Of pick-up lines & number games

This is a little montage of pick-up lines/cheesy hits/romantic mumblings I've used (YES!) , heard being used & heard of being used. All those who I've borrowed from would, I'm sure, not like to be given credit. Particularly dedicated to Anj... who might need to use them very soon.

+ "Awwww"
It's got almost 100% success. If the other person is slightly drunk & slightly depressed. ;-)

+ "You will never age, fade or die for me."
Stolen from Shakespeare in Love, this is a trademark line that's supposed to make women go weak in the knees. It works.

+ "Ooh... There's a heavenly body missing from the sky tonight. Oh look, it's right next to me"
Good, if you're standing next to someone & looking at an expansive black sky. Works even better on the 6th date when you're waiting for something to happen, but you're both too shy to make it happen. Works best if you're using sidey pick-up lines on each other, just for the fun of it.

+ "You want my phone number?"
Can't get more blatant than this one, can it? The unfortunate user was one of my smartest friends who misheard a cute waiter at a coffee-house saying "Ma'am, what name should I place the order on?"

+ "Do you believe in love at first sight, or should I walk by again?"
Anj... use this one. Or be ready to hear it from the yummy GSB 27-year-old blokes.
One evening isn't much time.

+ "You had me at hello"
Sigh.... my favourite line ever. I think it's much sweeter that "You complete me" from the same movie. Would swoon if used on me (if guy met pre-requisites of course)

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I'm addicted to Su-doku... the weird Japanese sounding number game. Well, it's as Japanese as french fries are French. And it is not a number game either. You can replace 1-9 with A-I and it'd still be the same... it could even be more interesting - it could throw up some cool 4-letter-word combinations.

The first time I heard about Su-doku was during summer internship, a little before it caught on in India. But I got hooked on to it only recently... thanks to an idle mind among other things.

I've heard some interesting myths about Su-doku... that it prevents Alzhiemer's Disease (cool... now I just need to solve 345 different puzzles & I'll not need medical insurance). And that people who do Su-dokus also love crossword puzzles. Well, I love crosswords... but I know of lots of typical non-verbal folks who can crack evil Sudokus in under 20 mins but would run miles away from crosswords. The same folks wouldn't touch Su-Dokus with a bargepole if 1-9 was A-I instead.

I think quizzers & cryptic crossword solvers will have a larger overlap area in a Venn Diagram. Don't really regard a quick clue crossword to be the real thing.

Hyderabad Blues, Greys & Bright Yellows (and a dash of Purple)

Got back from ISB today - was there for Poseidon. It has been one of my best trips out of MICA since the time I got here. Even better than the ISB visit last year.

A quick review of the fest itself. Definitely scaled down from last year, but more professionally run. The ISBians rock on hospitality & soft skills. They were very accomodating on participant requests :-) ... Special mentions ought to go to Richa, Pranjal, Umang, Manikandan, Ramkey -these folks really know how to run a show.

It's really amazing that even with their jam-packed schedules, they manage to put together these events. Especially when they don't have a legacy of contacts, processes & information from the seniors. But maybe it helps too... the events were quite fresh, and went beyond the usual B-School contests.

Which brings us to the event that Vinay & I had qualified for - it involved ad campaign analysis. We came in third. I think one half of the judging panel was very highly opinionated. This particular lady was more keen on viewing the ads with a critical eye, rather than plain & simple analysis. Naturally, there was no business sense in her opinion... No wonder some of these "ad folks" remain restricted to local small city ad circles. I don't see clients buying any of the airheaded stuff she spoke about.

The response to Poseidon was good. Maybe the fact that it comes towards the fag end of fest circuit prevented bigger crowds from coming in. Or maybe the place is so huge, you don't really notice the crowds!

The people are awesome. Amazing diversity & very interesting work-ex. And yes, it is a geek hotbed! Totally enjoyed my 2 days there :-)

Didn't take part in the quiz, even though it ultimately didn't clash with our event. But it was fun all the same. JK is a fab quizzer turned QM. I thought he rocked in Mastermind & more so in University Challenge... was good fun to meet up with him at ISB again, after MICANVAS.

