Bad Meal...

So we had the Iftar party at the Ritz Carlton today, and the food they served was atrocious!! I don't know that went wrong, but when mom and I had gone there, the food was really good. Today it sucked. I had very little, and the tast still lingers in my mouth.
And now it's finaly-Chotu is not coming to Doha. Seems his mother is looking ot get him married off, so he needs to be there. This is a major loss of face to me in the office. No more Mr. Nice Guy anymore.
Also, feeling very sleepy today. zzzzz.....

Observation Of The Day: Have you noticed, that the size of my postings is rapidly declining? It's not that I don't have less to say now. It's just that my thoughts are dissociated now. The challenge of returning ot India has sunk in, and now my mind runs in different directions, searching to possible scenarios to that move. But all that thinking will not lead me anywhere. Must concentrate. AUM.....

Odds And Ends...

Have you seen the latest ad featuring Jackie Chan? It's good!! I have no idea if it's effective or not, but it sure is funny!! It is a treat to see Jackie Chan in an ad.
Also, I just saw Navjot Sidhu on NDTV-Hindi, and he was yapping away in shudh Hindi!! Looks liek he is taking his membership of BJP seriously.
And Chotu may come to Doha after all.

Nothing New To Blog...

Am having a lousy internet connection at he office today, so am not able to surf the net properly.
Chotu has again gone on being unsure about the whole issue. Now I'll get some local person for the job.
Can you believe it, I have nothing new to blog? Has my life become so boring??

Surreal Moment Of the Day: So I was driving in the evening, returning from the Industrial Area. I passed the usual roads, and suddenly, I was viewing those roads in a new light altogether. It just looked like I had never noticed them. They looked so new.
Someone should write a book roads, I say. About how we tend to not look at them, but if we pay attention, the roads are different each and every day, at each and every hour. They change. They get crowded, they are empty, they are clean, they are dirty, they have shattered glass, they reflect the sun, giving one an impression of a mirage. I think roads are a modern day metaphor of life. In the olden days, it was the rivers and in the modern age, it is the roads.
But I digress, that was not my surreal moment. The roads looks so new to me, I began to wonder whether it was only a few months ago that I roamed aimlessly on these streets, discovering. And now, they seemed new again to me.
Very Strange

Good Joke...

Laugh if you understand these joke (I did)

**************

Q: How many Spaniards does it take to screw in a lightbulb?

A: Juan.

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Person 1: Knock knock.

Person 2: Who's there?

Person 1: Control freak.

Person 1: Now you say "control freak who?"

**************

A woman gets on a bus with her baby. The bus driver says: “That's the ugliest baby that I've ever seen.” The woman goes to the rear of the bus and sits down, fuming. She says to a man next to her: “That driver just insulted me!” The man says: “You go right up there and tell him off – go ahead, I'll hold your monkey for you.”

**************

Buddha walks into a pizza joint and says, "Make me one with everything."

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Q. Why can't the Buddha vacuum in the corner?

A. Because he has no attatchments.

**************

Cashier: "That'll be $9.50"
Buddha hands him a ten. Waits. Waits. He says, "Where's my change?"
Cashier replies, "Change must come from within"

**************

A guy walked into a bar and said, "Ow!"

*************

Two cows are standing in a pasture.

The first cow says, "Have you heard about this new mad cow disease?"

The second cow says, "I don't care, I'm a helicopter!"

Nice Holidays...

That was good!!! I had a two day off after a long, long time, and it felt good. Weel, to be frank, on the first day, it felt a little odd, and I was a little disoriented. But I reocvered on saturday, and had a good time.
Another new development. Rauf uncle called me up, and wanted to meet me for two days. So finally, when I met him, he offered me a free-lancing job!! He told me that he needs someone who is good in English, to prepare some documents for him. The money seems good, and I am interested. Lets see...
And on the Chotu front, he has delayed the plan of coming here. He has to put in his papers, it seems. If he delays it any further, I am thinking I'll just get someone else.

Holiday Tomorrow...

The office is keen ot bring Chotu as soon as possible, but I don't thik that will he possible, since he first has to give his one month notice at his place. Its all pretty close for now...
Tomorrow, I will be having my first weekend in MONTHS!! Two whole days of R&R!! Its needed, since I am feeling quite tired today. But this may evaporate, as I may be called to office, since we have been having a lot of work lately. Can't these ministers observe a maun vrat during their fasts??
Collateral is currently playing in the theaters here, so I am going to watch it tomorrow. Plus, Jinu and I are plannig to meet tomorrow, for a marathon pool session. Lets hope I don't get called to the office. Keeping my fingers crossed.

