Trains

This post is neither about my fascination for trains nor about my rants of a train journey. Its just a post that captures the various kinds of people I've encountered in my 4 years of travel between Bangalore and Madurai

1- The bunch of people who right after boarding would plug-in wires (sorry earphones) into their ears and enter into another world. At times, you can even hear them exhibiting their singing talents.

2. The other kind who usually board the train as one big family. And always on the lookout for innocent victims to exchange seats and rescue their family members from a different coach. It might also happen that the exchanged berth might be in RAC status and the victim would end up sitting all the way while the other enters into snoring mode to avoid an exchange.

3. The kind that comes as a three member family. A husband, wife and a new born baby(which would turn the world upside down with its cry). Born to cry tagline would suit it better. You don't have to worry about alarms to wake up the next morning, because you never get to sleep the whole night.

4. The elderly gentleman and lady who would have reserved the Lower Berth in the coupe. Just when you thought that you had a good magazine or a book to read, the lights would go off. You end up going to your Berth half heartedly trying to search for the elusive sleep.

5. The college gang.. The fun loving gang who would be awake atleast half the duration of the journey. As usual the topic would be, movies, politics, company life, good old college life, who's getting married next in our class topics, lastest updates on who's where n what doing now stories ( i can see your smile )..what not.. The patrol officer in the train would dissolve the assembly session for the night.

Having said all these, I would love to be a part of the college gang when travelling with friends and be a bookworm forced to sleep when travelling alone.

Whatever, I still enjoy travelling by train.

Life without the internet!! nah..

I just cannot imagine a life without the internet.

Following are my observations on this internet age:
1) Login to mail and check for a mail every 2 minutes.

2) Mailbox would be the first site that would be visited right after the system boots.

3) If no new mail arrives within 30 minutes, we are driven to such an extent that we suspect somethings wrong with the mail server and hit Refresh button twice.

4) Have a mail account created with almost all of the mail service providers ,from Yahoo to Zapak.

5) Watch videos uploaded by our friends in Facebook, Orkut etc.. and losing track of time..

2010...

This is my first post in 2010. Looking back at 2009, it was quite an eventful year. The year has gone by, but not its memories. Where can I put my trust, except in Him.
A wonderful hymn which means a lot to me.

Living one day at a time

Nice read :-)

The Bible is very clear that there is needful help in every trial. Physical burdens are ill to bear, and mental burdens are even harder. However, faith allows me to face each day knowing that tomorrow is also in God’s hands.

This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

(Psalm 118:24 KJV Bible)

• I know He is the beginning, so why do I worry about the end?
• I know He is the creator, so why do I wonder who will destroy?
• I know He has forgiven me, so why can't I forgive myself?
• I know He is a healer, so why do I speak of sickness?
• I know He can do all things, so why do I say I can't?
• I know He will protect me, so why do I fear?
• I know He will supply all my needs, so why can't I wait?
• I know He is my strength and my salvation, so why do I feel weak?
• I know that everything and everyone has a season, so why when someone's season is over do I weep instead of rejoice?
• I know He is the right way, so why do I go the wrong way?
• I know He is the light, so why do I choose to walk in darkness?
• I know that whatever I ask of GOD, GOD will give me, so why am I scared to ask?
• I know tomorrow is not promised, so why do I put off for tomorrow what I can do today?
• I know that the truth shall make me free, so why do I continue to lie?
• I know He gives us revelation knowledge and understanding, so why do I lean on my own understanding?
• I know I should live in the spirit as well as walk in the spirit, so why do I choose to live in the spirit but walk in the flesh?
• I know that when praises go up blessings come down, so why do I refuse to praise Him?
• I know I am saved, so why do I refuse the word He has given me?

Story time it is...

I read this story on the internet and felt that it should go in my blog for sure:

There was once a bird which stayed close to a sugar factory. It usually had the habit of taking sugar from one place to another. One fine day, while repeating its usual course of fly, the sugar which it was carrying fell off into a pot containing water. Desperate to get the sugar back, the bird dipped its beak into the pot containing water. Since the sugar had just started to dissolve in water , the water on top of the pot tasted very sweet for the bird. On its way back, thinking the water would still be sweet it dipped its beak to find that the water wasn't sweet. So the bird started taking more amounts of sugar everyday and added it into the water, but still the water in the pot wasn't sweet. In desperation, the bird started working over-time, just to show its mates that it has found a water pot that had sweet water. Its mates never knew the ground reality.

