of a tunnel. What do you know! The locomotive engine broke down! Now how often would you have heard of something like that happening? On inquiring with some of the T.C.'s onboard, we finally managed to find out that the fuel line was not developing pressure in the forward direction but was doing so in the reverse direction! So, it was decided to take the train back to the station we had just passed to attach another engine there. The delays just kept piling up.
In the end we stopped inside another tunnel again because the locomotive engine just broke down completely. The place that we stopped was called Aadavali, or so the locals said. It had a lovely river, more like a creek actually, flowing right beneath the tracks.
I had borrowed a travel guide book on 'South India' from a couple travelling in the same compartment to see if I could find any info on this place but to no avail. I thought they were British at first but later found out the guy was Irish while his girlfriend was British. They were with me in the previous compartment until they too were 'upgraded'. The reason I thought they were British was because when the T.C. told them that they had been 'upgraded', she exclaimed "Wicked!". Typically British if I may say so. But the guy had a distinct Irish accent. So I wasn't actually sure till I finally spoke to them and we had introduced ourselves to each other.
After the new engine had arrived and was finally connected, the train resumed it's journey at 1240 hrs. Revised ETA was now 1630-1700 hrs.
There was an interesting bit that I'd begun to notice in my last couple of journeys to-and-fro Mumbai. The Madgaon-Diva-Madgaon train has the lower half of a few bogies spray painted upon in the form of graffitti. I'd never seen a train like this before!
Now that the train was well on it's way to Madgaon we had fallen into complacency and assumed that normalcy had taken over the journey. How mistaken we were! At Kankavali, SOMEONE from S3 pulled the emergency stop chain! Aaaaaargh! Frustration was beginning to show. Another delay of 20 minutes out there.
Finally. At 1600 hrs! Karmali! But wait a minute. I was supposed to get off at Madgaon. The last stop and the next station. I just couldn't wait for that. The fear of another unscheduled stop was too much to bear. I got off at Karmali and grabbed a motorcycle pilot to the bus stop. Took the local bus to Panjim. From there, I took a shuttle service bus to Vasco. Met Dad in Vasco.
HOME SWEET HOME!

Utter Callousness by VHP!

2007-09-12T17:26:00.000+05:30

Nationwide protests is what they wanted, to 'highlight' the hindu culture that would be destroyed if the Central government went ahead with the Sethu Samudram Project.
Protest they did. Blocking railway tracks and creating traffic jams by blocking major roads. In the midst of this mayhem, a pregnant lady trying to make her way to the hospital with her husband is stuck in the traffic. With the VHP was in no mood to relent, the husband tries to find a nurse to help his wife, only to return and find out that his wife has had to deliver the child on the footpath!
Is this what we plan to achieve in the 21st century? Political parties and religious fundamentalists calls bandhs and stage dharnas all in the name of protecting the common man's interests and culture. But at what cost?
When the news channel Aaj Tak tried to contact Praveen Togadia on the phone, he refused to acknowledge that VHP was responsible for the woman's sufferings. Later on, another person from the VHP apologised on behalf of the VHP, but continued to claim that this was being done to protect the hindu culture!
Why make the common man suffer for the whims and fancies of these organisations? You want to call a bandh or stage a dharna, then do it in your area first. Shut down your daily life first and then go to the common man asking him to just drop what he is doing so that your aspirations can be satisfied.

We WIN!!!

2007-09-05T23:17:00.000+05:30

Series is level at 3-3!
God! What a match! After a humongous hue and cry (raised (only) by yours truly), on the atrocious decision resulting in Owais Shah scoring his MAIDEN ODI century, the match proceeded on with England scoring 316 runs for the loss of 6 wickets.
India responded in brilliant fashion scoring 150 runs for the opening partnership between our very own Tendulkar and Ganguly. Sadly Ganguly would fall at this point, (painfully to Broad, the same bowler with whom he had a verbal altercation earlier) thus making way for the entry of Gambhir. Gambhir struggled in the partnership with Tendulkar who could not take the quick singles due to his frequent bouts of cramps. Tendulkar, on 94, would fall quickly to Panesar, with the score on 156 leaving Gambhir and Yuvraj to try and conjur up a partnership. India then received a double jolt wherein the wickets of Yuvraj and Dravid would fall in quick succession with the scores at 209 and 216 respectively. Mascarenhas and Shah would be the bowlers responsible for the fall of those wickets. The change in pace and the ball stopping on the batsmen would create much trouble for the Indian batsmen.
Gambhir would follow soon after in the 41st over and the score on 234. His wicket would fall to Mascarenhas again. This bowler, responsible for hitting 5 sixes of the last 5 balls in the England innings off part-time bowler Yuvraj, would be responsible for quite a few saves in the field and the two wickets as well. Dhoni and Uthappa then came together to put up a substantial partnership. With 90 runs required of 70 balls, Dhoni started improvising his shots and with the score on 294, Dhoni would be bowled by Broad trying to improvise a shot behind the wicketkeeper.
Agarkar came in to score a single run off the only ball he faced, but was involved in a 13 run partnership, only to be run out trying to go for a second run off the last ball of Anderson's over with the score at 307. With 10 to get off the last over, in came Zaheer. With 2 runs taken by Uthappa off the first ball bowled by Broad, Zaheer was run out the next ball when he was found short of his crease after backing down the wicket too far. His departure left the score at 309 and 8 runs to get off 4 balls.
With Panesar at fine leg, up in the circle, Uthappa improvises the sweep shot to play it over his shoulder and down for a boundary!
4 to get off 3 balls!
Deliberation goes on between the bowler Broad, and the England Captain Collingwood. Fine leg is sent down to the boundary and mid-off would be brought into the circle.
Guess what? Uthappa would smack the next ball straight past mid-off to register the next boundary and level the series for India!!!
3-3 all with everything to play for in the FINAL ODI to be held at Lord's this Sunday!
LORD'S!!! HERE WE COME!!!

Travesty of justice by a debutant umpire!!!

2007-09-05T18:25:00.000+05:30

So India has England on the mat. England seems to be developing a partnership between Owais Shah and Luke Wright, when Ramesh Powar comes on to bowl and has the ball take the back of Shah's bat, hit his elbow and balloon up to the keeper for a catch!
Horror of horrors!!!! The umpire turns it down!!!
This decision by an umpire who is making his debut in umpiring in ODI cricket! And then we have umpires by the dime and dozen who are willing to wrongly give the Indian batsmen out denying them match winning innings or a century!
And best of all, Shah has the audacity to indicate that his bat didn't make contact with the ball!!!
Needless to say, Shah goes on to register his century and propel England to a target of 316!
Damn! If wishes were hitmen, he'd be out in the other world by now! The umpire, that is to say.

The thought to travel...

2007-08-16T15:02:00.000+05:30

Man, I am THIS close to losing my mind! I've already made 5 round trips to Mumbai and back in the last 2 1/2 months with another round trip coming up in less than a week's time. God this is miserable!
I mean, I used to LOVE going to Mumbai. Go where you want, at whatever time you want and it never was a problem. No problem about getting back late and never ever a problem about transport.
But during the rains? No thanks mate! I'm lucky I have my work cut out for me in V.T. . Go there. Stay there. Complete designated work. Come home. Can't even think of going to Andheri, Bandra, Malad or where ever else I think of going to at the drop of a hat. It's fun doing that. Go to the station. Think up a place. Buy a return ticket and catch the train! Albeit, now with the rains hitting hard, it's a misery just getting to the station.

Of Cricket and Follies...

2007-08-08T19:16:00.000+05:30

Breaking News: BCCI has nothing against ICL. But players siding with ICL cannot expect anything from the BCCI.

So whatcha saying is that if people join ICL they might as well kiss any aspirations they have of playing for the national team goodbye even though you said you won't be banning them!
The general opinion going around is that the BCCI is scared that the ICL may turn out to be a better management board than the BCCI is!

And of course we have new rules coming in... some of which is a little difficult to understand since the bowlers already have a host of rules stacked against them.
The extending of the boundaries is a welcome rule though the free hit after a no-ball is somethign that leaves much to be desired.
And changing the ball after 35 overs!!! Common mate! How can you o that! Eitherway the ball is being changed if it gets too dirty. Compulsory changing of the ball would take away the option of a soft clean ball which could be used!
Damn!

9 yr old soccer star?

2007-08-04T21:04:00.000+05:30

Well, interesting news makes for headlines today. 'Top Soccer Club signs up 9 yr old!'
Best part? His grandfather sent the talent scouts of the club a dvd of his grandson playing. The clips posted on You Tube are turning out to be an instantaneous hit with the online community.
Rhian Davis is already drawing comparisons with Wayne Rooney. Will he emulate him? Time will tell...

MMRPG: Torn City

2007-07-26T12:01:00.000+05:30

MMRPG or Massively Multiplayer Role Playing Games have been been around for quite a while. But while most of the modern day versions are heavy on graphics and have immensely large memory requirements not to mention the demand on broadband, text based MMRPG's have been around for quite a while. One of these MMRPG's that I came across is Torn City.
While you cannot see your surroundings in this game, what you can do is to make sure that you are constantly moving up by improving your statistics like speed, strength, intelligence, defence and so on. While this game does involve a lot of crime, strategic alliances are the need for the day. You can keep to yourself and grow in stature as a reputed brain surgeon or you could go on to become the next Godfather!
Daily salaries and job points make it seem like a real life version wherein you have to wait for your money or you could offer protection to some of the newcomers in exchange for money aka mumBHAI style.
All in all, a game that provides for a lot of networking.

Awesome CAT page!

2007-07-26T11:33:00.000+05:30

Man! This page is hilarious!
Put out a search for 'real life Tom and Jerry' and this page just popped up!
Your normal Error 404 page is now a CAT ERROR 404 page!

Goa's politics a.k.a. musical chairs

2007-07-26T09:56:00.000+05:30

Well, here we go again. The just concluded attempt to dislodge the government having failed, now the breaking news early morning is that the Congress government in Goa is now a minority with 5 MLA's having dumped the ruling coalition. Awesome.
Kinda reminds me of the situation back when I was in std. XII. Almost every week we had to update ourselves on who was in the new government. Rise and fall were in matter of days.
Today's government, I believe, has been in power for about 50 days. Aaaah well, at least SOMEONE representing the country scores a half century!

Traffic woes...

2007-07-15T19:34:00.000+05:30

God! They say Friday the 13th is bad... well the last 24 hours have been incredulous in terms how how people drive. It's not like prior to this there has been perfect road sense displayed by people on the road, but the recent hours have just taken the cake!
I was out yesterday for a Lion's Club function. Since I was extremely bored considering the utter lack of company and NO ONE remotely close to my age group, I decided to go out for a drive. So i'm driving and there's this junction at which I wanted to turn around and go back. The traffic police have blocked a U-turn with barricades and you have to take another road going around the barricades to go back. So I do that. As I am about to go around, there come these smart asses on the bike who decide that going all the way around is a waste of time and hence cut across the barricades thus putting themselves right by my side. Above this they expect me to give them way. When I didn't they started cursing and shouting. I used to pride myself on my patience. NOT ANY MORE. Stop car. Roll down window. Give them a good dose of verbal abuse right back and then give them the choice of calling the cops if they wish to make a complaint against me. Yeah right. And they would explain what?
I drive on. There's a Maruti 800 ahead of me and there's a road connecting the main road from the right. Our man puts the right indicator and begins to turn right. So I dip the lights and overtake. No problemo right? Naah! Our champ has a change of mind and swerves left onto the main road with the right indicator still on. Brakes screech and both vehicles come to a halt. No impact, thankfully. Like I said earlier, lack of patience on my side. So I roll down my window to ask him if he's drunk driving like a maniac around. Guess what? He starts yelling at me!!?? I seriously have got minimal patience given the circumstances. Completely blew up on him Verbally, of course. His right indicator was still on. Fired him inside out and finally he shut up. Sheesh!
I mean, seriously, who wouldn't get mad when you're on a bike going down the right way in a one way street and midway you get a car coming the wrong way with him telling you to go to the side to let him through. Well HELL NO! Do what you want. I ain't moving aside buster. You reverse out of here and let me through. If he refuses, well you can always threaten to call the cops and then what would he do?
But the worst part is when we have places of religious worship just by the side of the road and people park their vehicles on the road to go pay their respects. Well, the road is just about the required width to allow two trucks to pass side by side. Park vehicles on the road? Hell, we got ourselves a one way lane!

