A day without checking my e-mails!

It was a day to behold!!! 27 Dec 2006. I didn’t check my email at all that day owing to ‘disruption of a disruptive technology’ as one of my friends put it, that is disruption of Internet service in Singapore and some parts of East Asia thanks to an earthquake measuring 6.7 on Richter Scale which erupted at…. And probably shook up a couple of tectonic plates below and unwired a couple of cables lying deep in the sea! Phew!

The network effects that followed was really interesting! The second major disruption was that my roomie – bhattax – who is a cricket fanatic, was unable to check the cricket match scores (India Vs South Africa at Durban) Since the past two days, though he spared no thoughts on disrupting the bandwidth at the hostel by enjoying live online streaming of the matches, thanks to sopcast. The cricket fever is completely hot with the matches and the Ashes stealing the room TRPs !!! Finally a ‘disruptive character’ in the adjacent room, whom we fondly call – JLo – managed to do some jugaad and made atleast the scores available! That was some relief…

The third disruption was owing to Mr Oldie in the room [sorry daaa ;)] – our very own raja - who desperately wanted to chat with God-knows-who and was getting restless by the minute. I was asked close to 117 times whether the ‘net was working, and I just had one answer !!! ‘No daaa…’ [I really don’t know the origin of the word daa, but its there, and has become so pervasive that every person – male or female – is turning out to be daa for me :)]. I being the youngest one in the room (chooo chweettt !!!) was pestered and bullied so much by the oldies to go and check this up with one of our IT assistants – Mr Nagraj – [ the first time I heard this name, it reminded of the Super Commando Dhruv too, and when I was going to meet this guy, I imagined this guy with a stylish Nagraj style hair in a green outfit, with snakes coming outta his fingers. Beware of the ‘zeharili fufkaar’ ] however this guy turned out to be quite human like ;) [For those who are still wondering who the hell is the snake man Nagraj, click here, and probably this might remind you of the old times,...those 50paise normal comics and 1 Rupee digest version of Raj Comics that we used to get on rent!!!] But I didn’t budge. bhai aise kaise koi bhi bully kar lega na ???

Unfortunately, come what may, the 'net just wont work.

However, fortunately we got access to some of the sites which were working – IBN Live, Rediff, etc. which allowed us leeway to connect to the outside world, and know what’s happening beyond this island. Feeling relieved on getting connected at last…though just a little bit, it was a huge relief for all. Never did we imagine a day like this in our lives, and that too when we are in Singapore – one of the most advanced countries! But the fact is nothing works if Momma Nature ain’t happy!

With the next day gaping wide open with all the airlines, music and newspaper industry with all the olives, apples and murdochs hovering above us, just wishing that we are wired soon!!!

Ciao…