Slurpin'

Circular Monopoly

2010-02-03T05:15:00.000-08:00

Apparently, the monopoly board is going to be re-invented for it's 75th birth anniversary. The two major innovations:
1. A circular board
2. Debit cards instead of banknotes
I'm not sure about either move. The monopoly board is one of the most iconic and easily identified boards on the planet. Generations have grown up playing on that board; this change merely breaks that tradition.
As for replacing banknotes with debit cards, hmm, that's trickier. It's a reflection of our times; our dependence on paper money is steadily declining. Future generations will most certainly be more familiar with plastic money... but, the traditionalist and purist in me is not happy. I was really fond of those colourful monopoly banknotes as a child, and it's really a shame that a part of my childhood will cease to exist.
Perhaps it's time to move on...

Stuff

2010-01-17T06:52:00.000-08:00

Two items in the news recently caught my eye.

The first is in an article in the independent which suggests that human being's innate fondness for drunken revelry was the catalyst for the civilisation of prehistoric man. Ironic, considering how, in modern society, alcohol is what reduces perfectly normal people to the level of apes. While I don't question/doubt the veracity and authenticity of the author's scholarly work (I do not possess the background knowledge for such a task), I do find it's conclusion rather amusing.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/archaeology/features/did-a-thirst-for-beer-spark-civilization-1869187.html

The other article that piqued my interest is right up my alley of interest; technology and cellphones. The article reports that Gartner predicts cellphones will overhaul computers as the preferred gateway to the internet by 2013. While this would seem like an obvious statement to those who have observed the industry in recent times (especially the staggering success of the iPhone), the consequences are profound - especially in developing countries.

http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/15/gartner-forecasts-phones-overtaking-pcs-as-most-common-web-brows/

It is worthwhile to remember the importance of the internet in our lives. For the vast majority of users, most of their time on a computer is spent on the internet (outside of work). Thus, this prediction means that mobile phones will be THE dominant computing platform halfway through the decade. So far, laptops and desktops have enjoyed this position. They have had pride of place in the hierarchy of household consumer electronics, sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with the venerable television. The humble cellphone has slowly but surely risen through the ranks and now stands at the threshold of dominance.

Ignore that rather stupid analogy ;) The point is, cellphones are always with us and that in itself is a huge advantage. In recent times, improved user interfaces, interaction methods and greater processing power has made it possible for us to realistically use cellphone for extensive internet browsing, not just an occasional read (as was the case in the past). The introduction of the iPhone was the watershed moment. And I say this not as an apple fanboy, but as someone who has never owned an iPhone. Credit where credit is due. The iPhone was a game changer; it turned cellphones into miniature computers.

I will comment more about the implications of this seismic shift to developing countries in a future post, for that is where the impact will be the greatest.

That's it?

2009-09-09T12:11:00.000-07:00

So, Apple unveiled it's refreshed iPods today at an event titled "it's only rock and roll but we like it". Interestingly enough, the most important announcement was not that of a product, but the reappearance of the irrepressible Mr. Jobs. He's back and slimmer than ever before (almost as slim as a Nano).
On the whole, I'm slightly disappointed with the announcements. Sure, I like the new Nano and the price drop/capacity bump for the iPod Touch. I think iTunes 9 is cool, too.
However, the upgrade to the Touch has left me rather under-whelmed. No camera and still no in-built mic and speakers. The nano has it, but not the touch. Think about it. The touch runs iPhone OS 3.1. The possibilities for apps are endless. The most obvious ones would be proper VOIP and camera integration with flickr, facebook and youtube. There are a few possibilities for why Apple hasn't put a camera and mic/stereo in the touch:
1. Some hardware constraints made it impossible for them to do so.
2. They weren't able to do so in time for this event.
3. Jobs is shitting his pants that people might start buying the Touch instead of the iPhone
Well, I think reason 1 is total BS, so it comes down to the other two. Either way, I do think the touch is already a great device and would benefit from having these features.

Tomorrow is also a big day, though its not likely to attract the same sort of hype. Motorola is expected to announce its first Android handsets. If it does so, it'll be the third major manufacturer to commit to the platform after HTC and Samsung. Android does seem to be gaining ground now, but has a really, really long way to go if it intends to seriously challenge the iPhone. As Jobs mentioned in his keynote, iPhone OS is now on 50 million devices. Android is nowhere even near that. I put it down to a lack of compelling devices, but thats just me.

Have fun.

I'm giving up on lunch

2009-07-14T06:41:00.000-07:00

I have decided to give up on lunch.

It's much too time consuming and completely redundant. I've found I can make do with a massive and slightly late breakfast followed by a massive and slightly early dinner. The advantage, obviously, is that I don't have to cook twice. Plus, I can eat something interesting for breakfast, for example a pizza. Breakfast tends to be boring. A bowl of cereal, some bacon, an omelette, a glass of orange juice, etc. Not good enough.

Arguably, I could have a pizza for breakfast anyway, but there's a certain amount of guilt that I experience if I have something like that for breakfast. In my current setup, I can fight off that guilt based on the excuse that I'm not having lunch, so it's okay to have a pasta and a cheescake for breakfast.

As a result of my new policy, I had Garlic and Coriander Naan with Tandoori chicken for breakfast. Enough said.

You know you want to.

The unthinkable has happenned

2009-04-28T10:36:00.000-07:00

After a nearly two year break from blogging, I'm back. Let the drums roll, bring out the champagne.

Obviously, there's a lot of catching up to do. I mean, the last time I wrote on my blog I was 18 years old, living in Delhi and just out of school. Things have changed since then, and I'll soon bring everyone upto speed, but sadly today is not the best time. I have an exam tomorrow (Compilers) and I will probably get my ass kicked (along with the rest of my esteemed colleagues) as my lecturer thinks he can divide by zero... don't ask, that'll be a separate post as well.

Anyhow, I'm sure people have two questions on their mind right now and I'll attempt to answer them.

1. Okay, you're back but... WHY?

Ans: Well, I like blogging and I like reading my old posts, they give me an intimate insight into who I was in the past... so, basically, I'm doing this for myself, for the future. I really don't care if anyone is interested in reading it!

2. Isn't twitter the place to be? Brevity is the soul of wit and blogs are passe, right?

Ans: I'm not going to question the phenomenal success of twitter, but twitter just doesn't cut it for me. Perhaps I'm too verbose, but I like expressing myself with more than 140 characters!

That's all for now!

P.S. I do realise there should've been an accent on the e in passe but it's inconvenient to find and, frankly, I don't care.

The beginning of the end

2007-06-26T04:15:00.000-07:00

The end is nigh.

