Thursday, August 25, 2011

Bohemian Rhapsody

“It's one of those songs which has such a fantasy feel about it. I think people should just listen to it, think about it, and then make up their own minds as to what it says to them. "Bohemian Rhapsody" didn't just come out of thin air. I did a bit of research although it was tongue-in-cheek and mock opera. Why not?”
- Freddie Mercury

The first time this song by Queen caught my ears, it went unnoticed.

Until, I watched the season finale of Glee Season 1. This song was performed in a musical by the group Vocal Adrenaline in the finals of a competition. It was a memorable performance, mostly, as this ran concurrently with flashes of scenes from the final episode, revolving around the main characters. Most notable was one scene where a female character screams away in labour pains, while coupled with the “Bismillah! NO! We will not let you go” part of the song. It sent shivers down my spine the first time I watched it!

I have since listened to the song probably a hundred times at least! This song definitely sits somewhere on my top 5 favourite songs of all time.

What is so special about this song? I think it is a bold experimentation and successful mash up of various (and highly specialised) musical styles. I have not come across a piece as diverse and entertaining as this in popular English music. Most speculate that this song has strong ties to Freddie Mercury's personal issues particularly his battle with AIDS. With this in mind, the song creates in my mind, varying emotional states, while taking one through (probably intended) feelings of sadness, regret, fear, anger and finally acceptance of the inevitable end. However, many decades later, this song is still open for speculation as Queen never really clarified it's lyrical significance or it's specific relation to Freddie Mercury.

This song is also a great example of how strongly music can influence with the way we think and feel.

A capella intro (0.00 – 0:49)
A curious invitation to “be open”, probably to prepare a listener to the rest of the song. At this point, the song makes little sense. Some might even be bored at first.

Ballad (0:49 – 2:36)
An emotional piece expressed in a duet between the piano and vocals. A sad account by the song writer crying out his sadness and regret to “his mother,” making it known that it is time to leave and that he is afraid.

Guitar solo (2:36 – 3:03)
A refreshing interlude.

Opera (3:03 – 4:07)
A rather odd addition to to the piece, it is an amusing play of seemingly nonsensical words. But it gradually builds up emotions (as if the person in reference gathers strength and courage, against the odds) towards the end of it. In how many other instances has anyone successfully made a smooth transition from opera to rock?!

Heavy metal (4:07 – 4:56)
This is my favourite part of the piece! It appears to release a lot of the anger and pain left in a man's soul. I'm no fan of heavy metal. But this part always gets me high, so much so that if I closed my eyes, I can very easily picture myself dressed up a rocker (black suit and lots of eye liner) jumping around and performing this bit on stage! Yeah....shocking (and fictional!).

Outro (4:56 – 5:55)
A soothing end, that seems to conclude with some sort of closure with acceptance of facts.




Queen is a band that has surpassed greatness and now remains on an immortal throne in the music world. This was a band that was not afraid to challenge conventional musical styles or venture out of their comfort zones. Few bands shared the same success that Queen did in their lifetime. If you need more evidence of this, look no further than video clips of past Queen concerts and the oceans of fans who surrounded them! That was the result when the musical genius of 4 great men - Freddie Mercury, Brain May, Roger Taylor and John Deacon - came together.

Queen Lives On.

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Social tales

I try not to make this blog too depressing and think of ways to word things in a way that exposes the humour behind random events in life. Sometimes I fail.

Opportunity vs Etiquette

Can you blame people for not being "courteous", when they were probably brought up in an environment which didn't teach such social etiquette? I think not.

The other day, I walk out of work to find out the vehicle battery had died. First reaction was panic. I called my sister overseas to ask what to do. I informed my travel buddies to find alternate arrangements to go home. I made several frantic calls to garages and people who might be able to help. I had to ask the company's COO to help jump start the battery through his vehicle's battery, so that I might be able to drive to a garage. That attempt failed. It was getting dark, and I wanted to go home. Forced to leave my vehicle outside my office, I made my way to the taxi stand.

I was first in the "queue" for taxis. There was another gentlemen in second place. It was the time when Muslims broke their fast, and there was not a taxi in sight for a long time. Soon a group of 4 men appeared out of nowhere, hailed down the first taxi that passed us, and prepared to get in, when the guy in second place called out "Excuse me, you can't take that taxi. She was here before you. Let the lady go in this". Those in the larger group refused the request. The taxi guy sided with the group (nationality may have played a part), saying "they saw me first" and he refused to take me. A fierce argument ensued between the one guy and the group. I can't recall what I was doing, maybe I was just watching the scene as if I were a spectator. In the end the taxi driver just drove off with no passengers! Shortly after, another taxi arrived and I got in.

