Master of Procrastination

One man, One dream, One Song : Imagine

2009-12-10T02:34:00.000-08:00

I honestly don't know the state of mind John Lennon was in when he wrote "Imagine", But he pulled off a real Beauty.

he says,
"Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too "

Such a wonderful thought.
I hope and wish, this Dream of John Comes true, Though i know its Impossible. We do not live in Strawberry Field, reality continues to Ruin our lives...

Anyways, RIP John, Who was shot on Dec 8th 1980 by a psychopath...
Take a Bow John Lennon, may your Spirit live on Brother...

United India? What?

2009-12-09T23:18:00.000-08:00

Whatever happened to United India Dream? There were time when people fasted for British to quit India.. Now its become more of a fashion than anything else.
Telengana will soon be declared as a state. Honestly, I lost the count of number of states India has, Is It 27/28??? I don't think it really matters anymore.. Soon there will be people fighting all over for Independent states. Why don't we Just Divide States like Cutting a cake. Anybody who requests for a separate state should just be given them their request. Hell i want my house to be a separate state, I'll go on fast.. Is it not government's responsibility to shut these so called leaders who want to divide India with every little opportunity they get? What is it? a Gift for Sonia gandhi's Birthday?? Who gave the power to Mr.So called Prime minister to take this decision? Isn't this matter even worth to be discussed and then taken a proper decision..
Some loser Goes on fast and PM decieds to gift him with a state... Wow, bravo...

United India??? My a$$... People who hail that India is great even with so many religion, culture and what not, should get a reality check...

When I see today, I don't see an Indian anywhere .. people are busy fighting for no reasons at all
I'm a Kannada
i'm a Telugu
I'm a Hindu
I'm Muslim
I'm a marathi
I'm a North Indian
I'm a keralite
I'm from upper caste
I'm from a lower caste, Gimme Seat in medical college
I'm a Women, gimme seat in LS
I'm a begger, give me money.
I'm a Minister, this belongs to me..

GOD, do we even need terrorists to terrorize India??
isn't this partition within us Not enough???
Why are we Like this?
I, for one, feel ashamed for the action of the government.. Such sissies...
Its about time Govt gave these Goons their middle finger and put them behind bars..

Jai Hind..

What's scarier than Swine flu

2009-11-26T06:09:00.000-08:00

1) Not doing something important with your life
2) Cockroaches
3) Not being respected for what you have done
4) Childs play (And I mean It)
5) Machines taking over the world
6) Dying alone
7) Nose hair
8) Common Cold (I mean it too.. This kills way more people than Swine Flu)
9) Shitty Job
10) Being Jobless
11) Pocket Knife
12) Choking on a piece of Sweet corn
13) Food in "Legacy of Punjab"
14) Bangalore traffic
15) 2012 (And i dont mean it)
.
.
.
22250) Swine flu
22251) 2012 (I mean It this time)

So , people who are paranoid about Swine flu, buying Face masks, ass masks, for 1000 bucks, Please, get a life.. First thing you need to do is Switch off, AAJ tak, Headlines today, CNN IBN or whatever news channel you are watching, Throw that set top box out of the window and Do what you have to do.

You know people,problem isin't Swine flu, Its that stupid media of ours, who exaggerate everything for Khali playing holi and rakhi savanth's swyamvar.. Please switch off the TV and Go live your life.. Life's too short to be worried about Swine flu... Get your ass off the chair and be who you wanted to be .. Even if you get one, chances are, you wont die. and I probably will bet my life on it...

matrix : is it real?

2009-11-26T06:04:00.001-08:00

A real world.

What if the world you live in , is just a dream. A dream so real, everything feels real, doesn’t even feel like a dream. What if you are unable to wake up from the dream? How would u know the difference, what is real and what is dream?

Think about it...
Matrix can be a possibility...

Realisation

2009-11-26T05:48:00.000-08:00

A miracle makes a person believe.
A near miss when you are driving , makes you appreciate life
A fight with a loved one makes you understand all about Love.
A kid on the road, begging, makes somebody thankful because he doesn't have to live a dog's life.
Time spent drenching in rain, makes someone happy.
When you hear a person who died because of a heart attack, at a young age, you start exercising.
Why is it when something exteremely wrong happens, you take off from work ?

