in the US

tashi: the amazing, awesome (invisible) dog

Oct 4th

As I spent most of last week getting Windows 7 to work properly on my computer (which will be in a next post – it takes a while for me to get such things together) – I completely missed the chance to post about walking my dog in Brooklyn. Oh, my dog? Tashi. Was invisible. Was awesome. Was amazing. Like everyone else’s.

So, there I was doing cool cancer research in my lab when IE mailed me about a possible stunt on Sunday Sept 27th 2009. And I, like the good little jobless-but-willing-to-travel-randomly person that I am, promptly responded. And rounded up the only available suspect that I know – TH. Whose recent start in comic-dom is well worth checking out, BTW. TH and his amazing invisible dog

Having traveled a good 90-odd minutes to reach Bergen Street from NJ, we and a crap-load of people assembled in what appeared to be an abandoned warehouse. When Charlie Todd told us about what was going to be done that afternoon, it turned out that we were indeed meeting in an abandoned warehouse. Which had once upon a time manufactured Invisible Dogs (TH is waiting for his “dog” to finish “business” alongside). Turns out IE had 2000-odd invisible dogs, and they hoped that there were 2000-odd of us around too. The prank, as Todd put it, “pretty much wrote itself”.

We picked up our leashes and headed outside to give our “dogs” a nice stroll around Brooklyn. TH and I headed up and out of the street to ensure that we spread out and gave enough people in Brooklyn a reason to stare. Initially, barely anyone seemed to notice. Once we hit the main road though, cars were constantly stopping near us to find out just what the hell we were doing. No-one seemed to buy that “it was just a nice day, and we decided to take our dog for a walk”

Read On… »

Me telling off Tashi My dog, Tashi, was a pretty snappy golden retriever, and even jumped up at cars which pulled over (which I hope was captured by IE on video). I had to tell him off a few times (which is what I’m doing in the photo alongside). Pedestrians spent a while chatting with us trying to figure out just what the hell was going on. Most people who spoke to us (whether from a car or fellow pedestrians) were wondering why so many of us seemed to want to walk our dogs together. Was it a cause? Was it a protest? Did we not know there was no dog there? (Our response was one of amazement to this last) Most people petted, played with or even yelled out compliments to our dogs as they passed by. Smiles galore. I remember one traffic light where all the drivers at the front were honked at coz they waited too long in listening to/watching us. TH variously named his dog among other things: “Seeme” and “Unflushable” (courtesy Coupling). His dog also kept running away from him, which people loved. And I really mean that, most people thought he was walking his dog very sincerely

Yet another hydrant for Tashi

For our part, TH and I ensured that our dogs checked out most trees, hydrants on our route. We tried not to get into anyone’s way, didn’t let our dogs get too far away from us, and didn’t jump out at other pedestrians. Constant words of encouragement and petting was part of the game, one lady even told me off for not giving my dog enough treats! Our dogs hobnobbed a fair bit with other “dogs” walking around though. We tried not to take our dogs into stores – in the one comic book store I did take Tashi into, the owner was more than happy to let him in. She did try her best to figure out why I was so hellbent on walking him though More than one store had quick-fix signs up welcoming dogs of “any kind and leashed”. Some put out bowls of invisible(!) water for the dogs and some had designated sitting areas for dogs. Starbucks had a field day disbursing water to us dog-walkers, and we promptly gave it to the dogs. Poor things were probably thirsty: it was a little hot and humid that day in Brooklyn Then of course Tashi pooped all over a traffic corner. I had to use invisible gloves, wet wipes and packets to get rid of it. Amidst suitable amounts of grumbling of course. Tashi had to be controlled around the sleeping dogs, the old dogs who were half-head, the seeing-eye dogs as well. Retrievers are more trouble than they are worth some times..

