India vs SL : Jokes Part

Expecting a busy day ahead, powered on the PC.
Checked the mails.
None from the address, I was looking for..

That means a freak out day at office.
And to add to that India is playing SriLanka this day.

With a decent target set for India (to chase 298), the teams left for Lunch.

I had some plans in my mind.
Called up Kir. It was an off day for him.
Called up Geo also.

Off we left for Hotel Muthasshi.
Finished lunch and left for Joe's house.
Thats one of the few houses which has a TV :)

The TV room was packed. Sri went out and came back with snacks.
I found the bed in front of the TV too comfy :)

A few funny incidents happened
1. Joe commented that Muralidharan doesnt like bowling with fielding restriction.
Kir did not hear that statement from Joe properly.
He retorted "What is it that Murali doesnt like?"
Sri chipped in with a straight face "Appavum Mutta curry um"

2. Dhoni was batting like a star, and India cruising along towards a confident win.
Thats when he got a leg injury while taking off for a single..
Geo said "That leg injury is gonna cause worries for Dhoni"
Kir, again absent mindedly asks "What happened to Dhoni's leg?"
Sri again, in his trade mark no-smile style "Cheruppathil cycleennonnu veenu"

3. Now the camera work was not too good. usually the cricket coverages
are great stuff, with the camera able to follow the cricketing ball
wherever it goes, on the ground, or off it.
In Geo 's words, today's scenario is like this
Vaas off side ilotteriyum.
Dhoni leg side ilottadikkum.
Ball thekkottu povum.
Camera vadakkottu povum !

When Dhoni completed his 100, I left for my office.
Hey it was a working day for me :)
____________________________________________________

Kiron dropped me at office. He went on to attend a
social service gathering. He is a working member..

Threat on Phone !

Friday evenings are always exciting.
Not just for the school going chaps, but even
for us - the office going professionals.
As my bro says "some time to recharge your cells"

Waiting for my company van to come, at the gate.
Rings my mobile. I picked up the phone. And starts
a new chapter.
"What do you want ? What is your intention ? Why do
you send such messages to my girl friend ?"

What is all this ?
And this guy addressed me as 'Babu'.
I told him you are mistaken, you have reached the wrong
person.
But then he got back saying "I call the number from which
I get these messages. How about that?"

Is this a prelude to that robbery incident that had
happened long back ? Another attempt to rob my belongings?
But how , with this drama ?

I hanged up the phone, but the guy called again - same phone
number. I picked up the phone and defended myself in many
different ways.

Yes, I do send messages - plenty of them - to my friends.
but let me tell u something, I send them only to the numbers
that are listed in my phone number. Now tell me which is the
number to which you claim that "I" am sending messages.
He gave me a number (starting 98860 *****),
which I dont hav in my phone book.

Now I got the trick.
This daemon started working in my mind.
This is his plan

1. He claims that I sent his 'girl friend' vulgar messages
2. He will threaten to beat me up / lodge a complain to the police
3. But before that he may offer a compromise
4. He will ask me to come to a place of HIS convenience.
5. And the rest will be history - may even come printed in the
next day's newspaper !

I need to act smart.
Yes, he did say that he is gonna do the point num2
This is what he said, annoyed by my coolness
"You think you are cool, huh? See what I'm gonna do now. I'm gonna
hang up now and call the police"
I said "please go ahead"
He replied "Are u sure about this, Is this a deal?"
I said "what deal ? go ahead and call the police" and hanged up.

By this time, I reached home. Told bro about this story.
Soon, he called again. The same thing
"Will you stop this? Why are you sending her such vulgar messages?"

The mobile was in my hands all this time, and I had made a conscious
effort not to send ANY messages from my phone. And he is still
'getting messages from my number'.

He said "let me put and end to it. let me call the police'
I : Aah.. YOu dint call the police till now? Should I give u the number?
H : Hey, dont act cool ok. I mean business !
I : OH My God.. I'm Scared.. Please help me.... I'm scared to death.
That frustrated him even further.
H : Is this some kinda joke ?
I : Thats what I wanna ask you. I find all this really funny.
H : Laugh now, and face the consequences.
I : Wow ! What a great dialogue. I like it.
H : Dude, I know where you work.
I : Aahaa ?! So where do I work ?
H : You work in Air*** Call centre. I know. And your name is Babu
I : wow! You know quite a lot, about me..
Here is a germ of an idea. Why dont you come to my office.
And catch me by my collar. And give me a slap on my face?
H : (said something which I didnt hear properly)
I : Hey, what was that last statement, can you repeat it ?
H : Golden words are not repeated, okay?
I : Scratch that gold off, and say that again, will you ?
H : (annoyed and irritated) I'm gonna call the police right now.
And its gonna end now. I'll come straight to your home from the police
station and I'm gonna deal with your dad.
I : You have said that 'police' dialogue for more than a few times now.
Now will you please put it to action ? Thank you.
And I slammed the phone down.


Now the hardware engineer in me got up from sleep.
Let me get it out.
Case 1:
I had lost my mobile long back, along with the sim.
Soon after the loss, I had approached my service provider
to get a duplicate sim. They assured, once my duplicate sim
is activated, the other sim is just a piece of silicon. It
would go inactive.
Now, can this be a flaw in technology ? Is the other sim
living in some other handset? But then I did not lose a single
paisa, without my knowledge, I keep track of all the phone calls..
but still, can it so happen ?
If it can happen, then this guy is genuine; rather COULD BE genuine.

