Long time no see..
I have saved voice mails by A, R and M.. and Whatsapp and Facebook messages.. it is these things that are my treasure :)
I went out alone last week to have some good food. Good food as in pasta, which is the only vegetarian thing I can eat here, and had beer. There was a storm warning and it was raining really heavily. The storm came but hit Oklahoma.
Where do I begin? Last week was the birthday. I got to talk to so many people. Some friends actually called from India. Considering it costs Rs.8/minute without an international calling card, it really means a lot. So either I didn't pick up or I used to tell them that I will call back because it is much cheaper for me. Aise baat karne me kisi ka pura balance thori khali karna hai :) There were some people who surprised me by wishing. So A writes on his twitter feed,
I felt humbled by it. I mean I am a person with very little self confidence, so it made me feel slightly better. And the thing is I have not met him even once! He is Y's friend and I just know him through Twitter. Thanks A :)
And R sent an email with such a sweet message :)
And R sent an email with such a sweet message :)
T wrote this
S, D and A call me "My Pankaj"... it reminds me of you sometimes as you used to call me this sometimes :(
P gave this..
From V..
From J
From X :)
M gave an air mattress as she thought I will be needing it here :P
I have saved voice mails by A, R and M.. and Whatsapp and Facebook messages.. it is these things that are my treasure :)
I went out alone last week to have some good food. Good food as in pasta, which is the only vegetarian thing I can eat here, and had beer. There was a storm warning and it was raining really heavily. The storm came but hit Oklahoma.
Happy Birthday P..
I am constantly watching Brothers and Sisters. I really like it now. Each of the characters is so real. There are some great quotes from it.
The thing about becoming a father is it makes you think about your own dad. - Tommy
The good stuff is so rare..you got to share the wealth. - Sarah
We don't love the people we love because they are perfect. We love the people we love because they are. - Warren
Sometimes being a good parent is knowing when not to parent, you have to get out of the way and let life happen to your kids. - Nora
Justin is awesome, though I feel really bad for Kevin.
As Rebecca, the step-daughter puts it beautifully,
I've been getting to know your family. Not that that’s an easy thing to do, because they’re all a little unhinged, but I think tonight I finally started to figure them out. Like Tommy is always so stoic, taking care of everyone around him. I’m just not sure who’s taking care of him. And Kevin when he’s really hurt he’s sarcastic and funny, he’s brutally funny, but I think even he knows that’s not always enough, not now, not for this. And Sarah’s just this force, kind of like Superwoman, you know, with the kids and the job, she’s always fighting so hard for her family all the time, but I’m sure she sometimes wishes it was easier, not so complicated. Kitty’s someone I don’t really know yet, but I’m glad she came home, I think she needed to be here, especially now. I think being around her family is what grounds her, gives her direction, keeps her sane. And your mom, she’s like the most amazing woman I've ever met, the way she handles everything and everyone. But every so often I can tell she’s a million miles away. Thinking about you. And then she just looks so scared and so small. And you were wrong about being the black sheep. You’re the heart of this family, Justin. They need you. I need you, so please be okay. Please.
Here is a funny thing. Cab drivers are really interesting people. Last week, I was coming from Walmart in the cab and I ask this cab driver
P: So what all places are there to visit here?
Cab Driver: How old are you?
P: I am 25.
Cab Driver: I can take you to a strip club if you want. I have been there many times. They will come and give you a lap dance. You cannot touch them else they will throw you out. You should go and have some fun. What is point of going to other places?
P: Ok :\
And today I was coming back from the mall after watching The Great Gatsby. So I have another conversation with another cab driver.
Cab Driver: So are you an Indian?
P: Yes
Cab Driver: You know I just dropped a really hot Indian chic this morning.
P: Ok..
Cab Driver: You should have seen her she was really hot
P: Are you married?
Cab Driver: I am happily divorced.
P: So are you seeing someone?
Cab Driver: My girl friend broke with me last September because she said I love you and I just ran from her after hearing that. Who has time for love?
P: Oh..I am sorry
Cab Driver: Don't be.. I am very happy. I love my job. I get to pick up really hot chics. So, last week, this chic was sitting behind me and constantly kept rubbing my shoulders.
P: Ohk..so?
Cab Driver: I have got lucky many times. Sometimes these chics sit in the cab and show me their t***. Last year on St.Patty's day, so many drunk chics showed theirs to me and they were really hot.
P: So are you disappointed that I sat in your cab?
Cab Driver: Of course, I am always disappointed if a guy sits in the car. I love chics in my car.
P: Ok I am sorry..next time I won't sit :P
These cab drivers are really funny.
