Fogged Out

It was cold and breezy this morning, reminding me of Delhi. I am glad Indore is milder, because the days are pretty warm and sunny-at least thus far. Delhi winters got me down usually, having grown up in the sunny southern state of Andhra Pradesh.

Contemplation about life and years well-spent (living it) is the norm around this time of the year, so I thought I would sit and meditate for a while. But my dilemma was, that in meditation you are generally asked to think of nothing. So, how can one think of something while concentrating on nothing?

Anyway, I am now attempting to do a bit of both-something and nothing. The thing is, I like doing both. And therefore, will idly think about work and while working, ideate about idling. I have got it down to a fine art. Consultancy is on offer for those interested. Fees are negotiable. 

Of Flights and Other Diversions

This one if you have not guessed it already, is about diversionary tactics as applied to flights. I was sitting in an Indigo flight with some colleagues, headed from Nagpur to Delhi. We got a wee bit apprehensive when the pilot announced at take-off that there was dense fog in Delhi. After hovering around about 50 minutes above the dense fog, good sense prevailed. You don't burn fuel if you park yourself somewhere. Fortunately, we did not indulge in the car version of fuel-saving, switching the ignition off. We just landed in Jaipur, with a grand view of the unfogged landscape there.

Fortunately, some colleagues had bought Orange barfi at Nagpur, so we had something to chew on while we awaited communication from our masters at the ATC. The mood was one of a picnic, barring a few people who were either missing connecting flights or were being cursed by bosses. Eventually, the air was cleared over Delhi, but not before the lovely air hostesses had been harassed by hungry passengers into selling their entire stock of edibles (loosely used here) and then parted with limited amounts of complimentary snacks (why limited, no idea). Anyway, they handled the situation quite well.

The saga taught us that just like trains, if you are headed into foggy places, plan for a wasted day in and around the fog times. Delhi retains the title of Fog Capital of India.

A line from an old movie came to mind...Bambai se gai Dilli, Dilli se gayi Patna , phir bhi na mila sajna..

Fogged Out

Thus speaks the wiki on Fog-

Fog is a collection of liquid water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air at or near the Earth's surface. While fog is a type of stratus cloud, the term "fog" is typically distinguished from the more generic term "cloud" in that fog is low-lying, and the moisture in the fog is often generated locally (such as from a nearby body of water, like a lake or the ocean, or from nearby moist ground or marshes). Fog is distinguished from mist only by its density, as expressed in the resulting decrease in visibility: Fog reduces visibility to less than 1 km (5/8 statute mile), whereas mist reduces visibility to no less than 1 km . For aviation purposes in the UK, a visibility of less than 5 km but greater than 999 m is considered to be mist if the relative humidity is 70% or greater.

The fictional character in Jules Vernes' book 'Around the World in Eighty Days' was called Phileas Fogg, I don't have the foggiest idea of why anyone would want to have a name like Fogg, but then, I have encountered  (sur) names like Cabinetmaker in my life too. 

Anyway, the point of this post is to mention that I had a fog delay- not, as is the fashion, in the air, or on the airport, but just driving to work-on the road. That I am fogged out as a result goes without saying. But what is life without a bit of fog-or other kinds of excitement? 

Obama, India, Fog and Storms

Quite a diverse set of topics to deal with. If Obama makes it to the White House again, he would be the longest Black president to live in the White House. How's that for a new take on the elections? I think he is a smart guy being ed astray by the 'establishment' which is into routine things like finding the next country to bomb and so on. No novelty, or out-of-the-box thinking.

India has elections going in the state of Himachal Pradesh, and I have no clue about the issues there. FDI in retail appeared shortly in TV debates, but disappeared just as quickly. Prices of apples, maybe?

Delhi had a few fogged-out days, which was the result of some unusual weather, and it was not a reflection of our fogged-out brains. The Chennai storm Nilam had something to do with it, plus other things.

Now, if only we had something more interesting on the anvil- actually, there is. The old classic Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro is re-releasing. Should do a world of good in a humourless world. Go see it at a theatre near you. I somehow don't feel enthused by the new Bond.