Can the joybee any greater???

Many things make me feel I am an old man sometimes. For instance I am always one step behind the hep crowd when it comes to music. After much diligence I get to like rock in school and suddenly trance is happening. After much piracy and diligence I learn trance. Alas Progressive House peeps over my shoulder. Mocking. Now when music is being discussed I just make up my own band names to show I too am on the bleeding edge of things.

"The Rasmus, very good yah..." (Running fingers through "gelled to a crisp" locks)

"Hmm... yes, but not as good as Schizoid Zygloswiss..." I declaim with typical mallu nonchalance.

Never fails. But inside I grudgingly accept the fact that Led Zep and Wishbone Ash is not "with it" anymore.

But the all-time worst feeling is when I walk into a gadget store here and find myself so out of date. I can't even make out what some of things do. I was struggling to make sense of something impressive looking in a red cardboard box. After a few minutes I gave up. Too many numbers and abbreviations. Along came a little arab boy. Chubby, lively, with a big "Beware of reality check" written all over him. He runs in picks up the same red box. Hesitates for a second. "Ha...!!!" I think. He then goes to the salesman and asks him if it definitely needs 2.0 or will 1.1 suffice. And is it compatible with firewire?

I rapidly gravitated towards the floppy disk racks. Now thats stuff I could talk about.

After much haggling and online searching and comparing I have finally bought this. The Benq Joybee 120.

Now before brushing it off as another chinese copycat gizmo, let me tell you I am listening to it right now and every beat and note is as clear as a shot of Smirnoff in a crystal shot glass washed well in warm soapy water. Excellent. I love it too much. And its size is to be seen to be believed (like so many other things dont you think...?). IT IS MATCH BOX SIZED!!!

So thats one big thing off the shopping list. Later in the day went for a walk with dad. We walked by the building the family used to stay in till a few months ago . I stayed there last 6 years or so ago. Walked by and noticed so much I had never noticed before. Shops I had never once visited in the ten years I stayed there. Lanes. Restaurants. Reminds me of some statement in our college yearbook. "You don't miss things until they're lost forever". Or was it "Miss, those things won't last forever"?. Dont remember clearly. Old age. Failing mammary.

Anyways, a few days of rapid fire shopping left to do. No books this time. I have truckloads from Mumbai. Maybe a few CDs of Western Classical. Maybe an opera. Oh and that latest album by Schizoid Zygloswiss.