Blame Da Vinci: The Book That Made Me a Reader

In the spring of 1999, I found myself in an interview for a master's program. The person across from me asked about my favorite books. My honest, perhaps naive, answer was, "I do not read books. I don't think it is the best use of my time." I told him that the wisdom I gained from my family was far more valuable. He just smirked and jotted it down in his notebook. That man would become my dean for the next three years.

Looking back, I still can’t believe I got in. The truth was, reading wasn't a part of my life. My sister could devour a 400-page novel in a weekend, but I couldn't get through 40 pages of anything. The only thing I was interested in was the sports section of the newspaper—specifically, the cricket scores.

I made multiple attempts to read a novel, but it never stuck. In high school, a classmate named Maharajan would lend me books and fold the pages he thought would interest me. My friends and I would read those sections, but never the whole book.

Years later, work pressure took over, and I didn't have the time or interest to pick up a book. Then came the Da Vinci Code craze in 2003. Everyone in my office was talking about it, and I wanted to know what the fuss was about. The moment I started reading, I finally understood my sister’s passion. I couldn’t put the book down. I was so engrossed I wished the clock would stop so I could keep reading.

That experience was a turning point. I slowly started feeding my newfound habit with more books. A few years ago, with my kids becoming teenagers, I was recommended How to Hug a Porcupine. It was the first time a non-fiction book made me realize that I could not only read but also implement the lessons I learned.

This summer, I went back to a pen-and-paper approach for managing my tasks. I learned about bullet journaling and created a habit tracker to track my reading. My goal was to read for at least 10 minutes a day to finish 12 books a year. I was gamifying the process, but I realized I was focusing on the clock, not the content.

The internet’s algorithms, in their uncanny way, led me to a new discovery: the commonplace journal. This method of reflecting on what you read and recording your thoughts became my "second brain." Now, as I read, I reflect on what I’ve learned and how I plan to apply it. I am able to retain more and articulate my thoughts on the book better.

From now on, my goal is to use the habit tracker to keep me on pace and the commonplace journal to ensure I am actually learning and growing. My journey from a non-reader to a lover of books has been a long one, but it’s a journey I am grateful for.

As Oscar Wilde wisely said, “It is what you read when you don't have to that determines what you will be when you can't help it.”

Children of the Purple

...Please make a legal u turn ahead

Please make a u turn now

Please take the next right turn

Right turn ahead...

It goes on and on...the soft voice in the navigation system accepting us for what we are and continuously adjusting herself to accommodate our incessant failures to follow directions...

I always wondered what if that lady giving us instructions had a voice of her own. Will she continue to be that nice to us? (I understand that some of you might have a male voice giving you guidance. For the purposes of this rant, I am keeping it as a female voice. There is no other reason behind it)

I used to joke with friends about possible App ideas where we can make Snoop Dogg give the guidance or make Late Amrish Puri (in his Mogambo voice) do the guidance. Will we pay more attention then?

Though we shared a hearty laugh of the impact various emotions those characters can bring to guidance, I always wondered is it a good thing to rely so much on guidance. Is it making us dumb and over reliant on technology? Is it making us not pay needed attention knowing that we will get the route recalculated automatically?

I remember a road trip I took in 2008. It was using paper maps. That was the last time I ever did that. Navigation systems were becoming popular then and were costing as much as an iPhone, as it costs now.

Since 2009, I have been using navigation systems or such apps for my travels. No doubt it is very comforting to know that it will help me get home from wherever I am. But is it making me rely on it too much.

Given my new found interest in technology and its influence in our life, I thought it would be better to get off the fence on this purple line that guides us home.

What am I missing by not using paper maps? Probably a whole lot of headache when there is argument over which turn to take. Probably missing out on hours poring over maps to figure out where we exactly are.

Do I miss it? No.

As of the question of becoming over reliant on rerouting and not follow instructions properly, I would say it’s a personal choice. I have seen friends who are on the edge of their seat when they are driving through uncharted routes. I have also seen folks who do not bother where they are and they just let the voice guide them patiently.

To conclude, I would happily let technology take over this one task for me. Of course the key is still to know how to read maps. If technology has taught us one thing, it is this - Always have backup of everything!!

P.S: The title was inspired by a mention in one of the Podcasts of Note to Self. I heard the mention of Purple and decided to write a note of my thoughts on the same.

