I feel empty

I don't want to sleep, not because I think reality is better but because I m scared of what my dreams would bring ...

back from the The Home of Architecture

If one mentions a place synonymous with architecture, which houses the marvels of the human mind, makes dreams come true and brings ideas which were but nagging hooks in the corner of ones brain into stupendous reality, I would know that he is talking of DUBAI.

Dubai has a knack of making you high. Its constantly changing, forever evolving, morphing itself into something new and better. The city itself is an Artists Dream, a canvas on which the best architects have put their paints, each with a different technique, which never fails to surprise anyone who visits. Theres always something new every time!

I personally think dubai is a place for everyone, the Shopaholic ( biggest mall, shopaholic paradise :)), the Adrenaline Junkie=( bungie jumping, para sailing ) , the marine biologists ( housing the biggest aquarium in the world),  sports fans (regularly hosting ATP tourney,and even cricket matches) and all the Music Maddies ( i narrowly missed a Jay sean concert. :() but mostly, its for the Aspiring Architect. Go around the city with a simple sketchpad and pencil, and there is so much to fill in! It is the Paris of the Middle East, and so cosmopolitan, your tend to forget your roots.

Going there is a unique experience! I was in awe of the city,though clustered, housed the weirdest looking buildings i ve ever seen, and i loved sketching the burj al arab from the car! My dream came through this time, with my first experience of a live match. Not only did i watch live tennis for 3 whole days, i also got the autographs of players i ve only dreamed of meeting, and these dreams for at the far corner of reality... after 2 rushing days of Caroline Woznicacki, Jelena Jankovic, Richard Gasquet(autograph :)), Thomas Berdych (autograph ) ,Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi, (autograph=both!) Gilles Simon (autograph) NOVAK DJOKOVIC (AUTOGRAPH!) and ROGER FEDERER (unfortunately, no autograph :( ) . The piece de resistance, was the Nole Sign, i was in 7th heaven and beyond happiness.. sigh, it was a trip to remember!

The live match experience itself is something different, at home, you can watch replays and analyse shots, while in centre court, you live in the moment, revel in the awesomeness ;) of watching people you have idolized, play in front of you in flesh and blood, and when you actually get their sign or touch their hand... words cant describe the happiness..  a tennis match is eay to watch live, because the court is so close, you dont miss a thing, but you are watching the tennis ball,  so you tend to miss moments like fist pumps, falls and slides.. :P

i wouldnt trade that trip for anything, and this puts Dubai, high in the list of Must-Go-Before-You-Die places..:)

Grim Reaper and his oddities.. :P

A terrible occurrence in school led me to ponder on the fragility of life and the unpredictability of death..

if you are lucky, the Grim Reaper knocks before he comes.. but most of the time, he barges right in, probably leaving the door broken on its well oiled hinges.. (I was going to use rusty, but this is in the context of young deaths..) .

sometimes he entices you, with one long gnarled finger, beckoning, closer,closer, till its too late and you are already in his clutches..

and sometimes he drags you , feet first into the bowels of Death... we go, but only grudgingly, kicking and screaming because theres still too much to do.. so many promises, left unfulfilled, so many things left unsaid..its still too early..

in the case of the last category, people who receive him with open arms, whether the time is right or not, because they know that death is not the end, it s merely the beginning.. :)

heres a pic I drew in december..not my greatest work, but I'm proud of it.. I was thinking about this .. so its relevant...

Why I ve been away

I had the BEST holiday ever!!!! Went ti Dubai for 5 days, n went for live tennis matches for three. Say best seeded players play,n went really High here r the matches I went for..
Caroline wozniacki vs Jelena jankovic :) didn't get autograph , winner wozniacki
Richard gasquet vs g.dimitrov gasquet won GoT HiS AUTOGRAPH
Thomas berdych vs Jeremy chardy berdych won GOT HIS Autograph!!!
Novak djokovic!!! Vs micheal llodra I GoT NOLES autograph on the big tennis ball as well as my hat..:D
Marcos baghdatis vs andrey golubev baghdatis retired wid the flu got golubevs autograph :P
Leander paes/ mahesh bhupathi vs marco /Novak djokovic the djo bros :)
Got lee heshs autographs :) Lara was there but didn't see her...:P
Watched Roger federer n somdev devvarman play.. It was a good match somdev put up a fight against the maestro,,:) cudnt get fedexs auto though :( too much security :P
Got gilles simians auto yay! He played mikail youzny won n signed for EVERYBODY wid my pen!
More on this later... M writin from iPad n my back is paining..:P
Wanna give a better account of the experience :)