Only three incidents of violence did I see. One was in Starbucks, where I stopped to get a smoothie, while TH waited outside (can’t have Starbucks messed up!). A lady walked all over a “dog” without trying very hard, to loud laments from the owner. Invisible dogs are pretty sturdy though, even if prone to jumping on the furniture. Then there was the kid in the bookstore, who tried his best to trample on Tashi – who eventually took Krypto-like action. And finally there was the limo-driver who “ran” over a guy’s dog towards the end of it all. The owner lamented the loss of the dog pretty vocally on the street – the limo driver actually freaked and took off! People were grumbling vocally about calling the police even

Eventually, an hour or so of dog-walking later, it was time to return the “dogs” and wend our way home. ‘Twas a sad farewell indeed. TH and I reluctantly gave back our dogs, and headed back home. Most of us IE-ers were in the same train back and shared smiles and comments kept coming.

All-in-all, I’m guessing Brooklynites had fun watching us. Why isn't that dog invisible?

It was fun for us watching them anyway.

Take care, Tashi. You will be missed.

Pix via TH. Full post by IE here..

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in the US, updates

life continues to move along its winding trail

Sep 8th

Posted by SEV in staying.general

7 comments

A break’s a break, no matter how I put it. I last blogged nearly a week or more ago, and here I am now trying to come up with good excuses to myself as to why I haven’t posted. I’m going to skip past it and focus on topic 2: “Life Continues to Move Along its Winding Trail”.

Actual physical moving/relocation has happened again, making this the 6^th time in 3 years. Yes, I know. Insanity. However, I now feel like even though I have a mountain-load of crap, it compacts itself pretty well to be transported. I’ve also come one step closer to a dream of a recliner, in that I actually own one now. Yes, in all its lever-pressing leg-resting glory. It’s not the La-Z-Boy E-cliner 3000, the chair that Sit Magazine calls ‘Chair of the Year’. Not yet, anyway.

A recent incident is still demonstrating after-effects. In short, I’m without vehicular transportation. The why, how and wherefore are slightly irrelevant, so I don’t want to talk about it right now still. This lack of transportation is hitting home in interesting ways…

I currently feel as though I’ve been transported back in time to 2005, when my only mode of transport was walking. Back then I had recently acquired my iRiver H140, and it was the be-all and end-all of my existence. Now I realize that it still is, in many ways. I hook up the player, the remote, the headphones… and I walk down the road jigging every now and then to a song I know well. A lot of the songs are from back then too, so it sort of adds to the illusion. The streets have changed, the city I’m walking in is different and a lot of things have changed for me too… but somehow a little bit of the world as I knew it from 2005 appears to have transplanted itself into my life today.

My life is not instantaneous any more. I have to actually plan events a few hours in advance at least to manage to get to places. Again, reminiscent of the UK, where nothing could be done without taking into account transport time. It’s cool and sad at the same time; I don’t quite know which one to focus on.

Obviously, there are feelings of loss as well. However, I haven’t written about any of my cars, and I don’t know if I ever can. A car is one of those possessions that should not have the kind of good bye that I have given, and somehow I feel as though writing my in memoriam post is too final. They are all actually lost to me in real life, I know… maybe I will find it in me to post about them someday.

A trip to upstate New York happened this weekend – specifically to Saranac Lake where Reshma & Vin live. In short: Awefomeness. Yes, the missus is responsible for such explorations, once again proving her awesomeness. Reshma and Vin were awesome too, cooking up a storm of pancakes and uthappas as well as taking us to one place after another, each more beautiful than the previous one. We managed to see quite a bit in the time we were there: Lakes Saranac, Flower, Placid, Raquette, Tupper; Mounts Whiteface, Baker; and a whole lotta places in between.

adirondacks

The Adirondacks have to be one of the most beautiful places I have been to in recent times. Given the number of lakes and mountains around, I felt transported back to the Scottish Highland road trips that I have made – the colors, the pristine beauty, the wildness – all untouched by man, other than to put a road within. Miles of road with no seeming end, next to no cars, and expanses of green and blue flashing by. I can only imagine the fall colors that would explode in this area, and am really sorry that I won’t be there to see it this time round. Even now, I sit in my train wrenching myself from attempting to capture the beauty flashing past my train window. The twilight of a deep orange sunset remains, the sky and water reflecting it perfectly. Trees stand dark against the banks, occasional boats and canoes flash by as they float in rippled waters. Clouds line the sky, highlighted by the orange and providing a perfect gray to contrast it. Small islands exist in this river, and some of them can be seen to house some kind of dwellings, all of which look idyllic. I can only envy these houses, it is a peace and quiet well worth living in. A far cry from the places I have lived in my life.

