There goes 2011

Raagi biscuits

We have been majorly into baking biscuits last month. The latest batch is raagi-kalonji. Not so sinful but a very satisfying experiment.

Some questions

Finally we had the closure of my course that had slowly and steadily reached a point when the only question all concerned cared about was "when will it end?" Couldn't get that buzz that I like to have in the class. Perhaps it was me not being able to give that twist to every tale that keeps people hooked on to the class rather than their cell-phones or perhaps it was them. All in all a very ordinary interaction, will have to spend sometime to reflect on what could be done differently in future. But that is for another day.


Most of the day was spent interviewing graduate applicants. One of the questions asked: so show where does the necking take place. Yes, we engineers can be nosy about such details.

And the final question, what more bizarre turns the story on Peter Roebuck's death will take? I used to like his articles primarily because he wasn't the type to use the cliches that most cricket writers/commentators are guilty of. Through his articles on cricket you could sense his strong opinions. He came across as a man of convictions, one who celebrated cricketing abilities, one who couldn't tolerate injustice, one who sought for extreme punishments for cricketers involved in match-fixing and above all he seemed to be so clear headed, so sure of himself and appeared to care the least what the world thought of him. And yet the picture that is emerging after his death seems to indicate there was a lot that lied beneath.

10 k tomorrow

It has been raining crazy since the afternoon but tomorrow the run is on, rain or shine. Sufficient calories have been tucked in since yesterday, I hope that extra day counts. Have been trying to correct 60 answer books, I hope that counts for the mental preparation. And the bib? Super cool and so professionally done! The number is 1838, telling me even if you are nearing 38 run like an 18 year old. Although in my case I am fitter now than ever but that is not the point, the number is telling and I have to listen.

Haven't been very regular about the training but feel really excited about the race tomorrow. Hope the knee holds and the mind too. More after the race, now back to the answer books.

Mush-journal entry

It was during a summer visit to Kerala, they had just come out of his parent's colony and crossed the main road. Walking carefully over the foot path which was more like an obstacle path they were chit-chatting about nothings while minding their steps. Early evening, the traffic on the road was much more than usual, in fact there was a small jam. Suddenly he nudged her saying he will be back and rushed into the jam heading straight to the city bus held up in the traffic. Bewildered by this sudden distraction she looked on, as he reached near the bus and poked at the elbow of this lady in mid-fifties who looked like she had had a long day. Irritated by the intrusion in her private space she turned to look at the irritant with an expression of extreme annoyance. She couldn't hold on to that for too long though as a split second later one could see her straining to recall where had she seen this man before and then 'click' the final jigsaw piece fitted in place and a huge grin spread over her face. The traffic started to move as he headed back to the footpath. She waved at her favourite student from primary class and he waved back.

Quote

"We dance round in a ring and suppose, while the secret sits in the middle and knows."
                             -Robert Frost

Post Diwali

Love the crunchy veggies tossed in a dressing of lime, garlic, pepper, salt and olive oil and even the juicy liquid that remains after the veggies are over!

Diwali cooking

Wanted to make a diwali sweet with the odd constraints: should be non-liquidy, should have coconut-jaggery combo and one should be able to bake it! Snicker-doodle topped with coconut-jaggery-cardamom paste satisfied the constraints pretty well and in fact we liked it so much that it is going to be a diwali regular from here on.

For the longest of times I have been wanting to make samosas, finally it happened today. My favourite recipe book by Madhur Jaffery has a detailed recipe and it was quite easy to follow. I tried making the uncooked samosa the previous evening and refrigerate them in an airtight box. Unfortunately this led to condensation and there was much liquid in the bottom making one of the sides really soggy, also the covering becomes a shade darker. Anyhow, post frying they looked pretty okay. Perhaps it would be better if one keeps the container open while refrigerating till it thermalises and then put the cover to avoid dehydrating them. Will have to wait till next time.

Testing times

Exam time in the institute. Had invigilation duty this morning, and therefore my share of viewing typical exam behaviour. As you enter the darkish classroom with your load of exam papers and answer books, invariably there are already a few early birds who have come for their worm even if the worm is distributed only half an hour later. Occupying the best seats right below the fans, armed with sharpened pencils, spotless erasers, pens of three colours and a straight edge they are ready to take on the exam and don't seem to get what this delay all about. Next comes most of the junta and as they settle into their seats it is about time to start distribution of answer books. Before you are done distributing, you can count up on that bunch of people who whizz in rather importantly and want to get their answer book immediately on arrival, even before the last person who has been sitting in the class much before they arrived. Silence prevails, some stare at the question paper, some dive in straight into writing without bothering to read, some can think only when one of the hands is busy rotating the pencil between the fingers, some are too curious about neighbours and some of course need to pick their nose to kick start their brain. Ten minutes into the exam, it is time for at least one headless chicken to make an appearance and ask if we knew where the exam for his/her course is being held and without waiting for an answer disappear somewhere.

And finally there are those people who have been given their answer books and the question paper at the right time at the start of the exam, but don't reciprocate by returning the answer books back at the right time after the end of the exam. I am usually quite polite, calm and yet firm, but in today's invigilation duty I finally had to snatch the answer sheet out of the last student. Grrr….

Keep it boxed

Little wary of perpetually-out-of-box thinkers, more often than not they sound like they are out of their mind.

Regime change

That was long overdue ......

