tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77926548583439590782024-03-05T05:31:33.630-08:00I read. I listen. I rambleabHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-77010530809909060842015-04-24T18:19:00.000-07:002015-04-24T18:28:36.324-07:00It's only in a world that you have constructed that you have the right to destruct; now do you dare destroy?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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All that isn't real<br />
all that you orchestrated<br />
piece after jigsaw piece that was set in their right place<br />
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All that you regret<br />
all that makes you cringe<br />
words and glances you can never erase<br />
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All that is sad<br />
all the burden on your back <br />
bruises and tears that perennially hold you back<br />
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All that is vile<br />
all that lives by sucking out your marrow<br />
screams and whispers that haunt from the graveyard<br />
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Are all yours to destroy were you the mighty creator.<br />
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<i>Thus I am putting an end to this old blog and moving on to wordpress. Find me at <a href="https://iwalkthelongroad.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">https://iwalkthelongroad.wordpress.com/ </a> The can't-call-me-n00b-anymore blogger that's me can't find a way to deactivate this blog.</i><br />
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<i>Acknowledgment:</i><br />
<i>Thanking Pink Floyd for Eclipse.</i><br />
<i>Thanking John Irving for semicolons. </i><br />
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-6350694839313287342014-06-27T17:41:00.001-07:002014-06-27T18:47:21.553-07:00Once<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">She once wrote poetry<br>
in the pages of a pristine book<br>
adorned it with a petal from her garden<br>
carefully blew off the dew and walked away<br>
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He wanders in a library<br>
opens the now decrepit book<br>
reads those words in the fading twilight<br>
runs his fingers across one last time and walks away<br><br></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The spark was only ephemeral<br>
brightly lit up the world while it lasted<br>
but the rose petal is nowhere to be found <br>
for it is long lost in the annals of both space and time<br>
<br></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Song in my head: Pendulum by Pearl Jam</div>
abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-77390672799418534002014-06-25T23:11:00.000-07:002014-06-26T09:43:05.699-07:00Of Humans<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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We ache for a human connection<br>
For a hand to hold when dancing with the waves<br>
For an ear to whisper as we lie on the sand<br>
Under the blanket of a thousand stars in a distant beach<br>
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We tread mighty mountains on blistering feet</div>
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Desiring to brighten someone else's day<br>
In return seeking mere acknowledgment<br>
Often in vain, in all wrong places<br>
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We yearn to come home into arms that clutch strong</div>
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To love so much that it hurts sometimes<br>
To trust someone enough to let them free<br>
And to know we will be missed when we truly leave<br>
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We strive too hard to touch another soul</div>
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To leave behind footprints on the sands of time<br>
But all it takes to erase those fragile prints permanently<br>
is one paltry wave. (Behold!)<br>
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Now playing: <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5cLCeJ0RHfLrP1pcRWoiFz" target="_blank">If you want me</a> by Marketa Irglova and Glen Hansard<br>
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-51601951001120767862014-06-24T17:12:00.000-07:002014-06-24T18:44:54.509-07:002014 Goodreads Reading Challenge: Part I<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I had set myself a seemingly impossible target of reading 42 books last year. It was a miserable failure as I ended up reading less than a third of that. So I decided to tackle the same goal again this year and attack it from the first month. Halfway through the year, with a good collection of non-fiction and literary fiction in my shelf I haven't disappointed myself. (And that is saying a lot.)</div>
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Here is a list of the books that I have read in the past 6 months, and a few lines or more if the book left a lasting impression. Writing reviews is not among my few fortes, hence the post will not be of much use to the reader except as an insight into my great mind. In other words, this post will not be of much use. </div>
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1. Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">Frankl is an Auschwitz survivor and a psychiatrist, and the book is a bit of both. His portrayal of the daily life inside the Nazi concentration camps was as powerful as I expected. I skimmed past the psychiatry part of the book fast.</span></div>
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2. I promise Not to Suffer: A Fool for Love Hikes the Pacific Crest Trail by Gail D. Storey</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">I grabbed this book on a whim from the New Arrivals section of my library. It is an account of a 50 year old woman who hiked the PCT with her husband. In this book, I found a new love for California and the whole of West Coast.</span></div>
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3. Moon Tiger by Penelope Lively</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">Ah, the first heart-breaker of the season. Random notes from when I was reading the book: "Claudia comes across to me as being quite bitter. A tiny reflection of myself perhaps? Is this how I'll become at the end? A grumpy woman who believes she has seen it all and dismisses anyone less stronger.."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">This Man Booker prize winner is narrated by Claudia, a war correspondent who looks back from deathbed at bits and pieces of her life. Initially, I found Claudia to be very conceited, and the book to be too rambling but it became more coherent as it progressed. At the heart of her character Claudia is agonizingly human, despite what her bitter exterior shows. I dearly wish that I would feel toward another being something akin to that which is described in these lines.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">"She sits there half-asleep, seeing little, just his hand on the driving wheel, a brown hand with a scatter of black hairs between wrist and knuckles; forty years on, she will still see that hand."</span></div>
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4. The fault in Our Stars by John Green</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">A teenage love story with many honest moments that surprised me into giving it a 4-star rating.</span></div>
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5. The Cider House Rules by John Irving</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">Another chance find in the library that blew my mind, a stellar work on abortion, orphanage life and to a lesser extent on infidelity and molestation. I recommend it to anyone looking for a classic that is more relatable than your typical Dickens. Strong characters - check; controversial themes attacking society's morals - check; powerful language - check. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">Some of its lines hit me straight in the gut, and they hit hard. A testimony to the language part:</span></div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">"What is hardest to accept about the passage of time is that the people who once mattered the most to us wind up in parentheses."</span><span style="color: #ea9999;"> </span></div>
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6. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">A highly regarded tale of African culture that I did not find to my taste.</span></div>
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7. A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">I took another stroll in the American forests, this time on the East Coast. Bryson proved to be an entertaining and knowledgeable guide.</span></div>
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8. Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">The book spoke to me more than the movie did. And the movie had Eddie Vedder's music.. I can envisage myself reading this tale of young McCandless walking alone into the Alaskan wild many more times. </span></div>
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9. The World According to Garp by John Irving</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">This international bestseller about the fictional life of a feminist and her bastard son who becomes an accomplished writer challenged my views on extremism, feminism, sexuality and infidelity. But at its most tragic moments I was left rolling my eyes at the comedies of life. It was not an easy read but it was well worth the time! My respect for Mr. Irving's writing grew manifold with this. </span></div>
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10. A Sliver of Light: Three Americans Imprisoned in Iran by Shane Bauer</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">A true account of three Americans imprisoned in Iran. Quite disarming.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;"><a href="http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/03/iran-hostage-hikers-iraq-prisoners?page=1" target="_blank">Here</a> is an excerpt.</span></div>
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11. The Swell Season: A Text on the Most Important Things in Life by Josef Skvorecky</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">I decided to read this book because of the band 'The Swell Season' whose name was inspired by this book. The book will probably not appeal to you unless you are looking for stories of a lustful, Jazz loving teenage boy in Czechoslovakia during WWII. </span></div>
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12. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">A mildly informative book about the origin of the immortal HeLa cell line, not as much about Henrietta as I'd wish.</span></div>
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13. Ten Days in a Mad-House by Nellie Bly</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">A very short and brilliant read. A journalist cheats her way into a mental institution to procure an inside account; and what she finds shocks the world (all but the cynical ones).</span></div>
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14. A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">Dave Eggers is a novelist, publisher and also a philanthropist. In this memoir he paints a poignant picture of his early adulthood in San Francisco which revolved around being a guardian for his 8-year old brother, after they lost both parents to cancer. Don't be fooled by the pompousness of the title, the book is a terrific run through Eggers' mind.</span></div>
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15. The Man Who Mistook his Wife for a Hat and Other Clinical Tales by Oliver Sacks</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">Intrigued by the title I started reading Dr. Sacks' collection of case studies of his patients with neurological disorders. It turned out that I was not too interested in neurology.</span></div>
