Chronicles del mundo jillako!

My first trip report from a cycle ride

2012-02-09T11:47:00.000-08:00

It was also my longest attempt yet, the 400k BRM on 28th January. In December, I had completed the 300k BRM, only just finishing in the stipulated time. Naturally, I had my doubts about finishing the longer 400km ride in time.

The route for the 400k BRM

Luckily, I joined a group of cycling buddies (Chiddu, Rajanikanth, Sohan & Vasu) for a 200k prep ride the weekend before the brevet and this helped boost confidence, massively. We covered part of the BRM route (see http://j.mp/wB6EUR) and rode through the night too. I gathered enough confidence to register for the 400k BRM after this ride. I was able to keep up with the road bikes until we reached the highway, when they left me in the dust. Vasu is one of those guys who is very methodical about training and he was able to give me many pointers on how I could improve my average on Brevet day. 1 - he urged me to lean on my handlebars whenever possible as this would reduce wind resistance and increase my speed. 2 - he ordered me to strip away all unnecessary parts on my well-equipped bike, in order to drop weight and increase my speed.

The week before the brevet. L->R Sohan, Vasu, Rajanikanth, Chiddu

The week of the brevet was spent wondering if I was really going to remove stuff bolted on my bike. I pondered renting a bike, or borrowing one. However, I decided to stick with my bike to avoid the risk of being stuck with a bike that turned out to be uncomfortable for me. So, a day before the brevet, I removed the following from my bike - fenders, kick stand, horn, pannier rack, pannier, BikeGlow unit, iPhone mount, Klean Kanteen & cage. I had never seen it look so lean! I still had to carry some gear and I decided to use my Hydrapak for this.

These are the things I carried in my Hydrapak, apart from the water - two pb&j sandwiches, a bag of dry fruits (bananas & jack fruit), a bag of my own nut mix (almonds, m&ms, raisins), 3 energy bars, 4 sachets of Gatorade, a second cycling jersey (for the cold), two lights (needed two because one wouldn't last through the night), my high-viz jacket. On the bike was a mini-pump and a saddle bag with my mini-tool, spare tube and patch kit.

On the morning of the ride, I drove my car to the start. I picked up Manjula at BTM Layout and we both arrived at IISc about 10 minutes before 6AM. By the time I got set up and the brevet start formalities finished, it was 6:08. Started with Sohan, soon caught up with the first group of riders. Having done the route before was tremendously helpful and I just raced through the many turns here. On Madhure Temple Road, saw Sreepathi at a secret control and got my brevet card stamped. On Vasu's advice, I wanted to finish my first 100km within 6 hours so I kept going as fast as I could. I knew that the road bikes would catch up with me once we reached good roads so did not really wait for anyone. I reached Madhure in good time and took a 15 min break for breakfast. The road through the town here had become unbikeable within the last week and I almost fell down (feet in PowerGrips as I came to a sudden stop). Saw Sohan and Manjula stop just as I was leaving from the small hotel, said I would see them down the route and went ahead. (Learnt later that Chiddu and one more rider had passed me here). I was making good time and reached Dobaspet just after 9:30AM. The sun was still behind clouds and riding was very pleasant. On the road to Koratagere though, it got hot pretty fast. By 10:30AM I was feeling the heat and gulping lots of water.

Yours truly, looking fresh at Koratagere

Made it to Koratagere at 11:30AM, meaning I had covered the first 100kms in 5:30. I was pretty happy with myself and took a 15 minute break at a shop we discovered the previous week. Had some of the local jeera drink, replenished my water and got some masala peanuts (proved helpful in the night). I saw Manjula ride past and followed her, caught up with her at the ATM which was the brevet control at Koratagere. We rode together for a little while but the sun got to me and I fell behind. The road to Madhugiri was awful and the going was slow. I stopped for a tender coconut break and soon got going slowly.

Madhugiri Fort

The fort at Madhugiri looked fantastic, saw lots of visitors too. Made a mental note to bring the kids in a few years and found the road to Sira. The road did not get much better all the way to Sira. Got very hungry near 2PM as I was passing by Badavanahalli and stopped at the first place on the road that seemed to have food. The food was basic - sambar rice and buttermilk but it was good and served the part. Having regained some energy, started cycling towards Sira again. Manjula called to see where I was, she said she was about 3km ahead. The butt and hands were taking a battering now and I couldn't wait to get back to the highway.

Arriving at the outskirts of Sira, I asked for the way to Hiriyur and rode to the highway. Soon after getting on the highway, I had to stop for another tender coconut. A boy here was very curious about my bike and was fiddling with every lever on my bike despite my appeals to him. Then he started pestering me for a ride. I decided to get out of there quickly. Manjula later told me that she called out to me as she approached here and I didn't pay attention. I guess I just rode away fast without looking back, I apologized to her later. Also, I think I took a different route through Sira because Manjula was ahead of me previously.

Made good time past Hiriyur and to the exit for Chellakere. I had mentally noted that this located was approximately 200km from the start and was happy to reach here by 5:30PM which meant I had covered the first 200km in 11:30. Stopped here for another meal and refilled my water. The person at the shop told me that two other riders had gone past a short while ago. Made phone calls to my wife and mother and let them know that I was doing well and expected to finish in time. After a 20-25 min stop here, started towards Chellakere.

I found the road to Chellakere to be of very good quality and pleasing to the eye. Was happy to be cycling along. A motorcycle rider pulled up and chatted with me while riding. I told him the whole route and he was genuinely surprised that I was taking a turn at Eraballi. He wanted to know if I had been to Eraballi before, I replied in the negative and showed him my cue-sheet explaining that the route was chosen by the organizers. He wished me well and went ahead. Soon after, I came to the turn at Eraballi where I was bombarded with more questions. Answered them as much as I could (I don't know Kannada), took my photos and then proceeded to get outfitted for the night as it was dusk now. The road to Ayamangala was of decent quality but it got very dark fast and it was quite uninhabited with only the occasional vehicle passing by. Another motorcycle rider kept me company for a while, asking the usual questions. I was quite surprised when he asked me if I was in college or working. I guess the helmet hid my greying hair :) He left me after a bit, advising me to visit a local temple before I turned back. It was pitch dark and I looked up at the sky hoping to get a good view of the stars but it was still too early for that. I remember spotting only one bright object in the sky and thinking that it was probably Venus.

My lean mean cycle at the Eraballi turn

Arrived at Ayamangala, took the requisite photo (for the unmanned control) and then returned to the highway. I kept alert for the turnoff at Hiriyur. There was an ATM control in Hiriyur. Unfortunately, this one was a ways off the highway. Asked a local cyclist if he would help me locate the SBI ATM. He was happy to show me. Unfortunately, both the SBI ATMS he took me to were closed at this hour. Asked around for other ATMS and finally found a Vijaya Bank ATM. It was a bit of a wait for my turn here. On the way back, was ready to eat again but didn't see any appetizing joint. When I saw a "Haryana Jalebi" shop manned by a Punjabi, I stopped for a quick break. Got 6 Jalebis for Rs. 10. When I got them, I planned to eat half and pocket the rest for later. However, they were yummy and the turbaned shopkeeper made good conversation so I ended up eating them all. He wanted to know if he could join my cycling club. I told him he certainly could and that made him happy. I bid him goodbye and continued on.

