Technical writing bleeps

I was just browsing through some resources as usual.. for documentation and I came across some old stuff.. which made me smile !! Reassures me that I am not the only one having questions in mind some wierd times... LOL ******************************************* Missing User Instruction Hans Springer received an email quoting an American article in German language. I found it very nice indeed. Here is the result of a translation back from German into English, showing the effect of inadequate user instruction: In the American "Meat & Poultry" magazine an editor quoted the following history from "Feathers", the publication organ of the California Poultry Industrial Company: The American FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) possesses equipment unique in the world for testing the stability of airplane windshields. Like a catapult this equipment shoots a dead chicken at a speed similar to that of a flying airplane to the windshield to be examined. The theory behind is that the airplane windshield, if it withstands the impact of this chicken also withstands a collision with a bird during flight. Railway engineers were highly interested in this procedure and wanted to test the windshield of a newly developed high-speed locomotive. They borrowed the FAA catapult, loaded it with a chicken and fired. The ballistic chicken smashed the windshield, pierced the driver's seat, destroyed one instrument panel and finally stuck in the rear wall of the operator's cabin. The railway-people were shocked and asked the FAA to examine the test arrangement whether everything had been implemented correctly. FAA engineers examined everything carefully and recommended: "USE A THAWED CHICKEN!" ********************************************* Biggest Lies Tech Writers Hear ( I have taken the instances which I have faced myself.. in my career) :) :) I'll return this to you, with my comments, by the end of the week? On Monday: We need it by Friday (after doing a little digging, you discover that they've known about this project for 6 weeks, but are only getting around to telling you now. More digging reveals that they can really wait until next week). Nobody reads the manuals, anyway! Code will be frozen 12 weeks before your document is due. There's plenty of time in the schedule for these changes. I don't really have an opinion on how you labelled those controls. One space, two spaces. It doesn't matter to me. We're ordering you a faster computer and a 21" monitor tomorrow. We've never had any complaints about our documentation. We're very committed here to producing top of the line documentation. What do you mean you need to know the product name now? Can't you just do a search and replace right before you go to the printer? Nobody expects you to take notes or write up the minutes if you attend our development meetings. The style guide covers every possible situation. The manual is the first thing that the user goes to after installing the product. Our readers always notice and care deeply if there are two spaces after a period, if bullets are square instead of round, and if the font is Verdana instead of Arial. The product's so intuitive, it practically writes the manual itself. You don't need to know anything about a computer except how to turn it on and work the word processor. The work is simple. Just write down what the thing does and how to do it. Oh, there's just one major feature change and some bug fixes. We are an equal opportunity employer. Communication is our priority. The software is frozen. And this is what I heard from one of the interviews I attended in a large scale company.. To be a technical writer you do not need to know English... ******************************* To compliment or not to compliment Me to A in office ( on finding his jacket really cool) : .Smart Jacket dude !! Its really looking cool... !! where did you get this jacket ? ( the last Q was merely conversational.. ) A ( after hesitating for a sec).. Its very expensive ( very importantly) Me: HUH .. Now was my way of complimenting wrong or was it not clear... A simple Thank you would have been enough.. SIGH.. !! Its like asking someone where are you off to with a vague smile... ? and that person thinks that I am trying to dig the dirtiest secret out of him or something.. and tries to be as secretive as possible .. making me feel as if I have asked about some raunchy date or something... YEESH cant somebody talk just for the sake of talking sometimes.. when you are just passing by or just trying to fill an awkward silence.. for me its just a moment which I will forget anyway to be honest !! Is it so difficult to differentiate between just a simple question and an interested question and give a simple answer... maybe I need to just keep shut... but being a Gemini.. that is impossible.. since I have to talk or I shall truly disappear... .. maybe I need to change my tactics... maybe ... this .. maybe that... or maybe I need to resort to stupid questions .. hehe !! Oh man why bother... I have better things to do...

