The Conversation

It was one year… one whole year since he read any novel or penned down any ideas that were brewing in his bottomless void of a brain. One year since he touched his sketchbook or held his paintbrushes… One year he has been suppressing all his creative energy… all for a sole goal!! Was it worth that?! Is a PG seat worth losing ones identity??!!!

U dont have any perspective in life

U dont wanna achieve anything

U are happy wit yourself tho u r nothing

If u r like this only nobody wil lik u or wanna b wit u

To add to all this, there is isolation. Gone were the days when his parents scolded him – ‘Put down that PHONE…you talk too much’, or, ‘stop messaging at least while you are eating!!’ Now he hardly speaks to anyone, even when he does it is – MCQ, exams, scores. It seems there is nothing left in his life but studies.

Doesn’t it prick u when ur classmate gets thru n u don’t

Don’t you ever feel bad calling them ‘brilliant’

V r born to make good doctors

Our aim in life till we succeed shud b only makin it come true

N its not abt enjoyin life thinking that v may not b able to do so tomo

It was one of those rare days when he and many of his friends met up, watched a college flick movie. They were standing outside the theater and chatting when it struck him – he wasn’t commenting on the movie, nor was he reviewing it, but was thinking about the topics he had to cover up that night before bed.

Lifes not about watchin a movie or enjoyin it

I agree it’s a part n parcel of life, but not that

Life is a part and parcel of amusement!

All these things will be there they wont vanish

But I don’t think PGI or NIMHANS will do another exam

Sayin-‘poor fella’d been watchin a movie, so didn’t do well

So let us conduct the exam again’!!!!

Enlightment is always hard. Suddenly the dark clouds of depression had taken him over. Situation was never going to be better, the days of calm/relaxation/enjoyment were over… for good. He needed to vent out his frustration, he needed to vent before he would just burst out into an anonymous speck on this dirty world.

Come on, get agitated, get irritated and shout

‘I’m somehow gonna make it thru this time’

Take it as a challenge

Imagine once you get into a nice course, it’ll automatically drive you

After that you can go happily wherever you want

U urself wil hav the satisfaction-

‘I’ve everything in life’

At this juncture ‘these’ messages from a friend unawares of this gruesome reality revived him, resuscitated him to move further, to go on and on and on and on…..

-Logica-Incognito

Shootout At Cubbon Park

A Stone on the Path

I am there by the side of the road,
Same way I was there before;
Watching movement across the path
People do move there, quite a lot;
Some tired and some depressed,
Choose me as their place to rest.
Giving joy is not my task,
Some sort of refuge, is all they ask.

Withered by the sky am I,
Birds watching over me as they fly,
They need no rest they need no roof,
Their layings on me, their only proof.

People get back in their sway
Saying-'You were the one who moved away.'
But who am I to have a say...-
I'm just a stone, by your path I lay.
What else can I do but to say
'I'll be here... you go adead and play!'

-LogicaIncognito

Knock knock. Who’s it? A Doc

Its been over 2 weeks now and life continues to drive me along (baduku jaTakabanDi vidhi adara saheba! How true!), communication with others has already taken a backseat, I’ve fallen off track into my present world, a mundane unusual routine…only interrupted once in a while by my mobile frantically buzzing with ‘forwards’. They always bring a smile upon my face now, no matter how pathetic they are or no matter who sent them…I instinctively reply back with my own forward which relates to something or some incident which related to us….. No one will ever notice the connection…but, I have to do it anyhow.

Suddenly a flutter ran down my heart and a heart-wrenching wail!!... No… nothing happened to me but its just my new ring tone, mobile buzzing in my shirt pocket.

Lokave heLida matidu
RGUHS saarave keLidu
Paassago chinte illi maaDabaradu
Marksina moolavelli keLabaradu
MBBS maaDabaradu
maaDidare PG entrance ge hedarabaradu!!

( A crude translation for benefit of non-kannadigas-
World is going gaga
Listenin to RGUHS saga
You gonna clear it easily here. Don’t worry
But for the marks that u r going to get, well I’m just sorry!!
Being doctor is not a bright sight
Pg entrances will give u a real fright )

It’s a nice ripoff of an old famous kannada song from film ‘Premaloka’ (I think! ).
It has been nicely molded by an unknown craftsman to fit it excellently to the life of RGUHS medical graduate. This got me thinking….