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16. 1984 by George Orwell</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">I finally got to reading 1984, George Orwell's dystopian novel about socialism gone wrong. The book is a classic for a reason, it is still relevant in 2014. </span></div>
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17. Animal Farm by George Orwell</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">A review described it as a children's version of 1984, I agree. I enjoyed the book nevertheless.</span></div>
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My favourite: <span style="color: #ea9999;">Moon Tiger</span></div>
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One book that I'd recommend unless you are Deepti: <span style="color: #ea9999;">The Cider House Rules </span></div>
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One book that I'd recommend if you are Deepti: <span style="color: #ea9999;">Read the whole damn list. Wherever it differs from yours ;)</span></div>
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Next in my reading list:</div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">1. Cool Gray City of Love: 49 views of San Francisco</span></div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">2. Love in the Time of Cholera </span></div>
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<span style="color: #ea9999;">3. The Bridges of Madison County</span></div>
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-14590521885111180112014-06-22T22:38:00.001-07:002014-06-23T11:52:10.075-07:00And I dream on<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I have spent several hours pondering on growing old, the latest occasion being a few weeks ago when I was walking on a deserted beach.</div>
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At a point when there are many more decades behind me than ahead, would regret be the foremost thought in my mind? Would I still shrink my face in disgust that regret should be the first emotion that I even consider?</div>
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Would my path be partaken by some stroke of luck leaving memories of contentment to withhold? Would I still be a dreamer of improbabilities? Or would I have lived long enough for one such thing to cross over into the realm of reality by sheer statistics?</div>
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The only thing I'm certain about is that I would still be a crazy over-thinker :)</div>
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Anyway, if I have a chance I'd love to come back to this place on a day when panicking about bug reports is a thing of the past. I'd watch the sunset from this very bench, with a glass of wine to accompany me. Or whiskey if I'm particularly feisty that night. Mark Knopfler's Rudiger would surely be playing. As the sun sinks into the Pacific, I'd hit replay and close my eyes.</div>
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And hence I dream on!</div>
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P.S. @Aravinth: Me: 1 | Stereotype: 0 </div>
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-44132815487258695642014-06-06T21:42:00.003-07:002014-06-06T21:42:39.383-07:00A weekend at Yosemite<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Third time's the charm, they say. There is no such adage about the fourth time, but does the writer not hold a license to modify these to cater her writing needs and avoid resorting to additional clauses? Case in point: It is my fourth time at Yosemite National Park; or the third time in less than a year, to use the third-time-charm-thing. I am resting on a rock, legs stretched ahead, debating with myself the can's and can-not's of a novice blogger. I shield my eyes from the bright sun as I look up straight at the sky. The sound of the water gushing through small rocks on its way to the eventual fall is quite reassuring and the idea of another post takes shape in my mind.</div>
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Let's go back a week in time to one of my run-of-the-mill Monday mornings in the lab. For most part of the hour left between e-mail replies and lunch I am switching furiously between social networking sites. After "productively" wasting several minutes in discovering Murat Morrison's blog on Quora, I check my Twitter feed and leap in excitement at this.</div>
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The greatest lookout of the natural world, Glacier Point, will open at noon in <a href="https://twitter.com/YosemiteNPS">@YosemiteNPS</a>: <a href="http://t.co/RmIQEpXrXv">http://t.co/RmIQEpXrXv</a> <a href="http://t.co/a6HYK4S9l2">pic.twitter.com/a6HYK4S9l2</a></div>
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— SFGate.com (@SFGate) <a href="https://twitter.com/SFGate/statuses/455765536530366464">April 14, 2014</a></div>
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At once I call my roommate and we waste no time in sketching out the weekend plans. A few days later we start to Yosemite early (for a particularly bad hangover) Saturday morning. A seemingly never-ending drive later we reach the national park late afternoon only to find a throng of people and a panic attack. We attribute the crowd to spring break and the onset of an early summer; the panic attack to discovering that we don't have with us a memory card for The DSLR. </div>
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While we make salvaging plans that included, potentially, a 2 hour drive to the nearest Walmart, we realize that we don't have enough time to find parking, catch a shuttle and then start on a hike. Unfazed, we alter our (non-existent) plan and head to Glacier Point. En route we stop at the Bridelveil falls which reaffirms my ability to slip on firm ground and my fear of loud kids.</div>
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Once we get on the Glacier point road everything is suddenly very silent. We pull over at the first trailhead that we encounter and meet a short trail to the Sentinel dome. The trail was perfect - hardly any people, patches of snow, expansive views of the valley, did I mention there were no people?</div>
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In case the reader has noticed, yes, that is a photo of a random road taken from inside the car and does not bear any significance to the trail.</div>
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Around sunset we reach Glacier Point, possibly the most beautiful place I have ever seen. I am out of words now and urge this picture that I stole from Wikipedia to say a few on my behalf.</div>
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<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/21/Glacier_Point_at_Sunset,_Yosemite_NP,_CA,_US_-_Diliff.jpg/1920px-Glacier_Point_at_Sunset,_Yosemite_NP,_CA,_US_-_Diliff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/21/Glacier_Point_at_Sunset,_Yosemite_NP,_CA,_US_-_Diliff.jpg/1920px-Glacier_Point_at_Sunset,_Yosemite_NP,_CA,_US_-_Diliff.jpg" height="141" width="320" /></a></div>
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We laugh at the full 4G AT&T coverage 3200 feet above the valley and I silently thank my friend for being there, for sharing my travel instincts, for making no fuss when plans invariably go wrong.</div>
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The next morning we start early, after I wake up from a dreadful dream involving violent dogs, unruly teenage boys and tragic hope for impossible futures. Now equipped with The Memory Card we stop at the quintessential Yosemite photography spot, Tunnel view. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFoLjd34FazbGFnJswq809Ljo6lXy-F97LPkBdgcA2GA646233t6Sl-Hc8R72alGxR5PbFrLqW3W04qtlnGgkPkugoMkrDi8K690whI6B88anNaRhTyzDlb9hpp9WNGUl47JIHqT_dvnas/s1600/DSC_0028.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFoLjd34FazbGFnJswq809Ljo6lXy-F97LPkBdgcA2GA646233t6Sl-Hc8R72alGxR5PbFrLqW3W04qtlnGgkPkugoMkrDi8K690whI6B88anNaRhTyzDlb9hpp9WNGUl47JIHqT_dvnas/s1600/DSC_0028.JPG" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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Our next stop is the crux of the trip, the guitar solo of a 70's rock song, if you will. The Mist Falls! The trail starts with a short mildly steep stretch adorned with breathtaking views of mountains of granite. We then climb a few hundred steps with every step I am worried of slipping down and breaking an ankle. As we climb closer to the falls we get drenched in its spray. Talk about beautiful! I don't understand how I have been to Yosemite thrice without coming here, one of the most crowded hikes in the park. </div>
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That's where I am now. The top of this falls.</div>
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I experience a multitude of emotions, deep respect for the mountains shaped by ice age glaciers standing tall against all tests of time; gratefulness for my own fortune to be in a place five thousand miles away from home, and love for a beloved friend whom I miss the most of all. For now this will suffice. No more thoughts, no more alarms.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzxvR2CxUCD6GnpVrf2e889iUKj-9C_UfBIGFyGnI_7sSI5NbNzus9Sp6VHIslAordZiIcPh4TWg4HItdw2UoHROwqQ16K7ult4MsBS6SohXTP1pfcQrtkhYUdriA1TExouu3GBhqfgsII/s1600/DSC_0174.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzxvR2CxUCD6GnpVrf2e889iUKj-9C_UfBIGFyGnI_7sSI5NbNzus9Sp6VHIslAordZiIcPh4TWg4HItdw2UoHROwqQ16K7ult4MsBS6SohXTP1pfcQrtkhYUdriA1TExouu3GBhqfgsII/s1600/DSC_0174.JPG" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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Song in my head: <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5CfKbfJ51lOt80KjpVNwiQ" target="_blank">Wherever there is light</a> by No-Man.</div>
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-31328410437239058152014-03-13T14:51:00.001-07:002014-05-30T11:35:27.796-07:00I should have known!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
We once strolled along the same trail<br />
one we didn't share, one for which we didn't quite care<br />
to walk away from the path, never did we ponder<br />
deliberately unaware, of the treasure that lay yonder.<br />
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When we reached the inevitable fork our paths drifted<br />
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I tried to scale new heights, sliding down many slopes<br />
you were always there to silently support<br />
picking myself up, I knew we had grown better rapport<br />
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Our roads are now a long way apart<br />
I peer backwards, trying to look through the past<br />
the search for old records ends in a prized find<br />
as the memory of a cheerful voice fills my mind<br />
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So high in drama, surely I should have known<br />
that we had no choice but to end up good friends.<br />
"The word starts with G and ends with L<br />
such obscenities you'll never hear me spell"<br />
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<i>Song in my head: For absent friends by Opeth</i><br />
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-49512830194037258052014-02-18T19:20:00.002-08:002014-02-18T19:20:57.650-08:00The view from another side<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>"Hear the sound of their laughter ringing in the air, aren't they a merry party today? Let's walk with them for a while", I suggest. "Why, you ask? No reason, my dear! We don't have anything better to do for a few hours, do we? Come on now, we will have no trouble catching up with their slow pace."</b></div>
