Nostalgia...

The pictures speak for themselves....... Beautiful memories, rushing back, esp. when IISc interview is hours away :P

Schindler's list

Saw Schindler's list finally yesterday. Wonderful movie. Sensitively shot, most scenes without dialogs have a greater impact on you than the lines that are spoken. And, surprisingly, Schindler is not shown to be a Saviour. His character isn't glamorized. He is shown to be an opportunistic German, who has no qualms about using the war to get cheap Jewish labour and make profits. And, the war makes an unexpected hero out of him. Superb acting by Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes. Do watch, but I warn you, quite a disturbing movie!

Rough waters

Life has been smooth sailing over the last few months. Each new venture has paid off. Things have worked out much beyond expectations. Now, the road ahead is kuchha. Bumpy, unpaved. Scary. It's been said that taking the road less traveled makes all the difference. This is an untraveled road. Hopefully it will make a positive difference.

Redemption :)

Got admission to NCBS. :) Interviews went well. In fact, felt much less nervous than I thought I would be. Realised the brand value that IIT has. Also, realised that my 2 yrs at IIT have opened my mind, which the Bangalore University tried hard to clog with useless factual stuff. I can actually reason, analyse and solve unfamiliar problems now - even attempt basic math stuff without the fear that I used to have earlier. Can even bullshit with great aplomb :D Great self-esteem booster :) One should attend interviews once in a while :))

The day of reckoning.

It is here. The D-day is tomorrow. Feel confident as long as the butterflies in my stomach don't flutter too much. Lack of appetite [when it's me saying this, it is serious :)] , clammy hands, dead weight in my tummy .. NiNa tells me I am normal [1N as he put it :P], that this amount of nervousness is but natural. But I wish it would go away. Someone silence these butterflies. Would rather have the bread-and-butterflies they talk about in 'Through the looking glass.' Guess Alice didn't have any nbd while facing the panel of cards. :P

Survival of the fittest

Nature isn't the benevolent loving motherly figure that it is made out to be. Nature is harsh, ever changing and never predictable. It keeps throwing challenges at the creatures who inhabit it. So, there is a constant struggle for existence. Only the fittest survive. By the fittest, I do not refer to the one with the most potential or the one with superiority. Dinosaurs were big, superior and powerful. But, they were wiped out. Roaches and bugs survived - through millions of years. By their sheer ability to adapt.

Adapt. That is the key word. The ability to adjust to Change that is constantly occurring in Nature. And, this theory of Darwin isn't limited only to classical Evolution as it is studied. It applies to us, to our everyday lives as well.

More often than not, it so happens that things do not go according to our plans. Murphy rules and all that could possibly go wrong, will. In this kind of a 'race' which is unfair, where some are having it easy only because they haven't had obstacles in their path; it is but natural that the guy doing the hurdles race gets disheartened. But, in this kind of a hostile environment, the true survivor is the one who can adapt to this situation the soonest. Who can take in his stride the situation he is in and try to make the most of it. Who can control his mind and not brood over what went by but focus on what lies ahead.

And, as Martina Navratilova said, "The moment of success is too brief to live for it and it alone". Life is long and, in the long run, it always evens out.

I know this might be a little preachy, and, is surely easier said than done, but I have my reasons for putting it up.

The dance of democracy.

Voted in the Karnataka assembly elections. Voted for the least crooked among crooks :) Not that it would make a huge difference, or that that my vote would tip the scales, but, this is my contribution to the remnants of democracy operating in this country. As Helen Keller said -

"I am only one, but still I am One.
I can't do everything, but still , I can do Something,
And, I will not refuse to do the something that I can."

Must say the indelible ink mark looks a lot like the SDS PAGE staining soln. Must see if I can remove it with destain. :) Ah! The inquisitive mind of a scientist :D