As I said, its been over 2 weeks now since we had our ‘Graduation Day’, one of the most important days of our lives where you are made to stand and take the Hypocrate’s oath, ( it rather hypocritical, if u come to think of it) asking to embrace the world without asing for any gratitude in reply (I don’t see how that can happen!). We went there all ’Suited up’ for the jubilious occasion on a chilly morning. Yes, a morning!! It was supposed to be a pleasant evening, but as the college management wanted to impress the prize-catch of a Chief-guest who was planning to leave by afternoon,so, it was altered. Management does not bother about the graduates or their family members who had to struggle to get away from work on a Monday morning, as long as they get a few more ‘grants’ from ICMR.

Anyway we were all there, the last time the whole batch together at one place. We in our most respectable attires, happy and content posing for the photos…until the curtains fell on our appearance. We were given our robes and hat which made us look DORKIER than ever and throwing all our comb-wars of the morning to set the hair-style right into a drain. Ok ok it was supposed to be an honour to be in that dress and all, but surely it was dorky and few years down the line we will be pleading to people that it is ‘really me’ in the photo, who’ll be like ‘Naa… don’t try to pull a fast one on me’!!!

After being bellowed a few times to maintain silence on that solemn occasion we marched into the celebration hall to take our places. The function moved on with all the speeches and us taking the oath, finally we were called on stage to receive our certificates and a badly printed blue booklet, a so called yearbook! (Cant even hope to compare it with our own ‘Discharge summary’) Having told us several times not to mess up, the organizers themselves messed up a few times by making few to wait on stage till they found their misplaced certificates and calling few names improperly ( mine being one of them, imagine that. It drained all the smile out of me then, well now, I have a good laugh about it) It got interesting when the time for students opinion came. I could almost see our dean’s heart thumping for it could have made a real difference in the chief guest’s mind and thus the ‘grants’ depended upon it. Suspense eroded and our colleagues spoke like true students, about the real Ramaiah and did not sugarcoat it. A surprise speech by one of the parents really brought out nostalgia in all of us. Finally.. the cherished tradition of throwing the hats, we did it twice with the roar erupting from all our hearts were being solidified in the 100s of cameras around us. We were all there…one last time… together… many I might never see again…. As the roar settled down and students dispersed a tremendous gloom set over me, severing me from the rest. I could not look at the scene anymore. I had an obligation which saved me from the rest of the evening though I utterly regret having missed the last encounter with the group. I was glad it was over. Driving back home I came up with a ripoff of my own – a famous movie sentence, from all the graduates stepping into this mad, bad world –

”We will not give up without a fight
We will not vanish into the night
We will survive, for
Today we celebrate our ‘Graduation Day’”
(Lousy, I know… but atleast I came up with something…..he he…)

Suddenly one more wail and I snapped back into my real world realizing what a simple forward can do to your mind. Read the second forward and instinctively replied back with one which revolved around ‘pens’,….I’m sure he’ll never realize the connection…. but , I just had to……

Vedi, Veni, Veci

The Conquest of Kumaraparvata


"Vedi, Veni, Veci" (I came , I saw, I conquered). this was a phrase introduced to me recently by an enchanted friend of mine. The true depth of these words i didn't realize until i stood at the peak of 'Pushpagiri' being the part of the only triumphant team that made it to the top, with mountain flies buzzing around my head, mist blocking half my vision and a soothing gust of cool wind tingling my warm body.



Off road bonanza.
Amused we were by the sheer confidence of our bus conductor when he told that we will surely wake up before 'Kukke' is reached. We realized the reason behind his staunch belief when we were caught off-guard, off-roading in early morning. jolts of the bus woke us while the vision outside window startled us - we were moving in the water along a riverbed!!!!. The main road had been cut and a cruel 60km deviation was to be taken and thus this experience.



Way to Kumaraparvata.
There we stood, a group of 5 with varied physique and even more varied interests in life at the same spot, who had come together with a single purpose. The conquest of Kumaraparvata had begun. wide road suddenly converged into a narrow steep path leading into the jungle.None of us were new to trekking, but that sight surely intimidated us.

