Jugaad Ka Desh

This happens only in India, rather, wonly yin yindia.

Location: Mumbai

jugaad n. an improvised or jury-rigged solution; inventiveness, ingenuity, cleverness.

A spiced-up irony

A couple of days back I boarded Spice Jet for the first time in my life. As the plane taxied before take-off I did what I always do. I opened the in-flight magazine at a random page. This is what I saw and I couldn’t help but chuckle. Maran saab is going to be mighty pissed; someone’s surely losing his/her job.

Irony is a dish best served spiced.
Maran saab, do ask your editor if this was intentional.

Wishing everyone a happy new year. I will be doing LASIK tomorrow; that is, unless I chicken out in the morning. Hopefully I can welcome 2012 with a glasses-free life. Unfortunately that also means that my laptop will be locked up for the next one week. So next update won't be till at least Jan 7th.

Until then folks.

Cheers.

A Balancing Act

A fun toy to play with at my aunt's place. No kidding, this is easy in principle, but bringing it alive is an art requiring masterful precision. This was at my grandma's place earlier and this toy used to keep me occupied whenever I visited. This was the one thing that helped me cope with the lack of internet :)

The lost symbol

Here’s a mid week update; it’s about time, I guess. Right now, perched in a middle seat somewhere above the Atlantic, I can finally start penning this post after a week of insane workload. Hopefully, I’ll be able to come up with at least two updates per week for the next month.

I had written about the Virginia part of the Thanksgiving road trip in my last post. After this trip I learnt one thing; and, you have to give this to the US - they have preserved their relatively short history very well. What’s more; go to any historical town and one can find many symbolisms around, some intended and others not. This makes these places a haven for conspiracy theorists and Dan Brown’s “The Lost Symbol” has renewed the appeal of these conspiracies. This post I’ll be talking about an unintended symbolism; no harm in adding one more conspiracy theory to the mix.

Being the center of the free world, as some politicians and journalists like to call it, it is not surprising that Washington DC is awash with Freemason symbolism.

What I like about the city’s design is how the Washington monument is at the center with the entrances to the Lincoln memorial, Jefferson memorial, the White House and the Capitol building all facing the Washington monument. At the same time, the statues of Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson and Franklin D. Roosevelt all face the Washington monument.

However, there is one memorial that stands out in being different - the Martin Luther King memorial. Here’s a photo.

Martin Luther King does not face the Washington monument. In fact, it looks like  he is standing hand folded scoffing at the Washington monument. Take what you will from that. To be honest, it was hardly intended but when you add one more fact into the mix, things get a little interesting. The memorial was designed and sculpted by Chinese architect Lei Yixin, and according to the incomparable Sandeep ‘Morgan’ Ram Mohan, MLK may be facing a Mao statue in China.

Cheers, and please, I am hardly serious in this post.

A Troy Story

Contrary to my expectations during the last update I couldn’t drive down Clinton Road this Thanksgiving; but, I will do that sometime. However, with a Troy - Danbury - DC - Richmond - Jamestown - Yorktown - Danbury - Troy eventful four-day road trip spanning six states I could possibly call this story scouting trip a success. In time I’ll write about all that, but today this post is about a simple Civil War story dedicated to all the beautiful maidens of Troy

It is well said [NOT] that “you can take a trip out of Troy but you cannot take Troy out of a trip”. Eight hours down south in Richmond, Virginia I was reminded of Troy’s place in US history while at the Virginia Historical Society museum. My friends and I were perusing the American Civil War section when one of my friends chanced upon this story. In the context of the Civil War this is probably an inconsequential event. Yet, it is an interesting reminder of how everyone, even non-fighting women far removed from the battle fronts, contributed to the respective causes on either side intentionally or unintentionally. Here you go.

Lt. George H. Thomas, a Union general during the Civil War (1861-1865), is generally held in high esteem by historians for his successful record in the war. Lt. Thomas led the Union forces to a decisive victory over the Confederates at the Battle of Mill Springs. His defensive line that held off repeated attacks from a numerically superior opponent and the subsequent counterattacks that held the Confederate army at bay until nightfall during the Battle of Chickamagua earned him the title of the “Rock of Chickamagua”. He is a hero, no doubt. However, it is a shame that he has failed to achieve as much historical acclaim as some of his contemporaries, such as Ulysses S. Grant and William T. Sherman, due to a variety of reasons that included a disinterest in advancing his legacy by publishing memoirs and an uncomfortable relationship with Gen. Grant.