Met up school & college friends. Was great to catch up with Uma & Apoorva... It's almost unbelievable that in less than two years, our lives have changed so much. We all studied pretty much the same stuff in college... immunoglobulins, heparin, transcription, RNA and the like. 20 months down the line, I hadn't the vaguest idea what they were referring to when they spoke of MSc. :-)

Ran into other friends and acquaintances from work, CAT preps etc. Also met Gautam (should I hyperlink to you-know-what?)... without whom any mention of Hyd would be incomplete :-)

Hyderabad (and Secunderabad) is the world's best city. It was a surreal experience going back there. I miss it a lot. The place has so much character. The Gults are a nice lot... & it felt good to be among them & their autos & set dosas & Chirugaaru movie posters & Hussainsagar Lake & Hi-Tec City & rock formations & railway stations again. Have lovely memories of the place - of West Marredpally & KV Picket & Shoppers Stop & Lifestyle. Just wish I'd had enough time to relive them.

Spect-ocular

Am in a bloggy mood... but I really don't know what to write about. Just stringing together a few arbit thoughts from here and there.

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Some time ago, we had lectures with a very interesting visiting prof. Now, what we learnt was good. But what made the lectures fascinating was the prof himself. Anj & I found ourselves momentarily smitten... almost to the point of objectifying the prof. Other women in the class didn't share the same... er... feelings. That's when it hit me... I find the geeky kind terribly attractive. I mean, I've found them cute, but now it's so much a part of me that I've stopped noticing the geekiness. And it's not like I'm a teenager-with-heart-on-my-sleeve.

What makes this strata of population so hot? They would have to qualify for at least 6 of the following 10 filters. (And I'm talking in MR jargon now.)

1. The willingness to accept that they're geeky
2. The no-particular-hairstyle-hair. (Copyright: Anjali)
3. The slightly crumpled pants/faded jeans with nice shirt or sweater.
4. The rich voice.
5. The underplayed suave.
6. The way they can speak sense and the amazing clarity of thought.
7. The inherent tech skills.
8. The way they might think hot women are attractive, but always prefer the normal looking women.
9. The way they rubbish theory, and can yet be very scientific.
10. Sigh... the glasses.

I've also noticed recently that adding an "age of 30+" filter to the above makes them twice as yummy. But sadly, they're all snapped up by that age. If my blog weren't public, I'd love to share some examples :-)

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I'm going to ISB for Poseidon next week. Got a final shortlist for an event. Plus, there's the quiz with J Krishnamurthi. And of course, I'll be visiting Hyderabad after a year. It's my all-time favourite city. The perfect mix of north & south India. I know I'd want to live there for a couple of years, some time in the future.

Loved ISB last year. Hope I love it even more this year.

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Have been watching F.R.I.E.N.D.S again. It's good fun to watch it alone... but even more fun to watch it with someone who enjoys it as much as you do. Warm hug to all the people who I've watched & discussed tiny details of the show with over the last 6 years. :-)

Season Paranoia

At the start of any much-awaited season, there's excitement. Like summer... when you're waiting to wear kurtis, eat chuski at M-Block Market (or golas at Juhu Beach, to be democratic) and go on a holiday to Mussourie or Matheran. Or like winter... which gives you the perfect excuse to cuddle up in blankets or seek some kind of human warmth and spend as much time in a hot shower till the heater gives up on you. Or the start of cricket season... where you can't get enough of discussing team compositions, batting averages or ads with cute cricketers. Or the Madras Margazhi Music Season. Or the new season of Desperate Housewives. Or... well, you get the hang of it.

Each season brings with it, its own characteristic language, trends & er... semiotics.

Quick Quiz. With what season would you associate the following things?

• Cold feet
• Frayed nerves
• 4.56
• 7.51
• 3+
• Verticals
• Day minus 1
• International
• CTC
• PPT
• Argh
• Negotiations
• Offer
• Kick some a$$

A: It's those lovely days at the fag end of B-School life inappropriately named Placement Season. The week that leads to misplaced sanity, misplaced happiness & misplaced CVs.

It's kicking in here. There's 40 days to go until placement week, not counting Day Zero. And already, it's the ONLY thing people around are talking about. The best of people switch to a zombie like mode, where they're only dreaming about GDs, PIs & CTCs.

