Coffee Shot

People,

I'm going to tell you something which I experienced today evening, while attending one of my classes here at the University. Well, the class was on Automotive Electronics. Well, the name sounds more interesting to me and it might even look nice like a brownie point , if I can put it under one of the course successfully passed, on my resume, but I tell you, it is a lot of pain !! Well, so as I was trying all I can to make the best use of the time in the class, I was failing again and again to get the much needed attention. 

Milan, our lecturer, has this very interesting way of saying "Very Good" when he feels satisfied or comes across something "beautiful", which generally is a technological marvel more than anything else !! So he was just hopping from one application to the other touching briefly upon the fundamental electronics principles in each. Anyways, to me, it was one thing hearing about the new electronic gadgets now becoming an integral part of a modern car, but another thing altogether, trying to comprehend the working of it at a level of transistors, diodes, Op Amps and what not !!! So the point is, there was too much of new information enough to make my mind boggle. One could notice almost every one in our class struggling to keep up (; which basically was because the majority had absolutely no background in Electronics being Mechanical Engineers :D ) with Milan, who as usual in his very jovial tone was smoothly cruising along uttering a "Very Good"  every now and then ! 

And finally, Milan gave us a much needed break. Off I ran to the nearest Turkish place to buy myself a latte !! It was meant to be more of a soother than anything else for my tired brain ! I have read previously about how the caffeine in coffee can stimulate your whole central nervous system, but experiencing it was a terrific feeling ! Well, the effect was pronounced or at least I felt it a lot more today than any time before, because there was a notable increase in the level of my concentration and attention span ! It was suddenly as if somebody put a decoder into my head (see, now I can even use electronics in my vocab, whoa :P !), as whatever sounded gibberish to me previously, made a lot more sense now ! It was like drinking a magic potion, lol ! I even tried to drink it slowly so as to take me through the entire class. Now as much as it sounds funny saying it now and maybe reading this :P, I really thought for a minute, I had found a permanent cure for my distraction ; a coffee shot !!

Peace,

$ur

Spreading the News !!

Hi All,

All this time, I have been reading stuffs on things that have interested me over the past many years. Off late, I have become a big fan of stumbleupon.com One of the many websites which have really let my imagination take flight, I must say, with the way it works. You just specify your preferences and press the tab that reads "stumble" and BOOM, it takes you on a magical journey.

I'm in no way exaggerating the wonder of the site. My friends to whom I have mentioned this before, would have noticed the sparkle in my eyes when I've spoken about the same :D. Internet is something that came into existence round about when I was 15 yrs old. I also made my first email account when I was that age and I can tell you quite confidently that I have by far seen and been to almost "all types of websites" which most normal and abnormal people know about ; or at least I thought I had !!

Stumbleupon was actually stumbled upon by me or rather an old friend of mine send me an invite at a time when invites to the many, now quite popular, social networking sites were a thing of everyday's email list. Most of such mails went swiftly into my email trash folder, with me not even batting an eyelid while doing so, everyday !! But this one, some how made it into the other list of websites, which I actually, out of the curiosity of the name, clicked to find out whether they were any good ! At that point of time, I must admit that, I wasn't driven enough to the point of boredom, to give the website a closer look than just make an account and then forget about it until a month or so back.

About a month ago, I was so bored of my daily routine of checking gmail, facebook and orkut (in that order) ; that I started to think, isn't there something new that can make you feel that the internet is still kick-ass the way it used to be when it started off !!??

That is when I rediscovered stumbleupon ! Well, again I set my preferences or more or less edited and added new preferences to my old list and BOOM, I was off, in the hope that I would find something interesting !! Well, the last few weeks, though were pretty good, in terms of finding new unexplored websites, which only few loyal patrons knew of ; today I stumbled upon something totally cool and mind blowing.