Case 2:
The guy is a fraud.
He is trying to fool around.
He will do an emotional black mail and hold a meeting with me for
a compromise. He will grab my belongings and my account card and flee.
The fact that it is end of the month (time for the salary to be
credited to the account) adds to this argument..

Case 3: (just a foolish thought)
I have this offer of 100 sms per day, at a nominal 1 rupee deduction
per day. And I use this number of 100 to full use. that means 3000
sms per month. This will add up to the traffic of my service
provider. And they are trying to stop me.
But is it enough to stop me from smsing ? NO

Case 4:
I have this HTML code with me which I use to send sms
from PC to mobile. And occassionally I send msgs to myself, just
to check the delay, whether it is working fine, etc..
But 99% of the messages are sent to other numbers.
To my cousins and friends.
I suspect the PC-to-mobile smsing is a tweak on a certain
mobile service provider's system. And they wanna stop it.
But they have other decent means to stop it.
And how the hell do they nail down and find MY number ?!

Case 5:
A friend of mine is playing pranks on me.

A possible outcome of case1:
Assuming that this guy has been getting vulgar sms from my number.
He goes to the police. Lodges a complaint.
Police starts enquiry. They check my application form at the
mobile service provider.
The address is outdated. I have shifted home twice..
But that is no deal. They can track the calls from my mobile
and get information about me, from those numbers.
They come searching for me.
I tell them that this is a false acquisition, and they cannot
hold me guilty, without solid evidence. They cannot come to
my house without any evidence, in the first place.
The police gets in touch with the service provider.
Digs out the calls/msg report from the repository.
Finds no message sent to the number that the guy says.
That should be the end of it..


Of all the options, case 2 is the most probable one.
Case 5 also has a decent probability...

I called up Geo to enquire if he or his friends called me a while back.
I explained the whole story to him. He assured me that its not him.
And there are no other probable chaps to play this game...

I went to bed on Friday night, a bit depressed, a bit restless.

Saturday morning.
This matter did not come to my mind at all.
Until the same number flashed on my screen again at around 12 noon.
I switched off my mobile.

Switched on later, in silent mode.
Had a nap in the noon. Got up and found missed calls from 3 different
numbers. One of them was this number. The guy would have tried to
reach me from different numbers.. But his plot is not gonna work !

No calls later in the day.
NO calls on Sunday also.

Will he call again ?
Should I pick up the phone ?
What should be my course of action if he calls ?
I should consider myself smart, not having given ANY info
whatsoever about myself, even after repeated questioning by
this guy (who calls himself, Rajat ; that is a fraud name for
sure). He refused to give any further info about him too...

A possible drama on Monday
The guy manages to get me on the phone again.
He repeats the same old story.
Just to check, I ask him, how can this claim be proved wrong.
He will say, 'come to so-and-so place'. I will show the mobile.
Now that is a smart plot. I should not yield to that.
I would hang up, and call up my service provider telling
them that I'm getting threatening calls from so-and-so
phone number. They will suggest a plan of action.
I can also try digging out the information about
the number myself, from the net, or thru my friends
(who are working in different industries..)

Well, Lets wait and see !
_____________________________________
I plan not to publish the numbers, for the time being...
_____________________________________

Is Bangalore, progressively(?) becoming a nightmarish place to live?
Check the Robbery Attempt which I survived a few months back..

Bangalore Rain Update

Rain in Bangalore

Bangalore doesnt get too much of rains usually.
And the public go out in the rainy seasons with no umbrellas, no precautions.
They know even if it rains, it wont stay for long.

But then on Oct22 and Oct23, it rained the whole day (and the whole night too)
Since it was a weekend, the rain did not affect the life in a big way.
All of us stayed back at home.. Getting out occassionally when the sun comes out.

The Monday morning newspaper had surprising stories to tell..
The rain was too heavy in some parts, and it rained non-stop.
The result, flooded roads, flooded basements, overflowing rivers, spilling water
tanks, blocked roads..

One of the major IT firms that has a shop in the famous Hosur Road got flooded.
Water rushed into the basement. The Basement is below the road level.
Even part of the ground floor is below the road level.
Rain water damaged many equipments and other infra devices.

The situation dint change much on Tuesday.
The flooded offices did not function on Monday and Tuesday.
It was raining all day on Tuesday also.

But luckily, rain subsided by Tuesday night.
It did not rain too much in the night.

And on Wednesday (today) sun is out. (Rain also seems to be out, for the day)

Schools are closed for two days.
Police Commissioner has urged the public to stay indoor, unless absolutely necessary to get out.

But the poor IT guyz (me included) struggled to get to office and have to 'work' the whole day

Had a talk with one of my friend who has to commute on the infamous Hosur Road to get to his office.

R: Hellon. How did you reach office today ? Swimming ?
G: hahaaa. Nope, on bike
R: Wow, is that a multi-terrain bike? Land and water type ?
G: :D
G: Do u remember the good old childhood days when we used to play with toy boats ?
G: The ones that make this "bhum bhum" sound ?
R: Yeah.. very much
G: Thats exactly the sound that my bike made today. Super Digital Dolby experience
R: haa !
G: I did some acrobatics on the bike - just to stay dry
G: placed my legs on the crash guard - but still water splashed on to my trousers :(
R: Phewy.. Circus on bike on HR ?!! Kewl :D
G: I am highly confident about my bike now.
R: Hmm ? huh ? why ??
G: Can use it as a hover craft also . Haahaaa :))
R: Haa haaa... hoooo !!

Some pictures given below

Bangalore Rain

IT Guyz Gone Mad ?