Can't sleep

My brain is working overtime... Can't sleep.. Although I sleep too much.. Not supposed to dose in 12th but end up catching more than 40 winks...
Just thinking how much pain can stimulate a poet, or a writer, or any kind of muse for that matter, I didn't believe it before but am strtin to comprehend the enormity or pain in creativity... As much as I want to deny it, it does play a major role I guess...
I have been giving a lot of advice lately, though god knows who takes it..I sometimes feel that I have a lot of nerve giving advice when I don't take what i dish out..:P
Yah.it s been a while n m kind rusty..

Game,Set,What a Matchup!! Aussie Open Quarter(2)-26/1/11

Hurray Murray!!

Second set  of Quarterfinals began with a new high.

 Andy Murray (GBR) took on Alexandr Dolgopolov(UKR) in a 4 set thriller. Before you ask, "Dolgop-Wha-?"let me explain. This unseeded Ukrainian is one of the most unpredictable players in the draw, but not untalented, having taken out both Jo-Wilfred Tsonga and the 4th seed Robin Soderling in straight sets.

The match was definitely an entertaining one, with long rallies and smashing points. Murray was the better player, but flashes of brilliance from Dolgopolov made for an interesting match.

Finally what let Dolgopolov down were his unforced errors-77 to Murrays 34! His flamboyance on court didnt help his cause either,most of his errors coming from over-hitting the ball.High speed of ground strokes gave some fascinating points to watch. The Ukrainian had more aces though(16-9) and that was the aspect of the game that let him shine, his serve was fast and accurate, and his movement was quick and effortless(he once came 3m fromt he baseline to take a perfectly executed drop shot from Murray and managed to win the point). Occasional lapse of intelligence helped Murray get the upper hand.

The Scotsman was by no means a couch potato. He is well known for his court movement and smart play. And he didnt disappoint. He was not in his BEST form, but he kept his(not -so-cool) cool and prevailed(7-5,6-3,6-7,6-3) even after Dolgopolov managed to take the 4th set in the tiebreak.

bottomline- Although Murray slightly underperformed today, this match was a briliant one, catch the highlights! The Scot is a step closer to breaking his jinxed and God knows, he may finally get his first Grand Slam!! 

Spanish Armadas Clash-    

And i had thought that the Murray match was entertaining.

 This match out classed that one in every aspect.

The quality of this match was definitely 5 star! Spain vs spain . World no.1 Rafael Nadal took on his Davis cup partner and friend David Ferrer. This match was totally different from the other Clash of the Same Country we had recently. While Wawrinka had a mental block against Federer,his pal, Ferrer had come into this match to win it. You could see it from the start.  He played aggressively , came to the net more, and had beautiful strokes which blew The Great Nadal away. Nadal didnt take it lying down thugh, he also came up with awe-inspiring shots at the baseline, amazing angles and Jaw dropping drop shots. But when Ferrer broke nadal, we start to see him struggling. Medical timeout after medical timeout, trainercoming on and off, it is evident that Nadal was feeling more than under the weather. Games got longer, and the strain was beginning to show. The quality didnt drop however, but it was clear that Ferrer was in control. He played smart, got in first serves and aces(8-2), and kept his focus. 

After ferrer took the first set 6-4, Nadal fans began to panic. Each shot brought a grimace on both nadals and his uncle tonis faces. Despite his discomfort, nadal being nadal, he fought back. but in vain. David Ferrer prevailed in straight stes, 6-4,6-2,6-3 to earn a spot in the semis.He will play Andy Murray.