YEhawwwwwwwwwww

And you can fly High as a kite if you want to Faster than light if you want to Speeding through the universe Thinking is the best way to travel It�s all a dream Light passing by on the screen And there�s you and I on the beam Speeding through the universe Thinking is the best way to travel We ride the waves Distance is gone, will we find out? How life bean, will be find out? Speeding through the universe Thinking is the best way to travel And you can fly High as a kite if you want to Faster than light if you want to Speeding through the universe Thinking is the best way to travel Weekend is here well almost and its time to pack our bags and head out again... This time its a new place which has opened up which is known as Wild Valley farm. Will be back with pics and stories.. seems to be an interesting place.. lots to do and hopefully lots to click... yehawwwwwwwwww

one thirty in the afternoon

and its mid day in a mid week.. .... blurb blurb... snooze... zzzzz nothing but a lull on my mind... thoughts scattered like floating micro chips.. learning.. testing .. again feeling... enligtenment comes with brainstorming... mind is a void right now all I can think of is a still pond where my thoughts take me into a Utopia of my own .. creating.. learning.. testing.. feeling... all you get is a thin line on which you have to walk upon...

*************************************************** Just had my ride write up posted here finally. .. you could check this out by clicking this link here. For riders in Bangalore or people who like to drive around this a nice getaway.. and it can be done within a day too so choose your pick and take a break... best time to visit is obviously when the rains have just ended.. its a nice ride either ways ... and you can see I am totally bored at this time...

Couldnt get enough, originally uploaded by Jilmil.

Just to show my support... "Free Mojtaba and Arash Day" ( though I am two days late) :(

Flog the bloggers or blog the floggers

Bloggers make headlines in TOI.. seems that the freedom of expression is being questioned about ... though they have given some vague examples.. would not know how far it is true... Blogging is personal but some organizations do encourage blogging calling it by different names or management yada yada !! Now that it has been a household name altogether, blogging is being frowned upon... bloggers have the risk of losing their jobs because of some personal write ups that they had made against the "software" company.. which the "management" did not like... Here it must be again realised that blogging has its own undefined rule.. If you are going to write general... there is no harm is letting your identity known to the masses.. If you are cribbing then you got to definitely go anonymous or blog from home and keep it as anonymous as possible.. and as if bloggers did not know that... Whatever said and done .. blogging again makes news.. Publicity or is it just a bite back funda of TOI.. :) God only knows ( by the way this movie is cool :) ) ************************************************************ From a pamphlet I got yesterday JUISSE LAND CHOKLATE ICE CREAM BLACK CURRENT MASH MELONE CHOCALATE FUDGE COCONUTE ICE CREAM CARROTE JUISSE PAPPAY PINAPLE JUISSE STRA BERY COKETALE JUISSE WATER MELONE I intend no offense to the Mallu population but I just could not help it.. this was from a new Mallu fruit vendor ... who was passing his JUISSY ... menu !!

Marathoning

This weekend we decided we would dedicate it to movies.. and nothing else.. we had to catch up on lots of movies.. Incredibles was something which I was looking out for since a long time but finally got the chance to watch it... if you like animation, this is another treat for your eyes.. and it has lot of humor and chutzpah thrown in.. good character build up.. great stroyline.. something unusual... it was fun !! Ray One heck of a movie though it came out in the papers as one of the sobfest( god knows why Times of India is bent on badmouthing good movies) . I thought that this movie was very well made and dealt with the life story of Ray Charles Robinson with great sentivity. If you are a music lover, you must watch this movie. After seeing this movie.. I felt happy that Ray Charles proved to the world an himself that though the music scene is full of vices.. here and there but if you have the will you can come out of it instead of making it a tragedy like other famous rockers and singers.. very inspiring I must say.. Jamie Fox has outdone himself in this movie..... this is highly reccomended if you are a music lover.. National Treasure SIGH I did not find the movie.. that different.. Put in a mixture of Tomb Raiders, Con Air, Broken Arrow, Alien, Jumanji, and you get National Treasure.. nothing new nothing great.. just another movie... you could watch without thinking.. too much !! Kisna okay this movie is almost laughable.. great storyilne but weak handling.. bad character placement... some good songs... and UGHHHH ... not worth going to a theatre to watch it.. watch it at home and be done with it !! :) Thats it for now... planning for a trip this weekend .. so am looking forward to that.. hope to get more pics of this beautiful place.. :) Had lunch at Mc Donalds.. dont how what all the hype is all about.. it is just another American Ishtyle joint... SIGH... next on the line is The Aviator and Million Dollar Baby and hope you all had a great weekend... I had a good one ...

