Your ancestor's direct gaze
Ah. Looks like the camera lens needs cleaning.
Loving all the layers that are visible around this place.
Birbs building nests are the best kind of birbs.
Hoopoooo
Boss bird
This Bee-eater has been snorting something white. Hmm...
I like bird butts and I cannot lie
Negotiations have failed.
More Ashy Prinia goodness for you.
Meet my regal neighbour
Behold the magnificent White-eye
My friend the Ashy Prinia
The tiny birds are easier to capture from the comfort of your balcony, on a sunny day.
Lazy birding from my balcony.
The Grey-headed Canary-flycatcher. Leeches are common in the Himalayas during the rains, and we should have been more careful. When M1 finally looked down to see leeches crawling all over our feet, our panic must have been a comic sight to see. The only time before that I've had leeches on me was in 22 years ago, in the Western Ghats. And it wasn't fun even then. Ugh.
The Grey-winged Blackbird. We got attacked by leeches while photographing this guy.
The Pied Bush Chat
The Verditer Flycatcher
Seeking advice on Mucormycosis or black fungus.
What's the best course of action for a patient who has recovered from Covid-19, recovered from mucormycosis (surgery done to remove the fungus), been discharged from hospital, but is still not well.
Is AIIMS the right place to go, to check for symptoms of mucormycosis relapse? What hospital has the best specialists to deal with this horrid thing?
(Asking for a colleague's mother.)
What's the best course of action for a patient who has recovered from Covid-19, recovered from mucormycosis (surgery done to remove the fungus), been discharged from hospital, but is still not well.
Is AIIMS the right place to go, to check for symptoms of mucormycosis relapse? What hospital has the best specialists to deal with this horrid thing?
(Asking for a colleague's mother.)
Looking sideways. Coz never can keep my eyes off the monkeys on the hills.
Never too old for Crax. Never too old for the cheap toys in the Crax bag.
Raghu Devagiri found a working unit of ours at the railways, that Aniket Maurya claims is from 2014. Its no big deal for our rugged computers, or any computer for that matter, to survive seven years. But this one fell out of warranty four years ago. For something to survive this long, working 12 hour daily shifts, without maintenance, is exciting.
No software upgrades. The emulation software inside, running in C, never once broke. Again, no big deal. But I'd like to say a word or two to the current generation of programmers, who are told that its OK to fix bugs in your app every week.
No software upgrades. The emulation software inside, running in C, never once broke. Again, no big deal. But I'd like to say a word or two to the current generation of programmers, who are told that its OK to fix bugs in your app every week.
Even as the sunlight fades away, the day is a glorious, colourful wrap
बादलों के ऊपर - above the clouds
We skipped town. Again.
All the reasons why I love the NE. Beautiful people, super safe for kids, and a community spirit.
Kavin, reading Twain.
Not appreciating some of Sawyer's more violent ideas.
Not appreciating some of Sawyer's more violent ideas.
"This is a classic textbook case of, how not to draft a plaint, which should be taught in law colleges and to young lawyers so that such bloopers in drafting of pleadings, damaging to one's own client, are avoided", the High Court observed in the judgment.
Juhi got fined ₹20 lakhs because her lawyer took her frivolous complaint, and instead of guiding her that this would not stand in court, did an even shabbier job of presenting the complaint in court.
Our justice system is in shambles. But we should honestly lay much of the blame on the lawyers, not the courts themselves. Taut, well drafted complaints with sensible arguments move faster in the court system. But lawyers want to dispense with 'niceties' and draft rambling pleadings that aren't even in chronological sequence (or any order).
Then there is the burning desire to 'bring pressure' on the other party. Lawyers believe they can use shock and awe to make the other party crumble, completely bypassing the due process of the law, right under the noses of the judges. And Indian clients don't run for their lives on hearing such hare-brained schemes; oh no, they eat right out of the hands of such lawyers. (Juhi's lawyer made 35+ big name parties defendants, in the hope that some would crumble and strike a compromise!)