Timing it right

Administrative work in academia often seems like a waste of working hours. Would an academic rather spend his/her work time on a problem that is towards scientific and technological advancement or resolve issues pertaining to distribution of course load between faculty members, allocation of lab spaces, purchases of equipments, re-look at course program etc.? Even though often the latter option seems to contain the highly avoidable activities, I realise that if you want to have the infrastructure around you to work in a way that you feel it should and if it bothers you when it doesn't then it is time wise much more efficient to participate in the administration.
 
Having said that, I also feel that administrative work requires a certain level of maturity which comes with experience and in the beginning of your career you don't have much of it. Not only that, a new faculty member should have some time to settle into starting a research group and learn how to teach before getting involved in administration. So when is a good time for a faculty to start participating in administrative activities, and what percentage of the working hours should go into it? Also, what is good split of your working time between teaching related activities (include teaching hours, preparing for lectures, preparing assignments etc.), research related activities (include reading literature, meetings with research students, writing papers etc.), administrative activities (not immediately connected with academics) and miscellaneous (socialising, net surfing, etc.)? 

Yogic glow

Not sure if it is the actual doing of yoga in the morning or the fact that I did it which is making the day perfect so far.

Jagjit Singh passes away

:( For those millions of times when I could turn to your songs..... thank you....

• Baat nikalegee to phir door talak jayegi
• Hazaaron khwahishen aisi
• Apne hoton par sajaana chahta hoon

Of tomatoes and rasbharees

One of the most exciting discoveries of our Kodai trip was this fruit that they call tomato, available in every fruit shop and there were so many of these shops, which don't look so tomato like. A duller brick red, shape more oblong and the bottoms pointy rather than flat but when when you cut it open you see the tomatoeness of the fruit. A thick, fleshy center with an exploding population of bright seeds stuck all around it and the characteristic spongy inner layer under the peel. Taste wise, it was tangy with a hint of bitter but the flavour was strikingly similar to those green juicy fruits called as rasbharees in Kanpur. I still recall marveling at the amazing natural packaging of rasbharees in paper thin brown covers. Anyhow, many Kodai tomatoes peppered with salt and chilly powder were consumed while debating over why is it called a tomato and stating how long it has been since we had rasbharees.

Main Roun ya Hasoon.....

Kissa ek coffee ka

Usually it is over coffee that I socialise at work place. Being not much of a coffee drinker, rarely do I go for it by myself but after downing a heavy meal complete with a generous helping of tayir saadam in the end, to head for the coffee counter seemed just the right thing to do. Unarmed with my trusted friends who explain my requirements with their carefully chosen words in tamil, I felt a little vulnerable but really how tough can it be to explain that I want light coffee: cheenee baraabar, doodh zyaada, coffee kum. Me (feeling all tense): Saar, coffee. Strong kunjon kamee. Coffee guy raised his eyebrows giving me what would surely qualify as an approving yes-of-course look. I immediately felt reassured and started my hunt in the various flaps of my purse to find the coffee receipt. Aah there it was and I reach for my coffee. I don't know what went wrong, perhaps saar didn't like my sentence construction or he thought kunjon and kamee cancel each other out, but there it was staring at me, a dark, potent cup of coffee. It must have been the general feeling of well being induced by the tayir saadam that I didn't put up any protest, sat and did the now-in-glass-next-in-bowl mixing, took a few sips of the liquid and dutifully remained on a coffee high ever after.

Steve Jobs

A man who did amazing things in the short time he had. Absolutely personified Apple's motto to 'think different'.

Stunning Kodai

Ekalavya

While hemming a skirt I couldn't help but follow the story of Ekalavya being told by my father to his grand son. From the smooth flow of story and the animated tone one could sense that much preparation has taken place prior to this visit. Finally nearing the end, "The story is a bit sad in the end, is that alright?" asked GF. "I like sad stories." was the prompt reply. However, in spite of the assurance the thumb grew back in the end. But really what does one take from the story? It is often quoted as a prime example of student's devotion for his teacher but I feel the student-teacher part of it is more of a back drop, to me it is more an example of how one should have fervent passion for what one wants to achieve in life and let that be the motivation rather than be dejected and get distracted by the hiccups that come ones way. Not only that, it is also a story of acceptance of the fallible nature of human mind which to preserve its ego is ready to stoop low enough.

The bad and the ugly

Wish I could wish them away, the days that start badly. Just the other day I was telling my friends how I used to think that I was great with kids and how last 6 years have shown me a huge pile of evidence to the contrary. Not only my kid manages to get on my nerves with seemingly no effort even his friends know how to get my goat. But today's ugliness is entirely between RRJ and me. Today my parents arrive this afternoon, in the morning I was hoping against hope that people will do their thing and leave for school so that I could get the house in a shape it hasn't been in for months. RRJ came to know about the impending arrival of his 'favourite guys' last night and since then has been wanting to be picked up from school early so that he can accompany me to the station. I have been refusing it since prior to lunch I have a meeting scheduled with another colleague to discuss the possible additions to the current experimental set up, his expertise would really make a difference to the experiments we intend to perform in the coming week. I wasn't sure when I will be done with the meeting and didn't want to make a promise to RRJ that I wouldn't be able to keep. This morning the demand persisted and it was declared that 'if no early pick up then no school.' I was patient, then I was more patient finally the cohesive forces that were keeping it all together reached their limit and the whole being-a-reasonable-mother act fell apart. One whack in the backside, and then the second one much harder than the first one followed. They left without anyone wanting to make peace, I didn't even apologise to him. I did the dumping, arranging and cleaning and reached my office with a mind that needs a lot of arranging before it can focus on the papers that lie on my desk. My hand is still shaking from the hitting but it is my inner self that I want to shake and ask a few questions.