Observed

Looking for comfort

mewww, originally uploaded by Jilmil.

Found this lonely kitten in Ranganthittu.. was a sick one but came to me in a pat purring for comfort... thought that the cat need some scratching... below the neck... purrrrrrrrrrr.... a fellow biker clicked this .. I am usually the one behind the lens.. this is one time I am in it :) ... Girl power.... Two children fighting for superiority.. sister who is the elder one pushes.. the little bro and tries to push her back.. but cannot due to his size... sister pushes back.. shouts at him... bro runs to a nearby cycle which was parked.. and pushes it down.. sister gets angrier .. hits bro... bro runs helter skelter till he spies another cycle standing and pushes that down too... sister... shouts but backs off.. bro ... a big smile of glee... All this happens in a fraction of a second just as I was driving past my lane... goes to say... fraction of a second can make you the alpha male or the alpha female... in your vicinity... Laloo Prasad Yadav Thats the name of the &^@$%# movie I watched ... its a bad remake of A fish called Wanda.. and unless you want to see the real Laloo along with the jokers.. in the screen.. STAY AWAY from it ... Love

the lone thinker, originally uploaded by Jilmil.

needs lot of work and patience... SIGH ... dunno why but all the posts I have been reading with reference to love has been disappointing to say the least... Rocks proves it in his quest for the unreachable ....that is attain balance with me .... LOLOL (What is he looking for... this man o'mine.. I tell you what.. he was looking for... tadpoles... hahha !! dont ask me why?? ) LEOs here LEOs there.. I am being hunted :)

A rottweiler pup, originally uploaded by Jilmil.

My new friend, Leo...... which I made... I think he is a Rottweiler but am not for sure he is ... he is a bundle of contradictions.. he looks his most serious when he is up to something.. he likes to think he is cute ... he is so adorably ugly heheh that I could hug him tight... he greets me with a bark from the terrace next to mine.. while I do my rounds.. he patiently waits till I come across him and looks at me with eagerness... heres to you Leo for making my mornings .. more interesting.... ( to think of it... This dog is a LEO, my husband is a LEO, my Father is a LEO ... waaahhhhhhh !!! am I dreaming or do I need help.. talk of coincidences... )

We didnt start the fire it was always burning

The future, according to some scientists, will be exactly like the past, only far more expensive. John Sladek George Bush, Tony Blair, Arafat, Princess Diana, Vladimir Putin, Bin laden, Sadaam Hussain, Colin Powell, Musharraf... Bees Gees, Deep Purple, Scorpions, Roger Waters Euro here dollar there .. rupee as is was is there... Columbia, Kalpana, yet another loss we bear.. terrorism on the loose, "ecstasy" the high of the year.. Mars project, Enron bust, Indo pak talks, Michael Jackson on the wall PC Virus, pilgrimages killed, suicide bombers on the prowl.. Ununtrium, Ununpentium,30 human embryos cloned, children at the mercy of priests... Train explosion, car bombs, hijacks, lost souls... We didn't start the fire It was always burning Since the world's been turning We didn't start the fire No we didn't light it and try as we might we cannot seem to fight it... Spy planes, leaked secrets, prison abuse, fake wars, North Korea, South Korea, Israel, Palestine... Sonia gandhi, Vajpayee, Manmohan Singh and we go round and round.. Tehelka, Best bakery, false witness and scams all over.. Afghanistan and Iraq is built, on the graves of the lost souls. US rejoices, Pak still burns, Europe copes, India remains.. Greenland melts, Antarctic blooms, deserts have rain, earth quakes, .. Weather blasts, globe warms, hurricane, tornado, tsunami.. We didn't start the fire It was always burning Since the world's been turning We didn't start the fire No we didn't light it and try as we might we cannot seem to fight it... Microsoft sued, Linux enters, Google rocks, IE sinks, Silicon age, Silicon crime, goobye to the old world charm.... Aspirin gets rejuvenated.. economy booms real estate flourishes, the poor still are as poor as can be... Egypt revisited, mysteries unvieled, lessons to be learnt, but we always fail DNA's, Forensic, AIDs still gives away.. Hubble space, Saturn rings, all look out but fail to look in ... discoveries, controversies, when will it all end ? We didn't start the fire It was always burning Since the world's been turning We didn't start the fire No we didn't light it and try as we might we cannot seem to fight it... Harry Potter, Lord of the rings, Star wars, all roll well Amrish Puri, Mehmood, Norah Jones, Anushka's tunes.. Nepal homicide, Tibet still in the trap, Kargil continues, Uncle Sam deigns to muse... Chennai, Pondicherry, Andamans, Thailand, did we ever think it will be ?? bombs here bombs there assasinations rampant.. code red for the world but no one seems to be on the line.. We didn't start the fire But when we are gone Will it still burn on, and on, and on, and on...