Now what has all this got to do with Troy? Nothing much; just that in the November of 1852 Lt. Thomas married Frances Kellogg of Troy, NY. Now, the good lieutenant was a Virginian and had a close personal relationship with Gen. Robert Lee, who was later the number one man in the Confederate army. Yet, as the Civil War broke out in 1861 he turned down an offer to serve in the Virginia state militia and reported back to active duty with the U.S. army. It is probably the influence of his Northern-born wife that led to his choice.

His siding with the Union instead of the South angered his family. They turned his portrait against the wall, destroyed his letters and refused to accept the money he sent in spite of the economic hardship in the South after the war. His sisters disowned him strongly believing that it was the influence of his Northern wife that contributed to his “desertion”.

In short, without the fair maiden from Troy, the Union forces may not have had such a reliable general to count on in some decisive battles. This is probably inconsequential since Lt. Thomas may have sided with the Union anyway because of his dislike of slavery. Yet, as the saying goes, there is always a woman behind a successful man and thus her role in the fight against slavery, which the Civil War eventually turned to, is worth repeated mentions.

Finally, sticking to the same theme that you cannot take Troy out of a trip here’s a question for my RPI readers. The picture below was taken outside a museum near  the archaeology dig of the original Jamestown settlement. Does the name ring a bell? It’s quite obvious but I’ll write about it in my next update, as well.

Horrors of Philly

Over a month ago I had visited a friend in Philadelphia. The trip was a very short one but rather memorable indeed. Last week I had written about a smile inducing comment made by my friend’s daughter. Following up from that post, this time I’ll be writing about a somewhat creepy side to this historic city. Yes, this is the city where Edgar Allen Poe penned some of his scariest works. Yes, M. Night Shyamalan filmed The Sixth Sense here as well. As I learnt from my friend that day and then later from Uncle Google, if you are looking for a ghost in the US, then this is probably the right place to be. True to this reputation, there are plenty of sites in Philly to go ghost hunting.

Kids Say The Darndest Things

A month back I was in Philly. It was a day trip to visit a friend and I did not have time to explore the city. There was not much point either since it was Columbus day and most museums were closed. Nevertheless, my friend decided to show me the Liberty Bell and a couple of other places in the short time we had.

Driving around the city, at some point the GPS lost its signal and my friend happened to comment, “I think I am lost”. Suddenly a sweet voice responded from the back of the car. It was her daughter strapped into her child restraint seat. “Mommy, you are not lost. I can still see you”.

Now, if that did not put a smile to your face you must have a heart of stone. Next week, I’ll write about the Philly trip in detail. Until then, cheers and have a blast. Wait, what's that I hear? You have more such stories? Do share it with us in the comments section.

The road less travelled

Well, this week I am cheating; sort of at least. The post this time is about a place I haven’t been to yet. It’s more like a build up to, hopefully, my thanksgiving weekend upload. Oh boy, am I taking this road in a couple of weeks?

Connecting Newfoundland and West Milford in New Jersey runs the 10-mile stretch of Clinton Road. What’s special about the road? Watch this.

The video is a segment from a Travel Channel series on the “Most Terrifying Places in America”.

The road has been associated with paranormal activities for over a century. Stories of the phantom truck, weird animals, satanic rituals and frozen dead bodies have had plenty of people scared. Some of the above stories are true, like the serial killer “Iceman” using the roadside for dumping his victims. Reports of KKK activity also have some substance. Everything else is so unbelievable and severely exaggerated that the trip could end up to be damp squib.

In any case, the general endorsement is that it is a scary, creepy, isolated road. The road essentially winds through a desolate woodland in the middle of nowhere. There are no connecting roads or homes along the road. So what do you expect, especially at night? It is said that you essentially have a spine-tingly feeling while driving down this road raising the hair along the nape of your neck. This one, I have to check out.

Elephant poo sold here!

I was unable to hit the road anytime over the week and thus, have no new tales to publish today. Unfortunately, I am also out of stock of older stories to regurgitate in this space. So, here’s one straight from my current habitat; one, that reminds me of home, the cultural capital of god’s own country.

A few months back I came upon the above sticker outside the RPI bookstore. Interested, a wee bit, I captured the poo sticker on my camera phone, never realizing one bit what it stood for. It was a time when humor-tinged notices and posters were coming up at different places on the campus. Nevertheless, I never once thought why a bookstore would put up with s**t.

I guess, I just assumed it was part of a joke, one that I just did not get. How wrong was I?

78 Wh

Entrance to the engineering building at Harvard

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