Reviewer's dilemma

It is hard to be a thesis examiner of a PhD student whose supervisor is not only known to you but also is your contact point with an agency that is funding your project. The situation gets infinitely trickier, if the thesis leaves a lot to be desired both technically and the way it is presented and I don't mean language here. Well, we are sitting with this beautifully bound thesis and wondering how to write what I must but in a way that is not offensive. Any suggestions?

VISA jitters

Phew! Nothing can be more painful than filling DS-160 form for US visa with intermittent and slow internet connection. I was feeling like an ant climbing up the wall and getting blown down by the wind every few minutes.

Coping strategies

On her way back from office, my friend overhears a conversation between two kids (ages around 10-11): Kid1: Hey da, I am not coming to your home again. Your dad seems to be always angry da. Kid2: Come on da! My dad is like that only, just ignore him da.

Recognition matters

However tiny it may be, I am totally thrilled to receive some recognition from the institute I work in the form of an award. While a month ago I was genuinely surprised to learn that I will be nominated for it, it was a much bigger surprise to see myself wanting it so bad by the end! So much for thinking that I knew myself.

Chocolates off an ice tray

Got the cooking chocolate bars from Nilgiris. These were labeled as bitter but gosh the bars were unbelievably sweet. I think in the kind of weather conditions we have in chennai you need all that sugar to keep the chocolate maintain its shape. The bitter label is more to tell that it is not milk chocolate. After seeing a few youtube tutorials I ready to give it a go.

So the whole process is melt and set, that is it!

In absence of double boiler, the melting was done in a two-pot system. The bottom pot sat on a gentle fire and had some water to generate the steam. The top pot with the cooking bars broken into smaller pieces sat on the rim of the bottom pot maintaining a safe distance from the water. Throughout the melting process some patient stirring was required as the chocolate was ready to fuse into any surface available if allowed to. After mixing the almond powder and cocoa powder, the mixture was ready to be set. Didn't have any setting moulds at home so decided to use the ice trays instead. The mixture was put in, shaken (not stirred) to allow settling and then cooled for 10-15 minutes. A twist and out popped chocolate cubes!

Takkalino

Have been feeling most of the week as if I am wading in unfamiliar waters. First, it was the 6k run on saturday, the route was most familiar, the distance also not that unfamiliar but it was this being part of a huge gathering of people coming to run together that was totally unfamiliar. Peace and I ran together, but we didn't do our usual chit-chat, we were strangely very focussed. Kenny apart from providing inspiration also caused some distraction, oh those shoes or are the socks? I just can't get over them! At the end of the run my mouth was slightly bitter and I felt a little faint but in a minute I was normal and the feeling was absolutely fantastic. It felt so great, unfamiliar but great.

Second, it was a lecture to college teachers on "feedback" , in the context of how it can be used in making teaching more effective. It was part of a weekend program which I was hesitant to be a part of. I wasn't not sure if I am there yet, I mean reaching a stage where I can teach about how to teach. Anyhow, I did agree and realized it was a much harder lecture to prepare for than the usual technical things I lecture on. On the lecture day, what made it even more awkward was that this bunch of colleagues who were organizing the program were also attending it. To top it there was also the person who had given lectures about "effective teaching" to us. The power point slides suddenly seemed very inadequate and why had I bothered to put Tendulkar's picture in one the slides? Anyhow, I started and went along with what I had in plan. It wasn't so bad after all. In fact, at the end of it I was quite pleased with how it had all turned out. RRJ was sitting in the side listening to Amma's blabbering and his feedback: when I grow up I want to be a famous cricketer ….. not a teacher!

But perhaps while liquidizing the tomato chutney in the morning what was weighing on my mind was the impending event where I have to elaborate on the philosophy behind what I do as an academic. That is a tough one because so far the philosophy has been "try to survive". Doesn't look good as the heading of a slide, does it? Lost in these thoughts I switched the mixie on. Didn't do the usual pulsing first. In half a minute, it was tomato sprayed all over the wall, on the platform and on my dress. I screamed and yelled at nothing in particular, and tried to ignore RRJ and RRS who thought it was very amusing. Nothing unfamiliar about that though.

Active learning

I am a believer, the active learning strategies if used well do work wonders. The ones I have used in my classes and have found to be very effective are: "think-pair-share", "one-minute paper" and "active-co-operative learning". Fancy names but the ideas are very simple, may be I will elaborate another time...... Today we have first active-co-operative session for this semester's class. I am going to be the listener and students will to the chalk-talk. A little apprehensive how it will all go but looking forward to it nevertheless.

Guitar updates

How many months will it take till I know
how to play the damn chords
The answer my friend, is blowin in the wind,
the answer is blowin in the wind......

Around 6-7 months have passed since I bought the guitar. It was one of the new year resolutions based on suggestion from elder brother: "learn music". What I have learnt so far is equivalent of playing three notes together in a piano! Oh no!
What I have lost is sensation of finger tips and all contacts with the said sibling, ironically we had a discord over musical matters!