It's plain civic sense people! How difficult can that be to understand!

Voting Farce...

2007-07-08T13:51:00.000+05:30

A couple of days back when I was in mumbai, one of my buddies asked me if I had voted for the Taj Mahal in the new 7 wonders of the world list. When I replied in the negative, he exhorted me to exercise my 'right' to vote for the Taj and went on about how we needed to have it on the '7 Wonders of the World' list.
Weird. All this time no one was even bothered about giving the Taj Mahal a second glance and all of a sudden we're being pummelled into exercising our franchise so as to make sure the world knows about the 'Monument of Love'.
Well, i refuse to get into it. Primary reason being that UNESCO has not even recognised this 'new' list. It is a private organisation which just pops out of the blue deciding the world needs a 'new' list of the 'Wonders of the world'. And anyway, who decides on whether a monument is a 'Wonder of the world' just based on people voting via sms and the internet? I mean, the sms's literally mean a whopping windfall of cash flow for the telecom operators. And then we have the government amd the celebrities exhorting the people to make sure the Taj gets into the new list. Well, if the government wants it that bad i'm sure they could just pump in government money into the voting seeing how the money ain't showing any improvement in basic facilities this monsoon across the country.
I mean, how can you even decide on such a list just on the face value of votes?

And above all, if people really love the Taj Mahal so much we wouldn't even need to try to get the Taj Mahal onto the list. It would find it's own way there.

Today, 10th June 2007

2007-06-10T23:28:00.001+05:30

Boy! A lot has been happening the last couple of days and even today for that matter!
Mumbai police seem to have found the perfect solution to prevent people (netizens) from spreading hatred through anti-shivaji and anti-thakeray communities online.
Suggestion : BAN ORKUT
Wow! talk about a quick-fix solution! You trying to tell me there's no other way to continue these communities if you ban Orkut??? While we're on the discussion of Orkut by the way, the option of 'anonymous' comments on Orkut should be done away with. I mean, if you ain't brave enough to stand up and say that this is what you feel and this is what you believe in, well... shut up!
Of course, it may not make much of a difference considering that fake profiles are mushrooming all over the place, but then again... it may just be one less option to make blind accusations.
And if you feel a community or profile is offensive, flag it. Like Google said, flag it and they will look into it. Maybe a certain number of people may be required to flag it before they look into it, but then again, you've voiced your opinion.

And lets see... what else do we have? Oh yeah! Lewis Hamilton takes pole position in the Canadian Grand Prix! Damn this guy is fast! Alonso follows and so, McLaren one-two for the start of the race!
Rafael Nadal wins the French Open 2007! He took the 4 set match 6-3, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. His dominating streak over Roger Federer on the slow surface now gives him a 6-1 record in the 7 times they're played on clay. Nadal has become the first man since Bjorn Borg in 1980 to win three successive Roland Garros finals.
In the women's finals Justine Henin beat Ana Ivanovic 6-1, 6-2 to become just the second woman in the post-1968 Open era to win three in a row after Monica Seles in 1990-92.
And last but not the least, the embarrassing Afro-Asia Cup 2007 finally came to an end today with the Asia XI making a clean sweep of the series 3-0.

Just another day in India...

2007-06-07T00:02:00.000+05:30

I'd just posted a day ago on the Gujjar bandh and how it was detrimental to public life, and guess what? Now we've got newspaper reports about Shiv Sena activists attacking 2 cyber cafes because in Orkut there are groups or rather communities denouncing and bad-mouthing Shivaji and their supremo Bal Thakeray.
Firstly, I couldn't be bothered if someone denounced Bal Thakeray. Him and his self-proclaimed moral police, the Shiv Sena, have created more trouble than good. Seriously, you ask me... I think they're responsible for most of the troubles.
Secondly, isn't it fair that if you claim the right to criticise, you should also perform the duty of listening? Like they used to say in our civics class back in std. 8th, 'Rights and Duties are the two sides of the same coin'.
They say freedom of speech is available to all. Is it? As long as you criticise their opponents, it's freedom of speech. Once you get to them, it's slander and against public morality.
And for crying out loud! The 'slander' they are upset about? It's on Orkut!!! Not inside those cybercafes!!!

And just when we started to think that our news channels are devoted to bringing the general public news and information about the state of our nation, WHAM! You have a WHOLE DAY dedicated to understanding public opinion about what effect the change (oh! sorry, isn't it death?) of Smriti Irani a.k.a. Tulsi in Ekta Kapoor's KSBKBT will have.
JEEZ!
IT'S A FREAKING T.V. SERIAL!

Another day, another bandh...

2007-06-05T00:03:00.000+05:30

According to news reports, the Gujjars have finally called off their agitation and the Samiti leaders, led by Col (retd) Kirori Singh Bainsla, regretted the violence and the loss of life during the agitation.
So that's it? What about the loss to people's livelihood caused by the bandh called by them. What about the disruption in the train services and then vandalising of public property on the trains? Burning of buses? Seems to be a quick fix method every time a bandh is called. Stop the public buses, smash the windows and then set it on fire. Who will pay for the destruction of those vehicles?
If you watch closely, everytime a camera focuses on the agitators, they with get a surge of adrenaline, start shouting slogans louder and try and push everyone else away so as to come in full view of the camera recording. Not to mention the youthful exuberance in the protesters, noticeable because everytime a camera focuses on them, they start smiling as if on cue. Frankly speaking, I believe everytime a camera gets in there, they start smashing buses.
Isn't it about time that we start prosecuting them for loss of livelihood, destruction to public property and what not? You want to call a bandh, so be it. But don't force it on us.

O Captain! My Captain!

2007-06-03T15:39:00.000+05:30

This poem was written by Walt Whitman in homage to U.S. President Abraham Lincoln after his assassination in 1865.

O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done;
The ship has weathered every rack, the prize we sought is won;
The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,
While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring.
But O heart! heart! heart!
O the bleeding drops of red!
Where on the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.

O captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;
Rise up! For you the flag is flung, for you the bugle trills:
For you bouquets and ribboned wreaths, for you the shores a-crowding:
For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning.
Here Captain! dear father!
This arm beneath your head;
It is some dream that on the deck,
You've fallen cold and dead.

My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still;
My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will;
The ship is anchor'd safe and sound, its voyage closed and done;
From fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won!
Exult, O shores, and ring, O bells!
But I with mournful tread,
Walk the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.

After the assassination of Israel's Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995, the famous Israeli sonng writer Naomi Shemer translated the poem into Hebrew and composed her own melody, making it a popular song in memorial services.

Rich story behind it. Complete details on the history of the poem and it's usage through the years can be found at Wikipedia.

For me, it was intriguing from the perspective of a seafarer. Quite interesting how I came about it actually. Was chatting with this friend of mine and I happened to ask her for one of her favourite poets. She said Walt Whitman and I just googled it. Voila!

Overconfidence...

2007-06-03T14:19:00.000+05:30

Last evening was one I'm sure I ain't gonna forget in a long long time. Talk about being supremely confident in one's ability to plan out a sequence of events and then actually follow it out without considering the repercussions. Which was odd, because I normally take that into consideration.
Been a while since I'd met some of my friends from the dance classes I used to go to (Used to... well we'll see what can be done about that). We've kept in touch over the phone as and when we possibly could. A little elaboration here... I'd attended classes for two dances. Salsa and Tango. Salsa, I had joined with Lily, and Tango I had joined with Suman. Now over the past few weeks we had been planning on meeting up sometime. Separately. As in, I was in talks with Lily and also in talks with Suman. I know this sounds bad, ... like a two-timing jackass or something of that sort. But then again, we're just friends. So, we're just looking to catch up after a while.
So, all of a sudden yesterday evening I get this call from Lily saying there is this new Amul outlet opened in town and if I was interested in joining her and her sis, Sayali, in checking it out. So I was like, no probs! I'm there! So we planned to meet up at 1830hrs. Just as I was about to leave from home I got a call from, guess who? Suman! For some reason I had a gut feeling when I saw her number that she too would be free in the evening. And guess what! She was getting off from work early and wanted to meet at 1900hrs!!!
Aaaah! Well... how could I say no. I had no idea when I would get to meet them again.
So I'm thinking, this Amul outlet has got to be a small ice-cream shop right? I mean how long could we possibly be there? Half an hour??? So there I go all confident in telling Suman that I would love to meet her and she suggests meeting at the Cafe Coffee Express outlet (which by the way was RIGHT NEXT TO THE AMUL OUTLET!!!).
So off I am... reach the Amul outlet and I'm thinking... 'uh oh, this looks more like a fast food joint.' Met Lily and Sayali, entered the joint and ordered stuff to eat and drink. Again I'm thinking, 'this is definitely not going how I planned'.
No point on bringing it up at the last moment, so I mentioned to Lily that Suman had called and that she was supposed to meet me at 1900hrs... and so, she might join us. Thankfully the two had met at the dance class and so Lily knew who she was. 1900hrs and Suman's call comes through! I step out. Tension writ large on my face. Put up a brave smile and get Suman to join us. Thankfully, everyone gets along well.
Phew! All's well that ends well right? NOPE. Not in my wildest dreams could I have anticipated what was about to hit me next. The three of them gang up to take my case! Literally! I mean, it was unfortunate that I couldn't make it to the Tango finals because I had fallen ill that day. That topic comes up and both Lily and Suman discuss it vividly, much to Sayali's delight and my chagrin! That being not so good enough... they then further gang up to discuss ME. Bit by bit, part by part.
Much to my relief, it was 2000hrs before we even realised it and everyone had to go home! (HALELUJAH! PRAISE THE LORD!)
All smiles, everyone's talking about what a wonderful, lovely evening it's been and how we should meet up again. Me, who was licking my wounds and picking up whatever pride that remained shattered about... had just one reaction to the above suggestion. *TERROR STRICKEN LOOK*

Well, all said and done, it was indeed a lovely evening. Had my leg pulled quite a bit. But then again, how often does a guy get a chance to sit with three pretty girls and get his leg pulled by all of them, whilst simultaneously being showered with enviable attention. ;)

Things just fit?

2007-06-01T23:24:00.000+05:30

We're in two different states.
We've never met.
We've been talking over the phone ever since the last 8 days.
Yet, I feel like I really know this person.
We talk on everything and anything under the sun (or rather, I bring up those not-to-be-discussed topics).

Sometimes, just sometimes, you end up talking to someone you've never met personally and things just fit. You just gel inexplicably.

What is going on in our courts???

2007-05-30T21:37:00.000+05:30

After all that has been said about our Indian judiciary finally getting into the picture and setting the standard for delivering justice to those who deserve it, we now have an interesting expose by NDTV about how the prosecution, the defence and the witness have colluded to let the accused (Sanjeev Nanda)go scot free.
BMW-Hit and Run case expose is supposed to be a statement on the state of the judicial system in India. Well, with the way things are progressing and the prosecution itself going lenient on the accused, things look bleak for any progressive standards we thought were set by our judicial system.