Statuvattery Barning : The following story is in Malayalam, written in English?
Did that confuse you ? Then this is not for you !

Nattucha neram.
Ethaandoru randu randara aayikkaanum..
Kizhakku vella keeri
(ngae ? raavile keeri enno ? ippo onnoode keeriyaal ninakkenethaa pulikkuvo)
Neriya chaattal mazha undu
Koramangala 4th Block
Bharath Gas Agency.
naattukaar nokkumbozhey..
randu per caril vannirangunnu..
randu perudem kazhuthil tag..
oruthan elumban..
oruthan thadiyan..
kandaal nalla kudumbathil pirannathaanenneey parayu..
pakshe enthu parayaanaa..
vattaayi..
IT company tag um ittu gas supply cheyyaan nadakkunnu !
avar caril vannirangi oru cylinder eduthu purathekkittu..
ennittu chavitti urutti agency ilottu ketii..
kurachu neram kayinju dhaa pinnem barunnu..
beroru cylinder chabitti urutti kondu..
ennittathu thaangi pidichu bandi ilottu oreru..
ennittu randu perum podeem thatti sthalam bittu..

On The Dance Floor

Jaggu: Hi Ratheesh, Which team are you in for the culturals ?

Rat: I'm not in any team. We dont have any TM(Technical Manager) to lead us (for the time being)

Jaggu: Great. I mean.. Can you join our team ?

Rat: Why? Yes, no problem..

The discussion gives a feeling that I 'm gonna join a team of performers.
All I need to do is to be with us to add a head count.

But thats not the true picture.
It was a total mess.
We went to the gym.
Thats where we have some room for rehearsal..

Some 7-8 guyz and galz..
All staring at each other.. And doing nothing else.
I asked Jaggu. Ok So who's gonna do the choreo ?
Arey kyaa yaar.. You only have to do it.
Me :-O

Now I got it..
This guy has counted me based on my performance , a couple of years back - another cultural fest..

Now since it is a chance to get on stage, I decided to go ahead.
Wednesday night - song selection, mixing, rendering - all at my works station.
Wednesday late night - choreography (in my mind)
Thursday full day - rehearsals
(Fashion show rehearsal also went on , hand in hand..)
Friday !

The big day.
The first program is ours..
Fashion show first.
Had a look at the stage. 5 ppl can barely stand over it - so clumsy !
And here we are - 10 of us, planning to form single train and double train on the stage.
Sudden change of plan - Ramp extension.
No physical extension of the stage, just that we, the models would jump out of the stage and walk a few steps
in between the audience.
That move was well received :)

The very name of the show was Fun Show (I suggested Falthoo show, but that was rejected)
:D

Had real fun. Lotsa laffs between us and in the audience.
Who wont laugh - with models coming in ethnic kurtha, and a sunglass to top it up !
and with models coming in flashy fluourescent T shirts (the colors in the higher frequency domain!)

Fashion show ends... Gap filler - mouth organ by Sheku.

Gives ample time for a dress change.
We gear up in the dance costume - blue jeans, red shirt.
(The same fashion show team forms the dance team, okay - 4 of us - a gal too)

Got onto the stage.
And started the zero-co-ordination dance.
Luckily for us, most of the time, the stage was illuminated by flickering light.
That means, the audience will be left with their own imagination on What the Heck is Going on..
:)
And for the final formation (where u stand still and pose for the camera with cheese all over your face),
the intelligent light engineer turns on the main light..

The over excited crowd made sure that our feet didnt touch the floor..
We were carried away !
The stage rocked !

_____________________________________________________________________
Add the following to the end of the last three lines
1. they made us fly
2. in stretchers
3. there were too many rocks. A thorough cleanup was required before the next pgm could start..

:D

Oct 21

A lot to write about today.
But busy with the activity (which I'm gonna write down)
No time to do the writing today.
But I swear, you can find it the next day !

Chanakya Quote

Happened to come across a quote.
By the legendary Chanakya (Indian politician, strategist and writer, 350 BC-275 BC)

The quote goes like this
"There is some self-interest behind every friendship. There is no
friendship without self-interests. This is a bitter truth."

Thought over it.
Again and again.
Can it be true ?
No, said my mind..

Quickly had a preview of all my friends in my mind..
No, it cant be true. My friendships (and theirs) are not based on any
self-interest. There may be exceptions - but then the majority is pure
friendship.

But then, there is another aspect.
I asked this friend of mine, Ms N
Why do I chat with you ?
Why do I keep in touch you ?
Why do I make friends with you ?

N asked - Y ?

I had my reply.
Because I find myself happy in your company.
This statement hits the Bull's Eye.
It is for MY happines.. My joy !
Take it in that angle, and yes, my friendship with her is with an interest
in mind - A harmless one, and a good one for that matter.

But then every thing in this world happens with a reason
(Naay.. This is not a statement from Matrix)

Think of it and even if you initially wonder, is there any reason for that ?
Finally you will come up with a reason - You will be able to !
The reason that you've found out could be totally different from another
person's ..
But still there IS a reason

Taking the argument (rather, reasoning) forward, you can extend it to
friendship. Friendship also happens with a reason.
"You feel happy, joyous, jubiliant, cared-for in friendship"

But then, there is this question.
Why does Chanakya put it as a "bitter truth" ?
Can write a whole new 2-page write-up on this too :)

____________________________________________________
What I learned today :
How long does it take to train a bunch of
amateurs for a fashion show and a dance competition ?
2 days :)
(But the audience will have their own verdict!!)
Watchout for more on this topic...