Yet to reach the stage when the fingers land on the notes together and move to the next chord cleanly. And of course we have stayed clear of chords B and F. And then there are strumming patterns. Maybe we need to have a 5-year plan here.

Amchi Kimchi

Just mixed the spices with the soaked veggies. I absolutely love the kimchi that turns out as per Madhur Jafferey's recipe. On day one it looks like:



And it is official that I am missing the guys, the missing-them started the same evening they left. To be precise just when I got to know that they are enjoying karimeen fry while I was having alu-capsicum with rice. Eagerly waiting their arrival this evening. Super mother-in-law is sending some for me too. Bhagvaan ki duniya mein der hai andher naheen.

Dr.... DK Bose

The memories of childhood are strange in that they are mostly so hazy that I can't recall much even if I think hard but then there are a few images and some details of incidents that are so clear as if they happened just yesterday. Got recently reminded of one such incident that happened long ago when I was in class 1.

Just like most other days during that time, I was the first one to reach the jhoola park right next to our home. I used be quite an expert in doing 'paing' which is essentially: you stand and swing and when you are satisfied with the amplitude of the oscillations you sit down and at the maximum point release yourself like a projectile out of the swing. For the thrill of being airborne for those few seconds, one never minded the landing onto hard ground and getting brushed against the typical flora of that region, blade grass.

I was surprised to see ma in the park that day as she told me to slow down. Then remembering something about the gas being on in the kitchen she left in a hurry. The next thing I remember I had lost my balance while scratching my nose during 'paing', I rotated and landed and the jhoola, the green one, banged against my head lightly a couple of times.

My mother was carrying me home and at that corner in front of Kauna Mashi's home I saw over her shoulder how my left hand was hanging loose and limp. I remember telling her not to cry as everyone could see her doing so. The next memory is of me lying in the bed in a dark room and some neighbors coming to see me, I could only see their silhouette against the verandah light.

The memories centered around that incident end with the final scene at the orthopedic ward of the hospital in the city where my compound elbow fracture was to be set. Based on the x-ray, the doctor started the setting which was to pull and try to relocate the bones to their right places. While I don't remember any of the associated pain but I do remember spewing out curse words at the doctor for the entire duration. The choicest hindi ones from UP, one after the other.

Thereafter there was deep silence in the room. I was unsettled by the brutality in the name of setting broken bones, the doctor was stunned at the breadth of my vocabulary considering my age and the fact that my father was an academic. And my father's colleague who had given us the ride to the hospital in his car must have felt what most parents feel when they hear the DK Bose song: stay away from my children! Whatever my father thought, he never said anything about it to me and now he says he doesn't remember so many details.

End of a test (?) and the beginning of a sem

What was turning out to be an interesting match till yesterday's morning session is pretty much a one-sided affair now, thanks to some insipid Indian bowling and some great batting by the English tail-enders. It would be a miracle if India manages to salvage this one, unless of course English weather decides to bail them out.

Thanks to the perfect time difference between India and England it is easy to catch the action live. And thanks to my dad, in the side we sip on this absolutely divine darjeeling tea and munch on the latest family fad: peanuts roasted in microwave. And I wonder:
- where is that commentator Harsha Bhogle, the man on whose shiny bald pate one could count the number of lights, gone?
- why do I find it so difficult to appreciate Rahul Dravid?
- why having double chins and paunches doesn't bother professional cricketers of a nation of one billion population? Shouldn't they be dispensable?
- why is it such a pleasure to see SRT bat?
- when will Ganguly as a commentator stop self-referencing?
- why is it all looking so hopeless at the moment?
Perhaps it is time I start wondering about things that are more in my control, like:
- when will the course-planning begin for the course that starts tomorrow?
- why do I feel anxious about the first class even after teaching for 6 years?
- why does it matter so much that what sari will I wear tomorrow?

At a happy place in life

For the moment that is. One of my favourite songs for it.

Of flights and lows

The primary objective was to distract oneself from worrying about whether the plane will crash because of a fatigue crack which reaches critical limits, or some electrical short circuit near the fuel tanks, or would it be the turbulence that will cause the fatal drop in height, or much worse, would it be one of those south-asian single males who is headed for the toilet who will detonate the bomb surgically implanted in his plump buttocks.

While it is really sad how logic and reason takes a flight just about the time the jet engines start roaring into action before any take off, one has got to be adequately prepared since you can't reason with fear of dying mid-air. 'The Master and Margarita' was found to be rather inadequate in engaging my wandering mind in the previous flight, so I was hunting for a book which would be more my type. That is when I reached out for Tom Sharpe's 'Wilt Inheritance' in the bookstore at the airport and let us give the credit where it is due, it was best flight I have had for sometime. Oh the settings are so vulgar, language so profane, plot absolutely none and yet I absolutely loved it! Seeing me laughing out loud RRS got curious. Has also got hooked on since then and bought a couple of them more. The next one was 'The Midden' for me. We read out the most disgusting passages to each other and conclude that our sense of humor has reached new lows that we are finding it so funny. So won't recommend it, as one of the reviewers quite rightly put it 'It may not be to everyone's taste but I laughed out loud."

Just bin it!

Of the things that land on my office desk and take forever to reach their ultimate destination, waste paper basket, are the wedding invitation cards. It is hard to pin-point what stops me from putting them in the bin. Is it the fear that the inviter will see the card in the bin sometime later and erringly conclude that I have rubbished their heart-felt invitation or does the hesitation stem from the feeling that the act of my trashing the card in someway going to be the cause of the marriage going the same way. So powerful of me!