Twisted Tuesday

V day gone and some tension has been released... he he !! in the midst of attending an office dinner ( that too veg ... ) and then hurrying to pick a gift for my man.. it was a day which came and gone but not without its moments.. picking up a gift for friends is a quick thing but picking the right gift for your man takes a while when the choices slowly get tighter year by year... but anyway thinking about it is fun.. after much thinking I got this brillant idea to gift him an original Zippo lighter, which is usually almost every man's desire to covet it and flaunt it. Add to that a huge card which proclaimed my "love" and "lust" for him in 101 ways.. LOLOL and a poster which had all the alcohol bottles that was possible.. only one of which we had tasted.. The next thing was to hide it or rather display it in strategic places where his eyes would go.. he he !! aint I the romantic one !! SIGH... my V day was made.. looking the expression of joy in his eyes and then him reading the card slowly ... ( 101 sentences... SHEESH but BLUSH) he yacked at the funny lines and sighed at the groovy lines... watching him fiddle this way and that with the lighter... made me laugh when he started reading the bottles projected in the poster... and his expression of disappointment that he had had only one brand out of all of them... made my day... hahah .!! men .. they are so predictable sometimes and adorable too... Thats what we are "crazy baruas"... and I love my Barua to nuts .... he he !!

Inside Orange county, originally uploaded by Jilmil.

some left over shots which you can check out when you have the time and the inclination !!! this is about the time when we went to Coorg and ended up again visting this place.. this time we decided we will burn a hole and stay there even if it is for a night.. hehe *************************************** PS: I really do not know who is deleting comments.. Haloscan is hibernating and so are my comments.. have put YACCS commenting box.. please use that.. blogger is also behaving spookily without me knowing about it.. its deleting comments .. GAWK !!!

Monday with a moooooo !!!

And here is another monday welcoming me with its spring sunshine !! Valentine's day has got the city going pink and red with mush.. there was a time when Valentine's day was just another day and today its hyped up to a peak where everyone is in the mood to wish everyone.. well as long as the spirit is good it makes a fine day.. Watched Black ... needless to say I liked it a lot.. and well its a well made movie.. with the lightings and the colors.. just the right spotlight for the characters.. it has the right bit of everything... The little girl outdid herself. However, the last scene reminded me of Khamoshi.. (we could have done without the last scene where the girl goes on and on establishing and reestablishing the fact that well being blind and deaf is not a shortcoming and nothing is impossible.. blah blah blah..) some scenes reminded me of the movie Svengali.. rest was cool ... Also watched Page 3... now this is a movie I found where they showed stuff which is nothing new.. ... in a way it made the Bollywood film industry look like really sad.. Granted most of it could be true.. well who cares... would the display of the trend or the happenings in the industry be resuced in any way.. what is there is there ... and well the only thing I liked about the movie is the concept that you got to be in the system to change the system... Alexander.... hmmm I must say that this movie was a jumble of history here and there.. I think I liked Troy better. Nothing much to say here .... did not find the movie worth my while.. rest was a weekend where I got to catch up on my sleep.. SIGH.. it is bliss to sleep without dreams... And it seems that this is skin season... what with films like Sheesha, Tezaab, Ab Bas, etc,etc doing the rounds... how much or how little is enough... why is it still so sensational... Think thunk think think think thunk... what shall I get for my hubby ?? think thunk think thunk...

