Sunday, March 28, 2010

Earth Hour 2010



Yesterday's Earth Hour came and went. In spite of my willingness to add my bit towards saving planet earth, I failed. I simply forgot. At the stroke of 8.30pm local time I was behind a wheel, driving as fast as i could, East on Eglington Ave, trying my best to make it on time to a friends dinner. As I recollect now the roads were pretty deserted and I made good progress. When I returned, my son asked me if I had remembered and i sheepishly had to say "no". I made a call half way around the world,to India, and my parents told me that they had barely any power the whole day. It was quite possible that the power outage at 8.30pm local in India could have coincided with the Earth hour.


Later at night I scoured the Internet to see how the Earth Hour had been observed around the world. Most pictures ran the standard "before & after" and though there was a marked difference in the quantity of light that was turned off, I could not help but feel guilty that I too could have been part of the movement had I stopped by the road side and did what was right.

How many of you reading this blog, remembered?

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Aloo


Today I drove down to the other side of the GTA to have coffee with my friend Raju. We do this every 35 years & I am hoping we can step up the frequency a bit now that I know where he is is "holed" up. Raju whom we all knew as Aloo in the academy, managed to slip under the radar and without anyone even getting wind of his move, he disappeared. Like most of us who leave our digital imprints all over, Aloo left no tracks/ signs & it was only due to the super sleuth Deeen ( DN Gupta) who tracked him down and put me on to him. Raju, armed only with his "gunner credentials" and an attitude that is worth a million, worked his way up diligently like a good immigrant and in his own characteristic easy laid back way has built a life for himself and his family in this distant land.
We spent the evening catching up on common friends and how life had treated us in the last three decades. There was only one down side ...Raju, that coffee was way to sweet .. ( anyone recollect when one visited remote posts in the field, the quantity of the sugar in the coffee was supposed to denote how welcome you were...)

Looking fwd to that lunch in Brampton, Raju.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Lawyers




A few days back we got involved in making a will. While I was reviewing it to ultimately sign it -- here is a "gem that i came across....
Can you make sense of it? Read from the top of the page to the second last line ending with the word "duties". ( Double click on the image to read the text)That is part of a will -- God alone knows when the will needs to be executed what sense it will make to those entitled. What kind of grammar is this-- Iam sure none of us ever learnt anything like this. Who ever heard of a sentence which goes for half a page.Only the lawyers can keep their focus on what the initial part of the sentence said as it takes you through its loops and turns. When the sentence eventually ends you are glad it ended, never mind it made no sense. The relief is short lived as the next sentence is almost as bad , if not worse. Do you know what really bugs me -- they give you this drivel and ask you to pay for it as well. Remember all those lawyer bashing jokes-- go for it guys-- leave no stone unturned-- the murkier the better.
Take a look at the cartoon below-- makes you want to take a swing at them-- right?

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Some great Audio Books




Just read ( heard) two great Ken Follets'-- "Pillars of the Earth" and "The World without End"
I wonder if I ever mentioned how keenly I have taken to audio books. Its a great way to keep up with reading which started off very well in primary and middle school with Enid Blyton -- all those Sudden ( Oliver Strange and the other guy-- forget his name-- My name is Green , James Green), Desmond Bagely-( never see those books anywhere now-- not even in Chapters) & later we moved on to James Hadley Chase and Harold Robbins for which some of us got caned ( that was 6 whacks on the rump by Bro Huges with his lack cane). As we moved into the big bad world --Somewhere down the line TV and our profession got the better of us and the "book" got dropped. This went on for many years during which i did read an odd book but it was rare. Suddenly I find myself visiting the library very often picking up an audio book I have put on hold. Today as I drive or even potter around the house I remain plugged in to an exciting audio. Just finished listening to two great epics by Ken Follet ( the ones on top) -- highly recommended to any one who has the inclination. Just be warned , that this is VERY addictive and could even get you into a spot of trouble -- any one interseted to know how?

Sunday, March 7, 2010

A coursemate comes calling...



Around two yrs back Shokin was here & at long last another coursemate, Anil Nanda made it to us in Canada. Anil was in the US on business and very purposefully planned his trip to Canada to come meet with us. Perhaps it was due to the momentum and energy that was generated due to our course reunion on Feb 13th that prompted this visit but it was great to connect with Anil and his son Ankit and nephew Anirudh who is a student here @ UofT. Anil was nursing a lingering cold and declined a beer ( else i would have served it in the porcelain momento we got at the reunion)and had to settle for some lesser beverage, (which he got in a cheap glass :)!!

To the Services 79 batch: Spring is around the corner, as you can see the snows are melting-- who is next???-- I promise you the finest local lager in the reunion mug :).

Monday, March 1, 2010

Holi in Toronto



Living far away from India, there is a high possibility of such festivals slipping by without one even noticing it------ not if you have Anita monitoring it via the phone, web and the regular temple updates. The usual Holi revelry that evening was interrupted by the famous Ice Hockey Olympic game between Canada and the US and the spectacular closing ceremony. I am sure Crosby will find himself a great niche in the Hockey hall of fame. We even caught sight of the Indian team in the closing march past-- I wonder what event did India participate!!

At the end of all the feasting and a couple of games we did indulge in a little bit of color -- the results you can see above