After this I started to lose track of time. I must have pedaled for an hour or so after Hiriyur when my butt started complaining and I could not remain seated for any length of time. This, in spite of me regularly changing my positions and standing up often. I think around 10:30PM or so I stopped for a break by the highway. There was a shop with a bed available, and I couldn't resist. Refilled my water bladder and just relaxed for 15 minutes or so. Then I saw Mohit go by, called out to him and he stopped. He was followed by Rajanikanth and Manjula. Asked them where Chiddu was and was told he was far ahead. Listening to the three of them calculate time till the finish, I realized that an in-time finish was not going to be a cakewalk. Until then, I had planned to take a 2 hour break to catch up with sleep. However, at this point I abandoned that plan.

I joined Mohit with Manjula and Rajanikanth following and we had pedaled for a while when Vijay joined us. Somewhere before the Sira toll gate, we stopped for a break. (Thanks Vijay for the banana!) A breathless Vasu caught up with us here. He had pedaled non-stop from Hiriyur! Vijay, Mohit and I (being hybrid and MTB riders) decided to start ahead of the group here and started together. After a while we had lost Vijay. Learnt later that he had a puncture. My rear was getting bothered again and I told Mohit that I wanted to take a break at the Sira toll booth. Just before the toll booth though, we found bicycle lights off the side of the road. Saw two riders getting their gear on. Shouted out to them and told them that we'd stop ahead and went on. The riders turned out to be Chiddu and Parameshwar and they had just started after a sleep break! I'd planned on it but Chiddu had executed it.

Mohit latched onto the duo of Chiddu and Parameshwar and I took my planned break at the toll plaza. Saw Manjula and Rajanikanth pass by and followed them. Caught up with them at a break further down to see that Mohit had joined them too. We stopped for a tea and it was my first tea in living memory. I was never a tea or coffee drinker but had one just to keep alert. It only worked for a limited time though and I was soon quite drowsy. I had to battle sleep all the way past Tumkur. I kept taking quick breaks to get away from the monotony of pedaling on the highway. At some point I hit upon the bright idea of eating the masala peanuts acquired earlier in the day. These were spicy and caused me to be alert for a while. Standing up and attacking the climbs also helped. All the pedaling until the waking hours at Nelamangala was a blur. I would catch up with the other three when they stopped, then slowly fall behind, only to catch up again. Daylight helped me stay awake and I managed to follow my 3 buddies to Yeshwantpur at a good clip.

The city was waking up and traffic was already pretty ugly. It was time to HTFU and finish this brevet ride, which we did. The four of us arrived together with about 1 hour and 25 minutes to spare (of the 27 hours allowed). I was quite happy with the finish and we were all happy to be finished. Vasu finished soon after, after making excellent time into Bangalore. He deserves a special mention for taking the time out to help other riders on the way (Vijay with his puncture, Sohan with water etc.). Chiddu had finished nearly an hour and half before us and was probably home already. After putting away our gear, we wolfed down a hearty breakfast at a local joint. As we returned back to IISc, Sohan rode in with another impressive last-minute finish! Was happy for him, he had prepared and ridden hard. I found out later that he covered 20kms more than the rest of us, having gotten lost.

Recovery for me wasn't as bad as the previous brevet. By the 3rd day, I felt quite normal except for a niggling pain in the right shoulder. I was quite happy with the way I had prepared and packed for the ride. The Hydrapak 3L bladder really helped me carry enough water to avoid frequent water breaks and also have enough water through the night when no shops were open. My biggest training task for future brevets is to avoid a sore butt on the saddle. Let's see how well I do with that.

Cycling, lots of it.

2012-02-03T02:23:00.000-08:00

After a half-year hiatus, I'm back. I have been cycling more than ever since I moved to Bangalore. I log most of my rides at DailyMile.com and you can see my year-end report for proof that I have become a riding-machine :D

Of late, I have taken up randonneuring, which is long distance cycling. The events are called brevets. Like a marathon finish, an on-time finish in a brevet is considered an achievement. Actually it is the only thing you can achieve in any brevet because there are no positions i.e. first place, second place do not matter. Only a finish within allowed time matters. Finishers can opt for a medal from the Audax Club in Paris.

Last June, I completed a 200km brevet (BRM in short) along with 4 other members of my local cycling club. It was a wonderful feeling and such an achievement for a person like me who, just a year ago struggled at a 70km ride. Having never really won any medals in life, I opted to order the 200k BRM medal. That ride was the last of the brevet season in 2011. I was back to my regular rides, not giving much though to brevets until the 2012 season started.

I missed the first ride in November. I think I was out of town, I wasn't very motivated either. Then, in December, I got a message saying that the medal for June ride had arrived. I rode to BOTS to pick it up.

It was a thing of beauty. It was also good to see the other riders from that day, who had arrived to receive their medal. Many of them were also attempting the 300k BRM that was to happen the following weekend. My spark was back, I wanted to do it. I registered on the spot, making sure that I would at least give it a go.

I had already been riding regularly so I was pretty confident of completing a 300km ride. However, I was not sure if I would finish it in the allowed 20 hours. Too much time has passed since the event for me to do a proper ride report. The short version is that, after finding myself down and out halfway through that ride, I managed a last minute finish at the 20 hour mark. Thanks in no small part to fellow rider Sohan Sintre who motivated and rode with me for the last 100+ kms. I was elated to have finished in time, of course. I had also learnt some valuable lessons about riding in a brevet. The question was - Was I ready to step the game up higher? Did I want to attempt the 400k BRM in January?

The answer - yes, and that story is coming up tomorrow.

The fruits of Kutrallam (Tamil)

2011-06-23T20:43:00.000-07:00

Here's a look at some of the unique fruits available at Kutrallam (Courtallam) at this time of the year. Wonderful weather there at this time of the year, but a bit too crowded at all the falls. Hope to go there in a few weeks.

Sometimes you find things..

2011-06-13T01:02:00.000-07:00

.. that you wish you'd never learnt about. Like the chips shop just down the road that makes the freshest, crispiest, potato chips that I've ever tasted. I've been telling myself "resist!" all day, but I'm afraid it hasn't been working out too well. Maybe I should just give in and enjoy without the guilt.

The web is what you make of it

2011-05-04T05:26:00.001-07:00

A wonderful ad from Google

And now Seth Myers dishes out even more

2011-05-03T04:38:00.000-07:00

Still catching up with the videos from the event. This was a riot; Donald Trump must've been fuming!

Obama dishes it to Trump

2011-05-03T04:04:00.000-07:00

Gotta love a President with a sense of humor :)

What a rush!

2011-03-09T09:04:00.000-08:00

This is just a video of a downhill race. I can only imagine what it must've been like for the rider! Too cool for words :)

The year of the iPad. Or was it?