Middle finger

Felt like showing the middle finger of my hands and toes to the bus drivers of two buses which blocked my way... along with one tempo, one car 5 bicycles, 3 autos... from all directions.. realised that I could not do much about it and to add to it everyone was trying to be the first one to go... ahead.. good heavens... everyone is in a hurry and we are all late... HUH ... give me a break... serves me right to start late... reminds me of a fwd a friend sent ...

Driving in India For the benefit of people visiting India and daring to drive on Indian roads, I offer a few hints for survival. This is applicable to everyplace in India except Bihar, where life outside a vehicle is only marginally safer. Indian Road rules broadly operate within the domain of Karma where you do your best and leave the results to your insurance company. So here are the driving hints:

1. Do we drive on the left or right of the road? The answer is "both". Basically you start on the left side of the road, unless it is occupied. In that case, go to the right, unless that is also occupied. Then proceed by occupying the next available gap, as in chess. ( just as it was proved today)
2. Just trust your instincts, ascertain the direction, and proceed. Most drivers don't drive, but just aim their vehicles in the intended direction. Don't you get discouraged or underestimate yourself. Except for a belief in reincarnation, the other drivers are not in any better position. (that bloody tempo was just bent of going straight without bothering about poor ol me on his path...)
3. Don't stop at pedestrian crossings just because some fool wants to cross the road. You may do so only if you enjoy being bumped in the back. Pedestrians have been strictly instructed to cross only when traffic is moving slowly or has come to a dead stop because some minister is in town. Still, some idiot may try to wade across, but then, let us not talk ill of the dead. (specially the hand showing car sttopping, saree picking and running pedesterian)
4. Blowing your horn is not a sign of protest as in some countries where we honk to express joy, romance or just bare lust (two brisk blasts). Here, it may be to show your resentment, frustration, or just to mobilize a dozing cow in the middle of the bazaar. (tell me about it.. sometimes I have to beep just to remove a confused grazing cow in the middle of the road)
5. Keep informative books in the glove compartment. You may read them during traffic jams, while awaiting the chief minister's motorcade, or waiting for the rain waters to recede. ( I listen to music or meditate.. helps me keep calm .. ;)
6. Night driving on Indian roads can be an exhilarating experience. The roads do not have shoulders, only occasional boulders. ( and twisted parts of dividers)
7. Truck Drivers are the James Bonds of India and are licensed to kill. Often you may encounter a single powerful beam of light about six feet above the ground. This is not a super motorbike, but a truck approaching you with a single light on; usually the left one. It could be the right one, but never get too close to Investigate. You may end up proving your point posthumously. ( hate them lights)
8. During the daytime, trucks are more visible, except that the drivers will never signal. Often you will observe that the cleaner who sits next to the driver, will project his hand and wave hysterically. (sometimes its to slow.. sometimes its to indicate.. sometimes.. just for the heck of it .. god is it a puppet show or something...its your lucky guess)
9. Occasionally you might see what looks like a UFO with blinking colored lights and weird sounds emanating from within. This is an illuminated bus, full of happy pilgrims singing bhajans. These pilgrims go at breakneck speed, seeking contact with the Almighty and often meeting with success. ( may god enlighten them)
10. Driving in residential areas has been prevented by providing a "speed breaker" which is two for each house. This mound, incidentally, covers the water and drainage pipes for that residence and is left untarred for easy identification by the corporation authorities, should they want to recover the pipe for year-end accounting. (what about new humps that appear out of the blue)

Good Luck !