Yesterday, I dropped TCA (he's off to Xavier's Mumbai) off at the airport, said Good bye and it suddenly started to sink in. He's first to go; one down. Those days are over. And this is just the beginning. One-by-one, all of us will be gone. Dispersed. The good-old days are gone forever. Those vodka-fueled mornings have come to an end. It was fun while it lasted.

Sadly, this "realization" is always a little late coming. By the time I realized that school was kick-ass fun, it was nearly over. Same thing with class 12-H.

I'm leaving this lovely city on the 14th of July. And now that my exile is about to begin, I've even started to "miss" New Delhi, even the most despicable places in town. Such is life; life is like custard.

At this point, let me also say that dropping off another guy at the airport is kind of awkward. Embarrassing, too. An awkward handshake and an awkward 'it was nice knowing you' and a slightly-less awkward "don't forget the vodka" sealed it.

On a brighter note, I have a series of posts planned in which I plan to blow the lid off DPS MUN, the CBSE and explain why DPS RKP is the biggest scam since... (well, something, but it's a scam). As an insider to all three of the aforementioned, I have a good deal to say.

Ah yes, I'm back. And I'm not "living in the past"

The inevitable is here

2007-05-21T12:34:00.000-07:00

The results are upon us. The 25th day of May (sounds funny) is judgment day. At 8:00 AM, we shall have our collective asses kicked.

I knew the results would be announced some time, but I didn't figure it'd be so soon. Time flies, as they say (I don't know who 'they' are, so don't ask me)

It's like being jerked out of a restful slumber. You're snoring your butt off and some weirdo comes and jabs you in the ribs and says "AHA!".

Recently, I've noticed that the most of my posts are labeled "Random". It makes me wonder whether I'm an extremely random person or awful at writing descriptive labels. Maybe both, but I'm going to change that w.e.f the next post.

P.S. Why is judgment spelled without an 'e'?

Don't name your dog 'Robin'

2007-05-18T03:57:00.000-07:00

Call your dog Robin Hood. Or Robin Uthappa.

No, I'm kidding. Those names are plain stupid (for a dog, that is). But you can still be creative in naming dogs.

For instance, podcaster Mohit Taneja named his dogs Mac and Ubuntu (for those who don't know: they're both names of Operating Systems).

Food for thought.

What do you think?

2007-05-11T11:35:00.000-07:00

Quick question: Which URL do you guys think is better?
1. slurpin.blogspot.com
2. slurpin.clan.in
3. dhruv.clan.in
4. dk.clan.in

Assistance will be greatly appreciated and I shall forever remain in your debt, eager to do you a good turn (seriously, guys, help out a confused guy!).

Five strangely named websites that made it big

2007-05-10T07:31:00.000-07:00

Finding a great domain name doesn't necessarily translate to a popular website; quite often, strangely named websites have struck gold. Here's a list of 5 such companies

1. Google
It doesn't get any stranger - or bigger - than this. This Mountain View-based search giant's name is seemingly based on the word 'googol' which, btw, has as little to do with search as google does. But who cares? It's the world's most popular search engine.
2. Yahoo!
Once again, what has the name 'Yahoo!' got to do with any of its services (or anything at all)? Nothing.
3. Youtube
Probably one of the world's most popular websites, this video-sharing site. Another strange name, but who cares? (I repeat myself, but that's the whole point behind this post: the name doesn't matter!)
4. Digg
Although Digg is often used as both a noun and a verb on digg.com, the word itself has no inherent meaning nor does it serve any purpose, as such.
5. Flickr
Okay, arguably flickr does mean something (i.e. Flicker) but it's totally unrelated to the site. And that's the list. 5 weird names. Extremely successful, despite the names.

The success is ofcourse due to something: innovation. All these sites brought something new to the table and established themselves, their brands and got away with some strange names. But then, that's life.

The list of such companies/sites is endless. Reditt, Odeo, Kanoodle, Zoomr, etc.

2007-05-06T11:59:00.000-07:00

Google doesn't think too highly of female inventors. Search for "she invented" and Google says "Did you mean He invented?"
Link.

2007-04-13T06:39:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting in my car when I see a magazine salesman coming up to the window, trying to sell me a copy of "Good Housekeeping". Another of their lot was trying to sell a copy of "Maxim" to my mother.
We didn't buy either. There was nothing wrong with the products; both are excellent, world-class products (I can certainly vouch for Maxim ;) though I'm not too sure about Good Housekeeping).
This is what happens when you've got a great product but you don't identify a target audience: no sales. Period. Marketing your product is thus as important as having a great product. Maybe even more important.
Contrary to popular belief, Marketing is not just about making awesome ads. The first step is to find a target audience and then create a campaign that will convince it. Just having a great campaign probably won't result in a sale either (unless the customer is an idiot).
You can't sell a garage-lock to a guy that doesn't have a garage, even if you've convinced him that you have the finest garage-lock in the market.
Take a look at some successful products around you. Most of them have done well because the marketers identified a target audience and worked to sell it to that very audience by developing a great sales pitch.
This applies as much in the online world as it does offline. Websites (blogs included) have to identify a target audience and sell themselves to it. Of course, this stage comes only after you have something worth selling (please note that I am not using the word sell literally). For a website that something is either great/unique/quality content or a great services.
The reason that most blogs (mine included) aren't too popular is because:-
1. they don't have anything unique (most are personal blogs)
2. they don't have great content in addition to being non-unique
3. they don't have a target audience
Who are you writing for? Why should people read your blog/website? Will it make any conceivable difference to them if they didn't read it?
The answers to these questions most often are: dunno, dunno and no (these are also my own answers). And the result is obvious.

P.S. I have no idea why I wrote this. It's a strange post, admittedly, but quite relevant to most bloggers. And I'm not writing this to discourage anyone from blogging. And yes, I have written a rather meandering post where I've been moving back and fort between marketing, target audiences and great products.

