Genesis.

They were at the pinnacle of their age. After 5000 centuries of war and bloodshed, the people of this world.. their world, finally saw the pointlessness of it all, and surrendered themselves completely to science. The ancient ones were so different from the people today. They were barbaric and polytheistic. The Age of War all but obliterated their kind. The wise ones came to the consensus that, in order for the war to be truly over, they would have to adopt Science, as their one true God. Thus, began the Golden Age of Reason, which was now a 100 centuries strong. In this time, they saw and experienced wonders, to which they were previously shut out from, thanks to their quantum leaps in technological advancements. They overcame war, poverty, crime, disease, and want. Their lifespans were dramatically increased, and now each one was able to live for over 7 centuries.

The crowning glory in all their work, however, was that of space exploration. In the time that came to be known as The Age of Space Travel, every being belonging to their race, now had the means necessary to travel in space, as easily as talking a walk in their own backyard. Located in the Deneb system, in the heart of the Milky Way Galaxy, their planet formed a perfect launchpad from which the space explorers could visit bordering star systems, and soon enough, much of known space itself. There was only one kind of hero for the people of this planet now. The Space Explorer. Those finding hitherto undiscovered planets and systems were given special places of honor. But, with having explored much of known space, the people of this planet slowly withdrew into themselves. They grew indulgent and apathetic in their utopia, with their every want and need being taken care of a machine, suitable for the job. They were so confident in their technology, their machinery that even space missions were now completely unmanned, with the spacecrafts reduced to mere data repositories. The planet’s interior and outer defenses lay in neglect, as the people reveled in their own self indulgence and pompousness.

Not everyone was happy with things here, though. One, the greatest space explorer of the younger generation, missed the old ways, and lived his life here in anguish, because of the fact that no one else saw like he did. No one had the vision, the wisdom, the sense to see that the people were slowly destroying themselves from within. These were the thoughts crossing his mind, as he sat by the oceanside, with his love; the one being for whom he would do anything.. absolutely anything. As he watched the high waves , seemingly touching the blue-orange skies, and falling down gracefully back on to the surface, he said “What I would give to be able to ride those waves Shalla. See how they rise ! Ride them, and you can touch the heavens themselves ! Only this time, there will be no spacecraft… no mindless drone to aid you. Our people were so concerned with looking outward, they all but chose to ignore what was right here! all the surrounding beauty! No one even knows how to ride a wave without the help of a machine !!” Shalla looked up at him and said “Are you saying that you regret all the things you did when you were out in space? seeking new worlds?”. To which, he replied “No Shalla. I cannot even begin to describe the wonders of space to you. But, at the same time, we need to look at ourselves, our planet, as well. Otherwise, I fear a time will come when we will neglect our planet so much that it will turn back on us. And we are so drunk in our own technological prowess that we do not even have the power to mitigate such an event, let alone defend ourselves from the dangers of space! “.

“In my travels, I have met many races Shalla, and been to numerous planets. But, for all our thoughts of having explored known space, let me tell you. What the collective explorers of our planet, myself included, have discovered so far, is NOTHING.. compared to the vastness of the universe. Beleive me, we have not even explored the proverbial tip of the entire Iceberg ! I wish to travel through the furthest reaches of space Shalla. I wish to ride the waves of this ocean. I wish to be able to hold you in my arms as I do them. But as advanced as our technology is, we still have our limitations. Wormhole technology is still not as stable as one would wish it to be. We are capable of traveling as speeds equal to that of light, but no faster. With a single thought, I can visualise Kree-Lar, the principal planet of the Kree System, which is 10000 light years away. I want to be able to travel at such speeds Shalla. I want to be able to travel to the edge of the universe and back, and still come home to your warm embrace.” He said. Shalla held him close to her and said “You had better take me with you. There is no way I will wait for you to come back from one of your adventures!”. “We will always be together, my love.” He said. They both kissed, and Shalla drew back, looked into his eyes and said “I love you, No…” … she never got a chance to finish saying his name. They both experienced a sudden lurch and found themselves hurtling in the air, higher and higher, till abruptly, they found themselves falling back to ground, just as fast. The waves suddenly took on gigantic proportions and all the surrounding trees were uprooted out of their roots and hurled across the skies.

