tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54623312011-04-21T13:44:21.879-04:00VoXboXTyping for Stress ReliefBarnaclenoreply@blogger.comBlogger731100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1080156935552110682004-03-24T14:35:00.000-05:002004-03-24T14:41:56.373-05:00India came to a grinding halt before the final match of the India-Pakistan series, taking place in Pakistan. This series is probably the most imporant thing happening in the universe for most people on the subcontinent. The political scenario is hilarious - apparently, the outcome of this match has important repurcussions in the upcoming Indian elections. How great would it be if the US Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1077077308861274732004-02-17T23:08:00.000-05:002004-02-17T23:10:42.090-05:00Really interesting article on dirty politics in American history...
I had no idea that the campaigns in the past had been so raunchy. Imagine someone giving John Quincy Adams the nickname: "the Pimp"!
Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1076804648516139272004-02-14T19:24:00.000-05:002004-02-14T19:25:59.826-05:00The Spark Personality Test - here's what they think of me:
DREAMER
(Submissive Introvert Abstract Feeler )
Like just 11% of the population you are a DREAMER (SIAF)--reserved and imaginative. You are basically the shy, silent type. You don't have much interest in facts and figures or most of what's going on around you, but the internal worlds you build for yourself are rich and complex.
Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1076372957505213232004-02-09T19:29:00.000-05:002004-02-09T19:38:49.296-05:00A pilot asked the passengers on his flight whether they were Christian.
Now, usually, I do my BBC reading with a faint smile of amusement on my face. I have realized that the BBC has a penchant for reporting on rather bizarre incidents throughout our world. Sometimes I've shared some of them here. But that article about a proselytizing pilot really terrified me. It reminded of Margaret Atwood'sBarnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1075820033599891432004-02-03T09:53:00.000-05:002004-02-03T09:58:34.950-05:00I have performed an interesting experiment.
Let me preface by saying that med students are very pretentious about being health-conscious. I think it makes sense that med students would be healthy - I mean, you spend all day looking at slides and descriptions of what happens to you if you smoke, drink, eat badly and don't exercise. I have avoided becoming paranoid about my health (or conscious inBarnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1073627470342640002004-01-09T00:51:00.000-05:002004-01-09T12:32:57.856-05:00
Billions of Blue Blistering Barnacles!!
Tintin is 75 years old, and you'd never think to look at him! Pass the whiskey....
(Let's just hope that Spielberg's proposed films do Herge justice.)
The reason I don't remember most of my adolescence.
Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1073571816476843122004-01-08T09:23:00.000-05:002004-01-08T09:24:50.466-05:00Weird dream.
My friend and I drive to NYC, but accidentaly end up in San Francisco. We are in a house that has winding hallways and many many doors that all seem to lead to different levels and lobbies. I occasionally run into either familiar kids or family members from India. Many of the levels have clothes racks and very fashionable college-age girls running about. Some of the levels are Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1071765719702091982003-12-18T11:41:00.000-05:002003-12-18T11:42:52.763-05:00It's the culmination of my week-long birthday. After today, I will officially be a year older. It's been the strangest birthday I've ever had, in many ways. Lots of dancing, food and drink, coupled with a lot of really serious discussions with myself and friends. I guess I have my work cut out for me this coming year, as far as personal growth type things go.
Last night I went to see Return of Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1071609947336923902003-12-16T16:25:00.000-05:002003-12-16T16:28:44.670-05:00Random thoughts:
- Sitting around in the morning, watching The Ellen Degeneres Show, wondering whether to go to class. Every other commercial is for some lawyer declaring belligerently, "When doctors make mistakes, we make them PAY!" I get up and go to class.
- Just picked up my Return of the King tickets. It already made the AFI's top ten this year. And it hasn't even been released yet! (Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1071263757646246492003-12-12T16:15:00.000-05:002003-12-12T16:17:29.670-05:00I just dropped into the library for a small performance of Handel's Messiah. The holidays aren't complete for me without hearing this wonderful piece at least once. I get really emotional during it. When the tenor was singing to Jerusalem that her "warfare was accomplished," it made me sad, because it couldn't be farther from the truth. But then, as the choir sings again and again of "the prince Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1071160649446768702003-12-11T11:37:00.000-05:002003-12-11T11:44:28.936-05:00I agree that there are some serious changes that need to happen around the way the world perceives religion, and religious differences. The question is, do we want to wipe out the differences entirely? What next - we all have to be the same weight? (I know that doesn't follow directly, but just bear with me.)