Interestingly, villages and hamlets exist here where there is NO cell-phone network coverage. Yes in this 1^st world country, such regions do exist. What is interesting is that there IS Wi-Fi coverage in such places. Need I say more? There was also the baby bear that got scared away as it tried to cross the road while we zoomed by. Poor thing indeed. But it lent credence to stories of bears wandering into your backyard and eating any form of food that’s available. And of course, the baby squirrel that pecked away at the nut in its paws until it realized that the 4 of us were generally behaving like boorish paparazzi, and then darted away into the underbrush.

I’ve now realized that there are a bunch of other posts I need to get writing, having procrastinated them for over a month. So off I go then.

in the US, updates

just the other day

Jun 20th

Posted by SEV in staying.in.my.head

No comments

1993. i ran ahead, the glories of the day past aglow in my mind. one space mountain ride under my belt, at only age 10, was enough. i was tall enough. too bad for warsha. this was disneyworld, there were plenty of rides for her. that horse-ride for one. she was ecstatic. then mickey and minnie. and a glimpse of goofy. life could not be better.

**********

2008. i ambled forward, having skipped through most of the tarzan treehouse. somehow, underneath all the revived childhood, there was a slight lack of excitement i wanted to overcome. the indy ride had been fun, so had that “jungle cruise”. ‘pirates was probably going to be next, hopefully not too badly distorted by the movie. appa and amma were waiting patiently in the shade. i whipped out the map. where was ‘pirates’ again?

**********

the line was going to take some time. this was a mountain ride of some kind. looked interesting enough. warsha would probably be allowed on it. that was good. the time left when we entered was 40 minutes or somethhing. 10 were over. this should be fun. people were moving, appa pulled me forward. i wondered what we were going to do next.

**********

the pirates ride was not as bad as i thought it was going to be. i went over the rest of what we had. probably get tickets for that mountain ride. probably have lunch soon. got to find fries for mom. should make sure that we get out of this area in the next 40 minutes or so. and at some point ensure i go there.

**********

that ride was pretty neat. where would we go next. my eyes bulged at the sight. there was an island here. with a steamboat. the sign loomed above. ‘mom !’ impatience mounts. ‘moooooooooommm ! look, look, tom sawyer island ! in disneyworld !’

**********

Read On… »

lunch was getting over. managed to find a table and everything. mom was starting to wonder about whether this was all there was to disneyland. the sun was beating down on us. i checked up what we had left. ‘we can do this at 3, its now 1. i have to see this, me and warsha can go here. you guys check these things out.’ it took some understanding, but it was done. i moved ahead. time for tom sawyer island.

**********

we waited for the raft. appa and amma were wondering about the time. ‘just half an hour.’ there something else we needed to get to ? this was tom sawyer island. all important. how long did we have left ? it was nearly 4. place probably closed in an hour or so. ‘see na ma, lets do this now. we finish in half an hour, then get going.’ convinced ! the raft came, i ran ahead. it was time. we chugged across the water. as we landed: ‘satish, remember, half an hour.”i’ll go alone, you guys wait here.’ i didn’t wait to let them veto the idea, i rand ahead. tunnels were explored, the caves were searched. and i was just starting. some kind of bridge ? forget it ! i wanted vines, like tarzan. the trail was there, the island was as i had read about it. the excitement, the joy of tom sawyer and his exciting life encapsulated on an island. awesome ! kids overran the area. through places you could barely see, over bridges that were there for jumping over. it was tom sawyer and peter pan all in one. the stuff i had dreamed off. it was fun. it was nearly time to leave.

