The cigarette lighter

Noticed that the cigarette lighter's fuel tank is divided into 2 compartments to increase its life. Neat idea.

The flesh engine

My bike used to overheat when I used to ride it for more than an hour or so in the hot sun. It would just cough and die. I was lucky once when it started raining after one of the metallic myocardial infarctions.

It's beautiful to watch the rain drops turn instantly into steam when they fall on the engine's iron fins. Cooling the inferno within, soothing it back to normalcy.

My motor too seems to be headed that way in this summer heat. A cool shower is a momentary relief from the sticky heat any time of the night.

Night rider

Even though Chennai is despicably hot these days, the nights are relatively bearable. The city has amazing roads compared to what I have been used to. And I also have a cooked-up reason as to why the roads in Chennai are relatively decent when compared to its counterparts in Kerala. The answer must be - rains. The Kerala roads get washed away in every torrential downpour. Another fact which adds to the erosion is that the terrain is uneven in Kerala resulting in roads turning into rivers and streams with every storm.

Here, rain is rare. And the roads reflect that. And to top things, the terrain is quite even. When it rains, lakes and ponds are formed here. Big pools of stagnant water. I have deviated horribly away from what I actually wanted to jot down here.

I love riding through the Chennai roads in the middle of the night. Mostly well-lit and well-built, these roads have charm during the night, when there is no real traffic. Given an unlimited amount of gasoline and a reliable machine, I could ride on till eternity and still not be bored here. And yeah, unlimited night time.

Walking Trees

I behave differently at times. Yet there is a certain level of predictability even there. Talking of which I was struck with awe at a potted plant at office.

An idea which was planted in me a long time ago by some prose or verse welled up within me. There was a question which was posed by the plant.

What if... What if the plant as a seed or a cut stem, did not know that it was supposed to be this species of a plant. What if it didn't know that it was supposed to grow in a certain pattern and live in a certain way.

Maybe the Sentinel creeps arose from such errant seeds.

A day off

A day off from work once in a while is a nice thing. More so, if you have stuff to do, and if some of them actually get done. A break from the world of monitors and digitized voices. Reminded me of how sequestered I really am from the 'real' world.

Chennai has become burning hot these days. I almost got fried on Monday.

Focussing

The general way of how things work is slowly coming into focus. It has taken an abysmally long time for this to happen. Wish it happened some years back instead of now. But that is something which cannot be undone.

I happened to see an old American comedy film Being There in which the protagonist tells the press (or was it the President) that if someone watches over young plants, they will grow stronger. How true.

Dust

I live in a very dusty street. My bike looks abandoned every morning under its cover of fine red and brown dust. And I dust it, just before I take it to go to work. I park it in the office basement. And I take it back to its dusty abode most nights.

Funny that the dust, the bike and me, are all really the same dust in different shapes.

short poem

whats done is done

whats gona come is uncertain

and when that goes by

that too is done