Moral of the story: 
For Shu - FIGHT!
For the men who jumped a turn: Look around you, you are no longer in your home country! A little patience and courtesy will keep everybody's blood pressures at optimal range.


The Phoney Pharmacist

Today, with most of my recent troubles settled, I went on a round of errands after work. Did some grocery shopping, took the vehicle for a much-needed wash and made my way to a pharmacy. I was greeted by a very (fakely) jolly pharmacist:

P: How are you? (big smile). I have not seen you lately.
Shu: I'm fine, thanks (not like I'd tell you even if I was not fine. And I have been here only once or twice in the last year. I have not seen you in this store before. Either you are mistaken or you are just faking it.) How are you? (I dont care, really, but I'm following stupid social protocol).
P: um..... Good thanks.
Shu: Can I have a pack of tablet X?
P: Yes. Is this for you?
Shu: Yes. (I don't see how that matters here, but okay)
As I wait for my payment to be processed....
P: So where are you from?
Shu: Country Y.
P: Oh (big grin). Where do you work?
Shu: Place Z
P: (looks at the tablet box) So you are trying for a baby, huh?
Shu: (WTF? Enough with the questions already. Give me the damn tablets.) Hmmm.
P: So where does your husband work?
Shu: (Loses temper) I'm not married. I'm taking a course of this tablet for a different issue. (Now do you have anymore asinine questions for me???) 
P: (Smile vanishes). OH.

Moral of this story:
For Shu: FIGHT!
For the fake pharmacist: Fake customer service SHOWS. So don't even try it.

Monday, August 15, 2011

Laziness, I fear, might be a dominant genotype

What do you do when you are a slave of your mind?
You sit and watch your boat (of life) sail by, further and further and further away from the dock of your dreams and goals.

I just discovered a very yummy recipe for a very lazy type of meal. As follows:

Cheapy n Tasty Steamed Corn
1 can of whole kernel corn
Salt and butter to taste

Open the can, drain and warm up the corn. Warming by steam is preferred, however a microwave would work too. Avoid boiling the corn in water (that would give you tasteless and nutrition-less corn). Add lots of butter and a pinch of salt. Mix. Sit back and enjoy while you blog, read or watch TV.

Today, I was caught by a sympathetic colleague while eating the same food for lunch from 3 days back. Although, it was prepared in such away that it can be preserved for several days, she took pity on me and offered (forcefully) to bring me lunch tomorrow despite objections.


This is the latest addition to my room decor. A curious gift, but one that perfectly suits a curious creature as I. I have managed to assemble it while the family was away, as junior might find joy in taking a bird bath in it or introduce foreign material to the setup. The sound of running water, apart from serving as a timely reminder to pee regularly, has a very soothing effect. I must admit, it sets a great atmosphere to write. All I miss now is sound of birds chirping away (the air conditioning can replace a cool breeze).

Last night my computer crashed in an attempt to fix a malfunctioning phone. I was forced to reformat it on my own. All this while I had never attempted a reformat out of several imagined situations, where things might go wrong and I'll end up without a laptop. Regardless of gender, I think it is important for all to try to learn to change a bulb, reformat a computer, change a tyre, change a diaper, cook a meal and sew a tear (who knows when it might save you an inconvenience?). Anyway, I had failed to create a backup of my documents recently, so a lot of important documents, chat logs, cherished photos and videos have been lost. Then again, life goes on, with or without your important files. We adapt to circumstances.

Through life's hardships, debts and obligations, one must not forget to live a little. So today, I said yes to a friend who wanted to buy discounted tickets to a themed water park. Guess my haircut will have to be sacrificed this month to make up for additional entertainment costs. Now that wasn't a difficult choice to make!

My computer tricked me into sleeping an hour early last night. Instead of 10:45pm, it read 11:45pm and that was enough to send me running off to bed in disappointment as my "pre-Monday blues" had already kicked in by then.

But not tonight, you evil thing.


We want, therefore we get

I'm reading a book by Richard Dawkins called "The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution". Progress has been very slow but it is an insightful book, from what I've managed to read so far, especially for those with scientific curiosity and love for Biology.

