Friday, December 30, 2005
the blower's daughter
In addition to everything else, I am now also emotionally distant to boot. Hysterical people, overly emotional people just annoy me now. I want tograb them and wring them until all those tears just come out in one go, as one would wring a wet towel and then begin to talk some sense into them. FYI, it's not very effective, a strategy like this.
Nowadays, a good friend have travelled up to Karachi from Lahore, where she is studying and she's staying with me for the duration. It's quite interesting to watch all these emotions in effect that I have never felt nor could hope to feel. One day she's so nervous she can't eat because she's off to meet someone who gives her honest to goodness butterflies in her stomache. I honestly didn't know it was possible to get those with regards to a person unless you were a character in some teenage romance flick. It makes me wonder what other emotions I may be dismissing as ridiculously overdramatic and possibly even extinct just because I have never experienced them.
I saw
Closer a couple of days ago and besides being bitingly funny and completely relatable, the song it starts off with and ends with has been haunting me since.
And so it is
Just like you said it would be
Life goes easy on me
Most of the time
And so it is
The shorter story
No love, no glory
No hero in her sky
I can't take my eyes off of you
I just can't take my eyes off of you
I can't take my mind off of you
I can't take my mind off of you
'Til I find somebody new
Damien Rice - The Blower's Daughter
Misha
at Friday, December 30, 2005
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Thursday, December 29, 2005
^&%^&#
Complexity is overrated. Give me a simple life with simple issues that skim the surface of reality and simple, one dimensional relationships.
Misha
at Thursday, December 29, 2005
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Wednesday, December 28, 2005
Holidays are nearing an end all too quickly and checking out new semester schedules to carve out a mixtue of courses for my own this spring seems as all-depressing as buying back to school supplies used to be. To add to my general very non-festive mood, someone from the university called to tell me that my interview with the UN people is tomorrow morning! So now I know nothing, will probably be answering questions miserably and screw myself out of something I didn't want in the first place just because I have little to no interest in world affairs and geography in general. Let that be a lesson to all you kids, pay attention in class! The only thing worth looking forward to is that tomorrow morning, 'twill all be over and I can look forward to new years with buddies watching fireworks and eating hot pizza in warm clothes.
Misha
at Wednesday, December 28, 2005
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Tuesday, December 27, 2005
Yet Another Wedding
I truly detest weddings, especially those where relatives are involved. They inevitably end up being a vey plastic affair, with the utmost of attention being paid to what each person is wearing and not to the fact that we are all here for a joyous occasion. Even today, as I am forced to attend a function, I hate the fact that I have to check the mirror several times before leaving and that everything has to look absolutely flawless so that we can all ooh and aah at how perfect we are and how the world revolves at our will and everything is fun and easy for one night.
Misha
at Tuesday, December 27, 2005
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UN?!
Elaborating on an old post about how everyone but myself seems to think I need more responsibility and am more capable than I already am, it seems now people other than the faculty and students at my university seem to be catching on to this train of thought. I got a call in the midst of an enjoyably frivilous lunch informing me that I had been shortlisted by my coordinator to interview for one of four spots that would be going to Pakistani university students, and may end up going to India to represent Pakistan in some conference conducted by the UN. So now I have to get some serious reading up on world affiars, geography and history to be able to pass muster at the interviews. Not that I have much of a chance of getting it, with people from LUMS (aka well-read and intelligent people) and such in the competition, but hey, one can try. So much for a peaceful and enjoyably frivilous vacation.
Misha
at Tuesday, December 27, 2005
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Monday, December 26, 2005
Grand Theft Iraq
:)
Misha
at Monday, December 26, 2005
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Saturday, December 24, 2005
nonsensical rants from the moderately sick
If one should happen to come visit me as of late, you may only encounter "Muffled Misha", so named because she is suffering from a headache, lack of sleep for no reason and cramps, and hence has semi-permanently retired into her big fat blanket for the rest of the winter. Any conversation you address to Muffled Misha may be answered by the muffled replies that resulted in the richly deserved name, or no reply at all, which would mean either the iPod is on, or she has falled asleep beneath the covers. In either case, poke liberally with blunt instruments to recieve a reply. Be warned, do not attempt to snatch away her blanket unless you are willing to face the risk of losing an arm.