Update

2007-04-13T06:33:00.000-07:00

I've updated my link bar, check it out for some more blogs that I've started reading recently (and some not so recently)

A Punjabi Wedding

2007-04-08T21:46:00.000-07:00

Last night I found myself scarfing down tender seekh kebabs at a Punjabi wedding and it struck me that there's something special about Punjabi weddings, which sets them apart from the rest. The reason is obvious: a large number of Punjabis.
For one, if an invitation card to such a wedding says "7:00 PM" it means that the guests (i.e. you) should not arrive 10:00 PM. No wait. 11:00 PM. (I do admit that this is often true of ALL Indian weddings, events, etc.)
Punjabis like to eat. Obviously, food is of paramount importance at a punjabi wedding. It is, undoubtedly, the centre of attention. Even more significant and important than the wedding ceremony itself which begins painfully late.
(It would also be worth noting that Punjabis like to call chicken "murga". Their refusal to call it "chicken" is not without reason. Apparently, calling this delicious form of poultry "chicken" reduces its appeal to the tongue.)
Punjabi weddings also have a large number of punjabis (am I stating the obvious?). And Punjabis laugh. When Punjabis laugh, they like the world to know that they find something funny. Their laughter is loud, clear and resonates in the hall. The word "Hearty" is apt.
Relatives. When you're at such a wedding, and you're related to one person (to the best of your knowledge) a domino effect is observed. An entire battalion of relatives appears, and also knows you quite well, seemingly. The remark "Kinna vada hoga ya!" is often heard during the introductions to this seemingly endless regiment of Punjabi relatives.
Another essential part of the wedding is the Bhangra (forgive me, but I'm not too sure about the difference between gidda and bhangra). No Punjabi wedding is complete till a large number of relatives raise their fingers (pardon the expression, but if you've seen anyone do the Bhangra, you'll no what I'm talking about. "Shake their legs" just didn't make the cut.) to Punjabi music. This is by far the most enjoyable (and hilarious) part of the wedding.
Try and visualize a large group of fat men and women (full to the brim with food and drinks) trying to shake a leg to "Punjabiyan di Shaan Wakhri". A sight to behold.
The ceremony itself is short and sweet although it takes place at about 1:00 AM as the "baraat" has too arrive. It's not very important either.
Punjabi weddings are about food, drinks, dancing, music and Punjabis. The bride and the groom are hardly seen. Ironic? You're damn right.

NOTE: Any inaccuracies in protocol and/or procedure that might have crept in are inadverdent and deeply regretted.
And yes, I am a true, hearty, fun-loving, kebab-scarfing Punjabi.

Of strangely-named place and DKPAC nomenclature

2007-03-31T23:29:00.000-07:00

Before I begin, let me point out that I hate the title of this post but I couldn't think of anything more succinct and crisp, so just ignore it (and now that I think of it, even succinct and crisp don't convey the meaning perfectly; not the mot juste I was looking for).

Ever noticed how Basant Lok Complex is called Priya?
The shopping arcade in Saket is called just Saket.
DT City Centre is often called Lifestyle.
And, Metropolitan mall is called Metropolitan.

I have a better idea. Saket should be called tetraPVR-McDonalds-Subway-Pizzahut hexasaketarcade. Read on and I'll explain.

It might not seem strange until you examine each of these names carefully. In some cases, the place is named in accordance (I hate this word, too) with the name of a movie theatre, the adjoining colony, the anchor store and, in the final case, the name of the mall itself.

The name is thus meaningless, random and arbitrary (this time, I've found the mot juste). Also, often confusing.

Those of us who have studied chemistry know that this is precisely the problem with common names, and to circumvent it, IUPAC nomenclature is used.

So, I propose DKPAC nomenclature for this very purpose (the name DKPAC, itself, has no meaning).

Rules:
A DKPAC name consists of two parts:
1. the adjunct
2. the root

The root itself must specify the number of shops, the location and the nature of the place. A prefix to the location is used to convey the number of shops and a suffix conveys the nature.
eg. hexasaket conveys that saket has six shops.
Acceptable prefixes include meth, eth, prop, buta, penta, hexa, etc.
Suffixes are as follows:-
1. arcade, if it is an ordinary open-air shopping complex
2. mall (the name is self explanatory)
eg. hexasaketarcade conveys that Saket is an arcade with six shops.
decametropolitanmall conveys that Metropolitan is a mall with 10 shops.

Now we come to the adjunct. The adjunct can have an infinte no. of parts depending on the number of groups to be considered (like substituents in IUPAC nomenclature). Stores/movie theatres/eateries with more than 1,000 footfalls a day make the cut (i.e are considered).
For example, Priya has two adjunct with fall in this category. PVR and McDonalds.
Thus, the adjunct for Priya would be PVR-McDonalds

Naming the adjunct for multiplexes is slightly more complex as the number of halls within must be specified. The same rule also applies for food-courts where the number of distinct eateries must be specified using a prefix such as bi, tri, tetra, and so on.

Thus the adjunct for Metropolitan would be: pentaPVR-tetrafoodcourt-Shopper's Stop

To obtain the complete name, we combine the word root and the adjunct.
The complete name for Metropolitan mall would be:-
pentaPVR-tetrafoodcourt-Shopper's Stop decametropolitanmall

Priya
PVR-McDonalds Octabasantlokarcade
Saket
tetraPVR-McDonalds-Subway-Pizzahut hexasaketarcade

Note: I have randomly assumed values for "the number of shops", as I don't know the exact number. These values, however, suffice for the purpose of illustration.

Google does it again

2007-03-31T23:26:00.000-07:00

Come April 1st, 2007, and Google has yet again managed to pull one of the coolest pranks ever. It's called Google Print. Check it out
I almost believed it - and frankly, it would've been an interesting service (also free).
Dhruv
Oh and btw, I'm back.

Yesterday

2007-02-15T04:56:00.000-08:00

I had my computer science practical yesterday. The viva totally sucked. The external examinor asked me stupid questions which I couldn't answer.
I just have this knack of appearing stupid (and unbelievably dumb) whenever I'm in the company of other people. People think I'm the kind of person who has a hard time understanding fractions and decimals. Same thing happened yesterday. The external examiner thought I was the kind of guy who wouldn't be able to write a hello world program in C++.
Anyhow, I finished my practical by 12:30. I roamed around in school for a while as I had to say "something" to "someone" till I figured I was making a fool of myself. And I couldn't locate "someone". So, I left for Priya by 1:00. By 1:30 I decided to go back to school. Reached back by 1:50, just when the buses were leaving and managed to make a fool of myself again.
So, then I went back to Priya again. What with St. Valentine's day and "love in the air", it was pretty nauseating. I didn't stick around too long.

Today I also got my SAT - I result. I must take my subject tests again.
SAT I- 2380 (780 in Math)
I won the bet.

As of now, I'm up to my chin in organic chem. Also, I'm figuring out how to NOT look like an idiot in front of other people.
One of these days, I'm going to buy a mountain bike.
Let me take this opportunity to tell you about this rather awesome lines:-
All generalizations are incorrect.
My advice to people is not to dispense advice.
I know they haven't been written verbatim, but this is all I can remember.

I also request two minutes of silence. Yesterday was St. Valentine's day. The day P.G. Wodehouse, the greatest author of all time, died. I shall never be able to enjoy V-Day.

Anyhow.

P.S. I hate it when people say "anyways". For god sake its "anyway", without an 's'.

What's with the world?

2007-02-08T04:16:00.000-08:00

250 applicants, out of the total 5000 (approx.), were accepted and admitted to the nursery school of DPS. The acceptance rate is about 5%.

