Face life and do so with a smile: Rahul Anand

Hi, I’m Rahul Anand. I’m just 20 now and I live in a wonderful town called Thalassery in the God’s Own Country. Currently I’m pursuing my Engineering Degree in my home state. I blog at The Eternal Thinker- http://eternalthinker.blogspot.com/, and you can catch up with my artworks at et On Fire. Besides reading, listening to music, watching movies and working on the computer. I like to draw, travel, scribble and eat spicy foods!  I love to be at the beach. The best part is that I’m peace loving and well, I do have a sense of humour.

The Eternal Thinker and et

Interview

Q: Welcome to Speakbindas. Tell us since when blogging has been a part of your life? Was there any motive or inspiration as a backbone of it?

• A: Thanks for the warm invitation to this interview at first place. Now, onto the answers:

• When I started off with my blog, I hadn’t planned to do any serious blogging. The posts were irregular and rambling. Then at some point I came to read some interesting blogs like Compulsive Confessor, which actually gave me motivation to do some real blogging. It’s been around a year since I started writing in my blog on a regular basis.

Q: What is your blog all about? Which topics you cover there? Is that you alone running/maintaining the blog, or have a team?

• A: My blog is probably one of the most random blogs you will come across. It revolves around technical stuff, poems, stories, art works, philosophy, and a bunch of personal business. I blog under the identity et, which is also the name of a character I designed.The name came out as an abbreviation of Eternal Thinker. Comics about et are included in my other blog. Even though I’m not completely anonymous in the blog, usually my persona is characterized by this little white character. And, I’m alone there doing all the work myself!

Q.: How important is it for the blogger to interact with their readers? Do you respond to all the comments that you receive?

• A: Readers help us improve with their suggestions and encouragement. Their comments turn out to be the building blocks to make our blog a better place. I try to get into all the comments and respond to them properly. Again, it depends on the topic we’re dealing with. Sometimes it’s not necessary that we reply to each and every comment.

Q: What are the present statistics for your blog, i.e. number of daily visitors, visitors geographical status etc.?

• A: Google Analytics is a nice tool for peeping into blog stats. It says that I get around 100 plus visits a day. Major traffic comes from India. I could as well spot a considerable number of visits from America and Europe.

Q: Is blogging for you just a passion or a medium for earning too? Does it help you to earn enough cash to quit a 9 to 5 day job?

• A: Blogging, for me, is all passion. I’ve never tried to connect it with revenue. At least not yet. So the second part of the question seems to be out of question.

Q: Who are your favorite bloggers, whom you read frequently?

• A: Compulsive Confessor, Hailey’s blog, Innovation Lover and a bunch more blogs of my dear friends.

Q: From the secret bucket of your blogging experiences, what tips you would like to share with the fellow bloggers?

• A: A blog is not built in a day! Patience is the art of hoping. It’s always better to wait for the right inspiration to come rather than scribbling out something for the sake of blogging.

• In the end it’s not the number of blog visitors or comments that matters, rather how many of them have read sincerely through it or have benefited from it. If you’re still not satisfied with the statistics, remember, the blogosphere is a community. All you got to do is a little socializing. Give respect and take respect; it’s that simple.

Q: Do you believe that blogging completes you? If yes, tell us how?

• A: My blog is the best place I’ve found so far to express all my ideas and showcase my own works. In our tedious lives, a blog gives everyone enough time and resources to know more about a person, and in a better way. Even though blogging isn’t the only thing that defines me, I should agree with the fact that it forms an inseparable part.

Q: What was the happiest and gloomiest moment of your life?

• A: There has been a cup full of happy moments.. and gloomy moments, of course. Anyhow it’s a bit hard to figure out the extremes! May be I don’t get too serious on myself. I like to stay as a kid. Life’s yet to start. Let’s hope for a happiest moment. Equally let’s hope there won’t be any gloomier times!

Q: Say, you are sponsored to travel to 3 world destinations, where you need not to worry about costs for food, hotel or anything. Which destinations would you pick up, and why? Would you like to take someone along with you? If yes, whom?

• A: Alaska! : Again, inspired by my favorite movie.
• Australia: Kangaroos and Ostriches!
• Italiano: More Art, more food
• I’ll delay the travel until I find the one.

Q: Are you into watching movies? If yes, which fills your list of favorite ones?

• A: Into the Wild is a movie which inspired me! Then there is Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Memento, Hellboy series etc. I also enjoy animations like Wall-E. And in case you want to get down and dirty, I’m also inspired by the SAW series! 😀

Q: How has blogging helped you other than money?

• A: Why I love my blog is because it has helped a great deal in boosting my creativity. I took out many doodles from my notebooks and published them in my blogs. They received good appreciation. Also, while trying to customize my blog design I could actually get more informed about web designing and stuff.

• Moreover, blogging helped me to meet amazing people, know fascinating facts and thus gave me more confidence.

Q: What would be the one thing you’d change about yourself?

• A: NOTHING. We are born. Now we live as it is. Life itself is change. We are constantly changing. It’s not just one thing at a time. After 5 years we will be totally different individuals. So keep making you better, and live on.

Q: What is your deepest fear?

• A: It is, so to speak, to look back one fine day and regret that I never TRIED. You can try and fail. But it’s worse to realize that you failed because you never tried.

Q: If you could meet one person, dead or alive, who would it be?

• A: Walt Disney, probably. Actually I’m still thinking who it would be.

Q: Which is your favorite television show? Favorite songs?

• A: I’m not into TV. And when I do watch it, I go through random shows.

• About songs: The Beatles have amazing lyrics. I like the song Society from Into the Wild soundtrack. Then there’s I Can’t fight this feeling by Reo speed wagon. I mostly like English melodies. But as with music, I do not hold on to many constraints.

Q: How much money do you have in your purse/wallet right now (including change)?

• A: Rs.112.50/-. I still live on pocket money.

Q: What is your favorite food? Any particular dislikes?

• A: Fried fish – I love it. I like spicy foods generally. I’m a little strict with taste. Only real tasty foods please!

Q: What’s your take on the technological advancement these days? Does it make people’s life simple or complicated?

• A: To an extend it WAS a call for an easy life. But it keeps on developing. There’s information overload; more work is done in less time. So life basically becomes more tedious and worse – it gets more mechanical and unhealthy. I think technological advancement has gone out of control in a way it eventually gulps our normal lives.

Q: What do you think of “blogging is the next BIG thing”?

• A: Blogs are individuals in the large community of internet. It has grown strikingly similar to the real world. People can express, propel changes, share and inspire through their blogs. Sometimes, it’s more powerful than what they can do in the outside world. It is already a big thing.

Q: Any special message you would like to share with your blog readers as well with everyone else?

A: Face life, and do so with a smile on your face. Take down-times as experiences which will repaint your life with more colours. Don’t live in your cocoon for ever. Break out and travel. Express yourselves.