Landing hard, he rose, to find Shalla knocked unconscious.

(The Genesis which this story concerns, cometh. or in other words “To be Continued” )

Life as we know it.. or do we??

Clark and I were coming back from O’Hare one day, and suddenly, out of nowhere, Clark asks me “What is the purpose of life?”… and for a second, I frantically scan his face to make sure that there were no maniacal or suicidal tendencies mirrored in there, because he was the one doing the driving !!!! (Hehe.. just kidding clark )

But then, we actually went on to talk quite a bit about the purpose of life in general, as in, with respect to the entire human race.. not just him, or me, or a couple of other people. It is talk like that, and lying down on a bed of grass on a cool, moonless and absolutely clear night and watching the countless number of stars, that really makes me feel insignificant in the whole quagmire of things, that defines life. The 1st thing that comes to my mind in situations like those is a Calvin & Hobbes comic strip where in Calvin looks up at the starry sky and goes “I’m SIGNIFICANT!!!!”.. then the next panel shows him looking upwards silently, and the last panel shows him looking at us and saying “Screamed the dust speck”. Hilarious though the comic strip may appear, it does have a point y’kno…

We’re only but part of 1 planet, and in this planet alone, we have animals, insects, plants, fauna on land, fauna on water, flora on land, flora on water.. and get this…. according to some noted paeleontologists, 99% of all plant and animal species that have existed have already become extinct with most leaving no fossils. It is also humbling to realize that humans and other large animals are freakishly rare life forms, since 99% of all known animal species are smaller than bumble bees.

From all of the mind-numbing variety and diversity present in our planet, it was the human being (more technically, his ape-like ancestor) who was given the upper hand to evolve as the alpha organism, the top of the food chain.. so to speak. The fact that Man is so self delusional and gloatful about his technical prowess and advancements is another matter altogether, but lets not go there. Let us, instead, ponder the fact that, this is but one miniscule planet in the whole friggin cosmos, which may never even had any life on it to begin with, had its orbit been a few million kilometers here or there. It is a really precious gift, the life that this planet has.. and the sad part is, all the other species on this planet seem to realise and respect it, revere it even, except for us.

But, you also cannot help but wonder…. Is the life on planet earth really so precious that it exists only here and nowhere else in the entire universe??? I mean.. considering the fact that the universe is.. umm.. well, limitless, surely there has to be life somewhere else right?? If we talk science, then we can go on and on and on about the various factors to consider and what kind of life may evolve where, depending on the conditions present in any given part at any given time, in the universe. Even if there may not be any life now, there must have been life before somewhere, with some random planet going through the same evolutionary stages as earth did, only a 1000 million light years away and 500 million years before.

Again, one would notice that man makes the general mistake of assuming that “Intelligent” life, if found elsewhere, would be of a size similar to our own, because in some warped way, the common man thinks that our size is indicative of our intelligence, because micro organisms or fishes or insects aren’t as intelligent as we are. How are we to tell whether the nano-sized creatures on uranus (ASSUMING there were any ), which resemble a cross between a fish and a lion , are any less intelligent than we are? Or the 50 foot tall dragonflies found on a planet (named.. umm.. i dunno.. kashyapchandros?? ) thrice the size of jupiter, in the andromeda galaxy, are, on an intelligence level, similar to a dodo, a blonde or even me?? .. . For all we know, the denizens of uranus have already perfected Hyperdrive.. and we’ve hardly gotten ourselves to the moon!!

Life.. i dunno.. its too profound and too reverent a concept to be tinkering around with. I just wish everybody on this planet (species no bar ) realises that. Nature keeps reminding us all the time.. we just have to listen. And yeah you.. you.. Uranoids!!! Inspite of our shortcomings, we humans are intelligent!! we only have to attach a sense of responsibility to it.. And you will see that the day isn’t far where your monopoly over hyperdrive comes to an end!!! .. .. and as for you Kashyapchandroids, its ok.. you have plenty of time, and evolution, to catch up to our current position. Just don’t blow it all off once you get to this point ok?? .