Had a nightmare of driving a Maruti 800 ( where was my jeep ?? ) across a desert for no good reason.. as I am trying to control the car in the shifting I am wondering what circumstances forced me to drive this in a desert.. that too with a stranger with a peaceful smile... maybe someone was trying my patience or was it a message that no matter how much I try I cannot go ahead given the circumstances.. SIGH... and what else is new ?? Aero show is the talk of the town.... last time was not that impressive.. maybe this time will be a good one.. they seem to be having new airplanes... Here are a few shots of the flowers growing in the backward of our home in Assam.. I took some time out to capture some of them in macro .... some roses, some marigold, etc.. after a bout of rain.. Click here to view the album... And the rest the same old wednesday.. without much to weed about ...

Do we need some more ??

As the Chinese population get ready to celebrate the new year.. I was somewhat surprised at reading this... and I was thinking to myself.. do we need some more bad news added to all that is happening all over..

This Chinese lunar year is the Year of the Rooster . The element is wood. The last time we experienced a Year of the Wood Rooster was 60 years ago, between February 13, 1945, and February 1, 1946. Forecasting that tumultuous time, the French seer Nostradamus, centuries earlier, composed warnings of the times ahead in verse. That last Year of the Wood Rooster was definitely a year of Biblical proportions, a time in history when the forces of light battled and conquered the forces of darkness and death, and many powers were shifted. The unfathomable horrors of the concentration camps were unveiled. World War II came to an end as Hitler and his evil Third Reich were taken out of power and destroyed. The first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. Three days later, another atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. There is a very old adage that history repeats itself in cycles, a fact of which I�m sure Nostradamus himself was well aware. If this Chinese lunar year manifests itself anything like it did back in 1945, the Year of the Wood Rooster is sure to not only change the course of history, but shape the course of the future as well. Read On

And the same newsletter has an interesting theory about beating the bad effects of a planet in your horoscope without spending much money.. I found that humorous and practical given the fact that astrology makes one blind sometimes and the mass is taken for a ride in the name of bad effect of the planets and "parihar" to remove it !!

Saturn is lonely and feels unloved. Having grown up listening to jeers and taunts (because Saturn walks with a limp and is ugly to look at), he cries out in anguish, �And if you prick us, do we not bleed?� Nothing, therefore, would please him more than empathy. Saturn rules isolation, asceticism and old age. One could try to chip away at his crustiness by a voluntary visit to an old-age home every week (or every fortnight or every month, but at regular pre-determined intervals since Saturn loves discipline). Read on for more....

And its a wonderful evening !!! :)

Birds everywhere

This weekend I was curtain shopping when I entered this shop known as Pet Planet... got attracted by the vibrantly colored birds kept outside... I could not imagine they had so many birds inside the shop along with fish... when I went inside.. Big fish, small fish, big birds... like the huge white parrots with cute crown on their head, a multicolored macaw.. ... I was like stupefied.. Never seen so many species of birds at one shot... Mini doves, african parrots, love birds, etc etc .. They had good user friendly cages which you could clean and feed easily... There were some up to the date aquariums made of fibre.. etc .. Prices of the birds ranged from 30,000 a pair to 600/- a pair.. EGAD Fish price was decent.. Am thinking of keeping a few goldfish.. but birds are also a good idea only that I do not like seeing them in cages... better to be content with my sparrows... ******************************************** Watched Dil Maange More... hmmm... fully faltu but I think it was ok.. Zoya Khan needs more punch in her acting skills me thinks... :) Watched Aitraaz... Have fallen in love with The gela gela gela song sequence... ********************************************* Missed watching Sting... but heck hope we get another opportunity... WAAAH !!! Overheard a doc talking to another while taking my cousin in law to the doc .. DOC A: You know yesterday na .. itna bhir tha... woh STING ka concert tha.. DOC B: oh that must have been good DOC A: with a sigh.. I lost my mobile in the crowd... DOC B : really.. so how was the concert DOC A : It was OK (GAWK STING and just OK ) DOC B: Same reaction as I was having inside my mind... Why . he rocks man !! DOC A : Yaar tu na !! you will not get it .. he is not like Enrique Iglesias... Me in my mind: ARRRRRGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH where oh where does this comparison come to the fore... STING and Enrique are two different genres.. Yeeesh !!! Guess he has been introduced to the music scene very recently... My cousin in law who is a great fan of Enrique looked at me and later jumped with joy,.... I was like ... feeling ancient.. LOLOLOL !!! ************************************************ I think I like the Subs in Subway... if you have the time... do try the Paneer tikka Sub and the Chicken teriyaki Sub.. they rock... :) and Monday is rocking !!