Problem also is that we Indians think we are smarter than all the professionals we consult. We don't trust our doctors, so we consult three other doctors in the background while treating a sick person. We think our lawyer can't argue, so we take up the job of drafting and arguments ourselves.
Then, when we don't get results, we blame the professionals. When we do get results, it is all because of our steady hands holding our learned lawyers through the process.
I'm ranting and rambling. I just wish professionals would do their jobs a lot better, and their clients would let them do their jobs better, so institutions like the courts and hospitals can function properly. All this stupidity just leads to people not trusting institutions like they should.
Juhi got fined ₹20 lakhs because her lawyer took her frivolous complaint, and instead of guiding her that this would not stand in court, did an even shabbier job of presenting the complaint in court.
Our justice system is in shambles. But we should honestly lay much of the blame on the lawyers, not the courts themselves. Taut, well drafted complaints with sensible arguments move faster in the court system. But lawyers want to dispense with 'niceties' and draft rambling pleadings that aren't even in chronological sequence (or any order).
Then there is the burning desire to 'bring pressure' on the other party. Lawyers believe they can use shock and awe to make the other party crumble, completely bypassing the due process of the law, right under the noses of the judges. And Indian clients don't run for their lives on hearing such hare-brained schemes; oh no, they eat right out of the hands of such lawyers. (Juhi's lawyer made 35+ big name parties defendants, in the hope that some would crumble and strike a compromise!)
Problem also is that we Indians think we are smarter than all the professionals we consult. We don't trust our doctors, so we consult three other doctors in the background while treating a sick person. We think our lawyer can't argue, so we take up the job of drafting and arguments ourselves.
Then, when we don't get results, we blame the professionals. When we do get results, it is all because of our steady hands holding our learned lawyers through the process.
I'm ranting and rambling. I just wish professionals would do their jobs a lot better, and their clients would let them do their jobs better, so institutions like the courts and hospitals can function properly. All this stupidity just leads to people not trusting institutions like they should.
After what seems like a lifetime, I got my hands on a Sour Punk.
When we finally got around to snacking on it, we found the pack open. After much deliberation, it was agreed that the mouse got to it. It somehow tore it open it just like a human would.
Kavin (deeply annoyed): यह क्या है? The mouse doesn't even pay us rent!
I wonder. If the mouse paid us rent, would it be OK for it to eat our candy?
When we finally got around to snacking on it, we found the pack open. After much deliberation, it was agreed that the mouse got to it. It somehow tore it open it just like a human would.
Kavin (deeply annoyed): यह क्या है? The mouse doesn't even pay us rent!
I wonder. If the mouse paid us rent, would it be OK for it to eat our candy?
Me: Kavin, you're getting lanky.
Kavin: What?
Me: Like the BFG.
Now we aren't talking any more.
Kavin: What?
Me: Like the BFG.
Now we aren't talking any more.
This is so good. I remember having to pay 11 months rent as deposit for an 11 months lease in Bangalore, then chasing the landlords for months to get the deposit back.
I don't know if it has enough safeguards to "open up" the rental market like the government claims. We will need to see a few evictions carried out before there is confidence, especially among the NRIs.
I don't know if it has enough safeguards to "open up" the rental market like the government claims. We will need to see a few evictions carried out before there is confidence, especially among the NRIs.
[Update: I was fine this morning. Took a shower and went back to work. The fever lasted from between 15 to 30 hours after vaccination. Much ado about nothing. How embarrassing. But all the phone calls did make me feel so loved :-) ]
Fever 101.8°F 🤒
Pulse rate 91 bpm ❤️
Shivers all night 🥶
Shooting pain in the arm 💪🏽
Always thirsty 🥛
और कराओ vaccination. This is within 18 hours of the 💉
☹️😞😫😭
Fever 101.8°F 🤒
Pulse rate 91 bpm ❤️
Shivers all night 🥶
Shooting pain in the arm 💪🏽
Always thirsty 🥛
और कराओ vaccination. This is within 18 hours of the 💉
☹️😞😫😭
Today I got vaccinated without my kids holding my hands for moral support. कुछ ऐसा ही नज़ारा था।
That's the fanciest train I've ever seen 🚃 💙
I'm sick at home and IR is showing me pretty trains. Not cool, IR, not cool.