Movie Recommendations:
In theaters
21 grams. Absolutely brilliant coming together of aBarnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1069109797950488342003-11-17T17:56:00.000-05:002003-11-17T17:57:00.420-05:00Matrix Revolutions - I saw it on the IMAX screen. I thought that bigger would be better. At times, I actually wished the screen was smaller so that the idiocy would be somehow reduced. The sad thing is that this one might have been better than Reloaded. This one has less plot, more mega-action, and it goes back to the huge overarching themes of the first Matrix. Some of the concepts have yielded Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1068477754117265152003-11-10T10:22:00.000-05:002003-11-10T10:22:31.703-05:00Just watched a terrifying film called Event Horizon. Not a great movie, really. I mean, it's one of those sci-fi thrillers that doesn't even try to be scientifically consistent. Not once did they even really discuss the significance of the words "event horizon". And the entire premise of the movie is appropriately vague and magnificent. There is a giant, visually stunning magnetic gravity-maker Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1067570212294347372003-10-30T22:16:00.000-05:002003-10-30T22:16:51.413-05:00I now own a hot pink wig!!!!!!!!!
YESSSSSSSSSSSSSS.
For Halloween I'm going to be an anime jedi. Basically pink-haired and silent. I haven't gotten this excited about Halloween in many years. The last real costume I remember having was a Big Bird suit that was about three feet tall. How things change.....well, I guess I'm not that much taller.Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1067289957639452712003-10-27T16:25:00.000-05:002003-10-27T16:25:57.063-05:00The quest for immortality takes an interesting turn, as an artist decides that he wants his brain to outlive him. If your brain is still alive and thinking, are you still alive? I guess that's the whole "immortal" part. Fascinating that he considers his brain to be a work of art he created "thought by thought".
It was fun to get an extra hour on Saturday night, and I went with some friends to Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1066840555093184932003-10-22T12:35:00.000-04:002003-10-22T12:37:55.950-04:00How much are YOU worth, my friend?
I wonder about it sometimes, when I get to thinking about how much debt I'm going to be in. Apparently I could get more than a couple million. But I'm unsure about what you do with the money once you are sold. Does it belong to you? Or your owner?Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1066829705997727742003-10-22T09:35:00.000-04:002003-10-22T09:35:05.793-04:00Ok, I had to share. It's so cool - in Norway, a witch has received government money to start her own witchcraft business. She's allowed to do that as long as she doesn't try to hurt people, like she's taking the hippocratic oath. Are witches the new doctors? Ok, I just looked up the hippocratic oath online to read the whole thing, because I was curious - and there are so many versions! I just Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1066789744033037092003-10-21T22:29:00.000-04:002003-10-21T22:29:03.756-04:00I went and saw Lost in Translation.
I liked it. BUT...I don't know if I would recommend it.
It's a very beautiful movie. Like moving art. The whole movie is like that - a painting that captures the moods of characters by showing us the surroundings as they were seeing them. It portrays well, I think, how being in a place where you feel isolated and lost can bring you close to people that normallyBarnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1066497448679363522003-10-18T13:17:00.000-04:002003-10-18T13:17:28.590-04:00In the end, I just have to accept that the only reason I ever watch baseball at all is that I don't get to watch cricket. What a beautiful game - and so misunderstood.
Anyway, I am happy because I am out of the mists of my illness, and India are batting well against New Zealand, and it's a Saturday.
Also, lovely orchids have bloomed from a plant that seemed to be dying last week.Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1066428055125614342003-10-17T18:00:00.000-04:002003-10-17T18:04:13.296-04:00You know what? The Sox are still a great team, and Boston rocks. That's right.
Sox management on the other hand - well, some decisons are not worth crying over, but some ARE.
I have a weird headache that goes away when I smile really hard. But it's an excessively manic smile that I can't really do in front of people. Hmmm. I'm trying to figure out which part of the smile helps - I think it mightBarnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1066322510028152722003-10-16T12:41:00.000-04:002003-10-16T12:53:00.603-04:00I've spent the last few minutes comparing Utah with India. Either way, the photo of the day site remains my favorite internet time suck.