Enter the jungle

The 'Dehydrant' climb.
Jungle was damp and extremely humid. Even though we were protected from the burning rays of the sun by the thick canopy overhead, the heat was unbearable. The jolly attitude buried itself within the first 15 min, the backpacks stated seeming twice as heavy and sweat started to pour out of us in quantities that a municipal tap can never manage. So tired was i that i didn't bother clicking photographs (and that is a rare occurance?!!). The introduction of leeches into the picture suddenly made it more daunting. We climbed these never ending steeps till we managed to reach the grassy uphills and alas! here we had to face the blazing rays of the afternoon sun on our already battered and beaten bodies. 14 liters of water was emptied within the first 4 km climb and we desperately hoped to reach 'Bhattaramane' before we ran out of it all.

The betel-nut trees

Bhattaramane
It is a combi-tile roofed farmhouse with a beautiful garden laden with wild flowers, tall betel nut trees, guava trees and spiky pineapples with interspersed log bridges on the path. It is the heaven for all the trekkers and the only source of food and water for them. Here we were enlightened about the fact that rain god spares none during the night, and promptly abandoned our plans of camping at the summit. Thus, it had to be at the forest-camp. Camp house is set right in front of the mountains we have to climb and gave us the picturesque view of the entanglement of mountains with mist.

Logbridges

Misty Mountains
With clear instructions towards the route ahead we started early morning. Climb was not very rough as most of our luggages were dumped in the camp. Mist played hide and seek with us all the way till the top and spared only few minutes to take pictures.

Mantapa

We reached "Mantapa" our first landmark for the day with ease. It was still 5 km to the top, but it was the beauty envisaging us and the pleasant weather that pumped our spirits as we carried on climb after climb with very little rests.Sheshaparvata was breathtaking and had the true meaning of a peak with unending drop on one side. It is not the highest point though and we were denied of any view with thick mists clouding us all the time.

Sheshaparvata

The leechy forest

The leechy forests
After the exuberance of Sheshaparvata we had to climbdown into this amazing forest. the thickest forest i have stepped into my whole life, with leeches crawling on every inch of it. With every step you manage to pick up one or two of them and by chance you stop to take them off 10 more will be onto you. At that situation your only motto will be - 'Run towards the nearest dry rock'. Thaks to these bloodsuckers you will cover the kilometer long forest very very fast.

The leech

The bite

The ooze

Stream to the top.
The leech territory is somewhat ended by this stream which runs across the path and it is more rocky thereafter. We climbed over the wobbling rocks over this tiny stream-let to reach some sort of rocky landing. After a thorough leech inspection we moved on, only to get lost for a while but finally reached the bushy tunnel through which the stream was originating. This was the only route to the top. This 'Pushpagiri' is not so exciting and is more or less flat topped and had 2 small Shiva temples. The sight and feeling at the top is unimaginable, it was worth the whole trouble which we took to reach there.

Search the Leech

The bush tunnel

Shiva gudi

Down into the downpour.
Climbdown was not an easy part, already with our legs drained out of every ounce of energy. To top it all couple of medical emergencies hit us which delayed us quite a bit. After a quick lunch and short rest at Bhattaramane we headed down only to be caught by the worst downpour of our lives. We were all bone drenched and so were all our stuff which didn't have a plastic cover around it. We had to make it till Bangalore in our damp clothes itself.




Painful memories
At home now my both lower limbs are screaming with pain, even a gentle touch is getting out a yelp from me. Movements are painful forget climbing stairs and this too after 2 days of recovery. Though a painful ending came to a mesmerising experience I'll be ready for one more any day with any one.



Thus ended my conquest of Kumaraparvata. Vedi. Veni. Veci.


For more photos please visit the link
http://www.flickr.com/photos/8501722@N08/sets/72157600243946177/

Stormy Night

It was just yesterday when everyone of us were complaining that it has become very hot here.... Bangalore has lost its olden day charm of being pleasant through-out the year. but, the people who have lived long enough in Bangalore know that it has a built in auto-temperature control mechanism...i.e, whenever temperature gets high for more than a week it Always rains to get it down. but this time it was not just rain it was thunderstorm.

in the dark of this night I came out with my Nikon S4 and in the middle of night without the facility of planning i had to take photos of the scary weather of the night... here are a few for you to relish...