I'm sick at home and IR is showing me pretty trains. Not cool, IR, not cool.
Me: Look Nilay Kavin, friend of mine raise his entire college fees in under three hours.
Nilay (immediately): What, you're friends with a bank robber!
Me: 🤦🏽♂️ Sheesh, no. He has made such a huge difference to the lives of so many people that they were happy to help him achieve his dreams. 1,300 people gave an average of ₹2,300 in three hours. His master's degree is a collective dream now.
https://milaap.org/fundraisers/support-sumit-samos-turuk
The love that Sumeet Samos has received should be a life goal for many of us. To not just make a big difference to a few people, but to also make a small difference, and be an inspiration, to so many.
I've contributed. So should you. College is hard and money (tuition, expenses) should be the least of his concerns.
Nilay (reappears): All rappers are gangsters dad.
Nilay (immediately): What, you're friends with a bank robber!
Me: 🤦🏽♂️ Sheesh, no. He has made such a huge difference to the lives of so many people that they were happy to help him achieve his dreams. 1,300 people gave an average of ₹2,300 in three hours. His master's degree is a collective dream now.
https://milaap.org/fundraisers/support-sumit-samos-turuk
The love that Sumeet Samos has received should be a life goal for many of us. To not just make a big difference to a few people, but to also make a small difference, and be an inspiration, to so many.
I've contributed. So should you. College is hard and money (tuition, expenses) should be the least of his concerns.
Nilay (reappears): All rappers are gangsters dad.
@[773224539:2048:Sherebanu Frosh], if you needed hard evidence that Indians are being extinguished by air pollution.
Alright, strange problem.
The second wave has sort of subsided in Delhi/NCR. Many homes here now have an oxygen concentrator that they don't immediately need. I myself have two spare units.
Unused OCs could easily be loaned to hospitals nearby, except, they don't need OCs any more.
The wave has moved on to rural UP, Uttarakhand, the South and the East.
How could we north Indians LOAN our machines to those regions that need them.
Loan, not donate. So that if a third wave comes to the north, we could shamelessly ask for our machines back.
It's ugly, what I'm stating. But everything about this disease is ugly. If we can solve this, I could scrounge together many OCs.
(We shipped 35 imported 10L/m OCs to someone Sameer Shisodia put us in touch with. Shipping from Gurgaon to Chitradurga in under 24 hours! So the reverse logistics should be quick and easy if the machines are recalled.)
The second wave has sort of subsided in Delhi/NCR. Many homes here now have an oxygen concentrator that they don't immediately need. I myself have two spare units.
Unused OCs could easily be loaned to hospitals nearby, except, they don't need OCs any more.
The wave has moved on to rural UP, Uttarakhand, the South and the East.
How could we north Indians LOAN our machines to those regions that need them.
Loan, not donate. So that if a third wave comes to the north, we could shamelessly ask for our machines back.
It's ugly, what I'm stating. But everything about this disease is ugly. If we can solve this, I could scrounge together many OCs.
(We shipped 35 imported 10L/m OCs to someone Sameer Shisodia put us in touch with. Shipping from Gurgaon to Chitradurga in under 24 hours! So the reverse logistics should be quick and easy if the machines are recalled.)
Yes, ’n’ how many times must the cannonballs fly
Before they’re forever banned?
Yes, ’n’ how many years can some people exist
Before they’re allowed to be free?
Yes, ’n’ how many times can a man turn his head
Pretending he just doesn’t see?
Yes, ’n’ how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died?
Before they’re forever banned?
Yes, ’n’ how many years can some people exist
Before they’re allowed to be free?
Yes, ’n’ how many times can a man turn his head
Pretending he just doesn’t see?
Yes, ’n’ how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died?
The news we have all been waiting to hear.
