Sunday, May 25, 2014

savouring SP Road

SP Road is famous for being the one stop electronics gadgets fix-it-modify-it-or-buy-new destination in all of Karnataka.

So it happened that I went there last saturday to get my huge list of broken gadgets back in action.

It was my first time there and took a while to find the right shops and haggle and tinker with stuff myself when the shopkeepers couldn't.

All this action tired us out by 1 PM and the sun was scorching. Scouting around the area we found a iced neembu paani shop which looked dubious but we decided to give it a go.

Then we stumbled upon this chat counter with Kadi being used as the 'masala' in samosa masala, kachori masala, bhajji masala etc. This caught my interest, as I am one who hates the masala thats sold in Karnataka in most shops, and I love Kadi :)



Even the Chilli Bhajji tasted awesome, cut up, and served with chopped onions, sweet and chilli chutneys :) Yum.

To top it up we had a cup of cold lassi too :)

And meanwhile I noticed that SP road had more electronic waste on the floor than paper or plastic, rightly so. Pic: Part of the complicated circuitry we stepped upon accidently.

For the Bangaloreans planning to hit SP road, I would recommend to check these outlets while you go hunting for the cheapest and best gadgetry in tech-savvy Bangalore.

Sunday, May 11, 2014

a very productive day

whoever thought that a day of power cut could be so productive. There was no supply from 9 Am to 5PM. After frantic efforts to do other things, I managed to get myself to sit down and write. Yes, write without electronic devices.  Even my phone got switched off, and hence it was just me, sitting alone in my room with just my pen and a book, scribbling away.

Usually I get stuck and think and struggle to get to write fictional stuff. Today words were flowing after a short initial impasse and I could barely keep my mind up to speed with my pen, as it it drove me ahead and over distant lands and across a multitude of characters.

I managed to pen 6 short stories with slightly different plots, but quite similar styles. The latter half of the fast writing was helped by a idea that was partially inspired by a friend of mine. I went out and found batteries for the radio and had the music blaring as I wrote hypnotically. But my hands hurt :)

A day well written :) hope readers enjoy

deadly western winds

The spark didn't last long. In the windy plainy, it wasn't such an easy task as well. Her wet golden hair hung on a side and she had her warm rung over herself. Her clothes were hung over the shrubs. Swearing out loud, she lit another match and this time managed to light the fire.

Dusk was approaching and it would get terribly cold in the valley. She didn't fancy the idea of dying out there with her target so close by.

As the warmth of the fire spread, she brought out the final piece of dried meat and started munching through it, wondering about the day ahead. The strongest fort in the kingdom lie ahead of her. She could refill her supplies from its rich warehouses, and wouldn't have anything to worry about for months together.

But first, she had to infiltrate it. No way the guards would allow a westerner like her to walk into the gates and take their supplies. She took out her scimitar and sharpened it slowly. A couple of months ago, her tribe laughed at her for not being able to lift the same scimitar. Now she wiped it clean off dried blood every day to keep the blade smooth. What an irony.

She calculated in her mind on how many days it would take her to infiltrate the fort, and how much blood would be spilled this time. Her well chiseled arms could wring many a strong men before she would give in, and her scimitar could very easily claim a dozen necks and many more limbs, if it ever came to it. But she knew better ways of 'persuasion' and prepared herself for it.

Soon the fire died down and as the moon rose fully, the wolves came out prowling.

--

Jimitar woke up startled and peeked out of the wall in the direction of the western valley. He could hear loud howling and growls. The wolves were making a killing on some weary traveller headed to the gate which was under his division's guard. He shuddered at the thought of the tales of the demoness from the west that was the talk of the town since the last two weeks, as news of ferocious killings kept arriving from spies far west. He didn't notice the trembling wine bottles, as he reached for one and took a long gulp before going back to bed.


reading between the notes

Music kept playing on and on and his ears were drunk in the rhythm of music.

She noticed him tapping his legs and staring into the distance, as if in a trance. He seems to tune into music, as if it was everything. It was the only time she could actually let herself examine her feelings for him. Having met him only a couple of months ago, they shared a light friendship.

He didn't talk much in the company of others and on general topics. But they shared a bond on weird topics and they could go on and on for hours without feeling bored. But once the topic got over, they went to back their respective corners. She never really understood the nature of their relationship.

She was comfortable with him in many levels, but feared getting any closer and sensed a similar reaction from him. A decision to overcome this impasse was difficult and there were no overwhelming impulses to act. His platitude didn't help either.

She sighed deeply and packed her bags. After all the night was young, and the sun wasn't gonna rise any time soon.

knockout

The kick connected below the chin.

It seemed to take a while for the hands to reach the intruding leg and push it aside. But the damage was already done. He couldn't sense the motion of his limbs anymore. Every thing seemed to happen so slow. He couldn't make sense of the fiery muscles that were constantly under his vision until now.

Even before the frantic fear of an unseen opponent could set in, he felt darkness seep into his eyes. A refreshing cold pumped through his head as it seemed to make contact with something hard.