Dance Illusions in Goa

2007-05-28T23:23:00.000+05:30

Finally! Today was the finals of the jive classes conducted by Dance Illusions, Vasco. Couples individually performed and were then followed by performances by the top 5 couples, after which the top 3 performed and the best couple was then picked. Watching them brought about a sense of disappointment at not being able to be in Goa during the jive classes. But it only served to further strengthen my resolve to learn jive before I go back on the ship again.
I had mentioned about Dance Illusions in my previous posts, but only giving it a passing glance. I think I should do it justice as it definitely deserves a lot more than that.
Being one of the few dance schools in Goa to teach contemporary American-style ballroom dances has helped Dance Illusions grow in leaps and bounds in terms of number of couples joining for the various dance styles ranging from salsa (even though that is not a ballroom dance!) to foxtrot to jive to waltz to rhumba and the styles just keep going on and on. I've never been to a dance school before so I have no idea about the 'teaching styles' as they so put it. But what I do know is that the patience and individual attention that the instructors give to the dance students is one that would drive any person, not learning dance here, green with envy.
Dr. Martin and his wife Flossy initially started this dance school, and now they have Shirley and Francis assisting them in their endeavour to help other people pick up dancing. One of the comments made by a student today was that at Dance Illusions, you don't just learn dancing, you also make a lot of friends. And how true! For it's just so casual an atmosphere, that you just can't help but relax and unwind while learning out there.
So, whaddya say? Wanna Dance?

P.S. Foxtrot starts on 8th June!!!

Talk about quick linking!

2007-05-28T23:05:00.000+05:30

I just put up a post today on Election Fever in Goa and a couple of hours later as I was browsing through a few blogs, I found it had already been linked to!!!
Latest from Goa is a blog which I believe to be linking up to posts from various blogs which have just about anything to do with Goa.
Interesting...

Election fever in Goa...

2007-05-28T15:33:00.000+05:30

It's election time out here in Goa and thanks to the Election Commission we don't have the whole area plastered with flags and posters symbolising the various political parties and independents in the fray. At least this way we'll have less garbage to clear out once the elections are done and over with. Just wish the Election Commission had done something about the campaigning vehicles going about in the middle of the afternoon proclaiming the goodness of their ever so honest candidate standing for election. All this when there is a power outage to complete pre-monsoon repairs to the power lines!

It was quite interesting to see the declarations made by various political candidates in the election fray as these were printed in the local dailies. Criminal charges against them were declared like immovable assets,... pending for ages. Educational qualifiactions? Barring a few who had completed their graduation in courses like BCom, some of them were 10th pass, not forgetting to mention a 7th pass. (proud to have cleared that much huh?)

Damn I wish we still had the good old system of voting... paper ballot. Plain and simple. You don't like any of the candidates? Invalid vote. No problemo! Now it's electronic voting... and there ain't a possibility of invalid votes... damn! what I'd give for an option of 'none of the above'. Why not? If I feel none of them are worthy... voila!

Pfizer India CFO exit... something fishy?

2007-05-28T14:58:00.000+05:30

Came across this article in the Economic Times today... about unscrupulous activities forming the base for Pfizer India CFO's (Chief Financial Officer, for the uninitiated) exit from India.
In the article, Dr. Peter Rost has quoted a former Pfizer India employee, Ashok S. Idnani, an ex-deputy manager at Pfizer’s finance division in Mumbai who alleged that Pfizer sold its Hyderabad manufacturing plant in 2004 at a price much lower than the market price, bribed government officials in violation of the MNC’s world-wide policies, and hired a detective agency to spy on unfriendly shareholders. His post also accuses some unnamed Pfizer India officials of being involved in money laundering. Pfizer, of course, denies the allegations.
Makes for quite interesting reading considering that Pfizer India has dismissed the allegations as baseless, and it's top brass in the US seems to be taking these allegations quite seriously.
Then again, the foreign media has claimed that the CFO's departure is just "Pfizer’s desire for a CFO with Wall Street experience" and another analyst claims Pfizer may now want a CFO who is less of a traditional accountant and more of a deal-maker.
Well... let's see what comes out of this all...

Lost, Tipsy, Dreamy, Comprehensive???

2007-05-27T15:26:00.000+05:30

Songs i'm currently listening to:
Avril Lavigne - Girlfriend
Aerosmith - Cryin'
Avril Lavigne - Fall To Pieces

Met this gal on Orkut. Quite the travel-goer that she is... gets a couple of days of leave and off she goes! Chat online once in a while. Spoke over the phone yesterday. Noticed a distinct accent with which she spoke but she dismissed it as her way of talking. Cool.
For the first time in my life i've had someone describe to me how i've sounded to them, in a very elaborate manner. Mostly people just say i'm funny or that I make them laugh or that I listen well. She? well read on...
" Lost, kind-of-tipsy, dreamy (sounds good), and-still-comprehensive, helping to find hidden talents ".
Intriguing.
Been a while since I've seen it rain out here. I missed the rains here last year as I was on the ship during that period. This year... saw the rains for the first time a couple of days ago. It felt ... soft. Smelt ... wet. Looked ... green (Not the rain... the environment!).
Aerosmith is coming to Bangalore and I can't go though I ever so want to. Well, it's not that I can't go. More like I can't make the time to make that trip, what with exams coming up next month. Damn!
Well, got the finals of the jive taking place tomorrow at Dance Illusions. Couldn't join the classes but damn well gonna make it for the final performance.
And above all, once the first step of the exams next month get over... got 2 very important things to pick up on... been losing my touch on writing poetry... haven't written in a long long time. And then there's the brushing up on Spanish. Picked up a couple of books in mumbai. Time I put those books to good use.

Incredible pics...

2007-05-22T21:55:00.000+05:30

After a long long time I actually went blog surfing and came across quite an interesting site... Taurean Trampling

Trust me... this post called Take Care... Watch Your Step
is one heck of a post! Stunner when you look at the pics. I say!

Classic Sea Terms

2007-05-20T21:42:00.000+05:30

Now this is interesting...

CLASSIC SEA TERMS:

Baboon watch - The person standing watch while the rest of the crew is on leave, usually the apprentice.
Bird's nest - tangled rope
Black gang - engine room crew
Blood money - payment to an agent for the recruitment of a seaman
Bubbleheads - ships divers (standard helmets)
Cape Horn fever - the feigned illness of a seaferer
Cat's paw - a small puff that ruffles the surface of the water
Deadeye watch - 4 am to 8 am watch
Dead horse - sailor's debt for advance wages
Dogs running before their master - the heavy swell in advance of the hurricane
Dutch courage - fearlessness brought on by strong drink
Dying man's dinner - food quickly prepare during an emergency
Fourth class liberty - watching the shore when confined to the ship
Fuel fever - fuel oil in short supply
Galley news - gossip and rumor
Graveyard watch - 12 - 4 am
Granny knot - failed, un-seamanlike attempt at a square knot
Half seas over - just short of being drunk
High pressure hat - an officer's cap
Hot bunk - a bunk used successively by more than one sailor
Irish hurricane - a flat calm
Livina gale - a severe storm
Paper jack - a licensed captain seen to be incompetent
Pig boat - a submarine
Rope -Yarn Sunday - an afternoon off devoted to washing and sewing clothes
Sailor's blessing - a curse
Seaman's disgrace - a fouled anchor
Soup jockey - Ships officers steward

got some more coming up later...

Do we really keep in touch?

2007-05-19T23:58:00.000+05:30

I was talking to this friend of mine last evening and we started off on a topic I've had with many many other friends of mine. How everybody has gotten so engrossed in their work that keeping in touch with other people has become a luxury rather than a necessity. How when you meet someone after a long time you're so happy to have met that person, but you couldn't have taken the time off to give that person a call to see how she/he was doing earlier.
When I was on the ship, I went through this phase wherein I would take a walk on the deck late in the evening and look around the ship. Except on the exceptionally rare cases wherein the ship was coasting, there used to be water all around. And all I could think of was "what on earth am I doing out here?" If I wanted to pick up the phone to call a buddy, I'd have to get a phone card from the 2nd officer. Then again, the phone card would be 20$ for just 10 minutes! I'm not a man of few words! I can't say hi in 3 minutes! Gimme a phone and leave me to talk and listen on it for hours and hours together. That's my idea of a phone conversation. I tell you what's happening in my life and you tell me about yours. My joys and tears and yours too. But then again that's just me.
Luckily for me it didn't take long to focus on work. Got back home and I've had loads of time to spend with other people. But then again they need to be free as well.

If I didn't know better, I'd say I was rambling incoherently just now. I was actually supposed to sit and write a port on Shopping Habits of Women. Actually based on a friend of mine who actually stunned me with what she picked up in a day. Somehow, my mind seems preoccupied. And though I've been calling up people I want to, still this conversation held last evening disturbed my mind enough to keep it up and running.
0055 hours now... I should be hitting the sack. Hitting the sack... came up with that sometime during school. Read it in a book.
Talking about books... I got exams next month. And other than the academic books ... me also reading Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner.

Home sweet home?

2007-05-15T23:28:00.001+05:30

0745 hrs. That's the time I stepped into my house today morning after weeks of suffering (?) in far-away mumbai. If, you can call visits to the malls, movie theatres, shopping and art galleries suffering that is.
Once the courses in good ol' T.S. Rehaman were done and over with, I had decided to report to my company for some documentation work to be completed. Now, I'm in mumbai on a friday evening and I was planning to visit the company only on monday. No problemo! Call up a gool ol' pal in mumbai and back to our favourite haunt INORBIT, Malad! I loved visiting Marine Drive on my previous visits to mumbai, but with the construction work on there I didn't think it would be a nice place for now. Caught up with SPIDEY 3 that day. Just released the previous day so was actually surprised to get tickets. Fun.
Weekend blew by and got my company work done on monday itself. That's when news percolates in that the booking dates for the june exams have been declared and they start on thursday. Great. Now I need to wait till thursday? No problem! Call up other friends and make plans to meet up. For some reason... a seafarer's 'exploits' on international shores make for very good conversation (that being said, it is to be understood that this happens when there's NOTHING else to talk about). Define 'exploits'? To some, it has a sexual inuendo. To others, just plain sightseeing and shopping on international shores.
All said and done... taking a walk about the area you live in can reveal quite a bit. I learnt that about CST a few years ago when I used to go for walks all day long. Stumbled upon cool musuems, galleries and what not. I also tend to catch up on some movies if I find an interesting one on, even if I'm alone. Went for Mr. Bean's Holiday. Lovable humour. You gotta love the movie. And 2 days ago, I caught this french movie at Sterling, Paris Je T'aime (Paris I love you??? dunno) 20 different love stories set in Paris and shot by 20 different directors. Some of the stories were FANTASTIC. yeah, it was in french, but it had subtitles and I loved it. Of course, a couple of them I found a little odd. One of them being the love story between 2 vampires (?). But overall, classic piece.
Before that of course was the booking for the exams which took 2 whole days... I won't comment more. Last thing I need is for one of the staff to be blog savvy and stumble upon my ramblings... goodness me! That would be the end of my sailing... or rather a long delay to my sailing(!).
All done. Got the bus. Luxury bus. Rs. 550! A volvo was going for Rs. 1300! Cramped ourselves into the bus and got here. Stiff knees not withstanding, a decent journey.
And tomorrow, I shall open a book. Tomorrow I shall begin to expedite my studies...
uhhh don't think that last line made sense... basic point... I GOTTA STUDY.