5 %.

Wait. Do you know what Harvard's acceptance rate for undergraduate students is?
Ans: 9%

Conclusion: It's harder to get into the Nursery School of DPS than Harvard.
Ridiculous.

Cheers,
Dhruv

Farewell

2007-02-01T06:07:00.000-08:00

So, school life has officially come to an end for us. DPS RKP bid us farewell yesterday in the aptly named Greenfields on a hot, sunny day. It is now, officially, over.

Its sad. The school has been like a companion that we've been walking with. At the start of this "journey", our "companion" walked right by us, hand-in-hand. It made sure we didn't fall or wander. It guided us around obstacles and led us ahead. As we moved further along this path, the grip loosened, until it (our companion) finally let go. It started to walk besides us, shoulder-to-shoulder, with a proud look on its face. Encouraged us, pushed us forward. We started to believe in ourselves and moved forward. We thought it'd always be this way. Walking ahead, but never without our companion. But it was not to be. Suddenly, we realized our companion wasn't walking with us anymore; it had left us. We turned back and could see our long-time companion waving back at us, sad, holding back tears, yet proud that we were now MEN who could go out in the world. But there was no going back, we could only look back and say "Goodbye. And thank you."
Yesterday was that day. We finally realized that school life has come to an end for all of us. The end was bitter-sweet.

This is the kinda stuff I'd write in an essay. But as this is a blog post, I'll change my tone.

The farewell was an interesting event which, due to the formally attired students, resembled an Indian wedding. At this point it would be worthwhile to point out Akshat and Gursartaj were somewhat "standing-out". Akshat Verma was totally "pimped-up", dressed in a white suit and a Hawaiian blue shirt. Gudi was dressed so informally, he made everyone else feel rather jealous.
In terms of the timing of the event, it was supposed to start at 2:30 and end at 4:30. However, most people arrived after 3:00 and left by 5:30. The only exceptions to this were Aniket Roy and Gudi. While Gudi arrived at 3:15 and left by 4:00, Aniket walked in at 4:30.
The so-called cultural event was quite ordinary and rather annoying. The skit was a shame, the songs were pathetic and no one was interested. I still don't know why they even tried.
And, yeah, it was hot. Blazing hot. It cooled down a bit by 5:00, though. Like last year, Sid and I tried to fool the guard, who was making an idiot of himself. Last year, Gudi helped us with this task. However, this year, Mohit Taneja and Pritish Malik assumed his position and ably helped us dupe the guard-who-was-making-an-idiot-of-himself.
The food was also pretty ordinary. Aloo tikki and Chaat is not the ideal thing to be served on a supposedly formal event. The food only added to the Shaadi-like atmosphere.
It was also quite hard finding other people. There were close to a thousand students in a football field, after all. It gets quite crowded so basically its a pain trying to find anyone else. Cellphones to the rescue!
By 5:35, we were asked to leave rather curtly. Heck, if they hadn't literally pushed us out, we would've stuck around till god-knows-when.
Then we left. It was over. And let me say its been nice knowing all of you. Thank you.
Farewell.

Check out the pics below.

2007-02-01T05:13:00.000-08:00

Jasmeet Khosla, me, Rohit Arora, Tarun and Akshat

2007-02-01T05:11:00.000-08:00

Me and Mihir Dutta.
Mohit and Pritish are also visible in the background.

2007-02-01T05:09:00.000-08:00

Sid, The Cow, Gudi and me

2007-02-01T05:07:00.000-08:00

Live long, my son.

2007-02-01T05:05:00.000-08:00

A lot of people.
Me, Raghav Khullar, Mohit, Ankit Srivastava, Pritish, Sid, Akshay, Vibhu and half of Adarsh

2007-02-01T05:01:00.000-08:00

Siddhant, Akshay, Gudi, me and Sid

2007-02-01T04:56:00.000-08:00

Aashish Manchanda, me and Rasagy.
Two really smart guys and the President of Exun (me).

2007-02-01T04:54:00.000-08:00

Mohit, Sid and Pritish

2007-02-01T04:43:00.000-08:00

RG, behind a couple of cameras

Akshay Johar and Akshat Verma.

2007-02-01T04:37:00.000-08:00

Part of Class 12-H.
Mohit, Shomi, Akshat Verma(the pimp), me, Arpit, Rishabh and Sanchit.
Deepak's head also visible, right behind Akshat.

2007-02-01T04:34:00.000-08:00

Vibhu, TDG, Siddhant and me.
Seemingly Siddhant and I have won something. (Notice the "V" signs.)

2007-02-01T04:30:00.000-08:00

RG, Adarsh, Vibhu and me

2007-02-01T04:27:00.001-08:00

Siddhant saying, "We're grown-ups."

Some strange words

2007-01-30T22:42:00.000-08:00

Some strange, real English words:-

bailiwick
boondoggle
brouhaha

Really funny sounding words, if you ask me. English is a strange language.

Federer wins again.

2007-01-28T05:06:00.000-08:00

Roger Federer beat Fernando González to win the Australian Open for the third time - also his tenth grand slam, in all. Man, this guy is unstoppable and if he continues winning at this rate, he might become the greatest tennis player of all time.

Featured Geek: Sid Nangia

2007-01-27T03:19:00.000-08:00

In the first part of the "Featured Geek" series, Slurpin' Editor-in-Chief Dhruv Kumar interviewed Sid Nangia. The complete transcript of the interview is reproduced below.

For those of you who have been living under a rock, Sid Nangia is the Editor of Under_Score, a Member of Exun's Core Group, Director of the ECOSOC at DPS MUN 2006 and Chief Executive Officer of Madras Gin. He's also the man behind Under_Score's Cover (literally, Varun Khetarpal is the man behind Under_Score's cover) and the smashing Exun 2006 Intro Video.

1. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Hopefully running my own company somewhere out there.

2. Describe your idea of heaven.
Mac Book Pro + Gisele Bundchen ( youll get this one by the time your reach Q. 8)

3. Linux or OS X?
OS X

4. iPhone or Aeon?
Aeon looks awesome , but its just a concept. I'll go with the iPhone. (okay apple fan here)

5. Best thing about 2006 ?
we thought up MADRAS GIN

6. Best thing about 2007 (so far)
i got accepted at CMU

7. Salma Hayek or Gisele Bundchen?
Gisele Bundchen

8. What would you rather have in bed next to you: a Mac Book Pro or Gisele Bundchen?
Gisele Bundchen , cant bring my self to say macbook pro regardless of the way i spin it.

9. ZFS, HFS or NTFS?
ZFS, Max file size 16 exabytes - gotta love it

10. One word to describe Slurpin'
Sweet

Keep your eyes peeled for the next "Featured Geek".

