Must see: The Secret Life of Bees

Yesterday I was lucky enough to catch this movie, and boy was it a blast. I haven't seen such wonderful narration in a while, and all the actors in the movie shine in their roles. Queen Latifah's role seems a little over-wrought, but it's an easy thing to forgive, given the gorgeous way this movie unfolds. Dakota Fanning shines too. Not her best role, but she's pretty awesome as a troubled teenage girl. I'm not sure why Alicia Keys cannot tone down the make-up, but then, she's good too, so that's forgivable.

But the sum of parts surely does outshine. It deals with good and bad in people with equal vigour, and it can be quite touching in many places. It's been a long time since I've seen a movie that moved me to tears so often. I don't understand why this move has only 6.8 on IMDB, but it surely deserves at least a 7.5. Must watch.

Ah, one more thing...

I moved. To a quieter, nicer place. And guess what, it's directly opposite to a crematorium. What better way to get reminded everyday about the evanescence of life; apart from the slightly spooky feeling I get when going to bed. I guess I gotta get used to having departing souls saying hi to me. Probably I can pick up a few free words of wisdom :)

Thoughts on Money, Life

Aaron Swartz is a smart guy. Apart from being a pretty famous geek, he also writes quite well. He's written something recently which made me think. Well, these days I neither have the energy or time to write lengthy forceful philosophical arguments. Because, my world view has been changing a lot to. Something very unexpected and special happened to me, and it is forcing me to reconsider all my previous choices and philosophical stances.

For example, I was staunchly against giving money to beggars before. Whatever the condition, no money for beggars. That's it. Now, I'm not so sure anymore. While philosophically I still believe it's the correct stance, it doesn't change the fact that the old woman would be going a little hungrier because I refused to give alms. Of course, I still refuse to give money to kids and young women, but I'm definitely a little more considerate towards old people begging.

The point is, I'm changing. Things what I thought were set in stone are no longer so. You can say my belief system is shaking up. But for the better, I think. I'm a little less tightly wound, a little more considerate, and a little more forgiving towards people who are less than what they can be. Why? Because, I have seen how even imperfect people create absolute beauty in what they do. For example - one of my favorite artists, a life long drug addict, produces music that sometimes makes me want to cry. I am pretty sure my life is a little better because I got to listen to his music. So what gives me the right to sit in judgement on what others do with their life?

France - I used to have endless arguments with my french cousin about how her country is hopelessly socialist, doing it all wrong and is screwed up in so many ways. But I see that it is the only country which stood up to China with regards to Olympics. The Olympic torch was extinguished thrice in Paris and brought sharp focus to the Tibet problem. Compare that to our so called neo-capitalist country - like pussies, our govt. provided unprecedented security to the torch, which was pretty much invisible to the general public, and was only too keen to suppress pro-Tibet protests and toe the Chinese line. So a supposedly socialist country did a better job of upholding the ideal of liberty than a capitalist one, which is supposed to do that job better (at least in my book).

Of course, that only makes my guilt heavier - I did judge somebody very close once and hurt them very badly. And I'm still hopelessly sorry about it. My friend, if you are reading this, and if you still consider me that, I'm terribly sorry, I should not have done what I did. So what's the point I'm trying to make? Keep searching. What you thought is the truth, might not be. Be ready to question even your staunchest beliefs. That's all I can say.

So, now that my belief system is shaken so thoroughly, am I the sadder person? Surprisingly, not at all. I'm all the more happier, because I feel I'm a better person now. I found something new that brings new meaning to my life (no, it's not a girl, in case you're wondering). I'm taking a lot of things easier, and I hope I'm becoming an easier person to get along with. Time will tell :).

Reminds me of Life

Grow old with me :)

I have difficulty believing in this philosophy, and probably I will meet some woman someday that I will want to grow old with. But this is nice poem anyways:

Grow old along with me,
The best is yet to be,
The last of life for which the
first was made.

—Robert Browning, Rabbi Ben
Ezra

Women in my life!

As the cliched old saying goes, there is a woman behind every man's success. I don't know if I'm a success or not, but I keep getting surprised by how my times I was changed by some exceptional women. When I was studying in Hyderabad, I was surprised by the first-class treatment I got from my aunt. Of course, she's after all my dad's younger sister, but still. She seemed to get a special satisfaction from inviting me over to their house pretty much every weekend, and treated me as well as their son. I mean, I lived in other relatives houses, but I was never treated like I was part of their family, except for this aunt's place. I was always given the first-class treatment.

She would never realize how much she inspired me about treating people the way you would want to be treated by others. Oh, she helped me so many times when things were tight financially. I mean, she had no reason to do this. I had other aunts in the same place, but this aunt, despite her faults and fears, is a first-class human being. Thank you dear aunt, for inspiring me, and I hope I will get the chance to show my gratitude some day.

Next, my landlady. Another superb human being. I simply can't remember ever having an issue with her. In what must be the ultimate "good boy" stamp for me, she decided that I don't eat right, and invited me for breakfast today. I mean, all of you must've had a nice landlord, but she is actually waiting 6 months for me to move into an office space that I was going to occupy. Needless to say, she is foregoing substantial amount of money. She has absolutely no reason to. She even obsesses over the way I dress! I thought it would be hard to replace my aunt for a surrogate mom. Surprisingly, my landlady is giving her good competition.

Last, but not the least, my last serious girlfriend. She accurately predicted that I will know what I lost when she moves on. I remember giving a pretty cocky answer, but yeah, she's pretty much right. I never realized how much of a lucky bastard I was to have her, but you know, you make pretty stupid mistakes every once in a while. But anyways, she continues to set the standard in my taste, things I care for and probably the most important manner, my ambition. I still see a restaurant or any outfit with her sniffy "is this place worth having me" outlook. I still wonder how horrified she would have been if I eat in a lowly place. She set the standard so high, that I inevitably end up comparing my prospective girlfriends with her. You might call that silly, but that's how it is.

Well, I guess you might notice that I have omitted my mom. Well, for
that, one blog post wouldn't be enough. The sweetest thing ever. Okay,
she has her faults, but c'mon, I couldn't have asked for a better one. So the point is, all these women, have in some way or the other, made my life better in countless ways. This is just to say thank you. And I will never forget what you have done for me.