07.19.08
My 2 cents: the unfunniest (for want of a better word) segment of SNL is “Weekend Update”. There! I said it!
07.08.08
Persepolis
Persepolis was a delight as I expected it to be. So is Marjane Satrapi in real life. The DVD special features were almost as fun as the movie.
07.07.08
Dr.Sharma
Nandu successfully defended his doctoral thesis today. I’m so happy for us. It has been a long battle and he really stuck it out like a true warrior. CONGRATULATIONS DR.SHARMA
06.27.08
To my movie-loving friends
If you have even a little faith in my judgment, watch this gem of a movie. It’s barely 15 minutes long and one of the finest I’ve ever seen.
06.22.08
Discovering Dexter
Ever since I heard of this series of a serial killer trying to lead a normal life as a forensic expert, I had been dying to watch it. It was only last week that I finally got round to picking up the Season 1 DVD at Blockbuster. And I was not disappointed. I’m now eagerly waiting for August 2008 when season 2 will be released on DVD. Love you Dexter.
06.20.08
Last comic standing- Papa CJ
This MBA from Oxford is representing India on Last Comic Standing ( NBC-8/7c). Last time I saw, he’d made it to the semifinals in Las Vegas. Unfortunately I’m too distracted by his sing-song English accent (his tone changes the way it would if he were reciting a poem) to actually listen to his jokes. If you have watched avant-garde movies like “English August” where even the chaprasi and the aunty in a middle-class Indian neighborhood talk in a similar accent, you will understanding how ludicrous it sounds. Result: I have no clue how he got this far as a stand-up comic.
06.09.08
When I called home this weekend, Maa had some news for me. The education minister of Assam was arrested by the CBI. He had been under investigation in a murder probe and tried to bribe the CBI official to hush it up. The bureau laid a trap for him which ended in his arrest. Although nothing about politics surprises me anymore, it’s ironic that out of all the portfolios, the douche bag had to be minister of EDUCATION. Talk about setting an example!
06.07.08
Iron Man
Of late, I can’t seem to put a word down without getting all maudlin and teary eyed. So on a lighter note, watched “Iron Man” yesterday, had been meaning to for a while but couldn’t find company. Have yet to muster the detachment/lack-of-self-consciousness to watch a movie at a public theater all by myself. Movie reinforced my faith in Downey Jr. and reminded me yet again how hot he is. Left theater with a crush on him and feeling a decade younger. Feel less irritated now by Sarah Jessica Parker and her annoying voice, giving her a few points for having once dated Downey Jr. Loved it that the movie ended with “Iron Man” playing in the background!
06.01.08
Every evening Maa fills the small earthen urn with dried coconut husk and lights it to create enough smoke. She then adds dhuna to it and takes it on a round all over the house to drive out the mosquitoes. The temple-like ambiance created by dhuna was like a sign to us kids to go sit at our study table and prepare for the next day. Often the timing of dhuna would coincide with the regular load shedding by the state electricity board and I would be thrilled not to have to go sit at my table using the absence of light as an excuse to prolong my leisure.
On a day like today, I would probably be sitting next to mom as she prepared the duna for the evening, catching up with the latest gossip and adding my two cents, speculating what Tulsi or some other character would be doing in the next episode of “Kyunki…” or whatever her favorite was at the moment. Then the conversation would turn to dinner and what to cook that night. If both of us were in the mood, we might even go over to Mrs. Das’s, the chatty lady who albeit served a very good cup of tea. On warm lazy summer afternoons like these, I long to sit on the veranda with Maa.
04.11.08
So Spring has finally hit good old Atlanta. The pollens form a thick blanket on the windshield. The cherry blossoms party like there’s no tomorrow. And I go back to sneezing endlessly, thanks to the aggressive pollens. This time I finally decided to take some allergy medicines and thus celebrated my complete Americanization.
03.19.08
Next to “No country…“, another great movie watched in recent times…”Atonement“.
