It arrived in a beautiful black cardboard box one day. And yeah, Bono seemed in his spirits on the cover. Also the pretty black leather case.

The i-pod changed my life in more than one way. First I began carrying its added weight through the Bombay local trains. Now thats quite a feat of sorts. Then I turned the volume so high that I could reel with the music even in the noisiest trains. Then I feared I'll go deaf & toned it down.

My CD players died. Well they had a special nack for occasionally going into hibernation. They used to refuse to wake up unless somebody sat with them for a couple of hours and stuck a few hurting objects deep inside their ears. Screwdrivers or that sort. Now I've put them to sleep forever. Speakers are suddenly an object of the past. At least walkmans ran out of batteries and forgetful individuals (like yours truly) had to turn the big brother on when he felt too lazy to walk and buy dry cells. 'Tablet like cells walon ki toh baat hi kuch aur hai!'. ;-)

The i-pod made me reliant on music. Made me wonder how I used to spend those hours crammed into oblivion in the ruthless crowds of the trains. That reminds me - I used to read in trains once upon a time. And obviously the crowds have grown with geometric proportions if I can't read any more.

Spending an idle hour with Beatles, Floyd or Dylan and occasionally with Maiden or Tree is a special joy. After hearing some of them again and again and yet again I know they give you more than what first appears. Music that reveals more each time you hear it. Whatevaaaa.......