I Mean Business...

Now that the administration has realised that I mean business when I say that I want to quit, things are going into over-drive to get another person in my place. My immediate boss has been compeltely passed over, and I ahve to report directly to the AGM (Asst. GM, ie). I am submitting Chotu's resume again.

Hooray, Hooray, It's A Holi-Holiday!!!

Met the AGM today, and we tried to reach a settlement regarding my holidays. I can now take Fridays and Saturdays off, but if any news turns up, then I will have to come to the office. The vacation issue still hangs. I am not about to find even one person who is willing to do a translator's job. I think I will submit Chotu's resume once again.

Kahani Mein Twist...

Kahani Mein Twist!!!
The Assistant General Manager came down today. He is a really nice guy. He asked me how things were. I replied they were good. He says, no, they are not, you are leaving. He asked me the reason, and I told him, that since I am not getting my annual leave, I might as well quit. So he has called me to his office tomorrow, to see if we can work things out. But frankly, I am not interested any more. Even if I stay back, I'll be putting in my papers six or eight months down the line, which will not be good for either of us. But I'll go all the same. Lets see...

Realisation of the Day: When Papaji was scolding/explaining to me that it was not right on my part to just go out on an impromptu 5 hour road trip, he used the word 'bohemian' to describe my lifestyle. And suddenly, my mind started playing the song, 'Bohemian Rhapsody' by Queen. It was just Pavlovian, my response. Looks like I have programmed my self to break out into that song whenever the word, 'bohemian' is mentioned.

And as Papaji was leaving today, he kept reiterating that I should not go out on such impromptu tours of the city, and that I should get my full sleep. He was too shaken by that incident, it seems. Anyways, Even I am getting tired to these trips. Its just me sitting in my car and driving, safetly (relatively) ensconed in the car, not knowing how the weather is outside.
Now, and bike would be a better deal. When you are driving a bike, its you against the nature. You are clasely interacting with the nature. If the weather's cold, you feel cold, if its hot, you feel the heat. Not so in a car, where the car ac compeltely detaches you from the outside world.
Thats it, I am more of a bike person than a car person.

In other news, Veerappan is killed by the STF commandos. Now, all the money that had been diverted to capturing him will be put to good use.

The Pictures...

First things first,

injinuity said...
ofcourse it was definitely dumb to make such a move without having a proper backup plan...

no, I don't think it was dumb to make such a move. What would have been dumb is me not quitting, working seven days a week, and hoping that my bosses got another Hindi language person to help me out here. They should have done that long ago, and since they are not doing this, I am not interested in working for them.

Incidently, I learnt that another of my colleagues is quitting to go to Al Jazeera. J., the Russian guy, is too on a one month notice. He has already brought a replacement for him. Looks like the office will be a different place after a few months...

Moving on,

Here are the pictures:















I'll post a few more bigger ones after I have scaled them down.

Foggy Drive...

The entire city was covered in fog yesterday, and when I say fog, I mean the thickest fog I have seen. Visibility was down to two meters. Perfect for going out, I say, and I did!! I drove all around the town for nearly five hours!! That's right, from 3:30 am till 8:00 am, I was on the road, enjoying the fog. The Doha-Al Khor road was all the more enticing due to the extremely low visibility. At one point, the road lights were down, and I was driving at 80 km in total darkness. It felt like I was in one of those horror movies, with the light from my headlamp only illuminating the thick fog ahead of me. Any moment, a lady wearing complete white would emerge from the fog, singing a haunting melody!! From there, I went to the Umm Said beach. The beach was not visible, even from 10 meters away!!
Later, when I returned home, I realized that Papaji was building up a storm of his own!! He had gotten so worried, that he called up my office, Jinu and was going to call up Al Kaabi and going to the police station and also the handy General hospital!! When I came, he couldn't even talk, he was so bottled up with conflicting emotions!!
One good thing about the entire episode at home was when he said,'it's better you return home. You are living a bohemian lifestyle here.' So Papaji now supports my resigning!! But wait, he is implying that I should return cos I have been too free here...hmm, I think I'll stay here now. Or move to A'bad.
And oh yes, curse you, Jinu, for tell my dad I do these 'crazy things' sometimes. He now thinks that I live a totally bohemian lifestyle here, when the truth is, I am simply bored to death here.
I took a few photographs, and I am hoping they turn out good. But I would have preferred my SLR instead of my digicam. I just take better pictures with those. Will post those later.

No Work...

No work today. Timings change, but work remains the same. No work.
I was on the road today for nearly three hours in the morning, and I couldn't have a single drop of water!!! Enjoy your Ramadan.