I love locking horns with the experts when it comes to deciding which movies deserve awards. Especially with corny romances like “Titanic”, “Notebook”, etc. hogging the limelight while less glamorous gems like “Breaking the waves” go unnoticed. That’s why I’m always pleasantly surprised when I find myself agreeing with the dudes. Although in my defense, I saw “No country…” and fell in love with it before the rest of America decided to consider it Oscar-worthy. In fact I remember how I had to convince my friends to come inside the theater to watch it with me ‘cos they hadn’t heard of it yet and thought it was a cheesy cowboy movie.
03.14.08
Funny man
The other day I saw and heard Lewis Black for the first time in the Letterman show. I thought he was the funniest man I have seen in a long, long time. And I don’t mean Seinfeld funny (that dude doesn’t get the first thing about being funny.His show was a hit because of everyone but him). I’m so looking forward to seeing more of crazy, ranting Black.
An appetizer and a drink
12.10.07
Viva Momo
A friend of mine from Nepal recently graduated and, God bless his soul, his graduation party turned out to be a Momo party ! For those of you who are not familiar with what Momo is, ask any true-blooded soul from Guwahati. It is one of the reasons that I yearn to go home at least once every month. My life sure would be missing something had I not tasted Momos. We all joined his wife and sister in making those soul-purifying delights 
I ate like one possessed !
12.05.07
World of Warcraft
Finally found a way to serve the cause of good. These days I’m busy defending Azeroth from orcs and trolls with my faithful minions
11.22.07
“……there are two kinds of anger: hot and cold…………Boys need hot anger to survive. They need the inclination to fight, the drive to sink the knife into the flesh, the energy and initiative of fury…………And girls need cold anger. They need the cold simmer, the ceaseless grudge, the talent to avoid forgiveness, the sidestepping of compromise. ………Cross a man and you struggle, one of you wins, you adjust and go on_ or you lie there dead. Cross a woman and the universe is changed, once again, for cold anger requires an eternal vigilance in all matters of slight and offense.”
Sarima in “Wicked - The life and times of the wicked witch of the west”
10.28.07
Sad but true
Child made clothes for GAP shops . A well read professor who had visited our lab sometime back said this about child labor,“…but these very kids would starve were it not for the money they get from such labor”. She just defined exploitation !
10.19.07
Durga Puja
It’s that time of the year again. The 9th year in a row when I’m not where I really want to be—HOME. Happy Durga Puja to everyone.
05.28.07
Nostalgia
A bout of homesickness made me do a random search for images of my beloved hometown. To my delight I found Travelling Tim, with its archives on Assam, replete with glorious snapshots that brought back bittersweet memories.
05.15.07
How to keep coriander leaves fresh
Storing fresh coriander has been a recurring issue with me, especially since one bundle is huge enough to last a month at least. No matter how fresh they are when I buy them, by the time I actually get down to cooking with them ( which invariably turns out to be at least two weeks post buying them) , they are wilted beyond redemption. This tip from IndiaCurry.com sounds interesting.
In short, pick and collect all the leaves from the coriander stalks, get an ice cube tray, stuff every ice cube cavity with the leaves, add just enough water, freeze for two days. After two days, remove the coriander cubes and transfer them into a freezer zip-lock bag and store in the freezer.
Let’s see how good the leaves are after defrosting.
04.26.07
Gosford Park
I think ths is my lucky month. Last week I won two tickets to attend Al Gore’s speech here at Tech. Then today I watched Gosford Park, a random Netflix selection. I had absolutely no expectation from it and was prepared for yet another droll commentary on 20th century England. Instead I was rewarded with a jewel of a movie which in my history of movie-watching became the only one to be honored with three viewings in quick successsion ( no, I was not depressed or crazy). I attribute it to that one scene towards the end between two main characters which, to me, was the most sexually charged scene I have ever scene in a movie. Really surprising considering that during the entire scene, the characters are decently clothed and simply talking, talking about a murder at that, and the only physical contact is a kiss at the end. I was literally bowled over by that scene and actually felt weak in the knees. A surreal experience. The last time a book or movie affected me thus was when I was a 12-year old reading Anna Karenina. I was infatuated with the Vronsky-Anna romance and remember reading those parts involving the two lovers over and over again. I really enjoyed this deja vu moment that made me feel more than a decade younger today And I thought I had finally grown up !