Can they.. Or Can they not ?

And that is when I too started pondering..
I have always been giving this advice to all my dear friends.
Love is a great feeling for you.
Gives a new meaning to your life.
Makes you feel that you are important and you are cared for.
Gives you happiness and takes you upon cloud number nine.
But then note the abve 4 lines.
It brings all the joy to 'you' - the two of you.
Think about what your parents will go through.
And your relatives..
In our tradition, unlike the western equivalent, falling in love
brings trouble and pain to all but you.
We tend not to care for (if not forget) the care that our loved ones
(that included parents, friends and every single person u r related to,
directly or indirectly) have for us.

Now if it your love is approved by your parents, No Worries !
Go out and feel like God. There ought to be no stopping.
But in majority of the cases, it wont be so..

Have friends, Have girl friends, enjoy life. Settle down comfortably.

Now that brings another thought.
"Girl Friend"
Say this, and every one around you starts to frown.
"You have a girl friend? Who is it ? How long have you been in touch ?
Why didnt you tell me ? What is your relationship with her ?"

God save you, so that the questions stop there..

Here is my view about the word Girl Friend.
A girl friend, is a girl, who happens to be your friend.
Doesnt (and shouldnt) really mean that you love her, and she loves you.

Yes, I have heard my friends saying 'a girl and a boy cannot just be friends'
I've heard the same dialogue in quite a few movies also.
And then, the very same guys also say "Anything is possible"

hahahaaa... Strange. And weird.

_________________________________________________

What I learnt today : Cat house is another term for a house of prostitution
Note : Thats no way related to the story printed above, okay ? :)

Random Thoughts

Random thoughts

1. There is a huge difference between staying in a company for 2 years, and
switching companies in the same time span. Jump to a different company,
work there for a yr, come back and you'll get almost double the salary
you would otherwise have got if you had stayed in the same company all along.

2. There is a touch screen oscilloscope in our lab. I turned it on yesterday to
see if it still is in good shape. In the boot up phase, it does a series of
checks. And displays the test result on the screen. The last test failed.
The message was "Touch Screen test failed" !

3. I have an mp3 player - pocket type. Recently, it started behaving odd. After
playing a song, it doesnt move forward to the next track. Stops there.
I went to their website, hoping to get some help. No use. The site itself doesnt
work. So got their support email id and drafted a mail. Just about to click send
button, I saw my floppy drive being read. How did that happen ? Strange !!

4. Why do I still have in my mind, the S7 Microprocessor Lab exam? Well, how can I
forget? To have the no-back-paper tag on you is a fete. But that day almost
ruined it.. A wrong address read, and the program crashed. Coded it back in the
last 3 mins and got it running .. Phew... !

5. On the way to office, saw a hole - a real big one - on the famous MG Road.
Near the KC Das signal. A scooter can easily go into it.. Bad maintenance.

Oh No.. Not Again !

Is this seasonal ?
Does this happen every year ?
Or .. is it every month ?
Every fortnight ??

It sure looks as if it is a pre-coded activity.
There is no stopping..

There is not many soul (who reads this) who doesnt know about Alex
and his favorite hobby.
A hobby which costs him a lot - financially and mentally..


You might have guessed it by now.
Yes - Alex lost his mobile (again)

Now you'll be asking - when did he buy this phone ? After having lost his prev
one ? He never told you . . .

True, he kept it a secret.
He did not want to make it a big news..
I would say, he foresaw this one also vanishing into thin air - or rather, into
the hands of the 'poor and the needy'

It was only on Saturday that Dipu, Geo and Jins got his number from me.
And by this time, the mobile had reached 'safe' hands..

For the details, listen to the hero himself:

Wednesday(12th) raavile oru 7.30am.

njaan nalla urakkamaa – in the drawing room

yenikku oru phone call – from a close friend working in Infosys.

After talikin to him, I go to toilet to have 1 & 2 and 3 (pallu thekkal)

thirichu bannu aideyellam nokkeettum mobile kaanunnilla. (door was open)

I went to Church at 8am without mobile.



When I came bak frm the Church, my room mate was there and I tried to call my mobile from his mobile: -“Out of range”

I went to office and tried calling to my mobile even from my office – “Out of range”

After coming back, I searched my entire house – no use!

Still tried calling many times – “Out of range”



Yente balamaaya samshayam, annu raavile yenne phone vilichavan, “Matrix” stylil mobile adichu maattiyathaano yenna :-S

(remember the Matrix scenes in which people transport thru mobile calls :P)

Over and out !


PS : I think there is a secret pact between Nokia Inc and Alex
Every time he gets rid of a mobile, a brand new model finds its place
into his pockets..

Saturday Flight Plan

Sat, Oct15, 2005

With a big trip in mind, got up at 7 in the morning.
Got on the bike at 8 and reached Dipu's house in record 30 mins..

Aaah... Dipu in saaaaaaaaavund sleep !
The next 2 hrs were spent in waking him up.

Reached autobahn (that's where kiron and geo stay) at 11.30
Learning that the fantasy park plan wont work out any more,
we cut short the trip to Forum - Shopping Mall.

Bolero and kiron were ready as usual.

Fashion show in Forum !
It was a sari company, showcasing their product range..
Show casing of sari, and not a single lady in the audience (almost..)
It was an all gents affair . . .

Not finding it any interesting, climbed up to check if there are any
good films being screened.
Zeroed in on 'FlightPlan' - Judie Foster.
2.35pm show.
More than an hour to go..
Headed to Kairali Hotel for lunch.

