A right time to write.

There are some instances in life that cause you to wonder "what the hell was I doing all these years going off on a tangent?" I had one such epiphany sometime back.

Call it whatever - a course correction, throwback, renewed purpose.. I love writing. I used to write a lot, and then I stopped and did not know what or why that happened. Writing is a great way to express yourself - especially when you put pen on paper. With corporate life sucking the juices out of most of us millennials, we do not find time to even write a note to our loved ones. Writing letters to pen pals, relatives and friends stopped being fashionable in the 90s. Blogs apparently went out the window when Twitter arrived... Hold on a second.. that's what happened with me! 

Whilst Twitter is awesome to trash talk sports and politics, I find that writing blogs calms me down and helps me focus. For thoughts and feelings that go beyond the 140 character limit, this is still the best medium to write in. Everything around me shuts down when the words flow from the heart through the fingers onto the screen. It's akin to what they call "being in the zone" when you are out playing the innings of a lifetime on the cricket field. The feeling of being engulfed with adrenaline, singular focus and the world slowing down to how fast you are zipping through the paces - there are few things in the world that beat this experience. 

Sometimes all you need is a hard reset to get back to the basics... and start doing what you were best at. It was a refreshingly thorny happy-go-lucky, insightful straw that broke this sleepy camel's backbone. My hope and prayer is this lasts longer than the false dawns that have come in through the years.

Writing, the love of my life... here I come!

World Cup 2011 Travel: The Chennai Vegetarian Food Guide

So being a Chennaiite, this is the obligatory post to pay homage to all the "Madharasi"ness that makes us who we are. In no particular order, these are the places where a lower middle class vegetarian with a moderately acceptable spicyness index and who generously eats spoonfuls of Equal sweetener(and Lactogen) would love to dine at. Any treats to be given to me when I am back in Chennai can gladly be organized at the following locations.(For which I will not pay a single rupee, obviously)

-Murugan Idly Shop, T Nagar/BNB.
-The Dhaba, RK Salai. (A little costly!)
-Saravana Bhavan, Vadapalani.
-Kaiyendhi Bhavan, Brilliant Tutorials, T Nagar.
-Mathsya, Egmore.
-Palmgrove, Nungambakkam.
-Sangeetha, 1st Main Rd., Adyar.
-The Eden, Besant Nagar.
-Hot Chips, Pondy Bazar.
-Bajji Kadai next to Adyar Bakery, Adyar.
-Rathna Cafe, Pondy Bazar.
-Woodlands, RK Salai.
-Gangotree, Cathedral Road.
-Sri Bombay Halwa House, Anna Salai.

Any more?

Suggestions I've got:

-Cozee, Besant Nagar..
-The Eden, The Harrisons, Nungambakkam.. Courtesy: NJ Karthik
-Mathura, Tarapore Towers (How the heck did I miss this?? forgot its name!).. Courtesy: NJ Karthik
-Barbeque Nation, T Nagar, Don Pepe's Mexican food.. Courtesy: Rahul Rangarajan(Don Pepe reviews are BAD!)
-Bakyas - Jaishankar St./Station Rd., West Mambalam.. Courtesy: Balaji Kothandaraman
-Cream Centre, Nungambakkam.. Courtesy: Divya Murali  http://www.creamcentre.com/
-The Grand Sweets, Gandhinagar.. Courtesy: Mom
-Sanjeevanam, Mogappair/Nungambakkam/Adyar.. Courtesy: Santhosh Rathnam (Apparently a health oriented restaurant)
-Cream Centre, RA Puram is apparently one of the best restaurants Nithin Bharadwaj has gone to. He tweets here.
-Vasanta Bhavan, Indian Chat Corner(Besant Nagar) Courtesy: Vidya (I like the VB-Namma Veedu restaurant)
-iD @Sathyam Cinemas, Annalakshmi(damn missed this), Flower Drum(exclusive Veg. Chinese), Bay Leaf (Veg. Bengali), Ashoka, National Lodge, Shree Mithai.. Courtesy: Harish Anand. He tweets here.
Mukundh Bala reckons the Jalebi shop opposite the bike exit of Devi Theatres is damn good for light snacks.
-Rajdhaani, Express Avenue.. Courtesy: Aishwarya, Pavithra
-Rangoli, Pondy Bazaar.. Courtesy: Aishwarya, Pavithra
-Crimson Chakra, Karpagambal Mess(Mylapore).. Courtesy: Aishwarya (see comments below)
-Harish Anand says the Nalas Aappakadai (OMR, Annanagar, Velachery) people take orders via wi-fi on an iPod app! Technology I say. The food's good, importantly, for the MC Veggie. (also has an NV section though)
-Divya Murali recommends Mansukh's at T Nagar for authentic "light on the purse" North Indian food, and Vaishnavi Chat Shop in Kilpauk!
-Pasta Bar Veneto at Burkit Road is a favourite Italian food jaunt for school treats, says Ashwin Kumar.
-Preeti recommends Copper Chimney's (Cathedral Road) Veggie menu.(old favorite) Might be on the higher side, though.
-Sriram recommends one of Vadapalani's local favourites - Town Bus by Kodambakkam Powerhouse on Arcot Road. Have they painted the bus back as yet?
-Sreevatsan recommends Karthik Tiffin Center @ Anna Nagar and OSB-The Chaat Shop at West Mambalam for economy dining... And Kwality Rivera, Adyar for great food!
-Rahul Rangarajan is back with his trademark reco's - a roadside Pani Puri stall at the intersection of 15th and 16th main in Annanagar.
-Mukundhan Rangarajan(or MB) asks with outrage why Madras Bhel Puri in Pondy Bazar near Gopalakrishna Rd. was left out of this list. He rightfully also asks us to mention his home on this list. Yes, MB- some of the most tasty food I have had is at your place. :)
-Srividya recommends the Margazhi Music festival canteens at all Sabhas.. (best being Gnanambika at Narada Gana Sabha-agreed upon by Sunanda Narayan and Harish Anand!). She also recommends Novelty Tea Shop on Mint Street.(oft overlooked area for eateries, some of the best are here!)
-Santhosh Rathnam is back with a new reco.. Little Italy!
-Pavithra is back too.. Mothers Kitchen at Nanganallur she says!