Bottomline- If you missed this, groan and bang your head, coz it was truly an epic struggle. Even if you are a Nadal fan, you cant help admire Ferrers game, and of course, feel sorry for Nadal who was goin for a record- first man to hold all four slams in one yaer since the Great Rod Laver. ! pray he gets well soon, to come back to his Kingdom Of clay, coz he is truly The King Of Clay! OLE!!

Wacth out for the 2 semis- R.Federer(SUI) Vs N.Djokovic(SRB)

                                         D.Ferrer(ESP) Vs A.Murray(GBR)

Australian Open Quarterfinals-1 25/1/11

Fedex stuns "wah"wrinka

An all Swiss Quarterfinal,much anticipated,the great clash between Swiss no.1 and no.2,Roger Federer and
Stanislas Wawrinka.
The match started with a break of serve.Wawrinkas. With Federer leading from the start, the match never really took off.What the match lacked in quality and speed, made up for in finesse and fun. Not every point was entertaining and the match just faded away.
Although a few points took your breath away-Federer hit another tweener between his legs!(it is said that he loves to practice this more than his serve!) ,monotonous and predictable hitting from Wawrinka(his signature shot-backhand down the line), who never got his rhythm, left you beggin for more. There was hardly any depth of play,low force in ground strokes and generally this was a match which was seriously overrated.
In the end, The FedExpress steamrolled Stan 6-1,6-3,6-4 to earn a well deserved spot in the semis. The interview (as always) was a funny one, with Jim Courier figuring out that Federer has nicked 20 towels from Centrecourt so far!
Bottomline-Cute match, but hardly fit for a Quarter,left you feeling bored and was definitely not worth a 4:30 AM wakeup call!

Updates- Caroline Wozniacki(DEN) beat Feancesca Schiavone(ITA) 3-6,6-3,6-3. Unfortunate, seeing that Schiavone (for me) has become a palyer to watch out for, specially after her nail biting marathon of a 3rd round where she beat Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-4,1-6,16-14!! (incidentally both the players are French Open champions, Schiavone being the current, n kuznetsova the previous year's) :)

Li Na(CHN) defeated Andrea Petkovic(who took out Sharapova in straight sets)(GER) 6-2,6-4 to advance to her second consecutive Aust open semi. She had upped her game signifigantly over the years, and she truly deserves to get to the final.

Novak Djokovic(SRB) defeated Thomas Berdych(CZE) 6-1,7-6,6-1. Saw only one set but loved the quality of tennis, though i felt Berdych could have done better , seeing that he has beaten Djokovic before. Djokovic has been the most consistent player so far in this half of the draw, he hasnt dropped a set and is a strong contender, waiting to regain his title!! :)

Cant wait for tomorrow! :)

Parallel Worlds??

today in english class we had a lesson which revloved around the Quantum theory.... the possibility of parallel worlds coexisting with our own, only with minor changes which could make a big difference... worlds existing, side by side, never touching one another, till of course, someone invents a time travelling machine or something...

just think, a parallel world just like our own, but with subtle differences which makes it unreal to us, or think about the unreality of our world to that parallel world.. its a complicated thing,but i would love to think about it... hmm.. how about a world where our sun signs allow us to control that particular element? like Aries the fire sign can control fire?  sometimes i wish i could just make fire pop out of my lhand.. :P

JUST THINK:

1.of a world where Napolean won the Battle of Waterloo... france would have been under his dictatorship for years to come, he would never been exiled , and he would probably have never discoverred the Rosetta Stone! hmm..in retrospect, someone else would have discovered it.. but it would have set archaeology back a few hundred years!

2./ a world where Babur lost the First Battle of Panipat, mughal rule would never have started... n the Taj Mahal whould never have been built!! 

3.Hitler won the World War!! unthinkable!! o.O

etc.. i really cant think of anything else.... its just that if there is another world out there.. i wonder what that "me" would be like... HMMMMM..... Food For Thought!! :)

THE PAST YEAR

Another year has come to pass, and i think it is time to reflect on the things i realsied, the things i loved, the things i hated, and generally on the things that made this year worthwhile....