I've always noticed that if something really bad happens/about to happen, people are more focused. Why it is that one cannot appreciate life to begin with? Why coudln't one be more prepared or compassionate or Humble to start with?

Bummer

To follow or not to follow...

2009-11-17T02:01:00.001-08:00

Just when you think your job is going smooth, your lead sends you an excel sheet to fill which states Daily Status report. It’s not that it takes hours to fill this report but its just useless and won’t help anybody. My crib is, I don’t want to follow it case we haven’t followed any process all these days and we have successfully delivered the product.

We had a meeting just and one of my team mate Nikhil, says to my lead "It’s apparent that you are a BIG fan of the process and we are absolutely NOT. So it’s better to come to a meeting point rather than us just accepting to fill the DSR. My point is, since it does not add any value for whatever we are doing, I suggest scrapping this process... Let’s not bring process just for the sake of bringing it.. "

Nikhil just went up a notch in my books, Now he is at -4 :) .

To follow or not to follow the process is the question.

Open letter to Mr. Bal Thackeray, The saviour of Mumbai

2009-11-16T04:29:00.000-08:00

Dear Mr. Bal Thackreay ,

This is in reference to your Open letter for Mr. Sachin Tendulkar

http://cricket.yahoo.com/cricket/news/article?id=item%2F2.0%2F-%2Fstory%2Fcricket.indiaabroad.com%2Fthackeray-tendulkar-stay-off-politics-you-dont-know-mumbais-problems-20091116%2F

I see that you have mentioned that "He said Tendulkar may not even be aware of the struggle of Maharashtrians for Mumbai"
I hope you must be aware of the problems of Maharashtrians and doing something about it. I know, single handedly you and your nephew are doing great things to end the struggle in maharashtra.. I see that Maharashtra has done tremendous growth for the last 55 years since you've been in politics. You talk about Mumbai as if it’s your private property and you've done so much development.. Thanks to you, and your people, we don’t see a single person living in slums, We don’t see a single person going hungry to bed, We don’t see Mumbai as the dirtiest city in India.. Thank you Mr. Thackeray, Mumbaikars would've been lost without you and your men. You people are real saviors.. I mean, what has Sachin done till now??? Nothing... He's just a sportsperson who plays for himself and not for the country.. It was not him who played 20 years of gentlemen's game. After all what is 20 years? Just a quarter of your life, is it not Mr. Thackeray?? He’s just a Nobody... We need more and more leaders like you Mr. Thackeray so that our country can grow beyond anybody's vision.
When Sachin said that “He is a maharastrian but an Indian first”, he couldn’t’ be more wrong. What was he thinking? He’s first a mumbaikar, then a maharastrian and if time spared, he can think about being an Indian. This way he could have avoided the whole controversy. Everybody should accept your ideology and say, Mumbai comes first, after that maharastra, then South India, and then if time and mood permits, he can utter he’s an Indian.

Another comment of yours struck my mind "as he was 'not even born' then, and said cricketers like him 'ultimately play only for themselves'. " Ahhh yes, this makes a lot of sense... he wasn't even born then.. I mean, it does matter when you are born to become great... You should be born before freedom struggle, done nothing and you can be great now... Is that right Mr thackeray? I’m sure it is. And when you say “ultimately play for themselves”, You are dead right here.. I mean, come on, Sachin has played 20 years of impeccable cricket and has got like gazillion runs ONLY for himself.. He should have donated some runs to you, your party members, perhaps he should have donated some wickets to your nephew, the one and only raj Thackeray, Should have donated his Ferrari to your party as a gift, His "man of the match" awards to your other nephew Uddam... I wonder why Raj hasn’t' come down and given us his wisdom on Sachin..