Soul Calibur II is my new thing that I want to spend more time on. I played it for a few minutes last weekend, and I got to beat the daylights out of people much bigger than me. It was fun, and it looks really cool. My friend has it at her apartment and I thinkBarnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1066265894110027942003-10-15T20:58:00.000-04:002003-10-15T20:58:14.270-04:00I have a viral flu-like illness. It's quite miserable. The only good thing about it is that it makes me feel justified in not studying. Instead I am lying in bed watching TV. Today I finally got around to watching some great baseball. The Red Sox won! I watched the game in a room full of people clutching anatomy notes and nearly ripping them apart in anxiety over the game. It's been a long time Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1066056387908827262003-10-13T10:46:00.000-04:002003-10-13T10:46:27.410-04:00A friend of mine called last night and we were talking about my blog entry from yesterday. He asked me, "Who are you fighting?" And I realized that I sounded sort of strident. And that's silly, because there's no reason for me to. So I thought I'd clarify. I'm not really mad about this. It's just a tendency I've noticed in the world (and that includes myself). I actually love some of the changes Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1065910983235819812003-10-11T18:23:00.000-04:002003-10-13T10:41:13.163-04:00Some friends and I were talking about interracial breeding. And I thought, does the future of mankind look homogenous and boring? Is it inherently contradictory to cherish diversity, and to promote interracial marriage/reproduction? With culture becoming more and more integrated (e.g. "World Music" - what is that?), perhaps it's not surprising that people are also finding more and more in common Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1064537566330107112003-09-25T20:52:00.000-04:002003-09-25T20:52:46.520-04:00How interesting that being apart from the people you love can make you love them more. I KNOW that it's a common belief, and everyone's read that somewhere, but I still don't think it's totally logical. But it's true.
Also, I find it fascinating when people anonymously leave comments on blogs. I had a long conversation recently about anonymity on the internet, and what that means for human Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1063054071153385612003-09-08T16:47:00.000-04:002003-09-08T16:47:51.246-04:00It has been a day of petty misfortune. Nothing that you can validly complain about, yet highly annoying. I dropped my phone on the sidewalk, and then did not notice for another half an hour. When I did notice, I became crazed and proceeded to retrace my steps, muttering audibly and scowling at the sidewalk. I am sure I scared several people. After about 45 minutes I found a friend who called my Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1062403508077341382003-09-01T04:05:00.000-04:002003-09-01T04:05:08.126-04:00If you fight with someone in a dream, why does it always feel like it actually happened when you wake up? Anyway, I'm awake because of this phenomenon now. So, I thought I'd come tell everyone that I just got back from Cape Cod. Some of the most beautiful beach I've seen. It's very New England, with dark, bracingly cold water. When the tide was low, we walked on the newly uncovered ground and Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1061935461462242292003-08-26T18:04:00.000-04:002003-08-26T18:07:21.430-04:00A friend of mine just asked me how I felt about the blasts in Bombay. I wasn't sure how to answer. Pretty much the same as I feel about the bombs in every other part of the world. Although, yes, I won't lie, I have friends in Bombay, and some family. So it is jarring in a more personal way. I think people expect me to be angry at someone. And maybe I could be, if I let myself. But I wanted to Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1061863928236119082003-08-25T22:12:00.000-04:002003-08-25T22:12:08.246-04:00By the way. We started Neuro today in school. It was the first lecture, a pretty introductory look-how-much-fun-we're-gonna-have-memorizing-endless-lists type of talk. But in the middle of it, our very humerous and cool prof showed a slide of various animal brains. The largest brain was that of a Dolphin. I realize that I just capitalized Dolphin, and I can't seem to stop. It's because I'm Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1061854526192947052003-08-25T19:35:00.000-04:002003-08-25T19:35:26.156-04:00I was banned from my computer due to excessive viral load. Also moving in to new amazing room. But now the viruses have been thwarted, although I suspect only temporarily. I'm drinking a Coke, and it makes me happy. The week before I left India, there was a huge scandal over how much pesticide there was in cola. They also showed a bottle of Coca Cola on TV with worms living in it. So I, ummm, Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1061325423953254582003-08-19T16:37:00.000-04:002003-08-19T16:37:04.010-04:00Back in Boston.
Jetlagged. Disoriented. Home(india)sick.
Monday.
School Starts.
But - I'm going kayaking on Saturday, about which I am inordinately excited.Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1060918807969322812003-08-14T23:40:00.000-04:002003-08-14T23:44:35.113-04:00I'm losing my mind over suitcases. I think I'm going to actually have to throw things out. Highly pitiful situash.