Of bad days, and even worse

2007-05-04T20:32:00.000+05:30

Today was the final day in the PSC&RB course or rather the Proficiency in Safety Craft & Rescue Boat course. It's quite an interesting course in that you got to know about the handling and launching of life saving appliances on the ship. But these 2 guys lecturing at the course? No........ how can you have fun! The class has to be made as boring as possible and so they will drone on and on and on and every doubt will be countered with "Rules are framed by SOLAS! How can you challenge authority!" Sheesh! All said and done, I'm finally out of T.S. Rehaman and boy does it feel good to be out of there! Freedom seems to have attained a new meaning..
So, we're leaving from this place ... 5 of us. 2 of us from Goa, one from Thane and 2 others from Ludhiana. We finally get this 'extended' rickshaw, i don't know what you call it... it's this rickshaw with increased seating capacity. He picks up other people and we're off to this designated place. Mid-way through the journey he tells us he's bringing us to this other junction where the buses start from and we will get it empty so as to facilitate easier transport of our luggage (which i must admit was quite a bit). We refused as we wanted to go to the original place. Finally he stops at this new place which he suggested and tells us the bus is ahead. Now the place we wanted to go to was further ahead so we refused to give the pre-decided fare unless he took us there. We gave him a reduced fare (which was quite a bit) for taking us to this location. He refuses and turns the rick around (we had already disembarked). He suddenly comes at us yelling and wanting the entire fare. The co-passenger sitting with him up front insists we pay the entire fare. A minor scuffle ensues after a few minutes of finger pointing and verbal abuses. In the ensuing melee, which 3 of us were trying to defuse, the co-passenger get's a 'minor tap' on his face from a hand which was deflected by someone. He actually turns around picks up a rock and comes at us. Or rather at me considering that I was standing in front of him. I couldn't even believe this guy would want to do something incomprehensibly stupid as that considering that there were 5 of us and there were just 2 of them. If we had to let it go into a full blown fight, those 2 didn't stand a chance. Asked him to drop it. Best part was the paan-walla who was shouting at us to go somewhere else coz this whole incident unfolded in front of his shop! Better sense prevailed and we told him to take the money and get lost. The guy from Thane vehemently objects to this but we insisted. One reason being that we were 'their' home ground. Any trouble which would get the cops would be to their advantage. And all this for an additional Rs. 5 per head... forget it. Heard of too many scuffles between the locals and the outsiders involving cops with proved detrimental for the outsiders. We're done with our courses. We're leaving. We're outta there!
Got the train after taking a bus to the wrong stop and getting a taxi to the right station (Confusion reigns supreme!).
Met this guy in the train... Mukesh. Graphic designer, DTP editing for Times Of India rather now for the Economic Times. Exchanged info on each other's professions. He was quite interested in knowing about the sea life (who wouldn't like hearing about it the first time? new lands, travel, cultures...).
Finally got to the guesthouse. Can't wait to get back to the room. How inviting seems a bed at the end of such a day!

Of Fire fighting, first aid and chicken biryani!

2007-04-26T20:45:00.000+05:30

Fire fighting in the mock-up for the last couple of days... it's nice. Complete setup, enclosed decks... don your breathing apparatus, get in, fight the fire, get the injured person (dummy) out and then get out. Today, interestingly, we had a first aid lecture by the same medical officer who conducted the comprehensive first aid course for us last week. This guy is a complete unique package in the sense that he will bring a movie scene as an example of a demostration of first aid or.. he'll make up a situation of you and your girlfriend... and put up a first aid scenario.
Today during the class, he's discussing about asphyxiation. So he brings about a scenario wherein you've just signed off the ship and you've landed in India. First call you make is to your girlfriend to tell her you're back and that you want to meet her and that you would like to meet her for dinner. Plans made... you go home. Now you freshen up... get ready for your night out. You wait for her outside the restaurant. She arrives on time and you DRAG her inside. (I'm just quoting the guy!) You sit and the table across her and the only thing in between you two is the table which you wish would disappear. You order for two plates of chicken biryani. You both are engrossed in talking. You tell her about your sea life. She listens with eyes wide open. Your chicken biryani arrives.You are not interested in the chicken in your plate. You are more interested in the 'chicken' across you. You keep talking. You keep eating. You do two things together and you choke on your food. You start gasping for breath. If your girlfriend knows first aid, good for your future. If she doesn't, good for her future!

Work ethics...

2007-04-24T20:50:00.000+05:30

Advanced Fire Fighting is the course i'm currently attending this week...
Today a lecture was taken by one of the Chief Engineer's out here... just talking about the safety attitude that Indian seafarers have towards work on board. Supposedly a study carried out by an international organisation (cannot be named for reasons best known to him), people all over believe in God which is good for one's peace of mind. But Indians don't believe in God, rather they DEPEND on God. Indians supposedly have this belief that if they have to die then they can die even in their sleep and that if they aren't supposed to die then even if a crane falls upon them, they will come out unscathed! It even happens for exams.
Another affliction affecting our fellow Indian seafarers is ego, or so he claims. When a person flunks all his papers he says "naseeb kharab tha" or rather "wasn't in my destiny". On the other hand, when a person clears his papers... "damn I was good! studied so hard!"
He even went on to describe the different types of people present in the workforce and how they are classified.
--> I am ok, you are ok
--> I am ok, you are not ok
--> I am not ok, you are ok
--> I am not ok, you are not ok
The Indian workforce commonly falls in the 2nd classification.
Lecture over. Frankly speaking, he was a good orator and had a way with words. But sorry to say the class, well what the heck, I didn't agree on most of his points. People change and mentalities do change as well. Not everyone comes into this field with a negative mentality. Then again, you do come across your share of morons.
All in all, you see the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Hmmm movie mood now. Damn Sri Lanka - New Zealand semifinal WC match is on now and i'm willing to bet ALL the TV's in the hostel will be occuppied.
Well, hopefully the payphone will be free... 'phone a friend' is always available out here. For a price of course!

My weekend jump to Goa and back...

2007-04-23T20:36:00.000+05:30

Well, well... what a weekend! Had my heart pounding the last couple of days when I couldn't find a couple of my certificates with me. had to make a short yet highly necessary trip back to Goa in order to get them. And so, on saturday, 21st April 2007, at 1400hrs, I left the institute along with Keegan and Joel. The two of them had to go to Mazgaon Dock. So some reason the ferry wasn't available that day and so we waited for the local State Transport bus. An hour into waiting for the bus, we hear this loud marriage music from behind us and we watched as a marriage procession walked by us. The band had 4 people playing the drums and 1 guy playing the keyboard. Nice. The groom proudly walked by as everyone waited in the sweltering heat to board the buses lined up for them. For some reason they all seemed to be waiting for someone. Then all of a sudden there was another band playing behind us and we saw this group of ladies energetically jumping about and so we assumed the bride was coming. But lo and behold! Another groom! Now, maybe it was the heat or maybe it was just the frustration at not getting a bus for so long but at that moment... we just looked at each other and went "holy shit! a gay wedding???" Of course, we did look at it later and figure out that it was 2 different weddings but at that moment... well lets just say it happened in the 'heat' of the moment.
Got the State Transport bus another 45 minutes later and we ended up outside the Panvel bus station. Grabbed a rickshaw and got to Panvel railway station where there was this incredibly huge snake-like queue. Well, to make a long story short we finally got the tickets after about 30 minutes in the queue and got a train within no time (thank god for high frequency of trains!) These guys get off at Mazgaon Dock and poor lil me travels further on to C.S.T. where I finally get a bus ticket at 1830 hrs for a 1900hrs bus. Needless to say, since the tickets were last minute bookings I managed to get an incredibly cramped bus with NO leg room (Isn't that a common occurrence now?). Reached Panjim, Goa by 0845 hrs and home by 1000 hrs.
Certificates! Found them and peace of mind has been achieved! Well, now that I'm back in Goa and have a few hours to myself I decide to get a haircut that's pretty much been overdue for a while. All done, it was then time to leave at 1930 hrs in order to catch the 2100 hrs bus from Panjim back to this institute!!!
Got the bus and informed the driver I needed to get off at Belapur. He said the bus doesn't pass that side. So I was like okkkk, Panvel would be nice. He looks at me like I'm some weirdo and says that the best he could do for me was the by-pass junction. I had absolutely no idea what that was, but for reasons beyond my comprehension (or maybe coz of the fact that I was just plain tired) I said ok. Bus moves on to Mapusa where I get to witness a pretty incredible fight wherein the passengers (or rather would-be passengers) are thrashing up the owner or rather operators of a bus. Situation calms down and we finally move on.
At 0630 hrs I get a wake up call from my fellow passenger who informs me were at "the junction". I'm unceremoniously dumped from the bus and I have absolutely NO idea where I am! More careful examination of the surroundings reveal a board indication this is the Pune-Mumbai bypass highway which goes under the flyover (If that means anything to anybody!). Wait there for about 5 minutes trying to figure out my next move when incredibly enough there's a State Transport bus moving towards me with a signboard in hindi (thank god I paid attention to studying the language back in school!) which indicated it was going to Belapur Station! Grabbed it... reached the station and at 0745 hrs there was a local bus from the institute which used to come there to pick up people wanting to go to T.S. Rehman.
Man that was some travelling over 43 hours!

Finals come and go... and I'm not around...

2007-04-19T20:17:00.000+05:30

man! tumultuous past few days... tango finals came and went... and I never made it to the hall on the final day. Let's see, practices were on full swing... 3 days in a row... we worked hard on our dance. On the day of the finals... me and my partner met outside in the morning... discussed the sequence properly.. went to the cybercafe to check out a dance video on the song we were supposed to dance on... i forgot the name of the song, it's the tango dance sequence from 'Scent of a woman'. She was like completely excited about the song and all... and so we decided to meet a couple of hours earlier in the evening and have a final practice before the final dance.
I went home, felt a little tired and lay down and BAM! all of a sudden I'm burning up with this fever and a headache banging around my head like a jackhammer! I decide to give it sometime and do a recheck on my health by 1600 hours. 1600hours and i'm no good. Called her up and said I wouldn't be able to make it. She was upset. I could feel it in her voice. She kept saying it was ok and that I should just make sure I get better soon. I felt real bad about letting her down... but I could barely talk by then... had to cut the call.
In the end... we spoke a few days later... no hard feelings. She was upset about not being able to perform but yeah... nothing that could have been done.
Jive has started since then... She joined it.. she's got another partner since i cannot go for jive. Me is currently in mumbai doing a few courses which would take me about 3 weeks. By the time I get back jive will be almost over. She was a lil mad at me for not coming for jive. But yeah... things have worked out fine.
Fine for her... jive is fun. For me? BORED TO DEATH! THIS PLACE IS A HELLHOLE! Cellphone range is minimal.... nothing to do. Classes are BORING! And today is just my second day! SAD... looks like a long long 3 weeks ahead.
Oh yeah, hate all this nonsense going on about culture being attacked by the actions of Richard Gere and Shilpa Shetty. Kudos to Shilpa Shetty for coming out the way she did and taking on the opposition. Loved her style.

Aaaah... what a weekend!