**********

the raft chugged to a stop on the island. i stepped off with warsha, and pointed out that jack sparrow would be on the island in 30 mins. we strolled along the sandy way, i saw a tunnel, we ducked into it. before i knew it, we were in the adventure. dark passageways, low light, twists and turns you didn’t know were there. and all at once we came out. i ran out, and we found the next one. i had to finish it all. how much could it be ? would i find the tree bridge ? a tree-house ! there ! we found the ladder, and saw the area. went down the other end, walked through a crack in the wall that didn’t seem possible to enter. the joy of boyhood was coming back to me. here, there everywhere, fragmented memories of a time of jumping and running, of climbing and exploring, it was all here. all around me were kids at least 10 years younger. and parents 10 years older. it didn’t matter. i was on tom sawyer island.

**********

we left, i didn’t want to leave the island. ‘we’ll come back tomorrow’. i extracted a promise. ‘as long as i want, even an hour.’ i was sated. the next day would come.
the next day involved doing rides we hadn’t seen so far. tom sawyer would be the piece-de-resistance, at the very end. funny thing though. it was 12 pm, but the train clock said 1. weird. mom wondered about it, i thought it was just one of those things. lunch, more rides, and now it was 4. time for tom sawyer. appa would take warsha to the steamboat, amma and i would explore the island. i ran to the entrance. no crowd ? what ? the sign said it was closed at 5. but it was 4 ? no-one to ask. my face fell. amma comforted me, and we watched warsha and appa on the steamboat. all around me, kids laughed. i was bummed. no tom sawyer. when would i get to see it again ?

**********

i never thought i would get to finish it. but i did. i had walked, nay, skipped all over tom sawyer island. an excitement i had felt as a boy reading mark twain’s exploit of the kids in his day was back. i had climbed tree-houses, explored tunnels, jumped bridges. it was a small island, but it was something. something i had been waiting for since that dock sign 10 years ago. i had become tom sawyer and peter pan. warsha had met jack sparrow, but that was incidental.

there is a certain feeling you get as a boy when you live the life of the outlaws in the books, which i had lost. there is a certain magic associated with disney which i was trying to find. i had found them both.

on tom sawyer island.

Based on true events.

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felt, in the US, memories

the lack of a lesson learnt

Jun 21st

Posted by SEV in staying.thoughts

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2 planes. 2 skyscrapers. collapse. ruin. destruction.

the true horror of the incident was indelibly re-etched. i’ve seen how the plane was hijacked all due to the carelessness of america. they were lax, and they paid. but the price paid, was far beyond any cost. the sheer terror of 2 planes destroying an american icon, the panic, the fear, the chaos, the destruction – these are things that were horrifying. at the same time, the number of conspiracy theories that have made the rounds have diluted that memory.

watching the crash again, watching the terror that it inspired, watching the bravery of people just wanting toe help inspite of their world literally falling to pieces around them.. such is something that reminds you there is more to everything than just what we tend to focus on. and the fact that those 2 men survived that day is testament to why terror can never truly have any real result.

sadly, america didn’t learn. repaying terror with terror has only led to a near second vietnam.

After watching ‘World Trade Center.’

felt, in the movies, in the US, views

its raining, its pouring

Apr 17th

Posted by SEV in staying.thoughts

4 comments

overcast skies, clouds flit, a dampness tinges the air. i awoke in the morning to a dreary day. rain falling between heavy and a drizzle. it seemed fairly typical of new jersey. sunny in the morning, snow in the afternoon. warmth yesterday, heavy rain today.

incidental to all this, i reflected about how i’d commented that rain in the US was irritating. wet enough to dampen you, but not heavy enough to warrant a raincoat. i took off to my uncles’, the rain wasn’t so bad.

however, 7 hours later, when i left.. it had built itself up into a fury. quite the torrential rainstorm. i hit route 1, and it decided to peak for the day. or so i thought. ramming down on the windshield, visibility was at low enough that the car ahead was visible with a squint. and then, traffic.

so very much like back home. the rain pouring down, the traffic, horns, the snail pace of the snaking line.. and eventually you realise that you’re not going to move anytime today. an exit was nearby, and was taken,. a phone call later, i was winding my way back towards an alternate route. the spate increased. windshield wipers now on the highest setting, and yet, it never seemed as though the rain was out of your face.