Viola !!!!

And I have another template.... Ta daaaaa ( Mr Bean style) !!! Points to Note : I have not checked it for usability in Firefox or Mozilla... have not become that much of a geek as of now... ( EGAD).. hopefully I shall mature into that sometime in the distant future.. when the whim strikes me ..I sure wish I could do that now.. but seriously do not have the time... My template is my choice and is not up for discussion like a certain blogger with sour grapes had to say... about Indians having bad taste in choosing blogs like mine and others... Ahem... I was not aware that my previous template was nominated for the best designed blogs in the Indibloggies award. ( I am honored though..) I change templates as per my moods and my whims.... and not to be under particularly overly intelligent and critical dude's sour grapish observations..... excuse me... for the rant and the GRRRR and just as he is free to voice his oh so precise complaint.. I also have the right to voice my irk... And last but not least .. have a great weekend !! Thank you all that have visited my blog and have been supportive during my time of loss.. your kind words have brought peace... you all rock...

Another day begins

So many things have happened ... in these two weeks... I am yet to contain eveything that I have absorbed... After all the practice with the orchestra and the jing bang... I missed the singing event due to the unexpected death news... so I have no strings story to recount... Death has been ironically responsible for me travelling a circle around India... from Bangalore to Delhi and then to Assam and from there to Kolkatta and then back to Bangalore via Hyderabad... and the unscheduled travelling which was reflected in my daily horoscope was an understatement of the year... Indian Airlines have improved on the flight pursers... and the food. sevice is definitely better... I would recommend Indian airlines as the airline to fly around... Jet Airways is still the most expensive having the worst of services... available.. You will get and eclectically sick combination of food when you are swimming in the clouds with your ears unfortunately half blocked with pain and popping horrendously...

Chicken machurian with Raita... ( who invented Raita with Chinese food ?? ) Chicken Makhani with rice and vegetables with Sauce.... ( was in intentional or was it just fluke that the side dishes got swapped) You will be served tea by a handsome purser only to realise that you have not been given a cup and if you have been accidentally provided with a teacup there is no milk, sugar or the stirrer which usually comes along with the food tray...

The only redeeming factor of Jet Airways is that there is somewhat a continuous connection to Bangalore from Assam even though it is via Kolkata and then Hyderabad. So what if it was almost 5 hours late.... The popping function in my ears had a field day making me absolutely deaf as a wombat ( if there is one)... for two days.. BRRRR... and I am still short of hearing to a certain extent... To explain to people how your loved one died each and every time is as painful as dying a small death everytime... What might be sympathy for the mass may be just a tiring period for the grieving family on one side and on the other side... it is a welcome relief from breaking down just because you have so many things to attend too... that you forget your loss for a brief period of time... Rituals though sometimes incomprehensible.. makes a lot of sense when it is implemented... The best part about death is that it brings a lot of people together and makes you realise that one is not alone.. specially at the end of a wintry day when a bonfire is lit and close relatives and friends huddle around the fire talking and bonding with each other... I think this is the ultimate way of building a strong community... of good will and good thoughts.... When I compare the tragic loss to the loss of the people and families in the recent disaster ... mine seems like a drop in the ocean.... Far away in the hills the disaster of Tsunami did not make any sense... since they have to cope with internal fallouts of their own... as long as it does not affect them they are not bothered.. ignorance is truly bliss for them... Bombing and Bandhs and Assam are words that you need to remember to associate with each other always. Life is not normal without long powercuts... planting bombs.. and closing shop... sad but true.... I need a break... maybe a good ride... just by ourselves...