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<b>We follow them at a distance as they cross a bridge. You say suddenly, "Look at the full moon shining ever so brightly! How beautiful its reflection is in the lake! If I stand close to the rails, I can even feel the breeze on my face." In your excitement, you stumble and knock off a bicycle that falls down clanging loudly. "Don't worry, the girls are unaware of our presence. They will not turn around", I reply to your relief. You are young, after all. In our world you haven't even come of age.</b></div>
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<b>It is surreal, the girl with a ponytail exclaims. The red-haired girl runs up to her and clings to her arm. </b></div>
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<b>One girl drinks something that she finds quite delectable. "It has chocolate and coffee and vodka! Beat that!" The girl on her right is unconvinced, she wouldn't touch the drink. You wonder aloud, "Are they playing some game? I don't understand. They seem to be happy one minute, and hate each other the next". "Ah! These humans are a very insecure race", I reply with wisdom.</b></div>
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<b>They take in familiar sights, and trod on well worn out paths. They recount old stories to gales of laughter. The girl in the green dress realizes with a pang that she has to leave soon. She scribbles a hurried note, jabbering of memories to cherish. She wishes that their last hug will last a tiny moment longer. She gently pries her fingers away from her friend's hand whispering that there is never enough time.</b></div>
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<b>I see kindness in your eyes when you say, "Aren't the young ones lucky to have each other?" I laugh heartily. "Hold my staff, child. We have another place to visit before the day breaks. A postman near Belgrade is out of means to send his daughter to school."</b></div>
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<i><b>Now losing my mind to Radiohead. Breathe, keep breathing..</b></i></div>
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-40850887321831533942014-02-09T23:37:00.001-08:002014-05-30T11:36:57.596-07:00One more time<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The days I've known you are short<br />
an open book, my mind to you from the start<br />
a face or two, I have seen of your gales<br />
Ah! The few glimpses proclaim many tales<br />
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You crossed paths with a few strange men<br />
the stories would fill many pages when you decide to pen<br />
your affection once touched a nerve<br />
Ever so profuse and infectious, is your verve<br />
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Akin to me in quite some ways<br />
full of life, charming on most days<br />
beloved friend, so willfully stronger<br />
you inspire me like no other<br />
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Yet a million memories threaten havoc<br />
as a pang of warning creeps down the pit of my stomach<br />
wishing for more than stark rhyme<br />
I go through the motions one more time.<br />
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Song in my head: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GdmspkYkus" target="_blank">Infallible</a> by Pearl Jam<br />
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-82435470644304073072014-02-03T20:44:00.000-08:002014-05-30T11:39:33.758-07:00The West Coast: A Sampler<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #cccccc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I was chatting with a friend a few days back. The conversation, once edited heavily in my favour, went like this.</span></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-6ccebd01-fabf-3bd7-36b4-378a8d9c3fe8" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend:</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Start some random conversation. I'm bored. Stressed. And depressed.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I (reaching for my phone first thing after I woke up):</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Hey! The first topic in my mind. Hmm, Pacific Northwest!</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend (in all probability, banging head on the wall, thinking):</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Again, why am I friends with her?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I (hiding my face under a pillow in shame, assuring myself):</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> It's really early for a Saturday. I read a lot of geography yesterday, that explains it.</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I:</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> You can tell me to change the topic, if you want.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">No, go ahead.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Pacific Northwest region roughly includes parts of Northern California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and the Canadian state British Columbia. </span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">By the way, why is it still called British Columbia?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I (completely ignoring the question): </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This region has several mountain ranges including Cascade range, Coast mountains, and Rocky mountains. The Cascades have very dense vegetation. Due to the proximity to the Pacific ocean, the Cascades experience heavy snow and rainfall every year. There are also many active volcanoes here, the Cascades are a part of the Pacific Ring of Fire. The tallest peak in the region is Mount Rainier which I visited last fall. Wikipedia says that the largest single season snowfall in the world was recorded in Mount Baker. I'm finding that hard to believe for some reason.</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Why haven't you shared these pictures yet?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I'm lazy... Well here is one.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJeSP0_GQ9ROANgSO8KVG32gYdZIirFqyVbKhE2pCr4NPr8orleBGg8MoO-hNfnLdPLlEFHxihv9XGRzIudeyoNokIq3_ZYgzmHEJbhtWpBQzJo4EuZ9IGRuZy1ql6mdv5dvYZfLMPq_LL/s1600/IMG_4801.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJeSP0_GQ9ROANgSO8KVG32gYdZIirFqyVbKhE2pCr4NPr8orleBGg8MoO-hNfnLdPLlEFHxihv9XGRzIudeyoNokIq3_ZYgzmHEJbhtWpBQzJo4EuZ9IGRuZy1ql6mdv5dvYZfLMPq_LL/s1600/IMG_4801.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This place is called Reflection lake.</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Serene! It's hard to think of snow and vegetation together.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The trip was so much fun, we were driving and driving. A couple of my friends flew from Austin and three of us flew to Portland from SF. It's another interesting story, but that's for another day.</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Why don't you blog about all this! Why does it always have to be about that venna Vedder? * (venna = idiot/waste fellow)</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I (mumbling rhetorically): </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I don't know, nobody reads.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I (Failing to notice the slight on my favourite musician):</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Anyway, back to the Northwest. What else do I know about the place?</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The area? Population?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Washington and Oregon are politically very liberal. Washington has legalized medical marijuana. The major cities in the Pacific Northwest are Seattle, Portland and Vancouver.</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(And then it hit me) </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Wait, the music scene in Seattle is spectacular. In the late 80s, Seattle gave birth to a subgenre of alternative rock called grunge. It was inspired by hardcore punk and heavy metal. Bands like Soundgarden, Nirvana and Pearl Jam became hugely popular and contributed to the commercial success of grunge. </span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Oh! Nirvana too. So, how does grunge compare to metal? Less noisy?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mostly, and less growling.</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend (laughing out loud): </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Better description.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Soundgarden was the first grunge band to sign a major record label. Its lead singer is this guy, Chris Cornell. </span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend (laughing again): </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I'll look him up. Long hair?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Of course. Check out the songs 'Flutter girl', 'Like a stone', 'Be yourself' (the latter two by the supergroup Audioslave) and the theme from the movie Casino Royale 'You know my name'.</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Oh, that was him!?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Yes. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Continuing) </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On our trip to Rainier, we took a five hour detour to visit the city called Aberdeen, the place where Nirvana's Kurt Cobain was born and grew up. The city pays tribute to the late singer by installing this sign, a reference to one of his songs. </span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBhuYKNagGAS8m3ve7zrhcfaPwcQHaW2FWs2QXzlmKufN404I06xt9G1GMmP264cM4XDc_LChX0bGIIGmDsZa03MM7a-QxXCqlNpwfaT3W8LX0T5ER0_GjJb6Bxy8_EQ35tVlL3-s325-j/s1600/IMG_4733.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBhuYKNagGAS8m3ve7zrhcfaPwcQHaW2FWs2QXzlmKufN404I06xt9G1GMmP264cM4XDc_LChX0bGIIGmDsZa03MM7a-QxXCqlNpwfaT3W8LX0T5ER0_GjJb6Bxy8_EQ35tVlL3-s325-j/s1600/IMG_4733.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Anyway, back to the geography lesson. Let us now venture south of the Cascades. </span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">South, yes! I'm ready.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The next big mountain range we cross is the Sierra Nevada. Fondly known as the High Sierra, the range is famous for towering Sequoia trees and the California gold rush among other things. The famous Yosemite valley was sculpted by alpine glaciers from the ice age.</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A valley from the ice age! It's getting better.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I (rambling incoherently): </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Yes, it is very beautiful. Wilderness campers and backpackers are wary of the bears this region inhabits. </span><br />
