tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47231943112606475552024-03-14T01:02:14.978-07:00Confessions of a Raconteur... {Archives}I'm a little tea-pot, short and stout.
Here is my handle, and Here is my spout.Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.comBlogger32125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-70960162171478765962008-09-13T03:54:00.001-07:002008-09-13T04:00:53.692-07:00And This, My Friend, is what They call C-L-O-S-U-R-E :D<p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">My New Blog <a href="http://takeme2eccentricity.blogspot.com">www.takeme2eccentricity.blogspot.com</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">:)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">I wrote my last paper for the fourth Trimester on Thursday, Sept 11- Legal Framework of Employment Relationships.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">And somehow, throughout the test.. for some reason, I just kept getting flashes of how I will give a closure to this blog as well.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">It was a definitive thing: I will sign off. And I just couldn’t wait to do it. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Not quite sure why. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Maybe:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">1. The fact that I think I have been sharing more of my mind in this blog than I had initially intended to. And I really believe that some things are sacred beyond all reason. And deserve the dignity of an audience that will do justice to the thoughts. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Doing ‘justice’ must not be interpreted as blind concurrence with the ideas proposed. No!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">It means registering your opinion, however contradictory it may be, in a mature, dignified manner, allowing for a debate or a <b style="">dialego</b>. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Yes, call me fiercely arrogant. An arrogant little prat, and stupidly so.<span style=""> </span>A hopeless, clueless, confused little 21 year old, struggling to make sense of the world around her, and probably doing a very shoddy job of it. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">So What? <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">It’s a democracy, right?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">I can paint a fish with wings, in dark shades of purple and shocking red.<span style=""> </span>And I can store it in my vault, as a precious piece of art, and show it only to those I wish to. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">D’oh, yes! I just <i style="">almost </i>read the Law (the Exam, people! ) .. and I know that the Constitution does not prohibit me from doing that. :D<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">So, here you go, I CHOOSE my readers. And my readers Choose me.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Allows me to write more freely ( else, I’ll suffocate to death :( )<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">And allows people to make a choice over whether they wish to read my trap or not.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Yep, utter crap it is… what I write sometimes. But this is my calling in life.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">The optic through which I view the world. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">And I wish to use it the way I’d like.<span style=""> </span>Just as any Tom, Dick or Harry may <b style="">choose or reject</b> to invest their time in reading it. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">2. I have observed unabashed plagiarism from this little space I’ve got here. <span style=""> </span>Over the past many months. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">I mean, not ‘inspired writing’ (which a small fry like me will embrace with open arms, and with due gratitude!)- but unacknowledged use of ideas, phrases etc, in <b style="">published writing</b> – without even a tacit, slightest acknowledgment of readership of my writing space. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Not even in a private, personal manner. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Unfair, na? <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;">PS. For the record, this does not apply to those who used my posts with due acknowledgment of the fact of having lifted it from ‘somewhere’. Not at all . <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;">And the matter rests. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">3. The ‘closure’ thing had also to do with the fact that I thought that blogging was eating into too much of my time – which I desperately needed to use for my career building (hey, don’t snigger, arpita!- m serious! I need a job :-( <span style=""> </span>:P )<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Anyway, as I approached the last half an hour of the exam, I designed a brilliant way of going about it. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Here, I shall invite those whom I know in person, and whom this blog owes a lot for their sincere, loyal and affectionate readership *bows gracefully* :<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style=""> </span>A special note of Thanks to Meggs, Sumeet, Meet and Arpita. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">These people get a direct invitation from me, to read this blog henceforth. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Here is the link to my new Blog (restricted acccess)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://takeme2eccentricity.blogspot.com/">www.takeme2eccentricity.blogspot.com</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Thanks also, to all those who have been following this blog on and off, even if without being professional ‘readers’ :P – I welcome your criticisms, ur jibes etc and thank you too .. for being nice :) <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">However, I shall not take the liberty of inviting your readership. I leave the choice with you.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Coz I know this space can be something of a torture for the bestest of hearts :D..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">You guyz can let me know IN CASE you would like access to the new blog, and leave ur email address as a comment in this post. I shall send you an invite, with humble gratitude :)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">As for any stray reader who might have just stumbled upon this blog for the first time, by chance , and wondering where this blogger girl is going with this ::<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Have a nice day, and happy blogging. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">In case, you <i style="">might </i>want access to the new blog (hypothetically speaking!) – maybe after having read the posts on this one, please do leave a comment requesting for an invite, with your email address. Also, I would require a brief statement of purpose (SOP!) – <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;">Why do you wish to read this blog? <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -0.25in; font-family: verdana;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="">-<span style=""> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%;">What do you think of this blogger’s writing? <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in; font-family: verdana;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="">-<span style=""> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%;">How/ why do you think my blog can add value to You and your time?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="line-height: 115%;">And/ OR anything else, <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Your SOP will help me figure whether my blog and your readership will be able to do justice to each other. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.25in; font-family: verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">I know this may sound crazy- or whatever :P<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.25in; font-family: verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">You think I’m kiddin’ when I say I live in eccentric-city! Nopes <span style=""> </span>:D<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.25in; font-family: verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">PS. Since all the comments will be moderated here, your SOPs or requests shall not all be published, but only read by me. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.25in; font-family: verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">There, you have full confidentiality :)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.25in; font-family: verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Thanks a lot, everybody. For the wonderful time so far. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.25in; font-family: verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Cheerios, and God Bless all of you …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-77973179089271526392008-08-30T13:53:00.000-07:002008-08-31T01:01:19.895-07:00Of Free Spirits ..<p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When it’s funny, <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I am happy,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I laugh out aloud…</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I do well,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Oh! I can tell,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I feel so proud!</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I feel pinched,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And emotionally lynched,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I just cry …</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I feel bored,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And mentally sored,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I sit blank and dry..</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I am thrilled,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">With joy, am filled,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I like to sing..</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I feel cheesy,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And want things breezy,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I do a Chandler Bing..</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I am disgusted,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">With minds un-dusted,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I move away…</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I am concerned,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And backs are turned,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I register my say..</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I’m confused,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And unclear on facts,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I donot opine..</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I think I know,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">That things are ‘So’,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I state, with a sign.</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I know I am wrong,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I donot take long,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">To undo my act,</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When you ain’t in the right,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And feel <span style=""> </span>‘sorry’- <span style=""> </span>in a flight,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I’ll forgive, it’s a pact!</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I’m in good cheer,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Tragic hope or fear-<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I’ll crack a joke,</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I dun feel I gel,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I won’t bother ring a bell,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">With any random bloke!</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When I am upbeat,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">N music kicks my feet,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I will jump about and dance,</span></p><br /><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">When beat does not click,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Or make my heart tick,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I’ll be Pinochio in France ..</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">23 hours I can spend,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Without laughing a bend ,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">For 60 minutes of ‘my kind’ ..</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">A lifetime I’ll invest,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">In patient search of The Best,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And I will seek, until I Find..</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">A second of real laughter,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">A second of real pain,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">A second of real anger,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">A momentary rush in vein….</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Is life in all its glory!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Is life as it ought to be!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I express a felt emotion:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I am I. And I am FREE.</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">A real emotion- felt and told,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">The Unsabotaged, and the unsold,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Is pure, is sacred, is truly divine.</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Use it in random fashion,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Stripped of honest passion,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">N It’s spirit you’d undermine.</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Go ahead, <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Choose to cry, <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Choose to Love, <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Choose to Lust,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">But, Do it coz you so WISH<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And not merely coz you Must.</span></p><br /><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span style="">Real Emotion</span></b><span style="">: Real to the person concerned. Is felt within them. Originates there,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And is the sole cause driving their action.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">e.g, someone laughing along with a group of ‘social intellectuals’, on a joke about the current crop of the spineless politicians, with no real clue/ concern about the issue in question- just to “gel in” with the group, will never be able to savour the moment, the laughter in the true sense.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Now, the idea is not to prosecute the person for this ignorant action. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">It is quite common, natural and human. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">The idea is to tell him, that it is Okay to not find it funny. There is no obligation to laugh; that there is greater sense of worth & esteem attached in laughing on a santa-banta joke, if so be it. Only that kind of laughter is therapeutic, and blissful.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Donot negate your identity, by negating your view of life, the world, of reality as you perceive it.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">All of us are born with certain energies within us- a very simplistic version of the whole funda of karma and dharma. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Simple Physics:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Energy can neither be created, not destroyed. It simply changes from one form to another. Suppressing your real instincts, your true energies does not finish them off. They just find another vent, after being pumped uncomfortably inside for a long time, until when it can just not be contained anymore.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Why suppress? Live it. Expend it. And move on… <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Why, for example, even if some one is excessively promiscuous – maybe beyond the norms of social acceptance- to the point where the society may label them a ‘whore’.. <span style=""> </span>I think the society must give them the space to breathe- as long as their interests donot directly hurt those of others. <span style=""> </span>[e.g reckless sexual behavior, out of consent of the partners, or spreading STD’s – these call for society’s intervention. Nothing else in their private domain does. ]<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Oh! Disagree with them. Surely, you can find something fundamentally incorrect in their behavior, but so do ten other people who know you, will find in yours. Why not begin by fixing those-before you go around indulging in these unsolicited acts of social good, and charity.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">(here I will digress a little.. again, this was unplanned ) <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">What amuses me most is that once someone was vocally blowing hot and cold about how Homosexual behavior is <b style="">sinful</b>, coz it <b style="">destroys the social moral order</b> (Oh, how concerned they were, about the innocent little children around us, who would be impacted by such dirt around them .. !)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And the same person goes ahead a few months later, and is complicit in the most atrociously dirty action ever- maligning a colleague’s reputation and hurting their very identity by means of an evil, dirty plot. (which in rogueland, they might call a “prank” *Oh gawdd that trashy bnehaviour still boils my blood in rage* )<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">What is sinful, O Lord?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Trying to live a private life on your own terms (unconventional as those might be), without violating those of others?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Or directly invading into someone’s private territory, and deliberately and consciously causing hurt and pain to someone, and deriving satisfaction out of it?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Again, some words I hate.. totally beyond loathing! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><br />Morals and ethics. Coz they represent grossly distorted forms of simple logic, and lend themselves to merry manipulation. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">These concepts donot exist. Except in the <b style="">Land of Lies n deception.<o:p></o:p></b></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">A is A. Is A. Is A.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">A ain’t A by vote or majority opinion.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">It is A by virtue of being nothing frm B- Z, but A.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">It is not ours to tell others what “A” looks like, sounds like… feels like.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Let them decide how they define ‘A’. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Get together if you so desire, with those who share your definition of ‘A’. <span style=""> </span>Coz it will be easiest to make deals with them. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Coz then, u’ll be trading Dollars with dollars. And it is always more complicated to trade dollars with pounds. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">How does it relate to this post now…<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">A is any object, abstract notion, person or anything, that may inspire an emotion, or may itself be one. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I must have my right to define A. You must have yours. If we donot agree on the concept, we must not strike a deal between ourselves. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Again, all freedom granted until it is abused, and infringes upon that of another. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Another thing, <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">I feel that an emotion when used recklessly loses its spirit- its charm, its potential.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">If you express ‘anger’- <span style=""> </span>at the drop of a hat .. without real sufficient cause to do so.. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Say, you yell at your junior every now and then, just to ‘rub in’ you status as the boss. When you are really upset with his substandard performance, or shoddy work, your yelling will not hold great impact, coz they are used to it …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">*yawn with a curse* would be the response<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">But if chosen and used carefully, anger well directed and at appropriate timings, can cause a real effect- and be really impactful. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Note the apparently fake quality that creeps in, into the forever smiling, kissing in the air, (with oohs and aahs), socialite-like-personalities … it is tough to make out the real smile from the plastic one … and poor things, are suspected of fake emotions at all times, even when those may be perfectly genuine. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And the same applies to all the other emotions …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">To use a very crude analogy, reckless (ab)use of emotions is like picking up ur warmest woolen cloth for simple winter season, and using it, cleaning it… using it, cleaning it … repeatedly… until most of its fabric weathers out .. and it loses its original spirit- purpose or quality, which was ‘warmth’.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Alternatively, one can save it for special occasions, such as the trip to the Himalayas, the Atlantic or heck, any other REALLY cold place u might chose to spend your vacation at.<span style=""> </span>This would be special: the usage would be memorable, coz of the memorable context. You will get the warmth you so badly desire, and only this woolen cloth could have provided you ( which if used recklessly earlier, you would not have at ur disposal Now)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Now, none of the usages can be declared wrong. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">It is totally your call. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Option A gives you the advantage of assured usage : what if the Special occasion never does occur in ur entire lifetime. What a Waste! Better use it at a below-capability level – just like any other ordinary woolen cloth. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Option B </span><span style="">à</span><span style=""> Gives u the advantage of the benefit of the real, blissful pleasure that the thing alone has to offer to you- in a way that no other woolen can.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Take your call <span style=""> </span>:)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And have the guts to face the consequences of whatever stand you might have chosen. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">That, in the truest sense, is Liberation. That which, no one else but you can accord to your self. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">PS. Wondering why this post suddenly? Actually, we have an exam on Monday..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Errr ….I had opened my book. (Organization Design and Development *yawn*)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And I decided to take a ‘break’ ;)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; font-family: verdana;"><span style="">Peace! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-77495181118358520782008-08-24T14:37:00.000-07:002008-08-31T01:01:59.367-07:00A Sense of Life<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">I would have run away. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">IF there were A Way.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Or an 'Away' for that matter..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Away - from all this chatter.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">I would have bowed out.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Then I wouldn't have to shout...<o:p></o:p></span></p> <br /> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Shout a silent scream.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">To shield a hazy dream.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p> </o:p><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">But, <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Here, I am to stay.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Stay put. There is no way.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Part sense, part crap.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">I tend to my own trap. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p><br />I wouldn't sit here and write,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">A verse so bland, so trite.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">If I could bow out,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">With a graceful snout.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p><br />I could've lent my weight to my Word.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Coz I would know that I KNOW.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">But now, I must say things absurd,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">And shrug in hope, it 'must be so'. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">I don't care if this is wrong,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Oh! let me ask this please!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">(True I ain't that strong)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">But, Who Did Move My Cheese?! :(<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Okay, relax, life ain't that hard,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">it is pretty calm and easy ...<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Yet, I sit like one retard,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">and say these things- all cheesy<span style=""> </span>:O<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">There is They.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">And There is Me.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Both kinda have a strife..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Though, on my part, I just let them be,<span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">THEY won't spare My Sense of Life :(<o:p></o:p></span></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-15796483597172039362008-08-15T07:00:00.000-07:002017-02-19T08:13:15.563-08:00Brothers :D :D ## Part 1<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><o:p> </o:p></span> <br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Have you watched the movie, “Hare Rama, Hare Krishna” ? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">I watch it in bits and pieces, every Rakshabandhan [they air it every year, as a rule!]; although the rest of it is pretty boring, I kinda like the brother-sister sequence. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Esp: the song “phoolon ka taaron ka, sabka kehna hai..”, which the young Devanand sings for his thumbsucking cute li’l sister (deprived of adequate love and attention from their forever quibbling, overly rich and cosmetically socialite parents *stereotypical I know!*)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">… you can watch it here : http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=NXQA8k7TlJg <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"> And it is such a sweeeeet sequence- Oh you must watch it! Even the lyrics are so contextual, and so very sweet and touching. The portrayal of all the characters .. is quite natural, and strikes a chord. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Somehow, everytime I watch this song, I get swayed by the context, and end up shedding more than a few tears :O ! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Li’l Jaspreet (who grows up to be Zeenat Amaan) and Prashant (Devanand) get separated at a tender age, following the divorce of their parents. Prashant is sort of better off, since he gets to live in the custody of his Mother- a decent woman. The father comes across as more frivolous, and ends up bringing a terribly indifferent stepmum for Jaspreet, who then falls into the trap of drugs and drug addicts, to beat her blues. Those were the days of the Hippie Movement, remember [grossly misnomered as “Hare Rama, Hare Krishna” movement] <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">*hence the Title of the movie btw:*<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Then, when Prashant grows up, he vows to track down his sister, and bring her back into their family [meaning he and his mother]- only to discover, that she has renounced the sane world, and walked into oblivion with her gang of hippies, who find pseudo-solace from their lives’ woes, in drugs, smoke and in general degeneration of the mind and body.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"> Actually, the song “dum maaro dum, mit jaaye gum.. bolo subah sham, hare Krishna hare raam” is quite deeply meaningful. It captures the defeatist, escapist mentality of such youngsters belonging to the Hippie clan [this was a fad in that age] . Such disoriented youth, often, under the garb of “mindless devotion, selfless bhakti” – calling for renunciation of “Wordly issues” – go on a path of reckless self-destruction. All this, citing a “purposeful, higher” existence!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">The lines that Devanand sings in this sequence, addressing this gang (to the latter’s chagrin, though) .. are quite thoughtful ..<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">“Dekho O deewanon, tum yeh kaam na karo,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">Ram ka naam, badnaam na karo,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">badnaam na karo…<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">Jeevan naam hai kaam ka,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">Aaraam na karo,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">Ram ka naam, badnaam na karo …” <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">:) <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">It is only towards the climax, that Jaspreet [who is now rechristened as “Jasmine” – I think!] discovers that this guy is her own long-lost brother!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">And unable to take the pain of the reality, to bridge the gulf between the two worlds- hers and her brothers.. she commits suicide …<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">How she discovers his identity .. is quite a scene! When Prashant confronts her- by singing the same old song.. with really touching lyrics .. Uh, Pls lemme write those down too ! I loooooouu this bit :D<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">“hum tum dono toh hain,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">Ek daali ke phool,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">Main na bhoola,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">Mujhko- tu kaise gayi bhool!” …. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Err… although, I wish Zeenat Amaan had acted better in this sequence … she almost undoes the magic created by Devanand, with her very superficially dramatic.. *accent* “pruh—shaant, merey bhaaai!” .. repeated ten miserable times. And very clinically :-/<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Anyhow! My purpose was to celebrate the phenomenon called “Brothers” :D<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Thank you, God, for creating such a wonderful breed! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">And I want to document some little things about all these creatures in my life .. :) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">I’ll pick my favorites though .. m not going for the extended family tree! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">To begin with the youngest .. <st1:place st="on">Om</st1:place> and Namo :D :D <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Cutest, brightest little devils you will evvvver come across! [they do have real names though :) .. which I won’t share unnecessarily]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Powerhouses of energy, witticisms, cute antics, snappy, and yet innocent replies … that leave you with smiles and grins of amusement for ages! .. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Once, the elder one swallowed the handy-dandy screwdriver and calmly told the younger brother about it, and also his mum (who thought it was a silly joke) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Minutes later, she hears the younger one calling his dad in the office, to her HORROR..<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">“Umm.. Daddy, Bhaa-ya says he’s dyyyin’, and that I can take his Yo-yo cards.. Can I please do that?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">I rem. When the elder one was hardly an year old, (and I was kinda young too :( struggling to come to terms with the fact that my Masi *his mum* had to be shared with a new little creature now), we all met in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Delhi</st1:place></st1:city> for a brief period, n I threw a fit: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">I wanted us to visit our favourite restaurant nearby ‘just like the old days’ <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Masi couldn’t take the li’l one along. And legally, she couldn’t leave him alone with our grandmum either. [he was tinny!!] <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">But, I pouted, senti-ed and she relented! [Shipra di kept throwing me deadly looks of contempt throughout, for my tantrums though :-/ ] <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">We came back home after 2 HOURS, to find the li’l thing near the door .. face stained with tears, voice hoarse with crying [“Mamaaa…” he leaped at her, the moment she entered] .. and hands full of pots and pans! … yeah! He had this fascination with pots and pans, for some strange reason :D<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">I was guilty, yeah :( but had still got what I wanted [yeah.. m no prize catch for an elder sis *sad look*]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">A few years later, both the brothers – ages 4 and 6 I think … spent good two months with me! And boy, how I will always cherish those days!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">I never knew I could handle kids .. and do it willingly! :) But they were a joy to be around. It started as a one-odd experiment: me helping the elder one to shower .. after an initial awkward look of plea at his mum to do the honours instead :P, he went ahead with the experiment. And we were done very soon. That was a real ice-breaking session :) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">And all this while, the younger one – who is a tough nut to crack, and does not let every odd person in his domain, watched us .. to gauge whether I was the approvable material, to act the the mum-substitute at times :D …<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">The next day, Masi took a tentative shot “<st1:place st="on">Om</st1:place>, would you want Shruti di, to help u out in the shower, or do u want me to do that?” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">*I looked up, in anticipation, towards this 2 foot kid- who was a star in his own right, with all of us *<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">“Al go with deedee, it’s okay.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">*me and masi looked at each other eyes wide open* I was ecstatic. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">And Proud! I must be a real good elder figure, to have obtained His approval! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">And after that, the kids would get into the shower TOGETHER … my screams of “one by one ” notwithstanding! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">It was a nightmare!.. They were quite a handful! While I handled one with the soap business, the other one would be merrily trying to climb into the huge water drum, ten times his size. My screams “what on earth are you doing?!!”, would be met with a calm, amused grin “I am jus’ tryin’ to get in!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">[oh, and to get them into the shower at nights was a project unto itself! They were HOOKED onto their playstations- since they had no other real friends or distractions out here.. and to get them unhooked for even a 15 minute shower, was a herculean task!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">I tried everything: threats, pleas, emotional blackmails, will-tell-mummy, no-choco-milk tonight.. everything!! But they took AGES to relent. I think my moment of glory was the night I was really tired, n kept threatening to switch off their games if they did not pause those. Li’l one casually, to elder one ”hang on, bha-yya, she won’t switch it aawwwff! – 2 more min. deeedee” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Oh yeah?! You watch this kid!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">I turned off the playstations- just when they were jumping about having beaten some stupid Ludo somebody, “without weapons” ..<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">*ha! Zapped/ silence*<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Both sets of jaws dropped open.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">*younger one: half-shocked, half-awestruck.. wide eyed*<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">“She actually SWITCHED it off…” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">The elder one mumbles ..”I know!!” .<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">... and both meekly walk into the bathroom, to get the job done with!]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">*and I was all grins and pats on my own back* :D<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">I must have never screamed at any kid that much. Never told off anybody that many times. Never cooked for anyone!!! But I did all of that for them!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">How many times they must have tiptoed into my room, to ask…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">“errrm.. shrooteee deedee, can I get some mur-khoo and Koh-shur Chai??” **<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">** murku = is a madrasi food item/ snack kinds.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"> “Kashur Chai” = a kind of black, milkless, falvoured Kashmiri Chai, better known as “kaava” – u might have heard/ seen in movies :D <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">“Can I get some Choco-mee?” [:D that was chocolate milk] <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Reason why all such requests started being directed to me instead of their mum: I was really liberal with the amount of chocolate used, and Maggi served :P :P<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Every morning, before I left for college, one of them would (instructed by masi) groggily but diligently wish me “Bhagwaanas Hawala” [in kashmiri, that means, “may you be safe in God’s hands” :) ] <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">I remember this really funny episode with the little one – who would throw unbelievable dramatic fits when being asked to sit down to study [“I am feeling giddy” “mamma.. my fingers won’t move”, “I am weak” , “I think I need choco-mee” :( :( ] … and all of this, tears streaming down his face, while I would melt in pity, and tell his mum- let go, how can u be so heartless. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">She knew better. She would tell him COLDLY. I’ll wait for when you stop feeling giddy, just stay put :P .. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">And eventually, he’d give in. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">One day, after this entire session of tears, and forced lesson in counting till TWELVE, Masi left for the kitchen, asking him to work on spelling THIRTEEN to TWENTY. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">And oohhh … that was a Kodak moment… he kept going … (eyeing his playstation helplessly) .. “Thirteen,.. Thirteen.. how do you spell thirteen” .. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">*elder brother steps in, to help him cheat, when he catches my look of disapproval* <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">*li’l one.. gets off the couch and tip toes into the kitchen to his mum*<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">*meekly..*<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">“mamma, I can’t spell THUr-teeen” <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">‘why can’t you?’ *stern look*<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">“I dunnoooo …”</span></i><span style="font-family: "verdana";"> *helpless tone*<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">‘You just spelt Tweleve. I’m sorry, figure it out urself.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">*sighing loudly, n dejectedly, tiptoeing back to our room, protesting loudly* <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana";">“Mamma, comeon!! Twelve was eee-zeee … Thur-teeen is tuuuuuuuufffff!”<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">I tell you, I haven’t seen anything more cute than that scene!! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">… <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">His reaction to the news about my Chicken Pox was classic too :P<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">When Masi anxiously told him about it, he goes <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">“ha.. haaa.. haa !”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Masi: *no-messing-with-me look* ‘what’s funny about that? ’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">*promptly getting the signal, n taking a 180 degree turn*<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">“Oh, you said chicken Pox! .. I heard something else! Mom.. that can’t be good, she’ll miss school!” :P :P <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Oh .. there are lots and lots of real stories about this pair [which when performed live, have the real impact :D] .. but on this occasion of Rakhshabandhan, I am reminded of these two li’l episodes:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Once we had a verrrry naughty li’l kid over. UDDAND BALAK, really! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">He was all over the place, and he was full of purposeless punches! [his idea of affection and fun- though it HURT!]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">For some reason, he kept making me miserable throughout; I did not say much, and let it pass, with mild “NO’s”.. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Then the elder one does something sweet, digs out his playstation and gives it to him to keep him busy. [mind u- they don’t let anyone come a mile near their playstations]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">And he requests masi to step aside for a private conversation, and tells her, “that kid is hurting Shruti deedee. Mamma, you ask him to stop, else I’ll have to tell him off!” [:D :D, an 8 year old kid, this!! ]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">And yeah … <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Our first farewell moment. That year, When I went to see them off, it was a whole lot of memories !! This time, more with the kids than with masi. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">I remember shedding silent tears, in dignity, without letting anyone notice, when the li’l boy waves across the glass screen, and signals me silently to wipe off the tears. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">The same whining, complaining little boy who would give me hell with his holiday homework! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">There he stood, about to walk away for another year.. n showing sparks of maturity..totallly unexpected from a kid his age and kind! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">:) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Gawd ..i devoted a whole lot of space to these kids!! And I still think I have just scribbled a few random thoughts!! :) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";">Will do the others in the next post I guess!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-82321169794692581562008-08-15T03:38:00.000-07:002008-08-15T03:46:04.317-07:00Some more Blabbering ...<p class="MsoNormal">:) </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Hear, Hear! … Today is a Free day :D .. I reached home before dark! And could afford to just sit and do NOTHING. :D<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Tomorrow at least, speaks no deadline, and that is GOOD ENOUGH! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Errm .. there is some work though… <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Let me see, I need to revise the Assignment for Prof. D [and this time, even if he screams “nahee chalegaa, babaaa!” at the top of his voice.. al be at a safe distance.. :P ] ..so no probs there ..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Then, I need to do the Consultancy Assignment … OK, technically I should be worried about it .. coz I have no clue what I am going to do, and HOW! The presentation is on … Wednesday I think? <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Lots of time, lots of time … *rubbing hands together purposefully* :) <span style=""> </span>.. and … <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">**writing after a gap of a few hours**<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">It is 12:48 A.M and I see Ankit’s status message- a quote by JNU! [d’oh! Jawahar Lal Nehru] … for a split of a second, I rub my eyes..! Why on earth does Ankit (of ALL people :P ) have a quote by JNU as his status ! It’s like Anshuman endorsing Chintu Candy as an A-Grade brand *gulp* <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">(mild apologies to both: <i style="">unLucky Baba</i> and the <i style="">Cupid-ian Creature</i> *ROTFL*) <sup>##see note at bottom<o:p></o:p></sup></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">But of course! It’s Independence Day, ain’t it! :D And we are all happy, Independent Indians… :D And let’s face it.. some days in the year, every single person does get moved by such sentiments … if you are human, and a part of a nation.. it is an inescapable emotion :) <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">So, Happy Independence Day people! :) <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Congratulations! On having being born into a country where you can speak your mind, take your decisions, express your opinions (without the fear of persecution) and where you can celebrate FREEDOM in real spirit. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Well, you certainly <i style="">can</i>!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Whether or not you choose to do so, is your call. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">And here I would like to reiterate a seemingly trite, but extremely profound statement:<span style=""> </span>Charity begins at home. <span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Everyday, we are confronted with choices.<span style=""> </span>And it is real freedom, to be able to take a stand. To say <b style="">yes</b> when you <b style="">agree</b> and <b style="">No</b> when you <b style="">disagree. <o:p></o:p></b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Simple things, really.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Thanks but no thanks, I donot drink. <o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="font-family: Verdana;">I donot think smoking is cool. <o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="font-family: Verdana;">I did not like that. <o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="font-family: Verdana;">I donot wish to be a part of this.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="font-family: Verdana;">**continuing this post on 15<sup>th</sup> afternoon**<o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="font-family: Verdana;">I disagree with what you just said. <o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="font-family: Verdana;">I will not be a party to this. <o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Of course, these statements are purely illustrative in nature; you may or may not agree- but whatever your opinion, if you find yourself feeling uncomfortable, coz of being unable to express it [for fear of retribution, ostracism, seclusion, or generally “not being liked anymore by friends”, then you ain’t Free but Fettered!]<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">To be able to turn around and tell the best-est of your mates that they are in the wrong – especially when their actions have a direct bearing on others’ lives, constitutes real Freedom, and a dignified existence. <span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Real freedom lies in being able to hold an opinion, and express it, when you so wish. Well, it is NOT always possible, sadly, in the real world- I know! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">But the more you are capable of doing it, the more liberated in spirit you are.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">There are two reasons for a person to not express their opinion: fear/ uncertainty and political correctness/ diplomacy for selfish reasons. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">While the first evokes pity, the latter evokes contempt. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Bottomline of the whole unplanned discourse: <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Independence</span></st1:place></st1:City><span style="font-family: Verdana;"> is to be celebrated in real spirit, and not in SMS-es, or caller tunes, or morning assemblies and parades.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">If we cannot voice our opinion in a mature dignified manner, to people we live with everyday, for the cause of what we believe to be right/ true- in matters of public interest … we will never be able to do justice to the Universal Adult Franchise, or freedom at a National Scale. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">*Wow .. talk about digression! .. *<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Hmmm… <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Another thing by the way, I recently did something very HR-personish recently. Unwittingly though. And felt extremely weird too. But I did- to get some clarity about issues when my mind was a mess. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">I conducted a crude Reference Check :P <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">You know, I never ask someone for “opinions” on person A, B C [their acquaintances or friends ] .. to get an idea about the latter’s character sketch. I donot like it. But somehow, the other day, I sort of conducted a “run me down A and B” :P , with the help of a friend. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Well, I got LOTS of instantaneous information, thanks to the kind resourcefulness of the Source, but I think all the information overload only made things difficult for me!<span style=""> </span>And it also highlighted my not very accurate sense of perception/ judgment. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Yet again :( <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Errm … looks like that’s enough blabbering for now. I’ll write my real post in the next one.<span style=""> Ciao </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="font-family: Verdana;">** I just discovered the other day, that Ankit calls the “Laughing Budhdha” , “Lucky Baba” :P .. when I threw a quizzical look, as to whom he was referring to when he talked abt “Lucky Baba”, he earnestly went on to explain.. “arre..the one who is bald, with a bag in hand…!! ” :D :D .. <o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="font-family: Verdana;">And I used to be publicly mocked at, for calling the same thing, “Happy Budhdha” .. I mean comeon!! .. comeooooon!! :D :D LUCKY BABA!! <o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Now for the ‘Cupidian Creature’ .. *ahem* .. this is a monicker, given to Anshuman by our word-loose Consultancy Prof. .. His crime? He had turned around in class to look at our Smart Lady, quite by chance ;) :P pooor thing, I tell you! .. <o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="font-family: Verdana;">(Although, I have little in terms of sympathy for him!: psst… before my Law presentation, I was anxious enough to ask him to hang my photograph on a wall of my choice, in the HR-I classroom- post the presentation. Any normal human being would have been expected to say something like “comeone, you will survive it..!”.. but nope!.. he jumped<span style=""> </span>excitedly, to picking the flowers to be used for the Mala: “Orchids or Lily?” :( and how frequently would I like the mala to be replaced? .. working out the finances :(<span style=""> </span>:O<span style=""> </span>) <o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-28972941697779826002008-08-01T09:11:00.000-07:002008-12-09T08:12:20.132-08:00The Knife that Lied<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4KRm_F3HOmWAd_w3p_O_P52mkwf7uX9wk-siErGk63JzkKLXSqqTdimmTiILTnOdiR-VyomykVFJptVJvPRkpxRoCCFxqHaJoJhfBefvF4knkMN7V69iHrX53l6HCF-OxyjimZHrkIOc/s1600-h/knife.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4KRm_F3HOmWAd_w3p_O_P52mkwf7uX9wk-siErGk63JzkKLXSqqTdimmTiILTnOdiR-VyomykVFJptVJvPRkpxRoCCFxqHaJoJhfBefvF4knkMN7V69iHrX53l6HCF-OxyjimZHrkIOc/s320/knife.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5229583181721750626" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >I had asked The knife,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >‘Knife, Do you stab?!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >Would you make someone Bleed?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >Would you someone nab?”<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >And it had told me!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >Told me in so many words! :<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >‘I only cut and chop and slice;<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >Make sure that no one hurts!’<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >‘But they say you’re the stabbing knife,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >They say you dig them scars!’<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >Indignant, it revolted, ‘Such Lies!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >I swear upon the stars!’<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >Oh, I’m no simple table-spoon, nor your fancy fork,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >I admit I’ll cut to size, every wrongful dork’ <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >“’<i style="">Cut to size’</i>, Knife?”, I repeated; <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >“And what really does that mean?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >Could you draw blood, with your blade?!,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >Or keep it nice and clean!?”<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >I try to recall what it had said; <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >I THINK it swore upon it’s blade,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >That it had never tasted blood,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >Never on human flesh it laid …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >And with that, I was at peace. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >It was just nice to know-<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >This was really no ‘stabbing’ knife,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >It would not sink that low!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >And there are other knives,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >They <i style="">seemed</i> to be the same,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >I took their word for what it said,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >And not for noises lame ..!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >And I write this, broken somewhere,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >Coz The Knife DOES aim to kill;<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >How sure I was, that it DID not!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >Now, ALL knives could fit the bill!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" ><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >Maybe they’ll shine their blades one day.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >Just like The knife, that lied.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >I sit and stare and wait now;<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12;" >I have sat alone and cried. <o:p></o:p></span></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-50654239555415644432008-07-24T15:26:00.000-07:002008-08-15T03:45:17.437-07:00Ring a Ring O' Roses ..<p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><i style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;">Ring, a ring o' roses,<br />A pocket full o’posies-<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >A-tishoo, A-tishoo<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><i style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;">We all Fall Down …!<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >About that very famous nursery rhyme:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Legend has it that this rhyme was actually a coded reference to Bubonic Plague or Great Plague of London (a widespread, deadly disease once upon a time) –in which the patient first developed round reddish rashes in the shape of rings (“ring of red roses” ) – pockets would be filled will sweet smelling herbs (“posies”), since it was believed to be caused due to bad smells. The line “a tishoo-a tishoo” refers to </span><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Sneezing- a symptom of the disease,</span><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" > .. and Lastly, since the patient fell prey to death, the reference to “Falling down” [if you’ve had a normal childhood, and played these games, then u might recall how a ring was formed while kids chanted this rhyme, and ultimately all of ‘em fell down onto the ground!]<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Even though, thankfully Bubonic plague still figures on my “haven’t-had-it-yet” list of diseases, along with Hepatitis,<span style=""> </span>Appendicitis (which errm my birth horoscope claims unequivocally that I WILL be operated for, one day) along with others..<span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >But it’s the “Ring a Ring O’ Roses” bit, that kept playing in my mind for the past ten days … day in and day out .. every second-of-every-minute-of-every-hour-of –my-existence<span style=""> </span>…as *gulps painfully* <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >What with red, round, blisters that had sprung up on every inch of skin that I have diligently grown in the past 21 meaningless years of my life ..<span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >YEAH! I am infected with *hold your breath* CHICKEN POX! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >YOU KNOW!<span style=""> </span>CHICKEN. POX. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Even as I have survived 10 painful days of this horrible … I repeat H.O.R.R.I.B.L.E disease (“Horrible” underlined, bolded, encircled with a dark red marker pen) <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >.. I can’t believe I actually DID develop Chicken Pox.<span style=""> </span>It was always one of those things for me, which are just not meant for me, but only for ‘others’. Somehow, a fool that I am, I have always considered myself ABOVE many ordinary things that are supposed to be “mandatorily normal” for most mortals <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >(I mean I still DO!! <span style=""> </span>:( )<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Dream Company? *blank look*<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Checking into OLT?<span style=""> </span>*blank look*<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Solving Questions 91-156, in Physics’ Ratan Guide … *Blankest look ever*<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Chicken Pox? *rolls eyes* <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >CRASH … CRASSSSSSSSSSSHHHH .. and I was brought down..humbly.. down to the Rock Bottom.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >And <i style="">painfully so :( <o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >For those who haven’t experienced it … I’ll be at my grossest best, and tell you what it’s like ! (hate me all you want *sticks out tongue impudently*)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >So, you get these red boils/ blisters all over your body (tho the most affected spots are the face, the scalp and the trunk region)- and these are no ordinary boils, mind you! They seem to be filled with concentrated Nitric Acid or sum-such-fluid. Boy, oh boy! Do they hurt!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >It’s like someone’s poking a thousand needles in your head and all other affected places. I personally grieved my needled Scalp the most- it drove me up the wall!! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >And you can’t TOUCH them, god forbid! They are Sacred you see! … SACRED coz they threaten to leave behind ugly scars, stamping you for the rest of your life, at the slightest provocation/ manhandling. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" ><span style=""> </span>I remember when I had come home from the Doc’s, on the first day of my discovery of these boils, diagnosed with “suspected chicken pox”. Scars was the first thing SMS had warned me against, when I had been arrogant enough to declare, “Comeon! That’s the LEAST of my worries” … well, in my defence, I had the prospect of 20 something wasted days of college, hounding me on the priority list!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Well, ten days have passed and my boils have reached the less-annoying stage of <b style="">crusting</b>. Which basically means: still ugly red spots, yet, those which hurt less and are just irritatingly itchy- not PAINFULLY so. And therein, dear Blogreader, lies all the difference in the World!! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >I could have recited so many tales and experiences..in the goriest detail, in those days, but now that it’s passé, I somehow can’t bring myself to do it. *yawn*<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Here is what I intend to do: <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >I’ll give you a checklist. A list of <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >“Do’s and Don’t’s while dealing with Chicken Pox Patients”<span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Oh, believe you me.. it’s important! I wish someone had fed this list to all my friends and acquaintances earlier.. I would have an easier time *sniff sniff* ;)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >So, here goes :(BTW I’m not sure to what extent you could generalize it, if you please, call it “Do’s and Don’t’s while dealing with Chicken Pox-ed Shrutis”)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" ><span style="">ü<span style=""> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >When you ask them, “How are you feeling now” … DONOT bother about the reply. DONOT consider to analyze the situation and phrase the sympathetic note in your reply. It should come promptly, AUTOMATICALLY. PRONTO!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Put in a lot of “awwwwss”… “realllly…soooo sad” “ Oooooooohhhs” “ awww .. you poor soul” … BLINDLY. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >The CP-ed being will lap it up! … <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >No better antidote for a painfully incurable disease, than loads of sympathy! TONS of it. :P And yeah! I made my notes, … so all those of you who did your “awwws”and “ ooohs” correctly, get full points. And LOTS of blessings! :D <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >And those who acted Cheeky.. pphhhh … I gave all my guest <span style=""> </span>Viruses your detailed addresses. With Special Recommendation. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >*evil grin* <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >You know what to expect next! :P<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >[I’m telling you, people are heartless! Once, I spent ages unraveling the mystery of “how shruti got cp..” over SMS exchange :O … Will u believe that the conclusion of the baseless story was something like .. “the pox ate chicken, and you ate Him?! :( ”]<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" ><span style="">ü<span style=""> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Okay. Write it down if you must! But PLEASE REMEMBER .. a bad joke with a CP-ed being is not just ‘no-hahas’.. it can be FATAL. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >So, The next time someone tells you they’re down with chicken pox, you DON’T <span style=""> </span>turn around with that Oh-I’m-being-so-smart-n-funny, <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >“But, When did you eat Chicken *wink wink*?” <span style=""> </span>*aaaargggh*<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Coz your CP will smile. Maybe Genuinely, once. Second time, Polite smile.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Third time, they’ll shrug in their sad acknowledgement of your handicapped joke. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >But, the Fourth time?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Trust me, the<span style=""> </span>FourthTime, they will just come over and SHOW you how they got it.<span style=""> </span>A Practical Demonstration. On YOU. I would have done that, I swear, to every single one of these Smart Alecs, if I hadn’t been so drained of energy and resources :( <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >BTW: Meghna aka Jayemsee AKA cut-wrists, was the first one to crack this joke with me. So, I had actually not freaked out, but simply sighed (“Someone tell her that THAT one is called Chicken FLU… and somebody break her heart- tell her that im not down with a deadly, potentially fatal disease, but a perferctly normal, self-curing one !” :D :D)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" ><span style="">ü<span style=""> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Donot squirm your face in disgust even when the CP’s face resembles the pan in which you would make scrambled eggs! My own folks were Angelic when it came to this. They kept offering me real, affectionate hugs (when I was reduced to<span style=""> </span>sooooooo un-huggably repulsive a creature, that even I would have recommended risking a tea-party with a crocodile, over bothering to move an inch towards me :() <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >I actually shut my eyes when I would have to visit the wash-basin for any purpose [the mirror-mirror-on-the-wall offered a sight that sent chilly shivers down my spine!]<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" ><span style="">ü<span style=""> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >If the CP asks you to STAY away to prevent infection, DO IT!!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Nothing like the guilt of having passed on the dreadful disease to your near and dear ones. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >My Nanima- an old – very old and ill-in-health Lady, gave me hell when it came to this. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >I literally had to DRIVE her out of my room, cry to get her off me- “checking my pulse” :O , <span style=""> </span>or STOP her from rearranging all my totally infected stuff every morning!! I will never -in my wildest dreams- understand why she brushed aside my very logical and scientific explanation for my Seclusion from her, with such confidence and impudence. HOW?! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >These grannies are a WEIRD lot!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >DITTO for all my other folks, who were steadfastly by my side, DESPITE all my attempts at seclusion, rubbing in my “untouchable” status for the unvaccinated/ un- Chicken Poxe-ed souls. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Really, GOD FORBID, if one of them fell sick coz of me, I’ll drown myself in a bucketful of Chicken Pox Viruses!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Okay,<span style=""> </span>I’m tired now. And sleepy. Relaxed- now that I've poured out all my Acid :P <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Will go get some sleep :) Peace !!<o:p></o:p></span></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-40354056517311374482008-07-13T11:27:00.000-07:002008-07-13T12:20:53.070-07:00Strange Minds, Stranger notions of Blissful moments *broadest grin*<p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"> </p><p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">My idea of Life at its best.. :)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Walking into a shop, with a verrry vague idea about what's wrong with ur life… <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">‘I keep losing my change; where do I keep these "visiting cards" ’..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">... <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Standing and staring at all the stuff in the shop, wide-eyed ... clue-less about what to do n how to do it ... <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Until, someone picks a Wallet for you ...<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">someone else tells the shopkeeper that you would like to take that, but only at such-n-such price ...<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">... meanwhile, someone asks you to stop eyeing that absurd piece, which is def. not worth the price … your meek protests get brushed aside as background noise :-D …..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">…someone somehow fixes u a bargain, and Lo! ... you walk out with a beautiful wallet, in which (u happily tell all these someones) "gee! .. i can now preserve all my change and all my<span style=""> </span>'visiting cards' ..."<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">….then, u demand to do certain things that you WANT to, against others’ strong protests that they are tired of the public embarrassment you earn them <b style="">every time</b> .. (often, with a rather<span style=""> </span>defeated old-warning of ‘snapping all ties’ this time :P ) .. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">…. You move on, shrugging them away, and going ahead with what you wanted to do …. Until they join you, quitting the pretense of “civilized conduct in public”;[ face it! – it WAS fun after all :-D .. the pix on that swing are <span style="font-style: italic;">invaluable</span>!] <span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">insisting on taking pictures of precious moments, with a famously <span style=""> </span>terrible track record in photography …. Gleefully handing over their cameras – with nothing but memory <b style="">blurs</b>, unclicked photos, and the like [blaming it on the ultra-hi-tech-<i style="">ta </i>of the cams]…. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Ignoring the watch, as seconds tick by … threatening to sound the knell-of-farewell any second now … <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Hastily compressing all your stock-of-stories, and shooting a volley of anecdotes, that you <i style="">oh-so-MUST-share</i> (it’s a race against time!!) …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">… somewhere, sighing inside (you know it’s beyond the farewell time..) .. and suddenly reciting one of your favourite Classic nursery rhymes …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="">Georgie Porgie pudding and pie,<o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="">Kissed the girls, and made them cry…<o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="">When the boys came out to play,<o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="">Georgie Porgie ran awayyy …<o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">..before a ready audience .. that partly sings along, partly gives you that “uh-oh” look of fond-disapproval cum amusement .. and jointly reminisces over the story behind the bit of verse …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">………..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">*Bye Bye* …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">*Awkward Hugs* …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">*unvoiced grudges of SOME disappointed souls who had planned to binge on Golguppas again, together … :( but were rather insensitively let down*<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">*smiles that go home with you*<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">*at home, you proudly flaunt your <i style="">meaningful shopping</i> for the day, before anyone who would care to see ;) *<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Some things are priceless … <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Try meeting up with your old gangs …:D and rediscover yourself :) <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Let me rephrase a famous saying …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="">“To meet and part, is the way of life,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="">And to part and meet, is the ray of life :) “ <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span style=""> </span>Thank you people! – it <i style="">was a fun</i>day :D … <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="">And all those silly geese who missed it [:( :(] … we missed you guyz!! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span style=""> </span><i style=""><o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p><span style="font-family: courier new;"><span style=""></span></span> <p style="font-family: courier new;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-21954479879542313762008-07-05T14:49:00.000-07:002008-07-06T06:06:10.924-07:00Damn!! %$%#^#I have become INCAPABLE of posting on the blog!!<br />Despite the fact that I have had thousands of stories to share ...<br />Despite the fact that I started writing tens of posts, but never got around to completing any of those.. I JUST donot write anymore..and it is sooooo very frustrating! coz I DID have so many things to share ... wayy tooo many!!! ....<br /><br />as I do now! .. but I wont write about it... nopes! ... *winces* ..what is WRONG with me ....<br /><br /><br />I mean S.E.R.I.O.U.S.L.Y ... WHAT IS WRONG!!! ... why can't I just sit and type all that I wish to?<br /><br />What kind of transformation am I going through? and What on earth for? ....<br /><br />PS. I have also lost my appetite by the way :( ... can't stand food now ... I mean ... I just dont EAT anymore .. unless it's maggi! .. and just coz it's the easiest to finish n be done with.<br />Hence, I think I have been eating just maggi for the past so many days - brkfast, lunch AND Dinner!<br /><br /><br />Psst... I'm telling u, something is really amiss .... I am going all OKAY ... clinically ... and I just don't get kicks out of whatever I am doing these days ... I just do one task, and move on to the other... I feel like meeting up with old friends .... and then realise how difficult it is, to fix up such a meeting-thanks to the godforsaken schedules-, n again.. CLINICALLY ... move on ....<br /><br /><br />Great then! I can't write, I can't read HP (the series having finished :( ) ... I can't be loud and shabby n BLAH in general ..... without drawing suspicion, raised fingers, heads shaking in disapproval ...<br />I can't just NOT display many feminine attributes in general conduct, without raising people's heckles ...<br /><br />This is too darn weird... I mean... I can't even <span style="font-style: italic;">FEEL u know! ... </span>I am not driven by emotions as I write all this; just stating facts! I can't even feel the pain of <span style="font-style: italic;">something-ain't-right. </span>It's just a cold acknowledgment of the same fact. *stoic look*<br /><br /><br />Gosh! .. this way, I'll develop a revulsion for people who think that their lives are exactly as they had planned/imagined those to be, just coz my own is not! *mummy, help!*<br /><br />Nothing that I am doing today conforms to the idea that I had about my life..ever since I can recollect::<br />- I had never in my weirdest dreams thought I'd be working in an "office" (i mean I never thot against it or anything, but I nevvvvvver even considered an office job- I always thought these things were for others (weird/absurd I know!!) )<br />- studying business [even until five years ago, had u suggested to me that "business line" was a career option- I would have asked you to go see a shrink!]<br />- Being put on trial for my concepts/ ideas that I always took as given. Being quizzed about explanations which none intends to/ cares to understand<br />- Talking about things that I have no interest/ inclination/ capability for ...<br /> I mean ....reallllllly... I AM abnormal ... I mean... for the first time in my life, I have begun issuing responses that I don't feel an "ownership" for ... it's almost <span style="font-style: italic;">fake ... </span><br /><br />***<br />something got into me ... and I finally dug out my old, infamous Dell notebook (christened by the high n mighty swati n co, as "thirty two mb" ... errmm.. well, that's coz that was its RAM u know ... 32 MB! .. and 6 GB hard disk btw!!... people wud come frm far n wide just to see whether this legend does have a basis in reality ... I had dumped it ever since I got my laptop ... never really used it much ... but have developed fond attachment to it .. I rem. during our IIM days .. I had typed my first blogpost for the campaign on it ! ohkayy ... IIM days = Ignited Indian Minds ..days of course) ....<br /><br />seee!! that's my 32 MB ... 8 minutes have passed since i switched it on ..and the desktop has still not appeared! ... anyway.. the purpose behind digging out this relic was ... I had typed some of my verses roughly an year ago, in this box.<br />Those were the days *reminisces* .. well, strange days ....<br />the days of rebellion, secret undefined crusades against powers-that-be-wherever-in-the-universe ...<br />[hey, the screen's not appearin' n m concerned !! what if i lose all my precious data :( ... switched it on again... *fingers crossed* ]<br /><br />yeah.. so those wre strange days ... and stranger near-confidantes I had.. back then! ...<br />lolz... they supported a no-cause of someone they barely knew ... *sigh of amusement*<br />and there was this one verse in particular .... (tho i had written many in those days... all revolving around a common central theme) that most aptly conveyed my train of thoughts/ emotions etc etc ...<br /><br />The issue touched upon in that verse .... still remains.<br />I will probably never know the answer to the question ...<br />I will never know as to whether I had a cause to begin with, and whether it was ever justified ...<br />I guess there are always some "What IFs... " in life ... that can prevent you from ascertaining that definitive Right-ness or Wrong-ness of a course of action<br /><br /><br />[laptop ..still hasn't displayed the desktop ... i will cry now.. i think i lost a lot of my works today *blank stony eyes*]<br /><br /><br />Anyway, maybe al try to recompose the verse.. from memory ...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">I tossed a little Coin...<br /></span><br />I tossed a little coin.<br />I know I called it 'Tails';<br />But, saw 'em frown, and cut my call-<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">what if my call fails ...<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span>I tossed a little coin.<br />This time I called it Heads;<br />But then caught it in mid-air,<br />my calls my heart now dreads ...<br /><br />I tossed a little coin.<br />My heart had made a call,<br />but let 'em turn a deaf ear,<br />and let it freely fall...<br /><br />I tossed a little coin.<br />it's My Coin that I tossed;<br />You think I <span style="font-style: italic;">won</span>, it's the 'right' side up!<br />It's <span style="font-style: italic;">My Call</span> that I lost!<br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span>[hurray- desktop showed ..finally!]<br /><br />When I'd tossed that little coin,<br />You'd wanted me to win;<br />Since Your Call was much more '<span style="font-style: italic;">safe',<br /></span>you tossed mine in the bin.<span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span><br />I shall not toss that little coin!<br />The toss brings me no joy...<br />I had tossed it with some aim in heart,<br />not coz 'twas a fun toy!<br /><br />Or maybe I'll toss that coin again,<br />and take my Call this time.<br />To lose the toss, at <span style="font-style: italic;">my own call,</span><br />would be a lesser crime.<br /><br />*************<br /><br />Gawd ... pls don't sit and wonder about the "I", "They" "Coin" etc in the lines above.... coz even I am not sure about it ...<br />aaargggh ... maybe I will never know... <span style="font-style: italic;">never.. </span>whether MBA was a mistake .. or whether I could have done things "the other way" ...<br /><br />So byy the way .. for all those innocent souls who have been hounding me of late :P *and some of you are reading this ;) * ...<br />"<span style="font-style: italic;">How </span>do u stay happy all the time?" " How come we've never seen you in low spirits?" or the funniest...<br />"Do you ever feel <span style="font-style: italic;">low, </span>Shruti? " .... I dunno guyz .... but what kind of a mind breeds verses like that? ... not a sea-calm one, I can assure you :) ...<br /><br />hehe .. now im suddenly reminded of this one day in JMC when I was racing through the corridor (well, I was alwaaayyss racing through the corridoor in JMC :( ..somehow .. ) ...<br />Although, it is in a very different context. A batchmate (well, this one always remained <span style="font-style: italic;">just </span>a batchmate for the three years that we spent together .... maannn, I wish Mannat was reading this-she would KNOW :P!!) .. well, this batchmate almost stopped me, slightly annoyed and <span style="font-style: italic;">exasperated </span>.. (almost accusatory!)<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 204);">"Shrutii, you don't have to be so happy all the time"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">'Sorry?', I thought.</span><br /><br />I was taken aback. And there she stood, smiling a cold smile, one that fails in its purpose to delude the recipient into thinking that, the actor is confident and assured of the validity/ substance/purpose of what she has just uttered.<br /><br />I raised my brow - amused .. though not too happy ..!<br /><br />I watched her smile for some time, weighing the merit of continuing the conversation, and eventually deciding against it. I decided (in that fleeting moment) that I did not have the time or the energy. And she did not have the resources to put mine to optimal use :)<br /><br />I smiled back. Or, I think I did. But that was coz I was short on time. Otherwise, till date, I haven't learned to fully appreciate people using the happiness of others as the yardstick to measure their own. Hence, kids end up showing more interest in the test scores of their peers, than their own; few days before the exam kids are bothered more about how much course "that one" has covered .. than where their own exam preparation has reached ... and as they correctly depicted in one of those commercial ads: parents approve or disregard their child's performance solely based on the performance of someone else's child.<br /><br />Now, now, this incident has nothing to do with anything else I had talked about ... dunno why I suddenly came to my mind, quite vividly and I went on to describe it, however unrelated...<br /><br />hmm.... I think it could be coz I'm missing Mannat too :( .... she was the kind of person who would have summed up the above incident in one good line (despite our excessive loathing for each other, we did end up sharing quite a few ideas... :P ) ....<br /><br />*** I slept last night, typing this ....<br /><br /> postin it now ...<br /><br /> and wow! I did end up posting something then, even though nothing that I really wanted to ...<br /> <br /> College again tomorrow ... *neutral indifference*<br /><br /> I discovered something very ugly and scary about human behavior yet again yesterday, in<br /> passing conversation.<br /><br />In fact, I learnt something about it during my internship too (although it was interspersed between other too-much-fun things, to take a backseat) ...<br />Some very obvious, rational principles of justice, and working logic DONOT hold- in many places, and for many people. A new kind of code of conduct (new -- coz I didn't know of it before ) has gained acceptance and legitimation amongst people. I think I'll draw from an old blogpost::<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">I stab your back, you stab my back </span>is the new tacit moral understanding/ agreement between most people.<br />If you can't play the game this way, you had better not play at all! coz the rules are all defined by that guiding principle.<br />The rules in the new game are:<br />>> you win as an individual player, if you manage to stab the back of the other better than that one manges to stab yours (coz u are both aiming towards the same thing)<br />>> your team wins if you collectively manage to do that vis-a-vis other teams<br /><br />But you have gotto play by the same underlying principle by all means.<br />And this, is quite amusing!<br /><br />NOTE: I must post this here... before the context is lost.<br /><br /> Certain things REQUIRE integrity, have basis in Integrity and will not exist without it.<br /> Rationality, Justice, fairness -- all function on integrity.<br /> Hence, one can't cry foul one day and say their justice has been violated by the system, if they <br /> have themselves condoned the same in the past.<br /> Which brings us back to the <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">all or none</span> principle of certain theories/ concepts (such as Ayn Rand's objectivisim). You can't accept a part of it, and reject the other, tailoring it to suit your own convenience. You either Take the WHOLE of it, or REJECT the WHOLE of it. There is no way in between.<br /><br />In fact, integrity is a beautiful concept u know ... I discovered it myself, one day, when I found it seriously lacking in some persons I had grown to like .. <br />I realized the importance of Integrity in someone's being. How the riches of the world, the brains of Einstein, the beauty of the Greeks won't sustain one's character -- if the simple quality of integrity is missing.<br /><br />and consequently, I discovered this about my own self:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Very little tolerance, for very little integrity. </span><br /><br /></span>uh-ohh ..al post this now ... I have no clue what all I have been typing and why at all ...<br />sorry abt the lack of coherence in this post! ..<br />But I MUST post this ... and break the cant-blog-anymore curse :( !!<br /><br />chalo then,<br /><br />Cheerios :)Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-4706830479283698682008-05-25T00:58:00.000-07:002008-12-09T08:12:20.591-08:00For you, a thousand times over ...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMB1IMly3DSC67iwwZw1BIN4Gm5szvFbIN0EGUqGKY8Syx5FFPsBhYG1v25QH3FBqIxhbLmIkw1rpEYyiydj_zsqnzzqNQ8kZhBoztqZF40rn72kFXks7cSgAT7Llm6sbeqajmSiV8Uas/s1600-h/the-kite-runner-poster-large.jpeg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMB1IMly3DSC67iwwZw1BIN4Gm5szvFbIN0EGUqGKY8Syx5FFPsBhYG1v25QH3FBqIxhbLmIkw1rpEYyiydj_zsqnzzqNQ8kZhBoztqZF40rn72kFXks7cSgAT7Llm6sbeqajmSiV8Uas/s320/the-kite-runner-poster-large.jpeg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5204259511758621922" border="0" /></a><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">I had been thinking of writing this for quite some time now, but never got the time to do it in the past one week ... <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Today being a lousy Saturday (a good time of which was spent/ wasted in college) … here I sit, typing away…<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">This post is dedicated to the essence of the message contained in the book, <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;">The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini </span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;">which rings in the ears of anyone who puts it down after having read it till the last page. Or sweetly <b style="">haunts</b> them .. yeah, that’s more like it .. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;">‘For you, a thousand times over …’</span></i></b><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;">WARNING: THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE BOOK. <span style=""> </span>SO READ ON AT YOUR OWN RISK!<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">The story is set in 1970-ish Afghanistan, and revolves around two main characters, Amir and Hassan, and is narrated in first person by Amir- a young lad (the story begins with his pre-adolescent years) <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Amir and Hassan grow up together, play games together, read together, eat together, laugh together, run together … and Oh, their lives are literally built around each other. Only, Amir grows up in a Big house, while Hassan grows up in a small one, in the former’s backyard;<span style=""> </span>Amir is the mastermind of all their “pranks”, Hassan- the humble executor; <span style=""> </span>Amir reads out stories to the unlettered Hassan, who laps up every word he says as gospel truth, ignorant of the fact that the “educated” Amir<i style=""> Agha </i>(an Afghani term of respectful address for elder brother) pokes fun at his ignorance of fancy words, and manipulates the stories while reading those out to him…<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Again, Amir eats the food neatly laid out on a huge table for him everyday by his <i style="">lesser</i> friend; Amir laughs with Hassan, and also AT him, while Hassan is always looking for reasons to bring smiles on his Amir Agha’s face, and … the deciding difference between the two … <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">While Hassan runs … for his life… for his Friend, and for his Friend’s Kite of Victory , Amir runs away from his duty- as a friend, as a master,<span style=""> </span>as an Agha to his little Hazara. Most importantly, Amir runs away from his conscience, he is a defeatist- an escapist. He tells the story.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Hassan is the Kite Runner – the loyal, brave and Tall man. Amir tells the story of Hassan. The story of the Kite Runner. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">He tells us the story, as the Bigger master-boy, dwarfed in skill, mind and character by his smaller servant-friend. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Amir lives with his father- a self-made man, of great riches and social influence. Hassan and his father are the hazara servants to their Pashtun family. To explain by means of an analogy, Hazaras are the Afghani equivalent of the Black slaves (though not bonded, unpaid labour) to the white rich men (Pashtuns). History tells us that Hazara’s are the Shia minority, driven to poverty and misery by the sunni Pashtuns. <span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">The following excerpt aptly captures the relationship between Amir and his father (He being a rich, khandaani pashtun boy, with no drop of father-like valour, but an immense (though less recognized) gift for writing, in his blood):<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><b><span style="">‘With me as the glaring exception, my father molded the world around him to his liking. The problem, of course, was that Baba saw the world in black and white. And he got to decide what was black and what was white. You can’t love a person who lives that way without fearing him too. Maybe even hating him a little’ <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><b><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="">A few lines of the Father, give us an insight into his character:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><b><span style="">‘No matter what the mullah teaches, there is only one sin, only one. And that is theft. Every other sin is a variation of theft. “When you kill a man, you steal a life,” Baba said. “You steal his wife’s right to a husband; rob his children of a father. When you tell a lie, you steal someone’s right to the truth. When you cheat, you steal the right to fairness.’ <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">(Although, years later Amir discovers, that the same man- whom he grows to love and respect immensely, himself failed to live by his own words. He deprived Amir and Hassan of the right to the true knowledge of their relationship- that they were half brothers- Hassan having been illicitly born to the family servant’s promiscuous wife)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Kite Flying is a great festival in their country. And retrieving the last defeated kite of the season is a matter of great pride and achievement – the Kite Runners are adept at this skill. And Hassan is the best <b style="">Kite Runner</b> in town, who always runs to fetch the kite of victory for his master. His last <b style="">kite-run</b> is when Amir, for the first time, ends up winning the Kite Flying tournament of the year. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">The following excerpts sum up the entire story, as it unfolds later: the story of loyalty of the poor hazara to his master, in return for a cowardly betrayal by the latter, who finds himself sacrificing his <i style="">friend </i>at the altar of a pseudo-victory… who watches in painful, yet shameful silence and inaction, as a group of rich little pashtun brats rape the hazara boy, as a punishment for standing up to them, protecting his master’s victory kite.. <span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;">After all</span></i><span style="line-height: 115%;">… he consoles himself … <i style="">he is just a hazara isn’t he</i> …</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5TKRuxrbn4jyUrJT8cmHA0JNbkJXhe3tzAqDrz5dE5ueKBclM-YOxZ3LeY0BelM6qvH1_PP6B_MutmC_b-DOAHL7Oj0p22AgOzcy-f_dRWqqghSwL5-P0tvhtnAkblSjN3GE1D1DDOmo/s1600-h/thekiterunner.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5TKRuxrbn4jyUrJT8cmHA0JNbkJXhe3tzAqDrz5dE5ueKBclM-YOxZ3LeY0BelM6qvH1_PP6B_MutmC_b-DOAHL7Oj0p22AgOzcy-f_dRWqqghSwL5-P0tvhtnAkblSjN3GE1D1DDOmo/s320/thekiterunner.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5204260280557767922" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="line-height: 115%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">‘ “Would I ever lie to you, Amir agha?” (Hassan asked Amir, upon being suspected of misleading them away from the victory kite)<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">Suddenly I decided to toy with him a little. “I don’t know. Would you?”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“I’d sooner eat dirt,” he said with a look of indignation.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Really? You’d do that?”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">He threw me a puzzled look. “Do what?”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Eat dirt if I told you to,” I said. I knew I was being cruel, like when I’d taunt him if he didn’t know some big word. But there was something fascinating--albeit in a sick way--about teasing Hassan.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">Kind of like when we used to play insect torture. Except now, he was the ant and I was holding the magnifying glass.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">His eyes searched my face for a long time. We sat there, two boys under a sour cherry tree,<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">suddenly looking, really looking, at each other. That’s when it happened again: Hassan’s face changed. Maybe not changed, not really, but suddenly I had the feeling I was looking at two faces, the one I knew, the one that was my first memory, and another, a second face, this one lurking just beneath the surface. I’d seen it happen before--it always shook me up a little. It just appeared, this other face, for a fraction of a moment, long enough to leave me with the unsettling feeling that maybe I’d seen it someplace before. Then Hassan blinked and it was just him again. Just Hassan.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“If you asked, I would,” he finally said, looking right at me. I dropped my eyes. To this day, I find it<span style=""> </span>hard to gaze directly at people like Hassan, people who mean every word they say.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“But I wonder,” he added. “Would you ever ask me to do such a thing, Amir agha?” And, just like that, he had thrown at me his own little test. If I was going to toy with him and challenge his loyalty, then he’d toy with me, test my integrity.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">I wished I hadn’t started this conversation. I forced a smile. “Don’t be stupid, Hassan. You know I wouldn’t.”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">Hassan returned the smile. Except, his, didn’t look forced. “I know,” he said.