2007-01-25T22:03:00.000-08:00

Today is the 26th day of January, so, Happy Republic Day.

Exun: EXUN Unlimited

2007-01-25T10:41:00.000-08:00

Wouldn't it be cool if Exun stood for Exun Unlimited? Recursive, like GNU, PHP and WINE.

After the Boards

2007-01-22T03:08:00.000-08:00

Heres what I want to do (among other things) after the boards:-

Ride a bike all the way to Chandigarh.
Sleep at 8 PM and not wake up till 8 PM the next day
Eat 2 dominators (or 4 footlong subs)
Get totally sloshed
Watch the entire LOTR trilogy back-to-back
Re-read Hitchiker's Guide
Watch each episode of Star Wars, in order
Watch every Bond movie ever made, in chronological order
Start Madras Gin
Visit Goa and run along the coast in my nothing but my boxers
Do Bungee Jumping and Zorbing (Added later)

Nothing very crazy or wild, but its just some stuff I'd like to do after them boards.
What does the Times Person of the Year (i.e. you) want to do after the boards?

Nokia's Aeon

2007-01-21T03:15:00.000-08:00

Okay. I know this is just a concept phone, but nonetheless it is beyond doubt one of the coolest phones that I have ever seen in my life. Orgasmic is the right word to describe this phone.

If this phone is ever made, I'm going to drop my K790i like a hot potato and buy this, even if it doesn't have any features (Heck, I'd buy it even if it didn't make phone calls).

And this is an image from the official Nokia site. Skeptics, click here.

All that glitters is not gold

2007-01-11T05:19:00.000-08:00

Message to Apple fanboys: All that glitters isn't gold.

Take a look at the resemblance between LG's phone and Apple's iPhone.

It was obvious that Apple wasn't going to manufacture the iPhone themselves, but now it seems like one of the following occurred:-
1. Apple sub-contracted to LG
2. LG and Apple both sub-contracted to the same manufacturer
1 is likelier.
LMAO.

2006-12-29T21:12:00.000-08:00

Saddam Hussein - Dead. Hanged (not hung, mind you) this morning.

The one with no soul

2006-12-29T03:36:00.000-08:00

Today, waiting for MS (the Cow), I had the unique opportunity of spending a full hour with "The One with no soul." During the course of this hour, I perused this individual's recommendation and found the following phrases, scattered all over that vile document:-

endeared himself to students and teachers alike, within two years of joining the school
left his mark in the school
will be remembered and cherished by the school for years to come
one of the most confident, charismatic and intelligent students the school has ever seen

Pretty impressive. I raised my eyes and peered at the individual closely. Never before had I seen a seedier specimen than the one I beheld. Short, dark, with a pinched face and half-closed eyes, as if avoiding the sun. He wore photo chromatic spectacles that gave him the look of a vile, evil-smelling insect. Repulsive.
And yet points no. 1,2,3 and 4 had been placed in this individuals recommendation.
Upon further inquiry, the specimen (human scum or the one with no soul) admitted that he had written the recommendation himself. Ah, that explains it, I said to myself. My indignation subsided momentarily.
However, moments later, the following question struck me: "Has he no shame? Has he no soul? Has he no mirror to look himself in the face with?". The fellow looked as bad as a dung-beetle on steroids. As an uninspiring as a hippo-hunter. As insipid and dull as a cold pizza.
But really, has he no soul? No conscience?
Anyhow, thats the end of my rant. Lets move to brighter topics.
Abolish the question mark
Yes. Abolish it. Isn't it a tad annoying that everytime we have to ask a question, we have to use the shift + / combination? I propose to use a / in place of the question mark. Its easier to use and looks a lot cooler.
For Example:
Person: How are you/
Other Person: Im good. You/
Henceforth, I will replace the question mark with a / in all my online conversations. Thank you for bearing with me.
S'all for now.
~Dhruv

2006-12-27T20:33:00.000-08:00

In the OAT, DPS RKP. Those were the days.

I'm building up courage to go to school tomorrow to visit MS aka the Cow aka TeaPot aka the high Bovine. She really is a pain in the backside.

2006-12-25T08:09:00.000-08:00

The pre-boards are at hand
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the pre-boards are at hand. If you haven't realized it by now, then you're in trouble. If you have realized that they're at hand and yet you're here reading this, then you've simply accepted that you're in trouble and you plan to live with it.
Orkut is good
I've been using orkut for the past week (I've been on orkut much longer, but I never used it seriously) and I'm pleased to say that it's way, way better than Hi5. Hi5 is just too childish. Now that I've passed out of school, I figured it was time to grow up, so I gave Hi5 the boot and switched to orkut.
Madras Gin
Thats the name of my future company. I've been told it sounds like an exotic cocktail. Hmm. Thats not necessarily a bad thing, though.
Parting Shot
Go to The Big Chill in Khan Market, if you get the chance. The food is amazing. Really amazing.

I guess this is all for now. I must now go, make myself iced tea, consume it and proceed to do integral calculus.
Bye.

Merry Christmas

2006-12-25T04:13:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas to one and all. Have a great day.
Cheers.

The times are changing.

2006-12-21T10:06:00.000-08:00

I'm in an exceptionally good mood today. Let me explain why:-
1. On Saturday, I was rejected by Stanford.
2. An FIR was lodged against me (among other people) and a complaint for under-aged drinking was filed against me in the school.
As it happens, today I got accepted by the University of Surrey. I had initially planned to do History at Stanford or one of the ivy leagues, but now I'm veering towards doing EE or CE at a good univ in the United Kingdom. SO, obviously I was elated.
Interestingly, the FIR and the complaint against me, both, were withdrawn/dropped today. The FIR was obviously weighing on my mind and bothering me quite a bit. Anyhow. Life is good.

Among other things, I just discovered that the final book in the Harry Potter series will be called "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" which, I must say, is a dreadful name.

Thanks to Google Analytics, I also discovered that people have reached my blog after searching for "the internet is full of shit". I'm sure it is, but what sort of people go out of their way and do a search in Google, specifically to look for shit? Strange.

Anyhow, I must repeat that life is good. RG, Sid, Gudi and I plan to open a company next year. We haven't really decided what the company will do, but we're still starting a company. I hope we call it "Madras Gin", which is an anagram of "RG is da man". Lets see.

Goodbye for now.
Dhruv Kumar
P.S. I am a student of DPS RKP (RK Puram)

2006-12-19T05:04:00.000-08:00

Codewars 2006 is ours. HAHA. The sweet taste of victory.

2006-12-18T04:46:00.000-08:00

I just had kiwi juice. It tasted alot like aam panna. Go figure.