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #8e7cc3;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The lack of water in Yosemite falls is indicative of this year's drought.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">South of Sierra lies the vast Mojave desert, the driest and hottest place in North America.</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Oh yeah, there is a game that I play! With the cowboys, snakes and tiger lilies.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I (the narcissistic bad-friend that I am): </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Death Valley has the highest recorded temperature on earth. </span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend (probably angry by now):</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Oh!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Bad water basin in Death valley, at 282 feet below sea level, is the point of lowest elevation in the US. Anecdotally, the highest elevation in continental US is Mt. Whitney which is less than 100 miles from bad water basin. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHlL7elNXTdeRzKjc34V3Aa6fdzKyCUjJe09Rc_MNA8BOufo8k-gVeuM2IYt-fqS-KOQrBy-Yb39C5ZqpeWXYAUqPGemoydRMxJP-rN2np21u-6EHDeAS_1BiO-cILBOrJ4uEpT_gjlZH5/s1600/DSC03969.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHlL7elNXTdeRzKjc34V3Aa6fdzKyCUjJe09Rc_MNA8BOufo8k-gVeuM2IYt-fqS-KOQrBy-Yb39C5ZqpeWXYAUqPGemoydRMxJP-rN2np21u-6EHDeAS_1BiO-cILBOrJ4uEpT_gjlZH5/s1600/DSC03969.JPG" height="179" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>I: </i>And this is all in California.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend:</span><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Great place, California is.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I (Is he still angry? Is that sarcasm?): </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Moving closer to the coast, there are numerous mountain ranges that form the Coast Ranges. Big Sur coast is famous for the windy segment of the highway CA-1 along the coast, where the sheer cliffs drop down to the ocean. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF-wKjDm9zSqEsApEjNhHJnMUHXjKf2ur5-qHtuuIS4UkMGSncba3XK4CqCayxXKpqme8ESxwtv7wydcjQVnrQOhxsma51uU4iGlHxDPu9LdJrI7iPEEu-O8KJ27K0UvDL2TcvmqdxkF8B/s1600/20140111_152011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF-wKjDm9zSqEsApEjNhHJnMUHXjKf2ur5-qHtuuIS4UkMGSncba3XK4CqCayxXKpqme8ESxwtv7wydcjQVnrQOhxsma51uU4iGlHxDPu9LdJrI7iPEEu-O8KJ27K0UvDL2TcvmqdxkF8B/s1600/20140111_152011.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In conclusion, yes I have fallen in love with California and the whole of west coast. In its diverse landscape. In the primal beauty it showcases...</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friend:</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> <</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Silence</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Yeah, that must have been sarcasm. He was a great listener.. He said he was depressed!</span></div>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #8e7cc3; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #cccccc;"><b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">* Dear </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">f</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">riend, </span></b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><b>If you are reading this, I regret to inform you that I can no longer consider you my bff**, now that you have opened up about your true feelings for Eddie. It's over. </b></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cccccc;"><b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Plays in head: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwS3_B4axn0" style="text-decoration: none;">It's all over but the crying by Garbage</a></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cccccc;"><b><br /><span style="font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><b>**The BFF spot is now open. Floyd lovers, Nickelback*** haters, and rich people who go to one or more concerts per month and are willing to buy me tickets fairly often may apply.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><b>***I don't really hate Nickelback. It was them or Taylor Swift and I didn't want her in the same sentence as You-Love-Who. </b></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><b>OK, I am just kidding about the spot being open. Not just because of the Europe invite! </b></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><b><span id="goog_1217475534"></span><span id="goog_1217475535"></span><br /></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: 'Droid Serif'; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-22456628547689001232014-01-21T17:03:00.002-08:002014-06-26T11:19:24.885-07:00Strikes a chord<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>Possibly the most beautiful song I have heard is 'Echoes'. The song is like a fucking poem!</b><br />
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<b><i>"Cloudless everyday you fall upon my waking eyes</i></b><br />
<b><i>inviting and inciting me to rise</i></b><br />
<b><i>and through the window in the wall</i></b><br />
<b><i>come streaming in on sunlight wings</i></b><br />
<b><i>a million bright ambassadors of morning!"</i></b><br />
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<b>Mind-blown! What is it that has won me over? The lyrics or the music or the entrancing vocals? After 23 minutes of ethereal beauty the song always leaves me wanting for more. I believe this is how addiction would feel like!</b><br />
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-84906419236333157252014-01-13T13:45:00.000-08:002014-05-30T11:40:42.779-07:00What's happening?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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It has been quite some time since I wrote a long post. Or talked to someone. Or did some significant work at office. Or read a long book. Or took myself seriously. I wonder why.</div>
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On my best friend's birthday I could hardly speak anything after the customary happy birthday. As I stood in the corridor outside my lab trying hard to make a non-mundane conversation happen, I realized I had succeeded in becoming truly alone.</div>
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I have disconnected myself from all semblances of relationships. Until this phase in life, there were always a few people to whom I could pick up the phone and talk as if just a day, not months, passed from when we previously spoke. But at some point of time in the recent past, I seem to have drifted farther and farther. The elastic band which always brought me back to the center by its recoil seems to have broken finally.</div>
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I do not have too many thoughts in my head these days. From being a person with multiple layers of intertwined thoughts that served as my bane on a daily basis, I am now moving on to 'not having too many thoughts'. I suppose this is a significant achievement, though I am clueless about its origins. If I had something to focus on, like a final exam or a class project due in a week, I would probably do it good justice without any distraction. But now that I don't have any pressing concern (refer the part where I say I haven't done significant work at office in a long time), I am a little lost.</div>
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Earlier, I used to have a variety of emotions close to the surface. There was a band/book/TV show that I absolutely loved to the very core (EddieVedder/LoTR/House was the fucking best thing that ever happened on the planet, EVER). I constantly held a grudge or two (but she promised she would call back 2 years, 6 months and 11 days ago, and that was only the 6th time she forgot). I vehemently hated a few wrong things that some stupid people do (there is no sane reason that a hostel can dare impose a different set of rules on men and women, and the worst part of it all was the girls and their parents who aided these decisions by abiding them. and this was the REASON the college sucked, the country remained backward). I could go on, but I think you get the point.</div>
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But now I don't have too much feelings. I am more at peace with myself and the world. Maybe I am just happy, instead of the usual binary euphoric or depressed? This is new.</div>
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Well, things are rolling. Let's see where this wave takes me.</div>
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Wait a minute! Strike out the part when I talked about Eddie in the past tense. Because, Ed IS the fucking best thing that ever happened on earth! I saw him twice, in a month. Me and a friend, glazed eyes, hoarse throats, all reason lost as he started with Pendulum. I heard him sing black. I was a part of the crowd that sang betterman as he watched along. Love you, Ed!</div>
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Now playing: Nothing is playing, didn't you read the post? (rolling eyes) I am in a state of temporary inaction!</div>
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-365083932075272982013-11-20T11:23:00.002-08:002014-06-26T11:22:56.641-07:00In Retrospect<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
She answered the door and found an old friend<br />
They rested on a swing in the porch<br />
she leaned on her withered shoulders<br />
letting old memories flow unbridled<br />
<br />
She remembered when she was young<br />
racing her little brother in the front yard<br />
her mother watched with adoring eyes <br />
declaring them both winners under the fading light<br />
<br />
when she played with cowrie shells<br />
building castles in construction sand<br />
falling asleep on grandma's knees<br />
as the old woman told her tales of revered snakes<br />
<br />
Bedtime stories from father were rare but rich<br />
She spent nights huddling with her sisters<br />
Through long talks they passed their wisdom<br />
and crowned her queen of the terrace kingdom<br />
<br />
Times when she shone like the sun<br />
wearing her heart on her sleeve<br />
she loved the greatness that went by the name Eddie<br />
she watched a humble champion score his last runs<br />
<br />
She traveled miles to see shiny cars<br />
go round and round screeching under the scorching sun<br />
she grimaced at a missed chance<br />
to see a legend play The Wall live<br />
<br />
Then she grew older and life got meaner<br />
ugly souls she was lost among<br />
Amid the clamor she found one day<br />
a heart of gold that swept her off the feet<br />
<br />
She thought of the first time he kissed her brow<br />
his stubble prickling her cheeks<br />
his moist eyes when she promised she would marry him<br />
the last words he whispered in her ear<br />
<br />
There was a tear in her eye, not one of pain<br />
alone but not lonely<br />
A content woman it was<br />
that they laid to rest that night.<br />
<br />
<i>The clock keeps ticking, and I go back to the present tense. I promised to write something positive, hope I did justice to that. This was inspired by a friend's post on how life would be, looking back from the end. Now playing: <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1t3mvlSLcx2sy76AQi5b59" target="_blank">Rudiger</a> by Mark Knopfler </i></div>
abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-81642166449420687812013-10-29T00:05:00.001-07:002014-06-26T11:23:58.946-07:00Now what?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
How do you let go<br />
when you look down the cliff at the raging waves<br />
Your hands are fiercely clutching<br />
the last length of nothing<br />
<br />
Which way do you go next<br />
like the small nail stuck in a wheel<br />
not sharp enough to cause lasting hurt<br />
deep enough to impede the passage<br />
<br />
What should you hope for<br />
Heed the kind that teases you<br />
it can silently suffocate, remember<br />
Not all hope is good hope<br />
<br />
Knopfler croons in sweet consolation<br />
Floyd seals the trust, working the stupefying charm<br />
Cobain screams in gut-wrenching desolation<br />
Vedder growls, eyes reeking of empathy<br />
<br />
You talk in cliches while the empathy kills.<br />
<br />
Now playing: Good days by Joe Purdy<br />
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-90782624096920238392013-10-10T22:56:00.000-07:002014-06-26T11:25:17.116-07:00The Wait<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>One little token of acknowledgment</b><br />
