Where I live there are very few vending  machines. Infact I can’t remember having seen one other than coffee, tea & some soft drinks (that last one was in Bangalore). Coffee machines are a plenty in some commercial buildings and offices. But other than those it’s almost non-existent in my neck of the woods and in India in general. I know that it’s probably there in cities like Bombay, Chennai, Delhi i.e the metros but not in the rest of the country. Therefore my personal usage is very, very limited.

But in whatever I see on tv/movies I like the idea a lot. From newspapers, soups, chocolate bars, sandwiches, soft drinks etc – the vending machines serve a very good purpose. I’d like having these at hospitals, movie theatres, train stations and the airport. For people in a hurry, in transit or waiting in one place for a long time, they are a heaven sent. How about in shopping malls and other public places? I’d like even stuffed toys, furry animals to also be in vending machines. How about bottled water and baby food, milk and other stuff for parents with kids? That would be awesome wouldn’t it?

It’s so funny how something as trivial as a vending machine that the West takes for granted would be a big boon for us over here in a developing nation. It would be seen as a luxury over here at the moment but it would make things very easy and convenient for a lot of us in these times.

Almost everyone I know loves going to the beach. The ones that don’t like the beach have never been to one. There is something very special about going to the beach. Especially a quite once in the evenings and watching the sun setting down on the horizon. Standing on the land, watching our sun going down (not really but it feels that way for us) and disappearing beyond the water – it’s calming, soothing, relaxing and amazingly cool. Ofcourse I do not like crowded beaches and the ones that I love going to are times when there aren’t that many people. And the ones in Kerala, with the exception of one part of Kovalam, are usually devoid of bikinis and speedos and beach volleyball playing jocks and certainly no poseurs. I have been to the beaches in Kovalam, Trivandrum, Fort Kochi, Cherrai, Calicut & Kuwait.

There is something inherently basic about us and the oceans & seas. We are drawn to it time and again. That’s because we came from the oceans. Life began under water and it’s natural for us to be drawn to it from time to time. We feel at peace watching the waves go up and down, crashing down on the shore and as we feel the breeze in our faces and the water at our feet, our troubles seem so insignificant; inconsequential trivial drivel that seems to fade in the distance. We are one with nature, one with the world and that is more religion that anything that was forged from the demented minds of pathetic men can ever give us. We are a part of the ocean and the ocean is a part of us. As I stand next to the waves lashing at the shore, I feel connected to nature and the ocean.

I haven’t been to a beach in a while; last time was a kinda bachelor party celebration at Cherai Beach with about 10 guys from the office. We went there at around 7pm and it was just us and no one else at the beach. W had whiskey & soda and some excellent grilled chicken. Great evening!