2007-04-11T22:26:00.000+05:30

Busy busy busy... back from an Easter-fun-filled-weekend at Bangalore! Man! was it fun or was it fun! Caught up with a few cousins who had come down from UK... one of whom I don't remember ever seeing before... while the other two... lets just say I last saw them over a decade ago.
Also finally managed to catch up with some of my pals who are working in Bangalore... been 2 years since I last caught a glimpse of them. Damn it was fun!
Then again I've noticed myself tending to boil over quite easily these days when I get pissed off with someone. A rickshaw driver got the brunt of my verbal volleys when he decided to act smart on charging the fare... and then today.. this smart aleck on a scooter waits till I come near a junction on the road to decide that he wants to cross the road at that moment. Swerved and avoided him but he decides that he was correct and asks me if i'm gone mad (in konkani of course). That did it for me. I'm on the main road, that chap was on a side lane... he has to check the traffic before crossing... and he has the audacity to ask me if i'm gone mad? Gave him a good dose... and quite loudly too I might add coz I had stopped a few metres away from him. Damn was I furious! I mean I found it absolutely incredulous that this guy had the nerve to stop and accuse me, when he didn't check the traffic and just blindly rode across the road.
Dance finals for Tango tomorrow. Suman's claiming she's nervous. I am too. I mean I was nervous for salsa but then again for salsa I could do any step and Lily could follow by my hand signals. Here... We haven't got hand signals... we literally talk and tell each other what steps we're doing next. We haven't got the sequence in order!!! Well it's gonna be a long night tonight. Sit, sequence the steps... oh yeah, most important, CHOOSE A SONG.
And lemme see... what's been pissing me off today... oh yeah... before the euphoria of the courts sentencing a serving politician to jail for breaking the seals on sealed shops in Delhi could even sink in... now we have a social activist coming to the forefront to file a case against Sachin Tendulkar for cutting a cake in the shape and colour of the Indian flag ???
Damn! Don't people have anything better to do? So what if he cut a cake in the shape and colour of the Indian flag??? You call that disrespecting the Tricolour? PUHLEEZ! Go save your protests for the innumerable tricolour flags that are thrown away and trodden upon after the end of EVERY Republic Day and Independence Day event. In that case... we need to file cases against every sports fan who puts the tricolour on their cheek coz they haven't put the chakra on the flag and hence have desecrated it (p.s. for the uninitiated, note the sarcasm) Desecrating the National flag... I still find it offensive that we can't put the image of the national flag where we desire... I believe the sports players (and i'm not talking about just cricketers) had to ask for permission to put the national flag on their helmets and even after that they were denied the opportunity to do so. What a load of crap! It's funny the system even entertains such cases.

What's with me?

2007-03-29T23:24:00.000+05:30

BLANK MIND...

LOST IN THOUGHTS (think I just contradicted myself)...

INCOGNITO...

This is how I've been since last evening. Hope things turn out ok for her. I'm actually sitting and thinking why it should affect me coz I barely know her. 5/6 dance classes with her. I tried calling her today to find out how she's doing. She didn't take the call.

Had dance class yesterday. She didn't turn up. That's when her pal told me what happened. She messaged me immediately after that. I don't know if she will come for tomorrow's class. Seems very unlikely. I don't feel like going tomorrow. Felt... I dunno what I felt during yesterday's class. But it wasn't pleasant.

I'm gonna go to bed. Just hope I get better sleep than last night.

Last weekend...

2007-03-22T22:29:00.000+05:30

hmmmm... an extended weekend after long... trip to Bangalore... friends I've not seen for the last 2 years or even more! phew! memories galore!
Left for Bangalore on friday afternoon and got back by monday afternoon. Was in Bangalore during the Iron Maiden concert and DIDN'T go for it. Didn't wanna spend my time out there nursing a headache. Saw some of my engineering seniors after about 5 years! sheesh! Reunion or what! Oh! I remembered the name of only ONE of the seniors! Everyone else was a familiar face.
End of it all, spent an hour or so catching up on what's been happening with one of my closest pals. Been so long... way too long. The funny part was... even though we never met for the last 2 yrs and 3 months (so I'm obsessing... sue me!) the on-off phone convo once in a while never ever left either of us with a feeling that we don't have anything to talk on or it's been so long what do I talk about.
To be frank, I think i'm rambling now. I've been wanting to blog about my trip to Bangalore for a while... now that I am blogging about it, I'm rambling.

My pals in Bangalore are learning Salsa and Jive. (sob! i'm gona miss jive classes next month!!!)
By the way, I've started off with Tango classes... it's fun! Different with a completely different style. And i'm lovin' it! Aaaahh... my partner is a pretty sweet gal who's a pretty good dancer when she picks up the steps! :) Best of all... we're enjoying the dance. So, if we don't get it right... who cares right? WRONG! The instructor is gonna stand right behind you and go ... "exactly what do you think you are doing?" So... moral? GET THE STEPS RIGHT!

SALSAAAAAAAAAAA

2007-03-12T22:44:00.000+05:30

SALSAAAAAAAAAAAA
well finished off with a month of Salsa with Dance Illusions on 08th March '07. Had a final dance on the last day... all the couples danced on a song each. Was a blast! My turn and both Lily and me were nervous. Shit, I'd danced before larger crowds in my college days but that was all freestyle and you had the lights blazing away at your eyes so there was no way you could see the audience. Here, every turn I took I could look at the audience!!!
Ok, ok... I'm blabbering away but lemme see if I can get it down to the exact sequence of events.
FLASHBACK:
Late late night of 07th March: Call up ol' buddy ol' pal Mandar! "Dude! Suggest a song to dance to!" He comes up with a couple of great songs and even some hindi songs which would have been lovely except for the fact that I just didn't have time to practice with my partner! Checked out some dance videos online. Man! They're good!
Morning of 08th March: Attending classes. Lecturer is talking on and on about some multi-stage air compressors and I'm sweating away coz I have no idea what song I'm gonna be dancing to!!!
Evening of 08th March: Rush home! Grab the cd! Play songs! Naah too slow! This one's too fast!
Where's the beat in this one??? YEAH THIS ONE! Ok try this step.. and this one.. yeah! this goes great! Message Lily about the song. She said we needed to practice at least once! DUH!
08th March, 1710 hrs: Get a call from Lily and she's gonna be home by 1900hrs. We have to practice! Ok. 1845hrs I make a move to town to find half the roads blocked coz of the floats!!!
Oh crap! Pick her up. We can't practice at her place coz her sis has exams coming up. We have to go back to my place. Oh! I must add here, she looked lovely in a knee length evening dress. ABSOLUTELY! So there we go all the way back to my home. Play the song and do a couple of steps to get the intro sequence out of the way. Rest of the song is a breeze as it's just me who has to lead her and she knows the signals, and so knows exactly what to do. Grab her and rush back to the hall. Walk in and everyone (well almost everyone) is out there.
BACK TO REALITY:
We dance... and after we start with a small fumble initially, it doesn't feel that bad or scary. We're enjoying the song, enjoying the dance... it's FUN!
Everyone dances out their fears... open floor at the end and smart ass me tries out a couple of freestyle moves. Stop. Look around. People standing in a circle around me. Me right in the middle. UH OH. "awesome! do it again!!!" "what?" "that move you just did! do it again!" " uh.. ok" So yeah, had another 15 minutes of fame.
End of the day, had a nice pic of the salsa group taken with the Dance Illusions banner.
Guess what? Tango is starting up next!!! Lily has got exams coming up and damn I need to get a dance partner for this dance now!

Dance away to glory!

2007-02-07T22:45:00.000+05:30

First dance class today. Salsa. Been wanting to join for over a year... but then I was in a hostel. After that I was on the ship. Now i'm back and I don't intend letting this slip away from me. Reached early... few people around. Need to catch up with a gal to get a partner for the dance. Well, one of my friends had come with an additional pal and he introduced us... and voila! dance partners! Well, today being the first day, solo steps were the call of the day. Interesting... varied the beat of the music... Really really enjoyed it. Been eons since I last danced. This felt heavenly. Looking forward to Friday. Really really looking forward to it.
1,2,3,..5,6,7...
Salsa - espanol for sauce... so he said... dance is saucy... so he said.
Fridayyyyyyyyy.......

2007-02-05T22:50:00.000+05:30

What my current state of mind is? Can be summed up aptly in this song which used to run through my mind very often when I was on the ship...

IRIS - GOO GOO DOLLS

And I'd give up forever to touch you
Cause I know that you feel me somehow
You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be
And I don't want to go home right now

And all I can taste is this moment
And all I can breathe is your life
Cause sooner or later it's over
I just don't want to miss you tonight

And I don't want the world to see me
Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am

And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming
Or the moment of truth in your lies
When everything seems like the movies
Yeah you bleed just to know your alive

And I don't want the world to see me
Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am

I don't want the world to see me
Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am

I just want you to know who I am
I just want you to know who I am
I just want you to know who I am
I just want you to know who I am

What's in a name? well... if you're travelling...

2007-01-18T21:56:00.000+05:30

What could possibly happen to you when to alphabets of your name are interchanged? Especially when it is in an international air ticket? Nothing, so I thought. Well, I still clarified it with the company I worked for. No problem so they said. Just inform them it was a typo. Aaah. A typo. Sure.

The day: 02nd April 2006
Time: 2130hrs
Location: Mumbai C.S.I. Airport
Problem: Name as on passport- Moraes Nihal Peter
Name as on air ticket- Moares Nihal Peter
Immigration - "your name is different"
"ummm well the company committed a typo when they were booking my tickets"
"typo?"
"they accidentally misspelt my name"
"oh, did they?"
What followed was a grilling on what was the purpose of my travel, whether I was on my way to Toronto, USA(?, uhh wasn't it supposed to be Toronto, Canada? I wasn't gonna correct him under the circumstances though) Of course I wasn't going there. I had to go to Taranto, Italy to board my ship. Few more minutes of questioning. And I was through! Phew! Just this little trouble so I thought. How mistaken I was to be proved...
Mumbai to Charles De Gaulle, France. At France, immigration check. "Excuse me sir, there seems to be a difference of names on the ticket and the passport" hmmmm... little while later after an explanation on what happened and the purpose of my travel and where I was gonna board my ship, I was allowed to pass through.
France to Rome. At Rome, "Sir, your name...." Jeez. Again.
Rome to Brindisi, Italy. Brindisi, yeah here too. Difference in names. "Sir can you open your luggage please?" Grrrrrrrrrrreat.
Cab drive from Brindisi to Taranto. All over right? Naaaaaah. Immigration police at the port. "Excuse me sir, you flew in here with this name on the tickets?" Aaaaaargh!
Ok ok. All done and over with. No more problems with the name right???
Not so fast buddy... Ship's crew list. "Excuse me Captain, I believe there is an error with the way my name is spelt on the crew list." "huh? How ? I put the name the company sent me!"
Grrrrrr.......

Around the world in 8 1/2 months...

2006-12-27T16:30:00.000+05:30

Well... not exactly around the world but touched a few continents except Australia and Antartica (they say there's no way I can get to Antartica unless I join an expedition to the ice shelf!)
Long long time... funny I didn't miss anything out here like I thought I would. Thought I'd miss blogging and chatting and getting online and stuff. Got there and there's no time do anything other than work, eat, talk about women, watch movies and sleep (definitely in that order!!!!). Seems like talking about women from different countries figures quite high on the list of most seafarers I've met. I must admit though that I've met VERY FEW seafarers (only about a couple hundred!)
hmmm countries I've managed to get a glimpse of from flights to sailing and flights again... a brief list....

sign-on: flights--> Mumbai-France-Rome-Italy
sailing--> Italy (Taranto) - U.S. (Norfolk) - Italy (Taranto) - Brazil (Tubarao) - Libya (Misurata) - Brazil (Tubarao) - Bulgaria (Burgas) - Brazil (Sepetiba) - China (Huangdao) - Indonesia (North Pulao Laut) - Netherland (Amsterdam)
sign-off: flights--> Amsterdam-Zurich-Dubai-Kolkatta-Mumbai

well... not much out there... not like I got to spend a whale of a time ashore, but yeah, did get a decent time at every port but Libya. Restrictions there made sure we didn't step on the berth at all. Well, almost almost all of "we" that is.

Feels funny when you're back. All your friends wanna catch up where you've been and you wanna find out what you've missed out on the last few months you've been away. But somehow when the conversation is on you seem to drift a bit... stuff like that NEVER happened before. But now things that used to seem interesting to talk about earlier are now just "ok... hmmm... i see..." you know, so-so. Not like this is the situation everytime... but it does happen more often than not.

