The land of dreams

How strange be the land of dreams,
Forever meddling with what is real

Kindling fires of yearnings impossible

Taking you back and forth-
 to lands uncharted and territories lost

How strange be the land of dreams

Your silly tormenting unconscious' play

Unraveling life buried deep beneath

Fantasies, memories and promises - all recited in grey

How strange be the land of dreams

Yet if I ever have one as perfect as be

I'd pray the Sun to halt

And in never-ending darkness engulf me..

First Love

So what does the vast expanse of the sky make you feel? Does it make you feel tiny or gigantic or lonely or befuddled? What goes on in your head when you raise it up and take in the lingering darkness of the night sky?So what does the vast expanse of the sky make you feel? Does it make you feel tiny or gigantic or lonely or befuddled? What goes on in your head when you raise it up and take in the lingering darkness of the night sky?


For me, it's happiness.







Since as far back as I can remember, star gazing has been one of my favourite past times. Going to the terrace or the balcony or to the garden (non-polluted days) to just gaze at the skies was a daily ritual. I never knew any names and could never remember the shapes, but there I was everyday, watching them shimmer and burn.






I remember this time when me and my younger brother were sitting on the terrace, fancying ourselves the Ptolemys' of our times with our little handheld telescopes/binoculars. We saw a streak of light zoom by and we could swear that it was a comet! But then we thought it could've been a UFO or an inter-planetary collision or a meteor striking a star! Oh, if only we could catch it again!






Nothing could curtail our excitement that night.






The passion grew as the years went by.The first books I would check out on book fairs would be on Astronomy. And if someone asked me what I wanted to be, the prompt reply would be 'astrophysishist'. Every solar/lunar eclipse would find me on the terrace with the appropriate gear. I started recognizing the planets and constellations. Sirius became my evening companion. And Venus was always there as a reminder.






I know what you must be thinking- where did that dream go?






It didn't go anywhere. Everyday I step out to look at the stars, the waxing and waning Moon and my friend Sirius. The hours spent on the terrace are the happiest hours of the day. I still pick that magazine on the Cosmos in the library. It's there, all there, the hunger to find out more about what goes on there, millions of light years away from us. This is a hobby I will keep for the rest of my life.






Because first loves die hard.






:)

Art of Bullshittin': Part Two

There's this really fascinating phrase in the field of Computer Science worded 'Garbage In Garbage Out' (abbreviated to GIGO). It calls to attention the fact that computers unquestioningly process nonsensical data inputs and produce nonsensical data outputs as a result.

Now, even though I am no computer, this is precisely what my processing units go through most of the time. Garbage In and Garbage Out. I am talking, ofcourse, of examination time. Seriously, with all the bullshitting we've been subjected to, how can one expect it to not hurtle out when it most matters? I spent the last week taking practical examinations which, for all engineering students atleast, means that I spent a considerable amount of time chit-chatting with my favorite teachers on *their* favorite topics. I can safely conclude that there is nothing like a successful viva anymore. Even if you somehow give the right answers, the examiner gives you such a look of disdain, you end up wondering why you opened your mouth in the first place. The rest of the time, you're just speaking crap and the examiner knows it and everybody's having a good time.
Based on observations, I can divide the examiners into these categories:

1. Those who really want to test your knowledge: This happens probably once in eight semesters. There comes along a teacher who politely inquires about what you've studied and asks you related questions.
A word of caution though : This may seem like the case with every examiner. Be careful, look beyond the innocent face to find that vestige of mockery residing in the eyes.

2. Those who want to go home early:
These are the best! Whenever I encounter one of these, I thank my parents would naming me with a letter from the lower side of the alphabet. They'd ask you one question, nod at you without even listening to the answer and off you go!

3. Those who know nothing: This is a testy lot. They'd know nothing about the subject or about your experiment, but would still insist on taking the examination! And the questions they ask! Everything ranging from your place of birth to the recipe for cooking rice becomes somehow related to the subject at hand.

4. Those who, to put it simply, want to screw you: The worst! There's absolutely nothing you can say to pacify them! They'd ask the worst of questions and would raise the bar the moment you show any inkling of having studied. Then they'd confuse you with 'what if' scenarios and 'to be or not to be's.  If you answer them, they'd look like someone's told them Diwali's been called off. In situations like these, it's best to just sit back, relaxe and wear a dejected expression on your face. Be like a lamb at the butcher's.

5. Those who want to show off their knowledge: These call for really easy examinations. There would be a discussion on some high-level topic the examiner suggested. You'd, at max, have to speak one sentence related/not even remotely connected to the topic and then just nod your head in agreement with the examiner. Practise this in front of the mirror for better results! You have to make sure that the examiner thinks he's made the best impression on you and that you're ready to build him an idol and place it in the temple.
Not really difficult, is it?

6. The moral lecturer: Yes, we admit we didn't study, we never do, never listen to the lectures, never truly conduct the experiments, cheat on every examination, do not possess any kind of seriousness and yes, we are a threat and menace to the society. Now give us a break, would you?


Epilogue:

Student 1- I conducted the experiment, had near perfect readings, answered all the questions in the viva and even corrected Sir when he was wrong, how the heck did I land up with a 50?

Student 2- Dude, are you crazy?