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style=""> </span>And that’s the thing about people who mean everything they say. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">They think everyone else does too.’<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;">…….. ….. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“You won, Amir agha! You won!”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“We won! We won!” was all I could say. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">Then I saw Baba on our roof. He was standing on the edge, pumping both of his fists. Hollering and clapping. And that right there was the single greatest moment of my twelve years of life, seeing Baba on that roof, proud of me <i style="">at last.</i><o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">But he was doing something now, motioning with his hands in an urgent way. Then I understood.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Hassan, we--”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“I know,” he said, breaking our embrace. “Inshallah, we’ll celebrate later. Right now, I’m going to run that blue kite for you,” he said. He dropped the spool and took off running, the hem of his green chapan dragging in the snow behind him.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Hassan!” I called. “Come back with it!”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">He was already turning the street corner, his rubber boots kicking up snow. He stopped, turned. He cupped his hands around his mouth. “<i style="">For you, a thousand times over!</i>” he said.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">…………………<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">And years later, Amir – a grown up, happily married, but childless man settled in US, gets to atone for his juvenile sins, by rescuing his orphaned, little nephew <b style="">Sohrab </b>(Hassan’s son)<b style=""> </b>from the war and poverty stricken Afghanistan, and adopting him into his family. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">After years of internal struggle, painful guilt and torture, he gets a chance to “be a good man again”. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">He gets to do for the son, what he owes to the father… <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Even though the little boy, torn by grief and exploitation, is reticent and withdrawn, from the new family… (I think that Amir takes it all, as penance that he has rightly earned)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">The book ends on an optimistic note, flashing a ray of hope .. in the life of the child Sohrab, as well as in the life of the was-a-child-is-now-a-man, Amir, with the following lines:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">(An eager-to-cheer Amir and a reluctant/hesitant Sohrab are flying a kite in the kite-festival in US. Their kite finally wins. )<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">Behind us, people cheered. Whistles and applause broke out. I was panting. The last time I had felt a rush like this was that day in the winter of 1975, just after I had cut the last kite, when I spotted Baba on our rooftop, clapping, beaming.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">I looked down at Sohrab. One corner of his mouth had curled up just so.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">A smile.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">Lopsided.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">Hardly there.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">But there.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">Behind us, kids were scampering, and a melee of screaming kite runners was chasing the loose kite drifting high above the trees. I blinked and the smile was gone. But it had been there. I had seen it.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">“Do you want me to run that kite for you?”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">His Adam’s apple rose and fell as he swallowed. The wind lifted his hair. I thought I saw him nod.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><i style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;">“For you, a thousand times over,”</span></i></b><b><span style="line-height: 115%;"> I heard myself say.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">Then I turned and ran.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;">‘For you, a thousand times over …’<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">This apparently, is a very common phrase in Afghanistan.. and it basically means ..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;">For someone like you, whom I so love and dedicate myself to, I would do anything you would wish me to … no matter how unpleasant or difficult the task, if it makes you happy, I would do it .. not once..<span style=""> </span>but a thousand times over …… as many times as you please … <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">So basically, anytime someone you love, and dedicate yourself to, asks something of you.. you tell them .. (not necessarily explicitly!)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">For YOU .. a thousand times over ..<span style=""> </span>:) <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">[According to one of the readers of the book who posted his views on a <b style="">The <span style=""> </span>Kite Runner</b> forum on Orkut, the phrase may have its origins in the term <b style="">'Hazara'</b> because the word hazara actually means 'from thousand', referring to the thousands of Mongols who invaded Afghanistan and whose descendants the Hazaras are supposed to be.] <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">In fact, I think this sentence/ sentiment is the key to realizing the extent of your love and devotion to anybody in your life …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">If you find yourself wondering as to whether your RoI in anybody is really justified, <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Or .. to take stock of just about how important some people are, in your life … <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Just ask yourself what Amir had asked Hassan..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><i style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;">Would you eat dirt for this person’s sake? <o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Okay.. this is not literally.. but something like .. would you take all $h!t in life, for someone .. and this doesn’t mean blindly taking $h!t FROM someone, but <i style="">for</i> them.. <i style="">for</i> their sake ..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Okay, let me rephrase it…more literally.. if your dear one were ordained to be fed a bottle of grime- and you had a choice of consuming it yourself instead, would you do it?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">You will be surprised to learn your own response, at the strength of your love and dedication, that you wouldn’t ordinarily even contemplate! … think of your parents and siblings or anyone whom you love … <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">And if you find yourself saying to them inwardly “<b style="">for you, a thousand times over” <o:p></o:p></b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">In case you did not know already, these people are absolutely integral to your very being!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Now, this should certainly not be interpreted the other way around … <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">That, you MUST feel like giving an affirmative response for such a question.. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Or that, tomorrow, if I had to jump into the puddle for say my sister … I should do so with the “For you a thousand times over” principle in mind … No!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">But, ask yourself… If I had to, would I?? <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">If not, then well… that’s an open field …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">But if Yes.. if u can say yes, without blinking an eye—then well, congratulations! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">You have a beautiful relationship to cherish, to live for … and to die for .. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <div style="border-style: none none dotted; padding: 0in 0in 1pt;"> <p class="MsoNormal" style="border: medium none ; padding: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">I dunno if this will appear to be an exaggeration, but I think this really is a mantra- a touchstone for love and loyalty in all relationships. <o:p></o:p></span></p> </div> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">I was going through this debate online… over who was the real hero of the story – Amir – the boy who lived to earn redemption- by the atonement of his adolescent sins years later, or Hassan – the boy who sacrificed his life and honour for his Friend … <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Amir admits to himself throughout the story, that he was a coward- not a braveheart like his father (or like Hassan) – and this is the excuse he gives himself, as he chooses to be a mute spectator, as the bullies launch a sexual assault on his 12-year old friend- who refuses to trade his Amir Agha’s victory kite for freedom!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">I really hated Amir- not coz he was not brave enough to put up a fight .. but coz he was not even loyal enough to forego his victory kite (which for him, meant his father’s love and pride in him, at last!) – to beg before the bullies to let go of Hassan, to bear the ignominy of defeat and, win himself his friend’s life and honour ..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">That, in my opinion, would have marked him as a real hero, ideally; The one who would beg for mercy, for his friend’s honour, if not FIGHT for it. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Worse, he goes on to punish Hassan – to fight his own guilt, he drives the poor boy out of his life and even his home!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">However, he was, after all, just a 12- year old boy, faced with a decision not many of us have to make in those tender years … and he does eventually struggle to earn redemption- to make amends .. to give to Hassan’s Son, Sohrab what Hassan was unfairly deprived of, all his life. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Hassan was the real Hero of Amir’s story- by his unwavering loyalty and bravery,that stirs you to the soul... Hassan was <b style="">The Kite Runner</b><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">By the last page of the book, Amir too grows in size- in spirit and character- by leaps and bounds! .. and you don’t even realize that he has grown into <b style=""><i style="">another Kite Runner,</i></b> just like his Hero half-brother .. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="line-height: 115%;">‘Hassan was already turning the street corner, his rubber boots kicking up snow. He stopped, turned. He cupped his hands around his mouth. “<i style="">For you, a thousand times over!</i>” he said.’<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">….<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><b><i style=""><span style="">‘ “For you, a thousand times over,”</span></i></b><b><span style=""> I heard myself say to Sohrab.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><b><span style="">Then I turned and <i style="">ran</i>.’<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><b><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><b><span style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-45032564019728007952008-05-10T11:00:00.000-07:002008-12-09T08:12:20.777-08:00*Sigh*<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2SL8oyrpp5zJJgyUc0Ae28cV8njw4Yug4432Swd9cAVnJh5yvIuxMFElSPxqTzhn2Gu4nqg_cvTok9XhjRp7TQGhuV4sF_hhF6ji2_YUxJ-rhZbrR5iK7rbM5hvmqT1NkyOIoSyAcBsE/s1600-h/LaundryBluesSadFace.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2SL8oyrpp5zJJgyUc0Ae28cV8njw4Yug4432Swd9cAVnJh5yvIuxMFElSPxqTzhn2Gu4nqg_cvTok9XhjRp7TQGhuV4sF_hhF6ji2_YUxJ-rhZbrR5iK7rbM5hvmqT1NkyOIoSyAcBsE/s320/LaundryBluesSadFace.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5198813975163039426" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />*sigh*<br /><br />I wish to write nothing today. I want to put up these long forgotten poems, though .. don't ask me why...<br /><br /><br />(I THINK we did this one posted below with that half-FRENCH teacher, who was hardly 22-23 and had a nasal voice ... her english classes were drab .. I rem doing "The Highway Man" with her .. and still can't help grinning at the memory of her nasal "Tlot tlot".. as she read out the poem in class ...hey, u rem arps, all her classes began and ended with .. *nasal voice* "Vaishaali .. please open ur workbook..".. n all she discussed was the answers to the questions...as vaishali answered impromptu ..pretending to be reading off her previous day's homework :P (Vaishali, by chance or choice, would always sit right under her nose!) )<br /><br />I just realised that we wasted huge literary works .. with her .... anyhow .. here is this one...<br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Solitary Reaper</span></span><br /><br />Behold her, single in the field,<br />Yon solitary Highland Lass!<br />Reaping and singing by herself;<br />Stop here, or gently pass!<br />Alone she cuts and binds the grain,<br />And sings a melancholy strain;<br />O listen! for the Vale profound<br />Is overflowing with the sound.<br /><br />No Nightingale did ever chaunt<br />More welcome notes to weary bands<br />Of travellers in some shady haunt,<br />Among Arabian sands:<br />A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard<br />In spring-time from the Cuckoo-bird,<br />Breaking the silence of the seas<br />Among the farthest Hebrides.<br /><br />Will no one tell me what she sings?--<br />Perhaps the plaintive numbers flow<br />For old, unhappy, far-off things,<br />And battles long ago:<br />Or is it some more humble lay,<br />Familiar matter of to-day?<br />Some natural sorrow, loss, or pain,<br />That has been, and may be again?<br /><br />Whate'er the theme, the Maiden sang<br />As if her song could have no ending;<br />I saw her singing at her work,<br />And o'er the sickle bending;--<br />I listened, motionless and still;<br />And, as I mounted up the hill<br />The music in my heart I bore,<br />Long after it was heard no more.<br /><br />-- William Wordsworth<br /><br /><br />And this one !!... With our very own and beloved Usha Ma'am :) .. I still vividly recall her recital of this one (the stern- dramatic look in her eye ..when she read out the khadoos neighbour's dialogue <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">"Good fences make good neighbours"</span>)<br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">MENDING WALL</span></span><br /><br /> by Robert Frost<br /><br />Something there is that doesn't love a wall,<br />That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it,<br />And spills the upper boulders in the sun,<br />And makes gaps even two can pass abreast.<br />The work of hunters is another thing:<br />I have come after them and made repair<br />Where they have left not one stone on a stone,<br />But they would have the rabbit out of hiding,<br />To please the yelping dogs. The gaps I mean,<br />No one has seen them made or heard them made,<br />But at spring mending-time we find them there.<br />I let my neighbor know beyond the hill;<br />And on a day we meet to walk the line<br />And set the wall between us once again.<br />We keep the wall between us as we go.<br />To each the boulders that have fallen to each.<br />And some are loaves and some so nearly balls<br />We have to use a spell to make them balance:<br />'Stay where you are until our backs are turned!'<br />We wear our fingers rough with handling them.<br />Oh, just another kind of out-door game,<br />One on a side. It comes to little more:<br />There where it is we do not need the wall:<br />He is all pine and I am apple orchard.<br />My apple trees will never get across<br />And eat the cones under his pines, I tell him.<br />He only says, 'Good fences make good neighbors'.<br />Spring is the mischief in me, and I wonder<br />If I could put a notion in his head:<br />'Why do they make good neighbors? Isn't it<br />Where there are cows?<br />But here there are no cows.<br />Before I built a wall I'd ask to know<br />What I was walling in or walling out,<br />And to whom I was like to give offence.<br />Something there is that doesn't love a wall,<br />That wants it down.' I could say 'Elves' to him,<br />But it's not elves exactly, and I'd rather<br />He said it for himself. I see him there<br />Bringing a stone grasped firmly by the top<br />In each hand, like an old-stone savage armed.<br />He moves in darkness as it seems to me~<br />Not of woods only and the shade of trees.<br />He will not go behind his father's saying,<br />And he likes having thought of it so well<br />He says again, "Good fences make good neighbors."<br /><br /><br />************************<br /><br />and ohh.. this one below !! ... again, her voice and expression are clearly etched in my memory :) .. as she would read out the bit when the villagers taunted Gulzaman- and challenged his manhood, for he was childless..<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">'GuIzaman, where is the son?</span><br /><br />(this one is my favourite - coz rem she had a peculiar way of pronouncing "n" :D .. that was so very adorable! )<br />this is the story of an old shepherd who does not have a son. His kinsmen (fellow shepherds) pass cruel remarks at his manhood, challenging his virility! And he silently bears it all ... never expressing the pain and torment that he goes through..<br />One day, when it rained/snowed heavily, all the sheep and expectant mothers (ewes) owned by his kinsmen, weakened by the cold and poorly fed on wet grassand gave birth to dead (or 'still-born') children... and they could be seen lamenting the loss of their sheep...<br />However, since Gulzaman had taken good care of his sheepfold - had kept it warm and snug with hay etc .. his own sheep are warm and secure. The expectant mother sheep (ewe) in his fold .. delivers a healthy baby, which is alive!! (that it will survive is indicated by the fact that it pees after a while!) .... Gulzaman, who has taken care of all his sheep like his own family (children), is proud of this moment ... it is nothing short of an achievement for him ... for him, it is like delivering his own baby boy ..<br />and at this proud moment, overcome with emotions, he holds that new born high up in the air, and declares victoriously to himself as much as to the others , "This is my son" :)<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Gulzaman's Son</span></span><br /><br />Climbing his tortuous way from Kanzalwan,<br />GuIzaman leaves the river, buckwheat harvests<br />and slopes dark with conifers. His breath comes<br />in a half-choked whistle, the air uncertain<br />whether to burst through the lungs or whoosh<br />out of the mouth.<br /><br />He doesn't remain with his people now,<br />among the sheepfolds and high-pasture huts.<br />They rag him, 'GuIzaman, where is the son?<br />Can we help?' 'Here comes the randiest ram<br />in the valley!' They're not funny, these jibes<br />at his virility. So each sundown he leaves<br />for the river to sleep in a stone-breaker's<br />pine-hut, till at dawn the sheep call him.<br /><br />GuIzaman strains up the last hundred feet<br />to reach the fold. Expectant ewes<br />seek shelter from the wind under the lee<br />of limestone walls. He sees his kinsmen,<br />bearded and gaunt and broad-boned as himself,<br />brooding over a dead kid. Rain starts hissing.<br />There has been such heavy sleet the week past<br />that in the sheepfolds new-borns have been dying.<br />With the mothers wind-weakened and fed<br />on wet grass, the lambs are still-born, flopping<br />inert on the earth. Ewes don't even lick<br />them and probe for hidden embers of life<br />with their raking tongues. Broken, they turn<br />on their sides like sacks of crushed ice.<br /><br />The turf is sodden but his own fold<br />is a small den made snug by bales of hay.<br />His ewe snuggles up to him and bleats<br />recognition, a thin tremolo of love<br />blanketed by gutturals of pain.<br />Relations crowd, darkening the doorway,<br />as with heavily-greased arms GuIzaman<br />examines her. Yes, the lamb is on its way!<br />An hour later it is there, quavery-legged<br />and wet and uncertain about<br />its rickety, four-pronged hold on the earth.<br />Shortly it pees. Allah be praised, now it will live.<br />It cannot die of a chill in the stomach.<br />Either the doorway has been cleared, or clouds<br />have been parted for an instant by the sun.<br />GuIzaman picks the dun-coloured lamb and holds<br />it to his chest. 'This', he says, 'this is my son.'<br /> - Keki N. Daruwalla<br /><br />(Pls note that I had first posted this poem without caring to mention the author! Thanks to Ashish, who promptly asked me this doubt ... I realised that I never knew the name of the poet! googled it up, n discovered that it was written by one Mr. Daruwalla... Thanks :D )<br />BTW: Gulzaman's Son was my first experience of Blank Verse or Free Verse (a verse which does not have any rhyme) .. We later did The Mending Wall and others in the same league of course ...<br /><br />.. Now, that reminds me of an Archie Strip that I read in the paper today ...<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Moose</span> ( frowning at a poet's recital of his composition) :: That was a Poem? It didn't even rhyme!</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Archie </span>(rolling eyes at his ignorance): Moose, that was "<span style="font-weight: bold;">Free Verse</span>"!</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Moose</span>: Good, who'd <span style="font-weight: bold;">pay</span> for a poem that doesn't even rhyme!</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">:D :D :D :P :P</span><br /><br />*sigh again*<br /><br />Ciao ...Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-8110904598377190912008-05-03T11:10:00.001-07:002008-05-05T01:23:47.460-07:00The Healing Power of Love .. *To You, Prof. Dumbledore :) *<p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">*sniff sniff* *dry cough*</p><p class="MsoNormal">*sigh-cum-deep drawn sniff*</p><p class="MsoNormal">*gulp—eyes blink in pain, as my throat squirms in revolt*</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>*lifting each finger with effort, and mouthing a groan-y<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>‘hhmmm’ to di’s warning that I take care to not let her laptop slip down and shatter* (You see, I’m again holding it high in the air on my lap – it is perpendicularly suspended in mid air, supported precariously on a pair of sick and tired lower limbs, weak with fever – Cant sit up straight, m lying down supine ! – I employ this position often, but today it’s not a choice but a compulsion ..)</p><p class="MsoNormal">You know … *painful sniff again*</p><p class="MsoNormal">I am sick. <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>And worse.. I’m down …not with the sweltering heat of Delhi … but with a Cold!</p><p class="MsoNormal">And I’m trying to figure out where I must have caught it.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Karishma blamed it on our frequent shifts between the AC-ed and Non- AC-ed environments .. no wonder so many people can be seen patting their throats and screwing their noses. This is in the air :(<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>..</p><p class="MsoNormal">I have strong reasons to believe that I picked it from a happy-go-lucky-go-publicly-coughy-merrily-throwing-cold-viruses-in-the-air co-intern, who insisted upon attending the office -with an EarNoseThroat fully choked with phlegm – every single day! … even though ordinarily he wouldn’t bat an eyelid when bunking office with such ah … CEO-like-elan<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>coz <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>..and I quote“ this would show them how committed I am… “ :P </p><p class="MsoNormal">Yeah! </p><p class="MsoNormal">As if This place had not given me enough woes already – a (hitherto ) godforsaken project, a cup of Bad-tasting tea everyday .. for which (I recently discovered) they charge us right out of our stipend :P … A sorry sacrifice of whatever little dignity I had walked in with, at the altar of Some people’s Witticisms :( ..</p><p class="MsoNormal">And Now ! ..</p><p class="MsoNormal">The final straw that’s threatening to break<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>the Camel’s back … a disgusting cold- rendering me physically incapable of free mobility, easy breathing, anything!! :( </p><p class="MsoNormal">In this state of half-trance (fever people! .. I have fever!! ..<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>:(<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>) am almost filled with thoughts of vindictive pleasure <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>*evil grin*</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>Let me be sick all the way up till Monday, and let me carry the germs back to their native place- My Office…<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>Andddddddd let me gift these to all those whom I wanna get back at :D :D .. by means of unabashed open-mouth coughing and sneezing (yeahh .. could I be more of a blot on the name of my esteemed institute!)</p><p class="MsoNormal">But hang on *stressing her peanut-brain with all her might* … there IS nobody who has wronged me.. there :(<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>… on the contrary … :) </p><p class="MsoNormal">*looks at the bottom left corner of the ms word screen, only to realize that she has been blabbering about stuff unrelated to the original intent of the post*</p><p class="MsoNormal">Okayy ,,, now m too tired …<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>but wanted to say a LOT!! .. <span style="font-size:+0;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">Now, somehow, just cant! </p><p class="MsoNormal">Okay …. A few years ago, on this planet called Earth, another creature was born ..</p><p class="MsoNormal">They named her something nice. But she is my Fairy God –Mother, guised as a mortal elder sister.</p><p class="MsoNormal">I somehow don’t feel like profiling her on a public forum … somehow, I think any lay person laying eyes on her profile sketch would not do justice to the meaning that the words hold for me … and I don’t want to desecrate the divine phenomenon that I have here.. with me.. for me .. always …</p><p class="MsoNormal"><?xml:namespace prefix = o /><o:p></o:p>Okayy .. I’m not <b>even</b> talking about the pristine soul that this one is … </p><p class="MsoNormal">But today, as I was purchasing something at a sabziwala’s cart on my way home (struggling to stand on my two feet … I am SUFFERING from fever remember*shoots a warning look if the reader had dared forget maintaining the understanding-sympathy look while reading this post*!!)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>Well, suddenly .. I saw this really tiny girl … clad in modest clothing (the kind that wears off by extensive use, and is then passed on by the Indian Patron families <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>to their domestic help et al) … this girl came out of nowhere, and broke down into really loud sobs, tears rolling down her already stained (with malnourishment and impoverishment ) face … I wondered what was wrong .. looking around curiously for maybe the Dad (at first, my hunch was that she was the sabziwale uncle’s daughter ) … well, he kept on loading and unloading sabzi nonchalantly, indifferently, as though the girl, her heart wrenching sobs, and bucketsload of tears did not even exist! </p><p class="MsoNormal">The little girl cried. Louder. Tears streaming down her face in spates! …<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>And .. dunno what struck me inside.. I wanted to walk up to her, just hug her and ask her why she was crying… I tell you, it was so moving that had it been a more worth-her-space-on-this-earth <span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>creature in my place, they would have bought her a bar of <b>Temptations</b> to just stop her from crying.</p><p class="MsoNormal">She pressed herself against the door of a car … crying ..to no avail .. a few seconds later … she started mouthing (at the universe, I presume coz none of the bystanders had even noticed her presence, let alone be an audience to her sobs!)<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>.. she mouthed “mummy..mummy” … helplessly .. </p><p class="MsoNormal">In a tone .. that yearns for clinging … </p><p class="MsoNormal">Clinging on to somebody or something , for help…. For support … for ..well … for just Being., for holding on.</p><p class="MsoNormal">I considered asking the sabziwale uncle as to who this kid belonged to .. and just then, my gaze fell upon another girl (bit taller than the little girl, lets call her ‘Chotu’ :) ) … looking at her from a distance .. </p><p class="MsoNormal">She stopped, she looked hesitantly, and then she looked away. Mouthing something to … I can only guess.. to the rest of her playmates .. signaling to resume their play anyway .. this disturbance notwithstanding.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Here is what I think must have transpired: </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>Chotu and her playmates must have quarreled (maybe they had an argument over whether she was “out” and was to play the “Denner” {err..pardon me, I was never sure how that word is spelt!} .. or maybe they were not including her in the game for some weird reason .. maybe coz she was the youngest of them all (didn’t they have a term for it .. <i>kachchi goli</i> I think :) ) … I dunno!! Cud be anything!!) … But here she was …feeling wronged, hurt, ignored and bruised … crying out for someone who would tell her comforting things that any kid her age would want to hear …</p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>Ignore them. Didis are being mean. We wont talk to them. <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>Come let us play something else.<o:p></o:p></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>Koi baat nahi, chalo abba kar lo. Vaapas game khelo.. Main dekhti hoon kaise Den dene ko kehte hain yeh log aapse. <o:p></o:p></i></p><p class="MsoNormal">Oh For chrissake!! Anything …</p><p class="MsoNormal">Or maybe she just needed a pair of warm secure arms to be taken into- away from the bad, mad world of her playmates. And wipe her tears on somebody’s safe shoulders.<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>Bury her face into an adult’s tummy, hold on tight, and just sob her heart away. </p><p class="MsoNormal">And yet, there she stood. All alone. Forgotten.<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>Crying her throat hoarse.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Eventually, she seemed to have run out of tears ..<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>(shamelessly worthless<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>as I am .. all this while, I just looked – from the tall girl, to Chotu to the sabziwale uncle .. wondering whether it would be ’okay’ if I just walked up to her and talked to her!) </p><p class="MsoNormal">I took my packet, and walked back home. And I had just rung the bell, and stepped inside my home that my sis’ sickly lovey-dovey welcome calls (like a cerelac baby had walked out of the can into her room :-x )reached my ears *indicative of a good day at work for her* …<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>as<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>usual, I cracked a ruthless joke about her routine annoying habit and her sanity levels , to M (our domestic help) .. and we both rolled up with sarcastic laughter. </p><p class="MsoNormal">I walked straight to my room until Nanima and di’s calls/queries became so intolerably unavoidable that I gathered all strength to register my attendance in their room. Well, there was an ulterior motive of course! I had to tell them how sick I felt. How I couldn’t walk a step without pain. How I was messed up from head to toe, and all this, after a hard day at WORK! (err… didn’t bother to mention that all I did today in college .. was engage in another chat-session/nonsense- repartee exchange with Mamata Ma’am and Devanshu under the pretext of working for the Live Project—doing just a little bit of real ‘work’<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>in between breaks!) </p><p class="MsoNormal">My face (automatically, I swear!!) rearranged itself into a look of utter pain and agony. <span style="font-size:+0;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">And I got what I had wanted. Impromptu .. Oooooohhs and aaaaaahhs … looks of pity, empathy, checking of pulse .. patting of the head … <i>(“Shruti! .. ur running a temperature, beta !”) </i>..as I put up a mock-brave front. (I had even begun on a mature note- whispering to my sis abt the fever, so that nanima would not get worried!.. but Well.. Lady Pink Panther that she is ..