DPS MUN 2006

2006-12-07T05:28:00.000-08:00

DPS MUN (or DPSMUN?) 2006 came to an end yesterday. It certainly was a 'worthwhile' experience. Let me elaborate.
Btw, be sure to read RG's day-wise posts on DPS MUN 2006 and check out his pics.
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Also, check out Gudi's blog for his post on MUN.
Well, thats that. Its gone. Its over. DAMN.
Cheerio,
Dhruv

DPS MUN 2006 Day 3

2006-12-07T05:26:00.001-08:00

DAY 3. The last and final day. We had absolutely no work, so we started doing other weird stuff.
First thing in the morning, Gudi, Adarsh and I went to AAD (All American Diner). Adarsh had a vegetable hoagie. (I love that word)
So, obviously, Kartikeya and I went to the plenary early morning, accompanied by Manas. Manas and I eventually got bored and almost fell asleep while Kartikeya continued to incessantly flirt with that messenger from Class XI.
Lunch was crap. I hated it. Sid and I then had three strips of bacon at AAD. Finally.
There wasn't any entertainment point this year, unlike the last. So, we soon had the closing ceremony, where we couldn't show our video (with RG doing the "MUN"walk. I hope someone puts it up on youtube). Eventually, the crowd dispersed and we all went home.

DPS MUN 2006 Day 2

2006-12-07T05:26:00.000-08:00

DAY 2 also had a deceptively tame start. However, things soon changed and we were flooded by numerous resolutions scribbled by a battalion of idiotic delegates with impossible-to-decipher handwriting.
I picked up a resolution and read the first clause, which was:
Deeply distressed, by the dung problem in the world.
Hey, so am I, but is it worth discussing in a session of the UN? Turns out it was actually 'drug', not 'dung'.
Lunch was okay. RG realized that he'd been given a coupon with the number 666 written on it. So, naturally , I planned to take advantage of the situation for some good fun and we started composing a letter demanding a formal apology from the USG, Food Coupons (yes, they have USGs for everything. They also have a Vella USG Clan, known as the VUSGC). However, RG and I somehow misplaced the letter.
Day 2 was also the day when we created the Gangster's Hole. The lights were switched off, and more chairs were moved in. Day 2 was also the day when Adarsh became an unofficial member of CIS. He helped us play games and type resolutions.
RG and I also smuggled in coke from a nearby marketplace into Habitat. RG's resourcefulness must once again be brought to the reader's notice. We stuffed 2 two litre bottles in the pockets of his jackets, and it was still impossible to make out that he was carrying anything underneath his all-black attire.
At about 3:30, Kartikeya, Sahil and I went to the Plenary, pretending to be part of the International Press. Obviously, we sat there and read stupid messages. Also, Kartikeya kept flirting with a certain messenger from class XI who kept showing us flirty messages that delegates were sending each other (I mention this only for the sake of completeness. Also because this messenger must not be confused with another "friend" of Kartikeya's from class X). I eventually had to pull him away from the plenary, otherwise the amorous escapade would have never ended.
At the end of day 2, I took a picure of Vibhu's coffee before going home.

DPS MUN 2006 Day 1

2006-12-07T05:24:00.000-08:00

DAY 1 started off well. RG picked us (i.e. me and Kartikeya) in a black scorpio, while he was wearing an all-black suit with black shades (the shades eventually became a sensation at DPS MUN 2006).
The first day took a while taking off. Actually, it never took off. We had no work to do and were busy playing games and bothering people. Tea was taking a little longer than we were expecting, so we started a good 15 minutes before the actual "Tea Time" by having our share of cookies from the wrapped cookie plate.
Gudi arrived late, with his Senior Pagdi. Also, Sid and I went to AAD pretending to be traders (Wall Street, btw). We discussed ENRON stock in front of the waiter before we made our exit (pretending to be busy) without buying anything as we didnt have enough money.
At this point, it is worth mentioning the Gangster's Hole aka Room two. Room two was the room given to CIS (technically, its ICS but I prefer CIS). We moved in two laptops (RG's thinkpad and Sid's PowerBook) and 7 chairs into a tiny room. Eventually (on the second day) we smuggled in coke and switched off the lights, giving it the resemblance to a Gangster's hideout, as Vibhu pointed out.
Manas Gautam and the rest of the CIS department persisted with their games after lunch (the only good things in lunch were the mass kofta and the chocolate ice-cream). However, I joined Ishaan Chugh in his pursuit to dupe any loser we could lay our hands on. We randomly stopped people and asked them weird questions (and took fake interviews). Ah! Sadistic pleasure. Manas also joined us for a while.
After lunch, Sid and I went to AAD and ordered some stuff. However, we once again left abruptly without paying and/or eating. DAMN!
So day 1 was basically a waste of time, however we enjoyed it thoroughly.

Samsung

2006-11-23T10:16:00.000-08:00

So I was unpacking the so-called Samsung Hero. A phone that costs a mere 3500 bucks (I got it for free btw). I was pleasantly surprised.
The build quality of the phone is superb. The keys are big and have a good feel. Tactile. Easy-to-use. The quality of the plastics used in the phone is phenomenal. It has a nice velvety feel to it. I'm mighty impressed with Samsung. I had expected a cheap, low-quality Korean product but was surprised to find a value-for-money, high quality product from Samsung.
I am, btw, a stout Nokia supporter when it comes to phones for alot of reasons but after using this phone, I'd say I'm pretty open to buying a Samsung phone, in particular one of those slim Ultra edition phones.
Sony-Ericsson is a strict no for me, due to reasons, namely:-
1. It's a Sony
2. I don't like the memory sticks. Proprietary shit.
However, they're walkman phones are pretty good. The quality is great and they have some neat features. However, the lack of a real OS is at times annoying.
Motorola? Awesome looking phones but an equally horrible User Interface. The standard UI used for the RAZR, KRZR, SLVR, etc. look like they've been ripped off a 5 year old colour phone. It's absolutely shocking that a company can get away with something so disgusting.
That's why Nokia is the best. Great build quality. Symbian kicks ass. Feature packed phones. Legendary ease-of-use and user interface. However, they don't do to well in the looks department.
Samsung looks to be almost as good as Nokia and with the kind of money they're pouring into R&D, they'll probably trounce SonyEricsson and Motorola in the near future.

2006-11-21T09:56:00.000-08:00

Over the course of the next week, I shall be introducing you to R.D. Sharma and Kahlil Gibran. The prospect of introducing you to the most dreadful authors in the world gives me a great deal of sadistic pleasure.

An update was due, and here it is.