2011-03-03T01:55:00.000-08:00

I was watching the latest Apple keynote this morning, where Steve Jobs called 2010 "The year of the iPad" and it seemed like everyone was in agreement. I've been thinking about this - was it really the year of the iPad? The iPad has certainly been in the news and has sent competitors scurrying to come up with competing tablets. There is no question that the iPad is the #1 tablet device. (Apple threw out some figures today - 15 million units sold, just over 9 billion dollars in revenue). The iPad revolution has started; However, I believe the best is yet to come.

Let's take a step back -which was the year of the Walkman? Whichever year it was, I don't believe that it was the first year that the Walkman hit the market or the first year when it outsold its rivals. I think the year of the Walkman would've been the first year when you could spot just about everyone sporting one. As much as the iPad has sold, that point has not come yet.

Here's a well made video showing the many ways in which the iPad is already used. It really is a device with amazing potential.

Airplay is cool, leaves old AppleTVs behind

2010-11-27T08:27:00.000-08:00

My iPad has just been updated to the latest iOS, so I've been playing with AirPlay for audio. In short - love it! It's not quite Sonos, but it ain't too bad for what you're paying. Pretty much any audio playback can be streamed to AirPlay receivers. I'm listening to holiday music from KOIT as I type, with the ooTunes app on my iPad streaming in the background to my Airport Express. Apparently, this works for the Rhapsody app too, I intend to upgrade my account so I can experience it soon!

My old AppleTV won't show up in the Airplay device list on the iPad though. Here's why this drives me nuts. Both the AppleTV and the Airport Express haven't had any firmware updates in a while. On the Mac, both the AppleTV and Airport Express show up in the Airplay device list on iTunes. Its clear that the audio portion of Airplay is nothing but AirTunes. It's also clear that Apple deliberately excluded the old AppleTV from supporting AirPlay audio on iOS devices but included this functionality on the Mac's iTunes. They didn't cut existing functionality but they made sure no new functionality was available for the old hardware that was sold as recently as 4 months ago. Way to go Apple, you took extra effort to screw the most loyal of your customers. Oh well, serves us right for having invested in the first version of your hobby device.

Quick takes from Apple event

2010-09-01T11:15:00.000-07:00

iPod Nano is a gamble for sure, did they take away video?
iPad software update pushed out to November - why oh why?!
Does iPod touch have everything from iPhone 4 but the phone now? If it has GPS, I'm replacing my phone with an iPod Touch and a cheapo phone.
Ping - uh oh, Boxee.. they're in your territory! Couldn't they just integrate with existing social networks?
New AppleTV is niiice! $99 makes it a slam dunk. AirPlay looks cool. What about software update for older AppleTVs? Don't let us out in the cold, Steve!
Chris Martin is always great in my book, good stuff!

Update: No GPS in iPod Touch. Dang it, Apple! It could've been the perfect Cycle computer and you had to leave GPS out! Ah well, next year..

GMail is smart

2010-07-26T22:11:00.000-07:00

Duh! Thanks for the nice alert, Google. I wonder what else you're looking for in my email messages...

Another day, another cool iPad App

2010-07-21T02:50:00.000-07:00

Every day, another app comes by that tempts one to buy the iPad. Today, that app is Flipboard.

Flipboard for iPad on the iTunes App Store

The last mango

2010-07-19T22:09:00.000-07:00

Being here has rekindled the joy of mango season. We just had the last mango of the season and it was big, juicy Banganapalli. It was the best mango season in recent memory for us. Among our favourites were - Mallika, Rajapalayam Sapattai, Alphonso, Kesar, Imam Pasand. We also had Kalapadu, Sindura and Neelam.

Siddharth has become the biggest mango lover at home. Only a big satisfied burrp can make him stop. Overall, all of us had our share. Lots of mangoes were bought and consumed. My parents also shipped us a few boxes of mangoes from Courtallam. I've saved some for the off season by making fruit strips using our dehydrator. Of course, Siddharth loves those too :)

Lumenhaus - I want one, now!

2010-06-27T22:44:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Inhabitat, I've been able to follow the Solar Decathlon Europe with interest. The winner was announced last night and it was the Lumenhaus from Virginia Tech. Inhabitat's feature is here.

The Lumenhaus is undeniably greener than your average home, what with graywater pools, solar panels and just being smaller. What I dig the most though, is the smart aspect of this home. The insulation can come on when needed, natural light and heat is used when available, the furniture serves many purposes. The kicker is definitely the ability to control your appliances and lighting from your iPhone. All of the technology shown is here now, and I can't wait to be able to go on a website and order a prefab home like this soon!

Check out the kitchen, some very innovative elements here.

Another video taken at last year's Solar Decathlon that shows you around the interiors.

And we're baaacckk!

2010-06-27T22:34:00.000-07:00

It's been a bit of a challenging time in Bangalore thus far but now we seem to be coastin', and I hope to be back blogging. For starters, I picked a new Blogger theme, you like? Will customize the template a bit more when I get the time.

So what has the last 4 months been like? Hmm.. kids getting sick, Siddharth's mottai, visit with architect to Kutrallam, more of kids getting sick, starting cycling, you get the picture!

I'm finally back to reading my RSS and starting to look for jobs. Vive le blog!

A Bloom Box in every home?

2010-02-22T03:12:00.000-08:00

A number of alternate fuel technologies have been in the news in recent years, none have really taken off in the way expected. Will the Bloom Box take off? In this case, maybe only the price will tell..

Watch CBS News Videos Online

Google Voice

2010-02-19T00:10:00.000-08:00

I've been a user of Google Voice since before it was acquired by Google. Needless to say, I love the service. Unbelievably, it's free!

Here is nice video about Google Voice -

Meet "Windows Phone 7 Series"!

2010-02-15T09:34:00.000-08:00

Something that doesn't happen often - me posting about a Microsoft product*. Or should I say, Microsoft making a product* worth posting about? ;)

* XBox 360 excepted, of course!

Are you buzzin' yet?

2010-02-10T03:04:00.000-08:00

Google Buzz looks interesting (impressive too) but I don't think it will take off unless everyone is on Buzz. You know what I mean? Everyone is on Facebook these days, will Buzz command that kind of regular use? Only time will tell!

Siddharth walks!

2010-02-09T09:21:00.000-08:00

No videos yet, sorry. My video camera is still packed from the move. However, I did want to note that today was the day that Siddharth walked on his own :)

Almost exactly around the same age as Anjali when she walked first. Although I dare say that Siddharth seems to be taking firmer steps. Here we go again..

Fireworks in Dubai!

2010-01-04T23:10:00.000-08:00

Check out this awesome fireworks display from the recent opening of the world's tallest building (for now).

ootunes is slick!

2009-12-21T10:46:00.000-08:00

Last week, with Christmas around the corner, we missed good ol' KOIT from the Bay area. They are on the web but I wondered if there was a better way to listen. A little time on Google and I found ooTunes for the iPhone! This app will let you listen to internet radio streams on your iPhone.
The reviews were so overwhelmingly positive, that I wondered if something was fishy. Anyway I bit the bait and bought the $5 app and I can report that it works great. Every single station I wanted to listen to was already in the ooTunes db. So now with just a few taps I can listen to CapitalFM (from London), the BBC World service, KOIT or KFOG anytime.