Power outages happen pretty often in India, so it was a riot to hear that my parents were sitting in the dark with candles in Michigan. Just hope everything stays safe and peaceful. I hear the lights should be back soon.
I'm crushed to be missing the All-Ivy cocktail party in Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1060874211494412962003-08-14T11:16:00.000-04:002003-08-14T11:21:25.376-04:00Day before yesterday was Raksha Bandhan. That's the day sisters tie colored/decorated strings on their brothers' wrists as a sign of something. Something like God protecting the brothers, and the brothers protecting the sisters. I tied strings on two of my cousin brothers. These days you need all the protection you can get, so it's best to cover your bases. The best part of the thing is that the Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1060488997063162182003-08-10T00:16:00.000-04:002003-08-10T00:16:37.070-04:00I was talking with someone the other day, and they mentioned the year 2100. And I said, "You really think humans will be around then?" That sparked off a conversation about whether we take the future of our species for granted. I realize that I don't. In fact, I have very little faith that we won't all perish in fire and fever before the year 2100.
"The Hulk" has just been released here. I Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1060410225761798792003-08-09T02:23:00.000-04:002003-08-09T02:23:45.770-04:00Man, the dreams are out of control. MUST be the Malaria meds.
Anyway, last night's dream was cool/scary at the same time. I'm in a jumbo jet, and I decide I need some fresh air. So I grab my trusty drawing notebook and some color pencils and sneak out of one of the double-plated, oval windows. I'm reclining, leisurely-like, near the tail of the plane. Meanwhile, another plane draws up behind us. Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1060269004306248822003-08-07T11:10:00.000-04:002003-08-07T11:10:04.340-04:00On Monday, I attended my last clinic here with HIV patients. Clinic day is like a holiday here, since a lot of the patients and family members are friends. After the doctor has seen everyone, there is usually a good adda (chatting/hanging out perfected by the Bengalis) that takes place on mats on the floor. Fried yummies are ordered in, and the talk continues. I took the opportunity to have some Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1059715029077921002003-08-01T01:17:00.000-04:002003-08-01T01:17:09.083-04:00I am very excited because I just read a report from Britain that claims that Medical Students live longer than anyone. This, in spite of their heavy smoking and drinking! The article also mentioned that perhaps the longevity was in compensation for the reported unhappiness of their profession. Maybe all the years we spend in school just get tacked on to the end of our lives.
Yay for my awesome Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1059105700574545372003-07-25T00:01:00.000-04:002003-07-25T00:04:01.340-04:00I'm writing to inform everyone of the brief, and now thwarted, hijacking of my AOL IM screenname. Recently, a mangy dog, a blistering barnacle, someone who deserves not the attentions of the scum that graces the lowest regions of the gutters, took advantage of my screenname. I am using cybercafe computers, and I must have inadvertently saved my password on one of them. This dark spot on the face Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1058701056390464752003-07-20T07:37:00.000-04:002003-07-20T07:37:36.436-04:00"Talent show from hell" - well, whatever it is, hell is close by.
Just finished reading a heartbreakingly beautiful book by Roddy Doyle, called "The Woman Who Walked Into Doors". It's the story of a woman who survives a brutally abusive marriage, and somehow it manages to make her sound incredibly strong and vulnerable at the same time. I HIGHLY recommend it.Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1058593937128010262003-07-19T01:52:00.000-04:002003-07-19T01:52:17.010-04:00I just returned from a four-day visit to Durgapur, for my Grandmother's death anniversary. She passed away in 2000. Hindus often have a puja (worship/holy ritual) to mark the anniversary of deaths. It was really important to me to be there this year, since she and I were very close, and I miss her sorely. It was a good trip, with lots of loving family, excellent food and memorable conversation.
Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1058160691903226632003-07-14T01:31:00.000-04:002003-07-14T01:31:31.846-04:00Last week, I accompanied Mohan da, a counsellor and social worker with the NGO, to Uluberia. Uluberia is about an hour and half from Calcutta, like a suburb, except that the word "suburb" really doesn't work. It's one of the most desperately poor places I've ever seen here, and again, primarily Muslim. Most of the people in that area do Zari-work, which is basically gold/silver embroidery. I had Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1058159113993626272003-07-14T01:05:00.000-04:002003-07-14T01:07:04.256-04:00I've been having terrible dreams. And I wake up, and the rain is POURING outside. Like a sheet of water outside the window. It's a sound I usually find soothing, but lately have found depressing. The dreams have been a combination of frustration, fear and guilt. Isn't that the best? Anyway, the only reason I'm getting into it is because the one I had last night was at least mildly amusing (for Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1057756368738731312003-07-09T09:12:00.000-04:002003-07-09T09:12:48.800-04:00OOOH about the sunset.