2006-11-20T20:38:00.000-08:00

As everyone knows, Exun took place on the 11th and 12th November, 2006. Went well. It was also my last Exun. Ironically, the end-of-school and similar such sadness shit hasn't sunk in yet.
The Exun sweat shirts, I feel, will take a while coming but it will be done if all the juniors are "helpful" ;)
During my absence, the PS3, the Nintendo Wii and the Zune have been launched. Here's my take on them:-
Sony PlayStation 3
A Waste of money. Spend it on the Wii instead if you want to play good, fun games.
However, there are certain good things about the PS3. If you want a powerful machine with an awesome processor (read: the Cell) then go for the PS3. The PS3 will let you install PPC based Operating Systems. Yellow Dog Linux and Fedora Core 5 have been successfully installed on it. It also comes with a BluRay drive. All for 600 dollars. A pretty good deal if you think of it as a Linux desktop, though I don't see what you'd do with one.
Bottomline: Sony looses big bucks on every PS3 they sell. So go buy it, if you want Sony dead!
Nintendo Wii
It was codenamed "Revolution" and, if you ask me, it has done just that: revolutionized the gaming console industry. While the X-Box 360 and the PS3 pushed for more number-crunching power and High-Def graphics, Nintendo has stuck to the basics: better gameplay. The revolutionary controller, the Wii-mote, is one of the most endearing features of the Wii. The price, $250, is also welcoming and is unlikely to burn a hole in your pocket.
Zune
The Zune hath arrived. And it's darned good. Put aside Apply fanboyism for the moment, see some pics, read some reviews and check it out. It really is good. The Zune might not, and probably WILL NOT, hurt the iPod much right now, but I suspect the second iteration of the Zune will give Apple's iPod a good run for its money.
Oh, and if you thought the iPod had a good looking user-interface, then check out the Zune's UI. You'll probably drool over it.
Microsoft doesn't suck that much, now, does it?
More later.

2006-11-05T08:55:00.000-08:00

Saddam has been sentenced to death, two days before the Bush administration is expected to "face the music". Coincidence? I think not.
Yes, I think Saddam deserved to be punished. However, I neither agree with the timing of the sentence nor the sentence itself. Capital punishments, imho are inhuman and should be abolished. Such medieval practices are best left in the medieval ages.
Anyhow, Exun is coming up. Being the President of Exun is tough. Never realised it.

Firefox 2.0

2006-10-27T09:01:00.000-07:00

Firefox 2.0 is really good. I've been fiddling around with it, and I've concluded that it's a worthy successor. The User Interface also looks marginally better. However, my favourite new feature is spell check. Its quite useful when you're writing blog entries and emails.

2006-10-25T10:49:00.000-07:00

Attention Microsoft haters and LOTR fans, read this: http://www.comedycorner.org/76.html

The exams are over

2006-10-18T11:21:00.000-07:00

The exams are finally over. They went reasonably well (for any class 11 or 12th student, this means that I didn't have my ass kicked. This is the kinda pile of shit we're in, by the end of class XII).
The problem with the last exam is that, inevitably, the next day involves waking up at 11:30 with a splitting headache. No matter what you do, theres no getting away from the hangover that you get because of last night's partying (more specifically, last nights booze).
Anyhow, you guys know this as well as I do, so without further ado, lets move on to more pressing issues.
Tell me, do you like (or prefer) fat waiters or thin waiter? I think I'm biased towards thin waiters. They seem more efficient. I feel they can give me better service. Fat waiters, I believe, are slow and inefficient, and incapable of rendering good service. In other words, they make you wait, and, in effect, make you the waiter (okay, bad joke).
Fat waiters, on the other hand, give you the impression that the food has to be good. Think about it, waiters spend alot of time in their respective restaurants. If they're fat, it's probably because they eat a lot of food, most of it being prepared in-house. This, in turn, means that the food must be worthy of being eaten. In short: Fat waiters mean bad service, but good food. So make your choice.
And Einstein is (was) an absolute nitwit. I respect the fellow for his work and all, but his english is horrendous. I (and all other class 12 students of my school) had the misfortune of reading a speech that he declaimed on a dull, dreary day in New York. It's horrendous. Period. His sentences are long and fragmented, his organisation is utterly illogical and his style is, once again, horrendous. (You may level the same accusations against me but I'm not Einstein am I? Nor am I a nobel laureate).
Nordstrom is good.
That is all for now, my friends.
Dhruv
P.S. I heard from a reliable source that Gudi is restarting his blog.

2006-09-14T09:38:00.000-07:00

Those arrogant IIT aspirants in our class were damn wrong. They dont know shit.
Let me explain: Fermat's principle does not explain refraction. Read wikipedia's entry on Fermat's principle and you'll know what I'm talking about.
Undoubtedly, Fermat's principle proposes a result which is true, but bear in mind that it is a result, and not an explanation. I pointed this out to Tuteja and company but, as always, my words fell on deaf (and extremely arrogant) ears.
Anyway, presently I'm inundated with work. I have no time at all for anything. So see ya around.

2006-09-12T05:07:00.000-07:00

I wonder what Apple is going to release today. The excitement is driving me insane.
P.S. I hope its the elusive iPhone (seems unlikely) or atleast a widescreen iPod (more likely).

Victory

2006-09-11T05:36:00.000-07:00

Schumacher won, and subsequently announced his retirement by the end of the season. This truly is sad. Formula-1 will never be the same anymore without Schumacher. Love him or hate him, he was undeniably the most significant driver the world of racing has ever seen.
Roger Federer won the US Open. Number 9 for Federer. WOW. That's all I can say. And he's just 25.
We Won e-spice 2006
We also won MINET 2006.

Its been a good week on the whole.

News: RG has taken up blogging!

2006-09-05T05:32:00.000-07:00

Inspired by someone, RG has started blogging, following Sid who resumed blogging yesterday.
Check out his blog http://rgdot.blogspot.com
P.S. I think I was the one who inspired them to blog! Haha :P

2006-09-04T05:41:00.000-07:00

Sid's blog is back. Check it out.
http://lordsid.blogspot.com/

Reverse Image Search

2006-09-01T05:05:00.000-07:00

I like Google Image Search and in addition I'd like something like a Reverse Image Search. Let me explain:-
You copy an image into the engine.
The search tells you stuff about it.
Simple as that.
I have a lot of images lying around whose source I'd like to trace - and know more about. Wouldn't it be cool if I just copied an picture of say, a park in Delhi into this Revearse Image Search and it would tell me that the park is Shri Malwari Lal Park and the pic was taken by Mr. Harnam Singh?
Yanyway, more later.

Gradients

2006-09-01T04:37:00.000-07:00

Can you spot the gradient on this page?

Does sound travel in water?