Gotta love the age we live in :)

Woohoo! Avocados!

2009-11-30T02:30:00.000-08:00

Avocado in Bangalore
Originally uploaded by Jillako

Never been happier to see Avocados. Over the last many years Avocados have become an integral part of our diet. It was one of the foods that we thought we'll have to live without when in Bangalore.
Little did we know that Avocados are widely available all over the place by the name of "butter fruit". After some initial confusion, I purchased one hoping that butter fruit = avocado. Sure enough, it is 100% avocado!
They're huge, even bigger than the ones in Costco, must be a local variety of some sort. The pit (seed) is huge too.
Alright, I'm off to make myself an avocado cucumber sandwich!

Clothes dryer vs. Maid

2009-11-12T10:17:00.000-08:00

We're getting our new home ready for occupation and here's an interesting dilemma - There are hardly any clothes dryers available here. Our landlord who left his clothes washer behind didn't use a dryer (just like everyone else). So how do folks dry their clothes? They hang it out to dry of course. This is fine for families with one working member and another taking care of the household chores during the day but for a family such as ours with both adults working, we'll need a maid to operate the clothes washer since it will have to be done during the day. We hadn't thought of a maid as a necessity for our home just yet but we'll have to make the definitive call soon.

The economics go like this - a dryer costs about Rs. 17000 to purchase, plus you need the space. If you were to employ a maid, you would (from what I've learned) pay the person an extra Rs. 300 a month to run the washer and put your clothes out to dry. Factoring in the small size of the washing machine we have at home, washing is going to be a daily chore and if we were to use a dryer, we'll likely pay that Rs. 300 to the Electricity Board anyway, so why not just add another task for that ubiquitous maid?

The one (big) plus to having a dryer is that you can run multiple loads the same day when required without having to worry about running out of clothesline. Decisions, decisions! Hmm..

A new beginning

2009-11-11T02:13:00.000-08:00

Things have been busy of late and I've neglected the blog. I hope to start posting regularly soon though, now that the kids have settled in their daycare/preschool schedules.
We have moved back to India for the next few years. The opportunity came along and we've taken it. Bangalore is our new home. We've been here two weeks and some days already, slowly settling in.
We're looking at India in a new light, not as visitors but as residents and that too in a new city. Things are going along reasonably well, I'll have more details in future posts.

Ozzies Slummin' it in Delhi

2009-07-23T21:28:00.000-07:00

And they are really slumming!
Titled A real riches to rags story, this piece was published in February but I just came across it.
13 years!! It's hard for me to imagine the motivation to stay, but to each their own I guess.

Clean Water for the World (Matt Damon)

2009-07-22T13:02:00.000-07:00

If you're in the US, you can help by signing this petition.

Coldplay Puppets!

2009-07-17T10:51:00.000-07:00

I do like this song off Coldplay's last album, but I only just came across the video. Coldplay puppets performing "Life In Technicolor" live? Oh yeah, you better believe it. Love it! 15 years ago this would've been on the MTV Top 20 countdown for weeks!

Cool ad for the new Olympus E-P1

2009-07-13T07:56:00.000-07:00

New Intel Ad

2009-05-08T11:21:00.000-07:00

LOL! :)

A.R.Rahman on Ciara's Album!

2009-04-30T14:14:00.000-07:00

Sending a quick note to the blog because I heard A.R.Rahman's music on Ciara's latest CD!

On her new album, Fantasy Ride, Ciara has a song "Turntables" featuring Chris Brown. The song has a not insignificant sample from A.R.Rahman's Bombay - the song "Kehna Hi Kya" (the Hindi version of "Kannalane").

Check it out if you get a chance. I suspect this is just the beginning ..

Btw, I'm heading to Seattle-Vancouver for the weekend. Should be good, spending time with old school friends.

New Honda Insight Ad

2009-04-27T12:33:00.000-07:00

I remember a few months ago there was an iPod touch ad on Yahoo that had portions of the Yahoo home page (outside the video boundary) moving in sync with the ad. It was a first and it was interesting. Now, here's the new Honda Insight ad on Vimeo that takes it to the next level.

http://vimeo.com/4281939

Click on that one to see what I mean. The ad itself is quite interesting too.

Highlight of today: UP Steam Locomotive 844

2009-04-22T23:43:00.000-07:00

We took some time out of our normal day today to watch Union Pacific's Steam Locomotive 844 a.k.a "Living Legend" as it made its way through the Niles Canyon on its Western Heritage Tour.

Anjali loves trains and I didn't want to pass on the opportunity to show her a real steam locomotive in action. Plus, it was going to be not far from our home (a couple of miles away). The train did not disappoint. The locomotive itself was imposing and awesome; I also loved the gleaming yellow cars that were so inviting. I only managed a grainy video on my cellphone. Here's a video of the 844 I found elsewhere.

Where did the "GPS bundle for PSP" go? *

2009-04-10T12:02:00.000-07:00

Sony has long been teasing us folks in the USA with news of this GPS addon for the PSP. It looked like a product was actually close to release last year. See Gizmodo's report for screenshots and details.

However, it has now been 11 months since that report with nary a word from Sony about this addon. The silence about significant PSP news and the rumours in the market about a PSP successor make me think that Sony is indeed about to release a UMD-less PSP console this year. It would be typical Sony to focus all their efforts on a new product and ignore the millions of PSP owners out there today. As the owner of two PSPs, I sure hope this is not the case!

* Title written in Anjali-speak!

This Scarpar board-thing looks fun!

2009-04-08T13:53:00.000-07:00

Electric too! Check them at scarpar.com

This will be my hybrid vehicle of choice!

2009-04-06T12:42:00.000-07:00

I've been talking about this to pretty much everyone around me but haven't blogged about it yet.

I like the Piaggio MP3 and I think when the hybrid version comes out later this year I'd really like to make it my primary commute vehicle. I have a Google News alert set up but no one seems to have any on-road tests yet..

PopSci has some good things to say about the hybrid MP3 today.

That 140 mpg fuel efficiency has me drooling :)

Remix of Jai Ho

2009-04-04T23:42:00.000-07:00

And the western pop commercialization of A.R.Rahman's music begins..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_7AyQpsukM

Personally, I think Rahman would've done better to let someone in Europe mix this one!

10 questions for A.R.Rahman

2009-04-01T11:45:00.000-07:00

A.R.Rahman is the subject of Time Magazine's 10 Questions feature.
See video here.

Towards an electric future for our cars

2009-03-27T22:02:00.000-07:00

Gasoline may have brought about the automobile revolution but there is no reason in this day and age for our autos to be held hostage by gasoline, its whims and its byproducts.
Just as a battery in my notebook computer helps me use my computer anywhere I can charge it, a battery in my car will let me decide where and when I should charge it. Just like I can replace the battery in my notebook with a higher capacity one, I want to extend the life of my car when a better battery is available.