After disposing off the last card which took nearly a year, yes the time by which most Indian couples discover the consequences of not knowing ABC of family-planning, before I could breathe a sigh of relief and enjoy the sight of a cardless desk, a PhD student walks in with a huge, shy smile. It can mean only one thing " Mam, wanted to invite you for my wedding....."

Two of a kind?

These two saplings of lime tree have grown out of their absolute baby stages and enjoying the toddlerhood of being a plant in hot and (no rain) happening Chennai. What amazes me is that even though they have sprouted from the seeds of one lime fruit, their leaf patterns are so remarkably different. But then I, for one, shouldn't get that amazed, my siblings and me are quite like that. We are born different and we choose to have many differences. Sigh.

Sare jahan se achcha.....

It is a little depressing to read articles such as these telling us that our beloved country ranks 4th in the list of countries that are the most dangerous for women to live in.

Looking at Jayalalitha re-elected in Tamilnadu, Mamata Banerjee making history by ending the 34 years communist rule in West Bengal, Sheila Dikshit heading in delhi, Meira Kumar as the speaker of the lok sabha, Pratibha Patil as the president of the country, Sonia Gandhi as the president of the ruling party etc., you can easily be misled into believing that the nation by and large is taking giant leaps towards being a state were women have a safe and secure standing in the society. The good parts are just a few specks in an ugly mess of gigantic proportions.

Every step you take.....

Had a freakish moment while uploading a photo album on FB. For three of the photos in the album, they suggested a tag which happened to be my cousin's name! I don't know why it felt so strange...... like someone opening the door while I am in a state of undress.

What a big voice!

Haven't heard anyone sing so beautifully: Ronan Parke in "Britain's got talent" show.

Vacation-III

"Let us try to sketch and paint from a picture, together" said Amma to which RRJ readily agreed as long as it was scheduled after the cricket time. They hunted through various pictures on the net and settled on this rather attractive picture of a butterfly sitting on a yellow flower. The depth of focus in the picture was really low so it was a crystal clear picture of just the butterfly and the flower, the rest in the background was all hazy which made it all the more easier picture to translate to a sketch. Bright mood, bright idea, bright picture.

Amma with her regular art supplies which she carries along for every longish vacation and RRJ with his newly acquired stuff sat together on a table and started off. Every now and then Amma would stop her sketch and peep into RRJ's work and say something like "don't you think this line is a bit sleepy in your sketch but looks like standing in the picture?" or "don't you think that the upper wing should come somewhere up and the lower wing somewhere down?" and a bit later "don't you think the various parts of the butterfly should be connected with each other?" Such was the power of politeness in Amma's critical comments that RRJ actually took them in the right spirit and at the end of the sketching session we had our respective sketches ready, both enormously pleased with our grand success at doing art together and still being friends. The sketching session was concluded on a high note with a high five.

Next day buoyed by the general good feeling the previous art session had generated, both of them looked forward to painting their sketches together as long as it was scheduled after the cricket time. Amma just needed to wash the palette to get rid of the previous colours on it before they could start off. And while washing she narrowed on the right tone for her little lecture emphasizing the importance of patience in painting. When she made it back to the table the paintbrush was already at work on a study in monochrome, she could see the nice little sketch of a butterfly morph into a grey moth with huge antennas that looked more like trunks of a pair of elephants than anything else. The painting was over and done with in exactly under a minute. Suppressing the shriek of horror required great effort but Amma in a very mature way shifted her focus to do her own painting. Now there is this thing about Amma and that is when she starts painting she tends to float away from the world around her, her mind gets totally absorbed in the details of the painting and the last thing on her mind are rules of good parenting. So immersed was she that she didn't even notice the face peering over her shoulder was rapidly darkening to the shades very similar to the said moth until it pronounced "your painting is looking like a butterfly. Mine is not." Amma landed with a thud and could see that as much as she enjoyed while she was afloat, it wasn't what she had it in mind, good start she manages fine but nice ending she still has to find.

Vacation-II

Located on a small hill by the name Gibbet, the house we are staying in is straight out of story books. When you look out of the bay windows you see a lush green backyard. In the back drop there are apple trees and a little further there are Tocel woods. The skies have been blue and the clouds have been in just the right numbers that make the picture perfect. The day we arrived, we got a warm welcome form Mallad ducks visiting us in the yard, pretty eager to have a taste of the curry that they got a waft of. Since then we have seen fat squirrels and brown rabbits or are they hare that keep popping in and out of the thicket. And of course a lot of birds: pigeons, finches, black caps and a few other types of birds that keep visiting the yard all day long. No wonder the fox that we spotted strolling amongst the apple trees looked so fluffy, cute and little on the plump side. All this right in the backyard!

A quick walk down the hill takes you to this delightful little pond in the woods which is the home of a rather big clan of ducks and wild geese. While you munch on your lunch wondering how these ugly fluffs of brown floating around can ever transform into the most graceful birds that look almost like work of art floating on water, hours can pass you by. Aah the beauty of an english summer….

Mother and son have been having a cracking time setting pitches in the backyard, sketching and painting together, going for walks by the pond, feeding ducks, learning some music and reading books. If you know us you can surely tell that this is just half the truth, the other half will follow soon…..