You are asking him to stay away from politics for 'his own well-being'. " . You are absolutely right Mr Thackeray, I mean, who is Sachin Anyways? he should definitely stay away from politics as you would stay away from other's business.. It was Sachin who Drove the north Indians out of Mumbai.. How dare he even utter a word "politics”, he's such a hypocrite. When u say "'You are free to hit fours and sixers on the cricket field, but keep off the political pitch,'" I'm sure u mean business and I’m sure you are right... After all he doesn’t have to meddle in other's people's business, is it not Mr. Thackeray? He is so against modernization, he goes around Mumbai and Burns posters and effigy of other people. Get couple's married who are sitting in the park, he's against Valentine’s Day, and he’s against girls wearing pants. He’s the one who does moral policing across Mumbai, beats up helpless Girls... What right does he have to even speak about Mumbaikars, Politics etc? If you ask me, he should stop playing cricket too... Has he not heard that freedom of speech does not apply to mumbaikar's?

You say "But when you speak politics like this you tear the hearts of Maharashtrians,".. I'm sure you are right here cause you know that millions of Maharashtrians feel about Sachin since you are Soo close to people and have done sooo much in your vast years in politics.. I for one am so glad we have leaders like you and younger people who are following your ideology. Hats off to you and your party men. Such peaceful people they are... They give Nobel Prize for peace to f!@#in anybody. They should have given it to you Mr Thackeray.

I totally agree with your statement "‘with that one statement, you became 'run out' in the pitch of Marathi minds,'“. Though I’m not a maharastrian, i feel that Sachin has let everybody down. I feel like throwing a stone on his window, burning his poster. After all, he doesn’t have right to play with our emotions..

“‘With a lot of struggle and the supreme sacrifice of 105 people, Tendulkar was not even born'.” Yes Sir, This is right. It was a supreme struggle for 105 people who sacrificed their lives. What Sachin has done for after all 20 years, is nothing. He was not injured ever, played the game all the time. It was just like drinking milk. What does Sachin know about sacrifice.. He doesn’t even have culture. After his father’s final rites, he went back and played the world cup and hit a century. I mean, who does that?. Does he know what to do after the death of his father?? He should be in mourning for at least 1000 years. That’s the ultimate kind of sacrifice. And the times when he is away from his family? I mean come on, everybody can be away from their family for a long time and go on trips and do nothing but score runs and take wickets.. Its about the ultimate sacrifice we are talking about. Has he doe that? NO….

“According to Thackeray, cricketers may talk lofty things about the country, but ultimately play only for themselves. 'Do cricketers (like you) ever bother about the problems confronting the country, the inflation, slums proliferation in Mumbai, the influx of people from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Bangladeshi Muslims?' . As I said, Sachin has played only for himself, has won matches only for himself, Broke all the record only for himself, went throughout the world, only for himself. Doesn’t even bother about inflation.. He should stop printing notes in his backyard so that the inflation comes down. He should donate all his money to your relief fund, I mean, poor people relief fund. He should invite people from slums to live in his home and give them money like you do Mr. Thackeray. And influx people from Uttarpradesh, Bihar and Bangladeshi Muslims. Yes sir, you are right… What does he think of himself? It’s not a free country after all, like we maharastrians do not live anywhere but Maharashtra, in the same way others should behave. What right do they have? They come here and take our jobs, our lands and don’t even pay penny for it. What does Sachin know about all this? This is the major problem which needs to be addressed.. Not some test match. Any child can play, but you as a leader has done so much for the country…

On top of it, news channels have been airing, good for nothing Sachin's Specials for past 2-3 days. We should Go and burn those new channel offices.

I'm sorry sir, am becoming very violent and using words like burn the posters, offices, throw stones etc. I'm not a peaceful person like you. I should learn to be peaceful like you and your party workers. If you read this, Please give me some tips to keep my cool and Love my country/mumbai/karnataka. Please teach me humanity.
I for one share your principles and ideas sir. I always remember that I’m first a resident of Rajarajeshwari nagar, Then a West Bangalorean, then a Bangalorean, then a Kannidiga, then a south Indian, and if Time permits, I say I’m an Indian... This is the standard set of procedure everybody should follow even when they go out of the country. It’s much less complicated this way. You know sir; I pity Karnataka and kannadiga’s because we don’t have a leader like you here. There was one Mr. Pramod Mutalik who stood for Women Liberation right in Mangalore and since then, he faded away. Such a waste.

I appreciate whatever you are doing sir, It’s very genuine and so not for publicity. I'm happy that Mumbai/Maharastra/India is in your safe hands.

