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One more week............another milestone in sight
Sleepless days and nights........so much to accomplish...so less time in hand

My driving force:



Current craze that sees me through:



Almost there........... :)

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Main paagal toh nahin!!!!!!

Magar aye Thesis...
Jab se likha,(shuru kiya)
hai maine tujhko, mujhko,

pagliiiii bulaayein sabhi!!!

:P :P :P

Paul the Oracle

Ok...I am not a BIG football fan....but do occasionally follow matches and enjoy them too. For instance... the Germany-Spain semi-final.
It was then that I heard of PAUL - the ORACLE OCTOPUS :D :D :D

A BBC news article said 'A "psychic" octopus in Germany, which appears to have correctly predicted every World Cup game involving the national team so far, has picked Spain over Germany in the semi-final.'

Watch this video where he "chose" Spain over Germany as the winner of the semi-finals http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/10521867.stm

He has an overall "success" rate of 83% till date and 100% for the FIFA 2010 :)

and has received death threats!!! that was when he predicted Argentinian loss :P

What a life :D

and here's a funny quote.....
The Director of SeaLife...the home of our oracle....said "There was something about the way he looked at our visitors when they came close to the tank. It was so unusual, so we tried to find out what his special talents were."

and on his Wikipedia page, his occupation is defined as "Oracular animal"
Pardon me...but "his" gender needs citation :P but considering that we call the Oracle PAUL, I by default assumed "him" to be male :D
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_the_Octopus

Wonder if he is only a German oracle or has "worldly" insight!

UPDATE: Paul has competition.... MANI the psychic parakeet from singapore !! :D
It can only get funnier......
And guess what...they gave opposite views on the final, Paul vouches for Spain, Mani for Netherlands
All I can say...."May the best team win!!!
P.S: spain spain spain spain spain ;)

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Ok, I have this self-imposed ban for quite some time now....need to finish work fast, need to write thesis, need to wrap up PhD and THEN move on.
Result....alienation from social circle...
WORST PART: no one calls you anymore, no one pings you anymore..... OUT-OF-SIGHT-OUT-OF-MIND types eh! :(
I want my friends back, I want my life back ...... so I earnestly pray that this phase gets over soon.

Photo: By my NOKIA 6300, OKD-Smita's home in B'lore

Woohooo :)

Need I say ANYTHING?
Awesome......Fabulous.......Wow !!

The full-screen version on the official website is even better.
Check it out here.

Apna Mithunda

Yesterday, along with the hyped I Hate Luv Storys, another movie released which surprisingly got more coverage than expected. I say "surprisingly" because it is a Bengali movie, and usually non-hindi movies that release do not get much coverage.
This one's called "Shukno Lanka" or "Dry red chillies". Till now, I have only heard/read good things about it, including good performances.....

Take a look here:

http://www.washingtonbanglaradio.com/content/7913910-shukno-lanka-2010-bengali-movie-review-aditya-chakrabarty

or here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1ObCvqK-Kc

TOI says "For those who still remember Mithun Chakraborty's sterling act in Buddhadeb Dasgupta's Tahader Katha, here's another chance to discover the true colours of the thespian actor who has the ability to grab eyeballs with something more than his disco dancing abilities."

The trailer does not say much...but with the praise as above...I would like to go watch it (let's see if I can make it).

'Un Certain Regard’

First-time director Vikramaditya Motwane’s film Udaan was part of "Un Certain Regard" at the Cannes Film Festival this year and was the only Indian film at the festival. Now that's great accomplishment. The story, that of a young Rohan, who was in a boarding school for 8 yrs and has now returned to his strict father and half-brother in Jamshedpur, is written by both Vikramaditya Motwane and Anurag Kashyap. The music is by Amit Trivedi. Have not heard it yet, but have heard some good reviews about it. Going by Amit's past record, I think i'll like this one :)

Here are some posters of the movie, which are quite well done in my opinion.







And, I quite liked what I saw in the trailer too. Considering that this movie made it to Cannes, I guess that was to be expected ;) :)
It releases here in 2 weeks' time...and I am looking forward to it. hopefully by then my thesis will be almost done and I can watch it without any guilt ;)

Have a look....