Vacation-I

A couple of weeks ago, we were cursing our miserable luck and feeling so sorry for ourselves. Wilted by the heat, soaked in humidity and troubled with our sore backs: we were a totally desperate lot. We dealt with our vacation-in-crisis situation with the sense of equanimity that we are rarely capable of, of course interspersed with shorts sessions of yelling and blaming each other. And then all of a sudden, perhaps a planet changed its position, and the hell hole released the last passport. Next, got an email from my father with an excellent website on how to deal with back issues. Reading it I could easily identify my problem and did the appropriate stretching and in a miraculous time span of exactly a day my back was alright! But then it was the turn of british high commission to act pricey. As the said planet fine tuned its position, a week of our well practiced equanimity cum yelling later we got the visas late one evening. Much activities followed and the next evening we were on our way to the airport for our much awaited vacation. Relieved, exhausted but very excited.

As a concept, this vacation is supposed to give us a break from our regular routine in Chennai. Break for me from being a high strung working mom, break for RRJ from being carted around between school and daycare. For RRS, this is supposed to be those few weeks of focused time at work when he doesn't have to worry about school-drop, creche-pickup or any house-work (okay, if we ignore that little bit of dish washing done post dinner). The concept, therefore, provides mother and son with this excellent opportunity to spend a lot of quality time together without any pressures on time. Hmmm…. it sounded so perfect as a concept…..

A beginner's loaf

Not bad, no? A few more minutes in the oven and it could be used as a murder weapon.

Big-cat

Inspired by my cousin's artwork and her teacher's web-portfolio .

Challenges in academia

Heard that in our institute, one of the men's room post-renovation has urinal-pots a bit too high for most. Perhaps the construction workers thought it was about time that at least some of the academicians aimed a little higher.

The Cal-factor

Even the second time around 'Calcutta Chromosome' remains largely incomprehensible. The good thing was that I hardly remembered anything from the earlier read other than I hadn't got it last time. So thoroughly enjoyed the engaging style of story-telling for most of it except when characters started merging into each other indiscriminately.

Must admit the ending was pretty dissatisfying, too sophisticated for me to understand I guess. Someone please explain to me what happens to Murugan so that I can sleep peacefully.

'the' talk that every parent dreads

All must read this.

Back matters

As she sat gingerly on the ergo chair at her study desk, the strong smell of moov reminded her of the eucalyptus trees in her neighbour's garden. Tall, shiny stem covered with patches of old dead bark. Long, thin and droopy branches which would sway to the slightest of breeze. But her mind was waiting for the answer to her google search "tender lower back". The back pull two weeks ago which was barely noticeable became very pronounced after 5 rides on autos in a space of 2 days, 4 of them being on the bumpiest of roads. The kind of bumps which make you fly in the air for a few seconds and when you land you hear your jaws click. The net connection wasn't at its speedy best, her mind wandered to the last time she had back trouble. It was 7 years ago, memories of which are hazy at best. Partly because it has been a long time but one guesses it was more because nine months later her definition of pain was thoroughly revised. The search results by now were on her screen. Oh dear, all mention one and the same. It can't be. Can it? It is not supposed to..... a dull ache creeps and spreads in her head. Oh god no... the other most common symptom!

A rare day

Had a perfect morning, darjeeling tea and samba-rava upama for breakfast. RRJ got up in a great mood, got ready by himself. Early drop at school. At work, continuous hours at the problem I was stuck with, things seem to be making progress finally! So thrilled about it. Back home, a try at dhokla meets patra type of dish which looked so great that one could easily ignore how ordinary it tasted. Followed by the weekly running session with my super running partner and great friend-peace. Can life get any better?

The bubble is of course going to burst when we reach the passport office tomorrow morning, and beg around for most of the day moving from desk to desk "Allah ke naam pe de de baba".

A sporting icon

...who didn't waste an opportunity to combine the "thrills of outdoor activity with the satisfaction of a well pressed shirt."

Arbi/Ghuinyan

The fish bowl needs a change of water every 2 days and that water was being poured into the pots that had been lying around for a long time. A week and a half later out popped a tubular stem with a small leaf at the end. Got to know that my mother had put a few arbi in those pots. After a few days from the tube popped out a much bigger tube with a huge leaf at the end. And now another one is about to come out. If you see closely in the pictures the tube has a slit at the end near the pot but is fully intact near the leaf end. Such a neat arrangement!

Chocolate cake

Dark and choclatey with a hint of ginger. Roasted cashew on the crust. Acknowledgments:

• A recipe from an aunt which I took down many many years ago. It is funny to see my handwriting from those days. The page is in tatters but clearly it has what matters.
  
• A visit from a cake-doctor friend, who could spot what was causing the cake disasters.
  

Some favourites

Had a great run at work last couple of weeks. But my hunch about the basic idea that I thought would capture the phenomenon, it turns out, wasn't really a good one. So there you go, a lot of excitement has come to nothing and I am moping and wanting to think of something else.

Started this post a few days back after an animated discussion with friends about movies we love and actors we love to hate (Adam Sandler topped that one) . Haven't included any of Woody Allen's, Coen brothers or Jackie Chan's movies. Partly because I like most of them and partly because none of them stood out in particular. So here is the list of the movies that I have thoroughly enjoyed to watch.

1. About a boy: Hugh Grant is absolutely brilliant in this funny and touching tale of two people, an adult who delays growing up as long as he possibly could and a kid who is forced to grow up too quickly.
   