Misha
at Saturday, December 24, 2005
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Wednesday, December 21, 2005
Fight Club and Narnia
Not new, this article, but still an interesting read:
Fight Club vs Calvin & Hobbes by Galvin P. ChowOther interesting material for those interested in the same movie:
Fight Club, Patriarchy, and the Politics of Masculine Violence by Henry A. GirouxFight Club - A Sociological AnalysisI have a standard policy of reading books
before watching their big screen adaptations, so I hastily downloaded and started reading the Chronicles of Narnia series. Hurray for BitTorrents, because had I actually purchased the seven series books from, say,
Liberty books, it would have set me back a pretty penny. Now that I'm exactly halfway through the series (4th book out of seven), I can see why it's a classic. String Christian overtones? Mild, yeah, but I didn't even notice when I first read the book many years ago and after the first book, I only noticed because I was looking for them.
Misha
at Wednesday, December 21, 2005
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Monday, December 19, 2005
Rain!
There's something oddly inspiring about the first rain of the season. Of course, my first reaction to rumbling noises outside, living in the area that's the hot favorite for an earthquake to hit if, God forbid, one should ever hit Karachi, is to wonder why it is I can hear rumbling and feel no movement in the ground. Earthquake eliminated, the next likely choice is that there must have been some sort of bomb blast again (refer to past double KFC bombings in the area) or possibly some other major hotspot on fire (refer to Salt 'n Pepper Village catching fire late one night recently). Spotting no flames or stream of smoke on the horizon, nor any signs of people coming out of their homes with panic, I finally wander outside and discover that it's rain! Good old, harmless rain! Can you blame me for standing in the rain and smiling like an idiot?
Misha
at Monday, December 19, 2005
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Sunday, December 18, 2005
Of Weddings and the Food therein
A prime example of our Government spending far too much time and energy on essentially trivial matters is the shaadi ka khaana law. At four a.m., as I attempt to go to sleep, I remember that I have to attend a dholki tomorrow. Never being a fan of weddings in general, especially the inevitably looming one that shall have me in the starring role, I began to muse upon the more pleasant aspect of a wedding: the food, which naturally led to the wondering of whether that silly rule forbidding food to be served was still on, or had it been called out due to a general lack of interest? There was a time, my friends, in the golden days of yore when a man could enjoy both a wedding and a feast at the same time. Then the powers that be took over and, wishing to divert public attention from the sad state of the, well, State decreed that there would no longer be food served at weddings. Since then, the status of this law has changed so often, I forget which one we're on now.
Anyhow, my mum was a pro at keeping track of these little things. She had noticed, with the all-seeing eye that mums posess, that her children, like so many other ravenous beasts, are only fit for presenting in polite company once their appetites are satisfactorily appeased. Were the offending no-food rule being implemented, we would eat before going. Of course, it's never really that simple. Were the host and hostess sufficiently endowed with the moolah and the influence to serve food anyway, mum would know that too, and what a fine feast it would be. Defiance adds a mildly tangy flavor to wedding food. Anyhow, I digress. So this is my first wedding function where it's just myself and my brother. I must admit, I do not know any of those wedding songs absolutely everyone seems to know and have no zeal for singing them either. I also don't enjoy sitting for hours on end clapping for no good reason save to show my supposed excitement about hearing yet another rendition of the same wedding songs that have been sung at dholkis since my dadi's time. Having already made the no-brainer decision to go as early as is possible to do so and leave as soon as politeness permits, the only descision remains about food: to eat or not to eat? How to tactfully obtain information regarding such a sticky subject from said host? Nevertheless, I suppose munching on a few snacks beforehand resolves the issue. Oh, and should there be no food, there's always the McDonald's Drive-thru for a quick bite on the way home.
By the bye, I can't resist mentioning the best wedding food I have ever had, probably because it's such a random bit of trivia, I'll probably never actually get the chance to mention it ever again in conversation. To my sadness, I have forgotten the hosts, but the wedding was in winter and the appetizer was Chicken Corn Soup. Needless to say, it was gobbled up in twenty minutes flat and nobody left while there was still hope of another helping of the delicious soup coming our way. Goddamn, I would clap like there was no tomorrow for food like that. Now it's mostly salan with far too much oil and naan that has been kept out in the cold too long. A word of advice: if the naan has stiffened, it is dead. Let it rest in peace. It cannot be revived, however the caterers try, with re-heatings and re-re-heatings. The art of the wedding feast is, unfortunately, as dead as the naan.
