Panic: the feeling that creeps in when you realise your instant food stash won't last the length of your Japan trip, and the Japanese totally do not get (warm) vegetarian food.
This is what you get for ₹1000 a day in Tokyo. Come to think of it, the dorm at Secunderabad station is actually better. This makes Bangalore's cube farms look good.
If you think this is bad, there's a gaggle of boisterous Australian backpackers sharing my room. So glad I'm on India timezone and will be returning late.
If you think this is bad, there's a gaggle of boisterous Australian backpackers sharing my room. So glad I'm on India timezone and will be returning late.
You sit in your own little corner of the world for 35 years and fancy yourself an inventor. Then you step out and realise how much has already been done that should first be copied. Not that I haven't seen them before, but to actually use japan's toilet innovations is another thing completely. The tap triggers every time you flush - it's beyond no touch. The water is reused of course so there's no wastage even if you're gross and decide to not rinse your hands. The space and material saved is awesome. Also a non aggressive reminder to all us gross people to kindly wash our hands.
Friends who've been to Tokyo, give gyan. What can I experience in two days?
Are you serious? They just inaugurated the IPL? Didn't they just get done with the World Cup? Like, yesterday they were all in Australia. Do none of them have families they need to spend time with?
I couldn't even get past the front page of the Hindu today. What a bad news day. Ghettos in Kashmir for Pandits. Fake encounters in AP and Telangana. Minister abusing his privileges to compromise flight safety. And the NGT just screwed the resale value of my Ford.
I couldn't even get past the front page of the Hindu today. What a bad news day. Ghettos in Kashmir for Pandits. Fake encounters in AP and Telangana. Minister abusing his privileges to compromise flight safety. And the NGT just screwed the resale value of my Ford.
Nilay can't stop raving about the fact that we just shared the lift with Rahul Bose. Kavin couldn't care less.
Lady at the airport reading the Gurbani on her iPad. In Gurmukhi. Any time you feel there is a barrier to mass technology adoption, remember that the barrier is in your head. People will continue to do what they've done for millennia, and figure out ways to use new technology to do it better.
Photographer friends, need camera recommendations. Urgent, only have tomorrow to buy. Tushit, Rupam, Alistair, Bhaskar, Umesh, help a friend in need.
+ portability is important. I still have a painful shoulder. But I am considering an SLR this time. Point and shoots don't do justice to the locales I visit.
+ mostly outdoor nature photography. Different light conditions.
+ photographing kids, usually not in motion.
+ indoor events. Often in dim lighting. Need to take photos from the gallery. Videos would be nice.
Not much flash photography. No closeups of flowers and stuff. I already have a tripod.
+ portability is important. I still have a painful shoulder. But I am considering an SLR this time. Point and shoots don't do justice to the locales I visit.
+ mostly outdoor nature photography. Different light conditions.
+ photographing kids, usually not in motion.
+ indoor events. Often in dim lighting. Need to take photos from the gallery. Videos would be nice.
Not much flash photography. No closeups of flowers and stuff. I already have a tripod.
Republican woman in the dining car: We Americans are taking care of the world. That's why we're fighting so many wars.
Because I came all the way to the top of a mountain in driving snow, in crazy weather, to basically bust my ass, I'm gonna bore all of you with horrible selfies. What else am I gonna do? I'm not skiing. And there's signal. And my phone is apparently snow proof.
Also, white people be crazy. How is this supposed to be fun? Or safe? Or healthy? Or sane? And then when we brown people ride on top of trains all these westerns go ohmygodthatsbatshitcrazy.
Apparently there's crazy amounts of UV here. My photochromatic glasses just dialed themselves up to 11. But its not even bright.
Also, white people be crazy. How is this supposed to be fun? Or safe? Or healthy? Or sane? And then when we brown people ride on top of trains all these westerns go ohmygodthatsbatshitcrazy.
Apparently there's crazy amounts of UV here. My photochromatic glasses just dialed themselves up to 11. But its not even bright.
I can say from experience - those bears be dangerous. It takes a lot of guts to do what those folks did.
Snow and salt, here I come!
Folks with skiing and snow adventure experience, please do guide me. What can I do for two days in Park City? I have no real experience with skiing or other snow activities.
Folks with skiing and snow adventure experience, please do guide me. What can I do for two days in Park City? I have no real experience with skiing or other snow activities.
I think the smartphone really changes the game for public involvement in government functioning. With a high quality video camera in their hands, citizens can capture videos of police brutality, corruption and malpractices, and force the government to take action, force politicians to react.