<b>was all that she longed for</b><br />
<b>she had thrown all caution into the winds</b><br />
<b>sold herself out to those few words</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>With bated breath she waited</b><br />
<b>she could neither drink nor eat</b><br />
<b>joy and sorrow blended into unfamiliar numbness</b><br />
<b>the moment she surrendered the last ounce of her self</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>A slight prod was immensely alluring</b><br />
<b>just a stretch of a hand away</b><br />
<b>prevailed an ephemeral respite</b><br />
<b>With a bitter fight she held the resolve of silence</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>Laid her soul naked in vulnerability</b><br />
<b>days and nights she waited in vain</b><br />
<b>a teeny nod in her direction</b><br />
<b>how was it too much to ask!?</b><br />
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<b>Now playing: Time</b><br />
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<b><i>Here is a wistful response.</i></b><br />
<b><i><br /></i></b>
<b>Alas, I don't have with me that which your heart seeks</b><br />
<b>the perfect future is naught but a happy dream</b><br />
<b>so dear to me I hold you still</b><br />
<b>I flinch in dismay at your lost hope</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>Caught warily in this spectacle</b><br />
<b>I know not how to soothe you</b><br />
<b>when every look could lead you to misfortune</b><br />
<b>when a single act could drown you in spurious hope</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>Oh! if words are all you want</b><br />
<b>a thousand poems I'd adorn you with</b><br />
<b>if a touch of your arm would go a long way in relief </b><br />
<b>I'd hug you close and hold you for a while</b><br />
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-7107025965357062132013-09-29T21:00:00.001-07:002014-05-30T11:44:55.207-07:00Antagonizing the world<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<i>Too many people have told me that this one needs some context :)</i><br />
<i>This is about how people move on, change their priorities and forget promises. As you life goes on you begin to wonder if it was you who read things wrong and begin to the doubt what you perceive to be real in the present. You overcome all petty concerns and move on too. You choose to be indifferent to everything, but what do you achieve?</i><br />
<br />
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Promises to meet this time for sure<br />
Waned like Hermione banished them<br />
Oh what did that leave you with<br />
If not regret and self-reproach<br />
<br />
The hand you held strong<br />
As you conquered the mountain of fear<br />
The kiss of hope and love<br />
Did you lure yourself to think it was real?<br />
<br />
The one shoulder you lean on tonight<br />
The very picture of the top layer of melting ice<br />
You will find the cracks early in the dawn<br />
Firm ground you can trust, they said<br />
<br />
You walked alone the long winding path<br />
Through the land of mist and daze<br />
Trod loose stones with care<br />
Left the last hurdle behind and walked far<br />
<br />
You flirted with that sheer veil<br />
The veil that harbored you in reality<br />
Crossed the lines you drew long ago<br />
Met your doom in your unbridled dreams<br />
<br />
Indifference you befriended as you lined the wall with lead<br />
Not the iron fist nor the sugar coated knife<br />
Could make you soar into the stars or silently wail<br />
You antagonized all the world, but to what end?</div>
abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-35653420373058497982013-09-20T18:24:00.001-07:002014-05-30T11:45:44.033-07:00The story of the end<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>Ok, this is so cheesy that I want to punch myself in the face. Nowhere close to the previous post, neither in beauty nor in honesty. But the last one left me yearning to complete, I couldn't just leave it hanging like that. </i></div>
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She is sitting in her desk poring over the yellow pages of the old book that she had re-read a hundred times. Looking up through the window she feels she ought to be outdoors on a beautiful summer day like this. The sky is a bright blue today; blue with huge puffs of clear white clouds. Lifting the blinds up she feels a cool breeze livening up her study. The breeze is a thoroughly welcome affair this hot dry summer. She breathes aloud hoping that autumn is finally beginning when a gutsy wind throws twigs and dirt into her little room. </div>
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Like the dirt on her book, she tries to dust away all misgivings. She tries hard to ignore them. The naive girl thinks they will leave her alone if she pretends long enough that they are figments of her imagination. When this approach fails she tries to fight them. Oh, how foolish she was in thinking she can subdue them with her anger! The final straw came when she tried to rationalize them and take them head on. This aggravated them more and soon they were dancing in flames before her closed eyes.</div>
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Forced to join the dance she is gracelessly shunted from one flame to another. With eyes wide open she takes them all in. She ponders all her options holding them close to her heart. A heaviness closes in on her while the familiar twitch in her stomach comes back in pulses. She is transported to a far away place. Miles and miles away, ages and ages ago. Or ahead. She doesn't know and neither do we. </div>
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She is standing under a majestic white oak, a tree that had withstood all tests of time in its several hundred years of existence. There is music in the air as twilight creeps in. Birds chirp away happily flying back to their nests. Rushing to be close to their loved ones, rushing towards comfort. Biting her nails she wonders how she ended up in this place. She had little recollection of the path that brought her here. She should have escaped when she had the chance. She is laying her life bare in his hands, would it take him a minute to toss it away into the thorns that lie beyond? She cries in intoxication. Pleads for him to understand. Begs someone to show her some empathy. Little did she realize that the words were no longer in the confines of her mind. Who is she talking to? Who can carry her anguish to him?</div>
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The next morning she knows in her heart that she can no longer take it. She has made her decision no matter how futile it might end. A weight eases off her shoulder when she shrugs the queasy thoughts away. She finds herself standing under the oak tree and the songbirds sing on. In the distance she sees the silhouette of a man. His face becomes clearer and her heart races faster. With her face twisted in fear she breaks into an incoherent ramble. He looks deep into her eyes and she sees it happening. He clasps her hand and gently kisses her lone tear away.</div>
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Now playing: <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3PvvsoGjRyF7YhfQXZHUaX" target="_blank">Rise</a> Hans Zimmer \m/</div>
abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-51090331003646832722013-09-16T15:59:00.001-07:002014-05-30T11:46:29.325-07:00Mixed signals<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Mixed signals, what can she do with you<br />
Let the eternal healer have a say<br />
Bless her with the numbness of inaction<br />
Have no fear of a bad repercussion<br />
<br />
Mixed signals, how does she deal with you<br />
Take things in her resolute stride<br />
Every step assuring that serenity is closer<br />
When has sense ever won sentiment over?<br />
<br />
Mixed signals, how does she interpret you<br />
The playful smile with that twinkle in his eye<br />
His weary sigh everytime she says goodbye<br />
Do they all make her reality sway high<br />
<br />
Mixed signals, you show your gloomy face<br />
Sever all ties, he dares not<br />
Wait for him to take a stance<br />
As she hangs on in a hopeful trance<br />
<br />
Mixed signals, could she be so wrong to read epics<br />
Between lines where no word was ever written<br />
Her radar couldn't have gone so astride<br />
But every crest is a trough from the other side<br />
<br />
Mixed signals, should she trade certainty for you<br />
Would she rather take hope, feeble or false<br />
Than have her dreams crushed with a firm no<br />
One that crushes her dreams and callously tramps in the dirt<br />
<br />
Mixed signals, will she confide in you<br />
Become an addict, you ease her agony<br />
Will she seek you every blistering minute<br />
And close her eyes with a fleeting glimpse of relief?<br />
<br />
Now playing: <a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/5oFYsu06nf5JrcgDSkM8Ee" target="_blank">Black</a>. Like anything else stands a chance. </div>
abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-61025626129285440442013-08-25T22:21:00.003-07:002014-05-30T11:49:04.496-07:00Echoes fade and memories die<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Bodoni MT', serif; font-size: 13pt;">I caught up with a good friend of mine
after a long time today. Recounting all stories from the past two months in a
very typical fashion of mine that includes all gory details and digresses in
all possible angles, made me suddenly nostalgic. </span></b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Bodoni MT', serif; font-size: 13pt;">Life fucking moves on. Small things
that gave me great pleasure are now distant memories. Roaming around SF in the
middle of the night, swearing at meteors, getting lost in philosophical
thoughts and (comically) falling in pits on beaches, professing love for a
Shakespearean actor(and oh, every guitarist we see), driving back from Berkeley
have all become things of the past. Just like discovering the Steeping Room,
walking to Amy's ice cream in the middle of the night, driving on MoPac for the
first time, celebrating with wine and cake and LoTR, Dunkin donuts on a rainy
Atlanta morning and making Rava pakoda on another rainy evening had all long
become things of the past.</span></b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Bodoni MT', serif; font-size: 13pt;">Being around new people bring out
different parts of me, parts that I didn't know existed before. I am as glad to
have discovered the adventurous me as I was when I first encountered the geek
in me. The adventurous me dodges wild thorns crossing the final frontier in the
shape of a wooden fence to the edge of a cliff(drama is my middle name). The
stupid girl also drives to mountain tops and finds the gas tank empty, breaks
her abstinence with one whiff of a spirit called Bombay. </span></b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Bodoni MT', serif; font-size: 13pt;">The geeky me ambitiously planned to
learn the basics of CUDA in a weekend, read Lord of the Rings twice in 3 weeks, fell in love
with the Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy, fervently debated abortion and
evolution(was shocked to find that a topic of debate in the first place), did a
batman marathon and claimed November Rain was the best song ever and in the
process found a beautiful friend who made great tea, became a part Longhorn and bought her apple pie
when she was in the worst low. </span></b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Bodoni MT', serif; font-size: 13pt;"><b>As all these images go through my mind
I sigh. I am reminded of Lewis Carroll. '</b><a href="http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/173163"><span style="color: orange;">Echoes
fade and memories die</span></a><b>'. I desperately hope that not all of them die.