Normal conversation around campus:

Student 1 (Not yet in placement mode): What's for lunch?
Student 2 (Mis-Placed already): I won't apply to XYZ if they're offering such a sad profile. But for that kinda money... maybe I should.
Student 3 (Smug-with-PPO): I heard the economic boomtime won't last till Jan 20th. We're all sinking man.
Student 4 (Another Mis-Placed already): Shut up. You know that Cholestrol isn't giving PPOs this time. I'm going to prepare 200 page word documents on all companies to show that I've done research on them & I know better about their corporate strategy than the VP, Corporate Strategy.
Student 5 (Placement Co-ordinator): CalvinHobbes is coming for a PPT tomoro, folks.
Student 6 (Another Mis-Placed already): Yay, I want FMCG!
Student 2 (Mis-Placed already): No dood, financial services rock!
Student 7 (Confused media student): Where are the TV Channels? Let's go pitch to Ass-tha & Balley-Balley too!

Student 8 (Paranoid Zombie): I will never get placed - waaaaaaaaah.
Student 1 (Not yet in placement mode): Yeah, but what's for lunch?

Can't wait to get over with it... it's not that big a deal.

I guess.

Did the Diu!

Yes, I finally did! After a year and half of plans-that-didn't-happen, lectures-at-the-last-minute & ehhh-not-now, I managed to do what I so badly wanted to do: vacation in the island town of Diu. I spent 48 hours with lonely beaches, white sands, magical sunsets & the cool blue sea. Now I sound like a cheesy travel guide (much like the one we found in our hotel room in Diu - "bujet acomodation in Deev for turists; the clear sea beacons you "). Diu is paradise - no touts, no sidey crowd, no pollution & yes, no prohibition.

For the hungry travelers: Diu is a union territory on the western coast of Gujarat, about 400 km from Ahmedabad. There's a tiny airport, where a half-empty Jet Airways flight from Mumbai lands every afternoon. The best way to get to Diu is by bus from Ahmedabad or Mumbai. Or you could take the train like we did. Somnath Express - an abnormally dirty train leaves takes to a place called Veraval - about 80 km from Diu. How you get to your hotel from there depends on a mean mixture of fate, common-sense & the whims of the Gujju private transport owners.

We stayed at a quaint, pretty place called The Resort Hoka at Nagoa Beach, about 8km from Diu town. The resort is lovely - an old villa with stucco walls and stone flooring converted into cozy rooms. Highly recommended by generations of MICAns, Hoka didn't disappoint. The brunch menu is amazing - especially the egg-pie. The service was fab too. Cheers to Aditya for running an extermely professional & homey set up.

Diu has been blessed by the divine hands of Bacchus - every second store is a wine shop/bar/pub/daru ka dukan. And every local has at least one bartender & one drunken uncle in the family.

Highlights of the trip:

• Explored forts, churches, piers and Diu town & the amazing views of the ocean.
• Rented out a Scooty and went for long rides along the coast
• Discovered lonely beaches
• Sat on the beach late at night, drinking wine & talking for hours
• Climbed rocky hillocks just to get a view of the seafront
• Saw a strange gay couple: an old blind firang guy & a young Indian wannabe kid
• Getting away from it all, not thinking about placement week - even if it was just for a few hours

If I ever write a book, the story will be set in Diu.

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Came back for the last show of Sankalp. It was kinda dull and artsy for me, though there were some good individual performances. The dances were really funny, though they weren't meant to be.

The Trouble with Love is...

B-Schools are vastly different from other educational institutes. A significant part of a B-Schooler's two years is spent in hunting (or being hunted) for associations - professional, personal & mainly physical.

The average B-Schooler is an evolved species. He/she has survived the tribulations of 4 years of Engineering education (or for lesser mortals - 3 years of graduation), a year or two or more of work and CAT. The battle-weary B-Schooler enters the institute with high expectations:

• A two year holiday,
• A mine's-bigger-than-yours large pay-package &
• A hope to get hitched/get laid/or maybe fall in love.

Points #1 & #2 are well... yawn.The fun begins with Point #3.

Follow the charts below to study... er... Kinship in B-Schools.

1) First Week on Campus:

2) Post-Fresher's Party

3) Post-Summers

4) Convocation

The complexities of B-School relationships, mixed with many plastic cups of vodka & Sprite go far beyond the campus walls. Girlfriends & boyfriends become Ex-es over a party, an assignment or other guy/girl. The couple you think are perfect for each other turn out to be the first ones to bite the dust. And just when you think there can be no more hook-ups in your batch, you hear things during water-cooler conversations ;-)

Infidelity isn’t an anomaly at B-Schools. It is a way of life.

... and love is a four-letter word.