Kabaddi Kabaddi

Young and carefree

“Nowhere can man find a quieter or more untroubled retreat than in his own soul.”
Says the great Marcus Aurelius.

We are never as connected with our own soul as when we are young. The joys of those carefree times...

When I was in primary we lived at Tarkhad, a small village of about 50 houses. The road to my school passed through fields and small lanes in the interior of Vasai. During the monsoons I used to float a stick in the streams / gutters running next to the lanes. It was such great fun to follow the floating stick for as long as I could.

Serious Observations of a Funny World

Urban Abstract

Perpendiculars. Rigidity. Nature never does this. Nature is the best teacher, but we are not ready to learn yet.

Samsung S21 Ultra; PP in Snapseed.

Serious Observations of a Funny World

The sun and the flag

The sun moves northwards inexorably...

Being stuck mostly indoors for the whole of the past year we have been forced to look closely at what we can see from our vantage. The world around is infinitely interesting if we choose to peer and ponder.

The 200-600 extends the reach to things usually too minute to notice. Like this flag against the setting sun...



Serious Observations of a Funny World

The Human Condition

The human population has exploded. The cities swell and compress periodically to accomodate the numbers. Expanding out the boundaries and compressing internal structures. There is the great force of survival at work. But like a virus or a parasite, we destroy what we encroach and live off. Parasite or a virus.

We have to evolve into a symbiotic species. Live with the life here. Else the earth will cure herself of this infection.

Sunday Flower

“Science is what you know, philosophy is what you don't know.”
– Bertrand Russell

Searching

As darkness falls
the colourful fairy calls
the irresistable pull of expected places
fancy dresses and strange faces

the company of a chosen few, the search for a new new
there is passing fun to be had
high in the swirling drifting clouds of angst,
and the myrid empty bottles of whiskey mad

dancing wild to the inner beat
the warriors of the night fight on
unbroken dreams from the sleepless street
scattered on the shores of a new dawn

— q
Serious Observations of a Funny World

Woven

While life is yours, live joyously;
None can escape Death's searching eye:
When once this frame of ours they burn,
How shall it e'er again return?

~ Mādhava Vidyāraṇya

musing over the Charavaka philosophy.

Hanging box

Got out the Minolta 50/1.4 out after a long while.

The Minolta 50/1.4 has been one of my favourite lenses. It's quite a story how I got hold of it. A couple of years earlier I had purchased the Minolta Dynax 5 for ₹19000/- (all my savings) odd from JJ Mehta & Sons. The 28-80 F3.5/6.3 lens on it was pretty decent but a faster lens with creamy bokeh was the dream. I had started hanging out on the online photography forums. One such was the Minolta forum.

There was a minor panic going on at that time as Minolta would probably shut shot and would never go digital. So a lot of the old photographers were jumping ship to Canon/Nikon. So there was a lot of old equipment for sale for reasonable prices. A photographer from Jackson, Minnesota USA had this 50/1.4 for sale for $100 + $10 US shipping. I did't have a credit card at that time so I think I used Rashmi's card to make the online payment via paypal and then reimbursed her. I had the lens shipped to Anthony in Texas. One of his friends traveled to India after about 6 months and got the lens to me.

But the wait was worth it: I instantly fell in love with this fantastic lens. The Naka photos, the Dombivili Fast photos were all shot with this lens on the film camera.

With the Sony A100 replacing my film camera this full frame lens was a little less used as it was about ~75mm on the corpped sensor, which I did not prefer.

It still sits on my shelf waiting for a full frame sensor...

Update 18-Nov-2020: I finally acquired a FF. A Sony A7R3 in Nov of last year. I also acquired a used LA-EA3 A-mount to EF-mount adapter. The Minolta 50 lives on.

Serious Observations of a Funny World

Of two cups

It is so sad that Microsoft killed the Lumia series of phones. I love my 1020 – the camera on it has a feel to it unlike any other. This one is edited with an app called 'black'.

Cockeyed Metal Pig

Peeping through the wall.

Serious Observations of a Funny World

Seller of food

Supports life, in a way.


Life in Mulund was strange — I was back in my own city but at a part I never had visited. But Mumbai everywhere is Mumbai. The soul is the same. The feel is the same. I had taken up in a old and inexpensive area. My colony was full of 40 year or older 2 storied buildings. The wife was expecting and shift to her mum's at Kalyan a few months after we shifted.

The area was full of old people. People whos children had flown the coop. So there were several small stalls which sold home cooked food at very cheap rates. This dude was one such. He used to bring chicken a few times a week. Good home cooked food.

Serious Observations of a Funny World

Complex abodes

Switch

Switch, originally uploaded by quasi's mobile.

Serious Observations of a Funny World

Watching

Watching, originally uploaded by quasi's mobile.

Serious Observations of a Funny World

The Wait

The Wait, originally uploaded by quasi's mobile.

Hospitals are pensive places.

Serious Observations of a Funny World

Kalyan station in the early morning.

Kalyan station in the early morning., originally uploaded by quasi's mobile.

Serious Observations of a Funny World

Atheist Angel

He is a follower of Richard Dawkins and strongly believes in rationality. He is also a soft kind soul. This was sort of inspirational - using my niece's fairy wings on his head - to explore the relationship between atheism and theism.

Serious Observations of a Funny World

No Parking

Parking, originally uploaded by quasi's mobile.

Serious Observations of a Funny World

Auto

Auto, originally uploaded by quasi's mobile.

From Kalyan

Serious Observations of a Funny World