P.S: I wrote this blog entry in a completely sound and stable state of mind!! I did not get high on Crystal Meth, nor did I have a few too many Screwdrivers . Its just that, when i start to feel insignificant amidst the grand scheme of things in the Universe, i really start to wonder about a lot of stuff . Ohh by the way, feeling insignificant when you see all the people who leave their mark on the world in their own small way, is a totally different mother :p.. .

Lost and found …

It was supposed to be just another trip to His cousins’ place in the Big Apple Suburbia. A weekend party, hitting Times Square later, much later at night, shooting a few hoops, (though his basketball skills were always in question ).. it was supposed to be like any other fun filled trip. He landed an hr late, thanks to nothing in particular. As He came outside the terminal, He saw His cousin waving frantically from the car, asking Him to get inside quickly.

The usual pleasantries followed, with Metallica blaring in the speakers, along with a discussion of how good they had it, growing up in the 90s, arguably the best decade for music lovers. In the midst of all the banter, the cousin suddenly lowered the volume, and said, “Oh.. about the party tonight, I think you will find that apart from our family, a lot of my teammates from work are coming too.” To which, He replied “Well you had better not leave me all alone to go chat with u’r teammates man. I don’t quite fancy our aunts coming over to me while I’m alone and asking me questions about when I’m going to get married and all that jazz!!” His cousin laughed and said “Wellll.. about the being alone part, I’m not so sure man ! I think you know one of my teammates. Atleast, from what SHE told me, she knows you quite well !”. Hearing this, His mind started going into overdrive. He thought “This guy works with someone whom I know? and that someone is a girl?? Who do I know who works in the same company as he does??” He was just about to voice His thoughts when His cousin flipped the seek button and they were listening to “Mysterious Girl” by Peter Andre. “Cheesy man !!! verrryyy Cheesy!!” He said, playfully jabbing his cousin in the ribs. And so they drove home, with Him still not quite figuring out who it was He was going to meet in the party later that evening.

The hour soon approached, and after helping out His cousin and everyone else with the necessary decorations and arrangements, He took a quick shower and wore a black sports blazer over a white T-shirt and a pair of light blue faded jeans. He wasnt really keen about the Blazer, but had been asked to wear it so as to look the part of a host, which He was, along with His cousin. Slowly, the guests started showing up, and before long, there was a constant buzz, the sound of polite chatter, in the foyer and in the living room. The food and drinks had been arranged by the pool, and with the weather being perfect, there really was no debate about the location. He had gone over to the pool, where He saw His cousin greeting a group of people, and from the talk that followed, he figured that they were his teammates. His cousin looked over at Him, waved for Him to come join them, and once He had joined them, the necessary introductions were made. His searching eyes gave him away, and His cousin said “She’s by the punch bowl, go meet her”. He walked across the pool, heading over to the table where the punch bowl had been kept. Sure enough, as he approached the bowl, he saw her, but with her back towards him. As he came closer, his curiousity slowly gave way to a rising sense of apprehension, and His mind started telling him to turn back, but try as he may, he just could not stop going towards her, while all the time, He was saying to himself.. “No wayy.. No wayy!!.. thr’s no way this is Her !! Oh my God, turn back man, turn back! “. He smelt the same seductive, yet subtle scent… A scent he hadn’t smelt in over 7 years, on anyone else. This was her signature. Her very own statement of non conforming individuality. Memories of a life 7 years past came flooding back to him. He fought with his inner emotions, telling himself to get a grip, and be as stoic as possible. He was now right behind her. With a steady, yet unsure voice, he said “You still smell like the Hanging Gardens of Babylon”.

She turned around slowly. In all her life, among all the people she met, there was only one person who could say something so randomly, and yet make sense to her. She looked at him, and said “And you still haven’t gotten over Nebuchadnezzar and The Matrix”. They just stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity, when He said “Small world huh?”. She replied “I know that my teammate is your cousin. He told me. He somehow figured out we both studied together, and asked me about you. I didnt want to tell him I knew you… considerably well. I only told him you were an acquaintance.” His face suddenly took a pained expression and he said “You still haven’t forgotten, let alone forgive? Jesus @#$!~*(%, its been 7 years !”. She smiled and said “Its good to see you too, %^&$%&*$#(”, and started to walk away. A familiarity which was bred 7 years ago, prompted him to grab her hand as she walked away, and he said “No.. wait!”. She turned and looked at her hand, and then at him. He let go immediately, and said “I’m sorry.. But please. Don’t walk away…. Not again.” She stood her ground, and He said “Lets just sit by the poolside and we can talk. Please.” she followed him to the lounge chairs by the poolside, and as they sat down, He grabbed a couple of soda glasses, and handed one to her.