Back to forum. Into the cinema..
Titles were great..
Well begun, half done.

The opening shots hinted towards a crime story.. investigation..
But that wasnt to be..
The story revolved around a young girl (Foster's kid) who vanishes
into thin air on-board a flight 474..
The frantic mother does all sorts of exercises to find her kid.
But in vain.
Finally, the captain is summoned and the discussion starts..
C: 'have you been on any sort of medication?'
J: 'yes, i had been taking pills for anxiety'
J: 'and sleeping pills, just like any other passenger on the flight'

The series of questions that followed almost proved that the lady
has lost her senses and it was her illusion that the kid got into the flight.
And the flight chard had no info about this particular kid.

Captain asks the crew one by one..
Whether they have seen a kid along with Foster
The airhostess who welcomed the passengers at the door : No
The crew who took the head count of the passengers : No
The passengers seated next to Foster : No

Now.. this was too much for our Jins.
Having slept for the first 15 mins, but still having seen the kid boarding
the flight with her mother, Jins couldnt bear this sight of helplessness of
the poor mother..
He jumped on to his feet and cried out loud.
"Njaan kandathaa... Avalde koode oru kutti undaayirunnu. Oru paavayum
pidichondoru kutti undaayirunnu"

Dipu was quick to act. He pulled Jins down to his seat by his hand.
Jins gained control of the situation, and reverted to his routine activity
"Sleep"

:)

The movie was simply great.
And the dialogue "Mr Carlson, You get out of the plane, only when I say
You get out of the plane". That was the turning point between life and
death of that li'l girl...

Post movie, Geo did some batting practice.
So did Kiron.
Pay 60 bucks, bat for 3 overs, and get a tennis ball free.. Thats the offer.

Back to autobahn..
Had tea on the way.

How many ppl can sleep on a bed for one ?
Huhh ? What a weird question ?
If you thought out of the box and said "two", u got it wrong.
3 can. we prooved it.
Geo's bed - Dipu, Jins and me found enuff space on it for an hour's nap.

Dinner was supposed to be our treat - Dipu's and mine.
Birthday treat. which was long pending.

By 7.30, every soul booted up.
And left for "Filling Station" Thats the name of the hotel.
KK joined later. He had some work at office..

We had Kiron's csn for company.
Kiron was slaughtered on the dining table - with all those goals and
stories about him.. But he managed to keep his cool (as usual)

The menu consisted of butter naan, roti, and fried rice..
Had dessert too.

Back to Bolero at 9.30PM
It was too late for me to ride back to home , 16 km from there..
Opted to stay back at Autobahn.

Sho was in Forum, having given company to his uncle for shopping.
Went to pick him up. Dropped him and Jins at Jins' house..

Rest of the gang - Geo, Kir, KK, Dipu, Kir csn and me headed for autobahn
They had a round of cards. The game lasted for more than half an hour.
Dipu and KK left after that.
I pulled out a 'paa' and lay flat on it.
The early-morning wake-up , and the running around showed up.
Slept in a snap.
________________________________________________________________
How can I end it without a JJ - Jins Joke ?

So here I was, at Dipus house trying to get him out of hibernation.
In the mean time, I messaged Jins to get up and get ready.
He replied. "Njaan eneetu. Ravile m ne"
Can you make out anything from that ?! Even I couldnt.
Later when we asked him, he himself had no clue, what that meant !
And when he recollected, he came rushing to explain. That was "Ravile 6 ne"
He had got up at 6 in the morning. Blame that m onto his nokia butterfly mobile
which doesnt display alternate lines on the screen !!

Friday Blue ?!

The general trend is that when it comes a Friday,
there will be smiles all around my face.
But this day, donno why.. Not much of enthu on my tiger-head..

Anyways, the day must go on.
Getting up at 6.45 doesnt seem to be a big challenge these days.
Thanks to mom's calls..

Quick routine acts and there I am in my office van..
With my mp3 player plugged tight into the ears..

Ours is a strange van.
Not much of talking..
All love the idle state of mind..
And nobody dare disturb that.

I have talking partners in Ms M and Mr B.
But not inside the bus.. Only at the waiting station.

8.30 inside the office.
Login to the PC. Check the mails.
Great - no work today (too)
:)

Yet another day , fun filled day , with all mails and all chat.. and no work.
Yummy !

Just not to spend the whole day wasting time, thought I should do something
creative. So clogged the office network by downloading half a dozen songs.
And if you have something others dont have, you share it.
So there goes some more traffic, this time, host is my PC.
Wonder when will the admins come looking for the chap sitting in front of my PC.
Aah.. thats me, myself, and myself (not irene)

Then came the idea of organizing a treat get-together.
My bday treat was long pending.
So was my friend Mr D's
Caught him on chat. Got his approval for a dinner on Saturday.

And got nods from the rest of the gang too..
An outing was also in the cards, but there are some inconveniences..
So in the end, it may be just a get-together in one of the houses..
followed by dinner treat.


Just when all these plannings were going on - a mail from security..
Splaaaaaashhhhhhhhhh!!
Is it end of the world ?!
Opened it.. Aaah.. some crap thing.. Nothing to worry about :)
But action required all the same.
Forwarded that mail to peers..
Best example of outsourcing.
Why bother, when someone else can do it for you ?!!


11.57 AM is too much..
Lunch time is still 33 mins ahead..
There is no hard and fast rule that you should have lunch only at 12.30
But that is a convenient time for all the lunch team members..

Let me start pinging 'em one bye one..