"Immunity to the coronavirus lasts at least a year, possibly a lifetime, improving over time especially after vaccination"
"most people who have recovered from Covid-19 and who were later immunized will not need boosters. Vaccinated people who were never infected most likely will need the shots, however, as will a minority who were infected but did not produce a robust immune response."
"Immunity to the coronavirus lasts at least a year, possibly a lifetime, improving over time especially after vaccination"
"most people who have recovered from Covid-19 and who were later immunized will not need boosters. Vaccinated people who were never infected most likely will need the shots, however, as will a minority who were infected but did not produce a robust immune response."
Translation: I don't talk sense. Neither should you.
Ha ha ha ha ha
Bleddy
This only is the place where I saw the milky way. For perhaps the first time ever.
See. This is what I couldn't photograph with a DSLR back then.
Bleddy
This only is the place where I saw the milky way. For perhaps the first time ever.
See. This is what I couldn't photograph with a DSLR back then.
Kids' vacations start tomorrow. I was thinking I'll pay 'em ₹10 for every computer they help manufacture. Now I'll just put up a video on the 'gram of me kissing their foreheads after a hard day's labour.
Kavin: Dad what's 16 squared?
Me: 16 is 2 to the power of 4, so that's 256.
Kavin: How do you know the answer so fast 🤷🏽♂️?
Me: himem.sys, emm386.exe, XMS...
Nilay: Look Kavin, you broke dad again.
These kids have it easy. The things we had to do to get DOS games working in 1 megabyte of RAM.
Me: 16 is 2 to the power of 4, so that's 256.
Kavin: How do you know the answer so fast 🤷🏽♂️?
Me: himem.sys, emm386.exe, XMS...
Nilay: Look Kavin, you broke dad again.
These kids have it easy. The things we had to do to get DOS games working in 1 megabyte of RAM.
Me, who desperately wants to get vaccinated, quickly opens Maps to see how far Barabanki is by road.
Kavin: You can't print a vector image, right? I mean you can, but you'd convert it to a bitmap first.
Me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iziP0cQhOFY
Hello AutoCAD space shuttle. Long time no see. Fun fact: AutoCAD was the first software that someone paid for me to learn.
Me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iziP0cQhOFY
Hello AutoCAD space shuttle. Long time no see. Fun fact: AutoCAD was the first software that someone paid for me to learn.
How many icons can you identify?
Imagine, for a moment, that you could not read. How many apps on your phone could you recognise simply by their icons?
What about inside applications? Take a software you frequently use, such as GIMP or MS Word, and see how many icons you can use without referring to the tooltip text.
How many individual road signs, across different regions/countries, are you familiar with?
The average Chinese (Hanzi) reader can identify between 3,000 and 4,000 individual characters. That sounds fantastical to those of us familiar with phonetic scripts such as Latin and Devanagari, but it isn't such a far fetched idea after all. Universal icons such as power, danger and stop have made the world a safer and more familiar place for everybody.
Imagine, for a moment, that you could not read. How many apps on your phone could you recognise simply by their icons?
What about inside applications? Take a software you frequently use, such as GIMP or MS Word, and see how many icons you can use without referring to the tooltip text.
How many individual road signs, across different regions/countries, are you familiar with?
The average Chinese (Hanzi) reader can identify between 3,000 and 4,000 individual characters. That sounds fantastical to those of us familiar with phonetic scripts such as Latin and Devanagari, but it isn't such a far fetched idea after all. Universal icons such as power, danger and stop have made the world a safer and more familiar place for everybody.
Is Visaranai too morbid a movie?
Hive mind, please suggest movies like Mandela and Karnan. Any language.
Hive mind, please suggest movies like Mandela and Karnan. Any language.
Inspite of the valiant efforts of our PM and CMs, a number of people continue to shamelessly die in this pandemic, just to give our dear leaders a bad name on the global stage.
In such a scenario, it has become imperative to express our condolences almost daily, even when we differ with the decision of the soul to depart.