I was on the ninth floor balcony of my friend's apartment. And I saw it. The thing that I dream of in Boston. The sun setting over Calcutta. Especially in the monsoon, the sky is striking, dramatic. That makes the sunsets exuberant, tragic, violently emphatic. The light glints against the old buildings and the many trees. And the birds continue their dance in the golden Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1057754473538182122003-07-09T08:41:00.000-04:002003-07-09T08:41:13.603-04:00I just went on a book-buying spree. Among other things, I found a lovely copy of Rabindranath Tagore's "Gitanjali" where the illustrations are pictures of his original Bengali manuscript. It also has little gems like his Nobel Prize acceptance speech. He was also knighted by the British, but he rejected that after the Jalianwala Bag Massacre (the British slaughtered about 2000 Sikhs in a park).
Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1057065810763501642003-07-01T09:23:00.000-04:002003-07-01T09:26:10.873-04:00Tomorrow morning I am travelling by car to Durgapur. A town about four or five hours from Calcutta. That is where my ancestral home is. Hmmm, what does that mean? Well, there have been Rays living there for several generations. It's like the hive of Ray bees. It's where my parents met. So in some ways, it's where my existence was plotted. In any case, I'll write more when I'm back after a week orBarnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1056954057771171092003-06-30T02:20:00.000-04:002003-06-30T02:20:57.773-04:00A couple of days ago I went to a Doctors' Training Camp for HIV/AIDS. It was about an hour outside the city in a really poor, predominantly Muslim neighborhood. Calcutta is very religiously segregated. There are a few places that are almost entirely inhabited by Muslim people, but I had never seen anything like this. I think we might have been the only Hindus. The driver of the car became really Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1056613284476707402003-06-26T03:41:00.000-04:002003-06-26T03:41:24.500-04:00Morning
A couple of days ago I received a rare gift. Insomnia. Probably attributable to jetlag. I was spending the night at my friend's house, and she was fast asleep. It was 4:30am. I realized that lying down was not helping, so I took a chair out onto the balcony. She lives on the 9th floor, which is substantially high up in that part of Calcutta. The view is unobstructed and breathtaking. I Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1056610310634656522003-06-26T02:51:00.000-04:002003-06-26T02:51:50.636-04:00Friend or Foe?
(horrid pun, I know)
My friend Becky has posted on her blog a short musing about what is up with Friendster. If you don't know what it is, I would say, don't worry about it. The most amusing thing about it is the way it reassures you: "Alaka, XYZ is your friend." Don't go by your actual interactions or anything arbitrary like that. Friendster says we're friends, OK? Just accept itBarnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1056345286233780792003-06-23T01:14:00.000-04:002003-06-23T01:18:31.633-04:00I will probably get run over here. I'm just not sure yet by what. Car, rickshaw, bicycle, motorcycle, scooter, cow, overflowing bus? There are no lanes, rarely sidewalks and never patience. My reckless jaywalking in Boston has its roots here.
I am going today to meet with the director of the NGO I am linking up with here. He had to give me directions according to what time I am meeting him, Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1056261197061944082003-06-22T01:53:00.000-04:002003-06-22T01:53:16.943-04:00Camera, still not working. I check it once in the morning. It's divine will. No digital pictures, please.
TV is great here - lots of Indian movie-madness, BBC and European sports. I watched European Formula One today. For the first time in a year and a half. I LOVE car racing. I used to be a McLaren fan, but I might be switching to Ferrari, since Mika Hakkinen is no longer around. Cricket will Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1056205842135383932003-06-21T10:30:00.000-04:002003-06-21T10:30:42.073-04:00I'm in India. Typing from an excruciating keyboard that hates humans, in a cybercafe. Just wanted to let everyone know I'm safe and well, and working on getting a better internet situation. Also having trouble accessing my webmail. We'll see.