Misha
at Sunday, December 18, 2005
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untitled
I'm not sure what to talk about here these days. My days consist of sleeping, munching on snacks, watching movies and playing videogames. 'Tis an exciting life. To misquote Green Day, wake me up when december ends.
Misha
at Sunday, December 18, 2005
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Friday, December 16, 2005
Cyberlove *snicker*
Man Dates Gal On Internet For Six Months -- And It Turns Out She's His Mother!
Bwahahaha! Goes to show what a nation of media-whores is being bred when someone with a story that embarassing would sell it to the news to get his 15 minutes. I'm not saying it isn't amusing and all, and God, would I love to have been the official photographer for this particular meetip, but what the heck is the world coming to?
Misha
at Friday, December 16, 2005
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Wednesday, December 14, 2005
School's out
So I finally, finally, finally am done with this semester. God, it's been a rollercoaster ride, especially since my wingman for projects got himself some major employment which cut down on time that was available for project work, plus another chum totally blew us off at the end of the year. The last day was monday, and what a shitty one it was. After seeing how much work other groups got done while mine was sadly understaffed was frustrating to say to the least. The fact that our report was one of the best ones and could have scored more marks had we the full implimentation included in it was even more frustrating. Today, however, thanks to staying up half the night to catch up on work that I was delaying due to projects and having a long napping session, I'm so ready for the new semester to begin.
Why does it seem like everyone's getting married these days? A 20-year old male friend is getting married this year. When I finally got a chance to catch up, he asked the single most annoying question combination anyone can ask me: "kitna parhogi? kia karogi itna parh ke? shaadi kab karogi?". I have to restrain myself from stuffing a pair of dirty socks in his mouth. Honestly, what is the big deal about wanting to actually study instead of leaping onto the first available male that walks by and heading to the nearest qazi? Why is it so strange that I may want to get at at least a Masters degree and see a bit of the world before I commit myself to ruining some poor SOB's life?
On a positive note, two great ladies have birthdays today. One would be the brilliant and always entertaining fellow blogger Hira/Heewa and the second would be my favorite Canadian schoolchum. I realize there's no way she would be reading this, but we miss you, Fraulien!
Misha
at Wednesday, December 14, 2005
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Sunday, December 11, 2005
Epihany
Epiphany: a sudden intuitive leap of understanding, especially through an ordinary but striking occurrence.
My lightbulb moment occurred at two a.m. this morning: I have a talent for BS (the noun not the degree program)! Why else would I be stuck making reports at the wee hours of the morning while groupmates work on Software Designs and Programming?
Misha
at Sunday, December 11, 2005
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The downsides
Okay, so now its time for the downsides. Minor, admittedly, but just to get a fair picture of the 5G ipod.
Battery issues. Fear not, nothing major. I initially didn't think I would be playing videos much at all since my use for an iPod used to be primarily playing music. Videos was just a nifty add-on, much like photo support. However, the video playback and display combination works so well that I couldn't resist playing back videos on it even though I was near a TV and PC all day. Trouble with this is, it's easy to get carried away. Battery life with music playback is great, but if you should play two to three hours of videos constantly, the battery will slowly start to die on you. This, however, is an estimation, since I haven't actually played videos long enough to wear down the entire battery yet. If you're into playing a lot of videos, I would definitely recommend you go for the 60 Gigabyte model of the iPod video, which, in addition to the obvious (more space), also has a longer lifespan for the battery.
Video Playback Delay. Okay, this is really grasping at straws to find a flaw, but this one is most noticeable upon the first few times of playing video files. There will always be a slight delay (1-1.5 seconds max) between the instant you click on a video file to be played and the instant it will start playing. I'm not one to make a big deal out of having a portable video device respond slightly slower than my PC, so this one is really very minor.
Style vs Scratching. Which do you prefer? If you go with the black iPod, simply because it is just so much more stylish than classic white, be prepared for scratching. Of course the white one scratches easily too, but with white, you can't see the minor scritch-scratchy network as well normally. The screen has to be protected at all costs. Get a durable and soft cover to protect your iPod, no matter how stupid it may look. Annoying little scratches will keep appearing and accumulating constantly, so have a case handy when you purchase, especially since the case included is okay for initial use for quite flimsy in my opinion.
