My Jaipur Jaunt

I went to the Pink City. I saw the sunrise from above the clouds, the brilliant radiance of the sun bursting out over a carpet of clouds made me think the word awesome is thrown around too much and for far too little nowadays.

The one I saw was a thousand times better

I met friends. I met more friends. I saw where they came from, their families, caught up with their news and now know them a lot more. I ate kachoris. I saw camels. Lots of camels.

I wore a suit. I agreed to be photographed wearing a suit. I danced in a baraat. After discovering it was the wrong baraat, I joined another one, upon confirming that this was the one I was supposed to dance in, I danced in this baraat.

I blessed a couple, well, wished them actually. I was thinking of stuff to say and all I could think of were sports cheers which could have been a bit inappropriate so I just ended up playing it safe, congratulating the groom and wishing them a happily married life together. I ate surprisingly little considering it was an all-vegetarian buffet, I never let chances like these go by, I didn't even have ice cream. I couldn't get myself to drink much, I realized that sometimes you just shouldn't.

I suffered from frostbutt. It's not as bad ass frostbite butt it hurt. Hehehe.

I went to a temple, that was a serious affair, no kidding around. I saw more camels, after all I was near the frickin desert.

I did have one meal of the sort I was hoping for: large amounts of non spicy dhaba food followed by lassi, it filled me like few meals ever have.

I woke up early all by myself for the first time in months. I didn't get a window seat again. I chose to look out of the window instead of watching a movie despite the view not being as great as the one on the onward journey (late sun rise).

I tripped and made a fool out of myself and shrugged it off and walked out all the same.

I came home.

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The corpse stays in the picture - Dan McCoy

The corpse stays in the picture. - By Dan McCoy - Slate Magazine
An undead actor shares a lifetime of delicious show business anecdotes.
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Imitation, flattery and self deprecation

Lasith Malinga got a taste of his own medicine today, or so to speak, when his Mumbai Indians team-mate Harbhajan Singh imitated his action while bowling against him during a dull passage of play on day four of the third test between India and Sri Lanka.

Malinga was batting on 59, having added 144 runs for the eighth wicket with triple centurion Thilana Samaraweera and it did not seem that the Indians would get a breakthrough any soon when Harbhajan Singh decided to bowl in Malinga's unique round arm slinging style. The off spinner who already had two wickets in the innings went past his usual run up spot in the 124 over of Lanka's first innings in the third session of the day.

He began in true Malinga style, first, he kissed the ball, ran in over the wicket with his right hand mimicking the action of a piston elbow downwards, did the small skiddy jump to give him width to accommodate the uncoiling of his right arm and then launched the ball towards the maker of this unique action himself. Malinga, wide eyed and almost in peals of laughter, swung and missed completely, fooled by the lack of pace on the ball, he saw it crash into the base of middle and leg stump.

Not only was it a surprise that Harbhajan managed to send down a legal delivery, he also took a wicket, something he hasn't done much of late with his own flapping arm meets butterfly stroke action.
At the press conference Harbhajan remarked, "I imitated his bowling and got a wicket, he imitated my batting and got out".

Sri Lanka declared immediately with their score reading 730/9 in reply to India's first innings score of 501.
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Zombies were people once

1

The world is not what it used to be, but it is much better than it had once threatened to become. As if the three world wars before it had not been enough the outbreak seemed intent on changing life as we knew it the most. It was also the one that succeeded the most, the state the third war left the world in was a perfect one for it to wreak havoc.

It succeeded because it wore no uniform, it knew nothing of the boundaries men drew, it held nothing sacred, not the air, the water, not the life that grew. It reached into our homes and destroyed the minds of our young, destroying the very future we had so vainly fought for.

That it was yet another catastrophe which some of us managed to escape and eventually, partially control has proved to be a tragic loss in victory. We must live with what we did to survive, all that which went against everything we stood for as a evolved society, all principles consigned to the fires we set.

Having paid such a price, we still have not been able to defeat the foe, we are not even close to understanding it completely. Collectively, we try not to think of what will happen when the threat overcomes the temporary barriers we have set up, more as an assurance for ourselves than anything else. But the fear remains in our hearts. Even now, when one of us is careless, or is plainly unfortunate to have circumstances conspire against them so that they take ill, we have no solution but to let go. And make sure.

It is therefore, an indication of how much we deserve such a fate when men use it to gain an advantage or vengeance. The over-simplistic, fear induced, short term policies in place and the prevailing paranoia only helped. You could accuse the decision makers of being opportunistic themselves but for a little part of you that envied them and the position they were in. When you don't know which day will be your last, you do want to live each as your last, deny yourself nothing even when all you want is everything.

Despite having seen the relentless evil of the disease, some still thought of how they could use it for their own benefits. You just needed to point a finger and make noise, the mob did the lynching.
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This is the first part of what could be a longer story. Could. Inspired a bit by District 9. More soon.
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