Unmuddlings!!

Come July 2011....and the history repeats itself..."This year July has 5 fridays 5 saturdays and 5 sundays. This happens once every 823 years. This is called money bags. So copy this to your status and money will arrive within 4 days. Based on Chinese philosophy of Feng Shui."...last year the story did rounds in Oct.. dont forget to read...a note on this @ http://unmuddlings.blogspot.com/2010/10/telecom-money-bags.html I am pretty sure [and simple arithmetic corroborates]....that this occurs more often than once in 823 years....please do not copy/fwd such messages....and waste ur and other times...:)...till u check 823 years past calendars to be pretty sure... sorry for pricking ur money bags!!! :P Bhubaneshwar Jun 29, 2011 ps: next jul with 5 f,s,s comes on 2016...b/w 2011-2100 both yrs included....we have 14 times such a thing is happening...such much for once in 823 yrs....feng shui..money bags.....et al...lol jul 2,2011

After six odd of weeks of counting the to-dos on an almost daily basis, the prospect of doing nothing was quite appealing. That was how the 3 days at Detroit were planned. Despite being secretly aware of the inevitable spoilers, we were looking forward to the opportunity to set the clock aside, become almost anti-social [and I don’t need to play any part to be that] and allow time to meander meaninglessly. That is what we had aimed for and that is what we got in full. So much so that this Detroit note could have easily been christened ‘An expanse’ or ‘Letting time go still’. It was neither energetic nor too quiet. Detroit [or should I say Troy] was the balm for flattening the residual mental spikes. Any flutter was left solely to the realm of the heart! Lara and I finally got to spend some quality time together. Lazy walks [not quite early in the morning] and long talks [not too late into the night]. We were happy to let beads of time string themselves together; in their own unhurrie...

I would suspect that Hemingway, for a bit under two-thirds of my two-score years, has been in my psyche – though in varying degrees --from the active idolizing to the [oxymoronic!] sub-conscious influence. Hemingway is certainly among the few people who have caputuredmy imagination somewhat early in life, and he has remained in my consciousness ever since. Not so much because I have read him so voraciously [he has written too much for my lazy self-indulgent reading]; but because of the series of reveries that he has triggered with every passage that I ever read either written by or of him. In these reveries, I often played the hero[es] whom I probably wanted to emulate. Re-reading the preceding (complex!) sentences, I really think that is closest description of why I got that flutter within when I read anything by/of him or heard anything about him. This is the same reason why I experience a similar flutter when I cross the paths of a few other people. This is perhaps why people have i...

i picked this up from a forward chain mail...here it goes.. Transparency in system 22 June 2011 *Between The Lines ~ Kuldip Nayar* http://www.thestatesman.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=374088&catid=39 *The new generation must understand that today’s non-governance or mis-governance is the fallout of what Indira Gandhi had done 36 years ago by destroying an established democratic order * How do you make the new generation relate to Emergency imposed some 36 years ago this week? I have been asked this question many a time. The Congress government will not talk about it as long as the Indira Gandhi-Sonia Gandhi dynasty ~ the guilty lot ~ is in power. It considers any criticism of Gandhi,s autocratic rule during that period an affront to the family. The BJP, which too had gone through the rigours of autocratic rule at that time, does not understand the ethos of liberalism. The party,s religious identity is an antithesis to what India stands for. And, scholars...

".....but ego and anger are like cholesterol and sugar in the blood; eventually they will get you...." folk - this is something i had to share....this is what harsha bhogle wrote in his blog abt rahul, post sabina win.....earlier in the morn..i read something which i read the rahul said, post the win...n i wanted to blog abt it....but the day has started...n it seems long....so the blog idea will quite likely day w/o being 'unmuddled'.. so lemme do with one of those very far n very few in between fb status updates instead....and get closer to my 1 page a day :P coming back to this quote...it just struck a chord....an insight i believe cdnt hv been put in a manner....that cant but be better explain.. hv a great day!! ps: rahul had talked of...how to weather the storm....just holding ground when the red cherry, whirled by an inspired pacer aided by a conditions,..whizzes past....one just needs to hang around....conditions will get better...loose deliveries will be b...

