Ouch

Monday mornings are never easy, especially if your neck and shoulders are killing you and your doctor has advised bed rest. Getting out of office early to get some R&R. Having tomorrow off should help. Signing off with this:

Weary with toil, I haste me to my bed,
The dear repose for limbs with travel tired;
But then begins a journey in my head,
To work my mind, when body's work's expired:
For then my thoughts, from far where I abide,
Intend a zealous pilgrimage to thee,
And keep my drooping eyelids open wide,
Looking on darkness which the blind do see
Save that my soul's imaginary sight
Presents thy shadow to my sightless view,
Which, like a jewel hung in ghastly night,
Makes black night beauteous and her old face new.
Lo! thus, by day my limbs, by night my mind,
For thee and for myself no quiet find.

Today

The leaves have begun to fall - its a new season!

Greygate

While I don't know anybody who is gay personally, I like to think that one's sexuality is one's own choice. Surprisingly (or not), most people I know actually cringe when they are asked to comment on homosexuality. In a city like Mumbai, its strange that there is so much homophobia. I found this article on the recent controversy surrounding the cast of Grey's Anatomy, which gives an interesting POV.

I want...

I want John Frusciante to perform just for me
I want to be in Machu Picchu right now
I want to go home when I want to go home
I want 25 hours of sleep full of pleasant dreams
I want to be my own boss
I want roman candles in the sky every night
I want Borat to play at the nearby cinema
I want a death ray gun to zap people who spit all over the place
I want to be the Mad Hatter
I just want to get all the stale air out of my lungs!

Recent reads

Been reading a lot (as usual).

A few recommendations:
Quicksilver - Neal Stephenson (Part I of the Baroque Cycle. Not Cryptonomicon, but brilliant nonetheless!)
The Sandman Book Of Dreams - Edited by Neil Gaiman (Awesome!)
Hyperion - Dan Simmons (Neat!)


Reading/Re-reading at present:
Ulysses - James Joyce (slow progress here because it makes me itch for a different life with every page, a very different reaction from when I read it first!)
Olympos - Dan Simmons (part 2 of Illium, a spin on the Illiad/Odyssey, very interesting).

Will take me some time and a lot of courage before I can start reviewing books.

Job well done?

The recent cessation of hostilities not withstanding, most Indians would still consider it an insult to be called a Paki. But Shilpa Shetty's publicist must be a really happy man. For the past week or so, she certainly has been hitting headlines all over the world. I don't want to comment on Shilpa Shetty's career prospects (or lack thereof) post Big Brother, but whole episode has certainly turned the spotlight on racism. Everybody from the guy next door to the British PM is now involved.

Given the financial strength of the Asian/Indian community in Britain, this will probably be a good time to start addressing the issue of racial discrimination. Maybe a lesson on how people from different places look would be a good place to start. Didn't the Metro P0lice kill a 'terrorist' because they thought he had "Mongolian eyes" only to find out that he was a Brazilian immigrant who had absolutely no connection to the bombings? And certainly was no Mongolian?

Some eye candy for a dull day

On monotony

Mindless tedium - that's an oft repeated word these days. Days when you're so busy that you don't even have time to step into your little bubble of peace and quiet. Days when even a Friday seems so bleary and you just want to curl up under a warm rug with the latest Dan Simmons book and forget everything else.

Art Buchwald - RIP

If you have been a regular reader of The Hindu, then you'd definitely know Art Buchwald. I remember reading his column religiously every week. If you want to have an idea of his wit try this - The NY Times website had a video clip yesterday saying "Hi, I'm Art Buchwald, and I just died."

Some people!

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People keep telling me that the lack of manners in the broking industry is due to the fact that people make too much money too early. And its not only the big investors, dealing and sales teams are also notorious for their obvious disregard for what is generally considered good behaviour. I fail to understand why these people can't learn some basic sophistication and act decent, at least in public. Cuss words and gaalis should be left behind at college, its shamefully juvenile for professionals well into their 30s and 40s to be using them at the workplace!

New arrivals

Bought a pair each of Pearl Gouramis and Albino Iridescent Sharks over the weekend. A little bit worried that the sharks (actually a species of catfish, called so for their dorsal fins) might get a little too big for my aquarium, but that will take time. Till then, I hope they get along fine. The aquarium is pretty lively now, and the colours are just amazing - golden and pearl gouramis and shiny, pink sharks.

Alles gut endes gut, solamente para los americanos

Half way through Babel, one is stuck by a strong sense of deja vu - hey, isn't this last year's Oscar winning movie? No silly, this is going to be the Oscar winner this year - if the Academy liked Crash, they are gonna love Babel. Or so the makers of the movie seem to have been thinking when they made this highly self conscious, pretentious clunker of a movie.

For those who have seen Crash, the interconnect between the four stories in this movie is fairly obvious (except the Japanese one, which is the best part of the movie). Two brothers in remote Morocco taking pot shots with their new rifle injure an American tourist, whose children get lost on the US-Mexico border with their nanny. I'll leave the Japanese connection to those who watch the movie. The picture starts off pretty strongly and in the first half you are practically glued to the screen. The second half is messy, and nobody seems to have a clue as to where its going. Ultimately, it ends pretty badly for everyone, except for the Americans.

The Japanese tale involving the teenager Chieko is undoubtedly the most enjoyable part of the movie - the contrast the studied silence in the rest of the movie where the characters can talk and listen with the thumping loudness of the deaf-mute Chieko's Japan. Rinko Kikuchi plays the angsty, rebellious Chieko with the right mix of depression, frustration, anger and vulnerability. Pretty impressive for a performance without a word of dialogue. The best scene is the one in the nightclub, we get to hear the pounding beats of the night club and suddenly, the scene switches to Chieko's POV - a multitude of colours accompanied by a muted roar. One of the most visually powerful scenes I've seen in a movie.

Brad Pitt is horribly miscast - its difficult to relate to him as a suffering, middle-aged dad knowing that he has a hot babe for a girlfriend, an adorable new born and a fabulous lifestyle. Cate Blanchett is wasted, so is the amazing (yet again!) Gael Garcia Bernal. His first mainstream Hollywood movie and his character doesn't even get closure - Boo! Adriana Barraza as the loving nanny who is deported to Mexico is the tragic heroine in this movie and she is simply heartbreaking here.

Is Babel Oscar worthy? I don't think so.

PS: Its official - Gael Garcia Bernal is the next best thing. And absolutely crush-worthy!

Oasis

Finally warming up to the new Oasis album - Don't Believe The Truth. Dismissed it as Oasis in the '60s - it has influences from just about everybody, most of all Bob Dylan, The Who and The Stones, but I kinda like it now. Current favourite - Part of the Queue. Like the fact it sounds so sunny despite the lyrics. Loved Oasis while I was at college - Do you know what I mean is still a personal favourite. I mean, which 18 year old can resist lyrics like this:

I met my Maker, I made Him cry
And on my shoulder He asked me
Why His people wont fly through the storm
I said, listen up man
They don't even know you're born

Critics have called Don't Believe The Truth a return to form by the former bad boys of alternative. Hope so.

Apple does it again...

... takes your breath away with a brand new device. I mean, look at it!

Initial reactions here, here and here.

Days

The days just seem to bleed into one another, and bleed me dry while at it. And the result season hasn't even started!