It's not so bad, it's not so bad....

There's a theory that bloggers blog only when they're stressed, or if things aren't going well in real life.

If you look at a blog as an extension of a journal or a personal diary, it makes sense. People keep journals to put feelings, emotions, events that they feel are important, in words. And the human mind has evolved in such a way that fear and threat evoke a greater response than joy or appreciation. In any case, most of us find the simple joys of life to be fleeting and insignificant in the long run. Whereas the fear and the pain live after their usefulness has vanished (like the evil that men do, in Mark Antony's speech)

It's only natural. How many times have parents evoked the fear of a bogeyman? And even after they grow up, a lot of people are still afraid of the dark (regardless of bogeymen) And how many preteens have a genuine fear of the other sex? Agreed, preteens do tend to gang up in groups of their own sex. And that leads to much awkwardness as they fumble their way in interactions with the other sex. But talk to preteens about cooties or some such, and you've effectively thrown a spanner in their works. And delayed any "normal" interaction considerably.

The point is that as people we are prone to thinking negatively. And we are prone to suggestion. Auto-suggestion, in particular. It's very easy to fall into a trap of saying your life sucks, just because of one minor hitch (I've been guilty of that crime so many times in the past that I've lost count) And bloggers, with their active imagination and their ability to weave words into exquisite tapestries of prose, are all the more susceptible to blue spells. Blue spells that churn up their creativity and bring out bitter, if beautiful, prose.

I know for a fact that some people blog just to get their worries and frustration out into the open. The therapeutic value of such activity is open to debate. Personally, I think that these are trying times that we live in. We really don't need any more bitterness. I just have a small request to anyone who read this. Whenever you're feeling down, bitter, broken, try and force yourself to think happy thoughts. Or recollect pleasant memories. Whatever it takes to get over a bitter spell without any brooding, or resorting to artificial stimulants. Both you and the world will be better for it.

I'm no superman

Well, the blues have been held off for now. All the tips I received after my last post were pretty useful. Thank YOU! (trying high pressure sales pitch to keep you hooked to ymitif :D)

Anyway, the quick fix was to yell randomly and incoherently in public. Ok, it wasn't incoherent. And it wasn't random. I mooed. Yes, the sound that cows make. Moo. At a person who was walking down the road minding his own business. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him turn around and look at me. I didn't turn back to look at him, but I imagine he had a "What DID you say?" look in his eyes. *snicker

And honestly, I've never felt more alive in my life. What this means is that Gaya has found a brilliant and quick solution for depression. Something that could sink Prozac and their ilk forever. Or it means that I'm as much in need of help as she is. Your call.

The final solution was 3 hour sessions of sitcoms. How I met your mother on saturday and sunday. Scrubs on monday. I know, I know, it wasn't the most constructive thing to do (mum would've had my head. If this were the run up to the board exams, that is :D)

Point is, there's nothing that makes me feel better than comedy. Whether it's a sitcom, stand-up comedy, cartoons (and I mean the classics from the '40s and '50s), it doesn't matter. It's about being able to see the flip side, the funny side, that matters. I'm sure that applies to a sizeable number of people. Yet, for some reason there's no decent humour in Indian language television

Think about it. The closest thing we had to a sitcom in tamil was "Veetukku Veedu Looty". and they ruined that as well with "VVL-2", before finally killing it off. And I suppose those mini-series by Kovai Anuradha also count. The rest of the so-called comedy shows are just plain rubbish. (Ok, ok. I'll stop. Not going into another rant here.

I was just wondering if I should start another blog for my more "profound" wonderings. Somehow, I don't think posts like Just call me clownfish and Coolness belong in the same place. I'm not sure what I should do. What do you think? Put down your ayes and nays in the comments :)

P.S.
But I can't do this all on my own
I'm no superman
:D

A rather unremarkable week

Things that have happened in the last week:
P& I took part in a quiz organised by the economics dept. of Fergusson College. What were two science students doing at an economics quiz, you ask? By the end of the qualifiers, I was asking myself the same thing. The questions were a little bit of economic theory, and a lot of business trivia. (Did you know that the BSE is the oldest stock exchange in Asia?). As expected we didn’t qualify. Hey, don’t look at me. It was P’s idea. I don’t normally do business quizzes, regardless of what Subbu’s testimonial about me on Orkut says. And from now on I don’t do business quizzes. Period.

Speaking of Subbu, I’ve been having long chats with both her and Krish via Google Talk. Mostly because we’re jobless (at any rate, Subbu and I are) We’ve been talking about relationships, blogs (they’re both thinking of starting blogs of their own), break-ups, zodiac signs, network problems (the GODDAMN NETWORK in college is really, really SLOW). About the only things we haven’t talked about are why the sea is boiling hot and whether pigs have wings ;) I’ve also tried a few feeble attempts at flirting over the net. Krish told me off soundly, as anyone who knows her would expect her to. Subbu’s taking it in her stride, playing along…
It’s been a lot of fun. It’s almost like 12th standard all over again. A small group of us at the back of the class. Not particularly bothered about what goes on in the front of the class. Me trying not-so-subtly to get Krish’s attention. (Apparently my flirting STILL needs work. Krish’s words) Talking F1 trash with Subbu. Those were the days. Well, almost.