2. Masoom: When the past catches up with the present of a happy couple, they and their close friends find it hard to come to terms with it. Terrific cast and delightful music.
   
3. Shawshank redemption: Incredibly uplifting story of how a man wrongfully jailed for his wife's murder overcomes all odds to lead a free life.
   
4. Anand: 'Maut tum ek kavita ho....' Amitabh Bachchan at his best.
   
5. A christmas story: Just thinking about the movie brings a smile on my face. Absolutely hilarious, but seems many haven't even heard of it.
   
6. Wait until dark: Audrey Hepburn is awesome as the blind woman. Set in one single room, this movie is quite a thriller.
   
7. Taare zameen par: touched me in many ways. If I had to pick one scene, it would be the one in which Aamir Khan and the father talk about the meaning of 'caring'. Made me aware of what a shitty job I do of parenting (by that logic I shouldn't be liking the movie, but I just loved it)
   
8. Dil chahta hai: Friendships are not just about sharing a good laugh, it is also about being sensitive to each others feelings. Lots of laughs and sensitive moments in this film.
   
9. Arth: Pati, patni aur woh....... and lovely songs.
   
10. Charulatha: Sensitive portrayal of a lonely wife and her growing feelings for her husband's young friend (or was he brother?).
    
11. Titli: Again a beautiful movie. When the daughter gets to know of her mother's romance in the past, their relationship evolves to a new level.
    
12. A fish called Wanda: hugely entertaining british movie. John Cleese and Kevin Cline are too good.
    
13. Tarzaan: I can watch this movie over and over again. Love Minni Driver's voice over for Jane. And the little girl-gorilla, terk.
    
14. Life is beautiful:...... if you find ways to enjoy every moment you have got.

What about you, are any of these your favourites too? Give me the three that top your list.

The grand finale

What a victory and in what style! MS Dhoni, I bow to your supreme confidence in yourself and your ability to envisage a passage to victory even in most dire conditions.

Even though Tendulkar couldn't do much in the finals (though don't forget those sweetly timed beauties through cover and on side) , it was a delight to see him enjoying the victory lap on shoulders of the next generation . The next generation has got its heart in the right place " he has carried the burden for last 21 years, it is about time we carried him" were the words from Viraat Kohli. Gautam and he did just that, shoulder the responsibility, so wonderfully on the field earlier. No slam, no bang, no drooping shoulders and digging in either, it was a show of cool control and immense self-belief. Not a great fan of Dhoni's hop-skip-jump style of batting but Yuvraj and he were just amazing in the finish. Gosh... it was surreal to see the last runs coming off a huge six, ball flying into the sky and Dhoni's eyes following it till the celebrations shook him out of his trance. It was a fairy tale ending.

Come on India, de ghumake!

Looking forward to:
- the match
- and a sure indian victory

Not looking forward to:
- dentist appointment for RRJ, right in the middle of the first innings
- pakistan losing

Well, Pakistan loss has rarely been anything short of an occasion to celebrate, until last friday when RRJ woke up with a swollen jaw. Infected tooth. Needs a root canal at the grand age of 6! Neglectful parents are now worried about RRJ: post-root canal trauma combined with a loss for his favourite team (Pak) would be pretty disastrous. But aren't children more resilient than we give them credit for?

The match is on.... Virendra Sehwag can't be bothered about the pressure and the hype. India off to a flier......

Cup and fans

Amma: So why haven't you been supporting India so far.
RRJ: [Well....] They have been playing good teams. I can support them when they are playing against team like..... Netherlands, you know.
Amma: So in the quarter-final who are you supporting: India or Australia.
RRJ: India.
Amma: India! What happened?
RRJ: If they lose, it would be their last match..... [it is not clear why but Amma appears to be a little relieved]..... but if Shane Watson plays well I will support Australia. He is too much, you know.

The gun shots in the corridor

Wearing new shoes that are spooking me out with their loudness. Feels as if I am walking on a land mine.

Art of life

I don't think I ever understood or questioned why almost everyone in the girl's hostel had a row of wall paper sheets stuck together as an essential part of the room decor. It was almost as if ones degree depended on it. So in my room too there was the mandatory wall paper to declare that I belong as much as anyone else and then to personalise there were some pictures of family stuck on them along with the ball-point portraits of SRT and KD (yes I am that old!). Oh those portraits! Looking at the details of the waviness of the hair you could tell that someone had spent hours on it and enjoyed every moment of it.

The images were selected from 'Sportstar', grid lines were made on the image so that the image became a collection of interconnected squares. A corresponding grid was made on a blank sheet, the squares scaled to be bigger so that the sketch comes out to be a lot bigger than the actual image. Then the actual sketching process began, slowly and carefully the details of each square of the image were transcribed to the corresponding square of the blank sheet. With time the eyes took shape, then the nose and slowly the people came alive in the portraits. It was amazing that in spite of limited skills it was possible to get an image right if one just enjoyed and focused on doing one square at a time properly.

Perhaps life is a bit like trying to create a picture on a sheet of time. You work at the details of a square at a time and hope that slowly an image will come alive that will strongly correlate with the notion of the life you always wished to have. Aha, but there lies the catch...... where is the 'Sportstar' to choose the starting image from.... and what if that this ideal image changes rapidly with time?