Over and out (for the time being)

My First Day in Bar

For Hostellites, an invitation to a Day-skee's house to spend a day is
a dream-come-true.
And it cant be any better, than an invitation for a Sadya on the day of Vishu.

Ajith was more than happy to invite his best friends - Dipu and me - to his
home for a get-together.
Arun PS was also invited.

Hostel ile saha anthevaasikale ellaam kothippichu nirthi njaanum
Dipuvum purappettu
Dipu was developing into an expert rider those days.
And he consciously, used not to let go of any opportunity to sit closer to the
handle on a bike, on which he was travelling..

Problem no. 1
We decided to go to Ajith's house on bike. But on whose bike ?
Neither me, nor he, has a bike.
So the privelege goes to KK (who else)
And we both happily started from the hostel, on KK's max100.

Aaah.. that sound of max100 was music to many ears.
it had been the Taxi of Bethany.
no other bike in the history of Bethany would have had its odometer ticking
like this, while on duty for Bethany !
Thanks to KK, many guyz in Bethany (like Ullas) took up mess responsiblities -
hiring not just KK's bike , but also KK , for mess service..

Dipu is a very choosy guy.
He doesnt like going to too many guys, asking for bike.
KK was his favorite. Then comes Asim.
Asim was a +1 student when he joined the Bethany bandwagon.
And he doesnt mind lending his splendor to "Deepu Chettan"

But Dipu was all the more comfy with KK's bike.
The reason - it is a 2-stroke machine.
And that a 2-stroke bike jerks less than a 4-stroke bike is known to many.

I'm not a Mech Expert.
So lets go on with the story...

It was a smooth ride to Ajith's house.
His house is near the quite walls of the Pangode Military Camp..
A nicely maitained camp, with so many greenery..
And nice roads, lots of fresh air..

With me in the navigator role, Dipu has never lost his way.
Even KK would agree to this :D
(Thats a different story)

Reach Ajith's home..
Parked the bike.
Went in to see the smiling faces of Ajith and his family.
His dad is in CBI. Delhi office.
His brother is no new to us. He is our junior in college.
And he has a sis. I guess, she was still in schools then..
And aloving mom.

Ajith took us to his room.
A lot of fancy items in there..
The DSP processor which he deviced was lying there... connected to his PC.
He explained its working to two "very interested" friend of his.
Fate, what else..
Sadya unnaan kurachu thallum kelkanam....

After quite a bit of wandering here 'n there, the much awaited call came.
Ajith's amma "Ennaa choru kazhichoodey"

Chaadi veenu..
Meshappurathu niraye vibhavangall..
Pala tharam !
Yummy dishes...
Kondu vechathum theernnathum maathram ormayundu.

Avasaanam oru embakkavum vittu eneetu.
Kurachu neram avidem ividem okke thirinju kalichu.

Went for a walk.
Along the military roads..
Saw an officer on guard.
Ajith explained that he stands there, morning to evening, doing nothing but
'taking guard'
Such discipline ! Hm... it takes a lot to be a military officer..

When it started drizzling a bit, took a U turn and got back home..

In a few minutes, Dipu and I thought, "ithrem budhimuttichathu mathi.
pack cheyyaam"

So there we were.
Back on bike.
The family saw us off.

Ajith's house is a bit up hill.
Riding down hill is fun..
The first few turns went smooth.
This was the discussion.

R: "Aahh.. What a wonderful way to start a new year"
D: "Ngae ? New year o ? Ninakku velivu nashtappetto ?"
R: "hahaha .. nalla thamaasha"
D: "thamaasha ethu kaaryamethu ennu manasilaakkaan polum pattillennaayo ?"
R: "Da , innu new year aa"
D: "ethu planet ilaa ? "
R: "Bloody fool, innu malayaalam puthuvalsaramaa"
D: "oh.. gbb.. glubb.. jab.. aa.. athey athey. athu thanneyalley
njaanum paranjathu"
R: :-S ippo angene aayo ?!

D: sheriyaa.. new year day ingane enkil ini angottu enthaayirikkum ?
(note that dialogue)
R: very true.. ee varsham muzhuvan nalla treat aayirikkum.. nalla
vibhava-samrudhamaaya oru varsham njaan munnil kaanunnu
(note this dialogue also)

R: Da.. nee oru kaaryam note cheytho ?
D: Enthaadaa ?
R: Ee kk-de bike undallo.. sundaramaaya performance aa..
D: athey athey.. valare correct.
R: Ippo thanney kando.. yaathoru sound um illa.
D: Athenthaa ennariyaamo ? Engine ippo off aa..
R: Athenthinaa nee off cheythey ? Petrol laabikkaanaano pikkushaa ?!
D: Petrol laabikkaanum onnumalla.. vandi angu off aayi ppoyi..

R: Ninne okke evidunnaa vandi odikkaan padippichathu ? Njaan odikkano ?
D: Da, puthuvalsarathile baakki divasangalum koode onnu kandaal kollaam ennundu
R: ngaa.. ennaa nee thanney odicho..

R: oru kaaryam chey. vandi nirthu
(bike was still on its down hill path)

We stopped by the road, gave it a few powerful kicks and there u r. It started.
2 more turns, and the bike again stopped.
some more kicks and it started..
This continued a couple of times.