Can you believe it ... this was the middle of the night!!!




And there starts the fun....

















This whole ordeal of photography was not pleasurable at all, with many a time chills running down my spine whenever the lightning got nearer.... I do regret that i couldnt capture the best ones that night ... but why bother this was my first attempt at lightning photography, i will get better..

Taken for granted

It's been a long friendship. Never missed a single moment of being together, so much so that our names become prefix/suffix to one another. Somewhere down the line your judgment towards them starts changing, you will start getting a feeling that they will always agree to whatever you say or think.... The dominant one will start making decisions concerning both without consulting the other. It is generally well taken, the for roots of this tree penetrate deep. As the time flies by a lot of changes occur, its during this time that you realise that you were 'taken for granted'.

The receiving end may not be tolerable all the time. A gasp of revolt will turn into never ending arguments. Statements will be made- 'I thought at least you would understand me!!' , '...but, you knew it all the time!'..etc. On the contrary, truth would be that you always thought they knew, you always thought they would understand, but as always they would have been unaware & quiet while suppressing their angst.

These events do pass with one consoling the other. Things may actually start looking normal but for that little thing which is already out there, that thing called 'taken for granted', it will never let you be the same..

..........People get tendencies, don't expect anything from them..........

Indeterminate towards anonymous

Indeterminate towards anonymous

‘FIRST IMPRESSIONS ARE THE BEST IMPRESSIONS’.
Let us analyze this a little and we will come to a conclusion about the truth. And, and, and… forget your suit and tie coz this one is not about appearing in the interviews. I’ll take you into a different route here. Let us consider this as your first impression about a stranger, rather a stranger’s first opinion about you.

Let us consider two scenarios. The first one where the person in front of you has no link whatsoever with you and the second one being that person is someone you know for namesake or there is a serious probability that he/she will come to know you in the near future ( due to unavoidable circumstances… of course).

In the former scenario you are free to be a bit more open about yourself and about your thoughts. You can always go an extra mile to make them feel more at home or the other way around you can just be plain mean. What will they achieve from this conversation- a fleet of thoughts about you at a later date, or a lousy joke cracked in your honor? It doesn’t matter whether they like you or not. Thai is to say that this conversation was without a consequence.

Now the latter scenario- here you can’t be very open as you might be at a disadvantage as they can use the same to manipulate you!!! Your approach here will be much more diplomatic, your conversation will be more probing to extract out information rather than providing them. This will not be an artificial conversation that you have with a long lost friend whom you met on the way and there was no time to speak, but this one will always be consequence oriented, it may not matter if the person will like you or hate you, the aim here… is that -the person must not be able to harm you.

Now put your thinking caps on. Same person responding different ways to different people under different circumstances… as always question arises- ‘Who is he/she actually is?’ On very rare occasion the actual personality will be revealed at one of the circumstances, but mostly it will be a combination of the behavior in either circumstance. But one thing you must realize is that the person opposite to you never got to see the ‘actual’ you. The chameleon in every person camouflages to different backgrounds very effectively. So in both the circumstances the first impression was ‘faulty’.

So though you spoke to two people they are as unaware of you as any other creature in the universe who haven’t met you or spoken to you, in other words you are indeterminate towards them. And…as they might be doing the same thing as you are doing…. they are still anonymous to you as before. In other words you will always be INDETERMINATE TOWARDS ANOYMOUS (i.e. almost everyone).

Its been a while

so i'm back here putting up all the useless unacknowledged un-understandable blogs.
this new part of my career has fascinated me, intrigued me, annoyed me but didnt giveme time enough to type my next blog. from heights of illusion to disillusionment i am back at last. logically.

Appearance

Appearance

Everyone wants to look good all the time…. Not possible, is it!!?
Few people have the knack of looking good most of the time, likewise few remain as unseen as ever even after the hazardous circumstances they face. Attention is what many seek, and get it at times when it is least needed and even at times when they know they are unheeded. Similar events occur everyday which makes everyone behave in a way that is not themselves.