2010-

the year i took my 10th boards

the year i graduated to technical 'college'

the year i had to say goodbye to my fav subject

the year i had to make career choices

the year i started learning new things

the year i realised that i was actually popular

the year i became unpopular :)

the year i realised that some teachers werent all they were meant to be
the year i realsied we were being missed

the year i learnt the true meaning of hypocrisy

the year i saw hypocrisy everywhere

the year i learnt the true meaning of friends <3
the year i learnt to be a good friend
the year i learnt the importance of bonding with family
the year i learnt that girls gossip a lot :P
the year i became interested in the culinary arts :)
the year i realised that people dont listen to me :)
the year i wished i wouldnt have to listen to anyone
the year we got rid of 3 teachers o.O
the year our batch became mad xD
the year i wrote a lot of spoofs
the yar i realised that i was good at spoofs

the year i watched SO many movies!

the year i really learnt to bond with friends
the year we had class outings!
the year i tasted heaven
the year i got interested in football
the year i started to miss 10th
the year i wished i was back in it
the year i wished we were appreciated more
the year i was treated as a joke
the year i realsied that kuwait isnt as great as i thought it was.. (but still gr8 nevertheless)
the year i saw the Taj Mahal and cried
the year i wished i was prettier(weird i know)
the year i wished relatives didnt care so much
the year i wished i had taken arts
the year i became clear of peoples real intentions :(
the year i stayed up till 5:30 Am just to watch the US open
the year i became emo
the year i realised that teachers could be sarcastic too
the year my batchmates became sisters.. :)
the year we came up with a lot of nicknames!
the year i played tennis for the first time!
the year i missed a lot of people..
the year i wished those people missed me
the year i baked a cake.. and it was good!
the year i lost weight.. n almost regained it xD
the year i realised that our batch is jinxed
AND FINALLY
the year i absolutely loved/hated!
The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate.Oprah Winfrey

thanks to my familyand all my friends who made this year as special as can be.. <3 ya all!

its a hard knock life- a small change

its een a really tough year for us 11th graders... we are currently the first and only batch not to give a farewell to our seniors (like that should have surprised us) .. so here is a song i "tweaked" dedicated to all my jinxed batchmates... enjoy n remember i love ya guys!! :)
this song is from the musical 'Annie' and its called "its a hard knock life"

It's the hard-knock life for us! 
It's the hard-knock life for us! 
'Steada treated, 
We get tricked! 
'Steada fun times,
We get kicked! 
It's the hard-knock life! 
Got no reason to let us go, 
It's the hard-knock row we how! 
salwar kameez,'Steada of sari cool! 
Empty promises 
'Steada of full! 
It's the hard-knock life! 
Don't if feel like they are always howl'n? 
Don't it seem like there're never any rights! 
Once a day, don't you wanna throw the towel in? 
It's easier than puttin' up a fight. 
No one cares even when your marks get really awesome! 
No one cares if your mind grows...or if it shrinks! 
No one cares when you really want a party,
thanks to them this place really stinks!Ohhhh!!!!!!! 
Empty promise life! 
Rotten farewell life! 
Full of nono life! 
No party life! 
kindness we never see 
Kindness, what's that? 
Who's he?
No one cares for you a smatch 
When you're in the '94 batch!
its a hard knock life!

Yank the whiskers from his chin 
Jab her with a safety Pin 
It's the hard-knock life for us 
It's the hard-knock life for us 
you get nothing but hateWhen your in the ICSK Senate,
It's the hard-knock life 
It's the hard-knock life 
It's the hard-knock life!



well, i hope that helps.. :P

Choices

we had a career guidance counsellor come in today... she just confused me even more... i asked three differernt questiosn about three different career choices and she almost literally laughed on my face.. so what if i have a backup plan? architecture, animation and arachaeology may be totally different things but so what if i want to pursue all of them? why cant you let me make my own choices?  why do people think that if you take arts you have to be dumb? i wanted to take arts... people told me to use my potential better than arts. i didnt have that choice in school anyway and i hate commerce and biology.. so hello Computer Science!
when i asked her if major in history will get me somewhere better than teaching,... i know she was about to say... you can work in tombs... *sigh* wrong attitude towards history just makes my blood boil and my career choices blind. 
i wish i knew what to do.....

