Kashi Yatra

My new post published in The NRI... Check it out.

Kashi Yatra

Bike

In case you have trouble visualizing Newton's argument, this is what Newton meant by "hands acting as a natural suspension drastically reducing the contact area"

P.S:
Aristotle and Plato sketch by delboysb91
Newton's caricature taken from http://bit.ly/9ZscX
The Telugu comic by Bnim: http://www.telugucartoon.com/bnim.php 

Same to you

Thank you. Same to you

It is that time of the year when everyone wishes me a Happy New Year. And my most usual response for their good intentions is a nod of acknowledgement. If I am in a fairly good mood, which I usually am in, then I may even add an assertive “okay!” to go with the acknowledging nod.

You see, “Thank you, same to you!” doesn’t come naturally to me. I have to make an effort to remember to wish them back after having received the other person’s best wishes. And you know how I feel about work! 

Isn’t it interesting that there is no such thing as selfless Happy New Year wishes? People always expect you to wish them back soon after they wish you. If you don’t wish them back, they even go to the extent of prolonging the small talk till you utter something like “Wish you the same”.

It is almost as if the only reason they wish you is to get wished back which makes me think that at a deep level. As if all they are interested in is accumulating as many wishes for themselves as possible and in order to achieve that, they are willing to do anything – even smile at a stranger in the elevator! Now are you really comfortable being used like that?

The Timing

When it comes to wishing, I have been told that the timing is just as important as the wishes themselves. I partly agree with that because it makes no sense to wish someone Happy Birthday in July when her birthday actually falls in March! I am with you on that.

But a lot of people take it too far. They strive to achieve poetry through a phone call. You know like

As the clock strikes the midnight hour

I want to wish you a happy whatever

Where whatever can be a birthday, an anniversary or New Year! 

For birthdays, I can give you that. After all, it just lasts for… a day during whcih they’d probably be busy with the birthday party etc. if they are normal people (or busy practicing to sit with their bottoms at a 45 degree angle if they are engineering students) but midnight wishes for a new year? What is the hurry there? Don’t you have like A YEAR?

In an ideal world, the last date for submitting New Year Resolutions and making New Year wishes should  at least be March 15th!

But unfortunately we don't live in that world!

P.S: I have been quite grinchy this New Year's eve: http://on.fb.me/rMuJ1U 

Inventions S1E04: The Spelling Bee Trick

You’re walking on the road minding your own business when someone stops and says, “Hey, how are you? Remember me?” 

The person looks mildly familiar but you can’t really assign a name to that face. You don’t want to sound rude in the middle of the road, so you reply enthusiastically, “Of course! How are you? It has been so long!” and go ahead with the conversation hoping to pick up enough hints on the way to identify the friendly stranger. 

This heuristic strategy works well in the average case. You can narrow your options down depending on what kind of questions he asks. If the conversation is circled around your high school, hometown and other things, you can safely assume that he was a childhood friend. Then you throw in a strategic question related to siblings or his parents for more hints until you can make an intelligent guess. 

That is the average case. Sometimes it may happen that even at the end of your small talk, you still have no idea who the other person is. And it is time to exchange phone numbers! That guy enthusiastically tells his mobile number and asks you to give a missed call to his number. You typed down his number in your phone and now you have to type a name. But you don't know the name!

You can’t just type “that dude with long hair” (I have names like that in my phone book) for later reference because he is looking right into your phone, waiting for you to enter his name and then give him a missed call. 

*Awkwardness begins* You started with the good intention of not being rude but now you’re on the verge of looking like an asshole! This is when The Spelling Bee Trick can come to your rescue. 

The Spelling Bee Trick involves two simple steps:

1. Keep your best “sincerely confused” face 
2. Ask him, “So how do you spell your name?”

It's a good move to make generally. But heuristic techniques always come with caveats. If he turns out to be a Naimish or a Twishmay, you’re safe because he would be used to people asking him how he spells his name and wouldn’t suspect anything foul. 

But such names are sadly rare, there is a good chance that the conversation may end up like this:

I suggest readers to stick to “What is your full name?” instead of “How do you spell your name?” That way you can get away saying “There are a couple of other Rajas in my contact list and I don’t want to be confused.”

You're Welcome! 

P.S: Additional Reading -- My First Invention: Leadership by Ineptitude