Hats off to you Sir

Jai Maharastra.
Long live India, oops, sorry, Jai Hindustan. (I keep forgetting your principles)

Yours faithfully,
Avinash

(PS: If you didn't figure it out, I was being sarcastic)

The CHA-VOSE theory

2009-11-02T20:53:00.000-08:00

This is a funny incident happened in my previous company where I was working as a test engineer. There is a process we need to follow where the password for the application will be changed every day and this will be conveyed in hand-off call at the start and the end of the day. So, it was changed to Chaos123 by the onsite folks. At the hand off call in the evening, we had to give the password to the onsite manager. Incidentally, My ex-project lead is probably one of the most incompetent person that I’ve ever met was handing off the information to the Onsite managers. As usual, the sentence starts and ends with “Like” and when it came to password, he said its CHA-VOSE123. I was baffled. :-) My manager said “what’s that again? “ , “Its CHA-VOSE123”, “Can you spell that please? “ .“Like its C-H-A-O-S-123 Like, With Big C like”, “Ohhh Chaos 123, allrighty then, have a wonderful evening”. I didn’t know what to say. No wonder My onsite manager spells each word out after that call… Its “I-S-L-A-N-D 123”. I’ve noticed they always keep such passwords from that day on. Wonder what he pronounced ISLAND as :-)

Gran Torino, another Clint Eastwood's Masterpiece

2009-10-27T04:35:00.000-07:00

After a Long time after downloading, I saw this movie yesterday and was Blown away by Clint Eastwood. Both Direction and acting.
He plays an angry, cranky old man, Walt Kowalski, who is a patriot and is a Korean war survivor.
Walt, an old school war veteran, full of prejudice that has just lost his beloved wife Dorothy who doesn't have a good relationship with His sons. Walt dislikes the church priest and priest's idea about life and death and believes that he's just a 27 year old over educated virgin. It looks like Walt dislikes almost everybody, His sons, neighbors, priest, except for his dog Daisy and his car, the Gran torino.

Set in a Hmong neighborhood of Michigan, Walt is grumpy about his Hmong neighbors. It looks like Walt is suffering form some kind of a terminal disease but is not disclosed. When his teenage neighbor Thao tries to steal his most valued procession Ford Gran torino, Walt tries to straighten him out. Thao, a confused teenager, who's been forced to steal Gran torino by not so good Hmong Cousins. After this incident, Thao's traditional family feels ashamed and offers gifts to Walt , much to his irritation. Later, Walt also saves Thao's Elder sister Sue from a negro gang. Much to displeasure of Walt, the Hmong family, especially Sue and Thao starts to respect Walt for his goodwill. Walt takes Thao under his watchful eye and gets him a Job at a construction company. When the bad Hmong Cousins tries to trouble Thao, Walt beats up one of the guys. Hmong cousins then Disturb the neighborhood and attack Sue and Sue's House. After this, Walt decides to take an ultimate attitude.

A must watch for Clint Eastwood fans. He OWNS the Movie...
I'll give 4/5.

The Day After Tomorrow

2009-10-27T03:55:00.000-07:00

Though i like this book and i rate it 4/5 , I'd like to mention a couple of things.. First thing, The book goes on and on and on for 700 pages going nowhere at times. It looks like the lead character has obsessiveness compulsion disorder of the highest order and tend to think about everything. He goes over the top in doing so. Second, Time and again he says Osborn's feelings for Vera and it continues for one whole page which is not really necessary... I mean, we got it that Osborn is in love with Vera , there is no need to repeat it so many times. Other than that, the book is a real page turner and worth a read..

Literally, the Story ends at the last sentence..

In a Nutshell, This book is about a Doctor who sees his father's Killer after 25 years and attacks him. The events which unfolds puts him in the middle of International Pro-Nazi Conspiracy where the secret nazi party is eying a comeback.
This goes on for 700 pages and it ends on the last line of the last page..

**Spoiler alert : Do not read the last paragraph of the Book upahead..

Void Left by college Life...

2009-10-14T05:21:00.000-07:00

Its been just over 4 years since i passed out from the college and there isn't a day that goes by that I don't remember my college life and smile...
It just seems like yesterday..