writers block!

cant write as often as i want to.... i have all the time in the worls, but no brain to do it.. damn it.. my best writing ideas come at midnight n beyond!
off the topic.. giving voice for a pantomime.. we r doing a christmas carol in school, n i m jacob marley.. very ominous character.. i love doing him!! but i wish i was allowed more expression!! i had to do a monotonous ghost voice.. oh well *sigh* . one thing i ve always wanted was to star in an animated feature!! give voice  for some cool character.. ha! for those things jim carreys my IDOL! horton n the animated christmas carol...W.O.W.

sigh.. wish The Muses would show up soon.. till then i will have to wait for inspiration to hit me.. :P

The Voyage Of the Dawn Threader- Review

The third installment of The Chronicles of Narnia (i love the word "Chronicles" it has an enigmatic tinge sumhow ":)) was highly anticipated and for good reason. it tells the story of the younger pevensie kids (edmund n lucy) and their snobby cousin eustace, as they go on a voyage on the narnian ship, the dawn treader. its mostly a growing up story, with the siblings having their own little insecurities, (lucy wants to be pretty like her sister susan, n edmund wants to be high king, n not play second fiddle)

also the main plot of every narnian tale is the triumph of good over evil, but it was a little disorienting to find the description of evil to be green mist which swallows all..  sadly, i couldnt get involved enough  as the crowd kept talking, phones kept ringing n god knows, some idiots started laughing during the most serious scenes.... 

the twist in the plot was a brilliant one, the goal being to not merely to find what happened to the seven lords, but also to reunite their swords at the Table of Aslan, to finally defeat the evil in Narnia.

 For me, the highlight was the person who played Eustace,  natural acting along with an amazing sense of humour brought life to a film which generally lacked meaning..  the only action was at the end when they battle a sea serpent which was beautifully taken! The camera angles really left us on the edge of our seats (or deep into them, since I saw it in 3D) I only wish there was more fright in the film, like the type which kept harry potter so popular.  The computer graphics were very precise, and you could detect the slightest shift in Reepicheeps mood (who was becoming increasingly cuter as the film progressed, I too had the urge to hug him in the end)  and facial expressions on Eustace the dragon was amazing too.. the acting wqas generally better than the previous flicks but georgie handley (lucy pevensie) was really not doing herself any favours. Her acting was just as bad as her previous endeavors. i wish aslan had had a little more screen time, although they followed the book precisely in his scenes.

The setting was beautiful, the water so blue you wanted to taste its sweetness, and the dawn treader was an achievement  in itself. CS lewis would have been proud of it.

Ben barnes and skander Keynes ( Caspian n Edmund) did brilliant justice to their characters , and aside from looking hotter with a beard, thankfully Caspian had lost his annoying telmarine accent which was a confusing blend of Persian n French xP.  Edmund looked older, n more haggard somehow, but you couldn’t help but feel sorry for him as he tries to prove himself. (I still think he looked cuter in prince Caspian ).

BottomLine= definitely a must see, specially for those who are hard core followers of the series, and although it did not exceed prince Caspian  in plot and acting, I still came away  wishing I was a part of it all, a part of that wonderful place, NARNIA J

Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 1 :)

this is my review of the film.. CAUTION= SPOILERS for those who didnt see it!!

