...The best match ever (to date)!
... Speechless after seeing the final ODI between SA and Aus
You can catch parts of the match (Aussie innings + short highlight of Gibbs)HERE
If someone comes across the entire match, especially Gibb's knock - do lemme know

(Chaami Exits)

...from the Largest of United's states!
(I still dont consider alaska a habitable entity)
What a wonderful trip this has turned out to be! I was recieved by chilly, rainy evening and 2 muggers in LA...and was greeted in Austin by tornado and hale.
There are 2 fascinating things about Texas - the ranches and the cowboys. BrokeBack Mountain took the glamour off one of 'em, and Dick Cheney shot down any possible interests in the other.
However, Cheney still claims he was only playing paintball and believes he wasnt responsible for the accident.

I'm Revived...I'm Recharged...and I am here to Stay!
...No, this isn’t another of Al Gore's pre-elections talks. This Chaami's survival story - the story of a young kid who dreamt big. But he couldn’t dream long because he often had to wake up for a change of diapers. Then he grew. And he dreamt...and dreamt...and eventually realised it isn’t going to take him anywhere. At least not until he leaves a country that boasts of over a billion dreamers. Some all day.
Defying convention, he flew east. He'd wondered what convinced his parents he would do fine staying away from home at such an early age. A few weeks in the country gave him the answer-He was under-aged to enjoy smokes, booze or sex, and was thrown into a country where Rules is the religion ...and everybody is a devotee. Naturally, he took a liking to Malaysia. He doesnt really recollect a lot of what happened since. But he remembers a brief period of freedom and absolute emptiness in life - when he first decided he will join the huge brigade of blogarbage-makers in an effort to pile unending, chronic bullshit onto himself and the world. But he had to stop. After another year of drudgery, combined with some strong luck - he finished his degree in good time. That marked the end of any structure to his lifestyle, and he fell deep into the sea of freedom....of eternal emptiness...a state which gave him the opportunity to do anything. Or nothing at all. Now he can see the force calling out to him. And thanks to his 5 yrs in Singapore, he will succumb without a question. Blog he will.
Now that he has joined the army of numb, money-sucking, mindless slaves of yet another multinational - he will continue to nurture his corporate interests over public good...and he will definitely continue to blog!

(Chaami exits)
PS: Subsequent posts being from US - I feel it would be befitting to their habit of doing/having everything reversed if I could write it in Urdu.
Well mebbe thats why the Arabs seem to love them in a very peculiar way!

....A NATION MOURNS
It isnt april 1st, I amnt sleepy or slaushed and I didnt read it from Times Of India either!!!...Now tat means its true.
In what was described as the most dramatic encounters of all times, Veerappan was shot in his home-forest near Dharmapuri Village.Spectators thought it was another Movie shoot, government's press release version claims its was an accident and the authorities were actually on a vacation, hunting deer.But then mistake is a mistake, and this one is of the highest order. Despite clear sign boards warnings like "Human Settlement ahead", "Terrorist crossing ahead" and "Bearded men at work-dont mistake for bears"...the carelessness of the Spl. Task Force has resulted an irreversible destruction of the ecological balance in Dharmapuri District.
Analysts claim that over the next 5 years, the population of trees and animals in the forest will triple.The Opposition condemned the Government for their irresponibility and demanded that the CM take responsibility and step down.
Personally, having grown up watching invincible icons like superman, spiderman and veerapan, this is the second disastrous news I am hearing in a weeks time(superman hit the bucket too!)
A: Veerapan shot by Tamil Nadu Special Task Force
Me: Ohh..not again! was it another film star...and they have actually set up a special force to track and video Veerappan's activities!!
A: No man...shot..as in the kind tats done with guns.

The Nation plunged into grief, the prime minister announced nationwide mourning and requested with the entire Male pupolation to grow their mustache as a tribune to the Man was and will be seen as the symbol and representation of moustachehood.
Women all over India were shocked about the news. When asked about her reaction, former Miss Univ Sushmita Sen said" What wil happen to the cosmetics industry now?no sandalwood any more?The future of the Nation looks bleak".
The Prime Minister Announced that Veerappan will be honoured with the title of 'SandalHOOD of India'.
Described as the Black Tuesday 2, the share market crashed following the release of the news.Cosmetic companies like mysore Sandal and Lux were among the big losers.
The Tamil and Kannada movie industry expressed deep grief on hearing the news.Their relationship with Veerappan extended well over a decade through exchange visits, monetary aid and time and again-providing a subject storyline for the insipid storywriters in both industries.
President Bush, who hadnt cared a damn abt India for so long tat he was ignorant of the change in government, called Mr.Vajpayee and wished him for successfully completing the oldest and longest fight against a single terrorist group."This success couldnt have been achieved if 'the dumb female leading the old n demented opposition' had been the PM of India" he said.
The incident has created a huge void in the terrorist groups active in the region and people are all eagerly waiting for the next veerappan.
will he have the trademark moustache anyway...