Moral of the story: Half-truth is far worse than complete falsehood.

Always know...

Always know that God cherishes you and live that way

What a wonderful promise it is. A sense of security in God's arms. A sure sign that ONLY God can love us unconditionally come what may. Like an expression of joy that descends on a sailor's face on seeing a lighthouse when sailing though a tempest. He gets the assurance that the destination is not far away and he just needs to focus on the lighthouse and sail towards it.

The Bible says in Psalm 55:22 "Cast your cares on the LORD and He will sustain you, He will never let the righteous fall". An answer when we are too bothered about the problems in life.

God's restoring power by Rev.Arun Andrews

To track Rev.Arun Andrew's event calendar visit here

stars n smile

I happened to read this interesting quote somewhere...

If I were to hold a star in my hand for everytime you made me smile, the entire stars in the evening sky would be in the palm of my hands. I don't find any stars in the sky today.

That's deep... :-)

Granny's cake

Atheists say "the reason mankind still believes in a Creator is because he has not yet fully understood how the Universe came in to exisitence. Just because Science has not yet proved convincingly the Big Bang Theory(& the likes), mankind clings to his age old beliefs".

Hope, you might have heard this umpteen number of times. This, to an extent can be summarized as "Science is God".

Assume a granny has baked a chocolate cake.
A group of scientists are asked to examine the cake.

One says "NaHCO3 is present"
Another says "It is made of wheat & cocoa"
Another says "Flour & milk is mixed in the proportion 3:1"
Another one says, "It contains sucrose"

Well said. The above could be true. But examining granny's cake never answered "WHY Granny baked it in the first place?". Science answers only the "how & what" part. Granny could have made the cake for a birthday bash!.

Now, coming to the original topic, where science fits in? Mankind in his knowledge has found a scientific explanation to the constituents of the Universe. But Science can never answer the WHY part or the purpose behind it.

This is the reason why Science cannot take God's place.
Science only helps us understand the fingerprint of the Creator.

How small we are!!

I got this link from one of my friends. Just a reminder of how small we are.
Click here to view

7 things the world doesn't know about me

In continuation to my earlier post on 5 Things the world doesn't know about me some years back, here's an update :)
Here it goes...

1) I have the habit of adding sugar to coconut chutney every time. Well... Sugar + Sambhar also tastes good... It seems a bit weird, but I have always liked the taste :)

2) I have been to the theatre only thrice in my life so far,
Jurassic Park (1994) - with family @ Madras
Jungle Book (1998) - school trip @ Madras
Chak De India (2008) - Team outing @ HP, Bangalore

3) Gulab Jamoon & Rasagulla are the sweets I hate the most. Maybe it is too sweet for my tongue.

4) Chess, the game I love the most. I have represented my school in chess tournaments at Madras. And have always regretted for the lack of exposure I got after moving to Madurai in 1999.

5) I have the habit of treasuring my old stuffs safely. And of course, memories of my Kindergarten days, 11th & 12th tuition classes, the unlimited fun I had while seated at the last bench during my 12th std @ SBOA, 1st day at college, new friends during my college days, campus placements , semester exam scare and the list goes on...

6) Of late, trying to explore the ironies & contradictions in life.
A random thought, X- boy, Y- girl,
Statement 1: X likes Y. X decides not to approach/talk to Y until things get settled. After some years, X happens to meet Y. Then X decides to talk. The Crowd says, X does not even know Y and so no point in talking now.
Statement 2: X likes Y. X decides to approach/talk to Y. Years go by, they get along very well. The Crowd says, how can X do such a thing. X should not have talked with Y in the beginning.
Statement 1 & 2 are ironic.

7) Many people who interact with me become surprised when they come to know that I am a Christian. "Nirmalanand" which means "a person who delights in holiness" literally gives very little hint that I am Christian.