Momos.... yum

Have been seeking comfort in domesticity and food. Momos are great that way. Long preparation time and delightfully delicious.

Ouch!

Q: What is worse than meeting a snarling, barking dog in human form as a passport official?
A: A snarling, quieter dog in human form as a passport official.

Q: Why?

And he went away ...

Such a loss. Rahul Basu is no more.

I first met him five and a half years ago as his colleague's wife. And now I feel I have lost a close friend. In this little time and few chance meetings I have had such involved conversations with him that I never felt how different we were as two individuals and I always felt that he cared. Haven't ever met a more accessible and straightforward person. Still can't believe we have lost the access. Rahul we will miss you so much.

Movie round-up

No strings attached: Ashton Kutchner and Natalie Portman are very good news- exceedingly cute and more. As for the movie, light, fluffy and likable. Just like the title suggests, there are no depths involved.

127 hours: Gripping but very gross. The messages that we took home:

• stay clear of adventurous outdoor activities
• anything that gets you stuck in a mess, get rid of it. Even if it is your own right hand.

Mitr: Old movie. Nice and sensitive. And the messages:

• if you have a bit of self worth, then being a stay at home mom can be damaging to your relationships in the long run. The very relationships for which you have chosen this path.
• if happiness is found in many ways, then seeking from others is the hardest.

Awesome ad

Just love this ad. Completely relate to it.

The first sounds

Didn't know that there would be a feeling that would come anywhere close to hearing the first clear words said by RRJ. Managed to get the chord 'C' sound clear last night. Oh it was so pure, so sweet and all that. Of course keeping it pure and sweet for the next two seconds almost killed me in pain and then the usual muting and buzzing took over. Anyhow it is chords A, C and E that are slowly becoming familiar. Fingertips are bearing the burnt feeling and torturous positioning with minimal fretting. The remaining chords look painfully complex but the idea is to keep at it.

What do couples talk about?

Do you share office gossip with your spouse/partner? Is it a good idea to bring work related emotions to home? Apparently not, if you check here. We seem to be doing it all the time, talking about office that is, specially over tea in the evenings. Garam chai and taaza khabar. Simple incidents around the academic/non-academic activities at our workplace with a little bit of embellishments provide us with a lot of entertaining moments.

Student interviews, faculty meetings, teaching related interactions, research related interactions, there is so much human element to it and we are so involved in our office dealings that it is difficult to cut it off completely. That is the sit-com that we get to enjoy considering our TV is deeply involved in transmitting activities of pogo-land or cartoon network. There are dangers of telling details because one person is very aware of your actions and thoughts. In some sense you are held accountable. Also, the advice that you receive from the other may not be suited for your own personality. The last but the most dangerous one is that the receiver of transmissions from pogo/c-n is not a dedicated receiver, it also receives air-waves from us and quite capable of retransmitting without prior notice.

Pot-chat

“Amma finished.” Amma knows that actually it isn’t but she likes to plays along. She sees the doors to both the toilets closed and much to the amusement of RRJ always opens the wrong door. Next few minutes while RRJ remains seated on the throne until ‘it’ is actually finished, Amma has to cook up some game that can be played till she is given the privilege of cleaning the backside. There are number games, there are word games, there are tennis games (rules of which can’t be disclosed), generally there is much hulla-gulla. But then there are those days when RRJ is a little reflective, he talks of people and incidents that have hurt him. And asks what he should have done. At such moments Amma feels like holding him tight but circumstances don’t permit so she says, “I know it feels bad but people and incidents such as those do happen so you should try to laugh it off.” “I try, I try so much but you know, tears still come in my eyes”.”Okay now finished”. Post clean up royalty rushes off while Amma is left wondering how the time is slipping through her fingers.

Strumming my pain-II

It was fun till the left hand was given the task of keeping three taut wires down at locations my fingers found it physically impossible to reach. Knuckles started buckling under pressure and one could see the verdict taking its shape. Not selected to even learn. Gosh with ego nicely bruised, where shall I hide?

A day later, got a new guitar. Found some amazing tutorials on youtube. Knuckles are still buckling but maybe holding that wee bit more, fingertips are bruised and the pain? Definitely strummable.

Strumming my pain

New beginnings or the beginning of the end, only time will tell. Somewhere between 5:00-5:15 this evening I will be taught the a, b, c of playing guitar and somewhere between the next fifteen minutes, based on my abilities to learn I will know if I am accepted as a student or given the boot. I wish I had longer and stronger fingers, I wish I had clipped the nails a little shorter, I wish people were willing to take weaker students, I wish my thumbs were not numb from playing basketball and fingers frozen in fear. My friend reminded me that I am doing this to myself at this grand old age because doing new things is fun. I am convinced it will be fun, perhaps a lot of fun, for whom is the question.

Playing ball

Can’t stop replaying the match in the head. A bunch of 40 year old men in red against a young college team exactly half their age also in red. 23-44. It was awesome that we held up so well till the end but sad that we didn’t quite get that rhythm that we are capable of. Even a single full-court match practice before the tournament would have done us a world of good. All said it was simply great to relive the memories of being closely involved in a tournament, but equally hard to accept that age is not on our side. Us, three women, couldn’t be part of the gang on the court but watching from the sidelines did our bit. One in particular behaved like an idiot. Later back home it was hard to go to sleep in the night, didn’t know that we cared so much. I am very curious to see though how our opponents do later in the league especially against the students of our own institute.