Now and Zen

Finished Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance ten years after I bought the book. Simply outstanding. Now to get my hands on Lila...

In other news, I'm back to walking that thin line.

Steve Waugh to retire

The last I felt like this was when RD Burman died. One of my favorite cricketers, easily the batsman I'd pick to bat for my life.

Lovely piece by Waugh on rediff, brought back a lot of memories.

Damn the stars, the ocean, the sun. They are just...

Damn the stars, the ocean, the sun. They are just too far away.

Of course, I've never built a telescope, crafted a boat or designed wings. I shouldn't complain.

Maybe this is as good as it gets.

Maybe I should stop looking at the sun, the moon, the sky.

And stop dreaming.

Back from Mysore

The trip went off very well. Driving is a pleasure in the morning: the roads are half empty, the morning breeze lifts you up, you sail through in 5th gear for most part of the journey. Coming back was a different kettle of fish, though. We stopped at a couple of places (Ranganathittu and Channapattana) and got delayed a bit. Took over an hour to navigate through the various half built flyovers in Bangalore, which was the most tiring part.

Charu and Harsha were quite happy we made it for the wedding. The lunch was not bad - quite a few sweets which I enjoyed. We could have had roast pork for lunch too, when a pig tried a suicide attack on our car, near Ramanagaram. I had to swerve and avoid it, more's the pity.

Rachu enjoyed the journey. We took her on a boat ride at Ranganathittu. I was slightly apprehensive but Sindha managed to convince me it was safe. The kid didn't really notice the difference between the boat and the car, until halfway when she saw that she was being held very close to water. She was fascinated after that, kept staring at the paddles and the way they cut through water.

We covered a total of 343 km yesterday - I still see trucks coming at me.

Whats up ?

A few updates:

1. I took the red pill on Sunday and have been feeling great since. My mind is finally free.
It really is a relief to read the Hindu after the Times

2. The first quiz on is up. This was posted on quiznet once by himself, but what the heck. Its a good quiz, just perfect to start off.

3. Sindha, Rachu and I are off to Mysore tomorrow, to attend a friend's wedding. This is the first time we'll be going on a relatively long drive with the kid; hope everything turns out well. Planning to stop over at Srirangapatana and Channapatana on the way back, if we have the time. I would like to visit Ranganathittu as well, but my guess is that we won't have enough time to do all of this and be back in Bangalore by 7pm.

4. The battery of the car conked out on Saturday, the first real problem I've had with the Palio. Got a new one fixed today. Funny, it should have lasted for at least 2-3 years. The guy told me its because I didn't get it serviced regularly. Hmm.

5. And oh, here's a pretty decent photo of el kiddo:

Quizbusters is born !

I've created a community for quizzers: . Lets see how it works out. takes credit for the community name, btw.

I've listed out a set of rules over there, I'd welcome and greatly appreciate feedback. Thanks in advance !

I can't wait

42

1. One thing was certain, that the white kitten had had nothing to do with it - it was the black kitten's fault entirely

A: Opening lines from Through the Looking Glass, by Lewis Carroll.

2. I can see by my watch, without taking my hand from the left grip of the cycle, that it is eight-thirty in the morning. The wind, even at sixty miles an hour, is warm and humid. When it's this hot and muggy at eight-thirty, I'm wondering what it's going to be like in the afternoon.

A: Opening lines of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, by Robert M. Pirsig.

3. She gathered herself together. No one could describe the scorn of her expression or the contemptuous hatred she put into her answer.
"You men! You filthy, dirty pigs! You`re all the same, all of you. Pigs! Pigs!"
Dr. Macphail gasped. He understood

A: The last lines of the Somerset Maugham short story, Rain.

4. I am thinking of aurochs and angels, the secret of durable pigments, prophetic sonnets, the refuge of art. And this is the only immortality you and I may share, my ____

A: Last lines of Lolita, by Vladimir Nabokov. Yes, I am devious. Yesser, I am very obviously devious - most of you got this right anyway !

5. Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendía was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice.

A: Opening lines of One Hundred Years of Solitude (or as put it, Cien Años de Soledad), by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

6.

Prologue
Part I: The Marsten House
Ben (I)
Susan
The Lot
Danny Glick and Others
Ben (II)
The Lot (II)
Matt
Part II: The Emperor of Ice Cream
Ben (III)
Susan (II)
The Lot (III)
Ben (IV)
Mark
Father Callahan
Part III: The Deserted Village
The Lot (IV)
Ben and Mark
Epilogue

A: A personal bias, Stephen King has always been a favorite. This is from Salem's Lot, one of his best, IMO

7. 1801-- I have just returned from a visit to my landlord -- the solitary neighbor that I shall be troubled with.