I wish I could take with me what is elemental in all these memories. To enjoy
small things in life and keep pushing myself to my limits. </b></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Bodoni MT', serif; font-size: 13pt;">Because happiness is not good enough
for me. I demand euphoria. No, I am not going to the Shoreline Lake. I
need to drive on the Bay Bridge. </span></b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Bodoni MT', serif; font-size: 13pt;"><b>Now Playing: </b><a href="spotify:track:0myeTJ993kXE4vN0IPchcc" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Wish you were here</span></a><b> When in doubt, seek
Floyd.</b></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-61724265706765766642013-07-19T20:08:00.000-07:002014-05-30T11:49:59.273-07:00Why don't you just enjoy it? I don't know!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I am going to start with a very Wikipedia like description of Kurt Cobain. "Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – April 5, 1994) was an American musician and artist, best known as the lead singer, guitarist and primary songwriter of the grunge band Nirvana. Cobain formed Nirvana with Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1985 and established it as part of the Seattle music scene, having its debut album Bleach released on the independent record label Sub Pop in 1989." *</div>
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The article goes on to describe his birth and personal life and death and musical career and all the fucking acts that he put upon to a hypocritical world that greedily fed on his every move and gave him a demi God status that he strangely despised (or not so strangely considering the screwed up unworthy-in-his-own-mind narcissistic baby that he was). Ok, deep breath. Yes, I have to get every word to convey exactly what I want it to. I see a raging ramble coming up, so brace yourself. </div>
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I remember listening to All Apologies one day. It was Nirvana's first song that I listened to. I remember loving the melodic trance that Kurt's voice and music created. I didn't particularly pay attention to the drums or the lyrics. I think all I knew at that time was that he was this famous singer who committed suicide after a long heroin addiction and probably depression. After hearing 'Come as you are' I looked at the band in a very different light. I noticed the lyrics and was fascinated by the relatively slow vocals and the energetic chorus. I can take a minute now and wonder how anti-prophetic it was when he swore that he didn't have a gun. That is if I had forgotten his words "Why in the hell do journalists insist on coming up with a second-rate Freudian evaluation of my lyrics, when 90 percent of the time they've transcribed them incorrectly?" </div>
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I, like every teenager who listened to Nirvana in early 90's, fell in love with him. I listened to more of his songs and was impressed by the intensity of his lyrics. I would later come to know of the story behind lithium. I would later read his biography 'Heavier than Heaven' talking about how his music was driven by self hatred, contradictions and loneliness. I would read his suicide note and would try to imagine how devastated he must have been to take his life like that. I would wonder how life would be when there is literally nothing that gives you joy. I would blame him for getting into heroin thinking, rather wrongly, it led him to death.</div>
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I'm now reading about his mother Wendy's reaction after his death. She cries about how she can never hold her son again. Fuck you woman. You got divorced, dated a man just a few years older than your son, made out with his friends, were a raging alcoholic and abandoned him physically and emotionally. As a young boy with ultra high sensitivity these gave him many scars that he could never erase. Nothing helped him in the end. Music, fame, a loving wife and a baby daughter, heroin - nothing did. And now all you and his father do is lament. Fuck you all. </div>
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I tell myself to cut her some slack. People go through difficult times. People screw up their lives. People screw up others' lives. I remind myself of Rachel Greene's words - No uterus, no opinion. I have learnt not to judge people whose lives I can barely comprehend. I try hard to stop analyzing and blaming and justifying things that happened to some random man in some corner of the world a long time ago. I would just walk away if his music doesn't tell me such tales. As I read the final chapters of the book and cry in a wretched corner of the restroom, I take a deep breath. I get myself hot chocolate. The coffee machine calls it an indulgence. I try to walk away. </div>
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* Source: wikipedia. A knowingly pathetic attempt at non-humour.<br />
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-18591119628790264662013-04-18T11:48:00.002-07:002014-05-30T11:51:09.457-07:00A song once in a while <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<br />Inspired by a conversation with Veena, I thought I could start a song of the day list!</h4>
9/30/2013 -<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Hey you</i></span><br />
by Pink Floyd<br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<i style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Open your heart I'm coming home.. and the guitar solo following that. </i><br />
All you need in life is some Floyd.<br />
<br />
9/29/2013 -<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Autumn leaves</i></span><br />
covered by Eric Clapton<br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>But I miss you most of all, my darling</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> When autumn leaves start to fall..</i></span><br />
Clapton's voice is perfect for the song. The perfect song for the day as I sit by my window watching the falling autumn leaves.<br />
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9/5/2013 -<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="spotify:track:6xcpkEEppRQOqmo5MWflyF" target="_blank">The Unforgiven III</a></i></span><br />
by Metallica<br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>How can I be lost if I've got nowhere to go</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> And how can I blame you when it's me I can't forgive</i></span><br />
A huge fan of Metallica's ballads. It's the screaming that I can't stand :)<br />
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8/22/2013 -<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/3MmwPzWrwfMWI2wuvXPJXc" target="_blank">Stay or Leave</a></i></span><br />
by Dave Mathews<br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>In the river, swims at midnight</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> shiver cold</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> touch the bottom</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> you and I, with muddy toes.</i></span><br />
Today's loop. Liking the vivid pictures the song creates.<br />
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8/19/2013 -<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="spotify:track:4loRKedDdmkmaCpuzh1tp3" target="_blank">Black</a></i></span><br />
by Pearl Jam<br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Oh my bitter hands cradle broken glass of what was everything</i></span><br />
Best song ever. Okay one of them. The image that flashes in front of my eyes thinking of bitter hands cradling broken glass. A profound sadness. Broken glass. Half formed sentences. You can only feel it.<br />
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Ok, where did Carnival of rust go :O<br />
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7/19/2013 -<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>காதலின் தீபம் ஒன்று (Kathalin Deepam Ondru)</i></span><br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> நேற்று போல் இன்று இல்லை </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> இன்று போல் நாளை இல்லை</i></span><br />
A weird connection took me to this song today. The board that I am working on has a BAT file named deepl1* and I was reminded of this song. Brought memories of 11th and 12th std, Veena, TB and my mom (cos she likes it too).<br />
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7/18/2013 -<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="spotify:track:12zqDJAOxhzXEnowObt2FL" target="_blank">Creep</a></i></span><br />
by Radiohead<br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>I wish I was special</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> You are so fucking special</i></span><br />
Spent a whole day trying to fix drivers that don't work for no reason and chips that go off display for no apparent reason. Listening to 'What the hell am I doing here, I don't belong here' seems so fitting, though totally out of context. Radiohead is my latest favourite band by the way.<br />
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7/17/2013 -<br />
Song: <i><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="spotify:track:2qZu6ByfZFFb56CwZRfwTo" target="_blank">Alive</a></span></i><br />
by Pearl Jam<br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Oh, and do I deserve to be?</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> Is that the question? And if so, who answers, who answers</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Reading about the death of Kurt Cobain and reminded of a contrasting scream of 'I'm still alive'.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
It is time I changed the title.<br />
7/16/2013 -<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="spotify:track:6DX6W2QXiVlKYQLrQN8y83" target="_blank">Pennyroyal Tea</a></i></span><br />
by Nirvana<br />
Favourite part:<br />
Where Kurt's voice breaks and he comes back with such emotion in the MTV Unplugged version<br />
I don't think I can describe in short why I added the song here today. Let me write another post.<br />
<br />
Well, the one song everyday is clearly not working :O<br />
5/10/2013 -<br />
Song: <i><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="spotify:track:3PvvsoGjRyF7YhfQXZHUaX" target="_blank">Layla</a></span></i><br />
by Eric Clapton<br />
What better a song to come back with than Layla! You got me on my knees :)<br />
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5/1/2013 -<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="spotify:track:3PvvsoGjRyF7YhfQXZHUaX" target="_blank">Rise</a></i></span><br />
by Hans Zimmer from the soundtrack of The Dark Knight Rises<br />
Today seems to be Batman day.<br />
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4/30/2013 -<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="spotify:track:082cLCIXNPg2ruTrENz4Vt" target="_blank">Comfortably Numb</a></i></span><br />
by Pink Floyd<br />
Favourite part:<br />
The last guitar solo<br />
The first Floyd song I heard, have loved it since then.<br />
<br />
Felt like adding this right now :)<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="spotify:track:3AjIhAw2duMd8Kkc1GAjFb" target="_blank">The man who sold the world</a></i></span><br />
covered by Nirvana<br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> I gazed a gazeless stare</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> We walked a million years</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> I must have died alone </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> A long, long time ago</i></span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Feeling a little guilty that I like Kurt Cobain's version of the song better than David Bowie's original. Cobain's voice makes all the difference to me. I was reading Pandora's description of him relentlessly pushing his favorite bands as if his favorite records were more important than his own music and this song came up in my mind immediately.</div>