Whether it is racial profiling and violence by the police in the US, or electoral malpractices in India, a viral video ties the hands of the cops, bureaucracy and overall legal machinery.
What CCTV could not achieve in 45 years of existence, smartphones+social media are achieving in 10 years! Long live the network effect, and the power of the common man!
Whether it is racial profiling and violence by the police in the US, or electoral malpractices in India, a viral video ties the hands of the cops, bureaucracy and overall legal machinery.
What CCTV could not achieve in 45 years of existence, smartphones+social media are achieving in 10 years! Long live the network effect, and the power of the common man!
IIT Madras sends me a survey. Has a question about how many hours you work per week. It starts at 40 and ends at >100. Really? The minimum an IIT grad is supposed to be working is 40 hours/wk. What if I've, like, made it, and I don't need to put in that much work to survive. This whole notion that hard work (as opposed to working smart) is critical to your existence is absurd. And the whole survey is all about pushing students to work harder, spend more hours in "academic pursuits". But guess what... the world is changing. And there's more to life than just slogging on acads all your life!
Mission accomplished... 700 km from home
तीर्थ
My grandfather would have been so proud that I could bring the boys to Sutlej Bhavan. This is where one of modern India's proudest achievements, the Bhakra Dam, was born.
Seen in the picture - Panchsheel principles of peaceful mutual coexistence adopted inside this structure; not being followed outside by the current generation.
Seen in the picture - Panchsheel principles of peaceful mutual coexistence adopted inside this structure; not being followed outside by the current generation.
Wild child
Eye candy for nerds and patriots. This beast is gonna take Indian astronauts to space. And it just test fired and reentered successfully. Go ISRO.
Christmas carnival craziness!
Buckyball shikara.
Weekend timepass for the underemployed...
Weekend timepass for the underemployed...
जब देखो पीते रहते हैं यह लड़के
Physical Therapist: Why are you late for therapy today?
Me: It's my birthday; the little ones were doing cute things to me in the morning.
PT: Yes, yes, excuses. But I must congratulate your mother today.
Me: *blinks*
PT: It's her big day today. She became a mother today.
Me: *blinded by the brilliance of divine light*
Mummy, thanks for bringing me into the world today. Hope I worked out to be worth the effort :p
Me: It's my birthday; the little ones were doing cute things to me in the morning.
PT: Yes, yes, excuses. But I must congratulate your mother today.
Me: *blinks*
PT: It's her big day today. She became a mother today.
Me: *blinded by the brilliance of divine light*
Mummy, thanks for bringing me into the world today. Hope I worked out to be worth the effort :p
My Nexus 5 just received the much awaited Android 5.0 update. Birthday gift for the nerdy?
Nilay can now officially cycle. Der aaye durust aaye. He says I should put this on Facebook "where all the people in the world are there". Talk about being a showman!
Happiness is a bread bowl and mocktails
Head for the Hills ho gaya this Diwali
Here we go again. And some royal treatment for da boyz.
Spike it baby
बेवड़े!
Got my eyes on your drink bro...
Got my eyes on your drink bro...
Why don't people standing in the Delhi Metro pay those who are sitting for seats? Uncivic, yes; but where is Delhi's entrepreneurial nature?
My feet are cursing me.
My feet are cursing me.
I found my 'Boys' (2003, Tamil) album after a long time. Kavin has been hooked to 'Girlfriend' and tries to sing along. "Papa please play that song which I don't understand". Nilay has performed his favourite, 'Boom Boom', for your listening pleasure. Quite the showman he is.
Moral: Rahman still rules. Barry, recommend some more albums for the boys. They refuse to hear anything else and I'm tired of the Boys album.
Moral: Rahman still rules. Barry, recommend some more albums for the boys. They refuse to hear anything else and I'm tired of the Boys album.
Nilay won the classic Mastermind game at a toy store today. He defeated Kavin at a game of skill to win.
Kavin finished his first ever Mastermind round in just two steps. He needed next to no help in understanding the game!
I remember how awkward I felt as a child when my parents praised me in front of others. Now I appreciate their perspective.
Kavin finished his first ever Mastermind round in just two steps. He needed next to no help in understanding the game!
I remember how awkward I felt as a child when my parents praised me in front of others. Now I appreciate their perspective.
We got us a CNC Mill, a.k.a. Robot
Happiness is a big sand pit.
Wonder is a far setting Sun.
Wonder is a far setting Sun.