<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>how could it have missed her antenna-like ears.. and well I wasn’t really complaining in my heart of hearts – the more sympathy, the merrier I am! *disgusting I know! .. but then—u shud have known me better—this is the Real Me!!*)</p><p class="MsoNormal">Poor M flung into action ... with her milk and tea and whatnots ..</p><p class="MsoNormal">I sighed, simpered … and returned to my room .. and then yelled out to my sister something abt the “internet not working” ..<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>satisfied myself with a .. “ohhh ..too bad” from her end .. <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>and then, just lay there .. And waited for my sis to walk in … </p><p class="MsoNormal">Well… she has her magic wand .. and I make full use of it. All I have to do is cling on to her. Well, just her being around .. the safe knowledge that she knows how screwed up I am .. works magic. </p><p class="MsoNormal">I just have to pour it all out – not even in words..<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>she just understands .. lets me be sad, melancholic. </p><p class="MsoNormal">She has “it will all be alright, Shruti” written all over her face. <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>*** see note at the end</p><p class="MsoNormal">Poor my folks.. have never gotten a positive/encouraging reply to any of their queries<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>about “how was my day” .. abt watsup with my life in general. It is always cribbing. It is always the worst that I could list.</p><p class="MsoNormal">And if it weren’t for this ventilation..</p><p class="MsoNormal">But for these sounding boards -- I would have ceased to exist– ages ago. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Ditto all the others in my family, whom I turn to .. for just about everything. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Surely, the greatest gift God can give someone is a set of loved ones. <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>Everything else comes and goes.</p><p class="MsoNormal">What would have I done I can’t imagine (and sheeeeeesh I don’t WANT to! ) if these people weren’t around! ..</p><p class="MsoNormal">One shudders to think of those unfortunate souls who lose all their loved ones in life … or those who never have any. <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>Those who must “seek” love, <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>security , trust, and mutual bonding..<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>get bruised, bleed, and bandage the wound themselves and move on … all by themselves.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Oh … I’m sure the little girl I saw had some family. But I am not sure whether she had the comfort of those arms, the snug hug.. the reassuring smile that says<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>“ it will all be alright” … how many times do you see really poor kids wailing unclaimed around a pile of garbage, sometimes a 2 foot girl, holding a .5 foot bundle of a baby brother by her side .. and walking<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>… barefooted .. to nowhere ..</p><p class="MsoNormal">The mothers may be anywhere .. maybe begging, or lying by the footpath, in a heap of desolate despair, weakened by hunger, exploitation and have-not-ism.- The Universal fact of Motherly instincts beaten down badly by animal instincts for energy and material/spiritual hope. </p><p class="MsoNormal">We just don’t realize just about HOW lucky we are .. and keep taking our loved ones for granted … Well, I think that’s fairly alright … that is what god made them for ! .. (as long as, u take care of the ROI factor--- it is all good :) ) … </p><p class="MsoNormal">I just wish she had a Fairy Godmother too .. our Chotu! I wish tonight someone put her down to sleep, with a kiss on the forehead, or in a tight embrace<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>.. even if they were sleeping on a mat on a floor of concrete..</p><p class="MsoNormal">I just hope, Chotu .. like many lucky ones like us .. too has some loved one(s) … that she too has hope to fight all despair.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Professor Dumbledore had always been right about the Healing Power of Love.. how it can fight all Evil on earth. <span style="font-size:+0;"></span>It can. Oh, it sooo can. If only, we would come to realize its potential power to spread happiness, peace and calm. Cheers, Dumbledore. Cheers, Jo. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Cheers …<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal">*** Okay .. get real .. there is also this very mean,<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>insensitive side to her! – like the n number of times she stealthily ate my share of Maggie, and unapologetically fought with me when I protested, when she locked me in the bathroom when I was a hapless little kid (err.. not really hapless tho – I had a good mind to bang the door down with loud wails, until I heard my mum’s voice and employed plan Two instead—of sitting sadly in the corner, to strike notes of sympathy, and win the game :D :D), the legendary war in which she tore off my favourite shirt, over “who-gets-the-remote-control” .., and gave me proper<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>red scratches across my neck :O :O to my mum’s horror! .. Or when we punched each other in the face once (a real loose Tooth for a loose Tooth- and thankfully, since both lost milk teeth, we could keep the story under wraps, to be safe from parental wrath).. or when I was this one year old innocent (YEAH! I was THAT too, once upon a time :D) baby, and she would put me to sleep (by borrowing my milk bottle kinds from mum and feeding me forcefully) whenever some uncles and aunties came over and got chocolates for the “Two little daughters in the family. ..” and would feed on my share while I slept, and innocently awoke to<span style="font-size:+0;"> </span>absolutely NO recollection of the choc that I had earned a while ago! *gawwd… I’m kinda liking her less and less now .. as I recollect all this..*… Ohhh the list is endless!! :-x </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-50183533731203707972008-04-29T03:19:00.000-07:002008-05-03T11:24:58.230-07:00Thanks Meet ... :) :) .. u are an Angel ..I dunno whether I deserve such good wishes ... but i keep getting some odd once in a while ....<br />this was a pleasant surprise ... on such a lousy day ... and I didnt even know she would be thinking abt me n my problems ...<br /><br />Meet ... Thanks! ... I hope I pull it off ... ur wishes may act like a good omen :) :::<br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><a href="http://theblahblahblogbymeet.blogspot.com/">Just for You, Shruti!</a></span> ... I just dont care abt my job right now (okay, 'right now' is the key word :D) .. im really moved ...<br />and I love you .. and need I tell u that Ditto for u from my end, all that u hv offered me :D<br /><br />CHEERS and GOD BLESS indeed! :D :D<br /><br /><br />PS. ppl, dont get scared by my blog posts ... m fine! ... live n kicking (being thick skinned helps!)<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Ours is not to ask why, ours is but to do or die :D :)</span><br /><br />ShrutiRonald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-85921287615787181832008-04-27T11:11:00.000-07:002008-04-27T13:23:08.676-07:00'Hows ur Internship coming along?" they all ask me ... here is how ...!(this post is more like a mindless scribble... so pardon the lack of coherence, flow etc)<br />After 17 days of doing NOTHING, yesterday(Friday, 25th), I finally got to interview two people. I was ecstatic!<br />Even though I’m in very bad shape right now, considering that a LOT of time has been lost, at least, I got a start. I dunno why God had planned this for me though; he did not choose to throw me into a system (which I was apprehensive about disrupting anyway..) he chose to throw me into a system-less MESS, Where uncertainty, suspicion, confusion and hope are the order of the day. Well, it would have been interesting to observe and make notes of, if ONLY I had some kind of help … unfortunately, the department I am in has suffered the most, and I end up being an undesirable liability there.<br />As one senior 60-ish gentleman, (apparently miffed with the Kind Lady sparing two minutes to update me on the mess) thundered, “ arrre Madam, aap Summer Trainee ke saath kyun time waste kar rahi hain!... abhi hum ko koi trainee -vainee ka zaroorat nahii haaai … abhi pehle process ko streamline karne ka haai”<br />**note: Streamlining for Him begins and ends with: taking printouts- of anything and everything printable, printing a photocopy of the printout, making an entry in a register about the process, doing the needful with the information in the printout, then writing ‘done’ on the sheet, as well as on the register, then filing the sheet in the appropriate folder. Okay, no exaggeration this! .. this is like a remnant of the babu-culture that has probably worked in the past, but seriously .. this process applies to every little thing:: an email about updating xyz employee info in the SAP, and the first Action:: Printout le lo, madam! .. followed by the subsequent steps, till the very last. <br />As someone fondly (and irritably :P ) put “ Ohhh.. He lovvves paper. Give him paper- He will make more paper. Photocopy the paper. Photocopy the photocopy. And still complain that there is no paper!”<br />:D Well, even with all my frustration spiraling, it’s funny! And cute, I must say :) <br />Mind you, even I might have ended up as a printout, a photocopy and an entry in the register with “done” checked across my forehead, neatly filed in the cabinet… IF ONLY I had not been deemed so undesirable an object in the entire process of streamlining, and thus unworthy of being Filed at all, in his view :D<br />For the past few days, I was making merry at his workstation, since he was out on a tour .. now of course, he will be back, I won’t even get that square inch of space in the office .. hey, not that I mind! This position worked to my disadvantage in the past few days. While I sat there, undesirable, unoccupied, eyes hungry for attention, work (sometimes they ignore me, and change the topic hastily when I try to push in my “plans” for the project! :( coz the execution does not seem to be easy!) .. well, while I sat there, in order to make the most of my time, initially I would search as much as I cud, on all the stuff that could possible help me in my project (I googled up more than was desirable/worthwhile) .. and when I grew tired of that (in the vain hope that they will pay heed, in a while, any moment now .. in some more time ..) I excitedly started documenting my project plan .. I mean I merrily charted my own four-step plan of how I will go about doing it, and forwarded it to the appropriate quarters. It’s been days and days, and I know it lies unread!<br />Despite my frequent allusions to the plan in conversation, reminders of the mail… somehow, things never take off! I mean I never get a NO- but I never get anything! It is so very weird, that I don’t know what to do :( I just DON’T.<br />It all lies unread. And it hurts. More so, coz I really don’t see who is to be blamed. If I am not having an easy time, others around me aren’t exactly walking on a bed of roses, either.<br />*sigh* the state of affairs is such, that I can’t entirely blame them- the office people.<br />I really should not be working. Not with people, at least. And certainly not in jobs like these.<br /> Maybe I should reconsider my plans of becoming a stand-up comedienne (*sigh* this was ages ago… and Arps was the one who had suggested this to me ..) , or maybe .. I dunno .. what kind of job will not require working with people/getting work out of them? .. <br />Errrm..<br />A stand up comedienne.<br />A newspaper hawker.<br />I dunno..some more, on similar lines! *sigh of resignation*<br />If the creator created me, surely he had a plan in mind? But why is he hiding it up his sleeve?<br />Such lowly sadistic pleasure, God.. must say … I’m not too happy with your way of working *pouts*<br />Gawwwd !! … anyway ..<br />So, while I sat before the desktop, trying to appear as occupied as one totally unoccupied person could possibly look, documenting plans that no one ever had the intention of reading … and then.. once I saw that no one really cared … checking mails, reading blogs .. and it was a mark of how frustrated I was .. for the first time ever, I had the option of gtalking, but I never logged in:: cud have orkutted all I wanted .. but never once felt like it.. checked mails, only in the vain hope that somebody from the head office would check on me.. or maybe ..maybe.. some answers will show up!<br />I even started clicking on mails forwarded by my aunt (from the Sai Foundation) .. !!<br />With due love and respect to Baba, I had never really bothered with these earlier .. but now I would actually read his messages on love, peace, patience, brotherhood etc etc just to keep myself sane.<br />Even blogging had lost its charm. Certainly, these things can never give pleasure ..when these are adulterating your work hours. Somehow, reading Godly stuff seemed like less of cheating on work, than reading anything else!<br />Well, the bottomline is … I would be seen at the workstation, and was ignorant of how to, the 3 new summer interns at the place, it appeared that I was in full gear with my project. Apparently, many intro lectures were held by important people in the organization for these people, and I was not disturbed.. coz everybody assumed that I was full-on into the process!! :( :(<br />And it was only when after hours of heightened nothingness, boredom and frustration upon being religiously ignored reached its peak, that I walked into the conference room, to check on one of the interns, who seemed to be busy with reading some stuff, to pour my heart out before a fellow sufferer.<br />Poor thing had suffered the same fate as I had, for the first 10 days (in his region of posting, he was not even let beyond the gate- since the concerned person was not available *ditto my story!* at least I had reached the conference room next to the reception!! Although I did nothing but stare at the walls for hours every day) … But, things are good for him now-the project guide is excellent , and the project is rolling. Amen. I don’t want to cast an evil eye though! <br />Well anyway, it was only during this enlightening (and very cathartic :) ) interaction that I realized the myth surrounding me and my project, which had further kept me in the dark and put me at a disadvantage.<br />To cut a long story short (Aaaahh Arps… this one is also a Kodak moment, worthy of a mental picture :D)<br />After attending a major company function (the first activity at my end, since the day of joining! ) and making very public remarks, jokes etc in exasperation, about the dismal state of my project, I got my first two one-on-one interactions yesterday. And I am grateful :)<br /> Better late than never :D<br />(will you beat this, one of the uncles even asked me for an ‘office party’ .. heaven knows on what grounds .. I replied that I would definitely throw a grand party the day my project would finally be completed- IF at all. To which he responded with “arrre … you throw us a party, and ur project will be done in no time” :O :O)<br /><br />Okay, I had fallen asleep last morning (yes, around 7-ish in the morning!) typing this post, and am writing this again after 12 + hours . Had an exceelllllllllent day :D<br /> Had a huge cribbing session {all stories retold as comedy-in-tragedy} with my favourite cribbing audience:: My Family (extended family that is :D)<br />And as usual, have come home more cheerful and hopeful in heart, and armed with more tips on what to do with my godforsaken life :P<br />One of my fav. Lowly Moments today::<br />IB Uncle (look of concern):: Cheer up, Shruti. Poor thing, look how tense she is, about her project!<br />HB(rolling eyes, with an evil glint):: That’s becoz she loves being tense. When it was not her Project, it was an assignment, or her MBA or her Exams .. ‘Tense’ is her keyword.<br />So what Tense are you Shruti?*at his lowest best* Past Tense, Present tense or Future tense?<br />Me (Matching the low standards of the discourse)*with a sigh*:: I guess in the near future, I will be Past Tense<br /> (Collective Sigh suppressed under laughter :( )<br /><br />Before signing off, I just want to register something: My internship etc apart, I have come to know a very clean soul in this place (My new Guide kinds...) She belongs to a rare breed- a rare combo of intelligence, simplicity, humility and a good heart, - especially in the corporate world. People tell her she won’t survive long this way- sans airs or diplomacy :P … even I wonder how she did survive so long :D … here’s wishing her all the very best in life :)<br /><br />************Long, strange break of many many phone calls *gulp*<br /><br />okay, al post this now ... got work to do as well!!<br />Best …<br />ShrutiRonald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-75386068159739289122008-04-20T14:19:00.000-07:002008-04-22T08:52:41.931-07:00Latest Updates<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Summer Internship::<?xml:namespace prefix = o /><o:p></o:p></b></p><p class="MsoNormal">Project guide Quit job! Even before we got a chance to meet (See, I told you- I can have disastrously damaging effects, without having to put in much effort. My mere presence/existence does the trick.)</p><p class="MsoNormal">15 days of pure waste. That’s what it all boils down to. <span style="font-size:0;"></span>Not surprising.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Let’s see what tomorrow has in store for me.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Disappointment:: More People Letting Down<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Political correctness. Inertia. Indifference. Sadistic pleasure. Voyeurism. Cynicism.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Helplessness. Confusion. Moral/ Emotional dilemma. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >These are some of the things one gets to see all around—writ large on people’s faces. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Sometimes, it evokes pity. Sometimes anger/ frustration/ hurt. Sometimes, questions.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >And finally, one draws a blank.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Okay, no big deal.<span style="font-size:0;"> </span>21 years should teach one what to expect from life.. from people.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >There is right, and there is wrong, and there is rightly wrong, and wrongly right.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >There is My Right, Their Wrong (rarely, do people have it the other way)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Quoting Detective Riordan from The Genesis Code, ‘it all boils down to a big -So What?!’<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Basicalllyyy …<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >This is not Food For Thought, but really, food for food-poisoning.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Unsettling revelations again<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Well, not exactly ‘revelations’ but .. well, the same story retold from another perspective.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" ><span style="font-size:0;"></span>And somehow, leaving a bad taste in the mouth. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >And well, I would like to leave a message here for anyone who has ever attached themselves to anyone, to the point of an inexplicable feeling of (emotional) loyalty towards them.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Maybe sometimes, it is OK to do a re-think, and ask yourselves a few questions:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" ><o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Do They deserve it? <o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Do they deserve it from You?<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Would you expect the same from them?<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >What if they didn’t meet your expectations? Would you be hurt? Does it matter to you? <o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Does it matter enough for you to do a re-think on the attachment and loyalty? <o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >For your own sake? <o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Is the ROI on this person enough to make you stay invested? <o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Andd… does your Investment in person A (a part of your ROI to them) cut unfairly into the ROI that you owe to person B? <o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >(Please note that all these calculations are based on a natural presumption that all deals are based on fairness, honesty, transparency and justice)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >*** see note at bottom<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" ><span style="font-size:0;"></span>(Arps, that would be Return on Investment; Investment of your loyalty and attachment, now the returns may not have to be in similar terms- could be anything- learning, social security{if not emotional}, justice, etc )<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >So, if the ROI does not seem much, I would say, re-think as to whether you want to stay invested<i>. </i>Not ‘staying invested’ does not mean harbouring ill-will towards anybody, or giving a raw-deal. Be fair and just in all your dealings. And be fair to yourself. This analysis will help in many cases: <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="TEXT-INDENT: -0.25in"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-family:Symbol;font-size:12;" ><span style="font-size:0;">·<span style="font-size:0;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >You could be making forced (unsolicited or uninvited)-investments where you are not desired/appreciated, (and then when you dont get commensurate returns, you will find yourself complaining- when the other party never desired a deal in the first place!)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Hence, you are being unfair to them, and hurting yourself unnecessarily.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="TEXT-INDENT: -0.25in"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-family:Symbol;font-size:12;" ><span style="font-size:0;">·<span style="font-size:0;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >You could be making investments-on-solicitation i.e, where you have been indicated that your investment is eagerly sought, and desired and valued. And the ROIs could be low—maybe the other party does not care about it being a fairly equal deal. Your investment could be exploited for personal gains, with no intentions of reciprocal returns. You are harming yourself, and you have yourself to blame. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >One would do well to remember (however crude it may sound..) that there is no such thing as “charity”, there is NO “free lunch”. <span style="font-size:0;"></span>Of course, this is a fact well-known to all, but acknowledged by very few. <span style="font-size:0;"></span>Now, before people jump to listing illustrations of unselfish acts and<span style="font-size:0;"> </span>behavior, when I say, ‘free lunch’, it’s not just the tangible returns I refer to ..<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >There can be intangible, fair returns .. such as loyalty, moral and emotional support, kind-intentions, good-wishes, kind thoughts, timely help in times of need, among the other obvious ones. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Even Mother Teresa (a great, divine soul perhaps by all standards) was driven by fulfillment of needs of the Self. She derived maximum pleasure out of alleviating pain and loving the socially ostracized and abandoned, rather than .. say, she would have, if she were working as the Political Leader of a state struck by anarchy, and in dire need of an able leader who would lead them out of mess. Well, that would be a great social contribution too-for the good of others, to administer well, and run a state, manage the economy, politics etc such that people are well-fed and watered and clothed.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >However, she adopted the other way. Coz that was what came naturally to her. What we choose to do in life is ideally, always something that matches that which gives us maximum happiness, n a feeling of achievement and self-fulfilment, with our physical and mental abilities. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >In my opinion then, it makes little sense to hide behind the protection of abstract notions like “charity” , “self-less work for the larger cause of others” etc .. which really do not have any basis in reality, and then struggle with the complications and moral dilemmas that they throw at you. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >And for the record, it would be a good idea to confess to ourselves that no rational order would equal “morality” with “self-less charity”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Why punish yourself for liking something well within your legitimate means, by way of earning the fruit (without unfairly eating into someone else’s share), and then giving it away, or giving it up – just coz <i>For Some Reason THEY say It would Be the More Proper thing to do , even though it sooo does not feel like that, right now.</i> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Basically, the idea was to convey that one must not fool oneself and others into believing that one’s loyalty, attachment etc for anybody is NOT an investment, with an eye on returns. Although the calculation is done implicitly, and subconsciously, and naturally, the point is that the ROI <b>IS</b> an important factor. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Why it becomes extremely important to recognize this, is that the lack of such honesty about the dynamics of human relationships leads to confusion, guilt, deception and unfair dealings, Truly IMMORAL and UNETHICAL behaviour (as people struggle between the innate, natural desire for fulfillment of self-interests, and the external dictum of how fulfillment of self-interest is bad, low-rated and socially undesirable/unacceptable.)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >The fight between the internal Truth and the External Untruth/Lie results in manipulation, so that one can appear to adhere to the Socially acceptable External Untruth, while in reality fulfilling his/her own strong, internal, actual truthful desires (doing this in contradiction of the former of course!)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Half the problems that we see around us, with people – the disappointments, lies, deception, political scheming, plotting etc<span style="font-size:0;"> </span>all stem from this lack of honestly to our own-selves<span style="font-size:0;"> </span>(which naturally leads to dishonestly towards others)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >*** I’m throwing these questions at the universe .. Okay, for the record, this outburst certainly has no connection whatsoever to my personal, first-hand experience.. it is an observation. And I wanted to note it down for the benefit of any soul, who might need to look at things this way.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >And those who don’t understand what this means, now… well, it’s contextual, maybe one day when you experience it yourself, you will come back to this post .. and wish that you had understood the word of caution put up in this space :D <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >I was taken aback by something that transpired today. And wondered about the ignorance in which people live each day. About the Investments they make, and the ROIs which they take for granted! This is all I can do at my end. Let out a clue. God and good judgment should do the rest!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >It’s nice to be nice. <o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >It’s nicer to be nice to all by default- without prejudices or malice.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >And It’s nicest to begin by being nice to yourself!<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" ><span style="font-size:0;"></span>Remember the morning prayer at School..<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Humko man ki shakti dena,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Man vijay karein,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Doosron ki jay se pehle,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Khud ko jay karein<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" ><span style="font-size:0;"></span></span></i><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Let us locate the temple of God within ourselves. This way, it will also ensure Good and clean acts and behavior from our end. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >I am sacred. I am not to be defiled. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >I am holy. I would never defile the sanctity of another. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Win-win situation for all! <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" >Signing off …<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%;font-size:12;" ><span style="font-size:0;"></span><o:p></o:p></span></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-56135518101960352442008-04-17T09:25:00.000-07:002008-04-20T14:42:52.683-07:00*Shruti ... Calm ... Self! ...*<p class="MsoNormal">Oh Gawwwdd …. My fingers shake as I type … but I dunno what else to do … im trying chocolate therapy alongside … but I guess it will take time, to show the soothing effect!!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">*takes deep breaths*</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">*counts till ten* </p> <p class="MsoNormal">One</p> <p class="MsoNormal">…</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Two</p> <p class="MsoNormal">…</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Three </p> <p class="MsoNormal">….</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Four </p> <p class="MsoNormal">…..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Five</p> <p class="MsoNormal">…..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Six</p> <p class="MsoNormal">….</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Seven</p> <p class="MsoNormal">…</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Eight</p> <p class="MsoNormal">….</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Nine</p> <p class="MsoNormal">…..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Ten </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Oh gawd … I did that on purpose … typing mindlessly is also cathartic …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">But ..not helping much…</p> <p class="MsoNormal">N m drinking pepsi too …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Not helping…</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Okay … al keep talking…. Until it subsides …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Gawwddd… my fingers still shake, and its fury .. of the highest order …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">On the injustice of it all … </p> <p class="MsoNormal">On the farce of it all …</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Oh …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">IT barks, but <span style=""> </span>deep down… IT’s nice ..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Oh…</p> <p class="MsoNormal">IT bites, but deep down …. IT’s nice…</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Oh, it hurts, but <span style=""> </span>deep down ….IT’s nice …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Oh..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">It kills, but deep down ….. It’s nice …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">So all u have to do … is keep digging through the black hole, in the hope , that one day u will discover what that “nice” is …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Coz ideally, normally, all the above activities wud not exactly qualify one to be called NICE …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Oh… </p> <p class="MsoNormal">What IT does actually,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Is to beat its chest on a rooftop, every morning .. about being NICE –a convenient self-defined abstraction –</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Then do everything throughout the day, that wud point otherwise …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And then … as a safety option … doles out ALMS to ITs fellow beings (Oh doles those out with both hands… asked for or not!! ) …<span style=""> </span>to gain a psychological advantage …. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">And then, do everything … so that all facts laid out … at the end of everything… people have to say,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Oh .. deeeeeeeeeep deeeeeeeep down … IT’s still nice ….</p> <p class="MsoNormal">NICE- another word I hate with all my might! </p> <p class="MsoNormal">I cud sit peacefully. I’m out of the mess (God is kind!) …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">If only Human Rights Violation … n the sheer injustice of it all … *ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh*</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And I tried hunting for episodes of Diff’rent Strokes on the net, to kick in the normalization effect .. to soothe nerves down … and guess what!! … they have taken’em all off youtube!!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">*groans…painfully*</p> <p class="MsoNormal">What am I to do?</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Except Blog …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Arps’ net connection sucks … Meet is not online at this hour ..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">dunno when either will login ..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And I don’t have Arnold to bring a smile on my face … </p> <p class="MsoNormal">(m buffering an episode of FRIENDS now …)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Hope it helps …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">God, I offer a prayer …<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">**F.R.I.E.N.D.S break**</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Heyy … just watched a Joey-video :D</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Lolz! I love him …. (im kinda smiling <span style=""> </span>:) ) :::</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Joey: Hey Ross. If homo sapiens were in fact “HOMO sapiens”, could that be why they’re extinct?<br />Ross: Joey, homo sapiens are people.<br />Joey: Hey! I’m not judging here. <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">…..<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Al just end with lines from the Gita , (wistfully) … although it has no direct relevance!! .. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><i style="">Yada yada hi dharmasya, glanirbhavti bharata ..<o:p></o:p></i></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><i style="">Abhyutthanam adharmasya, tadatmanam srijyamaham<o:p></o:p></i></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Can’t speak much now …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Later … </p> <p class="MsoNormal">PS.<span style=""> </span>It is my earnest request that I don’t get comments on this particular post. No questions asked. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Peace!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Thanks. </p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-38495871369831974302008-04-16T04:46:00.000-07:002008-12-09T08:12:20.958-08:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirH74xOjafKcli1ugdEE14ioXGnre7QzDwjUgVEgR3sCUe6D90WLGjn-UrpZIDFg7sMAv-IoDvSOjTmAkc0j1sU2LgrN3fRerqFUf_SWdDCS-kefgl6-Bs__GbpTROUe0UN2Xl3gpZpL4/s1600-h/Dementor.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirH74xOjafKcli1ugdEE14ioXGnre7QzDwjUgVEgR3sCUe6D90WLGjn-UrpZIDFg7sMAv-IoDvSOjTmAkc0j1sU2LgrN3fRerqFUf_SWdDCS-kefgl6-Bs__GbpTROUe0UN2Xl3gpZpL4/s320/Dementor.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189808633451127250" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:180%;">The Demented Dementor Strikes again...<br /><br /></span> *And the Muggles watch, in<br /> helpless silence/ or sadistic pleasure?*</span><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">O Demented Dementor, </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Demented you’ll always be ..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Fly away to Azkaban,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And let our souls FREE :(</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;" align="right"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Tired of your Howlers,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Which you oh-so-louuvv to send!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Self-proclaimed Messiah,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">You are but one FIEND..</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I would have called it Pity,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">This sentiment I feel,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Had it not been so strong,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">To crush you under a Wheel ..!</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Did you have a bad childhood?</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And has it damaged your brain?</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Err.. well I would have felt Sorry,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">If you weren’t <span style=""> </span>so brutally vain…</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">You know what, O Demented One,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">*Sigh* you are a You-Know-Who,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Within your ten feet, would come no one,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Lest you should bite, or scratch or BOO!! :(</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">And they would all rather suffer in silence,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">While you trample them, with delight</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Sheer cowardice, or criminal inertia?</p> <p class="MsoNormal">For the victims refuse to Fight..</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Oh there are Ludo Bagmans,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And Lockharts, and Barty Crouch…</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And there are Demented Dementors,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Who under White Cloaks crouch!!</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">At least Ludo, Barty or even Snape !</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Would steer clear of our way..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">We don’t like the sight of them,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And the same they’d have to say!!</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">But You, Oh Demented Dementor!!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">You wouldn’t rest in peace, </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Unless you hound each one of us,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And our happiness fleece!</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Pathetic aren’t you, with a mouth so foul,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">That’s spared no single soul,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And yet, you seek overt-camaraderie,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Beats me what is your Goal!!</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Where do you fetch such verbal muck?</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The Municipality Dump? I wonder..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Too bad, they let you loose from there,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">To strut, to insanely thunder…</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I pray for your current victim, </p> <p class="MsoNormal">for none would be by their side,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">People’s conscience is perhaps dead,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">They’re all busy being nice and snide.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I cringe at your uncouth ways,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I cringe at those who refuse to speak!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Are they being innocent fools?</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Or clever politicos guised as Meek!</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Go away to Azkaban, </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Though St. Mungo’s would also do,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">But no! <span style=""> </span>there you’d feed on innocent souls,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">At least the Deatheaters Deserve you!! :( :(</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"> -<span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">The-solitary-member-of-the-Order-of-the-Phoenix </span><br /></p><br /><br />*Arps, Meet ..sic sic .. sshhhhhhh ... YOU-KNOW-WHO right ;) .. will give u the exact updates in person * ..... PS. recall the outstanding traits of DD, and appreciate the analogy with Howlers :DRonald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-49552689698657554842008-04-14T01:17:00.000-07:002008-04-20T14:45:58.827-07:00The Mixed Bag : Of Goa, Ethics and MTNL !!<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >*posted next afternoon*<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Okay.. so, the other day, this discussion on ‘Ethics’ came up yet again, on someone’s blog.<span style=""> </span>And I tried to put in words (though as a very crude attempt) some earnest thoughts. And then I recalled this reply-comment I had written for a previous post on this blog. It was a verse on a related issue. Well, it was an allegorical verse (A real-life story retold through the means of parallel characters- not necessarily human/animate beings. Boy! I love doing these things- helps me vent emotions without adopting the ugly-banging-head-on-the-wall course of action :D, which<span style=""> </span>more often than not, yields no fruitful results!)<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Here is what I had written:</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I have just come to despise certain words lately, "morals" and "ethics" being some of them ..<br />it's weird how pure logic is often touted as something so high-n-mighty.. and has become almost a FAD .. u know .. the "in thing" ..<br />2+2=4, n not 5, 6 or 7! .. stating this very obvious in public has become a virtue of sorts ..<br />and thus, statement of logical facts has become a rare phenomenon in itself .. we conveniently sanctify this exercise.. and then wash our hands off it by running away with the excuse of being mere mortals ..with not a hint of divinity!..<br />The White Flower <a href="http://ronspeaketh.blogspot.com/2008/02/i-began-writing-this-post-on-jan-29-but.html"><span style="font-weight: bold;">here</span></a>, is an allegorical depiction of those who can manipulate this weakness in the masses at large, to their advantage .. u know, grabbing the Halo by calling 2+2=4 when they so wish, and making the same 5, 6 or 3 when it suits their convenience, coz they think they can always turn around and tell the non-haloed beings, ‘at least I got it right last time’ ...<br />What is simple logic, becomes simple politics..<br />The answer '4' is no more the relevant .. it is the process of addition in which lies the catch..!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And this comment on this other blog I was talking about:</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I think the word “Ethics” lends itself to convenient manipulation coz of its relative nature.<span style=""> </span>Seriously, <span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>we shud replace it with the concept of Cold Logic, for all purposes- practical, and for public discourse. The problem arises when we attach the avoidable baggage of morality to the simple logic of<br />"As u sow, so you reap".<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Sigh.<span style=""> </span>This is what happens when you lose the context of things! ..</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">I don’t expect any reader to understand much of this, coz it has not been very well articulated. Maybe, some other time. ...</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">MTNL is playing truant!! I H-A-T-E it … positively hate it … with every iota of HATE I can muster.<span style=""> </span>Somehow, it shows “connected” status, but internet remains inaccessible. And this silly goose of <span style=""> </span>Internet Service Provider wont relent :(<span style=""> </span>I have to do an entire report for my new “work place” .. and having been occupied (for a change, PRODUCTIVELY) with other things, I could not sit for this before today, and Lo! The MTNL is busy acting up :-x<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">(Honestly, the sheer volume (and quality) of curses that me and my sis have hurled at them in frustration, gets me worried about its fate! )</p> <p class="MsoNormal">So, here I sit, hoping against hope that mayyyybe it will connect in a while (er.. though it hasn’t behaved in the past 10 hours :( : (<span style=""> </span>)</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>Oh by the way! <span style=""> </span>I got to know something very interesting the other day. One of my seniors has secured a job posting in Goa! .. I mean wow!! .. Of all places you can associate with work-<span style=""> </span>that should certainly rank somewhere at the bottom. And yet, it never occurred to me.. of course, you do have normal people there, working in offices, toiling day in, and day out… doing all the mundane work that unfortunate beings like us living in non-holiday spots do. I mean of course, you DO need things other than music, party, beaches, cruises, or even dope et al. for that matter, to run a city. D’oh!!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">At first, it seemed too good to be true :D :D … Goa!! .. The minute I discovered this, an image popped up in my mind (and yeah, ludicrous image I agree) – I immediately visualized him in THAT holiday Hat, and all the other Beach-gear.. sipping off a drink (I also wondered aloud as to whether we could now expect to see him next in those loud Beachy, Flowery T-shirts :P but apparently, he is okay without those!)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And yet, Goa is Goa. It’s a place full of life and energy, a zest for life, and a life full of gay abandon!<span style=""> </span>Or at least, that is what I remember of that city, which has a very different flavor of its own.<span style=""> </span>It can’t be just the Portugal touch. Nope, it’s more. The ethos of the city I guess – a certain quality is exuded by just about everything and everyone, that is so very umm.. Goan, there is no other word for it! <span style=""> </span>And it’s not just the beaches. It’s more :) </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Now, there is a very fond memory of that place, that still brings a smile to my face(As do <span style=""> </span>all RKK-memories :) ).<span style=""> </span>We were on this cruise in Goa (I think it was called ‘Maria’ ..) *on this 8 day<span style=""> </span>Bombay-to-Goa Trip organized by the School. This was when I was in class Eight, yeahh.. *</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Well, it was one of the most beautiful evenings we spent there. The Cruise. <span style=""> </span>Must be around 40 of my batchmates, and 40-ish seniors.<span style=""> </span>Like I said, the spirit of Goa is contagious, and in places and occasions like the cruise mentioned above, with a wonderful blend of music and frolic, you have a certain magic in the air :) *reminisces fondly* </p> <p class="MsoNormal">It wasn’t loud- the gathering.<span style=""> </span>People weren’t stepping on each other, screaming each other down (Oh, that’s another legitimate way of indulging in gay abandon after a hard day’s work :) of course) </p> <p class="MsoNormal">It was one of those elegant kinds of gathering. Where one swayed to the music, or just stepped back and quietly watched with amused satisfaction and pleasure, the ambience, and the people- all gathered to take some fun “time out” and to share the spirit with all others in the place- known and unknown.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Oh I recall this guy who was performing – I think he sang mostly all of Lucky Ali songs, and Boy! He could have given him stiff competition- the voice was too good. (u know… when I was younger, I was never as tone-deaf, as I eventually grew up to be :P .. although was never a music freak, let alone a connoisseur… but yeah I can tell a good set of vocal chords at work, anyday!)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Well, The music was awesome, and the singer was awesome too. (I dunno if this was a co-incidence, but he had the same (or greatly similar) physical appearance as Lucky Ali *hehe.. although, he might have done better with the resemblance having<span style=""> </span>stopped at the voice bit ;) *)<span style=""> </span>We were seated among the audience for quite some time (well…loads of things there as well, but the memory’s hazy) </p> <p class="MsoNormal">There were people dancing on the floor before us, as the guy sang and music played. And I recall all of us itching to take over the dance floor. (Gosh, we were a fun batch! .. u cud play any music at any hour of the day, at any place .. u name it, and it would come alive as a dance floor :) <span style=""> </span>).. Unfortunately, we weren’t alone on the cruise, the crowd was well… a Crowd- which is always a mixed bag of the decent and the not-so-decent strangers. And footloose as we were, we were also quite sensible, in a way <span style=""> </span>*sighs with fond pride* So we did not, of course, step onto the dance floor (though I seriously remember having contemplated throwing off the junta who had occupied the floor for so long, into the surrounding water. We were even wondering as to how much booking the entire cruise just for our lot, would have cost. Errm.. yeah, there were times when I was too big for my shoes, with my imagination :P) Well, we sat there, after sometime, beginning to crib inwardly, yearning to flex our muscles, to get up and get started! Good sense, and faith in god stopped us from taking any step which might only have spoilt the otherwise fun trip. And so we sat, bidding our time…</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Meanwhile, I recall this episode with Nidhi J. :D …<span style=""> </span>well, it’s a legend close to everyone’s heart. <span style=""> </span>For firsts, she was one person who had fully internalised Goa – with all those flowery beachy shirts, and very Goan sunglasses. Well, she was also the ‘Ms. twinkling toes’ of our group, and the denial of the opportunity to dance on such an opportune moment and platform.. if it was bothering the rest of us, I’m sure it must have been annoying her no end.<span style=""> </span>She sat there, imapatiently, irritably. And Nidhi-ly. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">So when this Aunty turned around, sweetly and asked her in a very conversational manner, “So, where are you all coming from?” (errmm..we were a pretty large and notice-able group u see :D) ..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">To our shock, and disbelief, Nidhi turned around and snapped back at the Aunty :</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I’m sorry Aunty. We are not supposed to talk to strangers.<span style=""> </span>*Cold look*</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Aunty *struggling to overcome the initial shock of this sudden, uninvited rudeness. And especially hurtful, I assume coz she had picked on this girl who sooo looked like an Official-member-of-the-Goan-Clan*</p> <p class="MsoNormal">‘oh..kay’ *turns around in her seat, face red with shock and anger*</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>Well, the music ended. And there was applause. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">And hear, hear!!.... the Emcee whoever..now goes .. ‘I notice that these young ladies seated out there *pointing in our direction* have not joined us in the dance. And they don’t look too happy about it. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">I would now request them to come on the dance floor while I perform special songs for them. And all the others, please stay out for now, and let them have the floor to themselves. ‘</p> <p class="MsoNormal">*yayayay!! – we could have hugged Lucky Ali-Part Two :D :D*</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Meanwhile, <span style=""> </span>Ms. J was busy gushing/blushing etc etc about a character apparently .. somewhere in the crowd. Perhaps, others were too.<span style=""> </span>Me and DJ sat at one extreme corner of the row (I was closest to the water!! :) ) and DJ just filled me in about this gushing business in a passing manner. Okay. So nothing new about that. And not a new story coming from our Ms. J either :D </p> <p class="MsoNormal">So, anyhow, we danced to the wonderful, soulful music (Hail Lucky Ali- part two, wherever you are), but sadly, like all good things that come to an end, this one did too. (And it ended with an applause from the audience *grinning sheepishly* -- ohh, even Aunty must have been back to her jovial self!) </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Err…<span style=""> </span>now our lucky Ali did something that made him lose points by the way. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">He asked us pleasantly ‘That was a good show. you guys must be from Delhi? ‘</p> <p class="MsoNormal">We corrected him. “Nope. We’re from Jodhpur-‘</p> <p class="MsoNormal">*frown* .. “Wha- where’s that ??”</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Okayy.. Fair Enough! Jodhpur was no more than a spec on the map of India. Salman Khan’s<span style=""> </span>Black-Bucks-hunting case had recently hogged limelight though, and had helped put the city on the map a bit…yet, it was pardonable ignorance. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">We smiled. “It’s a place in Rajashtan”</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And err.. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">*Frown again* “Annd.. where’s that??” !!!!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">However, this was unpardonable ignorance. And we politely walked off the stage, I personally having let Lucky Ali Part two slide several notches down on my opinion-ometer ;)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">But maybe I shouldn’t underestimate Goans’ general awareness coz of this one-odd instance. Imagine what would happen if people were to estimate the quality of students of my institute based on a one-odd interaction with me *gulp* <span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">IMI would then be recognized as a place breeding MBA-Bashers-yet-MBA-doers, who donot even know the period in time-scale <span style=""> </span>when Emperor Akbar reigned in the region *wink, wink,…<span style=""> </span>that’s another story* </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Anyhow, so now the floor was open to all, and the evening was about to reach a closure. This was to be the valedictory dance, if such a thing exists. <span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The dance ended, on a spirited note.<span style=""> </span>But waitaminnit! To Nidhi’s amazement, the object of gushing/flushing was now dancing with Aunty (her best guess was that he was her son!) .. and merrily so!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And when the music ended, the pair came back (this time, Aunty calls out to the Character – “Rahul beta … “ – Yep. That was the name. How very aptly filmy.).. and Nidhi, having realized her stupid, criminal mistake, regained her senses (and also reclaimed the DROPPED jaw :D) .. (while the rest of us rolled up with suppressed and not very suppressed laughter)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And now, this was classic … (sinking to her lowest best :P) </p> <p class="MsoNormal">The minute aunty returned to her seat in front of Nidhi, </p> <p class="MsoNormal">She squeaked, sweetly and meekly ..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">“errm.. Excuse me Aunty… “</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Aunty turned around *taken aback- shock written all over her face*</p> <p class="MsoNormal">*others- watching from a distance, and savouring the fun*</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Nidhi<span style=""> </span>squeaked, with all her polite dignity:</p> <p class="MsoNormal">“I’m really sorry about my behavior. Actually, we are strictly forbidden to mingle with others…School Rules ..” she mumbled in a feeble attempt to undo the damage.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I dunno what happened after that.. whether Aunty softened. Or did not. Well, either ways, the entire story ended there.<span style=""> </span>What else did she expect, anyway :P</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Anyhow…<span style=""> </span>I rem. We came back to the resort, and this story (which spread like wildfire within minutes ) had us in splits (to Nidhi’s chagrin ;)) the entire night (which, by the way, comprised of an again very Goan dinner, followed by a bon fire)..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Hey… which was the night when DJ and I had played chess with Sangita ma’am, in her room (oh god, she was so much fun, she danced all over the room with the two little kids that we were, and then She and another one role played a customer and a bar tender, to our amusement :) ) </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Oooh of course, this was way back. I distinctly recall that we had Seema Ma’am and Sanjay sir on this particular trip…. Oh gawd… I can just go on n on .. documenting random memories …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And Guess what!! All this while, the internet has not connected !!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">*damn you MTNL, BURN IN HELL :-X *</p> <p class="MsoNormal">But hey, all said and done, Would I really like to spend a few years of my life working in Goa??</p><p class="MsoNormal">Maybe. Maybe not.<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Alright then, more later :D</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Cheers and God bless ..</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Ciao </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-63317296414957106762008-04-11T11:27:00.000-07:002008-04-20T14:41:24.806-07:00Of Testimonials - I Hereby Delclare ....<p class="MsoNormal">I feel rather strongly about this issue, of course as I have <a href="http://ronspeaketh.blogspot.com/2008/02/rime-of-professional-goof-ball.html">Discussed </a>earlier.<span style=""> </span>(okay… maybe ‘monologued’ is the word I am looking for.. coz obviously, no one must have read that particular post – sans any spice or humour :D .. orr even for the lack of good food-for-thought therein)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">But yeah, I do feel strongly about vouching for someone. And vouching for X,Y,Z qualities possessed by someone.<span style=""> </span>No doubt, every one of us is unique, and possesses certain strengths, distinguishing personality traits that define us, and define us in a most beautiful manner. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">It makes a whole lot of sense for us to appreciate the good in everyone we know.<span style=""> </span>And it is definitely advisable to look out for the positives in every person, and acknowledge the same. This not only helps in reinforcement of desirable behaviours, traits but also helps us in developing a positive approach towards people, and encourages honesty and fairness in our dealings with them. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">BUT<span style=""> </span>to use, with casual indifference,<span style=""> </span>blanket concepts in every other soul that you know,<span style=""> </span>seems ridiculous.<span style=""> </span>Not only does it dilute the potential utility of the tool (as a feedback mechanism, and as a source of reference for others), but it also dilutes the meaning and utility of words. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Subjectivity, and other influences such as social obligations, emotional sways etc are but natural. But tempering our testimonial with caution in this regard is certainly not a bad idea. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Anyyywayyyyyyyyyyyyyy ……</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Who cares … I know anybody who’s checked in here, by mistake, does NOT.<span style=""> </span>..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Well, well, the main purpose of this post <span style=""> </span>:D ..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">In my previous blog, I had started the tradition of documenting all the testis that I have written .. coz they are nothing but character sketches of people I know … (esp: close to my heart, are the ones <span style=""> </span>that DID come from the heart :)<span style=""> </span>… without any external influence *ahem ahem* there I go again ) …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Well, There are three character sketches that I wrote recently, and that I certainly wish to document. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">More so, coz two of these are stories, and weird ones at that <span style=""> </span>… :D <span style=""> </span>and shall always remain close to my heart … </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:14;" >Deepak … SIR ..<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">(In a bid 2 allay fears/anxiety amg juniors, aftr a rather intimidating placecom intro-speech by anotha SPC member) *a low decibel, seemingly innocuous voice spoke* “But, The placecom is very interesting. It’s not at all boring. It is quite fun. Not very boring. Not too difficult. It is very interesting--- “ n on n on n on<br />*basically, d SAME idea conveyed in 20 different yawn-inspiring ways <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shapetype id="_x0000_t75" coordsize="21600,21600" spt="75" preferrelative="t" path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" filled="f" stroked="f"> <v:stroke joinstyle="miter"> <v:formulas> <v:f eqn="if lineDrawn pixelLineWidth 0"> <v:f eqn="sum @0 1 0"> <v:f eqn="sum 0 0 @1"> <v:f eqn="prod @2 1 2"> <v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelWidth"> <v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelHeight"> <v:f eqn="sum @0 0 1"> <v:f eqn="prod @6 1 2"> <v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelWidth"> <v:f eqn="sum @8 21600 0"> <v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelHeight"> <v:f eqn="sum @10 21600 0"> </v:formulas> <v:path extrusionok="f" gradientshapeok="t" connecttype="rect"> <o:lock ext="edit" aspectratio="t"> </v:shapetype><v:shape id="_x0000_i1025" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image001.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_funny.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image001.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1025" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->*<br />At 1st glance, he came acros as sm1 upon whose innocent, tired shoulders the entire IMI Building stood, rather mercilessly- what with tht deceptively innocent <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1026" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image001.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_funny.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image001.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1026" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->’hardworker- good guy’ expression pasted on his public face, which wud make any unsuspecting bystander go “ooooh.. god bless the poor soul, give </p> <p class="MsoNormal">him some rest!!’ Somehow, he became an obvious target for my unclassy brand of humour. A FEW PJs in the same vein as above (with sum mimicry thrown in <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1027" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image002.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_bigsmile.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image002.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1027" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->) was ALL it took to spread the *inside * joke like wildfire <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1028" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image003.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_sad.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image003.