If tomorrow was today, today would be yesterday...



One of my favourite songs by The Beatles. Pressure is in an all time high with stuff piling up left, right, and center. These are the times where you long for a better yesterday than a better tomorrow.

If tomorrow was today, today would be yesterday,
But I long for my yesterday,
Your yesterday,
And our yesterday.
I hope there is yet another day,
Will it be any good like yesterday?

P.S: These words are mine, song lyrics is there in the song itself.

Trivia: Paul McCartney had a dream in which he heard the tune and he immediately composed the music. He didn't have any lyric and used to sing "Scrambled Eggs" instead of "Yesterday" while composing the song,

Trivia!

Lonngfellow (LW) has been utterly devastated by his lack of technical know-how after spending a good couple of years being a solutions engineer. He is determined to learn and make a case for a seat in the highest echelons of geekhood. What does that mean? My net browsing is limited on my phone (yay wifi!) for a long period on an off day.

LW has suitably tired after an exhausting study session. I am gobbling down some delicious Fish Biriyaani courtesy LW, who got me a parcel since I was on a long work call. Delicious I tell you! The best biriyaani in Continental Spice has to be Fish Biriyani. Mutton is a definite no-no, Chicken is kind of so-s0. Back to LW and his research.

"Aaayaaeeiii", bellows LW. I honestly cannot decipher this. He makes this noise when he is bored or amused.

LW opens Google. Takes images. Types sh.

"Shakeela?", I suggest helpfully, so does Google.

LW smirks, "No one can beat Shriya!"

Types in, hits enter, and ogles at the results. Opens a picture with her assets remarkably pronounced.

"Yummy!", says me munching on a good piece of fish. LW smiles, laughs, and does his routine aaaah.

"Who to search next?", quips LW.

Types in Jennifer Lopez and proceeds to ogle at different asset this time. Longfellow is determined to salvage her sex tape and is unsuccessful.

"Who is that spanish like actress?", queries a disappointed LW.

My heart called out of Penelope Cruz, but my mind said (especially since this is LW who is asking) Salma Hayek. I told him the same.

"Right!", says LW with his trademark 120 W smile. Proceeds to ogle at more assets!

"You know what she said in an interview? Name a good interviewer!", LW is lost in thought.

"Sreekantan Nair?", I give a helpful suggestion.

"Che! English one! Yes, Letterman.", LW is pleased and smiling again.

"What about Letterman?", my curiousity is peaked especially since Letterman is pretty cool.

"She told the story about her boobies. When she was a girl, all others of her age had boobies. She didn't. She went and prayed in a church and told God to give her boobies. Apparently that church was a miracle church!", says LW lost in those holy assets.

"Miracle indeed!"

Bikini-clad Salma Hayek, as Santanico Pandemon...Image via Wikipedia
























This lead me to think about the eternal question tormenting every second person in this world. Whats with men and boobs! The same issue is hilariously portrayed in the movie Notting Hill:
Anna: What is it about men and nudity? Particularly breasts? How can you be so interested in them?
William: Well...
Anna: I mean, seriously- they're just breasts, every second person has them. They're odd looking, they're for milk from your mother. What's all the fuss about?
William: Hmm...let me take a look!

The Lost Symbol

Extremely busy with work. Not like I am sitting day-in day-out at work, still its pretty hectic. Living with room mates mean you get precious little time to write. Get home from work. Get some dinner. Watch TV/movie/both (we got a TV, a PC and a laptop!), browse, read, fool around, fight and viola its 2 AM! Sleep late and go to work. Repeat until weekend (I started out in Pascal, all you flashy kids would never know the repeat-until loop unless you started out with Fortran)! Anyway, my writing has been supplanted to a large extent by reading. That brings us finally to the point! I got my pre-ordered copy of the Lost Symbol by Dan Brown on 15th, the release day. Devoured it in one sitting, despite being pretty hammered on the head that day!

Lost Symbol is a cookie cutter Robert Langdon book. Its interesting but, way too formulaic. May be I am getting that feeling as I saw Da Vinci Code and Angels & Demons back to back just around a month back. Still, you can predict how the story is going. A unique out of the world villain, wise old mentors, intelligent lady sidekick, looot of lectures, skeptical Langdon (way too skeptical and comes of as a jackass at times!), and of course conspiracy theory!

After taking up the Priory of Sion and the Illuminati, Dan Brown's subject is a real fraternity this time. The Freemasons. Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation with branches (or lodges as they call) across the world. Look up the Wikipedia article. Very interesting.

Langdon's mentor and prominent Freemason, Peter Solomon, who has been kidnapped by a mysterious Malakh. Malakh demans Langdon to find the secret guarded by the Freemason's in return for his friend's life. He is joined by Peter Solomon's sister, Katherine Solomon, in the whirlwind of a chase. CIA also gets involved in the plot and it starts to thicken like a jam! I am not blowing any suspense here. Go read the book!

The book is an absolute page turner in spite of being predictable. Interesting aspects are discussed like the current state of organized religion, principles of freemasonry, and noetic science. The plot moves at a brisk pace with quite a lot of turns. For me the greatest disappointment was the ending. You feel like: to protect this, why do they have to be so fucking secretive? Its unlike the ending on Da Vinci Code and the even more dramatic Angels & Demons. Very underwhelming to say the least.

A lot of has been written about Dan Brown's literary style. Personally, I really don't get the accusations. The man is no Hemingway, and no one is claiming that! Think of Dan Brown books as Hollywood blockbusters. Heavy on action, value for money! No one is expecting a Booker/Pulitzer prize for his book. That said, there is a lot of merit in the topics he has put forward. Many intellectuals snark as soon as they hear noetic science or psychic powers. The core idea: God is within you, merits a serious book from a good storyteller. Sad thing is, talented authors are polarized these days. The nutter believers with their pseudos and stark atheists with their pseudos.

Trivia: Famous Indian Freemasons! Check out the following list!
  • Dadabhoy Nowroji Tata
  • Swami Vivekananda
  • W.C. Bannerjee
  • President Dr. Rajendra Prasad
  • President Dr. S. Radhakrishnan
  • Sir Syed Ahmed Khan
  • Justice S Padmanabhan
  • Dr. Badruddin Tyabji
The entire list is available here.

Rain...

Just before she comes down...to cool you, drench you, free you from the shackles momentarily...

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from Pain on the Posterior

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