The monsoon is a godsend...the temperature is completely bearable, and at night the rains are soothing. I am reminded of the true meaning of the phrase "Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055962954627184682003-06-18T15:02:00.000-04:002003-06-18T15:02:34.533-04:00I have turned in my keys to the dorm room. I think I may have taken out enough trash today to rival the amount of stuff I actually packed and stored. I am now lounging about at my friends' apartment, waiting to head to the airport to begin the long journey. First to London, and then to Calcutta. The layover in London is nearly 6 hours. Way too long to spend gazing at overpriced London duty-free Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055886382451705342003-06-17T17:46:00.000-04:002003-06-17T17:46:22.510-04:00The Google homepage has the cutest theme today. It is apparently M.C. Escher's birthday.
Now I have to pack up my computer for the summer. It only makes me more excited to see it again in August. I wonder if we will feel awkward after so long, or if we'll just rush into each other's arms?
Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055850165585554622003-06-17T07:42:00.000-04:002003-06-17T08:36:01.406-04:00I recommend listening to The Zephyr Song from the latest Red Hot Chilli Peppers album in the morning. If a song could actually jump in your mouth and brush your teeth, this would be it. So fresh, so minty!
Also...while I'm imposing my musical tastes, I suggest listening to Jairamji's latest album - Kindred Spirits. It's like a journey through the foothills of the Himalayas, only not. I can best Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055823957889906432003-06-17T00:25:00.000-04:002003-06-17T08:36:56.210-04:00The comments on this blog have so far been much more accurate than the blogger herself. In any case, the Archos jukebox has turned out to be dangerously easy to use. I now have many hours of listening pleasure stored on it. Of course, the excitement is yet to come, in the form of hundreds of digital pictures of Bengal drenched in monsoon (or parched with heat, as the case may be).
For those of Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055785915322820412003-06-16T13:51:00.000-04:002003-06-16T13:51:55.340-04:00IT HAS ARRIVED. The Archos Jukebox thingamajig. My electrogadgetron of unparalleled power and majesty.
If ONLY I could get it to work. GAH!Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055706180296183502003-06-15T15:43:00.000-04:002003-06-15T15:43:40.843-04:00Today I went to Dim Sum with some friends in Boston's Chinatown. Dim Sum is like a festival of food that leaves you with no choice but to go back to bed afterwards. The body is completely overwhelmed by the need to process the enormous amount you have consumed.
My friends are good, and they read my blog regularly. As we walked, they pointed out another flower on the ground. Where do these flowersBarnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055647892454129122003-06-14T23:31:00.000-04:002003-06-14T23:53:34.156-04:00My friend Alireza has just commented that my picture of a petal has bird doodoo in it. I have verified that he is correct. That IS bird doodoo on the right. Hey, some people see the flower, and some people see the doodoo. One day this will be a famous psychology test. The Ray Petal Test. "Doctor, her RPT was negative. Must be an optimist."Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055636592474641472003-06-14T20:23:00.000-04:002003-06-14T23:31:59.600-04:00Now that I have nothing to do, I find that my attention to the small things has magically increased. Yesterday I sat in front of the mirror and made faces at myself for a long time. Also, while walking on the sidewalk, I took a picture of a petal lying on the ground. I actually dropped to my knees and held my camera near the ground. This guy walking behind me made a startled noise. I think the Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055516632623476922003-06-13T11:03:00.000-04:002003-06-13T11:27:50.553-04:00I just read this on the BBC, about the plight of Iraqi women after the war. Why is it that hurting women is everyone's favorite way to establish supremacy? Also, it's convenient that the aftermath of the war is not discussed in the mainstream American media. CNN has nothing like this. However, I did find this NYTimes op-ed about dubious intelligence claims in Iraq. Now THAT'S a big surprise.Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055516370985145452003-06-13T10:59:00.000-04:002003-06-13T10:59:30.883-04:00Just finished my first year of med school (as long as I passed that horrible exam)!!!! No more school for 9 weeks.