He: “Umm.. How have you been?”

Her: “I’ve been good, and you?”

He: “I’ve been ok. So where are you working now?”

Her: “Ask your cousin”.

He: “Oh shit.. sorry.. umm.. smalltalk can be such a pain right?”

Her: “Yeah.. you were never really good at it”

He: “So are you married now?”

Her: “No.”

He: “Are you seeing someone?”

Her (with an amused expression on her face ):”No. So.. I know you arent married. Your cousin told me that much. Are YOU seeing someone?”

He: “Aww Hell NO !”

Her: “Aww Hell NO? I didnt think I had asked if u had been convicted for first degree murder !”

He: “Err.. No.. wht I meant to say was.. No.. I’m not seeing anyone.”

Her: “Hmmm.. strange. I was always under the impression that you’d be surrounded by a bevy of..”

He: “Wait Wait wait wait..hold up ! for starters, I am NOT Don Juan DeMarco.. contrary to what everyone else seems to think .. and YOU of all people should no better!”

Her: “Do I?”

He paused a moment… looking at his now empty soda glass and then looked up at her…

“All these years, I had always hoped that I would see you someday, somewhere and I always played out the scenario in my mind, thinking of all the right things to say, to tell you that I am sorry, that it was my fault that the whole situation got so bad. I was immature, for chrissakes I was only 21!! But yeah, I know I should have handled it better, and I didnt”. “In all this time, I did meet others, but I never met someone like you again. “With time i began to realise what a stupid jackass I had been for having let go of the one thing that mattered the most to me.” “I mean.. its not that I let go per se, but yeah, I could’ve handled the circumstances better, and I didnt”. “I always kept replaying the scenario whr we’d meet, over and over again, and at that time, I’d always think of something really smart to say to you, a funny joke, a wisecrack maybe, and I’d imagine that the ice would be broken, and that we’d pick up from where we left off, or atleast make a fresh start”. “But now, I really can’t think of the right words to say ! Even in my wildest scenario replays, and beleive me.. they were pretty wild, I hadn’t expected something like this. Over time, I began to think that I had lost you for good! I couldn’t get a hold of you through anyone that we both knew, ‘coz frankly, I lost touch with them too. And from what I saw, you were making a superhuman effort to try and stay as far away from me as possible..  you had totally blocked all my email addresses, so i didnt think that you would unblock them or something. And now, I see you here!! I hadn’t the slightest clue that it was you my cousin was referring about!”. ” I dunno @#$% (and at this, he felt a sudden rush or affection for her, as he was addressing her by a name which only he had used, to call her before. It was something which only the two of them shared. He saw that her eyes widened in response to hearing him address her that way, and a slight wry smile formed on her lips), I really am at a loss for words.. I don’t quite know what to say.”

“You’re at a loss for words.. you don’t quite know what to say”..”Do you still keep feeding people the same old crap about your not talking all that much ??” she asked, smiling broadly now. “But I really don’t talk all that much, do I?” he said. “Yeah well, I bet Shakespeare kept telling people he could’nt write for nuts. Speaking of which, you wanna grab something to eat? I’m starving! “. she said. They both laughed, and stood up to walk over to the food section. “Remind me to thank my cousin for this”, he said. She just smiled and as they walked, their hands slightly touched each other…. but neither of them pulled away.

He looked at her, and an overwhelming sense of relief mingled with happiness washed over him. He savored the moment; knowing that here , in this very place and time, he was doing the one thing he had really wanted to do in all these years. He never quite understood the circumstances that had led them to be so far out of touch with each other over the years, and he hadn’t quite made it up to her yet.. but this was as good a start as any. And as before, he knew that the possibilities, both for good and for bad, were endless. But unlike before, He knew.. somehow he just knew, that this time, he would not walk away.. he would not let go.