There was no Bike/Car , was just BMTC bus.. I was Happy..
No Thousands of rupees in my wallet , I was Rich...
Cheta's one by two tea was a substitute for cafe mocha, I was content.
One Plate Gobi shared by 6 guys was Unlimited buffet , I was pleased..
Friends' birthday treat at a nearby dhaba was Khansama's Lunch, I was Joyous..
Bread Omlette in canteen was subway club sandwich, I was Glad.
Friends' adda near the stadium was Air conditioned cube, I was High spirited...
Intel Celorn with 500 mhz, 256 mb ram was a supercomputer, I didn't complain...
Walking 2 kms from the bus stop was top exercise in talwarkers, I was healthy..
Getting 15/25 in internals was like getting 50% hike, I was delighted..
Playing cricket with buddies was team outing, I never gave Up..
Formatting the project report and running around for printouts was whole project itself, I enjoyed..
Lab assistants were project managers, never spoke ill against them...
Kodak camera was High end digital cameras, I was thankful
Nokia 1100 and 3510 were HTC touch and i-phone , I was Smiling.
Bunking classes were privileged leave, I never regretted..
Theater near college was Multiplex, I whistled...
A bottle of KF beer was as good as Teacher's whiskey, It gave me high...
College heartbreak Was more agonizing than a bee sting, but it didn't pain..
Money owed to pals were written off without a second though, It didn't matter..
Chits, micro xerox were like Project Planning, It never felt wrong...
Part time job which paid 300 bucks per day was a Multi million dollar job Offer, never felt less...
10 kms walk with a friend was a walk to remember, Felt good ...
Old walk man's were i-pod's, It was never out of tune ..
Free style dance backstage in a college fest was Disco In pub, I enjoyed..
10 guys in the loo Shouting, yelling, calling names was new trend, Never looked Indecent...
Being in bad Boys gang was a good thing, Was better when it was bad..
College Cricket tournament win looked like champions trophy, felt like King of the world..
The day you wore a clean pair of sock, you felt like a Doctor... Never Grossed out :)
All the talks about who's the cutest chick of the class was the daily agenda, Never felt out of place..
Bums on the butt was birthday gift, I was really thankful..

All that remains are memories . Reminiscences of the past lingers and leaves a Void in me...
I just wish i can be a student just for one day... :)

Pursuit of HappYness

2009-10-14T02:24:00.000-07:00

Directed by Gabriele Muccino and Will smith in a lead role, Persuit of HappYness is a movie about an African American, single dad, Chris Gardner and his son Christopher's struggle in late 70's and early 80's. Hands down Will Smith has done genuinely Well. He caputres the essence of Chris Gardner .

Smith starring alongside his 8-year-old son, Jaden, in a raw, heartbreaking performance as a man who struggles to give his child the quality life that eluded him. Also narrated by Will, one can really feel the pain , agony and suffering of a man without a proper job and Challenges faced by him.

The movie starts off with Chris, a salesman of bone density scanner (which is considered as an unnecessary luxury by hospital.) , Struggling to sell off the machines which is in his contract. Wife Linda working in a Hotel, is an irritated and pushed to max lady working double shifts for quite sometime. There is a scene where She mocks Chris when he says he's trying for an internship in one of the brokerage Company. When money woes are pushed to the breaking point, Linda decides it’s time to go. To make the matters worse, Rent is due and there is no money. Chris eventually goes to a friend who owes him Fourteen Dollars. When he's brushed off, Chris and Christoper are forced to sleep in a toilet inside a subway.

There are highs and lows when. Just when it looks as if they are doing well, The US government takes away couple of months savings from Chris's as he hasn't paid taxes . Chris and Christopher are forced to sleep in Homage.

Eventually, Chris tops his internship program and is offered a Stock broker's job in Dean Witter. The last scene is as good as it gets. When chris is offered the job, he doesn't know to express his happiness. Really touching..

As for the movie title’s oddly-spelled “happyness'', the movie paints the the pain and suffering of a common man who desperately needs a job to support a family, the feeling of a man who wants better things for his sibling. For chris, he finds his HappYness after a lot of pursuit, but for millions of others who are homeless, seems like it never will.