So, how many of the faces I am looking around at any given time are actually true to their expressions??? No one will ever be able to guess. A person with a deep thinking face might just be trying to fool others in thinking that he indeed is thinking!!!!!

Just one observation and no explanation as yet… and the probability that this observation being an explanation for most of other behavioral aspects makes not only this observation but also a possible explanation more complex..!!

Complex it is. A solution which seems elusive will generally be obvious. So, if I am able to figure out false expressions in others, they would be able to do the same with mine. Hence, I tried to put myself into their shoes… results I found were quite unexpected and astonishing. The person I appear to be to others is totally different from the person I think I am.!!!

Solution to this problem is another area to which the problem never ascertains. Perspective. A person’s action signify something only when you are looking at it in a predetermined perspective, i.e. a single me could ‘appear’ different to two people at the same point of time, not because I acted differently…but, because they perceived my actions in a different manner.

The statement ‘Never judge a man before you actually know him’, is quite true if you are judging a person beyond his appearance, i.e. you may never know a person properly unless your way of knowing him is correct. But still, we humans are unpredictable, so never take decision for others under any circumstances even if they are closest of your friends . Finally about the people seeking attention…what can I say….PEOPLE GET TENDENCIES.

maLeraaya

A spectacle

A spectacle

An abstract on ‘To kill a mockingbird – Harper Lee’



A shivery night.
I’m alone beside a tree…
Nature takes a turn, it starts raining, a large drop of crystalline water drenches my spectacles…
‘Bad weather is caused by kids who don’t listen to and obey their elders.’

There is warmth in the air, a house is on fire and is brought down to its ashes. A couple of keen kids are watching this; a shy man comforts them with a blanket.
‘I never liked my house.’ (-Maudie)
Smoke engulfing the house condenses into….a cement patch….on a bird hole which once yielded a broken watch, some coins and two dolls.
‘Tree wasn’t ill.’ (-Jim)
A huge tree is wavering to the high winds and is sheltering three kids who are planning a play –‘Boo Radley’, they are on their tree house and beneath which in a garden the same three a getting chided for playing with the scissors. A girl returns home sobbing.
‘Atticus listens to my side of story too…..’ (-Scout)
A man comforts her and walks to the living room.
‘Your girl taught me….’ (-Jack Finch)
Another man walks out, takes his unused car for a midnight ride and is confronted by a group of drunkards… and one girl-
‘Hello, Mr.Cunningham. How’s Walter?’ (-Scout), later she screams.
A black man is running from there, fast, trying to escape from prison. He is shot at. ‘Dead…’, is a dog on a lonely street, and its assassin is standing by it with a rifle in his hand, his spectacles shattered by a hammer banging a desk and proclaiming-
‘Guilty, guilty, guilty…’ (-Judge Taylor)
‘Atticus can’t change a decision, but can make the jury think for hours.’ (-Maudie)
A girl has lost her slippers and is walking barefoot to home, as a shiny ‘ham’, along with a boy in that pitch-black night only to feel a dead man’s beard and watch a boy with a broken arm being carried by a stranger.
A girl is escorted by a mysterious man to a creepy house nextdoor where she halts and analyses…
‘Something like … killing a mockingbird’ (-Scout)…

swabhaava

HONNEMARADU

HONNEMARADU





AN IDEA

The great dreams we had for the holidays were bygone and a feeling of melancholy ensued. ‘How about we pay Honnemaradu a visit?’, bellowed Gibbs, this idea I thought was timid. Belief in this plan- well not that great, but a series of internet searches seemed to tell, ‘Why not test our fate?’ A hundred calls later it seemed that the plan was almost dead and could not be redeemed, but it was call 101 that made all the difference and we finally booked ourselves a place there for a couple of days though we had to forge for a friend’s presence.