One phrase that people commonly use to express their condolence is RIP. An acronym of requiescat in pace, or rest in peace, this phrase can not apply to Hindu, Jain or Sikh fellows. In order to rest in peace, either the body or the soul must rest. But the body has been cremated. And the soul in these traditions is indestructible - either it is reborn, or it achieves nirvana/moksha. (Sometimes the soul is neither recycled nor put out of cycle. The soul becomes tristated, a ghost. It then goes and rests upside down on a tree. That's the outcome you don't want.)
Back when it was still acceptable to speak in Hindi on social occasions, one could simply say "भगवान उनकी आत्मा को शान्ति दे", or "भगवान उनको मोक्ष प्रदान करे". Today, an "om shanti" will suffice, because both words are now accepted in the English language. Better still, stick to emoji: "🙏🏽🤗"
If the dead person is an atheist like me, just say "ah, that sucks". 0% atheists are looking forward to turning into ashes and dust. An even lesser number is looking forward to an afterlife - we just hate to be proven wrong.
(if you do not appreciate my lame attempt at humour on this topic, it's ok. Neither do I. But I tried the non funny version and it was even weirder.)
In such a scenario, it has become imperative to express our condolences almost daily, even when we differ with the decision of the soul to depart.
One phrase that people commonly use to express their condolence is RIP. An acronym of requiescat in pace, or rest in peace, this phrase can not apply to Hindu, Jain or Sikh fellows. In order to rest in peace, either the body or the soul must rest. But the body has been cremated. And the soul in these traditions is indestructible - either it is reborn, or it achieves nirvana/moksha. (Sometimes the soul is neither recycled nor put out of cycle. The soul becomes tristated, a ghost. It then goes and rests upside down on a tree. That's the outcome you don't want.)
Back when it was still acceptable to speak in Hindi on social occasions, one could simply say "भगवान उनकी आत्मा को शान्ति दे", or "भगवान उनको मोक्ष प्रदान करे". Today, an "om shanti" will suffice, because both words are now accepted in the English language. Better still, stick to emoji: "🙏🏽🤗"
If the dead person is an atheist like me, just say "ah, that sucks". 0% atheists are looking forward to turning into ashes and dust. An even lesser number is looking forward to an afterlife - we just hate to be proven wrong.
(if you do not appreciate my lame attempt at humour on this topic, it's ok. Neither do I. But I tried the non funny version and it was even weirder.)
The boys enjoying pancakes.
Millie Khanna did you send us this Betty Crocker का Pancake Mix?
Millie Khanna did you send us this Betty Crocker का Pancake Mix?
Ta da! The cheat sheet you need on your wall when relatives call you.
Notice how male relatives are treated differently based on their age with respect to you or your father. But female relatives, or the male relatives of your mother, are not treated differently by age. Sexism and patriarchy baked into culture.
Notice how male relatives are treated differently based on their age with respect to you or your father. But female relatives, or the male relatives of your mother, are not treated differently by age. Sexism and patriarchy baked into culture.
The Darbhanga Medical College and Hospital was in this state even before the Covid pandemic began. At the time of the encephalitis epidemic also it was like this - broken, about to fall.
One wonders why it takes a calamity for us to enforce sanity. These days even inter circle roaming across networks is not permitted.
Thinvent is now importing oxygen concentrators, testing them in India, and shipping them to NGOs, at a fairly decent clip. (I wish the pace was the same for our indigenous design of oxygen concentrators, but we've realised there is very little we can do till the lockdowns lift.)
We are now accepting an advance from NGOs that want 5L and 10L machines, and assuring delivery within a week. This is a reversal of our earlier policy where we were not taking advance bookings. If you know NGOs that need oxygen concentrators, please connect them to us.
If you want to help us, we are accepting loans from Pvt. Ltd. and Ltd. companies. If you know someone who does treasury management for a company and would like to make good interest on their spare cash, please do connect them to me. Thanks.
We are now accepting an advance from NGOs that want 5L and 10L machines, and assuring delivery within a week. This is a reversal of our earlier policy where we were not taking advance bookings. If you know NGOs that need oxygen concentrators, please connect them to us.