A faint roar passed through his ears as if a gigantic eagle were swooping down on him. Bliss!

lady in the shiny armor

She lie there writhing in pain. The arrow had gone through her thigh. The armor was split at the joints. She cursed the greedy blacksmiths of Stoneville. If she gets out of this mess alive, she would surely love to pay them a visit and take off their tiny fingers as a 'souvenir'.

Right now, she had bigger troubles to deal with. The thundering horde of horsemen were butchering her lot in huge numbers. The wild ones had caught them in an unexpected trap. She realized with horror that shed had to make a final stand and keep the horsemen away from the fleeing peasants, further down the trail.

The wild men would for sure slaughter them if she let them through. She had absolutely no doubts on that. The last raid by one of those tribes had taught everyone what to expect from these men. She remembered how the council had initially thought that the wild men can be bought. But they went horribly wrong as the wild men systematically looted and burned down every house in the village that was handed over to them as part of the treaty last time. She was a trainee back then and remembers in horror how the brave warriors returned home, their usually  proud heads hung low in shame and self loathing.

That was ten years ago. Now a front line commander, Laura faced an even more organized and mobile horde. She had got reports of their overwhelmingly fast progress through the countryside, wiping out villages and forts that stood in their way.There were suspicions that these men were different from those they faced last time, and seemed well organized and trained. The spymaster had sent instructions to all field commanders to hold them at all costs by 'improvising' strategies.

Laura knew what it meant. The council has completely failed to read the enemy's strategies and have left the field commanders to their own devices to handle the threat. She managed to climb on a rock to get a better view of the battlefield. It hurt like hell, but she managed to cling on. She could make out a couple of her divisions still in formation, while the others seemed to be a mix of survivors driven in from other divisions. The confusion was obvious as she couldn't make out any of them in formations. If this continued, they would last hardly for an hour. She watched as more and more horsemen in shiny black leather armor poured into the scene.

She hurriedly blew her horn three times loudly to signal her divisions. She wanted them to move closer to each other and cover the flanks of the survivors. She looked out for the shiny orange helmet of Lawrence, her most trusted lieutenant. She caught sight of his bulky torso cutting down enemies and moving his division into formation. She breathed a sigh of relief, as slowly both her divisions drove the enemies out and closed the flanks protecting the confused survivors. Someone in the middle seemed to be rallying the survivors in supporting the divisions with archers. Laura was curious and wanted to meet this guy once the ranks closed in on her.

For now, the survivors were secure and actively participating in the battle. But what should she do next to stem the advance? Was this the main force or just some diversion? She was completely cut off from the intelligence network. She also wondered if she could form a unit strong enough to retreat out to safety and re-organize for a counter-attack. Time was short and she could feel her grips weakening as the grass beneath her became thick with warm blood. She eyed Lawrence signalling to her frantically before the darkness filled her eyes.

Saturday, May 10, 2014

act of God

The noise was deafening. People who were until then drunk in the rhythm of the festival drums were now staring at each other and looking all around, waiting for someone to start fleeing.

From a distance, I watched the smoke plume form over the main building and I knew it was a matter of time before the crowd reacted. As expected, soon the crowd went berserk, causing a classic stampede. I quiety congratulated myself for the well executed mission.

People would read about this as a local incident now and maybe forget it after a while. But my moment of glory and satisfaction would come when the truth gets unrevealed to the entire world, in the next couple of decades. My plan is foolproof and now I should think about getting back to normal life and gel into the crowd, and await my fruits.

Anyway the change has been set in motion. I have triggered the next series of evolution required for the ultimate triumph of the human race, without even their knowledge.

I would be known as the father of modern humanity.

Tuesday, May 06, 2014

Variety adds spice to life

"Variety adds spice to life" says the lady who managed to speak that much in the 2 second window she gets in the YouTube ad. And I shamelessly borrowed it and directly opened up a new blog post [embarrassed]

As I get ready to roll out of the garage into the green yard, I reflect upon the same thoughts. hence the silly ad came as a blessing and for for first time I grinned at one of those ads.

Nothing else can explain the state of things after the last travelogue was written to this blog. The last travelogue, the Chase the monsoon season still has its needles stuck on August 2013, whereas its May 2014 already and life has been everything but monotonous in this period.

There were days of boredom, big dreams, ambitious goals, days of pure adventure, learning, moments of glory, unexpected failures, days of frustration and deep sense of loss, and then the days of warmth, growth and feeling of being loved. Many links were broken and made in these days. The life of the person behind this blog and the person himself changed a lot, but still finds that there weren't really many changes, and just a shift in perspectives and priorities.

Some things break to be remade better, while some things break to remain so forever. Its sad and exciting at same time to pick one from the other and move on. This is what the author is trying to realize and lets wish the more exciting stuff planned to roll out soon would follow suit soon :-)

Let the hordes of colorful spice be strewn into the air, let it color the wind and water, let the aroma carry on through blood and water and bring happiness and realization to all souls out there. Let the conduits be opened.. amen :)