May 28, 2011. This is the day when I went down into the deepest recesses of my psyche – letting my moods resonate with unadulterated bliss with the strings, steps, and sonority during my tryst with classical Indian arts. I was delighted to watch Trimurti, a classical dance program that was choreographed and presented by Sonali Mishra [Odissi], Sonali Skandan [Bharatanatyam] and Parul Shah [Kathak]. This was my first live exposition classical dance – and I truly mesmerized. The use of space and the subtle variations of steps for poise were masterful. The manner in which different art forms inter-mingled together had a mesmeric influence. Especially the manner in which the Odissi and Bharatanatyam dances orchestrated similarity in movements, while preserving the purity of the traditions of their own dance forms and dance schools was simply breathtaking. Kathak had its own play, giving fluidity of movements to soothe the awed nerves. Trimurti, was choreographed/presented by the 3 dancer...

After one packed month of daily meetings, vocational visits, evening outings and early mornings to catch-up with Kalingasoft –– I was eager to do nothing, meet no one, and just shut down and chill and with family, friends, and myself [without any suggestion of the order]. And I did just that - apart from a few hours in the morning with the customary Kalingasoft hooking in though mails/skype during the 3 weekdays – (out of the 5 days) at Seattle. Despite my best intentions to do some meaningful reading and writing, I did not touch any written matter to read, nor did I churn out any words to write. It was just downtime –which was fun. Downtime because I decided I will do nothing at all-perhaps I will at best have [others] get things done by me. To start off with, it was a chance to let my hair down and catch up with Avj, one of my long lasted [almost quarter century!] friends, and dig into the tasty Sambar/Perugu/Idli/Chutney/Dosa et al (South Indian delicacies) which Mausi [Avj’s mom...

Every good going has to come to an end. Every circle ends where it starts. Both statements are admittedly eternal clichés – but not surprisingly true. Certainly in this case. The memorable long four-and-a-half week journey, which started with the touchdown at Boise on Apr 18, 2011, ended - also at Boise - as we bid adieu on May 18, 2011. Our hosts Doug, Will, and Jon drove us to the airport. The Gilberts, Gloria & Kiel, Jeannine also were at the airport to see us off. During our 2-3 days at Boise Stan was extremely helpful in trying to organize our logistics post-Boise. I also had an opportunity to have a meaningful discussion with him for activities beyond GSE. Even though we had 3 club meetings, a couple of evening dinners and a day planned for rafting [which had to be cancelled because of rough weather], overall the last few days were more of a countdown to the end. The send-offs and goodbyes were not just with our host Rotarians. It was also amongst our GSE Team, especially f...

Sun Valley, Idaho is a stunning place. The mountains, the scenic beauty, the biking trails, the golf course[s], the lovely resort, the variety of other elevating places dotting the landscape –make a fantastic place to unwind and be in sync with oneself. To quench your curiosity - especially regular travellers - you must go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Valley,_Idaho to believe [or junk] what am promising. Having a district conference at such a place is both a boon and a bane. Boon - easy to answer – because ‘the participants have a getaway to enjoy,’ so the enrollments could be higher. Bane, because ‘the participants have a getaway to enjoy’ – they may venture out to enjoy the sun! Yup, it works both ways. In such a case, the conference needs to compete with the destination for the participants’ attention. And I must say, the Dist Conference stood tall by a few thousand feet. It was extraordinary. It effortlessly caught the attention of the participants – who could have been ea...

The trip to Hailey had a lot to offer. The visit to Wood River School was fulfilling experience. School students involved in filming, news-production, architecture, sculpture, hoteliering was very impressive. So were the facilities that the school had to offer. We had the usual tourist attractions too –the trip to Hemingway’s memorial (which goes without saying, we will have one blog fully dedicated to this!), and the site of the Dalai Lama’s address. Despite the endless bustle of activity, we managed to squeeze in time to seed some potentially lasting friendships. Leo and Greg supplied the endless bouts of jokes and witty repartees. Patricia eagerness to help (which I really appreciate) knew no bounds as she really went out of her way to assist us and (quite generously) extended her network to us, arranging meetings and site visits. We had some wonderful camaraderie with Shelly, Marguerite and Kelly. Of course I have to mention the finger licking good food prepared by Shelley & K...