My varying forms of Love..

I love waking up on a Saturday knowing that I can go back to sleep whenever I want

I love watching the previews before the main feature, in a theater, knowing that I will see these movies soon.

I love Chicago !! hands down, there is no other city , here or anywhere, which will evoke a feeling of longing within me, other than this place.

I love the feeling of having accomplished something, no matter how small the accomplishment may be.

I love the Chicago Bears, Pete Sampras, The Indianapolis Colts and really cool sounding names like Jay Cutler, Byron Leftwich, Rex Grossman, Pau Gasol, Marcos Baghdatis.. well.. u get the idea .

I love working up a sweat while playing a sport, any sport.

I love the soothing effect a shower gives when the water gradually turns hot.

I love Wikipedia.

I love finding  out about everything that goes in to making something.

I love walking down to the YMCA back home in hyderabad, on a friday evening. Any other day is sheer torture !

I love talking to the best Physics teacher I know, about everything but!!

I love talking to the best Botany teacher I know, about how bad a teacher she actually is!!

I love the anticipation that comes along with opening a book which I’ve been wanting to read for a reallly long time, or watching the 1st scene of a movie which I’ve been wanting to see for a reallly long time.

I love opening Gmail for the 1st time during the day.

I love false positive fake people .

I love taking on the rest of the world with my “Rat Pack” , in a sand volleyball match, in the middle of the night ! .

I love coming back from behind and winning something.

I love losing to a better person because I know that my victory over him (whenever it may be) will be all the more sweeter.

I love getting back in touch with people, whom I’ve lost prior contact with.

I love talking about all the random stuff in the world, with the few people who would talk right back .

I love every moment I spent in my undergrad.. xcept for a coupla mths here and thr i guess .

I love my desktop .

I love all the brothers and sisters I never had .

I love all the superheroes, in the books and in real life.

Lastly, I love you.. who matters more to me than most. You kno who you are.

Dear Comic-Books-are-for-kids-and-ppl-who-read-em-need-to-get-a-life Believer ..

I am so tempted to paraphrase Wesley Gibson from “Wanted”, (A graphic novel which i happened to read just yesterday , and which has been adapted into a movie, and releasing in March nxt yr.. or is it Feb?? ) from a sequence whr he is just so digusted with all the conformity around him, his dead end deadbeat life, tht he eloquently yet succintly says “FUCK YOU !!!!” .. .

But I will refrain. I, instead, will in my own small way, try and make you see that you are wrong in thinking so, and hopefully, by the time you are done reading this (If u DO read this), you will have a better appreciation of the brilliant-yet-so largely misunderstood medium of Comic Books. Oh yes.. the media did invent a new term for comic books which contain subject matter not suitable for children, and which appeal to a more mainstream reader base. They termed em “Graphic Novels”. Its like calling a Spade “An Apparatus used to dig a grave.. generally someone else’s.. and occasionally, your own too”, instead of just calling it a Spade !!! ..

Comic Books (Ok.. for your sake I will use the term Graphic Novel from time to time.. but only beacuse u’ve been hearing this term a lot these days.. what with Zack Snyder making us drool all over Gerard Butler, Lena Headey, the Gorgeous throne of Xerxes and 299 othr spartans) have become a whole lot more popular with the general public in the past couple of years. We’ve all been held breathless by the imagery and the brilliance of “300″ & “Sin City”, and the intelligent and powerful translation of “V for Vendetta”, onto the big screen. These movies made people see just how rich the world of comic books could be, and just how vast the world of comic books really was.. with brilliant stories full of brave and courageous souls, even immoral ones, who occasionally did the right thing. Kudos to Robert Rodriguez & Zack Snyder for adapting these graphic novels so brilliantly. But hear you me whn i say this… THIS IS JUST THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG !! there are sooooooo many of these out there.. Sin City & 300 arent even the best works of Frank Miller (Who wrote both the graphic novels btw) !!