Yes, if you have already checked out the link, without reading the boring details I wrote till now :P, you already know of the site !! It is called Academic Earth. The site has free video lectures from leading Universities around the world - Yale, Berkeley, MIT etc.. to name a few, on a variety of topics to tickle your quest for knowledge !! I myself, being a big fan of Psychology, went straight into the psychology section to find something interesting. Though cynical I was of such sites, as some of you might also be, that nothing in this world comes free ; I was actually very surprised to find a whole list of video lectures, power point presentations and course material presented in the order they were taught to students of psychology at Yale University, available to the common man for free !!!!

I felt a spasm of excitement to let my fellow mates know of this site as soon I finished taking my first introductory lecture of the course !!!

So here I'm blogging about the way I used stumbleupon to find something useful as this. Who knows, you may find something better. Please do share if you do, as knowledge grows only if you share it ;)

Cheers,

$ur

Few thought trains..

People speak best when they are emotional !! Well, you might say that I'm talking about people here just so that I can report my own stuff in third person ;) Well, I'm part of that "people" too, I guess !!

Anyways, the point therefore is, So sometimes you just have to put some emotion into what you say, to communicate well ;) ! Well, just one of the things running through my head randomly just now.

Been missing blogging since sometime now. Hardly get anything to write, nor do I find it easy to express my thoughts. Into my final semester of my Masters Program and the project work had been keeping me busy the last few days. Now, I have sort of hit a plateau ; I need some feedback from now on to move forward with the research and simulation work I'm doing. Well, when I heard myself saying this out loud, I felt I'm complaining :), so I didn't let that leave me stuck; I have been doing other things !!

Last week or so, I was reading one of the posts of a fellow blogger; I was inspired to write.

I have always held a belief that, only if there is a volley of things to bustle your life, do you actually find time to do all the things that you love. Put in a more coherent manner, if you are busy, you are efficient and tend to manage a lot of things beautifully and simultaneously. Well, so if you can read between the lines here, I have made my point crystal clear.

Well, now it seems as though I have actually written a blog post out of just few thought trains ;) !!

Cheers,

$ur

Hangover

“Pepper – Butthole Surfers” - J what a name for a band ! This song supposedly appeared in the Hangover Promos, couldn't actually find it in the movie though. But a terrific song. It is kinda psychedelic in between with some really cool narration like lyrics in between. There is slight similarity somewhere in the kind of music, to the Gorillaz. The beats and the music give it a nice touch.

“It’s Now Or Never – El Vez” – The movie starts off with this old Elvis Priestley song sung by El Vez. There ain’t much to the song and you wouldn’t probably notice the lovely style of the song as the movie opens with the bride trying to reach her fiancé who hasn’t still turned up on the day of their wedding J Well, the song pulls you into a Mexican backdrop, if you hear it outside of the movie. The accent of El Vez and the typical instruments used in the song gives you a similar feeling as that to the Desperado movie. It eases you into a beautiful thought process and then some of the explicit lyrics in between will make your sides ache, laughing J !

“Thirteen - Danzig” – Highlight - The vocals are sweet! The music is full of attitude. Its a slow paced singing with nice backing music and somehow I got a feeling of the Wild West or one of those bad ass movies...I think you ll feel it too with the sound of the wind blowing in the background and a dusty picture comes into your mind. Can be a rock classification, this song, but certainly not the kind you would know of much. Do give it a try!!

“Take it Off – The Donnas” – The Vegas (Sin City) road trip starts off in a kick-ass fashion with this song. Well the video is a must watch with the song when you first hear it. It will set the picture right up in your mind as to how the movie goes ! Watch out for Alan...this is where he starts to come in from nowhere with a bang!

“Can't Tell Me Nothing Feat Lil'Wayne, Busta Rhymes & Young Jeezy (Remix)” – An awesome song and a perfect timing to have come into the movie. Las Vegas comes into picture with this song. Do try this song, even out of the movie, this song will strike you as an unusually different one!

“Livin Your Life – Y.I Ft. Rihanna” – The song compliments the scene as the guys check into the Villa @ Caesar’s Castle. Backdrop is a lovely suite with the windows overlooking the Vegas casinos.