By the way, there is absolutely no significance as to why I have chosen 7 things and not any other number ;-)

What Christmas Is & Is not

It Isn't about:

1) It is not about the Santa Claus that appears these days as a default logo during Christmas season

2) It is neither abt the Christmas tree nor the star that hangs in front of the house.

3) It is not about plum cakes & new clothes.

4) It is not about all-night parties.

The media and the society portray Christmas as yet another day to party & exchange gifts during the holiday season, in effect the real-meaning of Christmas is lost somewhere. It is analogous to a person arranging a huge banquet for a King and not inviting him. How good is that???


It Is about:

God’s love for mankind. A love so pure & lasting, that He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die for us and to save us from our sins [which would end in death otherwise]. And a time for us to realise, repent of our sins and accept Him so that we might live and walk with Him every day.

A year gone by..

Dec 17th 2007, it is still etched in my mind, the day I underwent Zyoptics Eye Treatment to correct my vision, of course to do away with my specs :-). I have been wearing specs from my 3rd standard, probably due to hereditary reasons, since my father & grand father started wearing specs at a young age.

Coping up as school going kid had always been difficult, especially when I stood out so distinctively in the class just because I wore a spectacle so big that would cover two third of my face 8-) ... Not to mention the insults & nicknames from teachers & other contemporaries. This went on till I completed my 12th standard. I switched over to contact lens once I joined college[Ah, what a relief!! :)]. Looking back, it brings a smile on my face and am thankful to God for making me go through these sort of experiences so that I could learn from them.

PS: I have abstracted on my Zyoptics Eye Treatment procedure coz I ain't a doc ;-) .. On second thought, I would post it sometime in future on-demand basis :-)

No more in its teens :-)

Couple of months back our car crossed its teens. Manufactured in 1988, FIAT(Premier Padmini Deluxe) has been a part of our family since 1990. It was bought as a second-hand car from the Art Director Thotta Tharani(you must be seeing his name in a lot of tamil movies these days). Couple of features I really admire in our car is its floor gear design and push back seats, which was a rarity in those days, hence it was tagged as a Deluxe model.

It has taken us to many places: school in Madras. trips to Guindy Zoo, Marina beach, especially my one and only transport during my 12th Public Examination in SBOA and to semester examinations in all my years in college. One thing which has never troubled us for the past 18 years is its engine [so durable!!]. Our car drinks [Er.. I mean runs on :-)]pertol (Lots of 'em!). It has crossed over 70,000kms and gives a milege of around 8kms/litre.

For the past 10 years, it has run only on second-hand retreaded tyres. If we were to buy steel radials like MRF ZVTS, it would cover more than half of the car's worth :D

Though Premier Padmini hasn't been tagged as a vintage car yet, you see them very rarely on the roads. Be it anyway, it would be in my books as one of my favourite cars and am really proud to see it parked in our portigo :)

There she stands!

Up & Running

By God's grace the website of Bethel Methodist Church, Bangalore is up and running at http://www.bmcbangalore.org/. The website was dedicated for the Glory of God on July 13th 2008. Too complex for me to fathom that it was God's plan that I should take up .NET as my passion during my college days. Read here & here & here

God answers to ALL our prayers

This is one of the forwards I got in my mail box, it made me realize how wonderfully God had led us thus far. Despite that, we in our usual-selves are quick at saying "I pray everyday for my wants, but God doesn't seem to answer". We need to change this part in us to move closer to God.

Patience is what we need in prayer

When the idea is not right, God says, "NO".
No - when the idea is not the best.
No - when the idea is absolutely wrong.
No - when though it may help you, It would create problems for someone else

When the time is not right, God says, "SLOW".
What a catastrophe it would be if God answered every prayer at the snap of your fingers.
Do you know what would happen?
God would become your servant, not your master.
Suddenly God would be working for you instead of you working for God.

When you are not right, God says, "GROW."
The selfish person has to grow in unselfishness.
The cautious person must grow in courage.
The timid person must grow in confidence,
The dominating person must grow in sensitivity.
The critical person must grow in tolerance.
The negative person must grow in positive attitudes.
The pleasure-seeking person must grow in compassion for suffering people.