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4/29/2013 -<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="spotify:track:1Vdz3WUy9baNOs4YU4LlKJ" target="_blank">Lithium</a></i></span><br />
by Nirvana<br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<i> <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'm so ugly</span></i><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> That's ok cos so are you.</i></span><br />
Why add it today? Well, I had to mention Kurt Cobain before long. Love you Kurt!<br />
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4/28/2013 -<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="spotify:track:3ZFwuJwUpIl0GeXsvF1ELf" target="_blank">Nothing Else Matters</a></i></span><br />
by Metallica<br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Trust I seek</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> And I find in you</i></span><br />
My favourite Metallica song, no particular reason to add it today.<br />
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4/27/2013 -<br />
Track: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="spotify:track:1TqglwRZXN4A4eqBEJCRnd" target="_blank">The Riders of Rohan</a></i></span><br />
from the soundtrack of LoTR - The Two Towers<br />
Favourite part:<br />
When the violin begins around 3min<br />
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For most part of the previous semester the LoTR soundtrack has been my coding music. Getting back to it now for my last project in grad school.</div>
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4/26/2013 -<br />
And I am already bored by this list. :-|<br />
<br />
Songs: <span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/1yvTDXcYpSMBFKR1QD56Gm" target="_blank">The Happiest Days of our Lives</a> </i></span>followed by <a href="http://www.blogger.com/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><span id="goog_1391431848"></span>Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)</i></span><span id="goog_1391431849"></span></a><br />
Pink Floyd in The Wall<br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>If you don't eat yer meat, you can't have any pudding! </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> How can you have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat?!</i></span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="text-align: justify;">I don't usually like to hear them separately as I love the transition between the two. The songs reek of rebellion; I have more a soft spot for rebellion now than usual. </span></div>
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4/22/2013 -<br />
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Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="spotify:track:60a0Rd6pjrkxjPbaKzXjfq" target="_blank">In the End</a></i></span><br />
by Linkin Park from Hybrid Theory<br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>I tried so hard and got so far</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> But in the end, it doesn't even matter</i></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Extremely bored with reading about Totally Self-checking Checkers and separable Orthogonal Latin Square codes, I am all set to sleep off in the middle of the exam. But hey, in the end it doesn't even matter!</div>
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4/21/2013 -<br />
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Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/59unyJeUOgH2ZNwS7sYA9G" target="_blank">Keys to Imagination</a></i></span><br />
by Yanni<br />
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The first time I heard the song was at an 'Evening with Yanni'. It was truly the most vibrant and positive music I have listened to. My spirits soar high amongst unreachable clouds when I listen to this song.</div>
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4/20/2013 -<br />
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Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4ZiU1ub5n4vllQc4WA7MWc" target="_blank"> ராஜ ராஜ சோழன் நான்</a> <span style="line-height: 24px;">(</span>Raj</i></span><i style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">a Raja Chozhan naan)</i><br />
<i style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">from the movie Rettai Vaal Kuruvi composed by Ilayaraja and sung by K.J.Yesudas.</span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">For historic albeit misguided reasons, this has been a song very close to my heart. Yesudas' heartfelt rendition puts me in a tranquil mood whenever I listen to it. </span></div>
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4/19/2013 -<br />
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Song: <i><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/local///The+Beatles-While+My+Guitar+Gently+Weeps/285" target="_blank">While my Guitar Gently Weeps </a></span></i><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-style: italic;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">by the Beatles</span><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-style: italic;"> </span><br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> I look at you all</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i> While my guitar gently weeps </i></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
One of the best songs I have heard, with dear Clapton on lead guitar. My inspiration to add it here today - Yesterday's DSP presentation in which we used the song for a demo and Deepti's lovely playlist of over 300 covers of the song that I often listen to. Edit: ahem ahem, when was the last time you listened to them?</div>
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4/18/2013 - <br />
<br />
Song: <span style="color: #3d85c6;"><a href="http://open.spotify.com/track/4Ke3V5dom53FfzXirlqhlM" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Long Nights</i></span> </a></span><br />
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by Eddie Vedder from the soundtrack of the movie Into the Wild. <br />
Favourite lines:<br />
<span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>The lights go out<br /> Let me feel<br /> I'm falling<br /> I am falling safely to the ground</i></span><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
I just watched this movie a couple of days ago and already the impact is profound. The song beautifully captures the feelings of Chris when he looks back after running away, being fed up by all the superficial ways of living spent 'chasing a career'. Eddie's baritone at his primal best! </div>
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abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-46924657495586237132013-04-04T09:21:00.002-07:002014-05-30T11:51:49.532-07:00To my best friend Oviya <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
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<b id="internal-source-marker_0.7074332947377115"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Sometimes in life, a certain incident occurs</span></span></b></div>
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<b id="internal-source-marker_0.7074332947377115"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Something that is set to change its entire course</span></span></b></div>
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<b id="internal-source-marker_0.7074332947377115"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">At times, the outcome of best laid plans</span></span></b></div>
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<b id="internal-source-marker_0.7074332947377115"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">But once in a while, just whimsical</span></span></b></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<b id="internal-source-marker_0.7074332947377115"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Impulsive apparently or perhaps God drives the wheels from behind.</span></span></b></div>
<b id="internal-source-marker_0.7074332947377115"><span style="color: white;"></span></b><br />
<a name='more'></a><b id="internal-source-marker_0.7074332947377115"><span style="color: white;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></span></b>
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<b id="internal-source-marker_0.7074332947377115"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">I vividly remember The Day when I was barely six</span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Just desiring a change, may be</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Or to make a difference, whatever that meant</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">I trotted up to a new class. </span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></span><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Destined to reach out to you,</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">My little heart seeking to be encompassed by your love</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Centring my world around you,</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">That one Day defined my life as it now is.</span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></span><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Two little kids we were, two of five</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">We fought, we reconciled, we made up names</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">We vowed eternal friendship with a ring apiece</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">And we loved – at an age which hardly knows what that meant.</span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></span><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Years later, it was Another Day, another place, another age</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">But remarkably, the action was the same</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Once again, my heart sought yours,</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">The difference being the insight of the pursuit.</span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></span><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">We ran into the same fights and the not-so-different reconciliations</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Somehow, in essence, they were unlike their former counterparts</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">The difference was easily perceived in their profoundness</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">For it was then that Comprehension had dawned.</span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></span><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Differences arose, from women’s rights to reaching great heights</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">What’s worse, they were rooted at the very core</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">When i wondered why the hell i was born a girl</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">You were contemplating your previous-birth-virtues to be born a girl..</span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></span><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">New people entered our lives, some leading us apart</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">And some, who I am eternally indebted to, bonding us back</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">In spite of all disparity, we were together</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">We were there for each other when it counted.