Kids and Digital Age

Since the advent of iPhones and iPads I have been having this nagging in the back of my mind, if this is the right thing for my kids. I have not held them back from technology, unlike a few of my friends who still believe that the best thing for kids is to keep them away from these gadgets and ensure they play outside.

One of my earlier posts was about this very topic. I don't want us to end up being the lost generation that knew how to have some outdoor adventure. But that did not convince me enough to keep my kids away from tech gadgets.  I was influenced by the most popular position that the kids in future will lack social skills because they are constantly texting and tweeting etc.

Before I move further, I wanted to step back and set it up for you. If you have ready my earlier posts, you have known that I do spend a considerable amount of time driving to work. I usually listen to podcasts while I drive and my playlist include "Radiolab" and "99% Invisible".

Very recently "Radiolab" introduced me to another podcast - "Note to Self". This podcast tries to address the question of how technology affect our lives and what we could do to be effective. More specifically, Manoush Zomorodi and her team have done a 3 part series on kids and technology.

I heard the series (binged them - I am learning to keep up with these new age terms) and found it to be very interesting. But did it give me decisive answer of whether technology is a good thing or a bad thing? The answer is no. I am still undecided on what I want to do about this with my kids.

Probably, I am looking for the wrong answer. The whole topic of tech for kids is not like a decision on an ethical or a moral topic where there is always an easy answer - the right thing to do.

The tech for kids is more like a decision on food that kids eat or for that matter, what we eat. Most of us know that chips are not healthy food. But does that stop us? I know for sure it doesn't stop me. Similarly, tech gadgets are difficult to say no to.

The trick then should lie in moderation. So how do we ensure that kids know moderation?

How did we ensure that kids eat their favorite pastry in moderation? By constantly reminding them that it has to be moderated. The only downside to that argument is this. When it comes to food, most kids' body will tell them when they are full with something. My little one loves sweets. However, he caps his intake by himself, of course after taking a couple more than what his siblings take. But he stops by himself. I think it’s because his body telling him to stop.

Does similar thing happen in technology? No. There is no cap imposed by the mind. He wants to get more and more of it. The only thing that seems to stop it is when there is an equally interesting alternative or a better alternative presented for him. Like a trip out to a playground or a trip to a museum or a zoo. All these alternatives make him forget his iPad.

So, who is to be blamed? It's me.

My parents did not have this challenge of presenting interesting alternatives to me. But I/we do. Kids will be kids no matter what the calendar year is. It is up to the parents, how they make life interesting for their kids.

Will I ever make my kid gets disconnected from all modern tech? NO. I want them to be competitive in this new digital age. So I am not going to deprive them of trying their hand on new age tech. But at the same time, I will try and make sure that is not the only option they get to spend their free time with.

This post is not meant to preach anyone. This is more like a reminder to self.  To draw from my favorite podcast of the month, this post is more like a "Note to Self".

Info about the podcasts referred in this post: Radiolab (www.radiolab.org) and Note to Self (www.wnyc.org/shows/notetoself) are podcasts produced by WNYC. 99% Invisible (www.99percentinvisible.org) is an independent production funded by listeners. Check them out.

Place that intrigued me!

I wish to take you on a journey. I want you to visit a place that interested me in a very different way. No, I am not referring to any wonders of the world. I am referring to normal place that we visit in our normal walk of life everyday place that really held my interest.

Some ground rules before we begin the tour. Do not try to jump ahead in the post. Please remain patient and follow the flow of thoughts. Anytime during this tour, if you wish to abort the tour, place feel free to do so. Not every location interests everyone. Finally, there is no harm in sharing similar places of your interest in the comments.

Now that the protocols are out of our way, let’s begin the tour to the first location.

I see numerous faces here. Some are innocent faces of children keen on playing with whatever they have brought along. Some faces are desperate to see what is behind the door. Some faces seem distant from what is happening around them. Some faces are immersed in electronic gadgets that they have pulled out reluctantly to kill time. Some faces are displaying strains of anxiousness and some faces are busy working on the premium drink bought here.

No matter whatever the expression in their face, all of them are here for a common purpose. They are all waiting for the similar event. Some depart from here sooner and some stay a little longer. But they all wait diligently in their own way.

I have been privileged to visit this place in my life quiet often. Each time, instead of being part of this pack of faces, I spent time analyzing the expressions these faces portray.

If you have not guessed it by now, I am talking about the airport arrival lounge.

