Honest scrape

“This award is bestowed upon a fellow blogger whose blog’s content or design is, in the giver’s opinion, brilliant.When accepting this auspicious award, you must write a post bragging about it, including the name of the misguided soul who thinks you deserve such acclaim, and link back to the said person so everyone knows she/he is real. Choose a minimum of seven (7) blogs that you find brilliant in content or design. Or improvise by including bloggers who have no idea who you are because you don’t have seven friends. Show the seven random victims’ names and links and leave a harassing comment informing them that they were prized with Honest Weblog. Well, there’s no prize, but they can keep the nifty icon. List at least ten (10) honest things about yourself. Then pass it on!”

So Mathew thinks the blog's content is brilliant and all (the design certainly hasn't been changed one bit from what blogger provided me). Thanks Mathew! I take a bow! Then an arrow! I aim, and shoot him with it. For he has put me in spot of bother. It is very hard for me to write about myself. I don't I have any very clear notion of what I'm like. But here's my list:

1) I think I have little fear of money today. Since I started earning, which was about 3 years ago when I started my PhD, I have made a deliberate effort to overcome fear of money. I have splurged in a number of ways to overcome all inhibition to spending money and to avoid the rut of the saving mind-set. This has liberated me considerably from over-valuing money. Now I see it completely as a means to desired ends. I find that this has been a source of much happiness and freedom to me.

2) That said, I also like to keep a minimalist lifestyle. Hence, most of my splurging has been on non-durable goods and services. I have not splurged on acquiring material possessions. To illustrate, I still wear in the US my T-shirts from my school days and shirts that my grand-dad used to wear decades ago. Even in the future, I do not see myself acquiring a big home or a big car or other such possessions off my own desire. I am not interested. In fact, I find them a burden.

3) I am atheist. I am actually an agnostic in that I can't disprove the existence of god. However, I am reluctant to say this because too many believers are ignorant of Russell's teapot, and keep trying to prove the existence of god through a gap-filling exercise in one's arguments, rather than by making a proper proof for god's existence.

4) I am a sports addict. I absolutely LOVE playing sports. With all modesty, I am reasonably good at volleyball, table tennis, basketball and cricket. I am currently actively looking to improve at raquetball.

5) I try to be objective in thought. I certainly wish to be.

6) I used to be a terribly ill-tempered kid. In particular, I have troubled my brother, and hence my mother, a lot. But I have turned out alright. I rarely lose my temper any more. And my family would agree.

7) I love my family very much. However, if you were ever to meet us, you would never get that impression because we have almost no explicit show of affection.

8) I honestly think I am happier in the present than in the past, and that conscious effort goes a long way in helping to keep one happy. I see myself only getting happier in the future.

9) I don't feel a sense of belonging with any one community in my country. I was born in Kerala, brought up in Hyderabad, and speak a vague palakkad iyer-ish tamizh at home. So although I know malayalam, tamil, telugu and Hindi, I don't ever feel a sense of belonging with any one community wholly.

10) I make acquaintances easily but I don't make friends easily. The former because of my familiarity with so many regions and languages(including English of course), and the fact that I am curious about people. The latter because most Indian boys/men, I've noticed, move in regional groups, and since I am not properly a part of any one, I get left out or feel odd. Secondly, I might be too judgemental for my own good. That makes it very hard for an individual to jump the acquaintance/friend barrier.

I don't really think there are 7 people I know who read this blog regularly. So I tag:
Gounder Brownie
Rukmani Ram
Mukta
Anant
Parikshith
Amitabha
You reading this line.

Phew!