Thanks to a company called Better Place, this vision is now more closer to reality than ever before. I am very excited that they are coming to the Bay Area and that they are rapidly gaining momentum. I don't have the time to explain their business plan and vision in this post but I highly encourage you to visit their website. Watch out for these guys, they are onto something huge!

Find more videos like this on Planet Better Place

Crazy sheep herders!

2009-03-25T12:42:00.000-07:00

what the!?!?! (tx Cuteoverload.com)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2009-03-17T18:32:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Originally uploaded by Jillako

Hope you had a nice and green day today!
Spring is in the air and we still have sunlight at 7 pm, the outdoor season is here and lots of fun activities abound.

Excellent music video

2009-02-14T09:07:00.000-08:00

"Her morning elegance" by Oren Lavie. The song is pretty good too!

Boy, sure makes me miss my school years when MTV was all about music videos. I hardly see any interesting music videos these days.

iPhoto recognizes Clark Kent!

2009-02-13T16:55:00.000-08:00

LOL! :)

Google's InternetBus hits the road in TN

2009-02-04T10:29:00.000-08:00

Google is sending a bus loaded with computers and internet access to small town Tamil Nadu. Apparently, they picked TN because of the high level of interest in the Internet among the Tamil-speaking folks. Here's a picture of the bus.

I am curious in what their experience will turn out to be, therefore I intend to visit their website and check on their progress through this month. Already the InternetBus has departed Chennai for Vellore!

Check progress here.

Learn something new every day

2009-02-02T15:11:00.000-08:00

To learn something new everyday, apparently all you have to do is keep watching YouTube! Kidding! Anyhow, I learnt about WingSuits today..

SNL Presidential Montage

2009-01-23T16:28:00.000-08:00

Remembering Campaign 2008 and the presidential inauguration, here's something that had me in laughs

Yes, I know that Hulu videos don't fit well in my blog, I need to work on that.

Where will you watch Obama's Inauguration?

2009-01-15T22:37:00.000-08:00

I'll be attending to some fan maintenance at my rental property after an early morning teleconference at work. :(

However, you may be able to watch it live. Hulu is broadcasting it live over the Internet!

Lessons in wiring your speakers

2009-01-14T22:26:00.000-08:00

* Always buy more speaker wire than you calculate.
* Always start with the furthest speaker first.

I didn't do either and learnt the hard way! Oh well, I don't think I'll forget these next time.

Wired up the new speakers I got over the holidays. I'll try to upload a picture soon.

Happy Pongal ...and Happy Tamil Year?

2009-01-13T23:25:00.000-08:00

Happy Pongal everyone! It is impossible for me to describe the awesome festival that is Pongal in concise terms but let me just say that it is awesome like Deepavali/Diwali minus the fireworks, plus cows, bigger kolam and sugarcane!

Anyway, I was surprised to find out that today is also the new Tamil New Year's day! If you are as confounded as I was, I suggest you read up, because apparently this was last year's news.

So who decides when the Tamil New Year starts? Apparently, it is the Tamil Nadu government! I can't fathom the logic behind this and it feels like some western government making October the start of the year. Aren't there Tamils in other countries as well - like Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka? Do they switch their calendars as well because the government that governs the Tamil majority decided to change the Tamil calendar?

Excuse me while I make sense of this madness...

Happy Holidays!

2008-12-24T11:33:00.000-08:00

Season's greetings to all! Things have been quiet on the blogosphere for a bit - we've been busy planning our trip to Seattle to visit Vijai, Sarah and Inji! Hope to have some updates from Seattle later this week.

In the meanwhile, there's another free song at Coldplay.com, get it before Jan 5th.

Bonus, video...

iCal sync now available from Google Calendar

2008-12-02T00:03:00.000-08:00

Hurray, Google Calendar has launched free two way sync with iCal on Mac OS X.5!
This was number 1 on my wish list of features for Google Calendar.

Thank you Google!

Apple fun on The Simpsons

2008-12-01T09:05:00.000-08:00

Enjoy! :)

Update: Original YouTube video was removed, so updated with Hulu link. Only works within US though, sorry!

A new hope

2008-11-04T20:43:00.000-08:00

The United States has elected Barack Obama to be the next president of the country. Obviously a historic election but the way that his campaign was run, the strong turnout, the margin of the win and the promises held in his election manifesto give me great hope for the future of America.

Congratulations Mr. Obama, I look forward to all that you have promised.

Indian rocket takes off for moon

2008-10-22T09:46:00.000-07:00

Congrats to the ISRO on successfully launching the first Indian lunar mission!

I never get bored from watching rocket and shuttle launches :)

Boxee is da bomb!

2008-10-21T12:40:00.000-07:00

If you have a digital media collection - photos, music, videos - and would like to watch it on your TV then you owe it to yourself to try Boxee. Boxee is based on the tried-and-tested XBMC but it's the best version of XBMC I've seen yet.

The latest version even lets you watch videos from Hulu, CBS, Comedy Central.

Watch this.

quick intro to boxee from boxee on Vimeo.

If you need an invite, hit me up!

Dude, it's been 10 years..

2008-10-11T23:43:00.000-07:00

..since The Big Lebowski was first released.

The BBC asks if it was a cultural milestone. I don't know about that, I only saw it two years ago, but I'm pretty certain it's a cult hit on DVD.

Looking forward to "Burn after reading" on DVD.

Pictures from India @ Big Picture

2008-09-24T08:52:00.000-07:00

The Big Picture is one of the most interesting blogs that I follow. The most recent posting profiles India. Head on over and take a look!

Japan has 21-st century bicycle parking

2008-09-08T14:50:00.000-07:00

Check it out, totally rad!

It would be nice to have something like this for BART! Actually, any secure bike storage would be welcome, forget the robotic wizardry.

Google intros Chrome

2008-09-01T22:36:00.000-07:00

So, this is verrrryy interesting - after being a robust partner of Mozilla/Firefox for so many years, Google has decided to launch their own browser - Google Chrome (link should be up soon). If that didn't surprise you in itself, apparently Chrome is going to be based on Webkit, the same engine used by Apple's Safari! Like I said, verrrryy interesting indeed.

This can only be bad news for Mozilla, since they make most of their money from their relationship with Google, who now competes with them!

On the other hand, I think this is great news for web users as Google's investment should serve to hasten advancement of browser and web standards.

Windows only for now, Mac and Linux versions should be forthcoming.

UPDATE: If you're technically inclined, this cool toon tells you a lot more about what Google is trying to do and what's different.

London at night

2008-08-29T12:19:00.000-07:00

The Big Picture just put up a bunch of awesome pictures of London city. If you like/know London, you're sure to enjoy the whole bunch, head on over.

Tomatoes in bloom

2008-08-27T11:26:00.000-07:00

Tomato Flowers
Originally uploaded by Jillako

These are exciting times in our yard, our tomato plants are blooming!

We got an Earthbox when the tomato planting season was all but over. With nothing to lose I planted some seeds but they have done very well indeed and I'm really looking forward to having some homegrown tomatoes!