Read On… »

in the US, mood, thoughts

city lights

Jan 9th

Posted by SEV in staying.thoughts

3 comments

walking through the streets of new york, there is a certain thrill associated with coming out of madison square to be confronted with the heart of one of the biggest cities of the world. the first step onto times square has brought a certain smile, a certain sense of awe to me every time i have made it. you can feel the success of the city in the way it has grown: planned, laid out, professional.

compare this directly to bombay; because for the true bombayite, everything is compared to bombay. even bombay itself. the sense of craziness, the sense of being a gigantic city remains… but the lack of planning, haphazard growth that is hallmark of the evolution of bombay is very very evident. bombay has a distinctly different aura to it, the survival factor is very evident in the way the people in it live, in the way the city continues to grow despite all odds – whether it be bomb blasts or floods. new york is almost disdainful of survival, it seems to know it is meant to be the grand kingpin of cities.

london lives in a little cocoon of superiority; trying to hold on to past grandeur, assuming that it is still the centre of the earth. the sense of development is there, but there is a feeling that the city is a little past its prime. it tries to marry the old and the new, which is not always possible…

looking at them, they are, literally, the past, the present, and the future city kingpins of the world. so very similar. and so very different.

Read On… »

*********************

ice skating has a deceptive grace to it. having watched/read so much about it.. even watching those on the rink right there in front of you; it seems as though its just a matter of gliding on the damn ice. which should come naturally to you. the minute you step on the ice, you might think you can be off. au contraire, its like learning to walk all over again. only this time in a perfectly rhythmic manner. the first steps on ice are alternately scary and dreamy. on one hand, you have no idea where your legs are going to go. on the other, you’re literally gliding over the ground beneath your feet. the barrier becomes the be-all, and end-all of existence… at least it was for me. it took me nearly 3 hours to be able to move in a pseudo-graceful manner over ice; with occasional moments where i would be running on the spot, or duplicating the ‘broadway dance’, trying to regain my centre of gravity.
the weirdest concept was getting up. as you do it, you’re pretty convinced there is no way this is going to bring you back to your feet without you slamming into the ice again… until you’re actually standing again. like magic.

the second time, its baby steps, but you start running much faster. and suddenly the citibank caption makes sense – ‘live life as an eight year old.’

*********************

zooming to the top of the empire state, i wondered how it was even possible that this structure was erected in 400 days… in 1930. unbelievable. but then, everything vanishes from your mind when you take your first steps on top of the empire state, and see one of the most famous night views in the world. breathtaking on every degree of the 360 you can make around the platform; there is a glow to it… you can feel the city pulsating around you. i remembered the “flight” of the london eye that i had taken. as you reach the top, the slow unfolding of london envelopes you in its grandeur. so very typical of london, there is haze as well… but the majesty of london can be believed so much better. once again the contrast of the two is very apparent.

for all its hype though, the empire state has nothing on the rockefeller center. from entering it, all the way to the top, i was struck by two things – the friendliness of the staff (maybe due to lower crowds) and the vibe of elegance that it emanates at every point: the lobby, the swarovski shop, the target floor, the crazy show in the lift… and then you step out onto one of the peaks of manhattan, the only thing separating you from the sky being a pane of glass. the panorama that you can see, unbarricaded almost.. is unbelievable. at the final height where even the pane of glass is barely there, the wind threatens to tear you off the top and send you flying into space… you finally understand why new york will always retain that sheen to it. to think this was financed by rockefeller himself at the height of the depression.

majestic.

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felt, in the US, thoughts