I cannot identify another place that has the uniqueness of an airport arrival area. Assortment of human emotions at display in an arrival lounge is mystifying.  The anxiety in the face of those awaiting their parents, who happen to be traveling alone for the first time, transforms into a joyous relief. The restless grandkids lose their coordinates upon seeing the grandparents and start darting all over the place. The concerned parents, who are waiting to receive their kids gone on a trip, display a sigh of relief when their wards appear from behind the arrival doors.

Geographically parted lovers, display wide array of emotions. Some give big hugs and kisses; some tend to just hold hands; some just stand and stare at each other. Few others just grab the bag and start moving out of the airport, probably for some other planned initiative.

One set of people I could never make any sense of are those who stand with the placard. They seem so distant from what is happening around them. If only they could identify the explosion of emotion that is happening around them.

At times, we do find ourselves in similar situations. We do things out of necessity. If only we could look around and see the faces (events) that are around us, we would never feel like the person holding a placard anywhere anymore.

(If you have similar place in your mind, please do share it with others in the comments)

The Green Parrot

In 1916, Poet Robert Frost published in his collection Mountain Interval, a poem named "The Road Not Taken". It ends with the following note

"...Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference."

Currently, I am spending a good amount of time commuting between two cities. Like most of us, I rely on my iPod to keep the journey less boring. As most of you would have realized, shuffle feature is a good feature to surprise you with the next unexpected song from your playlist. But, it’s still your playlist that is being shuffled. I tried refreshing my playlist multiple times to make it sound new. But that option also turned sour after a while. I tried listening to sports radio that kept it interesting for a while then it also gave way. Tried listening to Hindi and Tamil online Radio, but the mobile network interruptions made it worse than listening to the same beat up songs from my playlist.

Of late, my mind has been making these short road trips escaping these same old songs in my car audio. My mind has been visiting those places in the past where I had to make a choice. Sometimes choose one over many options that were presented. More often than not, the road trip ended with sour feeling that I could have chosen another option and probably I might have done many things better in the days and years that followed. This aftertaste did not make these road trips a pleasant one.

One fine morning in my commute, my mind tricked me into believing that it is going on a different trip. But the places and scenes were similar to what I saw before. I was jogging through the memory looking at faces that brought a smile, places that brought a hearty laugh, situations that weighed heavy, conflicts that never got resolved, actions epitomized  stupidity, a prank ticked off a friend et al. But that’s when my mind took me to this point in my past where it shone the lights on the one thing that set in motion the rest of the things in my life. To present that one thing in a better fashion, I need to set the stage first. So a little backdrop here:

Till my 3rd Grade, I was in schools that did not have English as the medium of teaching. For Grade 4, I moved to a different school in a different city, primarily because of my dad's job related relocation. This new school had a system of co-educating boys and girls only till Grade 5. Beyond Grade 5 it was an "all girls" school. So I had to move out of this school and find a new one for Grade 6.

All these changes were not made or opted by me. They were forced on me due to factors that were beyond my control. 

So a decision was made to move me to a new school that was affiliated to my dad's employer. I went along with it as I had no choice. In this new school, I was subject to an entrance test. This whole entrance test concept was new to me and I have not faced anything like that before. The test was meant to evaluate my academic aptitude and command over the medium of instruction in this new school, English. I was asked to write a one page essay in English on a topic of my choice. It is needless to say that I had to do well in this test to get selected in this school.

I wrote an essay titled "The Green Parrot". I wrote about a Parrot I saw in a zoo during that summer holidays. I wrote about how green it was and what color the beak was and all the naive things one can write about a Parrot. But that essay did make the cut and got me the admission in that school. 

That place is where I found those individuals with whom I share a special bond with, to this date. That’s the place where I found teachers who helped me identify where my interest was. That's the place where I had the room to grow to the person I turned out to be. All the important individual in my life are so because of the decision I made to write "The Green Parrot". I don't know what would have happened had I written say "The Black Panther”. 

Whether it was by design or by default, I did make those choices. My parents did influence some of those decisions (due to the cultural aspect). But it was mostly up to me as to what I made out of those choices. My parents might have picked the school for me, but they did not pick who I sit next to. They did not pick who I lunch with. They did not pick whom I team up with in sports. I happened to do all that because of a certain Green Parrot I decided to write in a certain entrance test.

Green Parrot exercise is in a way contrary to the Road Not Taken. Idea is to not brood over what could have happened. But to appreciate what did happen and what was that one thing that made it happen so. 

I urge you to go find your Green Parrot... it will be an interesting journey as you would stumble upon some of the interesting things from your past, which you did not really cherish or reflect thus far.