Hmm, now what do I do?Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055459336048376792003-06-12T19:08:00.000-04:002003-06-12T21:56:14.896-04:00Does eating a whole bag of chocolate chip cookies count as studying? Or downloading music? Or reading an amazing book (Leading Consciously, by Debashis Chatterjee)? I think NOT. I am now officially in that stage of pre-examhood when all things either move me to panic or hysterics or excessive hunger. This will soon be followed by a stuporific indifference. Followed, of course, by the exam itself.Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055423417827974632003-06-12T09:10:00.000-04:002003-06-14T20:34:47.423-04:00I did it. I just went online and bought an expensive fun electrogadgetron. It is the Archos Jukebox Multimedia 20GB Photo bundle. It's a bundle of happy is what it is. Now I can take thousands of digital photos and store them while in India. I can also transfer ALL the music on my computer to this mini-joy-machine so I can have a soundtrack over the summer. In fact, the little wonderbox can hook Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055423043122446132003-06-12T09:04:00.000-04:002003-06-14T14:11:41.086-04:00I should not be blogging now. I have my last final in my first year of medical school tomorrow. I'm almost excited to take this test. Four days later, I leave for India. On another note, I have recently begun to fear old age. I am very comfortable at 23. It feels right. I have never felt that way about any of the ages I have experienced thus far. After this, I'm afraid it just becomes a process Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055337892065310102003-06-11T09:24:00.000-04:002003-06-12T21:56:27.100-04:00The Matrix continues to spawn its own drama in our world. Now, Egypt has banned The Matrix Reloaded. I find their reason fascinating. Aside from the violence (which can't be the main reason, since far more violent films have been made and screened), their reason is the movie's treatment of explicitly religious concepts, like creation and free will. The Egyptian powers that be are worried that theBarnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055335772244338212003-06-11T08:49:00.000-04:002003-06-11T08:49:32.250-04:00I am leaving my room, to escape my computer. Sometimes when I am away from my room, I find myself thinking, "I wonder what is happening at my computer." Like it's a separate world with events of its own. Can computers eat people? I found a list online of how you know you spend too much time at the computer. My favorite was:
You ask a plumber how much it would cost to replace the chair in front Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055306963147562882003-06-11T00:49:00.000-04:002003-06-12T21:56:39.446-04:00Ok, so I'm really tired from reading about bacteria. As I was telling a friend, I also find it depressing. It seems so easy to be desperately ill, and then spread it to your loved ones.
But on a separate note, my friend Elissa showed me a poem that I enjoyed:
The Waking, by Theodore Roethke.
Especially the line: "We think by feeling. What is there to know?"
I spent my whole day trying to know/Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055267584073908822003-06-10T13:53:00.000-04:002003-06-12T21:57:00.290-04:00I was looking through the National Geographic photographs, as yet another escape from the wily microbes. I came across one of my favorite pictures and thought I'd share it. When I am in the mood to dream impossible dreams, I imagine that I could live here, and sing my days away. Perhaps I could be medicine-woman on the side. People would bring me their illness, and I would grind mysterious herbs Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055247278267919762003-06-10T08:14:00.000-04:002003-06-12T21:57:14.436-04:00The City of Calcutta's Website Why is it that the fact that the city has a website listing many of my favorite spots somehow makes it all seem more real?? The website is pretty much bursting with information. Nothing like this existed until pretty recently. Nice to see my city joining the www.
Also just read on the BBC that the heat wave on the subcontinent has reached massive proportions. ThereBarnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055219458013275432003-06-10T00:30:00.000-04:002003-06-12T21:57:35.220-04:00I feel compelled to announce my blog to people. It's like I'm marrying the internet. Most people think it's brave to write on the internet. But seriously, have you ever looked out there? The standards are NOT that high. And it's not like I ever plan to write about anything that matters. As far as being interesting is concerned, after reading this, I'm not too worried.Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055217117121964742003-06-09T23:51:00.000-04:002003-06-12T21:58:13.460-04:00I'm reading about enteric pathogens. It's making me more and more paranoid about being at a tropical microbe fest for 8 weeks. At least I'll know what I have when I have it. By the way, I just read that the monsoons have arrived in India. They tend to start in the south and move upwards like a smoothly programmed sprinkler. By the time I get to Cal (short for Calcutta), the rain will be close on Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055120216564376692003-06-08T20:56:00.000-04:002003-06-09T01:00:19.573-04:00My friend Michael, who knows infinitely more about all computer and web related things, has just come over and approved the colors on the site. I like Michael. He is a good cook. And a good web guy. If anyone out there cares, you can let me know what you think of the colors. Ok, now he has left, and I continue to tinker with the shades. Work avoidance!!Barnaclenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5462331.post-1055102780135225602003-06-08T16:06:00.000-04:002003-06-09T07:18:40.406-04:0010 days to liftoff
In a little over a week I will board an airplane for Kolkata. 8 weeks of irregular contact with good friends seems like a good opportunity to try blogging. Also, HTML is fun! Weird that people might actually read this without me knowing. Ok, back to microbiology, packing, storage.....and of course avoiding all of that.Barnaclenoreply@blogger.com