The Internet revolution has come and gone. It is now hard to imagine an advanced society without this huge database of easily accessible information called The Net. Of course, such a vast collection of(mostly useless) information is a requisite need for any escapist, and this, I contend, is why the Internet is our most favorite grazing ground today. Without further ado, I present the grounds I frequent and invite you for a grass or two.
1) Topic: Travel
Website: Lonely Planet(https://lonelyplanet.com)
Beat me up silly, gag my mouth, tie me to a plank and throw me in the river. If I then end up washing ashore in some strange island, I’d still be excited to visit a place I’ve never been to before. [Later of course, I’d hunt you down and break your neck, but let’s not go there.] The point is, that’s how much I love to travel.
The next best alternative then, is to read about places that you’ve never traveled to. Lonely Planet offers some of the wonderful guides to just about any place in the world. You can even print this guide off the web(They provide a printable version free of all the navigation panels) and keep a copy handy as you travel. But that’s not all. There are moderated discussion forums where people talk about all things related to travel. A section is also devoted for travelers to share stories and tips from their own experience. And via theme guides, the site offers tips on where to begin for the clueless traveler. The website is also frequently updated with the latest travel warnings, holidays and important political developments affecting travel around the globe.
2) Topic: Humor
Website: Melvin Durai’s Humor Column(https://melvindurai.com)
Humor to me, is the only reason we all live. The day I can’t find humor in and around me, will be the day when I have moved to live in the United States. Kidding folks. I know Americans are wonderful people who just seem otherwise.
Melvin Durai is a India-born American humor columnist, and a great one at that. He belongs to a rare breed that write humor columns that make you think. That too without compromising on the humor a teeny-weeny bit. You think I am insane? Well, why don’t you visit his website and find out. His topics are often social and political. The stories are almost always set in America, India or Africa(he grew up in Zambia). He has the uncanny ability to whip up humor from any and all of the above themes. And I am one extremely happy regular reader.
Yes, Dave Barry is still the master of all present day humor columnists. I’d rate Melvin Durai next for the humor content, and I think he deserves a much greater exposure than what he currently has. Yes, I know Buchwald and others, and no, I do not know Melvin Durai personally, and for the umpteenth time, I am not insane.
3) Topic: Astronomy
Website: Astronomy Picture of the Day(https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/)
Some of the most breathtakingly beautiful pictures are out of the world. Literally, I mean. And I am not even thinking about the little green men from Mars. Nor about the various other hideous creatures immortalized by every other Hollywood film made on space adventures.
This website is where I often start my day on a computer. It is a true gem to the armchair astronomers. It lets you know about the latest and greatest developments in astronomy, one at a time. The daily picture is awesome, and what makes it better is the explanation that goes along with it. So you are not just staring at one of the most beautiful pictures you’ve ever seen without being able to make head or tail of it. The explanation is very brief, but with reference links that point you to more information when you need them. Coming from two practicing astronomers, I also tend to trust the information wholly. And just in case, you missed the update for some day, you can catch up in the archive section that lists every single picture ever posted on the site, indexed by the date.
4) Topic: Finest News
Website: The Onion(https://theonion.com)
Sometimes people talk to me about current events and pretend to be genuinely surprised when I return a blank stare in reply. That makes me feel guilty. Very guilty. The kind of guilt that makes you question the very purpose of your existence. That’s when I go find solace in the only website that prepares you best to handle such tricky encounters in future.
I am talking about’The Onion’, America’s Finest News Source(TM). Trust me, ladies and gentlemen(and everyone else reading this review), there is a reason that this most trusted news source is also one of the most popular hubs for yours truly(and like minded looneys) to keep himself abreast of what’s happening around the globe. You’ll have to really read it to appreciate this point. Really, okay. True, it has a decidedly American bias(in the subject being reported, not the written content), but then which other news paper doesn’t. Contentwise, it is less biased compared to say, the CNN, the BBC, or even NDTV. Yes, truly so. In short, nothing is spared.
[N.B. It is not recommended for persons under the age of 18, and also for people that cannot stand a dose of unbiased, uncensored, first-hand report of real events.]
5) Topic: Poetry
Website: Bartleby.com(https://bartleby.com/verse/)
Poetry can be very addictive. Quite naturally, it finds an important place in any escapist’s toolkit. Everytime I try not to make sense in a group talk [yes, it is true that sometimes even people with natural talent have to try], I simply mutter something like’I balanced all, brought all to mind, The years to come seemed waste of breath, A waste of breath the years behind, In balance with this life, this death.’ People usually are impressed. At the very least with W.B.Yeats and, sadly often, with him alone.
I know, by now, you are also tempted to impress. Perhaps it’s someone of the opposite sex. Well, fear not my friend. For this reason alone, the very friendly folks at Bartleby.com have a large, free collection of some of the excellent verses ever penned in English. Go ahead, and indulge yourself in Shakespeare’s sonnets, or Wordsworth’s romanticism, or Yeat’s lyrical wonders. Or just about anything else you prefer from the huge collection. You don’t have to pay a dime. [The catch is that you’ll have to put up with ads.] When you are done with the verses, explore the site and indulge yourself further in all the other great literary collections on the site. I guarantee that you are sure to be impressed. [What, that’s not the guarantee you want? Well, you’re on your own for the rest.]
6) Topic: Music
Website: eMusic(https://emusic.com)
I am a music fan. A music fan that is, whose knowledge of music is as profound as Hitler’s love for the Jews. Or the music industry’s love for people that exchange music online. Or . anyway, you get the idea. Still that does not mean I can’t separate music that I love to hear from the one that bites my ear. Let me illustrate. Despite the fact that I tape every single moment I watch Shania Twain on TV, earnestly try to attend her shows, and even contemplate stalking her at times, I am sincere when I say that it is her country music that I love. That’s not the case with Britney though, whom I’d rather watch with the TV muted. Still, watch her I will. So that’s okay. [If you are a die-hard Britney fan offended by this comment, I only have this to tell you.’Hi ya Britney, howdy girl? I miss ya. Say, when you touring England again?’]
Anyway, eMusic is a website that offers a wide variety of music for a fee(US$10 a month). It provides unlimited mp3 downloads from its rather e