Have a wonderful trip!

Last Generation

When I was a kid, I always wanted to play video games. My parents did get me a gaming console late in my childhood (towards the end of my schooling). I was so excited to get it, I was at it on every given opportunity. Within a week it got burnt. Yes, literally it was up in smokes. (My mom put it, I killed the golden goose.)


What that meant was I continued to spend time outdoors. I have played every childhood games that were known to exist then. I climbed trees to pluck fruits, I chased butterflies, and I  played in mud while plowing friend’s paddy fields. I played cricket and soccer on hot summer afternoons. I did get hurt many times and fall sick many times. My parents never deterred me from going outdoors. Nor did I hesitate to get right back to the fun. I remember once I played foot-volleyball with sprained ankle. Sometimes what I attempted was close to being stupid. But at that age, it was all fun and play.


When I see the kids now, I do not see the desire in them to have fun outdoors. They are happy to be playing with the new age gadgets and gizmos, indoors. Earlier, the indoor games used to be ones that exercise the brains or provide a family fun time but that has been replaced with games that promote mindless shooting and scrambling. I did not find it odd. Probably my long lost love for gaming consoles blinded me.


One day, when my kid started walking, I held his hand and helped him walk towards a coffee shop from the car. On the way, he got fascinated by a dry leaf on the pavement, flying around in the fall breeze. He promptly wanted to chase it.

When I was a kid, I did not have the wide choice in programming in TV like we have with Cable TV today. It was restricted only to the programming of the Government run television channel. Lack of choices was a minus, but the time it provided for non-TV things in life was a big plus, which prompted us all to be a better social animal than what we are now.

I do not have the right be preachy here. I have gleefully adopted these changes as a way of life. But when I look at the next generation, it makes me question whether I am doing the right thing or not. By locking myself in this technology driven “i”-life, I think I am setting a wrong precedence for the next generation. 

We are the generation that had/has the best seat in the house to see the launch of all iThings. I don't want us or my future generation to end up like the human passengers in Axiom Space ship shown in movie WALL-E. (If you have not seen this movie yet, plan to see it now)

As a little effort to keep the fun spirit alive in my kid, I have decided to shut TV off at least one day every weekend and spend that time outdoors. Not at a shopping mall gazing incessantly through windows. But spend time at a park playing with my kid, making him feel connected with this beautiful thing called The Earth. 

Choice is ours! We either become the Last Generation that knew what it meant to live life connected to this planet or become the Lost Generation.

Revolution 2.0

Since beginning of 2011, countries in Middle East have been facing public uprising. It started in Tunisia and spread across the countries in North African continent. The impact is felt across the South Eastern Europe too. I have been hearing mostly about the events happening in Egypt. It could be because of US media’s obsession with Egypt or because the uprising has been active (sans resolution) for over 4 weeks now.

Every revolt in the history has had a face to it, which in a way has defined the course of the revolt. The recent events in my opinion, are more a result of people coming together to express their opinions to their Government/Authority. This lack of a face to the revolt made it difficult for some opinionators to understand and explain it. There were a few who thought Mr. Mark Zuckerberg, the man behind Facebook, was the leader of this revolution.

Though people used social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter to organize, Twitter did not have a popular face behind it. Hence did not make the cut. Facebook has been in news for enough reasons and the recent movie about the website and the man behind it, did no harm to Mr. Mark Zuckerberg’s news value.

In an interview to CNN, Google executive in Egypt, Mr. Wael Ghonim labeled the revolution happening in Egypt as Revolution 2.0. The reason being the role technology has played in this revolution.

I am not here to argue who is right and who is wrong. Nor do I know whether uprising is just or not. I do not live there so I do not know what is good for the people in those countries. People who live there know what is best for them.

I do not know what will be the outcome of these revolts and I do not want to speculate. Neither do I know if Facebook was the idea of Mr. Mark Zuckerberg or was it stolen by him from Winkelvoss twins. I know for sure that these social networking sites are becoming an integral part of our everyday life.

I see these social networking sites as tools that shrink the geographical distance between people. This function can be used for whatever purpose the user deems fit. These networking sites have definitely had a positive impact in my life. I have got in touch with long lost friends, shared moments with friends who live miles away from me.

These social networking websites - neither are they the reason why this world is a better place nor are they the reasons why this world has deteriorated to chaos. Whatever happens in our life and in our world is a direct result of our actions.

Let’s make this a better place!