Email anxiety has been replaced with WhatsApp anxiety.
Happy Sunday everyone
Caught up with Marian and Rajesh after ten years. Such lovely kids.
Delhi has stray cattle. Allahabad has stray swine.
Chennai has stray Emus!!!
I remember protesting against Emu/Ostrich farming at the Marina in 2001. Not only is the practice inhuman, it doesn't make economic sense either. But hey, now we have the novelty of stray Emu, so looks like it all ended well.
Chennai has stray Emus!!!
I remember protesting against Emu/Ostrich farming at the Marina in 2001. Not only is the practice inhuman, it doesn't make economic sense either. But hey, now we have the novelty of stray Emu, so looks like it all ended well.
Lying on the floor, surrounded by books and tables, with the AC turned to high, listening to The Streets of Philadelphia by Bruce Springsteen.
Reliving the days of my youth...
Reliving the days of my youth...
Tamil Nadu by road after eight years. I've been missing out on the good stuff.
The roads are still the best in the country. The coffee is refreshing even at random highway stops. The hills make a beautiful backdrop to the scenery.
But they still won't serve idlis after noon. Denial of service ho gaya.
The roads are still the best in the country. The coffee is refreshing even at random highway stops. The hills make a beautiful backdrop to the scenery.
But they still won't serve idlis after noon. Denial of service ho gaya.
Commercial air travel has to be one of the biggest scams perpetrated on humanity. We figured out train travel centuries ago. Everything that's come after that, whether automobiles or airlines, is not comfortable, economic friendly, or affordable.
You pay 6x the ticket fare; arrive more than an hour before departure at ungodly hours, at an airport well outside town with no decent parking and absolute chaos in the drop off area; queue up to actually enter the damn place; queue up in a never ending check in lane; get harassed and penalised for having the audacity of carrying luggage on a trip; queue up in the security lane; empty your pockets; fish out your laptop, tablet and mobile phone, laying them out in trays, all the while worrying someone is going to flick them; get X rayed and groped (thank God I'm done having children); witness your favourite nail clipper, the one that doesn't leave your nails scratchy like a cat's, being thrown into a dustbin; repack your bag; walk for miles to get to your gate; get checked Again; get on a crowded bus that jolts around all the way to your flight; get checked AGAIN; fight to find a place for your hand baggage; get dirty looks from the air hostess for having your phone on; and squeeze past your co-passengers.
All this for what? For the most miserably small seat ever invented. How small? You can't even adjust your ass an inch throughout your flight small. And the seat won't recline because you are in front of the emergency row.
And then you get overcharged for stale cold food. Not to mention the stale air interspersed with bursts of gases (formerly packaged inside humans or tin cans).
And then the lady to your right wants your arms off the armrest so she can put her arm on the armrest. Like she's the maharani of Jodhpur.
Train travel is so much vastly better, no comparison would do justice. Whether you take the train in India or in Canada, you drive/bus into a station in the center of town, and within minutes are walking into your compartment. You did not get checked, frisked, or submit to any sort of state sponsored sexually exploitative security theatre. You get a full flat bed, ample space for your luggage, fresh linen, warm food, and the occasional breath of natural fresh air whenever you want it. You get woken up only once, to attend to the ticket checker, not every time someone next to you decides to crawl over your toes on the way to the restroom. And you can stretch your legs by walking all the way to the dining car for your hourly snack.
I mean, how does this industry even survive? The airports are no longer subsidised. The fuel isn't subsidised. The aircraft manufacturers aren't on government dole. People are actually paying to travel cattle class?!?
Oh God. Someone farted again. I've got to go throw up.
But before I leave, the parting shot. So where does all this take you? You endure this misery to get where? The Bengaluru International Airport. But there's nothing Bengaluru about it, being separated from the metropolis by a 60km wide glacier of traffic. And there definitely isn't anything international about it. So what's in store for me after I land? A road endurance test that will last longer than the actual flight.
Damn it Indian Railways. Why did you not conform my tatkal ticket and subject me to this never ending nonsense.
You pay 6x the ticket fare; arrive more than an hour before departure at ungodly hours, at an airport well outside town with no decent parking and absolute chaos in the drop off area; queue up to actually enter the damn place; queue up in a never ending check in lane; get harassed and penalised for having the audacity of carrying luggage on a trip; queue up in the security lane; empty your pockets; fish out your laptop, tablet and mobile phone, laying them out in trays, all the while worrying someone is going to flick them; get X rayed and groped (thank God I'm done having children); witness your favourite nail clipper, the one that doesn't leave your nails scratchy like a cat's, being thrown into a dustbin; repack your bag; walk for miles to get to your gate; get checked Again; get on a crowded bus that jolts around all the way to your flight; get checked AGAIN; fight to find a place for your hand baggage; get dirty looks from the air hostess for having your phone on; and squeeze past your co-passengers.