The rustle of cloaks, the zip of spells just missing your ear (although it didnt miss George's ), the acrid smell of singed hair(and believe me, you could almost smell it!) the hiss of snakes, the whizz of brooms, these are the things which have constituted every Potter film till date. so what made this film different?
As usual, sitting in the theatre, i cannot help but squeal with excitement as the Warner Bros. logo comes popping out the screen..
the start definitely deserves special mention. it shows the Trio preparing for the dangerous venture they are about to undertake. I was moved to tears when Hermione obliviates her parents and her photos vanish.. Emma has never acted better than her performance in this film. you feel her emotions, her sorrow, her fear.  The 7 potters scene was taken beautifully, the chase, even better. The special effects left us hanging off our seats and actually ended up fearing for harrys life, even though we have read the book, we are still on tenterhooks about how the chase would turn out! it showed what the book could not- actual fear, and a few visual gags, like moody's Harley-inspired broomstick.
I wish the wedding had a bit more to offer.. a wizard wedding should have been an explosion of ideas for the special effects guys!
 (one thing to note though= i dont know if hermione and krum actually dance because the problem when u catch a flick here, you re never sure if you saw the whole thing or not. the Censorship board can be a little- um- enthusiastic. )

First, a beautiful romantic wedding, next second- Chaos.
The Grimmauld Place Scene scared me to bits (dusty dumbledore hurtling towards the screen isnt exactly a sight to behold)
Dobby as usual, looked adorable, and whoever gave his voice did an amazing job as we remember the Dobby from The Chamber of Secrets.. his dialogues " Dobby is a free elf " was quoted by many as they left the cinema!
the ministry scene was sudden, and kreacher never gets a chance to redeem himself. Barring a very funny scene where Mrs.Cattermole actually kisses ron (which was, again, cut by the Board) the escape wasnt anything spectacular. The acting by Ron is brilliant , the audience actaully winced when he splinched himself, and hermiones partial-histerics were very well done too.

the forest scenes, although they slowed down the movie, were never boring. at the same time, the audience could feast their eyes on the beauties of the English countryside, and (for most of us- myself included) Emma's wardrobe (i guess being brand ambassador for Burberry's has its advantages uh?  her shirts were the envy of all the girls in the room... )
there are 3 scenes which i would love to highlight..
 firstly the fight scene between ron and harry
Rupert has never been given the credit he deserves for his acting... because he was brilliant. Dan was relatively calm though, and it was actually funny when he lunged at ron suddenly :)

secondly, a very poignant scene where harry and hermione dance in their tent, is the type of scene which guarantees an "awwwwwwwwww" from the audience. for a few seconds you could actually see the hermione of yesteryears, cute and smiling. this happiness , however is short lived as she goes back to her mood off ways.

finally, there is a scene which shows the power of hermiones shields around the campsite, wehn a band of snatchers pass a hairs breadth in front of hermione but cannot see her.. i found myself holding my breath and praying that they would leave her alone.. there was some debate on whether the leader snatcher was Fenrir Greyback or not because he looked too cute to be him.. :)

from the hilarious to the hair raising, this movie has it all.. The Godric's hollow scene guarantees a scream from anyone who watches it, whether they are a pink smothered girl, or a black covered truck driver. Nagini has this horrifying habit of popping out of nowhere, and at this point i am totally relieved that the movie wasnt in 3D.
a special mention should go to the way the Three Brothers story was told. the animation was wonderful, and small details like Death picking up the second brother by the end of his noose was really well thought of. the whole story was told as is in the book.
The highlights of the movies where definitely the chase sequences with amazing camera angles and a few blurred shots which left you out of breath at the end.

speaking of which, the end was extremely abrupt, and if i would not have known it was ending there, i would have been shocked... although considering it is half a movie, i guess shouldnt be an issue.
the little role which malfoy and bellatrix had was crafted to perfection, and we were obliged to bow at their credits at the end :)
the ending was the kind of thing which left you begging for more, as voldemort shoots a spell into the air with the Elder Wand, though i wish it had ended with his maniacal laughter ringing in our ears.

Bottomline (finally!) : although a few scenes could have been shot better, and some things from the book which should have gone into the movie were cut (lupins  fight scene, lilys letter, flashback at godric's hollow being just a few) i still enjoyed every moment of it. this movie was the perfect potrayal of The Beginning Of The End.
Cant wait for part 2!!

Coming soon!

Watch out for my Harry potter 7 review!! Coming up Soon!! :)