Most of us read works of fiction, in the form of espionage thrillers, romantic novels (I’m talking abt genuine romance here.. not the load of crap that constitutes a Mills & Boon or a Silhouette novel), conventional jump-up-in-your-seat kind of thrillers, Fantasies, Dramas, even the occasional Sci-Fi (for me its the total opposite though ..). We are swept away by wht the author is dishing out to us, and go GaGa over the books saying “Its awesome, its a must read, u’ll never get bored” .. and all that jazz. Even in graphic novels, most of the themes that you encounter are the same !!! Its just that there are pictures accompanying the words (and what awesome artwork at that!! : D). Its more like a mental block that we have.. we see a graphic novel and we instantaneously say “Naahhh.. that stuff is for kids.. who’s gonna read that??”.. or “Graphic novels aren’t for me.. i can never identify with em”. Fine.. you are entitled to your opinion. But wht really gets me riled up is the fact that there are some who havent even read the stuff !! And they think that they are entitled to an opinion!!

Graphic Novels, more often than not, are a metaphor. A metaphor for society as a whole, A metaphor for human emotion, A metaphor for the unlimited boundaries of the human mind and its imagination !! In my humble opinion, they really are a celebration of the power of the literary , as well as the artistic mind . I’ll give you a few examples to illustrate my point. Oh yeah.. the examples are basically some of the greatest Comic books ever written .

Maus: A Survivor’s Tale is a memoir by Art Spiegelman, presented as a graphic novel. It recounts the struggle of Spiegelman’s father to survive the Holocaust as a Polish Jew and draws largely on his father’s recollections of his experiences. The book also follows the author’s troubled relationship with his father and the way the effects of war reverberate through generations of a family. The book has a satirical feel about it since the characters are all presented as various types of anthropomorphic animals, according to nationality or race. Jews, for example, are depicted as human-like mice, Germans as cats, Americans as dogs, and Poles as pigs.

Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on a Serious Earth, written by Grant Morrison and illustrated by Dave McKean, is quite simply, the greatest Batman Graphic Novel ever written (Again, this is upto debate, but you’d find very few people who would disagree with me on this one ). The book is notable for both McKean’s typical blend of painting, collage, and ink drawings and Morrison’s exploration of various mystic ideas, including the symbiosis between Batman and the criminals he captured and recaptured. Various threads of symbolism used by Morrison include the works of Lewis Carroll, and the psychology of Carl Jung.

And if you were talking about graphic novels, it would amount to blasphemy if u didnt mention..

Watchmen, which is a twelve-issue comic book limited series written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons.To date, Watchmen remains the only graphic novel to appear on Time Magazine’s 2005 list of “the 100 greatest novels of the literary world, from 1905 to 2005″. Watchmen is set in 1985, in an alternative History US, where costumed adventurers are real and the country is edging closer to a nuclear war with the Soviet Union (the Doomsday Clock is at five minutes to midnight). It tells the story of a group of past and present superheroes and the events surrounding the mysterious murder of one of their own. Watchmen depicts superheroes as real people who must confront ethical and personal issues, who struggle with failings, and who – with one notable exception – lack anything recognizable as super powers.

The whole point of these examples, was to show you that graphic novels can address topical issues with the same amount of gravitas and meaning, as a conventional novel. And for me, the artwork only serves to make em more Kick Ass !!! . We have amazing contemporary authors such as Alan Moore (Watchmen, V for Vendetta, League of Extraordinary gentlemen) , Frank Miller (The Dark Knight Returns, Sin City, 300, Ronin), J Michael Straczynski (Silver Surfer: Requiem), Grant Morrison, Jeph Loeb (I guess we all know him better as the executive producer of “Heroes”, the TV series ) and of course, who can forget the Silver Age guys such as Stan Lee, Jack Kirby . I’m tellin u.. read some of their works.. you’ll be spellbound .

There are graphic novels, which are just so gorgeously drawn, that even if they have a normal superhero type story, you are at a loss for words, because of the wizardry in the illustrations. Jim Lee, Alex Ross (He designed the cover for Ramayan 3392 AD, which btw, is becoming quite popular back home in India .. yayyyyy ), Andy Kubert, Joe Quesada, and many more!!

Give comic books a chance.. they can be as real as you want em to be.. and no other literary medium can provide a better means of escaping convention and boredom, than the graphic novel . The only thing which bothers me from time to time is the fact that THERE ARE SO MANY OF EM !!!! … but thn again, its wht makes them so fascinating !!