2006-08-29T04:36:00.000-07:00

Well, physics will have you believe that it does. But have you ever experienced anything that would suggest that sound travels beneath the surface of water. Have you ever heard anyone talk underwater?
There is, of course, a very worrying problem associated with speaking underwater: the moment you open your mouth, water will make its presence felt within your mouth. Not a very pleasing experience. This has always deterred me from speaking underwater.
However, I think I can convince some poor, stupid soul into attempting this (assuming that he overlooks the water-in-mouth incident that will inevitably occur). Before the inevitable surge of water in his mouth, if the poor idiot manages to speak a few words, I might be able to solve a mystery that has intrigued me for a long, long time.
If one of the aforementioned idiots is reading this post, then please feel free to volunteer by means of a comment. After, science must triumph in the end.

The Thank yous

2006-08-23T12:23:00.000-07:00

Now that under_score is finally out, I'd like to thank some people for their efforts and contributions. They are:-
1. Mukesh Sir
He's supported and encourages us throughout this initiative, as always.
2. The Principal, for taking such interest in our magazine
3. Gudi: It was his idea, he conceived it.
4. Sid executed Gudi's idea to perfection.
5. Mohit, for the wonderful cover and the cover story
6. Rohit Garg, for writing a brillian article in the gaming section
7. All the other authors
This is an unofficial thank you, so I'm being totally honest in my "thank yous" here, as this is my blog.

Under_score

2006-08-21T04:47:00.000-07:00

The first issue of Under_score has finally arrived. Take a look at some pictures of my personal copy:-

The stunning cover is the outcome of some solid hard work by Sid and Mohit.
The whole thing has come out well, and we'll learnt from the mistakes that we made this time, and the next issue should be much better.

Under_score

2006-08-21T02:24:00.000-07:00

It's finally out. The first 25 copies of under_score arrived from the publisher's, and they're simply stunning. I will post a pic (or two) as soon as I get the chance, but I must repeat, the magazine is stunning.

2006-08-19T22:43:00.000-07:00

Oh and by the way, there were 77394 searches for "shit" in yahoo during july 2006. People really are stupid.

The internet is full of shit

2006-08-19T22:34:00.000-07:00

Check out this link and you'll now what I'm talking about.
It's incredible that more people searched for "shit" on the internet that "vodka". Okay, vodka might not be a very popular thing itself, but shit? Do people actually go out of their way to type the word "Shit" in google and hit the enter key? Seemingly they do.

Two words

2006-07-29T22:14:00.000-07:00

I posed this question to someone:
"What do you plan to do after the exams?"
And I got this reply:
"I have two words for that: Relax"
Go figure!

The day before Monday

2006-07-29T21:55:00.000-07:00

It just so happens that tomorrow is a monday, and today is the day before it i.e. Sunday. A beautiful day, I must say, which finds me busily (yeah, right!) studying computer science for the upcoming test.
Getting to more exciting stuff, there is a race today. Which means I have something to look forward to.
I'll end this post with a question.
Why are people so incredibly stupid?

A tussle with a cow

2006-07-29T05:14:00.000-07:00

From the Boondoggle blog. Posted 5/16/2005
The "cow menace" has really gone beyond being a menace in New Delhi nowadays. I was witness to one such event of "Cow Rage" (all phrases in quotes were coined and used by TOI, not me).

The sole motive of the cow seemed to be to try and insert its horn through the metallic shell of the car (much like a fork through an omelet), and the sole motive of the car's driver was to get as far away from the cow as possible. When such clashes of strong-minded (and possibly fat-headed) individuals take place, there is bound to be a heated argument and an exchange of words..
But this wasn't the case this time. The driver was cursing the cow in all languages known to him, but the cow was either very thick-skinned or just wasn't concerned. It went about its work in a manner which would've put business-oriented Europeans to shame.
All were having a merry time, when suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, six burly "jaat" cops, equipped with lathis and ropes emerged and dispersed the crowd. The cow was more obstinate and refused to budge.
The exalted leader of the "jaat" cops shouted to the cow "Key karan lagra hai?" (What are you doing?)
The cow, unfortunately, didn't understand and remained quiet on the issue (maybe it didnt wish to hurt diplomatic sentiments). This infuriated the exalted leader of the "jaat" cops, who after glancing at his lathi proceeded to place the lathi underneath the cow, and then pushed upwards.
To this the cow replied with a loud grunt and moved away, much to the disappointment of the now dispersed (but still expectant) crowd.
The thing fizzled out without much action, but it could've led to something serious. The point I'm trying to make is this: Why doesn't the highly incompetent MCD do something about this?
Something must be done to avoid a clash of interests and avert impending disaster.

Food Junkies

2006-07-29T05:07:00.000-07:00

A junky is a person who is addicted to heroin, but the word can now be used to describe a person who is enthusiastic about anything. Thus comes the concept of a food junky.
A food junky is a person who is particularly enthusiastic about eating good food in good quantities, with a fairly decent frequency. I am such a person. I love food, I love eating. Both give me immoderate pleasure.
My love for food goes to such an extent that I have found myself concentrating more intensely on my food than my date on numerous occasions. I'm sure people find it irritating, but so what?
My love for food is challenged only by possibly one other thing: my love and passion for coke. People who know me will readily testify that I can effortlessly gulp down 4-5 bottles of coke (and I'm talking about the 600ml ones) in a day.
Everyone has their different passions. So do I. To each his own, I say.

The purpose of this blog

2006-07-29T05:03:00.000-07:00

There are many things that I wish to achieve through this blog. The most significant aim of blogging is to keep in touch with my friends and acquantances once I leave DPS RKP, my school, and possibly Delhi, my city. I realize it'll become very difficult to interact with all of them online or via email, and so the idea of blog comes naturally to ones mind.
Another reason for blogging here on this blog is because I enjoy writing and blogging.
Now that I've explained the intent of this blog, I can start posting meaningful (this might be an exaggeration) posts here.
Thanks

A word about the template

2006-07-14T09:52:00.000-07:00

I do not intend to stick with this template, it's only in place temporarily till I come up with something better, something cooler and neater.

Hi

2006-07-14T09:32:00.000-07:00

Hi.
Welcome to Slurpin'.
I originally used to write on "the boondoggle blog", but I took a break from blogging, and the once renowned boondoggle blog fell into a state of negligence. I planned to relaunch the boondoggle blog as "the Boondoggle blog: Part Deux", but I eventually settled for Slurpin', which I found was much shorter and easier to spell and remember.
So, now that I have a name, I've created a blog and embarked on a great journey, a journey which will hopefully be a memorable one.
As an introduction, I think this will suffice, but do expect more interesting stuff from me, and keep coming back.
-Dhruv
P.S. I may in due course repost some of my posts from the Boondoggle blog, and then again, I might not.