All this for what? For the most miserably small seat ever invented. How small? You can't even adjust your ass an inch throughout your flight small. And the seat won't recline because you are in front of the emergency row.
And then you get overcharged for stale cold food. Not to mention the stale air interspersed with bursts of gases (formerly packaged inside humans or tin cans).
And then the lady to your right wants your arms off the armrest so she can put her arm on the armrest. Like she's the maharani of Jodhpur.
Train travel is so much vastly better, no comparison would do justice. Whether you take the train in India or in Canada, you drive/bus into a station in the center of town, and within minutes are walking into your compartment. You did not get checked, frisked, or submit to any sort of state sponsored sexually exploitative security theatre. You get a full flat bed, ample space for your luggage, fresh linen, warm food, and the occasional breath of natural fresh air whenever you want it. You get woken up only once, to attend to the ticket checker, not every time someone next to you decides to crawl over your toes on the way to the restroom. And you can stretch your legs by walking all the way to the dining car for your hourly snack.
I mean, how does this industry even survive? The airports are no longer subsidised. The fuel isn't subsidised. The aircraft manufacturers aren't on government dole. People are actually paying to travel cattle class?!?
Oh God. Someone farted again. I've got to go throw up.
But before I leave, the parting shot. So where does all this take you? You endure this misery to get where? The Bengaluru International Airport. But there's nothing Bengaluru about it, being separated from the metropolis by a 60km wide glacier of traffic. And there definitely isn't anything international about it. So what's in store for me after I land? A road endurance test that will last longer than the actual flight.
Damn it Indian Railways. Why did you not conform my tatkal ticket and subject me to this never ending nonsense.
Woman on my flight borrowed my phone to call her family. Now she's started blabbering all kinds of personal details about herself. Her travel plans, where she works, her visa status, blah blah blah. I'm not even responding, but she's going on and on.
Who lets such blithering idiots loose on the world? I'm reminded of this old Lays ad where this cute kid goes 'My Mom says I shouldn't talk to strangers'.
Who lets such blithering idiots loose on the world? I'm reminded of this old Lays ad where this cute kid goes 'My Mom says I shouldn't talk to strangers'.
This joke aptly describes inspector raaj in India:
Poultry Farms Ki Inspection Ho
Rahi Thi,
Inspector: “Aap Murgiyon Ko Kya Dalte Ho?”
Sharma: “Ji, Bajra”
Inspector: “Wrong Food, Arrest Him” Phir Usne Sath Mein Khade Doosre Bande Se Puchha.
Verma: “Ji, Main Chawal Dalta Hoon”
Inspector: “Wrong Food, Arrest Him”
Ab Santa Ki Bari Thi, Is Se Pahle
Inspector Kuch Puchta, Santa Ghabrate Hue Bola
Santa: “Ji, Ham To Murgiyon Ko 5-5
Rupaye De Dete Hai, Ki Jo Khana Hai Wo kha Lo“...
Poultry Farms Ki Inspection Ho
Rahi Thi,
Inspector: “Aap Murgiyon Ko Kya Dalte Ho?”
Sharma: “Ji, Bajra”
Inspector: “Wrong Food, Arrest Him” Phir Usne Sath Mein Khade Doosre Bande Se Puchha.
Verma: “Ji, Main Chawal Dalta Hoon”
Inspector: “Wrong Food, Arrest Him”
Ab Santa Ki Bari Thi, Is Se Pahle
Inspector Kuch Puchta, Santa Ghabrate Hue Bola
Santa: “Ji, Ham To Murgiyon Ko 5-5
Rupaye De Dete Hai, Ki Jo Khana Hai Wo kha Lo“...
Millions of engineers graduate every year in India and other countries. They desperately look for internships and jobs. More often than not they just sit at home.
On the other hand, serious bugs like Heartbleed persist due to a lack of serious eyeballing of open source code. Linus says every bug is shallow in front of a multitude of eyeballs. But clearly that multitude is spending time on the wrong sites - monster.com etc.
Is the bug hard to find? No. Would finding the bug make you famous for life? Yes. Do you need anything beyond a laptop to find and fix such bugs? No. Is there a dearth of such bugs? HELL NO.