My Neighbor Totoro

2008-08-26T13:04:00.000-07:00

So I watched "My Neighbor Totoro" last night and it's still on my mind this morning. I love animated movies in general, and this was a masterpiece. I think I'll watch it many times before I've had my fill.

It's an anime movie with a simple story, artful depiction of the Japanese country side, cute characters, pretty good voiceovers and many little touches that made me long for the simple life. Also, the 2D animation still blows the pants off many 3D animated movies that are being made today.

It was first released in 1988! I cannot believe that I hadn't heard about it until Netflix suggested it (because I loved "Howl's Moving Castle" and "Spirited Away"). Chalk one more up for Netflix. This one's a winner, I may have to buy it for Anjali.

It's great for all ages, do yourself a favor and watch it with your family! :)

EyePet for PS3 announced

2008-08-24T22:42:00.000-07:00

.. and it looks cute!

Since we already have the camera, this should be a fun, inexpensive game. From what I can tell, looks like it will take a year to release (late 2009).

தமிழில் ப்லோக் பண்ணுவோம்!!

2008-08-22T12:18:00.000-07:00

கூகுளுக்கு தான் நன்றி சொல்லணும்.

தமிழில் நியூஸ் கூட படிக்கலாம் இங்க.

So, Google added transliteration support for Tamil, our mother tongue. Pretty fantastic stuff. See full details here.

How to hack a technical job interview- Vijai @ Lifehacker

2008-08-20T23:38:00.000-07:00

I like Lifehacker but they're not in my Bloglines, which is why I didn't find out until today that my high school pal Vijai was featured in this post last month.

Good one, Vijai. I'd take his talk seriously, he can nail interviews!

XBox 360: Call for action!

2008-08-02T15:59:00.000-07:00

I'm only a casual gamer but I'm intensely interested in this generation of gaming hardware. I think this is gaming's "breakout" generation. Nearly everyone is going to have one of the 5 devices out there by the time the generation is done and lot of us are going to be doing more than gaming. Some of the rules that applied to the previous generation will not apply here. The current hardware has a lot more staying power than previous generations. Sort of like the Audio CD. The Audio CD was seen by most as good enough. While DVD Audio and SACD offered better quality, people were happy with Audio CDs and they didn't buy into the higher fidelity.

In a way, Sony has the right idea with their 10 year strategy for the PS3. The Cell chip has enough processing power and by the time new hardware comes out from Nintendo and Microsoft, developers should've learnt to fully utilize all that power.

Anyway, I want to talk about the XBox 360. Against all odds (I'm writing on a Mac, I don't like paying for online gaming, I'm not interested in the Zune), I find myself liking the XBox 360. More surprising, I like it for the software! Yes, Microsoft is definitely doing good on the software front here. Unfortunately, their hardware is falling behind. Here's my call for action to get the XBox 360 back to being competitive. As of now, its falling behind and will likely be relegated to 3rd place in this generation again. Here are a few things Microsoft should do -

1. Bring sexy back.
It worked for the DS Lite. Yes, the games are awesome but MS needs to redesign the XBox.
A few suggestions -

Get rid of the monstrous external power brick, we need one nice svelte XBox.
It would be nice if I didn't feel the need to reach for my noise canceling headphones when the XBox is powered on - make it quieter. A slot loading disc drive might help too.

2. Make XBox Live Gold cheaper.
Yes, hardcore gamers don't mind paying for XBox Live but if you're looking to get this into kids' homes, you need to look beyond. Faced with a choice between a Blu-Ray playing PS3 with free online play and a DVD playing XBox 360 with paid XBox Live, guess which one is getting picked? Also casual gamers like me would like to play a few nights a week, but I'm not going to pay for this privilege.
Free would be nice but even $24 ($2 a month) is easier to swallow than the current cost.

3. Include wi-fi.
This is 2008! How many homes have ethernet in their TV room or bedroom? Wi-fi is everywhere. Your wi-fi accessory is outrageously priced and I don't want a Gaming adapter in addition to the noisy console and its huge power brick.

4. Increase storage.
You need to keep up or move ahead of the competition here. 160GB standard would be nice, 320GB for the premium? Personally, I'd like the ability to upgrade the drive myself, but I realize that the non-techie users (vast majority) would prefer to buy these upgrades at Best Buy.

5. Sell Media Center.
How many XBox 360 users who have Vista pay for Tivo? I bet it isn't a small number. MS needs to sell this functionality. Btw, we need the wifi toting, quieter XBox that can fit in a TV cabinet for this to happen. Create a Media Package - the 360 console with a USB TV tuner for those using Vista Premium or Ultimate. For $50 more, you can have a DVR too!

6. Make it reliable, stupid!
Last but not least, the hardware needs to be reliable. MS is lucky the users like the games and software as much as they do. I can't image a mass market device being so unreliable. My unit has been replaced twice in 2 years! I don't have much hopes for it staying alive long after the 3 year warranty ends. It would be nice if there was a trade in option for the older XBox owners on a newer console.

I'd like to end by giving kudos where it's due. These are the things that the XBox 360 gets right -

1. Great integration with XBox Live. Superb online experience.
2. Graphics on par with PS3 even while having launched first and using DVD media.
3. The best wireless controller of the current generation. Feels right, reliable.
4. Best games library of current generation.
5. Media Center is awesome.
6. XBox Live Arcade is best in class. Great selection.

Bollywood @ kk.org

2008-07-30T14:25:00.000-07:00

Kevin Kelly is one amazing man. I read his Cool Tools blog everyday and have found so many interesting products through there. However, he is so much more. He founded "Wired" magazine, for one thing. He also runs a whole bunch of other blogs and just seems to be getting so much accomplished!

Anway, back to my post. So I was reading this post on his Conceptual Trends and Current Topics blog and did a double take when I saw the sample picture used to illustrate the face swapping technology being discussed. Check it out and see if you recognize any of these faces :)

How does a lightning strike feel?

2008-07-20T17:13:00.000-07:00

I personally don't know, but maybe this user from Flickr can answer that one for you. Here's her video -

Free song from Coldplay.com

2008-07-16T16:42:00.000-07:00

Coldplay is giving away another free song. This one is called "Death will never conquer". It's free of cost, so go get it.

Looking under the hood of Google search

2008-07-16T13:39:00.000-07:00

Amit Singhal of Google has a very interesting post explaining "Technologies behind Google ranking" over at the Official Google Blog.

It's quite eye opening about the myriad things that happen to make every Google search operation happen. Here's an excerpt -

"Synonyms are the foundation of our query understanding work. This is one of the hardest problems we are solving at Google. Though sometimes obvious to humans, it is an unsolved problem in automatic language processing. As a user, I don't want to think too much about what words I should use in my queries. Often I don't even know what the right words are. This is where our synonyms system comes into action. Our synonyms system can do sophisticated query modifications, e.g., it knows that the word 'Dr' in the query [Dr Zhivago] stands for Doctor whereas in [Rodeo Dr] it means Drive. A user looking for [back bumper repair] gets results about rear bumper repair. For [Ramstein ab], we automatically look for Ramstein Air Base; for the query query [b&b ab] we search for Bed and Breakfasts in Alberta, Canada. We have developed this level of query understanding for almost one hundred different languages, which is what I am truly proud of."