The role needs gravity, smarts, charm, humor and a soul that's real and Smith brings it..
Its a surprise that Will Smith didn't win an oscar for his role. take a Bow Smith...

Leonardo Di caprio in The Departed

2009-10-09T03:38:00.000-07:00

To start off, let me take a Bow to Martin Scorsese. What a wonderful director. The movie "Departed" will shock u, gasping for more and Leonardo has been sublime in the entire movie.

His role, Billy, is a powerful one and when he and Nicholson share scenes together, you can feel the electricity throughout the theater. These are two expert craftsman, comfortable in what they're doing and willing to take chances, putting all their cards on the table. It's some of the most impressive acting ever projected onto the silver-screen.

Matt damon , Jack nic, Alec baldwin and Malk whalberg have done their part perfectly...

Perhaps the best movie of Leonardo ...
How I wish Leo as Anneken Skywalker.. Sighhh,....

One of those days. :)

2009-10-09T00:25:00.000-07:00

Today has been one of those days where everything looks boring. Not in a mood to work, chat, send mails. Literally counting seconds to 7:00 pm so that i can go home... I guess its because of lack of sleep or because all the work that has been piled up. Need to finish testing the application by EOD. God help me...

Had been to Champions league t20 inauguration and first match at M Chinnaswamy stadium yesterday and back home at 1:00 am. Slept at 2:00, I guess.

Its just one of those days... For Guys :)

Road Trio to Shivagange

2009-01-13T04:13:00.000-08:00

Hi Folks,

I had been on a road trip to shivagange betta on the outskirts of Bangalore with my Mphasis Friends on Saturday night- Sunday morning (10/11^th Jan). Had a truly wonderful experience.

Here are few Photos..

http://picasaweb.google.com/pradeep.hoysal/ShivgangeTrek#

After watching Gajini Movie in Cauvery theater, Night show, Eight of us (Shankar, Pradeep, Divya, Pavan, Bahuguna, Badri, Prashanth and myself) left Bangalore by 2:30 am (Which was a great experience in itself.) on 4 bikes, took NH4 via Yeshwanthpur which was a bad idea… The road was bad for 25 km till Nelamangala.. There’s a construction goin on throughout the road for an elevated expressway and one cannot cross 50kmph. The Road is full of patch work which makes it even more bumpy. Instead I suggest people can take NICE road via Mysore road and reach Nelamangala. Though it may add an extra 10 kms, buts it’s worth it. We decided to take a pit stop in one of the road side dhaba. Unfortunately, the dhaba was closed and we had to drive another 5 kms where we got another dhaba… Ordered masala Tea and Omelet… Drinking tea at 3:30 am in a cold weather is an amazing experience J I have to whine about the price here… We had around 12 omelets and 8 masala tea, the bill was 350 bucks which I thought is a rip off in a dhaba… Anyways, we hit the road and after 30 minutes and reached the flyover near Dabaspet, took the left turn before the fly over and Took another 10 minutes break to capture photos in the moonlight… Believe me, the road in this town is far better than Bangalore.

It was a good idea to leave Bangalore that early cause if one needs to experience the twilight moment, it’s the right time, since Full moon was on Monday, we were experiencing the good moonlight. We drove without the vehicle’s headlight for 3-4 kms.

It’s just one road , you take a left turn from the NH-4 (Around 60 kms from Bangalore), we reached the base Shivagange betta is around 7 kms from the Highway. We were the first to reach the place It was about 4:45 am. We parked the vehicle next to the pond. The gate to the mountain was open, we spent a good 15 minutes at the base and started our trek by 5:15 am.. To my surprise, I was exhausted after 100 meters.. J

Reality check :

1. Need to build up stamina by next trek. I’m not as strong as I think I was.. I was in denial. J

2. When my wife said the mountain is steep, I had brushed it off saying it’s a cake walk for an ex- NCC cadet.. GOD, I was wrong. I don’t feel embarrassed to say I was the last guy to reach the half way point. After that it was another story.