Fresh grads. Quit wasting your time applying to thousands of companies. Stand out from the crowd. Commit some FLOSS code. Find some bugs.
On a different note, someone recently asked me if C and computer architecture are still relevant. Suck on this! The online world exists because of C, not python, java or node.js.
I'm sure such bugs exist in every web stack.
On the other hand, serious bugs like Heartbleed persist due to a lack of serious eyeballing of open source code. Linus says every bug is shallow in front of a multitude of eyeballs. But clearly that multitude is spending time on the wrong sites - monster.com etc.
Is the bug hard to find? No. Would finding the bug make you famous for life? Yes. Do you need anything beyond a laptop to find and fix such bugs? No. Is there a dearth of such bugs? HELL NO.
Fresh grads. Quit wasting your time applying to thousands of companies. Stand out from the crowd. Commit some FLOSS code. Find some bugs.
On a different note, someone recently asked me if C and computer architecture are still relevant. Suck on this! The online world exists because of C, not python, java or node.js.
I'm sure such bugs exist in every web stack.
Co-passenger in the train: there is a 90% chance Modi will win. He has spent a lot of money. He should win.
And look at this kejriwal. He wants to win without spending any money. Yeh koi baat hui? Dhande mein paisa to lagana padega na ji.
Mind. Blown.
And look at this kejriwal. He wants to win without spending any money. Yeh koi baat hui? Dhande mein paisa to lagana padega na ji.
Mind. Blown.
तेरे बिना ज़िंदगी से कोई शिकवा तो नहीं
शिकवा नहीं
शिकवा नहीं
तेरे बिना ज़िंदगी भी लेकिन ज़िंदगी तो नहीं
ज़िदगी नहीं
ज़िंदगी नहीं
http://indianexpress.com/article/india/politics/narendra-modi-mentions-wife-in-poll-affidavit-for-the-first-time/
शिकवा नहीं
शिकवा नहीं
तेरे बिना ज़िंदगी भी लेकिन ज़िंदगी तो नहीं
ज़िदगी नहीं
ज़िंदगी नहीं
http://indianexpress.com/article/india/politics/narendra-modi-mentions-wife-in-poll-affidavit-for-the-first-time/
Candy Crush
'Papa dekho purane zamane ki car', Nilay screams on spotting a brand new Ambassador.
Poor Hindustan Motors.
Poor Hindustan Motors.
Dropbox has gone from being my favourite piece of cloud software to being my nemesis. What happened?
I've already moved my entire photo collection to BitTorrent Sync. Total control and peace of mind - nothing is ever visible to others by mistake.
I've already moved my entire photo collection to BitTorrent Sync. Total control and peace of mind - nothing is ever visible to others by mistake.
Raahgiri Day mein herogiri
Nilay 'graduated' from class I today. He's also changing schools. Received an award for 'creativity in art'.
Eeeeee धड़ाम
As if an elephant had fallen over
As if an elephant had fallen over
Attending Vimit's sagai
The Thinvent team is hanging out at Pragati Maidan again, at the EFY Expo 2014. We are here from Thursday till Saturday at Booth G19.
On display is our entire range of products - digital signage, thin client, point of sale, manufacturing automation, kiosk and solar powered computers. There is a special focus on our custom product development capabilities.
Please do visit. We are also showing some nifty toys that we use for our research projects - the raspberry pi, cubieboard and marsboard.
On display is our entire range of products - digital signage, thin client, point of sale, manufacturing automation, kiosk and solar powered computers. There is a special focus on our custom product development capabilities.
Please do visit. We are also showing some nifty toys that we use for our research projects - the raspberry pi, cubieboard and marsboard.
Who's cuter? The computer or the kid?
PS: I was involved in the making of both :p
PS: I was involved in the making of both :p
Nilay: why are world war movies black and white?
Me: they didn't have colour back then.
Nilay: not even on their clothes?
Me: I meant they didn't have colour in TVs back then.
Nilay: had they invented TVs then?
Me: (facepalm)
Kids fact check everything these days. Don't give hand waving answers.
Me: they didn't have colour back then.
Nilay: not even on their clothes?
Me: I meant they didn't have colour in TVs back then.
Nilay: had they invented TVs then?
Me: (facepalm)
Kids fact check everything these days. Don't give hand waving answers.
You learn something new everyday!
C has an atexit() function. My programs would have been so much cleaner...
C has an atexit() function. My programs would have been so much cleaner...
We missed the jhankis :(