“Who let the Dogs Out - Bahamen” – This is typically when, if you see the movie in the flow it takes you; you will notice how much you start to like the character Alan in the movie. There is nothing new to say about this fun song as it is very popular and one which has been around for quite some time now. But yea, well timed again!!

“Yeah – Usher” – This song is soon after Alan’s small and hilarious speech on the rooftop of the Hotel. Just a event marking song and nothing more there in it!

“Fever – The Cramps” – This is where the Hangover starts to kick in J Stu wakes up with a heavy head totally oblivious to the mess he sees around him...the song’s too good and compliments the scene perfectly. Out of the movie, its a song that goes well with a “Bong” ;) definitely gives you a crawling trance like feeling!

“Wedding Bells (Are Breaking Up That Old Gang Of Mine) – Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps” – This song will go unnoticed in the movie J completely b’cos of the hilarious scene and the situation they are in. As Stu says it sometime soon after this, “We are so f****d!” A nice song this one..very much pleasing, but yea not for all situations J

“In The Air Tonight – Phil Collins” – Well fans of Phil Collins don’t need a review to know how his songs go, truly amazing! But as to why it is there in the movie..a different thing altogether ! Now am I reviewing the movie or the OSTs...do listen to the song, the magical voice of Phil Collins will swing you away! The volley of beats and the music that follow after the lyrics solo gives you the goosebumps..be sure to turn your speakers to full volume. You might even consider making it your intro song J !!

“Stu’s Song – Ed Helms” - J Listen...awesome !!

“Rhythm and Booze - Treat Her Right” – Funky; It is like Blues, a kind of pub music that eases off some steam. The saxophone gives it a unique touch. So much to booze, give it a shot ;)!

“Iko Iko – The Belle Stars” – Its a carnival song, or at least, that is the vibe I get. I’ve not heard one quite like this in sometime, I’m sure. Recommended hearing as part of the movie, outside of which it might stick out as little odd, or better put, out of context!!

“Joker and The Thief – Wolfmother” – Rocking ! Adrenaline pumping . . . Not surprisingly this song was part of the OSTs of the Need For Speed Carbon! First one I’ve heard from the band. There s a nice guitar strumming that is characteristic of the song ! Singing is very high pitched, there is a definitive crowd pulling energy in it. All rock fans and drivers alike, this one s a must in your collection!!

“Three Best Friends - Zach Galifianakis” - J, just part of the OST !

“Ride The Sky II – Revolution Mother” – This is a headbanger... head throbbing stuff !! Again a band new to me... do get this one if you are a hardcore rock/metal fan ! It won’t let you down.

“Candy Shop - Dan Finnerty & The Dan Band” – Originally a song by 50 Cents Ft. Olivia, this one tops the OSTs. . . the way the song is sung is just too amazing. The lyrics may come off as either totally hilariously insane, given the scene it compliments or as a turn off to people who might get offended given its explicit nature J The flow of the lyrics is handled absolutely fabulously. The two other artists, off the top of my mind, who have blown me away with a similar feat are Jason Mraz and Billy Joel, though completely from a different genre, I know !

“Right Round - Flo Rida Feat. Kesha” – As the credits come down; the song best suits the theme and the wild time the 4 of the guys had at Vegas which they couldn’t remember at all J A club/ party song which is truly a great song. One song you will remember for a long time even if you hear it just once. It will make you search down the song and get it at any cost J, I did !!

Whew . . it took the wind out of me . . . needed a break and after writing this one now, I do really need a break :)

Peace

$ur

In Bruges - Background Scores

Carter Burwell In Bruges Soundtrack 0:00 The Last Judgement 1:52 View From The Tower 2:55 My Suicide Your Homicide 4:34 Save The Next Boy 5:53 Ray At The Mirror 7:12 Walking Bruges7:48 The Magic...

The way the movie is shot, the Belgium landscaping and the background scores make the experience complete. The compositions are classy. This movie is a must try for music lovers and movie critics alike !

Try this movie when you need to catch a break in your fast paced life; it definitely will cure your nerves ;) !!

Peace

$ur