A little down time

This post is largely due to the folks at Microsoft. Thanks to the ever present vulnerabilities in Windows, you are always one hack away from some quality down time.

My PC was among the many that became a zombie yesterday. All I could do was shut down and wait patiently for the vaccine. It was then that I realized by sheer dependence on my PC. I felt helpless and very restless. For a while I tried doing this and that. Finally, I settled into something I have always loved doing. I grabbed a piece of paper and started sketching.

This sketch is inspired by a photograph. A photograph of tall coconut trees found in Kerala. The theme of the photograph is height. I am not sure if I did justice to the theme.

As I was sketching, I started thinking back to the funny days of college. As a fresher (freshman) it was an art, to evade and survive the first few months. We always had to maintain a low profile and never get into any trouble with the seniors. They could make life very miserable.

The key to survival was simple. Never be boring and never be interesting. In other words, don't attract attention for the right or the wrong reasons.

I could never do that. Everytime a senior asked me about my hobbies , I would say hiking and landscape sketching/water coloring. The response was almost always predictable ..."WHAT ?. What the hell is landscape water coloring ?". The questions would just keep coming after that. I somehow managed to survive all the questioning.

Looking back, the first (freshman) year was the most fun.

Anyway, getting back to the topic of sketching, here is a great quote by Fran Lebowitz, "Very few people possess true artistic ability. It is therefore both unseemly and unproductive to irritate the situation by making an effort. If you have a burning, restless urge to write or paint, simply eat something sweet and the feeling will pass"

I think I need to stay off the sweets.