Left to join ths ship on the night of 2nd April 2006 and got back on 19th Dec 2006. Finally hit home on 21st Dec 2006. (just hit home EXACTLY on the morning of my b'day, nice huh?) 24th Dec and I'm in Bangalore and 25th Dec evening I'm in Thiruvananthapuram. Travel hungry ain't I???

Looks like I'll have quite some updating to do as and when I get time... getting back to Goa only on 04th Jan 2007. So... if not before, until then!

Cheerio!

2006-03-29T23:57:00.000+05:30

This one was a dream...

I saw her standing there outside the cafe,
Waiting for someone, so it seemed,
Walk a distance and come back,
Every few minutes or so, she would.
For someone who dressed so simple
So stunning she had her looks
You'd hear the leaves rustle as the wind blew by
But also unmistakenable was the sound of her anklets
You'd see the lights of vehicles as dusk drew close
But more noticeable were the lights dancing in her soft brown eyes
Then, all of a sudden, her friends came over
Her laughter seemed to drown all sound around
She glanced towards me and she smiled
Then just as quickly as they came, they left.

2006-03-29T23:48:00.000+05:30

This one is an inspiration from a Rabindranath Tagore poem... I read his poem and somehow felt about penning this down...

When she steps out alone at night,
The birds do not sing, the wind does not stir,
It is her own anklets that grow loud at every step.

When I sit by the side and listen for her steps,
The leaves do not rustle, the crickets do not chirp,
It is my own heart that beats wildly - I do not know how to quieten it.

I sit there long, anxious for a glimpse,
The shadows do not move, the lamps do not flicker,
It is only me that is restless, the anticipation not leaving me still.

At last! She appears, walking down the street,
The birds, they sing; the wind blows along,
The leaves, they rustle; the crickets chirp away,
The shadows, they dance; the lamps flickering away,
The whole world seems to have come alive,
As my heart beats wilder still.

Togetherness

2006-03-29T23:46:00.000+05:30

Although I am so very tired,
She comforts me,
Listening to my rambling words,
She seems to understand,
And resting her head,
Gently upon my shoulder,
I forget about the world.

It hurts...

2006-03-29T23:41:00.000+05:30

It hurts to let go of someone you love
Maybe it'll be better, then again who knows
You feel so lonely and your days so blue
But isn't it better that to yourself you are true?
Your heart's in pieces and eyes full of tears
But you'll always have your memories to last through the years.

These memories...

2006-03-29T23:34:00.000+05:30

These memories do remain with me,
The nights, music and times that were,
So peaceful and calm they now seem to be,
Oh girl! how I wish you were here by me.
Never have I danced with anyone like thee,
How could I, for there is but only one you,
But sometimes my mind is couded with choices for my future,
And I have but one fear, will I lose thee?
Nay! I think aloud, my heart binds me too strongly,
Go where I may, remember you I shall,
So I go to bed tonight bidding for a peaceful sleep,
Tomorrow again is a new day and they will come again, these thoughts so deep.

Not yet gone

2006-03-29T23:25:00.000+05:30

Well... postponed my trip to mumbai. Flying to mumbai tomorrow afternoon. Dad wanted to come with me to mumbai. Well... it hasn't sunk in as yet. Not the fact that i'm leaving to join the ship. The fact that I wont be in touch with people for close to 9 months (unless of course there's email on the ship... a call here and there from shore when I get shore leave.. yeah of course. But not the usual contact).
One guy's already back within 2 weeks of joining the ship. Dont know the reasons that made him quit. But he's supposed to be leaving the line for good and moving into software. I don't understand his logic. Waste one year and lil close to 2.5 lakhs on the training and then say "NO THANK YOU"????

Leavin soon....

2006-03-27T23:08:00.000+05:30

Got my call today....
Leaving for Mumbai the dayafter.
Flying out to Italy on the 1st of April.
I know what day it is. And no it's not a prank. My boss wasn't laughing when I asked him.
Ship name: Luciana Della Gatta
Type: Gearless Bulk Carrier
Which port? No idea. Will receive details when I reach the office in Mumbai.
Well, hope to blog soon again. Maybe tomorrow. If not tomorrow, maybe before I leave. If not... worst scenario will have me blogging on Jan-Feb 2007.
My Id, Diwali, Christmas, Birthday and New year is on the ship. Fun times? Hope so.
GODSPEED

Man On Fire

2006-03-27T00:16:00.000+05:30

Just came off watching "Man On Fire" starring Denzel Washington which was being shown on Star Movies.
Liked it a lot.
A few bizarre twists but nothing a little action couldn't hold together.
The end... what remains of the family is reunited... bollywood ishtyle???
Dunno.
Wouldn't say that.
I know I liked it.
THE END.

150 hits!!!!!!!

2006-03-26T01:18:00.000+05:30

Ok... don't get over excited Nihal... just as few visits... 150 to be precise... and about 267 page views... 150 HITS!!!!!!!!!
ok I ain't over excited... just excited...

Words to live by...

2006-03-26T01:06:00.000+05:30

I'm old fashioned. I like to engage my mind before my mouth.

Wheeeeeeee wheelie!!!!

2006-03-24T23:02:00.000+05:30

Well what can I say... was bored sitting at home in da evening... stepped out for a casual ride on da bike. Took a scenic route by the sea.
Met some of the IMS (my maritime alma mater!) guys jogging on the route. Halfway through, I ran out of fuel (trust me not to check the fuel left even though it's in reserve!!!) Couple more of the IMS guys passing by suggested using the choke to try and push off to the nearest petrol bunker.
Used the choke... throttled the accelerator quite a bit. Changed gear and dropped clutch. Unfortunately with the choke on and the accelerator throttled almost all the way... the engine rpm was waaaaaaay too high.
Bike went on a wheelie with me on it and landed with me half over the bike and just waiting to make contact with Mother Earth. Errr... did I say Mother Earth? Sorry I meant our dear ol' roads.
Bruised my knee, few scrapes and bruises here and there. Made contact with the sideview mirror too on my chest... leaving quite an indeligible mark on my tshirt but quite a deligible mark on my skin. (sob!)
All in all... NO broken bones (thank god! dont need any of that with the possibility of having to board my first ship probably next week!). Just a few scrapes and bruises and a bruised ego!

Flying zone on da roads???

2006-03-22T20:46:00.000+05:30

Signboard OUTSIDE Goa Airport on the road to the local beaches of Hollant and Bogmalo.

Rahul Dravid is NOT a role model... just entertainment!

2006-03-21T23:50:00.000+05:30

Been wanting to blog for a few days now.... time has conspired against me. On friday night I came across an online article in while a political leader addressing a youth rally spoke about how Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly were NOT role models and were just "sources of entertainment". He went on to add that during the freedon struggle the primary kids knew the names of freedom fighters while today's youth dont know even that. That wound me up real good. I wanted to come online and take this guy apart limb to limb for EVERY word in his article. I found his talk to be sad, sorry and not worthy of even printing out. Unfortunately blogspot was undergoing some maintenance or had a server in trouble coz I was denied access to my blog and it went on for over 90 minutes. So then I decide to post it over the weekend. Do I? No. Why? The internet account conks out and keeps putting up a message "invalid unsername and/or password". Weekend right? Can't get out to get the account up and running. Yesterday I was busy... so here I am today with the account all up and running. The article which was on rediff is not available right now. I have tried looking through the archives... looks like I might have to look a little harder coz I can't seem to find it. What was the politician's problem defies logic to the core. I f one were to look at Rahul Dravid... to me he would come across as a perfect role model as one who is dedicated, disciplined and a person who is not averse to out-of-the-box thinking whilst making sure every option has been explored. To a person like that... we have politicians who, by the way have been ever so highly presentable as role models (note the ever so extra coating of syrupy sarcasm), convey their displeasure over the "entertainment" people being made role models. This politician is talking about patriotism when his party leaders, a year or 2 ago, were on a stage singing the National Anthem, and THEY FORGOT THE WORDS! The media following the event had to sing along with them to avoid the embarassment. THEY TALK OF PATRIOTISM. Why dont they just shut up and do some GOOD developmental work for a change?????

What Type Of Weather Are You?

2006-03-17T15:11:00.000+05:30

You Are Lightning

Beautiful yet dangerous
People will stop and watch you when you appear
Even though you're capable of random violence
You are best known for: your power
Your dominant state: performing

What Type of Weather Are You?

Nursery rhyme

2006-03-17T00:38:00.000+05:30

Saw this on a picture on a person's profile on Hi5...

You WILL Love Me ...
Roses are red;
Bullets are lead;
Take me back now;
Or get shot in the head!!!

ok ok maybe it was a lil crude or maybe it was black humour... but the first time I read it I did smile.

Weekend workout?

2006-03-13T22:27:00.000+05:30

well well, what a weekend! Seminars! eatouts! back-to-back movies! talk about busy days!
FRIDAY:
1200hrs: Decide to go for the seminar "Oil Pollution Prevention - Marine Engineer's Dilemma" by Mr. Gurmeet Singh Ranghar (from Barber Ship Management... seen him before when I was undergoing the course).
1530hrs: Laziness creeps in. Decide to surf the net and check mail.
1600hrs: Utter boredom. Decide to check out the test match between India and England. (Afterthought - NOT WORTH THE EFFORT)
1630hrs: Go online again. Meet an online pal from UK (to be precise- Cardiff, Wales). Meet after a while so convo gets interesting. She's quite a person to chat with.
1700hrs: Conflict. Do I go for the seminar? Do I stay back and chat with her?
1705hrs: Present my dilemma to her. She should be online for a few hours more and may be later too.
1712hrs: Rush to get ready to attend the seminar.
1725hrs: On ma' bike. I'm off for the seminar.
1733hrs: I'm at the venue. Meet some sailing Chief Engineers. Exchange pleasantries. Meet the Deputy Director.
1800hrs: Seminar starts.
1930hrs: Seminar concludes.
1800hrs-1930hrs: Interesting scenarios put forward. Excellent knowledge of the MARPOL rule book displayed by him. Put forward thought-provoking points (he did... not me).
1935hrs: A sir requests a drop to town.
1945hrs: Drop him off and I contemplate hanging around in town. Remember about the possibility of my online pal still being online. Go home.
1950hrs: HOME.
1955hrs: ONLINE.
1957hrs: She's there.
2030hrs: She leaves.
0200hrs: I hit the sack.

Saturday:
Nothing out of the ordinary. Out for a ride on the bike. Back home. Out again on the bike. Meet juniors from the course in town. Chit chat. Talk about this and that. A drink to re-live old times (small one.. 30ml vodka... never hurt a soul). Home. Online. Hit the sack Early.

Sunday:
0800hrs: Wake up.
0930hrs : Leave home.
1100hrs: Pick up pal.
1200hrs: Panjim. INOX. Checking the movies. Take tickets for "Memoirs of a Geisha". 1520hrs show.
1230hrs: CCD opposite the beach.
1345hrs: Lunch at FOODLAND. DRY DAY coz of elections. Pal upset. (Me? naah just had a small yesterday remember???)
1415hrs: SIFY IWAY. Surf the net to check out some mail.
1515hrs: Back at INOX. Take tickets for a malayalam movie "Thanmatra". 1800hrs show.
1520hrs: Movie begins.
1635hrs: INTERVAL. Pal goes out and returns with the news that the movie ends at 1755hrs!
1755hrs: Movie ends. Step out.
1800hrs: Next movie. Bracing for culture shock. From KIMONOS to LUNGIS.
2030hrs: Movie ends.
2115hrs: Drop pal back to hostel.
2120hrs: Back home. Watching cricket match. Australia v/s South Africe. Record score. INCREDIBLE.
2200hrs: Back online.
0245hrs: Hit the sack.