Update: The Kaiyendhi Bhavan seems to be no more as Santhosh Rathnam puts it. Sad.
Also, BBQ Nation's veggie options aren't that impressive. But worth a shot?
Aishwarya is coming up with a review of Tandoori Tadkka soon. You can find it at the Slurp Spots blog.

Unsurprisingly, most of the City's best Sambars(acc. to Harish Anand) seem to come from among these restaurants. Check them out here. .
(The chap reviews restaurants bigtime, btw!)
My friend's recommendations and reviews on vegetarian eateries in Chennai. http://slurpspotsreview.blogspot.com/  If you need to analyse more before you choose ;)

P.S. I forgot to include the best place of them all, Home!

Follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/sreenathj

Skymall - half the world's pat(i)ented stuff is here

UPDATE: Check out these links for other(better actually) funny Skymall experiences:
7 useless Skymall pool gadgets
7 most useless Skymall Products

If you have flown the domestic routes in the US, you would know what I am talking about. Otherwise, here's a quick look, http://www.skymall.com/ . Make sure you come back and read what I have to say. A beaten-to-death, pointless, if-you-have-nothing-else-to-read reduce-your-savings-to-minuses magazine which sits on the back of the seat in front - that's Skymall for you. Ever looked through the products it advertises? For people who've not had the chance to see this wonderful, eclectic display of the best of the best of the most useless patents in the world, here's a small sample.

Automatic sleep sound generator (phew,so does this snore?)
Stainless steel purse (pain in the arse, literally)
Pet residence bed wid bone pillow (okay...)
Double sided toothbrush which reduces brush time by 66pc. (Industrial Engineer stuff??;))
Low voltage electric blanket (Seems Vijaykanth uses the high voltage variety)
Video recording sunglasses (no nasty ideas, people)
Mens towel with a pocket (I desperately need my purse when I leave the shower... immediately!)
The million germ sanitizing travel toothbrush sanitizer (So other brands sanitize only 423967 of them?)
The precise portion pet feeder (my pet's going to die if it eats 0.01g more)
The warming cat bed (what am I warming the house for then?)
The digital swim camera mask (what is your target market,btw?)
Remote controlled tarantula (why would I get one for a 100 bucks when I can buy a real one for less?)
The headache relieving wrap (retro-Home Shopping Network)
The 40inch foldable foto studio (ingenious,buddy)
The voice activated r2d2 .. (this was a beauty)
The water squirting remote controlled car (again, target market?)
Shrub guards (these actually cover all the shrubs, and looks like a shrub itself.. who'd buy this is a question)
Pet crib which acts like a teapoy (wouldn't want my tea spilt if the pet shakes it)
An instant bedroom fire escape ladder (also useful for the occasional cheating on the wife/husband)
Cat potty trainer (seriously guys?)
Some more...
Movable restroom for pets..
Feng shui handheld suggestion compass..
Foldable slippers (Hilarious to look at! If ever you get a chance, check this out)
 
Feel free to add on to this list. Lets celebrate the freedom of useless patenting.