The walk 2 work

Every movie and television series has the magic to help us relive the times when we first saw them. Let me start with what I saw today.... I will spice it up with the nostalgic movies and television series that hold a spot in my soul. This post I dedicate to A. Rajan on November 1st, a movie critic like non other, and a friend I was fortunate to have. The Machine (2014) Artificial intelligence and cyborgs. A learning program running on a quantum computer. The genius draws inspiration from his near and dear. An old concept, and the age old magic of lost love. A movie set in a future time that unfortunately could not bring the futuristic touch of a "minority report". The movie clearly shows the restrictions that the movie set had, in the absence of extensive animation. The 100 (2014 Television series) At first look, the concept looks great. The hint at underlying story lines for the main characters, a drive and multiple lead characters are the first signs of what c...

A story of how my self respect was shred bit by bit. How my confidence was rendered into fear... And how I might one day come out stronger. On a whim she wanted to explore the opportunities the land of opportunity had to offer. (She could be my daughter, my sister, my wife, my mother) The first rude shock. My awakening to the American way of life. I have been speaking to her uptil yesterday and she was the happiest thing in the world. Today I hear she had a fall in her room and is in the hospital. Before I even have time to think of a Visa and a ticket, I hear the Resident at the hospital, whom I was able to reach with great difficulty ask, "What quality of life do you expect her to have? Do you want her to continue on life support?" Except for an emergency room everyone else needs an application that their admissions dept and insurance studies and researches with countless interviews of the family in addition to all the paperwork required from previous hospitals. ...

AMONG THE FOOTHILLS –  UNWINDING ALONG WINDING TRAILS   Madumalai National Park offers a drive through the mist, sunrise from amidst the Nilgiri mountain ranges, and maybe some time with the big cats and the giants of the jungle. A trip planned for the weekend in your new pair of wheel, adds new songs to your humming list and good humour into your daily gig. You require to look occupied at work even as the tell tale smile might be difficult to wipe off your face. Life comes down to being a constant countdown to the trip.   On the Road: Bangalore - Mysore Cutting the distance in the late afternoon directly from work, in frenzied anticipation of the holidays ahead of us, we raced to leave the sleeping city behind, before the evening traffic sets in. Shouting over the blaring music blaring, the city passed us by in a blur of evening colour. Stopping only for the toll plazas, we reached the fringes of the city taking every newly built bypasses to cut throu...

Writers “Tools of the Trade” – in order of affordability & linked to usage: Tools of the Trade Cost in INR Sony IC recorder –  inbuilt mike of good quality,  doubles up as a music player Rs.3500 + Microsoft ergonomic keyboard - Bluetooth / USB cable Rs. 2800 – 4500 Android phone with the swipe keyboard/ the erstwhile Nokia communicator / E75 or any slideout QWERTY keyboard Rs.9000 – 28000 Digital camera/ DSLR, could be clubbed with the phone Rs.10000 + Voice to Text convertor (Like Dragon NaturallySpeaking from Nuance) – if you have the patience to train the software. (There are also IC recorders that come with DNS preloaded) Approx Rs.6000 Wireless bluetooth earphones or Music player like ipod Rs.3000+ Portable Electronic word processor: Alphasmart NEO or the Renaissance NEO 2 available in US, UK markets, If you live in India, EBay is ur best o...

Henry Miller’s 11 Commandments for Writing Well (A nice articel by by Michael Edmondstone) When Henry Miller penned these rules for writing well, he was speaking to the struggles that he faced on a regular basis. However, these commandments are useful to all, even in areas of life outside of writing. Here is his most precious advice to creative types, unlocked. 1. Work on one thing at a time until finished. This can be a challenge for writers because of our intrinsic penchant for daydreaming and creating new story lines, but commitment is key. Whatever it is that you’re working on, make it profound enough to dive into, instead of dipping your toe into several shallow pools. 2. Start no more new books, add no more new material to “Black Spring.” Miller’s note to himself seems to send a simple message that all writers can use: don’t focus on perfection in your writing. As long as there are words on a page, there will al...

Books on Writing: 1.        A Moveable Feast- By Ernest Hemingway (published after his death) The book talks about his years in Paris as a young writer in Europe during the 1920s with his wife. "If the reader prefers," he wrote in a three-paragraph preface, "this book may be regarded as fiction. But there is always the chance that such a book of fiction may throw some light on what has been written as fact." 2.       On Writing : A Memoir of the Craft - By Stephen King (published in 2000)       This book is a memoir of the author's experiences as a writer. It is also a   fondly sardonic autobiography. 3.       The Elements of Style - By William Strunk Jr. & E B White (published in 1918) This book is a prescriptive English writing style and basic grammar guide, comprising elementary rules of usage, principles of composition common mistakes, in brief a shor...

I remember this birthday card that I received from the only two people who could miss me, from the moment I closed my eyes to sleep for the very first time. There were those blue fringed lines at the border slightly fading off to the edges, where the card was cut in curves, so as not to have sharp corners. In the center, in glossy print was a small kid wearing a cap and swinging a golf stick at nothing. On the card was this line “You made us stretch, be it your untidy room, the blaring music, or the unique dreams you believe in …….. But then, we know that we have got a uniq...