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1028" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]--><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1029" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image003.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_sad.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image003.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1029" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->… dun want to dwell 2 much on the mortifying (4 me) tale dat followed!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Here is the person I’m testifying for- something which he least requires (esp: 4m an utterly underqualified, lesser-mortal like me)- but something that his subtle n grossly underplayed Grandeur compels me to do!<br />DA (read: Devil’s Advocate- part two) in a nutshell: King of Biting Wit/Sarcasm, delivered in his inimitable soft yet precise manner (‘Kaat ke kat lete hain’), alwayyys calls a spade a spade (tho in words as sharp as a sweet little blade <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1030" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image002.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_bigsmile.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image002.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1030" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->)-wont spare own kith n kin in this regard; extremely clear-headed, self-assured, honest, enterprising, Hard(LY?? )-working <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1031" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image002.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_bigsmile.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image002.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1031" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->, a keen observer,objective in analysis of ppl/situations , rational , intelligent & Articulate (it’s been a pleasure to explore n create all kinds of theories with u <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1032" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image002.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_bigsmile.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image002.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1032" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->) ,full of wisdom-one pearl of wisdom that he dropped in a passing manner, n which I shall always preserve - “Just control your life, before it starts controlling you”.. <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1033" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image004.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_smile.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image004.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1033" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]--></p> <p class="MsoNormal">anothr amusing soundbyte is his take on (Constructive) Politics- d cause of wich, he claims 2 champion(along wit his er.. Partner-in-crime <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1034" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image002.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_bigsmile.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image002.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1034" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->);a natural leader, his excellent sense of humor coupled wit an acute sense of people-dynamics make him an unconventionally ideal HR person .. tho b warned, this mite not be vry apparent at 1st, 4 sum strange reason!<br />I hvn’t known him much- bt cn firmly stand by each adjctive dats listed up ther<br />Btw: I hope, 4 a CHANGE, what I’ve written makes sense 2 u .. cudnt hv been more explicit <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1035" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image002.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_bigsmile.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image002.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1035" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]--><br />In fact, I wudnt hv DARED 2 rite testis 4 Raghav Sir and Deepak .. err (adds as an afterthot ) SIR <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1036" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image001.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_funny.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image001.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1036" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->, 4 the sheer magnitude of their personalities, wich makes many mortals’ pale in comparison- if dis hadn’t been d only way of expressing my heartfelt gratitude-cum-apology and great regard for them (n their grace n kindness), as we bid adieu...<br />I realy hope that v live up 2(or go beyond) the standards that your batch has set before us,<br />Cheers n God Bless , Shruti</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:14;" >Raghav SIR. <span style=""> </span>(period)<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">You know.. sometimes wen u do sumthing utterly stupid n embarrassing..n wish that u cud dig a hole(even better- a GRAVE) n crawl into it? Or tht u cud jus becum invisible 4 a moment? or run as fast as u can, in the opposite direction?<br />Well, I hv been thru all tht ..n more, everytime I ran into him in the past 1 year at IMI !...<br />I cringe in embarrassment to think of the 1st thing I uttered when I 1st saw him (in the Lean Mean “Ragger” Avtar- eyes looking daggers at the hapless freshers, shooting a volley of answer-less questions, with d typical anti-social look-(must mention the Gold Chain) <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1037" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image001.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_funny.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image001.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1037" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->- to boot ) ^uh-oh.. I actually hv d guts 2 redo the verbal version of the PERFORMANCE ^) .. I’d squeaked- in a nervous ‘I’ll-be-his-next-victim’ tone:<br />“Such people shouldn’t be allowed here!!” *CAN U BEAT THAT* <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1038" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image005.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_surprise.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image005.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1038" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]--></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Wel, RELIABLE sources leaked out stuf like dis 2 him, n I shudder to think of dose summons tht followed “wat traits in me remind u of a GUNDA?” he calmly, kindly, asked me many a time, wit amused curiosity<br />Now do u understand the 1st three lines of the testi?!<br />*<!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1039" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image003.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_sad.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image003.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1039" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]--> I wished to drown to death everytime…out of embarrassment! *<br />And in the months dat followed v got 2 c the other side of Him: his towering persona, his inimitable, disarming demeanour/signature style (he actually stopped to greet me everytime- just to beat the FEAR out of me- when he cud hv easily, in 1 stroke beaten life out of me <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1040" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image001.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_funny.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image001.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1040" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->) ; his inherent, natural flair for people- acute understanding of people issues (n Politics); effortless leadership, methodical approach to everything .. a hard taskmaster -his passion 4 every task dat he undertakes is awe-inspiring, n yeah the surprise element – his appreciation (& flair)4 poetry <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1041" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image004.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_smile.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image004.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1041" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->…</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Sumhow, I still fumble wit words in His Majestic presence- evry time I open my mouth (mostly in reply-wen I hv no option BUT to speak up) the thot dat crosses my mind is: “this is stupid, stupid…plzz stop talking, shruti!”<br />I hvnt known him much, but owed him an explanation of whatever l’ve ever learnt abt him from a VERY RESPECTFUL & SAFE DISTANCE <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1042" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image002.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_bigsmile.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image002.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1042" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->.. altho, me riting a testi 4 him is like Chota mooh, badi baat <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1043" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image002.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_bigsmile.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image002.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1043" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->And really, I cud sum up the entire 3-piece testi in one line :<br />Raghav Sir. Naam hi kaafi hai <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1044" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image006.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_cool.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image006.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1044" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]--><br /><br />In fct, I wudnt hv DARED 2 write testis for Raghav Sir and Deepak .. err (adds as an afterthot ) SIR <!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="_x0000_i1045" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" style="'width:11.25pt;height:11.25pt'"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image001.gif" href="http://www.orkut.com/img/i_funny.gif"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image001.gif" shapes="_x0000_i1045" border="0" height="15" width="15" /><!--[endif]-->, 4 the sheer magnitude of their personalities, wich makes many mortals’ pale in comparison- if dis hadnt been d only way of expressing my heartfelt gratitude-cum-apology and great regard for them (n their grace n kindness), as v bid adieu…<br />I really hope that v live up 2(or go beyond) the standards that your batch has set before us,<br />Cheers n God Bless … Shruti</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">****** </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Now, as we were discussing one day, and this question came up : If you can write 3-piece testis for people you barely know.. how much would you write for people u DO know …</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And yeah…<span style=""> </span>even I never realized that. Until the other day, when I sat down to write one for DA Sir ..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">(I basically updated the 3-piece testi I’d written for him earlier.. ) </p> <p class="MsoNormal">So, here goes …. The lengthiest testi .. for my Favourite person on Orkut .. and one of the favourites in life, in general :)<span style=""> </span>… PS. Although after I posted it… it almost embarrasses me .. the sheer length!! </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Anywho.. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:14;" >Himanshu <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">This was long overdue & urgently so, Dear Devil's Advocate...4 d world shld no d phenomenon dat is Himanshu Jailkhani-frm an insider's point of view.D insider being ur err...Sister whom u had the cheek to ask upon meetin aftr 3 long yrs.."what have u grown in2?"...*rolls eyes*btw, if u shud know...my first impression ws tht u've grown in2 a well meaning --but slightly "frivolous" boy!(ha! all <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">ur</st1:place></st1:city> HP bashing contributed majorly towards this of course)..Butttt..today, I am actually proud of the person that u have grown in2( i myt be the only one in the family tho!! no jk..v al no u enjoy a vry wel desrvd high status amg al d kids). Self-confessed libertarian--in his fanatasy world..."evry1 CAN/SHUD be free to do EVRYTHING...unless u can rationalize against it in terms of anything except MORALS"...so i found myself rationalising with him "why cannibalism is NOT GUD/RITE..." amng othr weird things..but these r nt silly theories of his--its becoz he believes in Ethical Nihilsm(c, did u know <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">ur</st1:place></st1:city> no freak bt actually</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>a sophisticated philosopher?) Outwardly, he is a conformist- n a real good one at dat.1 of the beter human beings i hv known in al my lyf(wich is not much tho).Vry rational, sensitive, a thinker, cool as mint--u have to be a monster to get in2 his bad books--a thoro gentleman( i wil quote 4m our li'l sis' "bhaiya chalisa"--has immense respect for women)..nvr loses his cool or raises his voice, great sense of (non-offensive) humor--excelllllent timing..depending on <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">ur</st1:place></st1:city> perspective of course-his best one was outside our granny's ICU ward at 2 at nite! Verry humble-can suffer fools politely, if not gladly(1 of the favorite preys of "plss-stop-talking-shruti"-wil try all antics to make her STOP TALKING e.g plugging in his earphones, snoring loudly etc except ASK me to shut up(m not dumb,bro,tho i no i luk it ;)), Vry str8frwrd, bt d only reason he mite hold bck frank opinions is tht he is tooooo sweet to hurt any1’s feelings (except his mum’s – tho she gets EVEN :D – their acid- exchange is so much fun 2 watch!)</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Is a real ROCKSTAR of a brothr(nope, no ref. 2 the venture called Blown Marrow [:P] –n so what if our li’l sis asked him once -petrified after<span style=""> </span>watching a performance video “Bhaiya, *err-gulp*u guyz hvnt played in public naa?” lolz[;)]) ... *seriously senti mode now* You, of all ppl do not hv 2 ASK me 4 a testi Sada. I love u loads, n owe u loadssss-er still! He is Alwayys just a gtalk-ping away! .. whether I am sad, mad, in tears, happy, exhilarated, in a fix, in dat “I dun want to do mba” mode, or in my “u-know-what ..” mode, check-this-thing-I-need-feedback-on’ mode …WHENEVER I ping him .. he answers back<span style=""> </span>widout fail, patiently, calmly, evil-ly, sarcastically, humorously, wisely, affectionately‘-- oh just the perfect thing to suit the situation… he has this magic wand …<span style=""> </span>and is the reason for many smiles .. both within (n outside) our family [<span style="font-family:Wingdings;"><span style="">J</span></span>] ……<span style=""> </span>n d best part—he expects nothing in return!I hv alwys just TAKEN 4m him.. n the only return-paymnts must be my force-fed-stories, so dat doesn’t count!! </p> <p class="MsoNormal">I stil rem the day when I ws almost broken- wit my first stint wit d real-world-outside, at IMI … u dun evn know, u loon, what an angel u wre 4 me dat night [:)] .. He helped me ‘DISCONNECT’ (er.. he actually suggested dope as an option, didn’t ya? [:P] ..ookkk .. weird sense of humor- runs in r genes ) .. &Oh gawdd… is so well-cultured, (*yuck*) tht his knowledge n sensitive understanding of so many “home/family/household-related” things put me – 1 of d The Daughters in the family, to shame, with my utter ignorance, n uncultured traits.!<span style=""> </span>On d other hand!! *beats me HOW!* .. manages this very super-cool-rockstar-like lifestyle with friends.. (m seriously worried abt THE JOINTS tho, bro .. *raises brow* ) …<span style=""> </span>has GOOD grey material (strictly non-academic, but with strongly intellectual overtones) … tho I wish he wud spend some more time with books too .. although, it’s too late now ..*sigh* ..<span style=""> </span>Andd.. a/c 2 li’l sis, he used to look like a Pig 4 years ago *what?- they shud know the facts!*.. tho dunno how, </p> <p class="MsoNormal">no such traces can be found now.. (err.. on d contrary, at present, maybe thx 2 ur genes, DA Sir,but,<span style=""> </span>I wud more-than-OKAY ur appearance .. n that’s huge certification[:)]) altho..can reallyyy play d Devil's Advocate in every debate( u can have a <st1:place st="on">LOT</st1:place> of mentally/intellectually stimulating convos with him)...with tht all-knowing..stupid, "wise" smirk on his face....wen u find u cant shut him up...here's a mantra...tell him ..."it's alrite, maybe ur rite....NOT A PROBLEM (COMMA)MATE"...watch him go red in the face, ask him why ;)..n sit back n enjoy ur victory... sorry cudnt keep it short yet again...signing off ...please-stop-talking-Shruti</p> <p class="MsoNormal">PS. Tell <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">ur</st1:place></st1:city> Boss Lucifer DA, Thanks but NO THANKS! LOoove is the LAST thing I need *pukes*</p><span style="font-weight: bold;">And LAST but certainly NOT the least!! ... Thanks a dozen for checkin in, Healer Geller !!!</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">You cannnnnnot imagine how thrilled I am :) :) :) ... was going to declare a 'Katteee' anytime now .... coz of your inaction for so long :( .... And yeah... The same old girl here(even worse than what u saw !!) ... and I do miss those lectures :( .... </span><br /><br />Cheeerrs !! (no cheers for Arps *folds arms-not talking*)<br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-46238539966351752242008-04-05T11:42:00.000-07:002008-04-20T14:53:52.958-07:00S.O.S !<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p></o:p><br />My summer internship begins from Monday *a chilly shiver running down her shameless<br />spine* , and I feel like that “bad” kid at school .. who doesn’t “want” to goto school !.. You know, not the kinds who would love a day off (which is the “normal” kind of course!) but the one who DREADS Sunday nights; <span style=""> </span>the one who slides onions under her armpit (okay, I know that sounds gross, but I have heard they actually do it! ..) , to appear to run a high temperature and therefore be exempted from attending school :D..; the one who has to be dragged from under the quilt and doesn’t step out of the house without throwing a fit religiously, everyday. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">But I never did any of that of course <span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">:(</span></span> ! ..</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">On the contrary…<span style=""> </span>I was one of those irritating kids (a liability even for my mum, for that matter!) who would not miss school in peace unless they are immobile-and-ill-in-bed! </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">But… today…. I dunno why I feel like THAT kid … </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">I just wish Monday would never come … Or that I would never awake on a Monday morning <span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">L</span></span> …</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">And I am amazed at the inauspicious eye I am casting on my own career ..by uttering such foul, negative statements.. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">I know… but, pathetic as it sounds, I reallllllly don’t feel like moving an inch … not a single, tiny solitary inch on the road that will take me to THAT place ......</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Gawddd …. What have I grown into? *gulps with an uncomfortable, gnawing feeling inside her* </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Err.. whoever happens to be reading this.. do drop in a prayer…</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Nooo, not for me… I can take care of myself *puffs with sad-pride* ..</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">But do pray for the company which has had the misfortune of picking someone like me, and (cheery on the cake !!) paying me decently for doing-god-knows-WHAT-cuz I doubt I would know that -even at the end of those two months of INTERN-ship.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">My heart cries out in pain, for the “Human Resources” in question….. those poor, innocent souls, who toil daily, at their desks … believing in the Good of man, in the Justice of the System, ignorant of the fact that the team that “manages” their returns, <span style=""> </span>consists of someone who dreads doing anything remotely connected with what she has been hired to do i.e contribute her bit in “managing” stuff for their betterment.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">But I guess,<span style=""> </span>things will go on anyway … with lot many hiccups im sure (aaaaaaaaannn …:( :( <span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style=""></span></span><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style=""></span></span> ) ..</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">But yeah.. there shall be a Sunday night tomorrow. Followed by a Monday morning.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">And I have no option but to turn up at “work”, do I?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">And to put my “best” foot forward (again, not like I have many options there either, the right one looks just as unwilling and ugly, as the left one. Maybe I’ll just have to hop my way to that place.. both feet together, and let the powers-that-be ‘pick’ their favourite… <span style=""> </span>or reject both as unimpressive ..who knows <span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">:( </span></span>)</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">…</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">*wakes up from her trance with a jolt and scrolls up to read what she has just typed*</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Wow … the kind of garbage that I can come up with. If I had any dignity left, I would not dare to put this up on any public forum!...</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">But of course, I don’t have any dignity to worry about… Nopes :D :D …</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">So, I will put it up on the blog anyway …. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Talking of Dignity BTW: .. whatever iota of it I ever had, I guess I sacrificed it at the altar of my Live Project … where the saddest of people(registered on some website database as professional ‘consultants’), sitting in square-inch wide offices ..with <span style=""> </span>“ XYZ Consultants “<span style=""> </span>written on the rusty <span style=""> </span>board which hangs outside the rustier doors, in dingy corridors, in some decrepit building in Nehru Place, hang up on me with sumfin’ that sounds like a ridiculous </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><b style=""><i style="">“WeWon’GiveNoPlacements*dhup!*” <o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;"><i style="">… </i>and can u imagine the provocation ,, for this utterly ridiculous presumption (I mean comeon! ..Godwilling, kids at our place will end up with copy-rooms of the size of that sickly blot-on-the-name-of-an-office :P )…</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Well, can u imagine the provocation *wails in painful protest* : a decent, greeting with a sometimes inevitable give-away that it’s a student from a B-School on the line <span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">L</span></span> <span style=""> </span>..and not some “klahh-eeent” or “kash-tuh-murr” (read: ‘client’ or ‘customer’) </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Hones’ly! The cheek!! … <span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Oooooooh, that reminds me… did I mention that it’s rainin’ Jobs for me ;) .. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">The other day, I got 5 offers in a single day *chuckles –tho wryly*</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Oh yeah! .. that’s a story unto itself …maybe for the next post..</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Err..</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Bbye for now…</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Siiiggggggggghning off again …</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">God Bless …</span></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-18553236829758886772008-04-03T15:10:00.000-07:002008-04-20T14:41:24.807-07:00To the Raised-Eyebrows of the World ..<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >You know, I was just surfing the net … a lot of things … moving from some stuff on wind turbines, to AC generators, to analysis of Rank Order Scaling (thx to the curiosity generated while constructing the questionnaire for Divs’ research project , “Job satisfaction in the NGO sector’ :D *met her after AGES! – n still cant get over the goody-goody feeling* ... ) anyhow..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >So..was doing all that, when I suddenly remembered having read this newspaper headline the other day: JK Rowling contemplated suicide while struggling as a divorced, single mother. (!!! )<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >I’d made a mental note to read up on it..but that had slipped my mind (umm…or whatever rudimentary substitute I have for The normal Human Mind)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >Well, it just struck me, a while ago, and I keyed in these words … and Lo! U had innumerable pages listed in a second. I clicked on the first article wherein JKR confessed to having been severely depressed, and expressed her gratitude towards her doc who saved her life through <b style="">Congnitive Behavioural Therapy </b>(In a nutshell, this technique basically identifies those assumptions, beliefs, thoughts, behaviours etc that give rise to debilitating negative emotions leading to depression in the patient, and seeks to help replace those with other positive, self-helping alternatives. This would also involve overcoming avoidance of certain activities due to fear of failure etc)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="story2"><span style="">JKR states that she is happy to discuss her depression to challenge the stigma associated with the condition. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="story2" style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="">"I have never been remotely ashamed of having been depressed. Never,</span></i></b><b style=""><span style="">” she says. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p> <p class="story2"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">"What's to be ashamed of? I went through a really rough time and I am quite proud that I got out of that</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">.”</span></span> <o:p></o:p></i></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >Considering the stature that she enjoys in public, and her huge fan following, the fact that The Lady can come out in the open to discuss her own mental disease(n I use the term ‘disease’ on purpose – to rub in the fact that it is something not very socially-palatable), should definitely go a long way in helping many others confront their own problems, or those of their near and dear ones, and to seek medical treatment for the same.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >BTW: I recall Vikram Seth coming out to declare that his sexual orientation is ‘Bisexual’- which unfortunately, many prudes or ‘confused-systemists’ greeted with cynicism or outright outrage. The Confused- Systemists are a breed, in my observation, who seek solutions to all problems in the world in the argument that “The System is Supreme- it must prevail, and the established order must not be disturbed in the slightest! The logic, I believe, is that all parts of a system work in harmony with each other, and maintain the overall wellbeing of the system. Thus, one part diverges from the rules laid down, and the system comes to a halt. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >Just like a living organism: If the heart starts beating at a different rate one fine day, then obviously, the system that is the human being will suffer. However, the logic is flawed- coz, such deviations may result in illness leading to death in an organism- coz the organism is not dynamic- it cannot change its morphology over its lifespan. A person thrown into water will not develop gills top breathe, no matter how long he manages to stay put there. However, Societies are dynamic systems in every respect. When a change is introduced in the system, the society does not die (except in rare cases of wiping out of an entire civilization- by a catastrophe or massacre, as was attempted by Hitler-wiping out the Jewish race from the face of the earth-)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >Societies CHANGE. And that makes all the difference in the world. <span style=""> </span>A people who use stones to kill, capture food, give them a bow and an arrow/ spear – which they can use to kill each other more effectively, wage greater, more elaborate and bloody wars against each other.. well they do all that,<span style=""> </span>but that’s not all they do. And, in effect, they end up doing a lot many more constructive things that they did prior to the introduction of the newer tools and weapons. They donot wipe each other out, as would have seemed possible- the population only swells in size!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >Okay, a better illustration. A Society that endorses Polygamy – Such as ancient India. You introduce concepts such as Monogomy, sanctify fidelity to a single life partner, and what you get as a result is not Confusion, Chaos, etc etc but a restructured order: A system which accommodated for the changes, as and when the need arose, and as far as it could stretch, and of course, over a<span style=""> </span>reasonable<span style=""> </span>period of time. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >The Confused- Systemists (confused coz they are not very sure about the premise of their logical framework themselves, as I will explain later..) insisted (and here I’m referring to those my age, whom I had the fortune of interacting with ) that Mr. Seth was One, seeking cheap publicity by lending his name to a controversial cause [ahem to that, coz here is the Guy who retorted with a “Behave yourself. Why should I discuss my relationships with you? “, to a fan’s query – “ why don’t you ever tell us about your girlfriend”, some three years ago.] . Two, even if he is ‘Abnormal’, he shouldn’t go around wearing that fact like some kinda ‘badge of honour’, the ConSysts hold. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >**** I had started writing this post some days ago. Resumed today… after a loooong break. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >Well, to cut a long story short … (coz the sentiment that this issue evokes will run into pages!)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >To those consysts, I’d say (like I did the other day, though I don’t think much came out of it) that people like Vikram Seth donot require / desire sensational publicity of that kind and do very well (thank you!) without it.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >Secondly, the reason someone of his class and stature comes out and takes a stand on a social issue is NOT to flaunt their “uniqueness” – one that is bound to invite more of ostracism than respect and inclusion, but to lend weight and credibility to the cause. (in this case, <span style=""> </span>Same-Sex issues.) <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >In the civilized world, this is termed as “socially responsible behavior” on the part of those who have the privilege of voice and vote, and the advantage of visibility, credibility, and resources.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >And why do we forget that one need not have be a direct victim, to feel actively for a cause.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >You need not be a woman to feel and speak against rape, molestation, gender biases.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >You need not dwell in slums and live in abject poverty, to think of and act on measures for poverty alleviation and promoting literacy.