The internship has finally started. I am the only intern in the team and all the other people are very senior. My manager is almost sixty years. She seems nice as of now. I don't know though whether I will be able to get the work done or not :\ It is slightly difficult. I just wish I was a little more smart and confident though :(
Fukrey's new song came out a few days ago. I love it and have been constantly listening to it. After Heer from Jab Tak Hai Jaan and Yaaram from Ek Thi Dayan and Sun Raha Hai Na Tu from Ashiqui 2, the Ambarsariya from Fukrey is a favorite. The video is so awesome. I love the part when the girl comes out wearing this gold dress and the guy makes such a funny expression while checking her out. Haha..
Love the expression :P
Ambarsariya - Fukrey
So the weekend came and I really wanted to watch a movie. I haven't seen a movie in a theater after Silver Linings Playbook :( I really wanted to see The Great Gatsby for long. I don't wait for anybody now. Since nobody is here, I will go alone to watch movies. It is ok. And I liked The Great Gatsby a lot. I have not read the book but given that it is written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, I knew the film had to be really deep. The story is extremely sad. How people would do anything for love? How important is money? Once you get the money, will you be really happy? Baz Luhrmann of the Moulin Rouge fame directs the film. I did not watch it in 3D but the film is visually stunning. But I felt as some places, the visual art direction was given more emphasis than the story itself. But still I really liked the movie. The film asked so many relevant questions.
At one point, Nick says to Jay, you can’t repeat the past. This line stumped me. And when the film ends, Nick says, Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter - tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms further. And one fine morning...so we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.
This line again confused me. First Nick says you can't repeat the past and then he says that how much you try the past will pull you back. So aren't these two lines contradictory? Apparently, there has been astonishing amounts of literature written on this last line, which I found out. So here is one possible explanation.
Gatsby is distraught and desperate at the fact that he can't have Daisy. He isn't crazy or delusional, but in a sense, he is. He is unable to live in the present. He is in love with a girl from his past, Daisy, and becomes so obsessed with finding a way back to her heart that he purchases a home on the same lake, and goes to great lengths to find ways to speak to her again. Though it is obvious that she has changed - who doesn't after many years and significant events such as marriage - Gatsby doesn't even see it and still cannot find any faults in her. He is thus driving for a change in the future, meaning a future with Daisy, by actually trying to change the past. As he tries to get her to fall back in love with him, he's doing just that. But there are things in the present that are impossible to change and thus ultimately ruin his dream, like the fact that Daisy is married and unwilling to divorce Tom because of her religion - even though she is aware of his affair and he does not treat her as if he loves her. He also in a sense is changing his past when he lies about his youth to Nick, and acts as if he truly believes himself. He's recreating the past in his head to make himself more appealing.
These words conclude the novel and find Nick returning to the theme of the significance of the past to dreams of the future, here represented by the green light. He focuses on the struggle of human beings to achieve their goals by both transcending and re-creating the past. Yet humans prove themselves unable to move beyond the past: in the metaphoric language used here, the current draws them backward as they row forward toward the green light. This past functions as the source of their ideas about the future (epitomized by Gatsby’s desire to re-create 1917 in his affair with Daisy) and they cannot escape it as they continue to struggle to transform their dreams into reality. While they never lose their optimism (“tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther . . .”), they expend all of their energy in pursuit of a goal that moves ever farther away. This apt metaphor characterizes both Gatsby’s struggle and the American dream itself. Nick’s words register neither blind approval nor cynical disillusionment but rather the respectful melancholy that he ultimately brings to his study of Gatsby’s life.
Loved it totally..so complex these themes are..At one point, Nick says he wanted to be an writer but the lure of money forced him to go to the Wall Street. Eventually, he realizes how hollow the pursuit of money has become. Isn't this question still relevant to our times no?
And Amitabh Bachchan plays a two minute cameo in the film! And the performances are excellent. Leonardo is brilliant. He brings such a devastating melancholy to Gatsby. Critics have trashed the movie but it isn't that bad..
And after the Oklahoma storm, this was one of the most moving articles that was there. Human nature is really complex. At one point, see the case of kidnapping in Cleveland where a man keeps three girls captive for over ten years and at the other end, a thirteen year old girl gives hugs to strangers. No doubt we humans are the most complex creatures on the planet.
Need a hug?
And again, this reminds me of that scene from Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu. Ya I am in love with that movie :}
:(
It was really cold today. Eight degrees in the morning. Wore a sweater as was feeling cold. It is funny. Mom tells me that in Delhi it is 48! and I tell her it is 8 here!
Anyways wrote a lot. Still have so much to write. But later.
Dialogue of the Day:
"Apna ateet kisi aur ke hawale karna aasan baat nahi hai."
- Bansi, Saaz
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