House of cards - Radiohead's new video

2008-07-15T22:01:00.000-07:00

So, Radiohead has a new video out and it's making waves because it doesn't use any cameras in the regular sense. Instead it uses some kind of 3-D scanner technology which uses lasers to create 3-D imagery.

That in itself would be pretty cool but they worked with Google (I don't know how Google does it but they get involved in all these neat things) to share a lot of the "making of" information. There's a web-based 3-D Viewer available that you can use to manipulate the video. Because its just data, you can see it at any angle. Very very cool! Check it out.

Hooray for Jay-Z

2008-07-04T17:04:00.000-07:00

The man has a sense of humour. After widely reported disparaging remarks from Noel Gallagher about the hip-hop artiste headlining at Glastonbury this year, Jay-Z got back in his own classy way.

First, he included Noel G's comments in the video played before starting his set

And then he proceed to sing Oasis' Wonderwall! :)

LOL!

Also, he gave a stellar performance as well.

Good stuff!

Anjali's Birthday visit to Monterey Bay Aquarium

2008-06-12T23:45:00.000-07:00

Click to Play

We took Anjali on her first visit to an aquarium for her birthday. As you can see, she had a bit of fun. We enjoyed it as well.

Anjali did not take much interest in the Sea Otters and Penguins but was very interested in the fishes, the kids play area and the touch pools. She really digs the huge whale model they have hanging from the ceiling.

Another chance to show off the ability to import from the Panasonic Camcorder. Nice picture don't you think? :)

Happy First Birthday to Anjali!

2008-06-12T00:00:00.000-07:00

Totally lovin' the ride
Originally uploaded by Jillako

Can you believe that our little angel is already one! At this age, there are no demands for birthday gifts and party, she's so happy whenever we spend time with her! So that's what we're doing today (and what we did Tuesday, when this was taken). It's a family day off. Hope to have pictures of Anjali on her birthday gift (a trike) soon enough.

The $25 iPhone

2008-06-09T14:35:00.000-07:00

Now that the iPhone 3G has been announced at $199, Craigslist is chock full of early adopters trying to sell their iPhone to raise cash for a 3G purchase. There are also the folks who passed on the original iPhone looking to pick used units for a song. This guy takes the cake for his asking price though.

Nice try, dude, nice try!

Honeybees, ducks, chicken and dogs

2008-06-07T23:42:00.000-07:00

Actually there were goslings and a cow too. I've listed some of the fine animals and birds that Anjali enjoyed the company of today.

We took her along on a field trip with the Santa Clara Beekeepers Guild. I've gotten very interested of late with keeping a bee hive. We certainly have the space and we'd love the honey and the bees seem nice enough.

At one point I was standing near about 10 hives, with the beekeeper handling a frame full of bees from one of the hives. The bees started buzzing around quite a bit and it was a bit unnerving, but everyone seemed pretty calm and wore no protective gear and so I kept my nerves. This particular beekeeper had a lot of bees and though it was interesting to see his operation, we'll probably learn more from some other folks there that had smaller setups. We brought a quart of local honey home with us! :)
I hope the parents will start their own hive in Kutrallam!

Would've loved to take pictures but it appears that the Pentax SLR is broken! :( It is still under warranty and I hope to have it fixed soon!

Look ma, I can walk!

2008-06-06T18:52:00.000-07:00

Amazing how fast things develop in a one year old's life. Anjali could not do this 2 days ago, look at her now!

Amazon.com is down

2008-06-06T11:42:00.000-07:00

Probably means a lot more to a software engineering couple like App and I but here's what Amazon.com looks like right now -

It has been that way for almost 15 minutes. WOW!

The weekend before a Jobs' keynote

2008-06-06T11:34:00.000-07:00

As usual, Joy of tech nails it.

Lots to look forward to on WWDC Monday.

Anjali with her canine buddy

2008-06-02T21:28:00.000-07:00

Went bicycle shopping this past weekend and Anjali loved Dino, the doggie at the bike shop!

Weekend Update!

2008-05-16T15:52:00.000-07:00

Not in SNL style, but jillako style!

Right now, its hotter than ever this year. The local paper called the weather "hot, sticky, nasty and uncomfortable". I say, it feels just like home (Madras)! Bring on the fans and go crazy with the garden hose :)

Anjali is doing great. She has learnt to use the walker, she is also quite comfortable going to daycare in the day.

We are managing but squeezed for time as full time workers and parents. Anjali's food is made on time but ours is a bit of challenge. The best dinner we had all week was a mish-mash of leftovers from Anjali's food all cooked into one tasty dal curry!

I managed to make chapatis from scratch, hooray!

I found out that 1080p video recorded in 24p mode on the HDC-SD9 video camera can be imported into iMovie w/ Perian 1.1 installed. Yay! Look forward to some good quality videos as soon as we find something interesting to shoot and share!

And I'll end with a clip from a recent SNL Weekend Update. This one is about GTA IV, the highly anticipated video game. I've never been much of a GTA fan, but this clip was funny!

Til' later, adios amigos!

Beware: The Panasonic SD9 Camcorder

2008-05-04T22:16:00.000-07:00

In the interest of anyone looking for a HD Camcorder (a probably 1:1 mapping with those that have a new baby), I'd like to advertise this fact -

The Panasonic HDC-SD9 is a great little camcorder. It is currently the world's smallest 1080p camcorder and the video quality is pretty good. However, it does have one big gotcha - you cannot import/edit the video on your Mac or your PC in any straightforward manner.

It crashes iMovie. I had previously tested iMovie '08 with shot on a HDC-SX5, from Panny's previous generation and everything worked great. The SD9 has something different about its video that causes iMovie to crash while importing.

Today, I tried importing on my Windows Vista machine using Sony Vegas and that program went into a hang as well. I'm inclined to believe that this is clearly a problem with the camera.

The video does play back great on my PS3. I think we'll stick it out and see if Apple and/or Panasonic fix this issue.

New Coldplay Music

2008-05-03T22:01:00.000-07:00

We love ourselves some music from Coldplay and we're really looking forward to their new album next month. Meanwhile, they are giving away their first single from the new album for free at their website. You can get their new song Violet Hill for free in MP3 format at Coldplay.com

What's not to like about that! Go get it.

New Cricket Ads in Chennai

2008-05-03T00:34:00.000-07:00

This one had me in splits. Check it out.

From Arksantos'comment in this post from Hawkeye

If you liked that one, you owe it to yourself to check out the others in that post as well!

"Pandas make you smile"

2008-05-01T09:45:00.000-07:00

They really do make you smile! I was suprised to see Anjali really enjoy this video even if she'd never seen a panda before.
Full article at NPR

Anjali's video chat with her Chitappa

2008-04-30T01:06:00.000-07:00

Here's a recording Arjun made of a happy video chat session. Anjali loves the song (she knows it well by now) and usually dances to it.