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >You need not belong to the socially ostracized (unrecognized) class of eunuchs/ homosexuals/ mentally/physically challenged, untouchables and the like, to sympathize with their cause. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >(and yes, the clubbing has been done on purpose because there is really not much difference in the nature of these problems.) <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >This is because you never know when you may find yourself on the other side of the fence…<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >Desperately yearning for help/support, for a friend, child or parent, from the “normal” people who constitute the majority in this world, with little tolerance for the “abnormal” ones. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >A similar hue and cry was raised when JKR declared that ‘Professor Dumbledore was Gay’. Some were offended at the fact that he was “gay” and therefore abnormal, while others merrily jumped to he conclusion that JKR was doing this for cheap publicity- letting slip “scandalizing bits” about the Star of her epic. <span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >I will quote the excerpt from the interview with her, where she first spoke up about this fact of her Epic character’s life. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >The way I see it, she had held back this fact about Dumbledore (and yes it’s a FACT coz it was a character close to her heart, and vividly clear to the writer right form the beginning) for so long, to avoid any such unnecessary slander ..and spoke up after so long, only when prodded … and provoked by a direct question (not answering this one without all the facts would have amounted to lying!) <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Q. Did Dumbledore, who believed in the prevailing power of love, ever fall in love himself?<br /><br />JKR: My truthful answer to you... I always thought of Dumbledore as gay. [ovation.] ... Dumbledore fell in love with Grindelwald**, and that that added to his horror when Grindelwald showed himself to be what he was. To an extent, do we say it excused Dumbledore a little more because falling in love can blind us to an extent, but he met someone as brilliant as he was, and rather like Bellatrix he was very drawn to this brilliant person, and horribly, terribly let down by him. Yeah, that's how i always saw Dumbledore. In fact, recently I was in a script read through for the sixth film, and they had Dumbledore saying a line to Harry early in the script saying I knew a girl once, whose hair... [laughter]. I had to write a little note in the margin and slide it along to the scriptwriter, "Dumbledore's gay!" [laughter] If I'd known it would make you so happy, I would have announced it years ago!<br /><br />JKR --The Potter books in general are a prolonged argument for tolerance, a prolonged plea for an end to bigotry, and I think it's one of the reasons that some people don't like the books, but I think that's it's a very healthy message to pass on to younger people that you should question authority and you should not assume that the establishment or the press tells you all of the truth.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">**Grindelwald was an exceptionally bright (like himself) friend of Dumbledore’s, in his young days. He later went on to become a powerful, evil dark wizard, by exploiting his powers for negative use. It was Dumbledore, who took it upon himself to kill him in a duel and end his atrocities, years later. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Ohhh..this brings me to the real reason for this post! …. I was reading this article on how Vatican is up in arms in JKR again (the same old hogwash about the books being anti-christianity, promoting witchcraft, sorcery etc! ) .. and was quite amused by the responses to the article, posed by readers who took well aimed digs at this prudish behavior of the Vatican. Some of them had me in splits!! </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:130%;">Here is that article:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" ><a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/01/15/nharry115.xml">http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/01/15/nharry115.xml</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >and here are the absolutely lol-evoking comments!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" ><a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/01/15/nharry115.xml#comments">http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/01/15/nharry115.xml#comments</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:12;" >Arps, enjoy reading! :D <span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-1787220484291971312008-03-31T12:43:00.000-07:002008-04-20T14:53:52.959-07:00:D ...<span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Pitter patter</span><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Flitter flatter</span><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Wop de who de who</span><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >I am magic</span><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Life is tragic</span><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Who the Hell are you?</span><br /></span><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br />You know, I had this <a href="http://mightypensieve.blogspot.com/">blog</a> saved in my bookmarks(i think it belongs to one of the first outsiders to read my previous blog. Outsiders here wud mean any1 who is NOT Arps et al. ) .. and I happened to check in... after a loonng time ..<br />And I found this post on it .... titled "<a href="http://mightypensieve.blogspot.com/2008/02/of-some-souls-and-their-asylums.html">Of a Soul and its asylum</a>"...<br />This was probably the ONLY post on the blog that I could relate with, but something in the thought process/ reflection in the post struck a chord with me ...<br />and of course, these lines seem to have an instant connect! ..<br /><br />I mean ... no food-for-thought here ... nooooo...<br />just words, n rhythm ..and the what-the-heck tone that it conveys, to boot ....<br /><br />Again...<br /><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Pitter patter</span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Flitter flatter</span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Wop de who de who</span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >I am magic</span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Life is tragic</span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Who the Hell are you?.</span>.........<br />>>>>>>>><br /><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >I am magic</span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /></span> <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Life is tragic</span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /></span> <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Who the Hell are you?..........</span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br />:D :D ....<br /><br />Oooooh latest update Arps (when ARE u going to get that net connection :( ) ..<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">It is the Demented Dementor again,</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">and It *sigh* approacheth me ....</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A twig of olive It holdeth out ...</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">But, it's the hidden Gun I see :( ...</span><br /><br /></span><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Now that u know the story and the context of the <a href="http://ronspeaketh.blogspot.com/2008/03/demented-dementor-d.html">original verse</a>, u shud be able to appreciate it!<br />somewhat... :(<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Sig(h)ning off with my gtalk status today ...</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" ><br /><br />Dont disturb me, I'm too busy being happy :D ...<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >lolz..even though the sentiment is wearing off now ... still, I rarely strike happy notes .. so lemme document this one *grinning her broooooadest grin possible*<br /><br />Cheeeeeers ...<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" > </span>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-45940456045640972312008-03-18T08:46:00.000-07:002008-04-20T14:42:52.685-07:00Mumbling loudly, and incoherently. Again ..<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><b style=""><span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Term’s Over. Summers begin. So does err… a Live Project (whatever that means, and whatever be the reason they call it that) … and I’m tired already. Without having done much productive work. Mentally exhausted, and maybe physically too (the lift was out of order in the hostel last night .. and I HAD to make innumerable trips up and down.) <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">These lines suddenly spring to my mind … some poem by god-knows-who, and…… baahhh… al just type it down ..and say no more … <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">“ sunta hoon maine bhi dekha, <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style=""> </span>kale badal mein chupti chandi ki rekha ..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">…<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Kale badal, kale badal, <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Man bhay se ho uthta chanchal..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Kaun hriday mein kehta pal pal ..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Mrityu aa rahi saaje dal bal “<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Ohhhkayyy …. I’m not worried about my mortality, certainly not! It’s just the “kale badal” bit that strikes a chord with me right now.. though, don’t ask me why, I don’t <span style=""> </span>know myself!<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Why am I putting up such gloomy stuff here …. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Why am I putting up stuff here at all …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Aaaaaaarrrghhh … I have lost it totally … T-O-T-A-L-L-Y…<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">It’s just so weird … how things unfold..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Contradictions, it seems, (and *ahem* Ms. Rand, I know…) .. do exist.. and too many of them.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Sometimes, one wishes one did not have ears .. I tell you, that’s the root of all mental anxiety! Sometimes, it’s just soo much more easy to live in utter ignorance- in beatific oblivion of the fact that such and such thing transpired on such and such point on the face of this planet. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Coz, it just becomes so unsettling … to have a volley of facts thrown in about the same person/situation … and all so very contradictory in nature, that you would rather pull out all your hair, one by one, and rest in peace, than pick out the wheat from the chaff, the facts from the fiction … <span style=""> </span>and determine the Truth. The Absolute Truth. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">If at all, something like that does exist. And the damage that such ‘revelations’ do to one’s sense of judgement/understanding/opinion … is incalculable! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">And you can imagine the dearth of good literature that I have ever read, that I am quoting from a previously written post of this blog, to express my sentiment:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">I don’t like people much. <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">I don’t understand people. And Honestly, I would rather not attempt to.. <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Coz, the more I do, the more I have a reason to quit!!<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">My mind is one hell of a tempest, once again! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I dunno what to do.. I dunno what to say …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Except, I wanna go home … (staying back in the hostel tonight, for a totally unanticipated reason … ) …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Gawwddd…. Let this be over… Let there be a new day .. *yawn* as of course, there shall be ..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Btw: we bid farewell to our senior batch today… <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Would like to put down some totally lifted oft-heard quotes on bidding adieu, which donot particularly apply in this context, but are very generic …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">“The Old Order changeth, yielding place to the new..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">But the old order forever remains etched in our hearts”<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I distinctly recall .. this was the quote on the very beautiful invitations that we had made for <span style=""> </span>the farewell party of our senior batch in school.. Do you, Arps? Shilpi? (assuming you guys made it to this line in this extremely uninteresting post) ..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">And the other one,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">To meet and part, is the way of life ..<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">But, to part and meet, is the hope of life …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Sig(h)ning off …<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Shruti F. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-37879696284286292722008-03-16T07:02:00.000-07:002008-04-20T14:53:52.960-07:00The Blank Verse<span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 0);font-size:100%;" ><br />Things..<br /><br />Said, and unsaid.<br /><br />Wishes<br />conveyed...and wished in silence.<br /><br />Yearning ..<br />little understood. But Felt.<br />A crescendo .. ending, just before the climax..<br /><br />A sigh...<br />un-released..contained...<br />and unsettling, and sweet.<br /><br />Words.<br />Too many, too few.<br />Unreal. Hollow.<br />And deep-the ones not uttered.<br /><br />A tear...<br />Rolling down the cheek.<br />In pain; Exhilaration;<br />Pleasure; Despair.<br />And the one held back .. beneath the lids..<br />protected. uncontaminated.<br />Unwilling to flow. Proud.<br /><br />A Friend...<br /><br />That is Self. Critical, honest, loyal. Difficult.<br />An Alter-ego. The Desired- Non-existent. Somewhere.<br /><br /><br />A Desire. A Goal.<br /><br />Within. Without.<br />Expressed- unfelt.<br />Felt. Expressed?<br />Felt .. not entirely understood.<br /><br />A Thought...<br /><br />Undefined, and visible.<br />All around.<br />Clearly etched-within...<br /><br />So beautiful, It hurts.<br />Held back. Protected.<br />Articulated. To no avail.<br />Cherished. Withdrawn.<br /><br />Smile.<br /><br />Borrowed, Cosmetic,<br />and Seen- often.<br />Rejuvenating. Warm,<br />Hidden- rare.<br /><br />A verse ...<br /><br />such as this.<br /><br />Blank. Sans rhyme.<br />But, music to the heart.<br />A verse- Not composed.<br />But causing one to write.<br /><br /></span>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4723194311260647555.post-15045749235257439592008-03-14T07:30:00.000-07:002008-04-20T14:39:28.610-07:00March 15!...Happy Birthday, Arps :D :D<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">:D :D :D </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style="">Happy Brithday Gudda!!, <o:p></o:p></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style="">I didn’t know what to do …<o:p></o:p></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style="">To wish you on your BUDDAY :D<o:p></o:p></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style="">So, wrote a post for you ..<o:p></o:p></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style=""><o:p> </o:p></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal">See I have another EXAM tomorrow (now, I know ur going AS IF … :P) </p> <p class="MsoNormal">True, I wudn’t bother with it until the next many hours anyway, so I’m not TAKING TIME OUT OF MY BUSY SCHEDULE … and yet, the SENTIMENT must count ..alright? .. errr… a bit of gratitude wont go waste either :D </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">You know the other day (around 3 weeks ago), I overheard somebody talking to somebody about March 15 .. and I wondered to myself … Why does that date have such a feel-good sound to it? .. and in a split of a second it struck me …<span style=""> </span>15<sup>th</sup> March! … Arpita’s Birthday! … <span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">J</span></span> <span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">J</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">And thennn, I thought .. hey..this is cool … what do I do to wish her PROPERLY … errmm… of course, considering that u don’t deserve the expenditure of money and effort in mailing a gift to you … but since u <i style="">do </i>deserve a tiny little token …errr… that would say “<b style="">Thank you for being YOU</b>” *though without the cheesy sound that it has* …<span style=""> </span>and what more can I do on my blogs .. one is virtually dedicated/addressed to you, and this one ..well, is more or less is the same … ..</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And then suddenly, I got a Brainwave :D (or in my case , a brainless-wave :P)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I already have too many christy-isms, JMC-isms, Mannat-isms, documented in my diary (u mite recall those from ur last visit here :D) … and I have none of urs … in documented form! … (even though it’s an integral part of my repertoire of anecdotes ) </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Before that, let me write down the two testis I had written for you on orkut, for a more meaninggul character sketch .. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">errmmm .... here's the<span style=""> </span>first one<span style=""> </span>....<br /><br />This is just to embarrass u a bit on a very public forum..Here's a poem that<span style=""> </span>you "co-wrote" with me..(Shut ur eyes arpita, it's one of those dirty skeletons in ur cupboard)I titled it....<br /> <!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br /> <!--[endif]--></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">An Ode To VJ's Metallurgy<br /></b>This is the story I tell you...<br />Dirt in an ore is called GANG-YOO;<br />waSHING in water what you get...<br />is BLISHTER COPPER want to bet.<br />One thing you will totally loathe...<br />is that SICK-SICK, WHITE-WHITE FROTHE (rhyming with "loathe")<br />And the result is so TEMPTY-the whole furnace is IMPITY!!!!!!!<br /><br />Need I remind you the sing song tone that goes with it( from a VERY POPULAR song) that'd make u cringe<br /> <!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br /> <!--[endif]--></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The first real testi … hehe … wrote this on her last birthday …<br /><br />I was waiting for your b'day to do this.....*drumroll* *Clears throat*...I donot know where to begin, coz it's hard to imagine that there WAS a time wen i did not know Her(note the captial H)..Firstly, she's like a hydrogen atom(duh!!)--needs to be paired to let her personality shine in all its glory, so it's always been Arpita-nita soni, Arpita-Shilpi, Arpita-Shruti Shah, ANDDD it's Arpita-Ritu....Her greatest strength is her Wisdom n Silence --she knows she cant always talk sense n therefore choses to listen n speak at appropriate times...n yet she Never looks down upon motor mouths like me..(cud it be Me??-maybe M JUST too good!!)Also, she's ethical-I actually respect her opinions u know(not that I'm a force to reckon with)...I've learnt dropping all inhibitions to get ur ANSWERS, from Arpita.She sleeps like a log n does okay in her life --so tht's a ray of hope for all the lazy bums out there..<br /><br />for me, her brains(hehehe lets not elaborate), her amazing caricatures n wat not r just a minor aspect of her personality--her greatest quality is that she's all ARPITA from head to toe, at all times, there's a certain energy that she exudes-positive (or negative), but sooo "arpita"...Before u start thinking where does this Arpita-Chalisa end...not that one will not get hurt,angry or feel being unfair-ed with her around-not that she's all white(as tho anybody is..) but the good times with her more than make up for everything else---knowing her is a lifetime experience, very fulfilling n mentally n intellectually stimulating(even tho r folks always thot we never talk abt nething other than F.R.I.E.N.D.S or harry Potter...it's NOT TRUE!!)..God Bless you Arpita..wherever u go, watever u choose to do in life..u deserve the best(dat is whyyy u have ME!--uh-oh wrong illustration dat was,but u got my point, didnt u everyone's "BEST-BUDD"?)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">So, here goes ……. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita … Documented! <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Ritz..as usual, well-meaningly bossing around with her li’l sis and me…this worked best with arpita..though, both of us brushed her away with “Forget it Ritu, Main Arpita nahi hoon” a couple of times … tells arpita the story .. and a Hurt Arpita bursts out : <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">What is this? Mere naam ko itna bad-word kyun bana diya hai! .. <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Haan! MAIN ARPITA HOON! AND I’M proud of the fact ki main arpita hoon. <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><u><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"> </span></o:p></span></u></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Thank you! For being my comrade-in-arms against Umm…B$%^& … ;) n for sharing every legitimate sentiment there … ooooh must quote that one cheeky thing you did! .. to challenge the concentration n dedication with which the person corrected “assignments” … you actually wrote a couple of lines of a song in one of the answers ..(“I have a dreaaaam,…a fantasy” :P) … and amazingly, got a TICK-MARK right on it! Lolz .. that was some daring, Arps .. coz we all know WHAT u were messing with :D ..<span style=""> </span>I actually feel like Ron awestruck at Hermione’s cheek ... when she volunteers to steal the Polyjuice potion from Snape’s Dungeon !<u><o:p></o:p></u></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><u><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"> </span></o:p></span></u></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Forever …forever… looking for alternative sources of employment for me … If I can’t study … Lo! <i style="">I can become a stand-up comedienne</i> .. I can’t do MBA, <i style="">I can always WRITE … <u><o:p></o:p></u></i></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita, why must we cram this .. this is no education!<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">I knowww… but everyone does it. We must follow suit.</span></i></b><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita, I cant do this!<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Of course you can!…<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita, I don’t GET MBA..<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Just do the course …do it your way..you can always do something else later…<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">…. Same script repeated N no. of times … u know, even I get tired of My Cribbing … but YOU .. actually haven’t given up … far from that </span></b><b style=""><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">J</span></span></b><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita, I cant do without Cribbing… and .. I can always crib before you … :D <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><u><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"> </span></o:p></span></u></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Two of my favourite compliments ever have been from her …<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">“Shruti, you deserve to burn in hell”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">“When I didn’t know you well, I thought you were such a holy angel.. that only a Halo was missing.. and NOW that I know you *rolls eyes Arpita-ly* ” <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita – First one to get all my PJs (sometimes even when those are just budding inside my head), and laugh over them heartily.. loudly … and far too long … all the while going … peejay hai .. peejay hai ..</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">I recall this one instance when we were checking out these books in a Scholastic fair at our school, and I came across a good joke in a joke book..<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">I walked up to Arpita .. *extending a hand* “HI, I’m Shruti, your new friendly Dairy Owner” *squeezing the hand in the hand-shake ;) *<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Now, for anybody else, it would have taken AGES TO figure out what I’d just done… but Arpita …nopess!! She immediately rolled up with LOUD laughter … and after 30 seconds ..paused to confirm … It means what I think it does, right? .. and with my Nod… rolled up with laughter again!!! …<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">For all the others with whom I tried this joke, I had to explain the JOKE .. or do the second version of it ..<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">(Hi, I’m shruti. Your new friendly Railway Guard *shakes hands while making forward-moving wheel motion*) of course, the EXPLANATION kills the spirit of the joke.. and that’s the best part about You… (aaahh…well, used to be .. since now we have slightly different jargon which creates communication gaps </span></b><b style=""><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">L</span></span></b><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">)<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita- the one who would (falsely!) accuse me of making excuses to avoid<span style=""> </span>phone calls .. (THIS, AFTER SPENDING 23.5 HRS OUT OF 24 ON THE PHONE WITH HER!! *outrageous*)<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita, would complain that my writing was worse than hers (and I agree!!) .. and still Usha Ma’am always unfairly pointed out HER bad handwriting! .. :P<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita … who co-read with me the first 50 pages <i style="">of Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix, </i>and complained when I objected to reading while eating lunch (who wudnt?! .what if we got rajma stains all over it </span></b><b style=""><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">L</span></span></b><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">) and she finally<span style=""> </span>got her way! :-X) .. err..btw, I stopped lending my HPs to her, when<span style=""> </span>I discovered her favourite place for Book Reading. ( hehe .. u dun want me to mention it here, do u .. DEPLORABLE :P)<i style=""><o:p></o:p></i></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita – (oooh … im not sure I shud go public with this :P) Who would either not shower for days in a row .. or in a single day shower 5 times in a row </span></b><b style=""><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">J</span></span></b><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">..<i style=""><o:p></o:p></i></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita – <span style=""> </span>Miss Questionmark! Just cudnt rest with a doubt in mind .. and always had way toooo many :P .. Usha Ma’am will vouch for this! <i style=""><o:p></o:p></i></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita – alwayyys just a call away … (even when she used to be driving) .. for anyyyything .. whether you want to express ur rage at XYZ politician doing abc thing, Brad Pitt (Will ;) ) dumping OUR Rachel .. orrr if u’ve just reached the page in HP and Half Blood Prince wherein Snape kills Dumbledore! .. She’s alwayyys there… alwayyys with wise words, full of nods/ shaking of head…but THERE ..and with a patient ear .. </span></b><b style=""><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">J</span></span></b><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita – thankfully, was not verrry girrrly when I had known her in school..actually, *touch wood* most of us were not.. but yeah, she has surely changed a bit now … and im happy for her (at least, some of us are normal ;) )<i style=""><o:p></o:p></i></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita – The potatohead -<span style=""> </span>Rosemerta_Gunther … for Hogs .. the sadistic Iranian :P .. didn’t u keep adding me, after I revealed my identity ..and I kept turning down ur friend requests everytime! <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Arpita – The only one, in my entire life, apart from my own family, with whom I recall having been unfairly rude ONCE .. when she was lecturing me on the phone ..(err… for my own good), and I slammed the phone down for some reason … and this girl, calls me back ..and calmly asks me to hear her out and not “hang up abruptly” like I had done the last time … <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">Ø<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">And Last! .. but NOT the least … Arpita – </span></b><b style=""><span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Bhavesh Kumar Ki Behen</span></b><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"> … she should actually get a certificate for that .. (fancy having a ‘little’ brother who puts u to shame with his knowledge of stuff that’s straight from YOUR own curriculum!) .. *shudder* I rem. Being greeted by him, not with a warm “Hey, whats up” .. but ..a challenging.. “Shruti Didi.. What’s the outermost layer of the eye called??” *gulp* … lolz …<i style=""><o:p></o:p></i></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Would you believe that I cud go on n on n on… !<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Oh gawd… I have an EXAM tomorrow </span></b><b style=""><span style="font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="">L</span></span></b><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"> … <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Again, not that I’ll hit the books from here … <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Anyhow … happpppy Birthday Arpita … Wish you all the very best in life ..<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">May you always remain the same old Gudda .. whom we all know and love … <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">(haha.. u guyz are funny tho .. Gudda and …Ritz, Chikha was it?? :P .. thank god I never had any Nick names :D)<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Ahhhhhh… and now …. Let me enjoy some AVIL Grins … ;)<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">(parody on smelly cat :D)<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><span style=""> </span>“Broooom Man, Broooom Man, what is she feeding you ..<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><span style=""> </span>Broooom Man, Brooooom Man, it’s all your fawww-llt :P “<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Aaaaaaaahhh.. and I am soooo itching to quote certain lines out here (etched in my mind as clear as ever).. but wont! ..hehe .. it’s ur bday after all ..<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">PS. I got this mail from HK today *u might be amused*<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">HI GIRL <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">HOWS LIFE???<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">ME IN<span style=""> </span>%^&*$....DOING INTERNSHIP <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">THINGS NOT GOING ALL THAT GR8....THIS TIME ROUND HAV TO WEAR SALWAR SUITS FOR THE TRAINERSHIP :(<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">GOT MBE INTERVIEW ON 25...DO WISH ME LUK.....<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">NE WAYS ITS ARPS B,DAY 2 MORROW<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">JUST A reminder for my forgetful frien ; )<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">tc luv<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">heena<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">**coding meant to protect the paranoid’s whereabouts, will u believe me .. she now thinks her telephone is hacked ! lmao!! <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">haha… we RKK-ians are a weird lot! **<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">Cheeeeers, have fun! … <o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";">God Bless …<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"><b style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family: "Comic Sans MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Ronald Weasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01695459014001423346noreply@blogger.com5