Ok UPDATE....these you must listen to :)

the THEME SONG... (video in 5:40 mins long but the song is actually only 2:47min)



and this one....

Pottermania-The Grand Finale

Watch the official trailer here:



All Potter-fans have high hopes from this 2-part movie. The movie is going to be highly action-packed no doubt, but as Brangan puts it..."they better not rob us of the myriad sentimental moments"

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BAAAAAAARISHHHHHHHHH !!!!!!

Finally...some respite from the scorcher. Even if it was only for 30 mins! AND I got wet :) yayyyyyy.... AND spoiled my suit :( not so yayyy

Why do colors that bleed from clothes....never get washed off when they stain other clothes??? That has always been a mystery to me. Why not dye a rough cloth with these colors that may "bleed" and then wash them with the main clothes of interest that need to be dyed...in this manner the color of final product will never bleed!!

Tandy bought a new phone today. It's totally khourrll! Though I would have liked the handset in Blue...she went for the Red one...which I agree is totally "her color" :)
With my pyaara set giving problems....I was a teeny weeny bit tempted too...but I guess I'll hang on to this one for a month or two more.....and then Rahul to the rescue :) :) :)

And I am now in a major do-or-die situation!!!
The WRITE-A-THON begins.
With a deadline closing in, it would do me good to gear up and fast (which kind of means right now) :P

PS: 10 days of home food, AC and good internet...inspiration enough to work :)

Zimbly lowe it :D

Some time back, Rahul had sent me this Tee from the PHDcomics stores :)
Well, I am happy to flaunt it around these days and "zimbly lowe" it :D

Hail the Rain Lord!!!

Dear Rain Lord,

I know whenever I was in Bangalore and you made your presence felt galore, there were times when I cursed! What was I to do, when all my favourite chappals broke, had almost nothing to wear as most my clothes were wet, and suffered from allergies because the room went damp harboring fungal spores??!!!
But, then again, you must also remember, that it was the same me who also enjoyed dancing in the showers, jumped with glee in puddles and marveled at your lightning bolts. And I do admit that I had more fun with your presence felt than not.
Well, too much of anything is bad, as were the showers at times!!
Don't you miss me??? You know I love listening to rain patter on walls, windows, roofs and everywhere else; and I can spend hours just listening to it while staring into oblivion, letting my mind flow freely; or cuddle up in a corner with my favourite book, or if I am in an altruistic mood, maybe make some hot chai and goodies to eat for everyone around me :) then everyone will gather and amidst all the hullabaloo, keep repeating "Oh how wonderful is this weather!! How wonderful!!"
People have claimed that I am crazy to walk in the rain....but you and I know better.....don't you??
So, come visit me in Delhi soon....I am waiting!!! I promise not to complain and have lots of fun ;)
As a reminder, I am putting up this picture I had taken capturing your essence on a wonderful day...... do hurry :)

Waiting eagerly,
Pescy :)

Of Brilliant Actors, Directors and Story-tellers

Very recently I went and watched Shutter Island in theaters. It was a good movie. The setting, the background score, the acting, the effect on the audience...it was all there. All-in-all...a really good watch. And then I went home and watched Mystic River. Another riveting plot, acting and screenplay.

What's common between the two movies?

Well...firstly, both are based on novels written by Dennis Lehane. I am sure, the novels on their own would be awesome...this I can say based on the strength of the plot portrayed on screen. The emotional turmoil, scary in the former and distressing in the latter....it is there in both.
Secondly, both novels were picked by the "Awsomest" directors ;) Shutter Island boasts of Martin Scorsese and Mystic River of Clint Eastwood. They may not necessarily be the best works of each directors but then, they are nothing short of being really commendable.
Thirdly, the choice of actors has been great and they have respectively, done great justice to their roles.
I am no great critic or observer..... but both movies successfully evoke the right responses and feeling from audience at the appropriate places with the combined effect of music/acting/direction/camera/screenplay.