Note to self :

1. NEVER wear Jeans with belt when climbing a mountain… I made an offer to shankar to swap his tracks with my jeans… he refused. J

2. Start Jogging everyday and reduce Tummy and build stamina.

3. Next trek, try to be half as bad as this one. J

4. Do not have 3 omelets in a dhaba before starting trek.

5. Woodlands shoes are good.

There are lots of temple on the way but we chose not to visit them cause they were closed and our sole purpose was just to trek. There is a place called as Olakallu Theertha situated at half way. The legend has it, that if a person who has not committed any sin throughout his life and has a pure heart and he/she puts a hand in a canal he/she finds water. I took no chance cause I know half of my life I spent cursing/blaming/whining/ranting J. Had I put my hand into the canal, there would be lack of water for the rest of the people J LOL….

I took several breaks to reach half way point .. Was totally exhausted and I was on the verge of collapsing. To add to the misery, it was dark and I could not see the steps properly. I felt that the gravitation is getting better of me and is not letting me to take another step ahead.. I thought I was done for the day. Once we reached the half way point, there was a gush of wind, pushing my exhausted body away. At this point the score was Nature : 1, Avinash : -1. …

There was a huge rock and it was still partly dark at 6:00 am. People started climbing the rock . I wanted to try it. I can’t explain what happened, when I stood on top of that rock which was around 8 ft tall and spread my arms, it was magic.. Cool wind gushing my body at around 50 kmph, cold making my body shiver even with a Jacket and a thick Jersey, felt like I was flying.. I was able to hear the nature humming the song “Dream On “ in my ear. I was energized at this point and was determined to reach the summit at any cost. After a shot of natural adrenalin provided by the gushing wind, we were off.

The railings for the rest of the way helped a lot. I wondered who had the guts to put the railing there in the first place. Just imagine the dilemma of the logistics.. Here I was struggling to walk, people had put Iron railing with Welding for the rest of the way.. Donno how they brought the Welding machine which will be around 100 kg transformer + 100’s of meters of Iron pipes and fixed them there … After this point I’m pleased to announce that I didn’t take any break… Nor did the rest of my crew. J Though the climb got steeper, it became easier. I guess it was the steps combined with jeans got me down initially.( At least that’s what I think but my friends agree to disagree)

Anyways , there were some places, the steps were too close and too steep . some were even 3-4 feet. Now Without any struggling, I was able to climb. To be honest, I’m not a religious person, but there was really something spiritual about this place. The cool breeze, the sound of wind, the first rays of the sun, the mist, the clouds travelling from nowhere to nowhere, the droplets of water formed on my hair, I truly felt that that there is a superior power which created all these beautiful things, the spirit of the earth. Nature’s gift to humans.

After an hour of climbing the terrain of rocks, we reached the summit by 7:00 am. We just missed the sunrise but the view was worth it. There is a nandi Statue near the summit and there is hardly 1 ft x 5 ft gap next to it. All of us climbed near the statue on either sides(with the railing support of course) and experienced the Clean air and wind gushing our hair. If it were not for the railings, we would fall 200 feet down. The drop is scary. One can see the cloud formation.. It’s as if u have a platform in the cloud and you can almost touch them.

We were the first people to reach the summit and the sun had just risen so we had good 2 hours with us before sun starts burning the rock. There is one temple next to nandi, about 50 meters above it. We didn’t care to visit the temple but had some photo sessions there. There is one dangerous drop across the temple called as Shantala Drop. I was scared shit to see beyond the drop. it must be somewhere around 1200 ft down. There are several stories behind this drop. They say that there was a queen called as shanthala who committed suicide by jumping off this clip. Other stories say that Queen shantala was supposedly killed by kings men upon his order.. Whatever it may be, Shantala must have been one gorgeous lady J and she would have been scared shit before jumping.