That's about all the downsides I can think of. Remember, do NOT purchase iPods in Pakistan. You will be purchasing it for nearly double the price with a million justifications for the disparity in cost here and "bahaar se" by shopkeepers.
Misha
at Sunday, December 11, 2005
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5G
New 5G ipod, woo-hoo! A quick review:
Video display and playback: Absolutely crystal. Brilliant colors, razor sharp pictures and no skipping whatsoever. Also, none of that annoying LCD fault of not being able to view the screen at an angle. Additionally, the 2.5 x 2.5 inch screen (0.5 inches larger than previous models) is a great idea. Much love, Steve Jobs! Oh and also, another great feature included but not much trumpeted is that the iPod bookmarks each video you have played and resumes from that very point onwards when you should play the video again. Great for TV shows and movies so that you don't have to skip ahead or rewind until you find where you left off but a tad annoying with music videos.
File Conversion: Flawless. I downloaded an already converted movie file (Fight Club in Mp4 format from mininova.com) and it played great with absolutely no discernible loss in quality. I then used a software called ImToo iPod Movie Converter to convert a bunch of hi-res videos and TV shows and move them onto the iPod and played them. Beautiful, absolutely gorgeous. I am now in the process of watching the whole first season of Firefly on the move on this little beauty.
Additional Graphic goodies: Thanks to a color screen, we can now assigned album art to individual songs (which I actually did for each of my 750+ songs) and be saved from the blandness of simple text as a song plays. Also, you can save the lyrics for each song, although I'm still experimenting with that feature and how exactly to access it while a song plays.
More later. :)
Misha
at Sunday, December 11, 2005
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Thursday, December 08, 2005
Firefox supported!
Blog is now firefox friendly, thanks to Aman, the HTML guru! =)
Misha
at Thursday, December 08, 2005
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Tuesday, December 06, 2005
Bad, Bad Diode
I spent the morning liberatingly focused on the task at hand for once, making circuits to implement what we had learned in Digital Systems. Turns out, I suck at theory but ace implementation. At the beginning of the class the other (junior) girls in my assigned group were being mocked by their biiig, strong chauvinist counterparts and getting offers to do all the work for them as soon as they had finished their own labwork. Apparently, watching me struggling with a borrowed pocketknife to slice the rubber covering off the edges of bits of wire inspired them into action. Hell, I didn't know they had it in them, scraping away with their long nails at the edges till both the wire and their fingers were raw. Just goes to show what someone can do if they're riled up enough. By the end of the class, most the boys were approaching my groupmembers for tips and troubleshooting their own circuits. And the girls, bless them, did not gloat... much. :P
So essentially, I spent all of yesterday creating a business plan and today creating circuits. What an odd educational experience. :D
Misha
at Tuesday, December 06, 2005
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Friday, December 02, 2005
The New Face of Lollywood? (we have GOT to get rid of that name)
Can movies made by twenty-somethings targetted at urban teens revive a practically dead local movie industry? The young team behind The Early Days seem to think so.
The story focuses on a young freshman who comes to City University to study and bunks with the suitably wild and wacky polar opposite for some madcap adventures and come life lessons along the way. Of course, our hero will also meet the lady for whom he shall fall for at first sight at this university and obtain her affections in the end as well. While the story's not exactly unpredictable, the treatment could be. To quote the official website, "'The Early Days' is a tender and witty coming of age story...". I, along with anyone who's dreamed of having a film industry you don't have to squirm embarassedly about when someone from out of the country asks about it, will wait and watch with interest to see if the movie lives up to the hype.
Oh, and if photos on the website look familiar, it's probably because its theme has been playing regularly on IM for about a week now.
Misha
at Friday, December 02, 2005
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Zurich Milk
I now know what a carton of milk must feel as it approaches its expiry date.
Two more finals, one more project, one more presentation, two more reports to go. :(
Misha
at Friday, December 02, 2005
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Thursday, December 01, 2005
Chapter Six
"There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable." I love Douglas Adams. :D
Top 20 Geek Novels of all TimeMisha
at Thursday, December 01, 2005
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