Thus ends my weekend. Memoirs of a Geisha is a damn good movie. Got no words for it. Maybe when I get words for it i'll put up what I think about it.
And today I end up at home feeling all bored. Got find something to do till they give me my call to board the ship man!
PEOPLE! HELP!

Emotions during training...

2006-03-08T23:41:00.000+05:30

Two poems written during my pre-sea training course for marine engineering...
The first was written when I was on duty! Was bored when I was on my first Quartermaster duty for the evening.

It's a confused mind running through my head,
The want to crib, grumble and mess up my bed,
But rules are what keep us going out here,
With duties and fall-ins dressed in full gear,
With no time to idle away,
Sleep does arrive as an uninvited guest,
Welcome on most days, but uninvited when submissions are due,
'Work without sleep' seems to be our upcoming life's quest.

This second one I wrote for reasons unknown to me... felt like writing something... just flowed out at that moment...

Emptiness, a sudden blackout,
Darkness is all I see,
For my mind seems so sober,
To explain, I am at a loss for words.
The yearn to talk and to confide,
To freely express my thoughts,
But that someone isn't always around,
Leaving my thoughts to dust and moths.

Senti me... ?

2006-03-08T23:27:00.000+05:30

Forget It All

I wish I could, forget it all,

Forget it ever happened,

Forget that I was once in love,

Forget that she was the love of my life,

Forget about the times we sat out late,

To talk about just nothing at all.

Forget about the times we'd go for an eat,

Or the times we'd go just to sit by the beach.

But alas! this is just wishful thinking,

This is not something I can shut from my mind,

For, till date, these memories I do cherish.

Lost Opportunity???

2006-03-01T01:18:00.000+05:30

Another one....

I have but a favour
To ask of you girl
You see, right now
To ask it seems a sudden whirl.

Though it seems abrupt now
To say it so late
Just for one night
Would you be my date?

Some of my age old poetry...

2006-03-01T00:17:00.000+05:30

Used to write poetry long time ago. 'Used to' ... makes it sound like it's been ages since I wrote a poem... more like the last one I wrote was 8 months ago.
Anyway, thought i'd post some of my earlier poems... might inspire me to get poetic and pen one down before I set sail.

Walking In The Clouds

When I'm with you I feel as if I'm walking in the clouds,
All the dreamy soft air around gently caressing your hair and skin,
The wind smells like a million roses,
I feel like every step I take could last forever.
It's like comfort all around me, and of course the wonderful warm feeling of love,
Your voice sounds like the beautiful song of the bluejay singing softly into my ear,
Your touch feels like the petal of a rose, soft and moist,
Your eyes are like the crystal blue sky, sparkling like diamonds under the warm light,
And, I love being around you, because when I am, I feel as if I am walking in the clouds.

Your Eyes

Your eyes reached deep into my heart,
It touched my soul, and read my mind.
What we shared was wonderful,
Plain, simple and one-of-a-kind.

I lost myself in your eyes,
And felt feeling I never knew,
But your eyes belong to someone else,
For they never look at me,
... The way my eyes look at you!

Man I'm soooooo bored!

2006-02-28T00:44:00.000+05:30

This has been an incredibly boring last couple of days.
First there was this HAPPENINGS, iner-college festivities hosted by Goa College of Engineering. Might I add we went on the last day coz of the made-famous-over-the-years ROCK SHOW!
Guess what... defying all logic, the rock show starts as early as 2130hrs and then the cops come and shut shop at 2230hrs!!!!! Man is that wow or what! In the meantime we (me and some batchmates from engineering) end up at a hotel for a late nite session of drinks, food and smokes (funny part is though I never smoke, I'm quite confident that i'm a passive smoker by now). Put up at a friends place for the night and left next morning for home.
Carnival's been happening in Goa recently. Today, it was in Vasco. Funny... was so bored at the thought of going... went late evening when the floats had almost passed by. That's when I was told that they'd brought down LIVE BRAZILIAN DANCERS! Left me wondering whether it was possible to bring DEAD ones as well. The way people were harping on LIVE dancers... forget it. The band playing music... even more forgettable. We (me along with a small crowd of juniors from the sea training institute) pleaded with them for some good ol' rock stuff... even some dance music would do. Unfortunately we had a crowd behind us with an insatiable apetite for konkani music at that time. Not much we could dance on. Turned and walked.
One good aspect was meeting all ol' batchmates for HAPPENINGS. Met some after 2 years! and of course... the previous evening was spent catching up on ol' times with a good ol' pal. That was refreshing. Maybe it wasnt such a lousy couple of days after all huh???

42 hits and 100 page views???

2006-02-25T01:56:00.000+05:30

well... just over 5 days of setting up the tracker.. taken 42 hits on the site so far and just hit 100 page views... more of a surprise to me than anyone else... but who cares... YAAAAAAAYYY!!!

More regulations?

2006-02-25T00:54:00.000+05:30

I'm yet to step out to sea... only next month or so... and already MORE regulations seem to be making their way in.
IMO introduces tougher rules on dumping waste at sea
Not enough that we have MARPOL AND SOLAS, which by the way are IMPORTANT regulations..., another regulation comes in to list out what can be dumped into the sea. Thoe older one specified what couldn't be dumped and hence ANYTHING not on that list could go overboard in mid-sea. Now it seems ONLY that which is on the list is permitted overboard in mid-sea. Lets see if this makes it tougher for us on the ship or if life will go on as usual.
What I do know is that the formation of all these rules makes the marine industry one of the MOST highly regulated industries in the world. I mean... where else would u have regulations put in place to monitor oil concentrations to the "ppm"???
Man... this should be fun.

Are we like a pencil???

2006-02-25T00:37:00.000+05:30

Read this somewhere.... just cant place it where...

The pencil company had a conference with the pencil before they boxed it up.
They said, "Pencil, before we send you out into the world, you need to know a few things.
Here are some rules to live by:
1. Always write on the surface that is provided for you.
2. You will be sharpened, but this is necessary for optimal performance.
3. You will make mistakes, but you have an eraser. Use it!
4. Always remember, it's what you have on the inside that is most valuable.

Kinda reminds us of what we can do with ourselves ... or does it?

Sexual Harrasment? or just a freak day?

2006-02-22T23:31:00.000+05:30

Mumbai seems to be the busiest place around and for a first timer in mumbai... the hustle and bustle could drive him crazy. But underneath all this hustle and bustle is a deep dark underbelly... one, if seen, can break a person not just physically but emotionally and mentally too.
This person who I know... was travelling in one of the local trains in mumbai... Malad to Churchgate at around 2030hrs. Being a sunday... the trains are packed to the core. A little while into the journey, a fight breaks out in the compartment. Couple of men start screaming at each other. In the middle of all this, this guy feels something crawling against his pants. It being a mad rush... he jammed in one position unable to move his hands. He tries to ignore it but whatever it is... it seems to be crawling over his thighs. Suddenly he realizes it is someone's hand on his leg! And it's continuing to move up! He tries to move about but people around are jammed into him and they cannot move. Someone abuses him from behind for trying to create a mess. Meanwhile this hand stops at his crotch and begins to stroke him. He is revulsed as he realizes that all around him are guys. He tries to shout out but the other fight is still on and people around are sick of people shouting. (What would he shout?). To his horror his body responds to the touch of the unknown hand. He wants to throw up. Mind is a mess... cannot think straight. His ordeal continues for a while. Finally at one of the stations, half the crowd gets off and very few get in. He gets a place to sit down. He does all he can to keep from breaking down. Tries to collect his thoughts. All that is in his mind is that his body responded to a male touch and thoughts turn up in his head asking if he is gay.
The train finally grinds to a halt at the last stop. He gets off the train. Tries calling up a friend. Too much interference on the phone. Friend tells him to catch a cab to his hotel and to sleep, preferrably try to sleep it off. He says he'd prefer walking back. He starts walking downing the now familiar route to him. Unfortunately, with his mind messed up... he takes a wrong turn and walks into a by-lane. A drunk stumbles upon him and places his hand on this guy for support. The by-now-paranoid-guy pushes him off and socks him square on the jaw. The drunk crashes down. He stops. Looks at the drunk. He's scared that he might have killed him. Then the drunk moves. He rolls to his side and moans. Relieved that he hasn't killed him, he turns and runs. A little while later, walking ahead... he notices two girls walking in front of him. For some reason he feels there is something very wrong about them. They glance behind at him as they are walking and come to a halt facing him. They're both very young girls and the older of them looks at him, smiling while running one hand over her bossom. Unfortunately for this guy he HAS to pass by them to get to the main road wherein he can walk to his room from there. He decides to walk past them. Just as he is crossing them, the older girl runs one hand over his crotch while asking him if he is interested. The poor guy turns and runs to the main road from where he rushes to the road to his room. All this while he realises that when the girl touched him, his body responded to her touch. For that one moment he was glad to have had her touch him. At least it put his mind to rest about him being gay. For the time being.

FINALLY THE UNDERDOGS WIN!

2006-02-22T22:57:00.000+05:30

Bangladesh trounce Sri Lanka by 4 wickets! man was that a welcome scoreline.
These guys seem to be getting better and better. Might be taking ages to do it.. but nevertheless... their coming around. They now have wins against Sri Lanka, Pakistan, India and... hold your breath! Australia!
Team No. 10 beat Team Numero Uno for their previous win... that was another AMAZING match!
Nice one guys... at least now people wont call you the whipping boys of cricket (at least not for now)

Whatever can go wrong... WILL go wrong

2006-02-21T13:17:00.000+05:30

Man! Murphy's Laws are something I've been dying to read ever since I was mid-way thru' coll. Got some in a mail...... FAB ones!

Murphy's Military Laws
Never share a foxhole with anyone braver than you are.
No battle plan ever survives contact with the enemy.
Friendly fire ain't.
The most dangerous thing in the combat zone is an officer with a map.
The problem with taking the easy way out is that the enemy has already mined it.
The buddy system is essential to your survival; it gives the enemy somebody else to shoot at.
The further you are in advance of your own positions, the more likely your artillery will shoot short.
Incoming fire has the right of way.
If your advance is going well, you are walking into an ambush.
The quartermaster has only two sizes, too large and too small.
If you really need an officer in a hurry, take a nap.
The only time suppressive fire works is when it is used on abandoned positions.
The only thing more accurate than incoming enemy fire is incoming friendly fire.
There is nothing more satisfying that having someone take a shot at you, and miss.
Don't be conspicuous. In the combat zone, it draws fire. Out of the combat zone, it draws sergeants.
If your sergeant can see you, so can the enemy.

Murphy's Love Laws
All the good ones are taken.
If the person isn't taken, there's a reason. (corr. to 1)
The nicer someone is, the farther away (s)he is from you.
Brains x Beauty x Availability = Constant.
The amount of love someone feels for you is inversely proportional to how much you love them.
Money can't buy love, but it sure gets you a great bargaining position.
The best things in the world are free --- and worth every penny of it.
Every kind action has a not-so-kind reaction.
Nice guys(girls) finish last.
If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Availability is a function of time. The minute you get interested is the minute they find someone else.

SPUR OF THE MOMENT...

