The one with the stretchable time

The words just don't seem to flow these days. Verbal constipation, of sorts. So I'm just going to write about random things that have been happening to me, and you'd better like it.

Although to be honest, not many random things happen to me. My life is just too organized and set in its ways for random things to happen. So scratch that, I'm just going to write about things that have been happening here.

First and foremost, Chitra gave me the first six seasons of Scrubs while I was in Madras a couple of weeks back (Bless the LAN in IIT-M!) And another friend over here in Pune gave me the first 9 seasons of Friends (I don't particularly like the 10th season. It has a very rushed feel to it, making it very obvious that they were wrapping up the series)

Anyway, after watching over 100 episodes of one and all 236 of the other, I'd have to say Scrubs seems the more "natural" show. With Friends, it always seems as if one character is setting the other up for a joke. Whereas in Scrubs the comedy, even though it's more over-the-top, seems to flow more naturally. (Okay, I watch too many sitcoms. Happy?)

My institute hosted a conference last week, on "Trends in Modern Biology" We had scientists who'd come in from SOKENDAI Japan, TIFR and other places in and around Pune. I was a volunteer at the event, and I went to the airportto receive some of the delegates. After we'd introduced ourselves, one of the delegates said "Hira means diamond, doesn't it? I feel very rich here!" Her name was Hirata :-)

It wasn't all positive though. When we said we'd send them a car sometime around 8 the next morning, the leader of the delegation said "Sometime around 8? Indian time!" And they all laughed. So, yes, the whole world knows about Indian Stretchable Time. Remember that the next time you fix an appointment with someone abroad.

The conference itself was fun. Although some lectures were kinda technical and filled with jargon, it was pretty easy to follow for the most part. Plus all our lectures had been cancelled, which was even better. The flip side however is that I'm working both today and tomorrow. Even though officially both days are holidays. It's a low blow, but then again it isn't as though anybody in the hostel had planned something big for Deepavali. An atom bomb at 3 am to wake up all the poor souls who imagined they'd get some rest. That sounds about right ;-)

And on that note, I shall be off. Have a safe Deepavali!

Note: Since I'm just that much of a Friends nut, all posts till the new year will have titles like episodes of the show. Love it or leave it :-P

Blink, and it's gone

My mind amazes me. No, not in the sense of, “I’m so gobsmackingly intelligent!” I get plenty of that as it is from parents and relatives. Apparently my aunt tells my cousins to look at me as an example of how well one ought to study (hah!), and keeps goading the poor kids. I’m sure they must hate me by now (they’re in the US, so I don’t know for sure)

No, it amazes me because of the sheer volume of seemingly irrelevant thoughts that pass through my head. It’s like some kind of anti-boredom system (My very own ABS. Cool!) It’s got just one instruction: When all else fails, flash random things through mind. And they’re totally random. F’rinstance, I was ironing a shirt last night, while listening to a song and here are just some of the thoughts that flashed by:

+Male Mallu singers have wonderful, deep voices
+Unnikrishnan doesn’t have a deep voice
+That joke by Vivek on kaakaa biryani and Unnikrishnan’s voice
+Saif shouldn’t have been cast in Abbas’s role when they re-made Minnale in Hindi
+Why does Gautham Menon make so many police themed movies?
+Kamalinee Mukherjee looks hot!
+Dum da dum dum da dum dum dum DUM
+How come no Tamil actor has done a film about a laundry-man?
+Naa isthrikaaran, isthrikaaran / nalla amutthum isthrikaaran / nyayamulla rate-u kaaran …
+How I get my most inspired ideas when I’m doing my laundry
+Maybe I should carry a Dictaphone with me whenever I do my laundry
+Why don’t I write about this in my blog!
+How utterly short of ideas I must be to write about doing laundry in my blog

Some sobering thought like the last one brings me back to reality. I scold myself for being silly (See! More examples of uptightness), and get back to work on whatever I’m supposed to be doing. For a while, anyway. It never lasts. (Mum, if you’re reading this, this is why it always took me so long to study even one chapter). One recurring theme is my current flame, whoever she is at that moment, and how I’d ask her out. Of course, I hardly ever get around to doing it, but I always rehearse, re-rehearse and re-re-rehearse. Complete with a background score, elaborate sets and subtle lighting changes. All of it in my head. Yeah, it sounds pathetic, but trust me it’s loads of fun.

The worst part is that when I need my mind to be productive and come up with ideas, it clams up. Completely. Seals itself shut. Only after much self-goading, self-prodding and self-hair-pulling am I able to get any work done. This paragraph alone took me ten minutes.

Anyway, today is Pongal. It’s the second Pongal in as many years that I’m spending away from home. That’s what I hate about living in a hostel. I can’t be with the people I love the most on the days that matter the most. I’ve spent my last two birthdays, parents’ birthdays, Valentine’s days away from home. At least I’ve been in Madras for the new year every time so far. Small mercies.

Ok, sorry. Shouldn’t bum you out on Pongal. Pongal nalvazhthukkal to you all. Don’t get caught near Alanganallur anytime today :)

Pongalo Pongal!