Highly recommended by me :)

PhD Blues

Well...the D-Day is almost here.
40 hrs to my Colloquium. Can't believe it is actually happening....on the other hand relieved too that the culmination of 5 yrs' worth work is taking place.
Am happy its happening, and nervous its happening, and tense for what is about to follow. But as always i guess......one step at a time....we'll take it as it comes.
Three cheers for 5-yrs of hard work and all the in-between masti :)

And yes....check this out :)

Sand Art

Have been off-blog for a while....have loads of pending posts...but when I saw this...I could not stop myself from posting it here.

Watch this:



and read about it over here

Awesome talent.....she would have practiced a lot for art such as this...but even then....it is simply WOW!! :)

More songs today.........

Two more songs today........Rajneeti this time.

I Hate Luv Storys Music

The music is out........... :) and personally I really like 4 songs from this album.
Bahara is very good, the title track qualifies for the "good-bad song" category :P i.e. it has some funny rhyming lyrics but music that is good to hear, Jab mila tu and Bin tere are also quite nice.
Here are the youtube links:

:D :D :D

Heh! I so like this!! :P I guess due to thesis blues!
Source: http://www.phdcomics.com/comics.php?f=1323

Iron Man 2

"I am Iron Man" :D Tony Stark....as conceited, egoistic and narcissistic as ever! A really good movie, or rather, a deserving sequel. I would still rate the first one higher, but this is not bad....not bad at all :) and thank god I did go for it......saw a nice movie in theater after a loooooooong time! Scarlet Johanessen is looking hot and sexy....and you can't help but smile when Tony tells Pepper "I want one" :P Good graphics, some cool action and lots of attitude....it's all there. Not without its loopholes and some unbelievable stuff...but all the good things override that. Definitely worth a watch.

Shrek-Forever After

Being a big fan of Shrek and Donkey, I was disappointed :( I knew the reviews weren't that great (as was the case with Shrek 3), but on the spur of the moment decided to go for it. It does have its good moments....but that's about it....they are just moments....the story is average as is the screenplay.
Shrek 1 and 2, however, will always be among my favorites :)

Cheeky program in controversial soup

Freshmen of the College of Letters and Science at University if California, Berkeley have a unique thing in their welcome kit this year....a cotton swab!

On the Same Page program of this college gives new students something to talk about and discuss, say something like a book or a movie or an idea. This year, they’ll be exploring the theme of Personalized Medicine—the set of emerging technologies that promises to transform our ability to predict, diagnose, and treat human disease. Therefore, the cotton swab. Students can choose to return a sample of their cheek cells to be analyzed for three genes that are identified as "useful" for daily lives......the genes that help regulate the ability to absorb folic acid, tolerate lactose, and metabolize alcohol. Results of this nutritional genomic study will be confidential, however the sample donors through secret codes can access results of their samples.

Professor Jasper Rine, in-charge of this project, says “We want to get people to appreciate that there are things you can do that enhance your health based on the genes you have. There are concrete, actionable, specific steps that do enhance quality of life. This is the message of the post-genomic era.” Students will also get the chance to enter contests of creativity and talent and winners will be offered a more complete genetic analysis of their ancestry and health, with compliments from the personal genomics company 23andMe.

Medical science and biotechnology post the "Human Genome Project" is aiming towards better health care and effective clinical solutions. Though today, personalized medicine seems like a Utopian dream, hopefully someday it will be cost-effective and bring therapeutics suited to individual needs and responses.

This project, however, is not without it's share of controversies. Following a ban by FDA on retail selling of personal-genome-testing kit by Walgreens ( a US based drugstore chain), a Berkeley-based public interest organization is calling for the suspension of the UC project. They say "If selling genetic tests directly to consumers is a problem in the eyes of federal regulators, how can the University justify pushing them on thousands of eighteen-year-olds?"

The kit with the swab includes a consent form and details of the study to be undertaken, the advantages of the program and a confidentiality statement assuring prevention of misuse of genetic information. Where is the abuse??? If the donors consent to give samples for research, understanding what they are signing-up for....then why not?? Surveys and sample collections anyway take place for various research programs across the world...then why not this?? People can, for a minimal fee, send their DNA samples to laboratories for testing and genetic analysis, so why not allow the sale of these kits? Is it not up to the customer to think what they want, need, require and find useful??