A: Opening lines from Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. Sounds very Bram Stoker-ish, I know.

8. `This must be Thursday,' said Arthur to himself, sinking low over his beer, `I never could get the hang of Thursdays.'

A: In between line from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. To use 's words:
8 is, of course, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, the book, not the series. It is said after Arthur has been extracted from the mud in front of the bulldozer trying to knock down his house in order to build a bypass, and just before he is transported onto a ship of the Vogon Constructor Fleet destroying the Earth in order to build a bypass.

9. I was wearing my powder-blue suit, with dark blue shirt, tie and display handkerchief, black brogues, black wool socks with dark blue clocks on them. I was neat, clean, shaved and sober, and I didn’t care who knew it. I was everything the well-dressed private detective ought to be. I was calling on four million dollars.

A: Opening lines of The Big Sleep, by Raymond Chandler.

10. And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

A: Last lines of The Old Testament. Malachi 4:6, as put it so very accurately


Well, that was fun again !

I am not listing out scores here, suffice to mention and got pretty much all correct. Well done ! The comments are now visible to all, by the way.

I got quite a bit of "you should do more of this" this time round too. Maybe I really should do more of this. I've been thinking of creating a community for posting quizzes. There are quite a few of them on LJ already, but I haven't seen any that posts stuff which I enjoy. Hmmm....

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times

Am not really at a loose end, but I thought this was as good a time as any to set a quiz. This is on books and features opening lines, ending lines, reading between the lines and general phrases which should ideally start you thinking along the lines of "Hmm, where have I read that before ?". There is also a short story thrown in, by the way.

Off we go. I'm looking for the name of the book, unless specified otherwise


1. One thing was certain, that the white kitten had had nothing to do with it - it was the black kitten's fault entirely

2. I can see by my watch, without taking my hand from the left grip of the cycle, that it is eight-thirty in the morning. The wind, even at sixty miles an hour, is warm and humid. When it's this hot and muggy at eight-thirty, I'm wondering what it's going to be like in the afternoon.

3. She gathered herself together. No one could describe the scorn of her expression or the contemptuous hatred she put into her answer.
"You men! You filthy, dirty pigs! You`re all the same, all of you. Pigs! Pigs!"
Dr. Macphail gasped. He understood

4. Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta.

Madhav's note: Don't bother. I just threw that one in there since it was a lovely opening line. The real 4th question is the next

4. I am thinking of aurochs and angels, the secret of durable pigments, prophetic sonnets, the refuge of art. And this is the only immortality you and I may share, my ____

5. Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendía was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice.

6. Madhav's note: This is the contents page of the book:

Prologue
Part I: The Marsten House
Ben (I)
Susan
The Lot
Danny Glick and Others
Ben (II)
The Lot (II)
Matt
Part II: The Emperor of Ice Cream
Ben (III)
Susan (II)
The Lot (III)
Ben (IV)
Mark
Father Callahan
Part III: The Deserted Village
The Lot (IV)
Ben and Mark
Epilogue

7. 1801-- I have just returned from a visit to my landlord -- the solitary neighbor that I shall be troubled with.

8. `This must be Thursday,' said Arthur to himself, sinking low over his beer, `I never could get the hang of Thursdays.'

9. Madhav's note: Getting the book here might be tough. Just give me the name of the author:
I was wearing my powder-blue suit, with dark blue shirt, tie and display handkerchief, black brogues, black wool socks with dark blue clocks on them. I was neat, clean, shaved and sober, and I didn’t care who knew it. I was everything the well-dressed private detective ought to be. I was calling on four million dollars.

10. And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.


Comments will be screened, by the way. The screen will be lifted after I unveil the answers. Kindly excuse.

[Update]Googling for answers is of course, frowned upon. Whats the point of a quiz if you google ? [/Update]

Two Questions

1. Should I buy an internal or an external modem ?


2. Whats a good price for a 56kbps modem ?

No, I do not get broadband through cable in my locality.

Remakes, remixes...aarrgggh !

Why, dammit, why ? Why is everything these days a copy ? Look at this now - a remake of Run Lola, Run, for crying out loud ! Why do we keep churning out these imitations ? Its only in India that a movie called Ssshhh... could turn out to be a remake of a movie called Scream ! Sheesh !

Well, whaddya know

The Communist Manifesto does have a better plot !

Matrix Revolutions - tomorrow at Innovative Multi...

Matrix Revolutions - tomorrow at Innovative Multiplex, first day, first show ! Muhahahahahaha....