2006-02-21T02:14:00.000+05:30

When I was about to board my bus for mumbai 2 weeks ago... I had this street urchin come up to me asking me if I wanted to buy a bottle of water from him.. or maybe some chips (he had an assortment of packets with him). Interestingly EVERYTHING was priced at Rs. 15, right from the bottle of mineral water which was Rs. 12 and the chips which was Rs. 13 if I remember right. I queried him on it. He said that he had to do it considering that all the street urchins had to pay Rs. 40 as 'hafta' to the cops walking around the area. I asked him "Rs. 40 per day?" and he said "Rs. 40 for 3 hours in the evening that the buses halt to take passengers."(!!!)
I bought a bottle of water from him and got into my bus. What he said kept nagging me for some weird reason. Got off the bus, called the urchin over, gave him Rs. 40 and told him today's 'hafta' was on me. The last image I had was of him looking at me as if I was crazy and waving bye vigorously as the bus pulled away...

Desperately awaiting boarding call

2006-02-21T00:50:00.000+05:30

Well well... even though I cleared my U.S. visa interview on the 15th of february and the american behind the counter told me they were sending the visa to the office... I still had worries that it had to reach the office. AND IT HAS! I GOT MY C1/D visa for the next 5 years!!!
And to think my interview took less than a minute... 5 queries... that's all... no name.. no parents names... just :
Why do you want to join the merchant navy?
Do you have any sailing experience?
What are your qualifications?
Where did you do your B.E. mechanical and can I see the degree certificate?
How many generators are there on a ship?
Do you have ANY sailing experience? (question was repeated by him)

And that was all it took to get the VISA!!!
SHIP LIFE! HERE I COME!
Oh yeah... can't board ship this month... boarding next month. If I was to board this month with the 3rd engineer... I would be boarding in Karachi, Pakistan. Looks like I'm boarding next month... might be with the Chief Engineer but I have no idea where.

P.S. Ship is GIOVANNI DELLA GATTA. Italian Flag. Gearless Bulk Carrier. 1987 built ship. Port of registration: Torre Del Greco.

BOOKS!!!

2006-02-21T00:17:00.000+05:30

Was wondering about my ever-expanding mini library... each time i've been making a trip to mumbai, i've made it a point to buy at least a couple of books before I get back to Goa. Last time I got the whole set of Dan Brown. Prior to that was Arundhati Roy's "God of Small Things". This time I picked up Vikram Seth's "The Collected Poems". I had read a portion of the book earlier when I had picked it from a friend. One particular verse stuck in my mind for some unknown reason. Maybe it was how I felt that time... maybe it was nothing at all... it just remained in my mind.

Arion & The Dolphin (A Libretto)
Scene 8 (last verse)

Alone am I, and sad that you are dead,
That you are dead, not I-
That you were kind to me and that led you to die.
When all is done and said-
When all is said and done,
You were my friend, the only one.

Looking forward to picking up "A Suitable Boy" and "Two Lives" sometime soon. Or maybe after I get back from my sailing... in about 9-10 months.
Another book I picked up this time was "Anne Frank". I've read it before... but it's one book you cant get enough of. The maturity with which she's written it never ceases to amaze.
Looking around now... the collection's growing but I gotta store them properly when I leave for the ship. Already requested mom not to let anyone borrow the books whilst i'm away. Some people just don't know to handle books... dog ears... split covers... you name the damage... they do it to your book.
Oh yeah... made a different choice of book this time from mumbai... "Right To Information". Gives a proper explanation of the Act, Rules, Notifications and State Rules. Nice one. Gives you quite some perspective as to what you have a right to know from any public authority.
Two books which I am desperate to get my hands on... "Catcher in the Rye" and "To Kill a Mockingbird".

WHAT COULD I HAVE DONE IN MUMBAI???

2006-02-20T22:40:00.000+05:30

Well, lets see... made my trip to mumbai over a weekend and the day I reached there I went to meet a very close pal. It was nice though I could only meet her for about an hour and half. I somehow like going to the mall in Malad... what was the name... yeah! Inorbit. Seem to enjoy my time there. Getting back to CST was a horrific time. Weekend breezes by with walks around CST and I must say there are quite a few nice musuems out there. For one there is the Reserve Bank of India Monetary Musuem (which I must add was inaugurated by the President of Indiain Nov. 2004!) and then there is the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (formerly Prince of Wales Musuem of Western India). Beautiful places...
Unfortunately in the Shivaji musuem.. which I must add has amazing artifacts.. there's one section just on paintings from the Sir Ratan Tata Collection. Most were in good condition and those I must add were framed with glass over them. The condition of some of the paintings horrified me. One painting "Landscape" by Jaques Grimmer from the Flemish School had the parchment literally billowing within the frame as the fan was facing it. I wonder if it will live through the year. Another one, "Portrait of Bresford Hope" by Sir Thomas Lawrence from the British School, had repairs done to the black portion which I might add were so damn apparent and the repair work itself was beginning to come off.
An interesting artifact on display in the musuem was the "Phurbu: Sacred Dagger". It was surmounted by a 3-headed Hayagriva. It was from Tibet and the blade had 3 sides. It seems the dagger was used by sorcerers for stabbing the demons of air(?). The 3 sides of the blade signify the 3 virtues - charity, chastity and patience which are capable of destroying the 3 vices - hatred, sloth and lust.
A small painting in another section which was an "Illustration to Annarushataka of Amaruk", Rajasthani, Malwa, 1680 A.D. had a nice section in sanskrit. Can't type in sanskrit out here... if you can.. I don't know how. The translation was also provided:
Where frowning betrays anger;
where silence is the only punishment;
where stolen smiles are only submission;
where the covert glances are only requirement;
behold in that love distress has found place.
Thou rollst at my feet,
but the anger of a naughty maiden like me does not abate.
Another thing I used to do when taking walks about CST was to drop in for a movie if there was a show about to start. What the heck mate... anyway I'm walking about alone... might as well check out a movie. Saw "Fun with Dick and Jane" and "Holiday". The former is a Jim Carrey movie with the by-now-typical-Jim-Carrey-slap-stick-humour. Didn't like it. The latter comes very close to being a remake of "Dirty Dancing" which gave Patrick Swayze his huge hit. I guess the fact that it isn't a conventional hindi movie story-line makes a good excuse to watch it. Except for the fact that there is no climax... the storyline is barely visible... all that interspersed with some nice dancing and OK songs.
"FUN REPUBLIC" in Andheri... another hangout in the pool room (also the permit room where ONLY beer and breezers are served!) Dev Saab! ol' buddy from IMS and in Mitsui O.S.K. Lines now... used to hang out with me over there. 125 bucks for 30 minutes of pool!!!!! INSANE! Come to GOA! 60 bucks an hour mate! (of pool!)
And of course the innumerable shops in CST selling you every piece of equipment you need to take on the ship. They know what I have to take before I even ask them! All they wanna know is if i'm deck-side or engine-side. BAH! I'm a Marine Engineering Officer!

Finally back from mumbai!

2006-02-20T21:13:00.000+05:30

Man it's been ages since I last had a look at this site... in the words of Andy D'Sa... back from a long sabbatical.
A lot has happened... a lot is happening... and a lot will happen. Had been bugged to no end by some of my pals in mumbai to have a tracker put in on my blog... well TAA DAA! it's up and running! Though I must say I've already lost out on time and I doubt anyone ever comes here in the first place (other than the people to whom I tell about my blog... AND THEY DONT POST COMMENTS!!!)
Since my last post, I've had to make a trip to mumbai for close to 2 weeks, undergo briefings in the office, have details about my ship embedded in my head and then, 2 days before my U.S. visa interview wherein the American sitting behind the counter at the American Consulate in mumbai gets to decide whether I get the visa to step in his country or not, I get a contract with a different type of ship altogether just for the visa. Now how cool is that?

4 is the set... or is the 5th out???

2006-01-28T22:46:00.000+05:30

Been hearing a lot about this set of books... bought the Da Vinci Code about a year back. But last december when I went to mumbai I decided to pick up the rest of the set. Dan Brown afficionado that I am...
Heard from someone that a 5th book is out... anyone know about it???????

Reunion time!

2006-01-28T22:12:00.000+05:30

ooooooooh man... wedding receptions, reunions, meeting people after 2 years... man it's been a hectic couple of days.
Goan wedding receptions, they start late evening... get over even later in the nite :) , man that was a fun time. Choche (this guy's nickname) got married and man, was it nice seeing lots and lots of people from high school and college. Had fun meeting up with them. Got home by 0130hrs. The next day we managed to organise a reunion at Panjim. This was more fun, what with some of the guys coming down after 2 years and my my... the guys at Cafe Coffee Day must have been mad at the amount of time we sat there just talking. Imagine that... group of guys meeting up and we just sit there talking about the good ol' times and what's on at present. I've already met one friend who replied with " you guys sat and talked???? dont u people have better things to do??" No idea what that was supposed to convey. And then of course convince one chap leaving to stay overnight and that I would drop him home next morning (read: early morning about 0630hrs). Went out for dinner and a few drinks. Few drinks... yea... then abused half the guys for not keeping in touch for soooooo long. Spent over 30 minutes argueing where the other guys from the class were working and who got married and who got engaged and who were just plain committed. The rest of them? well, single like they always were!!! After that, grabbed the bikes and pushed off to this management college hostel where couple of us were gonna spend the night. I didnt sleep. Half the night I was online ... the remainder.. checking out their song and erotica collection on the networked server. Pretty impressive.. the song collection I mean. Woke the guy I had to drop off at 0600hrs and man! WE FROZE on the way back. Got him home and when I got home, sis needed me to accompany her while she got some herbal dyes for her final year project. Got that... came home and SLEPT. Had lunch at 1440hrs. SLEPT. Had dinner at 2250hrs. Sat online. Slept at 0430hrs.

something I came across a movie tonite...

2006-01-09T00:43:00.000+05:30

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do NOTHING
- Edmund Blake
Movie : Tears of the sun

War games

2006-01-06T14:54:00.000+05:30

An audacious plan it was… an audacious plan it remained. The enemy was all over us. They were hitting their mark with increasingly alarming accuracy. We were almost overrun. Cutting into us with ease, they infiltrated our area with no discomfort whatsoever. On the other hand, when we tried to infiltrate their area in a series of counter attacks; we were more often than not, left scattered and too thinly spread out. And when we did find our mark it was usually a one man attempt by either one of our sharpshooters.
It was increasingly frustrating for us as the losses were mounting. Not one to take such losses lightly, we came up with a plan to make up for all our setbacks. If one of the sharpshooters from the opposition camp was to be taken out … the battlefield would be levelled out a bit. And so it was put into action – Operation Knockout as we named it.
Plain and simple it was – draw the enemy out into our area and when one of them went for the shot, we would move in for the kill. And so it was to be… they were moving in totally unaware of the ambush awaiting them. Their top sharpshooter moved in to take the shot and we moved in to take him out. Move in we did, but what was not anticipated was him selling us a dummy. Hit him we did not as he faked moving forward and moved around us, allowing us the unenviable opportunity of taking each other out. Victory was theirs once again. But fear not men! For tomorrow is a brand new day and we will play another game of basketball!!!

New year hangover???

2006-01-06T14:33:00.000+05:30

A brand new year... new blog site???
Been contemplating starting one here for a lil while... seems like ever since I started blogging, my personal diary has taken a back seat. Haven't been writing there for quite a while.
Still trying to get my mind off the new year bash. AMAZING time. If it hadn't been for an invitation from a damn close pal I would've ended up at some BORING get-together with loads of uncles and aunties talking to each other. Damn this party I was at ROCKED!!! Baga beach has some pretty cool shacks on the beach, but the one we were at had a FANTABULOUS dance floor. Great music too I might add. I knew just 3 guys from the group I was in. And we were 20 of us. Got to dance in the new year with new friends. Danced so hard, it reminded me how much I missed dancing :) Danced my heart out. I still am actually. Wake up every morning to some dance music and shake my butt about a little bit.. umm... and the rest of my body too.