Things are generally good at our end. Anjali is having some difficulty adjusting to her days at the daycare but we hope she will be comfortable soon.

Till later!

The best things in life are free

2008-04-22T17:13:00.000-07:00

This post doesn't really have anything to do with the song by Luther Vandross and Janet Jackson but I just realized that song is 16 years old, ouch! Guess I'm not that young anymore :)

Anyway, on to WSJ.com. I really enjoy reading the Wall Street Journal at my work, and I realize that not everyone wants to pay their hefty subscription fee even if their articles are top notch. Well, the good news is that there is plenty of content online at WSJ.com that is available to everyone. For instance, I think all of their blogs are free. Here are a few that I enjoy -

Developments - Headlines from the Real Estate market, always a topic of interest.

The Juggle - Topics of interest for parents who "juggle" challenges in their families everyday. Usually spot-on with many of the challenges discussed.

Marketbeat - Notes from daily market events. Quite useful to follow if you don't obsessively track stocks but would still like to keep track of major events in the markets.

There's many more that are all free. When I'd like to check a blog regularly, I usually just add it to my list at Bloglines (use the beta!), follow it for a week or two and then decide if I'm going to keep the feed. Try it.

Introducing Chumby

2008-04-18T13:33:00.000-07:00

A Chumby is one of the emerging class of internet connected devices that can be used around the home. It can be thought of as a cross between a small digital photoframe, alarm clock and low-power computer. This particular device is easy to develop for and thus has a mushrooming collection of widgets available to all users.

Arjun and I got one of these as a gift for my parents for their anniversary. Now they can keep up with blog posts and photos on flickr without having to switch on their computer. (If I got the Gmail widget to work, they could check email too!)

Anyway, the device has no persistent memory, which means it loads everything it needs from the internet when it powers on. I have created a virtual Chumby that is a clone of my parents' Chumby.

Check it out.

Playtime with Anjali

2008-04-16T21:05:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the quality, this is from my cellphone!

Another cool Sony ad

2008-04-14T21:57:00.000-07:00

Sony does it again. Love it.

~~I wanted to place the video inline but it screwed up the layout. Click on the link, I guarantee it's worth it!~~ :)

I uploaded this copy so I could share!

Airborne® Settlement

2008-03-26T15:50:00.000-07:00

So Airborne turns out to be a hoax. I'll admit falling for this one, hook line and sinker. It was just such a cool thing to do. Putting "prevention is better than cure" into practice. A nice carbonated drink filled with vitamins, we really wanted this to work, didn't we? Oh well..

Here's how to get some money back.

Wines of the last 6 months

2008-03-24T00:00:00.000-07:00

Wines of the last 6 months - Part 2
Originally uploaded by Jillako

After a while, I have finally uploaded some pictures of the wines that have been consumed over the last several months. There's too many to summarize in here but I have to say that the Wente Duetto, Mas Malbec and the Rosenblum Rominger Syrah were standouts. More pics and notes at Flickr.

9 months old and quite a handful

2008-03-17T00:40:00.000-07:00

Anjali sitting
Originally uploaded by Jillako

Anjali is proving to be quite an active baby. I'm glad we have the space that we do at our current residence. She keeps her grandparents quite busy and we are expecting a second full time job when they leave in a few months!

Here's a picture I like, this one is from last month when she was 8 months :)

A R Rahman Discography - Officially available!

2008-03-16T00:24:00.000-07:00

If you've been a fan of A.R.Rahman, it's been hard to keep track of everything that he has released since there are no definitive Indian resources that keep track of this stuff. Even Wikipedia can't cover it all.

I've lamented this from time to time. However, I got wind of his official site today (must be new). It's nicely done. To me, the best part is the Discography section. Very well done with album art and fine details. Kudos to the creative brain behind the website. Now its time to organize my A.R.Rahman collection and fill in the gaps..

Good day out snowboarding

2008-02-14T08:06:00.000-08:00

Here's a video that I took yesterday when Arjun and I went snowboarding. He's doing pretty good considering it is only the start of his second day snowboarding ever!

Hooray for boiled peanuts

2007-12-06T15:57:00.000-08:00

Growing up in India, we kids (Arjun and I) loved eating boiled peanuts! It is still a snack that brings back memories of childhood. The warm, wet, salty snack that mother used to make for us and had to keep us from eating too much of.

Some years back, we found out that the Chinese also eat boiled peanuts thanks to our friend Darrell. Today, I came across this article on the web, that proclaims the health benefits of boiled peanuts as opposed to the roasted kind or peanut butter. From the article, I learnt that boiled peanuts are also a staple in the southern United States. In fact, it appears to be South Carolina's offical snack food!

It's all good to know. I'm looking forward to introducing this favourite food of mine to Anjali when she gets a bit older :)

Amazon Unbox has TinTin

2007-11-21T15:35:00.000-08:00

I do like reading TinTin! I suppose TinTin is a character similar to Rajnikanth in that he defied real-world logic and escaped attempts on his life rather regularly. Something about the series keeps me entertained though - was it Snowy, Captain Haddock, Professor Calculus or the Thompson twins? Anyway, I've read TinTin throughout my childhood and do hope that Anjali takes a liking to the series too! I've downloaded eBook versions of the TinTin comics to prepare for the expected onslaught of eInk devices by the time Anjali reads regularly!

Anyway, I came across some TinTin videos on the Amazon Unbox website the other night and was pleasantly surprised. I didn't even know there were video versions. The first episode (or rather half the first episode) is available for free, be sure to check it out if that sort of thing interests you.

Amazon.com Widgets

Cool Vonage & Mac Trick!!

2007-11-17T00:48:00.000-08:00

If, like me, you're a Vonage and Mac user at home, here's a cool tip I found this week. By setting up some simple AppleScript as an plugin for your Address Book, you can basically "click-to-call" anyone in your address book from your Vonage line.

All the instructions are at the MacOSX Hints website and it took me all of 10 mins to set it up.

So now I can do this (right click on any number in my address book)!

And my home Vonage line rings automatically and I pick it up to hear the other side ringing!

Now, if I could only get it to work with a calling card service... basically dial a really long number with the ability to program a pause. One can always keep wishing :)

Vonage lets you use "Click2Call" anyway you want. More details here.

Update of sorts

2007-11-13T13:03:00.000-08:00

I have been off work for the last week and a half although you wouldn't know it from looking at me or the blog! I've had my hands full with Anjali.

My parents are visiting now and will be taking over daily Anjali duties for a while, and I am looking forward to it! There'll be plenty for me to do after their visit!

I got a new iMac. Well sort of new, it is a discontinued model - a white 24" iMac Core 2 Duo. Loving it so far, and of course I am running Mac OS Leopard. The migration from the older machine running Tiger has been smooth so far. Everything just works. Also migrated to iLife 08 and that is looking good as well.

I didn't wait long to install Vista Ultimate on it, runs wonderfully! So there should be lesser jostling for the PC monitor at home! :)

Have a bunch of pics to upload, will try to do that over the next weekend.

Adios for now.