Finally, the engineering brilliance started working
Dipu was the first to put forward his finding

D: Da, entho kozhappamundu
R: Sheriyaa.. entho kozhappamundu
D: Enthu cheyyum ?
R: Hm... irakkamalley.. thalli vidaam.. aadyam kaanunna mechanic ine kaanikkam

Now, I dint have Google Earth installed in my watch to correctly
suggest that there
is a bike mechanic nearby. But it was my day (note this statement)
There indeed was a bike mechanic at the next turn.

Praise the lord.
The mechanic, screwed out the spark plug, cleaned it, put it back.
First kick , and there you are. The bike was raring to go..

With no further major mechanical glitches, we managed to reach PMG.
Again problems...
Same old problem,.. bike wont start..

But then we knew there is a TVS showroom near by..
Managed to get the bike to the showroom.

Now this is what you would call "Times of India"
Showroom closed !
(may be due to the festive nature of the day, was it a sunday too ??!!)

Came to know that there is a mechanic near by.
Time was flying like anything..
5 in the evening and we are still on the roads..

Guided ourselves (and the bike) to that mechanic's house.
His wife greeted us..
"Aalu sthalathilla.. alpam kazhinju varum"

Oh sheri.. a long wait.
And yes indeed he turned up.

He checked the bike.
Boy, he IS a real mechanic.
he did that great thing..
Checked for fuel.. Not a drop inside !!!

Dipuvum njaanum mukhathodu mukham nokki ninnu poyi !

Now, its not the right time for a blame game..
What next is the golden question.

The nearest petrol pump is 3km from the place where we are.
What to do ?
The mechanic doesnt have any stock with him..

Do you believe in God ?
If not, you would have started believing if u were in our shoes that day
(Daa dipu, annu nammal shoe ittirunno ? AAaahh... )

A God sent 'Angel' came on his Yamaha.
A friend of the mechanic, and his neighbour, he came to know the
trouble we are in.

After narrating some of his past experiences of no-fuel condition, he opened up
his tool box. There u r - a small bottle , u cant call it a bottle..
its the kinda
container in which u get those homeo tablets.. yes such a small thing.
But contained what we needed - Fuel !!

The Angel - You can take this.
D: Thanks chettaa. ithinte paisa njangal thannolam
A: paisayo ? snehamaanu valuthu. paisa onnum venda..
R: Chettan angane parayaruthu.. (i thot he is gonna that fuel for free)
A: Ningal aa bottle athu pole fill cheythu thannaa mathi
D: Hmm.. oru kaaaryam cheyyaam namukkithum adichu poyi petrol adichittu varaam.
Ennittu kurachu ee bottle il aakki kondu varuvem cheyyaam.
A: Athengane sheriyaavum ? ningal athu vazhi angu poykalanjaalo.. ?!

R: Dipu, nee poyi adichittu kuppeelaakki kondu baa.. njaan ivide nilkaam
(Wow ! what a bold decision. yes indeed, a bold decision.. read on to
find why..)


OK.
All set and decided and finalised.
Dipu goes on bike in search of petrol.
I stand there in front of the mechanic's house.
In company of the Angel.
15 mins
20 mins
25 mins (let me increase the step, else this page will be wasted..)
35 mins
50 mins

Where is this guy named Dipu

I started worrying for him.. Ini ivan valla lorreede adiyilum petto ?
Licence undennullathu sathyam. But then, Algol inu vare licence ulla kaalamaa !

1 hr !

No sign of Dipu.
Meanwhile, the Angel started getting irritated and restless.
He went on his bike to some place and came back..
Still no sign of Dipu.
He came near me.. smell of liquor - intense smell

A: Evidedo ninte koottukaaran?
R: kaanunnillallo..
A: ngaa.. kaanunnillallo.. enthonna avante peru?
R: Dipu
A: ninakkethra varshamaayittariyaam ?
R: 2 varshamaayittariyaam
A: Sherikkariyaamo avane ?
R: ngaa.. ente room mate aa.. nallonam ariyaam

A: hmm.. evidathu kaaranaa avan ?
R: Kottayam..
A: hmm.. kottayam kaare onnum vishwasikkaan pattilla..
Enthaa avan ithrem thaamasikkunney
(by this time, the tone has changed. it was getting dark. visibility
getting lower.
and the mechanic's house locked from inside. just me and that man on the road.
a pocket road. no one in the vicinity. mosquitoes flying around and biting.
no street lights nearby)

R: avanu bike odikkaan athra nannaayittonnum ariyilla. ini engaanum ?
A: engaanum ??
R: evideyenkilum idichu kaanumo ?
A: nee keru . namukkonnu poyi nokkam.. ithangane vittaal pattilallo.

I have no other option but to get on the bike.




I recollect screaming my heart out on the Tora Tora in VGP, Chennai.
And on the worm rides.. Very scary..

I thought those were the scariest things on wheels.
i was wrongs.
This guy and his bike are even more scary.

A drunkard is one who is drunk.
(aah.. thanks for that valuable info)
And he is one who bothers not , of the traffic.
(now that is scary)
Given the power , a yamaha bike can deliver , u can imagine the situation.

he cruised along at stunning terrific speeds.
From pocket roads, he got onto heavy traffic main roads, at full throttle.
At one instance, I thought about jumping off the speeding bike.
But didnt do that..

We went straight to a bar!
Enuff to scare the hell out of me.
I dont drink. Is he gonna force me ?
Luckily he did not.
He parked the bike and grabbed me by my shoulder and got in.
I remember he tendering a 20 rupee note for a drink.

Aargh.. it was full of smoke and a filthy smell inside..
I wanted to get out..
I thought I will cry loud so that other ppl will help me.
But dint do that.. My sound wont come out at all.