Opinions Galore...

Its been two days since I put in my papers, and the response has been mixed. More so in the case of dad.
When he is sober, he says that I have made a big mistake, and that I have all to lose from this. But after downing the first peg, he does a complete turn around and says that he completely supports my decision!! Hmm. this is one of the moments when I prefer him sozzled!! (just joking, just joking, drinking bad, no good)
In the office, my colleague, S. was the first to know of my move. She says tht it is a good move, and told me that she wished she could do it herself. But, she reasons, since I am young, I can take those chances, not her (she's in her 40s, I think). Another colleague, R. too says that I made the right move. In fact, both him and S. opine that the entire office should put in their papers collectively, just to prove a point. I am deducing this as their way of saying,'Good move dude, very dumb'
Dumb is what injinuity called my move to yesterday, when we went to a marathon pool session (and oh yes, Jinu, you didn't win, I let you win ;)).
On my part, I don't feel it was a dumb move. Sure, I am aware of all the problems I will face when I relocate to India, and how I'll have a hard time initially. But that does not mean that I just stay put here. Nearly everyone is saying that I should first search for opportunities there. That I should first go ot India and start something there, and then quit here after one more year. Well, I tried that the last time I visited India, but I realised that its just not feasible. When ou start something, you must be tehr since its inception, to lead it properly. Coming back to your business after an year, and making changes in it will only put a spanner in the works then. Not good.
Incidently, another of my colleagues, a Lebanese girl, D. has put in her papers. She did it before me, and now will be leaving after a month. Looks like I am not the only idiot here...
In other news, Ramadan began today, and so did the Ramadan timings. I now work from 7:30 in the evening, till 3:30 in the morning. So its bye bye pool, bye bye night life. The only bright spot to this thing is that the office provides the food during Ramadan. Some snacks in the evening, and then a full meal at aruond 3 in the morning. I will skip the meal, though, cos its too filling at that time of the night. But I gorge on the snacks, though!! Yummmm...

Maa!! Tum Mujhe Chod kar Kahan Chali Gayi, Maa!!

This is really sad news, Nirupa Roy has passed away, Thats one more talent less in Bollywood. Rediff has done some tributes for her.
Sad. But life goes on, I guess.

In other news, Here's a cool animation of how a Lego brick in made. Check it out.

I Have Quit!!!

I did it!!! I finally resigned, after all these days of being iffy about it!! Woo Hoo!!!
As I walked into the office, holding a piece of paper, my boss thought that I was giving him another resume probably. Then the bomb dropped. I have never seem him smile that much. I had to resist the urge to sing *Tum itna jo muskura rahe ho, kya gham hai jisko chupa rahe ho*. You see, they don't have any replacement for me, and now the only Hindi guy is leaving... oh the joy, the joy.
The boss did ask me why I wanted to quit. I told him that I just wanted to go to India, and that I was not getting any leave. He tried to argue that they were looking for people, but looks liek the shock of the moment failed him. Rejoice!!!
I am now expecting a visit or at last a call from the big boss himself.

Dad's here...

In bits and Pisces US has Pakistan in its grip
injinuity, if you are reading this, this is what US expects when it makes a country it "ally". India would never bend over backwards for it (good, in my opinion). Also, US is not really concerned about India (why should it, it does not owe anythig to it), and it will not fight its wars, as you expect it to.
Moving on, I received Papaji at the airport today. He was a bit shocked to see me, what with my long hair and a gangster moustache. His first words on meeting me,"Are you becoming Aamir Khan with your long hair and moustache?" He is quite impressed with my new residence. I have to start cooking from tomorrow onwards.
And I couldnt' meet with the big boss even today. He is tooooo busy, it seems.

Two Developments and One Observation...

Two developments and one observation:

Developemtns:

* I nearly quit today, but the Big Boss was too busy to listen to me.
* I applied to the BBC today.

Observation:

* I have been posting really short posts. Is my posting bug fading away?

I Am Jogging...

I ran yesterday. Jogged. It felt nice, like returning to the fold. I was never a gym guy, so the gymming never interested me. But when I ran yesterday, I felt like I was in my element. Ok, I was fast losing my element, what with me beign out of my breath so soon. But it still felt nice. Am planning ot make a habit out of it.
I saw two movies yesterday as well. That first was Mean Girls, *ing Lindsay Lohan. A failry funny movie, with some nice jokes in it. That second one was Shaun of the Dead. And that it a movie!! Really funy, and lots of cheesy moments. Basically, the director took all the memorable movie moments and wove them together into a nice movie. A must see.
And nothing more is new.

Expenses...