JOURNEY




Seats at honnemaradu were booked but alas! not for Shimoga. It was the time for online KSRTC bookings to the rescue, they had a few tickets to spare, just enough to let us through. All went well I thought until I climbed my last row seat, a ride on which even the most twisted roller coaster cant beat. In Shimoga we met-the trusty four (me,gibbs,baba,bp) with our bodies aching and our backs really sour. First day in Shimoga we spent in leisure , with safari having only 3 lions and 4 tigers to offer. Our plans couldn’t get worse for sure as we got delayed on the banks of pure waters of Siganduur. The ferry ride though was too good to miss. With ailing constraints of time we had to drop the idea of Kotachaadri and our final burst of energy was towards Jog.
The plus was an amazing ride and minus was the Jog water falls which turned out to be a joke. It looked like two leaking taps on a majestic cliff whose chest bore the marks of tearing forces of water, but just that the water was amiss. Dampened by the Jog we returned to Sagar had a special arthropod mixed meals with the thoughts of the coming day getting us exited all the time until the sleep took over.

HONNEMARADU- THE PLACE




A 12km auto ride from Talaguppa covers all kinds of terrain, from well laid asphalt roads to dirt-bike moto-rally tracks. Not all vehicles are capable of tearing through this scene but our resilient auto did, with a few helping hands from us in between.
Finally we arrived at the Honnemaradu water-sports training centre,i.e a Shack by the side of the road where we had to dump everything from our fears to our backpacks. We bid our auto-driver adieu and our trainer, Ganapati got us acquainted to this place anew.
Then I daresay, we went on a survey. First, to ‘The Circle’ with the rock sculpture in the midst. The shack visible at one end and forest everywhere else ,with sweet chirping of hundred birds that makes your heart swell. Right along this path is an open well, a source of water to every activity in the days we were to dwell.
Gana set us on our first expedition, to reach the peak of this tiny hill station. The climb was steep till the point of view, on a slippery surface still coated with morning dew. A ten min climb to the top where a house awaits you with its own little surprise.
Your mobile phones starts ringing to the bleak signals it gets. A little link to the outside world in this heavenly little place. View from the top is worth to die for, with mountains on one side and backwaters of Linganamakki dam creating a picturesque flurry of islands.
On our way back to the ‘circle’ we made a startling discovery – a ’HaavinaHede’ rock (=snake skull rock) which from an angle really looked scary. To top this one we discovered an amazing cook in Ganapati and his bucketful of lemonrice really gave us trupti.

JACKETING OUR FEARS




We walked to the river bay which was half a mile away, questioning whether our life jackets will come to save the day. Everything was calm on the banks of Sharavathi, a couple of dead trees sticking out their claw like branches here and there. Our equipment for for sports lay still on the shore and the sight of water was not scary but one which can be adored. A few dips in the water showed that we could not sink. With the deely instilled courage I screamed before the swim-drill, ‘Behold , here we come to enter the water cold, at depths unknown and untold, with no one to hinder us or scold.’ Our destination- an island remote. Half a mile to swim and be back by boat or… so I thought. The matter I hadn’t foreseen, only one boat followed us and not three and as you can see I had to get back by my only means, a man overboard, and at sea.

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THE SPINNING CORACLE



The return swim was a drag, slow and steady were we and no achievements to brag. Swim was followed by no rest but with a new quest and to put our skills to test. Four of us on a tiny coracle (small round boat), and to control its direction at one go would have been a miracle. We had spun ourselves dizzy and a half an hour of practice finally made it seem easy. We landed on the shore with our shoulders really sore, but just this experience made us jump and roar. Being delighted with the sunset we filled the coracle up to the crest and headed for out camping fest.

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CAMP NIGHT UNDER STAR LIGHT

We, the directionally challenged went on a night cruise to one more island. A night spent in a tent with ants crawling up my pants was not exactly my idea of a night well spent. In an island with no facility for my increasing gastric motility, with pitch dark surroundings being my only hope in saving my humility. Every squeak was giving us a scare and hence we stayed most of the night awake chatting away to glory. And when the morning came we were game for any adventure to tame.

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CANOEING AND KAYAKKING IN THE MORNING

In the waterfront we learnt the art of handling a boat. Firstly a canoe for two and a kayak for the daring solo. Maintaining the balance is a challenge and so also to maneuver it over the waves and to gain speed is fun with a fleeting thought of racing the sun.


All was done and though only two days, a nostalgia had begun. A next adventure began with us getting lost during our final trek on our way back. Few helpful villagers brought us back on track and liters of water saw us safe back to Sagar. Our trip ended with a boring bus ride home and an exciting story to recite.