(chaami exits)

View this post in perspective of a villian at the end of a melodrama...or mebbe a telugu dub Vijay TV matinee special...
I havent been spending enuf time on by blog...ohh wait...actually i havent been spending any time on my blog!
But ofcourse...you woudlnt expect a guy who leaves for a lab as soon as he wakes up...and comes bak jus to crash in the room to come up with anything even remotely exciting...leave alone find the time to write it....
naah..this aint those glorious days of work...when again i got up jus in time to rush to office...but then thr was this whole empty phase from 830 in the morn to 6 in the eve...where i could do a whole world of thinking and writing and writing without thinking....
i dont intend to make this the last post..the finishing touch for my blog...but i definitely know tat the next few weeks of my life is definitely gonna be so wierdly hectic...tat the last thing i wud be left with is creativity or strength to even sign off as chaami exi...
assuming i have done enuf beating around the bush....i intend to summarize saying...damn i havent paid the blog enuf attention....and ohh..sorry folks...pardon this insipid bloke....look at him as the remake of prodigal son(original script by J.Jesus).....
...and thus explained...i re-enter the arena

(chami exits)

Crazy thieves in Singapore!
Had a brilliant weekend...back to back stage drama...by crazy Mohan's troupe.
They staged Jurassic baby on friday and Madhu +2 on saturday. Though I had seen the 2 plays many times...on stage and tv....it still left me(and the close to 80 odd audience) in tight fits of laughter. jus for the stats, crazy troupe have done more than 4000 stage shows in their last 25 years (their first play was on aug 7th..so madhu+2 marked the end of 25 yr on stage).
And the best thing about them.....with 25 yrs of drama experience(being the leaders all the while) they still have not the slightest degree of aloofness or attitude.Absolutely casual...I spent almost 45 ins with them backstage...before the start of the first play...and at the end of it...and i actually felt like i was sitting amongst my friends. people were jus casually addressing each other..craxking jokes...listening and speaking to us all the time.
Wats more....during the show, for which i got the pass thanx to my friend AK(whose chittappa is the famous 'cheenu' character-one of the 2 cheenus to be exact), we sat in the first row...right next to Mrs.Mohan...another very simple lady...she shared a lot of info with us during the intervals.....
One of the highlights was Mohan introducing the troupe at the end the second drama....tat showed wat spontaneous on-the-spot humour is....as he spoke abt each person's history...or profession(most of them VRSites)..or role in the troupe...injecting every sentence with jokes..pun and a few slapstick oneliners.



this foto wouldnt need a intro i guess!..except for that the dark one on the right end is me(for those who dint still figure out...tats 'madhu' in the middle)

the famous 'cheenus'


(chami exits)

I'm bak!.....
A brilliant vacation...a mini meet...and(flicking from dubukku)-Thai naadu to Noi naadu via Thailandu.
I havent been blogging or following up for almost a month now *apologetic*
Bak in India i went on my usual tirupati and kula deivam trip...on that context, for those who didnt know(till the year before i used to take the train and bus series ..making it a long and strenuous trip)..AP tourism(Tnagar) provides a very convinient one day tirupati trip package-pretty convenient.
Then was the trip to Tirumangalakudi(rings bell...neone??:P)...and from thr to salem.
Salem happens to be one of my fav places...bcos most of my childhood hols were spent there...along with my cousins-memorable days. Hoganacal happens to look the same....same old parisal...same meen varuval kadais...and the same odour(which made me puke the last time i went there).
Then there was this totally random trip we(cousin and her parents) took....went off looking for this place called aalambara fort(After reading abt it inTheHindu)...not sure how far was from chennai(along the ECR)...we almost reached pondycherry-not much in terms of ancient structure..but brilliant backwaters...and nice drive)
Then came the tricky part. Thanx to my excellent behaviour, a brilliant display of my extreme laziness and haphazard careless way of doing stuff..mom decided it is high time she sent dad to check on how "things" were bak in univ-to have a check on me-as she put it.The mother of all awkward situations...to take ur dad into ur bachelor room..which has some 8 ppls stuff piled on all corners....and a wonderful array of the the "things-that shud-not-be-named"..the solid...liquid...and smoke.
Thanx to the help of my roomie, the room was made presentable...before we reached.
Chennai hits:
veedu and saapadu
chennaiyil oru mazhai kaalam-6 days of rain
mini blog meet
tour de south
also managed to meet div and wini...and we sat thru a wonderful hindi movie(forgot the name!)
Udhayam theatre
chennai sodhappals:
TV...to hell with the settop box concept...till whe is the stay..will good old days of cable connection be bak?
(chaami exits)

This bunch is wat i managed during the journey from singapore to bangkok...

view1


zooom...and tat cant get better-srini-wat a camera!...this is one of the ships from the previous snap


my fav pic...


singapore aerial view


singapore buildings..ships...view2


serendipity
welcome thailand...first view of mountains

(chami exits)

these snaps r at changi airport..not many...2 at the airport and one before takeoff

changi airport


changi airport


on board