I couldn't post yesterday cos I have work at the last minute, and I did not find time to post. Not that there was much to post, anyways.
The PS2 has run into its first phase of problems. You see, it runs the CDs in PAL format, but those are expensive. The pirated CDs come in NTSC format, which my PS2 does not play. Have to get it play NTSC game CDs as well, but that will cost me an extra 200 bucks...expenses, expenses...

I Got PS2!!!

My purse continues to be loose...I bought a PS2 yesterday!!! A cool 650 bucks of it!! I am consoling myself that it was going for nearly 800 bucks just six months ago...and while I and injinuity (my partnet-in-crime in this) were at it, I also ended up buying a digital camera!! That's another 500 bucks damage to my purse. But being intersted in photography that I am (I have a certificate to prove it), I needed it...ok, so I didn't need it, but I was lusting for it. I will be capturing scenes of Doha on it now.
The PS2, in my opinion, is a very good buy. I played some games on it yesterday, and really enjoyed it. After the frustrations of the office, its nice to kick and punch someone out, or be kicked and punched out. I played Tekken 4 with injinuity, and am now hooked ot it, at least for now!! Will repot on the progress later.

Accident Report...

Gods are smiling on me. I went to the traffic dept. Today to collect my police report. Before getting the report stamped, I had to get a radar check on my car, to see if I had any outstanding fines from speeding/jumping signals (and I have been doing both lately). So surprise, surprise, I don't have any outstanding fines!! That's right folks, zero riyals fine!!
And speaking of the accident, it seems my insurance will have to pay for the damage, since the fault was mine (I still say that it was not my fault). The driver of the other car was at my place to collect the insurance papers for making that claim. But I was away at that time, ejoying momos with injinuity!! Man, I can be mean at times!! Let the bugger wait. If he wants my money, he will have ot go through some loops. Did I mention that when I had scrapped the car, I could have just collected his car and mobile number and gone to the police station the next day with my claim? But I didn't. I waitied, and made him wait as well. I didn't mind that waiting, but the waiting was surely a torture for him, cos his boss kepty ringing him about where the kids whom he was supposed to bring back from that school were.

Jai Hanuman Gyan Guna Saagar...

On sn impluse, I googled Hanuman Chalisa, and I came up with this, and online Hanuman Chalisa, and also its translation. The translation is pretty good, in fact. It was a revelation to me when, in the fourth from last chaupai (that's what they are called), when it say 'Jo sat bar path kare kohi', it means 'One who recites Chalisa one hundred times', and not seven times, which is what sat, seems to imply. Now I get it, its avadhi (?) hindi, khadi boli, and not the Hindustani that we speak commonly. 'sat' actually means शत, as in shat.abdi, which is a hundred years. Hmm, maybe that explains why my prayers weren't being answered. I used to read the chalisa seven times, when the requirement was one hundred times...Not that I'll start reciting them a hundred times now! A hundred times!! A Hundred Times!!!. Who has time in this age to read it a hundred times, for god's sake.
From a literary point of view, I realised that the poem (or the chaupais) are pretty good.
In other news, Me and injinuity have been attempting to start jogging ths week. But something or the other always crops up, adn we have to delay our plans. So far, it's been postponed till next saturday. I have also stopped going to the gym (no fun there).

Adaptation...

Note: I had meant to post this entry yesterday, but blogger was giving me problems. So here, for you pelasure, is the post...

Begins...
Caught up on the movie, Adaptation yesterday along with Melvin.
What a movie!! Thoroughly enjoyed it. Nicholas Cage was mindblowing, both as Charlie and Donald. And so Meryl Streep. Both actors prove their mettle here. Same with Chris Cooper, who plays John LaRouche, the Orchid Thief.
The screenplay by Charlie Kaufman was really good. Some really interesting twists in there. What really impressed me was how he managed to intertwine four interesting story arcs (Charlie's difficulty in adapting a book about flowerw into a screenplay, Donald's gay abandon as he scripts a 'thriller', Susan's yearning for a life that she cannot live and John's life as he moves from one obsession to another)into one single, coherent movie. Though the story in about Charlie, all the characters interact with each other. The movie swings from Charlie's cluelessness to Donald's carelessness, from Susan's sorrow to John's obsession with the orchid effortlessly.
And then there's he twist in the story in the last half hour. Truly bizzare.
Sample a few dialogues:
----
Donald Kaufman: You are what you love, not what loves you
----
Charlie Kaufman: You and I share the same DNA. Is there anything more lonely than that?
----
Susan Orlean: Change is not a choice.
----
John Laroche : You know why I like plants?
Susan Orlean : Nuh uh.
John Laroche : Because they're so mutable. Adaptation is a profound process. Means you figure out how to thrive in the world.
Susan Orlean : [pause] Yeah but it's easier for plants. I mean they have no memory. They just move on to whatever's next. With a person though, adapting almost shameful. It's like running away.
----
Donald Kaufman: Is like technology versus horses.
----

All in all, I highly recommend this movie.