</span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></span><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Then, after years of solid togetherness</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">It was fate’s turn to take over</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Where differences and people failed,</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Fate won for it forced miles between us..</span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></span><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">A shared world split into two and mutual friends became a rarity</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Weeks flew past without hearing a word from you</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Months elapsed without a mere glimpse to withhold</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">For the first time, i truly meant “i miss you”.</span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></span><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">On silent nights, on a solitary terrace,</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">As the slumbering world grew darker and colder</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">With a lonely tear trickling down</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">How desperately i wished you were close!</span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></span><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Fate may have extended the distance</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Separation it probably achieved</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">But the deep-rooted bond invariably strengthened</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">Not men or fate could move a bead of our relationship</span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></span><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">With a friendship glorifying a decade and a half</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">What would i call you – My youngest friend or my oldest?</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">But no, I’ll settle for ‘Friendest’</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;">For the word friend means YOU.</span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2jkaBdpKee7v1THCygMd8IKDZL1OjafZArILrO1fFmoQbn32U-SbWV0-o16Qfk7gmGMM7VQH4jhaYI2qkPC_WCjll_N5tcwEZk54MBRjHym0hJZ2Xvxm6gwuyZPvBnnkccOa8ocpUET1l/s1600/551554_430194177071293_442058271_n-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2jkaBdpKee7v1THCygMd8IKDZL1OjafZArILrO1fFmoQbn32U-SbWV0-o16Qfk7gmGMM7VQH4jhaYI2qkPC_WCjll_N5tcwEZk54MBRjHym0hJZ2Xvxm6gwuyZPvBnnkccOa8ocpUET1l/s320/551554_430194177071293_442058271_n-001.jpg" height="319" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></span></div>
</b></div>
abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-43979834744166526242013-03-19T00:15:00.000-07:002014-06-26T11:44:43.389-07:00When I discovered my dance..<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Segoe UI Semibold, sans-serif;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">Everybody
has their one dance! One dance that makes them forget everything and
lose themselves in the sheer glory of the moment. I have had my fair
share of head nods and feet taps, but never a dance.</span></span><br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7792654858343959078" name="more"></a></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Segoe UI Semibold, sans-serif;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">Reading
always gave me such pleasure. There are few things that come close to
escaping into sophisticated fictional(wait, what fictional?) worlds
that the likes of Tolkien had constructed, the flawless reasoning of
the mastermind Holmes, a heart-wrenching story of two miserable
Afghan women or the adorable tales of one playful physicist.</span></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Segoe UI Semibold, sans-serif;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">After
a long scenic drive along the Pacific Ocean, I thanked the beauty that
is all around me. Walking on new lands, even the most mundane things
magnified themselves to deliberate processions of delight.</span></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Segoe UI Semibold, sans-serif;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">A
Sachin century. That look on Dravid's face even after hours of
batting. Memories of Ganguly celebrating chasing
an epic 326. I extolled them all, always failing short of a dance
though.</span></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Segoe UI Semibold, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I
found my one dance in music. The guitar. Dancing around chanting We
Don't Need No Education, I felt profound emotions that I cannot fully
describe. To think I was actually dancing around in my room, woah,
that was a first. I am not the dancing type. I am far, far away from
the dancing around in joy type. This atypical Pink Floyd song did that to me. In Floyd I
found a psychotic rebellion. Pain in Nirvana, pain from the reflection of yet
another life lost to drugs and the insane media pressure. The generation's spokesman! Fuck. Guttural power in Eddie Vedder. Like he dares you cannot just sing black and not feel it. Led zep. Kashmir. a restless anxiety. Grief after Tears in
heaven. Yanni gave me hope. Ilayaraja and SPB showed me love. AR
Rahman gave me my childhood. Oh where will I be if not for them and a
dozen other musicians I don't seem to recall now. Music talks to each person differently. For me, it is the love of my life. This is my dance,
one that carries me through all the crests and troughs of life. </span></span>
</span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white;"><br />
</span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Segoe UI Semibold, sans-serif;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">P.S.
Sorry about the really incoherent ramble.</span></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-29723223791118864982013-02-02T23:59:00.001-08:002013-04-10T15:36:38.563-07:00Off to the Paradise<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<span style="color: white;">Upon that familiar path I tread,</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">The notes of a forlorn song ringing in my head</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">The films of the good ol’ dreams start rolling</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">Ah, these are the only means that keep me going.</span><br />
<span style="color: white;"></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: white;">Off to the paradise, and be back in a fortnight is the call</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">I wonder why my happiness is incomplete, after all</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">It’s my memories that answer me,</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">For suddenly I see you standing beside me</span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: white;">Together we walk fast</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">Into the realms of my past</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">Reliving those long-forgotten memories</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">Leaving behind all other worries,</span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: white;">To the ground where I rode my first cycle</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">To the school where I grew up breaking every single obstacle</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">To the temple which has seen many a tear of mine, </span><br />
<span style="color: white;">And finally, to my home – the abode of the divine.</span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: white;">I wake up with a start, for my destination has come at last</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">My dreams, in which I’ve found solace all along have come to a halt.</span><br />
<span style="color: white;">Here I’m, finally, at my paradise </span><br />
<span style="color: white;">Your absence makes all the difference, I realize!</span><br />
<div>
<span style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>To the one who promised to 'meet this time' for sure!</b></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmHKPb7OeVXP08JZKj8UER3-Q2E-60eZzPdh6dlksgQyPl8qVWsx9kZH3ofKkzDHnhoLLPeuUna6d1XpMtFzhh7hc2ClxnJTD2vxz4yDmiioG_hL_gYcXkIiCB4hh2JtpVdsVEC-j77pim/s1600/20130410_173220.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmHKPb7OeVXP08JZKj8UER3-Q2E-60eZzPdh6dlksgQyPl8qVWsx9kZH3ofKkzDHnhoLLPeuUna6d1XpMtFzhh7hc2ClxnJTD2vxz4yDmiioG_hL_gYcXkIiCB4hh2JtpVdsVEC-j77pim/s320/20130410_173220.jpg" width="240" /></a><span style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><b></b></span></div>
</div>
</div>
abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7792654858343959078.post-44519611012291048032013-02-01T18:42:00.001-08:002014-05-30T11:52:48.604-07:00A Flight to Remember <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Enroute
to Folsom, CA, cruising at 35000 feet in a Boeing MD80 (I somehow
always hated the CRJ 700 in comparison) over the vast expanses of
numerous mountains in Arizona (unless I am terribly mistaken),
boulevard of broken dreams blaring in my ears, a shot of espresso
fighting a tired mind to understand the tidings of a certain Tomasulo
and out of order execution, I watch the sunset outside my window.
Alas, I have no camera good enough to capture the beauty. Even if I
had owned the best camera on earth I doubt if it could capture this
magnificence. With that said, this is the most feeblest attempt to
describe the moment..</b></span><br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>A
pale blue sky on the top, patches of darker blue a layer below.. the
most beautiful pink beneath those varying shades of blue, the only
pink I ever loved, filling the vast horizon. And the mountains below
it all. A river winding through.. Crisscross patterns originating
from somewhere far to my right.. strange shapes and projections
gleaming golden in the last rays of the sun..</b></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>I
close my eyes for a moment trying to etch the view I beheld in my
memory forever. When I open my eyes I find that the view is rapidly
becoming hazy from the wisps of cloud which have now come between me
and the beauty. There is no more trace of pink or pale blue. It is
all dark outside and the clouds get thicker. There is more turbulence
and I lose sight of the ground once and for all..</b></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>How
I wish I were a painter or a poet or a writer.. I am reminded of
Wordsworth's solitary reaper and a story of a trip to the land of
snow. Those were the first writings that made a deep impression on me
about a far off beautiful land. Once again I am pondering how I
perceive a unexplained melanchony in the beauty, Green Day not
helping things at all!</b></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Then
I realize it doesn't matter that I am not one of those people who can
describe this wonder to the world through words or paintings or
photographs. I am here now witnessing this and have the ability to
appreciate that I am. And that's all that matters :)</b></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Walking
this lonely road when the city sleeps doesn't matter anymore as long
as the road is as glorious as this and as long as I am able to
appreciate it!!</b></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
</div>
abHihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12612077300276733639noreply@blogger.com2