When everything is all right, God says, "GO."
Then miracles happen:
A hopeless alcoholic is set free.
A drug addict finds release.
A doubter becomes a child in his belief.
Diseased tissue responds to treatment, and healing begins.
The door to your dream suddenly swings open and there stands God saying, "GO!".


Remember: God's delays are not God's denials. God's timing is perfect.

The Lord wants the very best for us, but let us not arrogantly assume that we know what this "best" is.

As the trials of life and our circumstances continue to frustrate us, be comforted by the admonition from James: 5:7-11 "be patient; strengthen your hearts" and know for certain that "the Lord is full of compassion". Amen.

God bless you!

Random Art

Ever since I started eating sandwiches a new habit started developing in me. After picking up my sandwich, I take the ketchup bottle and squeeze around the top of it, make random designs. This is one such design of mine.

BTW folks, if anyone thinks, this is no art and this is too small a matter to be posted on, I can do nothing but remind you that a blog is something that brings out the silliest and most inane things in life ;)

Dogs Everywhere

On my way to the office, I found this sight of two dogs lazing on a wall at a busy intersection where there's always constant honking of cars and buses. I stopped by to take a snap.

In Bangalore, dogs are everywhere from busy roads to small street corners. I'm a little scared of dogs and I dread walking in the streets at night. Near small mutton shops on the street you can find dogs (very muscular ;) ) which often chase people riding in bikes. Whenever you read incidents of dog bites in the newspapers, you can see people from NGOs and Blue Cross flocking around and say "They are innocent creatures. Leave them alone!". One question I would like to ask them ,"What if that same dog bites someone in our family, you still stand by what you have said???". I agree that killing dogs is inhuman, but leaving them on the roadside is dangerous. They are also responsible for many accidents, when they suddenly come in front of speeding vehicles especially bikes. Dogs can be adopted, this avoids killing them and guarding people.

Of Oil & Masala Dosaas

Almost every hotel here serve masal dosaa (this is how its pronounced here). You can catch them in the menu of hotels ranging from big ones to the not so famous eat outs here. But no matter where you eat it, you can't do away with the oil that also comes along with that [free of cost :)].
This morning me and my friend ordered for masal dosaa, after seeing the waiter bring it, I grabbed a bunch of tissue papers from the table and so did he, which must have made the waiter wonder what these two guys are up to with all these tissue papers. If you think that we took it for wiping water off our hands then you are absolutely wrong!!!! As soon I reached the table, i placed the tissue paper on the dosaa and it started soaking like anything, the tissue paper because as transparent as glass. Then I sat wondering what will happen if I keep on eating this dosaa soaked in oil for a year. No wonder the doc wud say, "Hold it chap! you have a high cholesterol level". I don't want anything like that to happen, so I decided to avoid dosaa items as much as possible and eat it only when I have no other option.

Spooky dreams!!

Last night feeling too bored i went to bed very early and was simply rolling around until 11.30pm as I couldn't sleep well. I woke up at 3 am the next day, courtesy my dream.

The dream?? here it is... There is an old museum in some unknown place where people visit very often. In one of the halls showcasing old furnitures, a grand piano is at one corner. Ocassionally the piano plays on its own. The person who sees this piano while it is playing disappears under mysterious circumstances the very next day. So far no one is aware of incidents such as these. On the next day, I (an ordinary character in this dream) visit the museum. I start exploring the museum and I enter the room hosting the grand piano. I see no one in the room and I see the piano playing on its own. Thinking that to be some mechanical setup I move around the room and when I was about to leave the room, a woman rushes towards me asking me to stop. Feeling a bit sceptical as to how this woman ended up in this room without my notice, i start marching forward as if turning a deaf ear to her call. Then I hear repeated shouts from that woman. Tired of her shouts I turn back and I see that lady approaching me. I see a big dressing mirror placed on the wall, to my astonishment I dont see her reflection on the mirror. Then I quickly look at her, and find her completely dressed in white with a pale yellow face and bloody red eyes. I then start running and I suddenly wake up in bed thanking god it was just a dream.