Humans are driven by the inherent quality to manipulate their surroundings for selfish gains. Otherwise, how might one explain these?

Bulldogs - these pedigree dogs are carefully bred to maintain their characteristic traits. However, their physique also makes them prone to various health complications, such as breathing difficulties, pug dog encephalitis, abnormal verterbral growth, weakened immune system, painful births - some of which have to be "resolved" by euthanasia.






Belgian Blue cattle - a defect in it's genome that codes for accelerated muscle growth is maintained by selective breeding, resulting in highly marketable beef. Downsides (to the cow) include painful births (which have to be avoided by caesarian births) and, of course, existing solely for the purpose of meat.

In the grand scheme of things, where "progress" is measured in instant gratification and size of benefits, what purpose does morality serve?

Monday, August 8, 2011

Smart minds

Gym Timings
Open from 9:00am - 9:00pm, Saturday to Thursday*
Ladies:  9:00am - 11:00am, 4:00pm - 6:00pm (a total of 4 hours)
Men:    11:30am - 3:30pm, 6:30pm - 9:00pm (a total of 6.5 hours)

*The work week here is from Sunday to Thursday. Some unfortunate folk work on Saturday as part of a 6-day work week.

The above timings are the gym access hours in my residential building. At first glance, it can be inferred that this schedule must have been drafted by:

a) a man who thought that it was more important for men to workout than is it for the ladies. So in addition to longer hours, he also gives his "brothers" prime gym timings on all the days. OR,

b) a woman who was jealous of other working women - maybe because she has no access to a gym, or no time to hit the gym or she has little success with her own workouts. OR,

c) a computer program that generates random time sequences.

I work from 9:00am to 6:00pm on weekdays, and by this schedule, I cannot use the gym on a weekday. And if on Saturday morning (my off day) I happen to indulge in a few extra hours of sleep between 9:00am and 11:00am or happen to run some errands between 4:00pm and 6:00pm, then my chances of using the gym are entirely lost. Not that I care, but here I thought some common sense might be used when creating a schedule such as this.

Now I have found ways around this problem. I have spoken to the building keeper to open up the gym for me at 7:00am, when he does his cleaning rounds. Somedays when he happens to clean the gym at 7:00am, it is not available. But on the days I motivate myself to go one flight of stairs to the gym, which is about 4 days on a good month, I manage a 15-minute workout on one of the running machines and burn 98 calories a day. That is until my nemesis comes for his workout at 7:30am.  This annoying man, refusing to use the good hours allocated to his gender by the building management, prefers to encroach on my time. One day I found him sitting on a muscle building machine and chattering away on the phone. USE THE CORRIDOR DAMMIT. DONT HOG THE GYM IF YOU AREN'T USING IT.

________________________________________________________________________

Public Library Timings
8:00am - 9:00pm on weekdays
Closed on weekends.

I'll start of by saying, I am glad I can used the library on weekdays from 7:30pm to 8:40pm after work.

But what kind of library is closed on weekends? Isn't that when people (mostly working adults and school children) have the time to come and use library facilities? It seems the public library caters mostly to telecommuters, housewives/ househusbands, the unemployed, some school children, some university students and some people who work irregular shifts.

Today I find out that due to the month of fasting, libraries close at 5:30pm on weekdays. All flickering hopes of studying for an impending GRE exam have vanished. I am doomed.


Pictures courtesy of Google Images.

Saturday, August 6, 2011

Ramble, ramble

My thoughts on blogging so far (part 1):

Expressing my thoughts by writing was not exactly new to me when I started my first proper blog. I always knew at the back of my head that writing my thoughts was much easier than speaking them out. Inside the world of Shu's head, everything is calm and quiet, except for her loud voice, chattering away nonstop. Writing gives the feeling that time slows down, so thoughts have time to analyse and re-organise themselves. There are no concerns when writing -  no one to judge you while you write, no one to notice how you look like, no one to interupt your stream of thought, no one to offend you or no one waiting eagerly for a response - as a result, written expression comes out nearly as free and natural as they originate in the mind.

Writing this blog extended over 2 days due to distractions, so I lost the original train of thought and I was only able to manage that one paragraph.

But here is a rather catchy, nonsensical song playing on radio and in my head these days... nice idea for making bubbles (if it really works, that is)...

Social Privilege

Not all of us are born to the same circumstances. There will always be differences in social status, which is determined by factors such as ...