I’ve been re-reading this book Bertie gave me two years back, ‘The Know-it-all ’ by A.J. Jacobs. It’s the real-life story of an editor with Esquire who tried to read the whole of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. And he did it too, in the space of a year. I really like his style of writing. It’s almost like a blog. He writes about his thoughts as he went through the encyclopaedia word by word. For instance:
liar paradox
The ancient paradox goes like this: ‘If the sentence “This sentence is not true” is true, then it is not true, and if it is not true, it is true’. I feel very lucky I am not stoned, because if I read this after a bong hit, my head would explode.
I’ve picked one of the shortest entries, so that this post isn’t unmanageably large (yes, dear reader, I’m all heart). His writing is very informal and makes you feel right at home. I recommend it to anyone who’s looking for funny stuff, which can also move you at times, and gives it all in small doses. (Makes it almost like a paperback version of FRIENDS)

Blogs have been a recurring theme this week. I’m supposed to submit an article for the college mag on blogging. Tuesday night is the deadline. And I’ve got nothing. Nought. Nada. I mean, I could scribble some random stuff along the margin of a newspaper and it MIGHT still get printed. The Ed says hardly any submissions have come in this year. At this rate, come March and we’ll release the annual pamphlet. Or the college leaflet. Yikes!
But still, I’ve got to do something that’s up to my standards. Anyone who knows me will vouch. Seriously. I helped edit the school mag in 2006. (Back me up, people!) So, if you’ve got any ideas, suggestions, whatever, mail me. Ideas will be duly acknowledged. I’ll sing your praises in my blog, if not the article itself.

Weather’s been getting colder. Went below 8°C. Twice. And word is that Delhi’s gonna get colder next week. Damn! My Madrasi body can’t take it, I tell you. Why do we have to go to friggin’ Delhi for a fest? What happened to fests in Pune? Or Goa? Or even good old Madras, for that matter? Who in their right mind would give up Saarang (IIT, Madras fest) for St. Stephen’s? I guess my Director would, but don’t tell him I said so.

And finally, I’ve given myself a new handle. It’s how you’d pronounce the first letter of my surname. It’s also an acronym for Evolutionarily Stable Strategy (I can’t hide the nerd in me) Plus, it’s easier for someone to write to ESS rather than to Therefore I Am. And it sounds more like a name and less like a title (Therefore I Am, OBE anyone?) That way it actually is an ESS. Can’t be dislodged easily.

Is all. I take your leave. Thank you (Applause! Cheers! …no? You’re mean!)

P.S. For the record, Formula 1 by itself is not trash. It’s ONLY the coolest sport in the world. And Michael Schumacher is the God of modern single-seater racing.

The List

Readership is slowly picking up here, thanks mainly to tireless advertising by Yours Truly("Read my blog! Read my blog!"). I've got some requests and suggestions as well here. Suggestions being, "Don't keep it so local and tamil. At this rate, the only person who'd enjoy reading your blog is you!", and "Why are you writing about stuff that's so personal, and yet unrelated to the rest of us? This is the internet, not a locker room, for goodness' sake!". And finally, "Stop ending your quotes with exclamation marks!!!" (Yes, that's a very juvenile joke. But then, this is MY blog. So, ha!)

Moving on to requests, I've got one to make a list. Apparently, one of my readers loves lists. Which is one of the reasons why she was hooked onto ClunkiestAtol's blog [the other being that they're best friends. But that's only a minor detail ;)].

So, here goes. Things that scare me:

1) Horror movies that have an actual scientific basis (like "I am Legend". Not like "Frankenstein" and definitely not like "Independence Day")

2) Exams. Wait, this shouldn't even be on the list. Everyone's scared of them!

3) Traffic in Madras- I'd rather park on Mount Road and walk to Panagal Park, rather than drive through T. Nagar. No, even better. I won't go to Panagal Park

4)Computers hanging up - Especially when you need 'em the most. Damn you, William!

5) Train horns going off just as they pull into the station - Been scared of that ever since I was 5. That happened for the first time in Coimbatore. Not funny!

6) Being alone. I mean emotionally, not physically. (Boy, do I sound like a wuss)

7) People who smile for no reason at all. Especially if they're looking at me when they smile.

8)People who say they know what I'm thinking

9)And when they actually do know what I'm thinking!

10) Getting shot down when I ask a girl out. And I mean a massacre where she not only says no, but abuses you for actually asking her. Thankfully, that's never happened to me, yet...

Other news. The astrology app in Facebook says that Cancer is the classic flirt and has to turn the heat down today (!). And I just earned myself a Porsche Carrera GT racing in the Petrolhead app.(Woohoo! Geek!)

And finally, continuing the laundry theme from last time, here's a bit of advice to anyone who has to do their own laundry. Never (and I mean never) wash indigo or red clothes in hot water. Thecolours run like they're in a marathon.

That's all for now. (No laundry next time, promise :D)