We spent some time on the summit enjoying the high-speed wind , ate chocolates , cashews , photo sessions J, discovering new routes.. Felt like Christopher Columbus cause we were the first to reach the summit... J

After an hour we heard some children shouting and I, for one was surprised to see a group of children , not more than 12 years , guys and gals, along with some teachers, not wearing any foot ware, racing towards the summit. At this point, I was embarrassed.. here I was struggled complained about jeans and what not, these children were lively as ever, made me feel like a sissy… J We had Woodlands shoes + Energy drink + chocolates + jacket + jersey + cool drinks and a bunch of 12 year olds beat us with bare foot and still going strong. It was about time that I buried my head in sand.. unfortunately we were on a summit and there was only rock J Huh, Jokes on you Nature.. J

The decent was considerably easier. Though we were attached by a bunch of fearless monkeys , we reached the half way point in 30-45 minutes. We saw few villagers carrying a load of 30 khs on their back and climbing the mountain. They are the locals who have set up shops on the summit… More embarrassment for me L.. This time we took another route. Pavan, Badri, Shankar had already reached the half way point and they were enjoying Cane Juice. Pavan insisted he wants to go and dip his hand in Olakallu Theertha. To everybody’s surprise, this guy got water. He bragged about it the whole way… He says he is the divine soul and has never committed a sin in his life. J people and their believes.. J Blah blah….

On the whole, the trip was awesome and totally worth one night’s sleep, in fact, totally worth a week’s sleep for a sleepy head like, yours truly J.

We took the NICE road back home… I can brag that I reached 110 kms/hour on my bike J

Though my legs and back pained initially, it was gone in no time.

I’ve learnt a lot form this trek. I’ll prepare myself and try to be half as bad in the next trek. J

Ayrton , We still Miss you

2007-04-30T22:37:00.000-07:00

Ayrton Senna : One of the best F1 Drivers ever.

I guess I was around 11 years when I heard about Senna Passing away. He was just one other driver that I had know at that time. Damon Hill was one of them. He was the most famous driver at that time. I remember that my uncle giving me this news. Anyway’s at that time I didn’t know about his greatness. I read the report in one of the sports magazines cause I dint have cable network in my place, felt it was unfair and a loss to F1. Ayrton was a national hero. His death came as the shock to the whole world.

Little did I know that Roland Ratzenbergerof Australia had passed a day before . 30th April 1994 and Rubens Barrichello had a horrific crash. Saw his car fly in the air and hit the tire barriers on you tube.

1st May 1994, Imola San Marino Black day in the history of F1.

The race started with blues of losing Roland Ratzenberger the day before .There was a first lap incident Pedro Lamy's Lotus crashed into Lethos’ Benetton. According to the reports , one of the tires went into spectator’s stand and injured 7 members. I guess this was a signal of things to come.

FIA decided to continue with the race behind the safety car. After 4-5 laps behind the safety car, the race resumes. The cars start going around the track with high speeds. Engine’s roaring and guns blazing. Ayrton is leading the pack and it’s noticed that the sparks are coming from under his car. Perhaps this is the sign of the car losing downforce thereby resulting in a loss of grip. But he goes on in high speed – full throttle.
Lap 7 into the race, Ayrton’s car bottoms’ out and hit the barriers at the speed of 131 miles at Tamburello curve. His car loses the control dude to lack of grip at the speed of around 195 miles and somehow slowed down to 131 miles. Seems like 131 miles was not enough. Reports say that Senna had died instantly after the crash. A piece of suspension pierced his helmet and Skull.

The medics arrive to the scene in a few minutes and the Doctor for the day Sid Watkin says “He looked serene. I raised his eyelids and it was clear from his pupils that he had a massive brain injury. We lifted him from the cockpit and laid him on the ground. As we did, he sighed and, although I am totally agnostic, I felt his soul departed at that moment”
When Ayrton was taken out of Cockpit, they found Australian Flag. He wanted to dedicate his win to Roland Ratzenberger. What a wonderful gesture. ** Sniff**

And then Just like that F1 lost its most loved son . Ayrton Senna : Most of the times clouded by contrivances, Driven by emotion Ayrton Won 3 championships with 41 wins, 65 poles and 80 podium Finishes.

The 1994 Imola layout, which had been in place since 1981, was never again used for a Formula One race. The circuit was heavily modified following the race, including a change at Tamburello. I guess Tamburello has been one of the unluckiest corner in F1 history. also the scene of major accidents for Gerhard Berger (1989) and Nelson Piquet (1987)
It gives me goose bumps to see his videos. Especially in Monaco.

Michael Schumacher eventually went on to win the race and later the championship.

May Senna’s sould rest in Piece and the spirit of F1 Live On..