Chakra Chakram...

I took a Chakra test at eclectic energies to find out if my chakras are all right. Turns out I am highly imbalanced. Heres the lowdown:

Root Chakra: -13% - under active.

The Root chakra is about being physically there and feeling at home in situations.

If you tend to be fearful or nervous, your Root chakra is probably under-active. You'd easily feel unwelcome.

Sacral Chakra: -19% under active

The Sacral chakra is about feeling and sexuality.

If you tend to be stiff and unemotional or have a "poker face," the Sacral chakra is under-active. You're not very open to people.

Navel Chakra: -13 % under active

The Navel chakra is about asserting yourself in a group.

When the Navel chakra is under-active, you tend to be passive and indecisive. You're probably timid and don't get what you want.

Heart chakra: 6 % under active

The Heart chakra is about love, kindness and affection.

When your Heart chakra is under-active, you are cold and distant.

Throat chakra: 6 % under active

The Throat chakra is about self-expression and talking.

When this chakra is under-active, you tend not to speak much, and you probably are introverted and shy. Not speaking the truth may block this chakra.

Third eye chakra: 69 % over active

The Third Eye chakra is about insight and visualisation.

If this chakra is over-active, you may live in a world of fantasy too much. In excessive cases halucinations are possible.

Crown chakra: 31 % open

The Crown chakra is about wisdom and being one with the world. When this chakra is open, you are unprejudiced and quite aware of the world and yourself.

So, the net result is, I am unable to fit in, I am unexpressive, I am indecisive and shy, I am cold and distant, I am introverted, I a fantasize a lot, but I am also unprejudiced, and aware of the world.

Strange thing, this spirituality. I seem to agree with this prognosis of mine. After all, I am unprejudiced, am I not?

Also, I must improve. But twait a minute, if I post my thoughts regualrly on the blog, is it not a sign of my expressiveness?? Is this thing wrong?? Andwers wanted. pls comment, viewers.

Notes...

A thousand apologies for not posting yesterday. I had lots of work, and was in office for an extra hour.
My new pat is dirty, I told you that. The fridge I got was stuffed with six month old food I told you that. The maojrity of bulbs don't work there, I told you that. But I discovered someting else day before yesterday. The last occupants of the house left me something else as well. Underwear. Yes, you heard it right, I found an old underwear in one of the cupboards. It really makes me wonder, just how much of a hurry did these guys leave in, that they didn't get time to empty their fridge, make their beds, throw out their garbage, take their underwear??? Were they just pulled up, and thrown out? One fine day, they get a phone call, that they have to vacate their house within five hours. That, or maybe they got sucked into some of the hollywood road movies like Harold and Kumar go to Newcastle, maybe Ahmed and Mohammed go to Dukhan!! It seems that the two inhabitants on the flat (two lebanese guys) were not liked a lot, judging from the winces I got from the others.
Also, today I ahd an accident. Nothing major, just a little scrap. The guy had parked in the middle of the road, just outside my parking shed. I made a reverse, and scrapped against his Toyota Land Cruiser. I got a few scratches, and so did he. But it seems, its was my fault. No matter that he parked illegally, I should have been more careful. $@$#@%#@%@#.
Yesterday, I went to dinner again with my colleague, A. I was expecting more 'Indian food goooooood!!', but luckily, he didn't comment on that fact anymore. All in all, it was a nice evening. He picked up the bill, which made it even better.
And yes, my efforts to me the top boss of our office have been unsuccessful so far. Must do it in order to secure my vacation.

Gruh-pravesh...

I moved into the apt today. It's dirty as hell, and I just discovered that only two of the bulbs work in the entire appartment!! It will be a long night...
I haven't been able to post long posts lately, becuase I don't get enough time nowadays. Too much work in the office (can you believe that!!). You see, the Emir is touring US nowadays, and he keeps making these quotable quotes there. [bhojpuri]Sasuraa bahut bakaar bakaar karat haiin[/bhojpuri]

Moving in...

I have started to move in to my apt today. Shifted all my clothes and cassettes and books into the house. And surprisingly, nothing remians in my rooms now!! Just a few knick knacks!!
Threw out two full bags of trash from the house. The previous inhabitants were animals!!
More tomorrow, am in a hurry now...