Endless Wait

Didn't go for workout even today. The wait is excruciating, cant seem to concentrate on anything. Staring out of my window, I have seen the Bainbride ferry go by 10 times already this evening. Next couple of weeks will continue to be very difficult, at least I will learn the complete evening schedule by then.
Trying to keep busy in any way possible. Read about Greenblatt's Magic Formula for Investment in his new book. Its a good idea, although there is nothing innovative here. Everyone knows: Buy High yield and with good ROI companies, but no one knows what the future yield or ROI will be. Backfitting strategies into past performance makes any strategy look good. But how do you stretegize when you don't have numbers? Greenblatt gives you the numbers but there are a lot of retailers at the top of his ranking, who can go bust overnight. How do you know then that by going for heigher yield you are not buying more risk ? You still have to do your research says the fine print. For most people like me the transaction cost itself will eat away a big percentage of gains. Thank you Sir! I will stick with my own little index fund strategy. On the other hand may be I should give it a try, at the very least it will keep my mind occupied. Naah! its too costly an indulgence just to distract myself, counting ferries go back and forth is much cheaper. :)
Damn the test match is also not going anywhere. When push comes to shove Team India is the first to chicken out. Bunch of bozos.

Fart Flair

Next time I go under the knife, I will be very very careful.

Children of heaven

OMG! I love children’s films, but this one is special. Remember the warmth that fills your heart when you see a couple exchanging an unexpected kiss or a stunning valley that opens right in front just after you take one last turn to reach the mountain’s summit – this movie is 1.5 hrs of just that feeling. The innocence, love and untiring efforts of the young brother and sister to make best of the situation will melt the coldest of hearts. How can a country which produces films like this ever mean harm to anyone? If were Bush, I would give you your nuclear toys Iran! (Ugh ..its probably the bottle of wine I had with the movie that’s I saying this.)
No seriously, this is wonderful movie. The young girl’s lost shoes sets up the plot and create a situation where the brother and sister have to secretly share a pair of shoes because they know that their parents can’t afford another one. The struggle of main character ‘Ali’, the brother in this film, reminds me of ‘Chaipu’ of ‘Salaam Bombay’ because they both are desperately fighting odds to achieve something. For Chaipu, it’s the train ticket to go back to his mother in village while for Ali it’s the pair of shoes he wants for his sister. At the end both don’t get what they wanted, but while ‘Salaam Bombay’ breaks your heart, ‘Children of heaven’ fills you with hope and a promise for the future.
Majid Majidi, the director, did end the movie ‘Jo Jeeta Wahi Sikandar’ way, but herein lays the beauty of the screenplay. Even after winning, Ali did loose and yet in a lot of ways he did win. Go see the movie to know what I mean. :-)

Blue

Krzysztof Kieslowski is regarded as one of the leading film makers of our time and after watching Blue, the first part of his trilogy ‘Trois couleurs’ (Three Colors), I understand why. The theme of the movie is Liberty - from personal sorrows and painful past - which is poignantly depicted in the life of Julie as she struggles to recover from the death of her husband and young daughter in a car accident. After her failed attempt to commit suicide, Julie starts afresh in a new environment leading an anonymous life. But past (her husband was a famous composer) keeps knocking on her door again and again. The unfinished compositions and the pregnant mistress of her husband pull her back into a life she desperately was running away from. In this process she discovers affection and a new cause which eventually gives her freedom to chart a different course from her past.

Juliette Binoche powerfully brings out the raw emotions of Julie, often relying on nothing more than deep melancholy eyes and unnerving silence. Kieslowski is a master of using music instead of dialogs (there are very few of them) in moving the story forwards. Some of the scenes, especially the one in which Julie hears her husband’s music while swimming, are absolutely hair raising. The delicate screenplay and soul touching photography truly make this movie stand apart. One of the better once I have seen in a long time.