Finally he got out.
Back on bike. me on back..
I'd lost all hope.
I was almost sure that this will land both of us into a hospital.
Such was his rash riding..

We went to the nearest petrol pump. No dipu.
I started breaking down, from inside..
And signs started showing up on my face..

He started cursing Dipu in bad words..
His anger was clearly visible in his riding.

At times he would say
"nee avante koode nadakkanda.. avan chathiyanaa.. Kottayam kaaranalley.."

Finally we reach back to the mechanic's house.

To my greatest relief, Dipu was there standing by KK's bike.
The man saw Dipu in the dwindling light.

Before Dipu starts of with any excuse, I wanted to warn him, lest this
guy does some unforeseen actions..
The very structure of my face gave Dipu a first hand info of the situation.
He would have made out that there indeed is something wrong.
And I tried to convey this thru my hand expressions too...
(well, that was not needed, my face told it all)


A: Enthaadaa ninte vichaaram ?
D: Ayyo chettaa.. athu pinney..
A: Vendaa.. nee onnum parayanda.. Edaa ninne kandappozhey enikku thonniyathaa..
mukhathaake oru kallalakshanam.. kottayam kaarellaam ingane thanneyaadaa
D: Chetta.. petrol vaangaan poyappo...
A: Vendaa.. ninnodu njaan orikkal paranju .. mindaruthennu..
Ivan paavamaa.. Eda.. nee avante koode nadakkanda.. kandilley, ninne ingane
ivide ittechu poyathu.. Nee ini ivante koode nadakkaruthu . Nadakkuvo ?
R: Illa.. nadakkilla.

The drunken dark man went on abusing and cursing Dipu.
Thank God, he did not man handle any of us..

Dipu had his bottle filled up at the pump.
He handed it over to the man.
He took it , reluctantly.. but with more dialogues.

A: Edaa.. ninte ee oru kunju paatta petrol inu vendi onnumalledaa njaan vannathu
manushyanmaaraayaal sneham venam.. vishwaasam venam.
paranja vaakkinu vila venam.
enikkenthaa joliyum kooliyum onnumillennu vichaaricho neey ?
ente onnara manikkur veruthey minakkeduthiyille nee..
athinaaru samaadhaanam parayum ?

D: (pocketil kai ittondu) Chettaa.. ithu muzhuvan chettan edutho.
ente kaiyil vere onnumilla.

A: Phaaa.. ninte pichakkaashonnum enikku venda. kondu podaaa ***


After a few more arguments, some how we managed to take ourselves out of that
mess. Dipu on the driving seat. Me on the back.

Dipu gathered that I am in a frenzy. May burst out any time..
He handled the situation nicely..
He kept his kool and speaked in soothing tone.

The bike sped towards the hostel. It was late and nearing 7.30PM
R: nee evide poyathaadaa ? (even the sound was shivering)
D: Da, aa mechanic entho oru tube vaangaan paranjathu orkkunnilley ?
athu vaangaan
poyathaa..
R: Manushan ivide jeevan povaathe nokkumbazha avante ammoommede tube.

Intelligent Dipu kept quiet there after.
I narrated the entire story on the way back to hostel..
He got a grab on the situation. And got an idea on why my face was so much out
of place..

That night, I couldnt have my dinner properly.

And we thought "ee varsham muzhuvan nalla treat aayirikkum"



A very memorable day from my life.
This happened 4 years back, and I could write it down event-by-event even on
this day !

Accident Again !

I had got hit on my brand new bike, the very next day after i bought it...
And barely 3 months after that.. here is a second one.
This time a sumo.
And with a twist !!

Read on.
It is in the form of a chat transcript (in English - Malayalam)
_________________________________________________________________

Geo: idichooo?

Rat: ys

Rat: [B-)]

Geo: evide?

Rat: Near BDA complex.

Geo: eppo

Geo: aare

Geo: same location?

Rat: yes.. ethaandu [:)]

Rat: near shanthi sagar..

Rat: further down the road..

Rat: A sumo..

Geo: kollaam

Rat: thanks [:)]

Geo: aare? enthine?

Geo: vallathum pattiyoo?

Rat: Sumo.

Geo: salle

Geo: ithavana major aaanallo

Rat: hmm..

Rat: front chalungi..

Rat: aake bahalamaayi.

Rat: njaan nadannu office ilottu ponnu

Geo: thadi keedaayo?

Geo: enthu bahalam?

Rat: illa.. aarkum onnum pattiyilla.

Rat: vandi acccident aayaalulla bahalam..

Geo: hmm

Geo: oho

Geo: aarade kozhappam?

Geo: sumo-kkaarante?

Rat: alla..

Rat: nammude driverinteyaa..

Geo: kalipp

Geo: case aayoo?

Rat: yevidunnu..

Rat: vandi avide kidakkuvaa..

Geo: ooriyoo?

Rat: njaan ingu ponnu

Geo: good good

Rat: thank you thank you [:)]

Geo: vandi avide kidakkuvaaa

Geo: [:-O]

Geo: athu vende?

Geo: aaru edukkum?

Rat: enikkenthinaa ?

Geo: [:-O]

Rat: vykittu vere vandi varum..

Geo: oho

Geo: company bus aarunnu alle?

Geo: aashippichu

Geo: [:-(]

Rat: [:))]

Geo: cheyyy...complete kalanju

Rat: othukki othukki [:))]

Rat: pettti [=))]

Rat: kerikko kerikko [:))]

Geo: othukkappettu [:(]

Geo: over over...from petti

Rat: [:))]