If you want to help us, we are accepting loans from Pvt. Ltd. and Ltd. companies. If you know someone who does treasury management for a company and would like to make good interest on their spare cash, please do connect them to me. Thanks.
This is an appeal for donations.
Please see this video to understand how devastatingly Covid is spreading through rural India: https://www.facebook.com/141142329286018/videos/309231607413328
A number of NGOs are making Covid prevention and detection kits that their ground level rural volunteers are using. These kits typically consist of oximeters, thermometers, sanitisers, masks, non prescription medicines, etc.
@[712729720:2048:Osama Manzar] has this post https://www.facebook.com/osama.manzar/posts/10159365802854721 about DEF's work. You can support them here https://bit.ly/CDERP2
@[564198067:2048:Balaji Sampath] has this post https://www.facebook.com/balaji.sampath.ahaguru/posts/10158564239988068 about AID India's work in Tamil Nadu. You can support AID here: https://aidindia.in/donate.php
@[595895909:2048:Gurumoorthy Mathrubootham] is working with Sochara in Karnataka to achieve similar results.
@[100064504609901:2048:Kalap Trust] is working in Uttarakhand. Read about their work here https://www.facebook.com/kalaptrust/posts/2814485988675870 and donate here http://kalaptrust.org/covid-2021
@[624129399:2048:Sameer Shisodia] has written about his group's work here https://www.facebook.com/sameer.shisodia/posts/10159465906274400 and you can support them here https://www.ketto.org/fundraiser/1000OxygenCylinders
Please do what you can, donate as much as you can. A small amount of money actually saves a human life.
Please see this video to understand how devastatingly Covid is spreading through rural India: https://www.facebook.com/141142329286018/videos/309231607413328
A number of NGOs are making Covid prevention and detection kits that their ground level rural volunteers are using. These kits typically consist of oximeters, thermometers, sanitisers, masks, non prescription medicines, etc.
@[712729720:2048:Osama Manzar] has this post https://www.facebook.com/osama.manzar/posts/10159365802854721 about DEF's work. You can support them here https://bit.ly/CDERP2
@[564198067:2048:Balaji Sampath] has this post https://www.facebook.com/balaji.sampath.ahaguru/posts/10158564239988068 about AID India's work in Tamil Nadu. You can support AID here: https://aidindia.in/donate.php
@[595895909:2048:Gurumoorthy Mathrubootham] is working with Sochara in Karnataka to achieve similar results.
@[100064504609901:2048:Kalap Trust] is working in Uttarakhand. Read about their work here https://www.facebook.com/kalaptrust/posts/2814485988675870 and donate here http://kalaptrust.org/covid-2021
@[624129399:2048:Sameer Shisodia] has written about his group's work here https://www.facebook.com/sameer.shisodia/posts/10159465906274400 and you can support them here https://www.ketto.org/fundraiser/1000OxygenCylinders
Please do what you can, donate as much as you can. A small amount of money actually saves a human life.
Some sanity restored...
(Thanks to Gauri D for taking care of half of this work - the English manual is ready)
We need help fixing the grammar and formatting of an oxygen concentrator manual that we have machine translated to English from Mandarin.
We then need help translating about half of this document from English to Tamil.
Knowledge of Chinese not required for this work. If you'd like to help, DM me and I'll share the Google Doc online with you.
We need help fixing the grammar and formatting of an oxygen concentrator manual that we have machine translated to English from Mandarin.
We then need help translating about half of this document from English to Tamil.
Knowledge of Chinese not required for this work. If you'd like to help, DM me and I'll share the Google Doc online with you.
This is a shakedown.
Give us your unused concentrators, and we get you blessings to last a lifetime.
Give us your unused concentrators, and we get you blessings to last a lifetime.
यह वैज्ञानिक हैं। खुद पर प्रयोग कर रहे हैं और जनता को ज्ञान दे रहे हैं। 👌🏽
That moment when your Israeli friend likes your humorous post and leaves you discomfited, because this week you're outraging about Palestine.