Moved !!!

Well all those who have been following the crap ...I have two requests..

1. Your Comments are not only Welcomed.. they are required...Atleast.. I will get your viewpoint also.

2. And I have moved !!!

Yes, I got my own domain.. and have already setup the blog..

www.kidunltd.com

Thanks !!
kid

The Monkey Menace

Somewhere in January of 1995 : Going to a temple atop a hill in Shimla. It was a school trip. I was the youngest. As it was a school trip and we were actually not that old, our pockets and bags were actually filled with lot of stuff to eat. I particularly remember Poppins !! The way was infested with monkeys all over. I don't remember much, but I do remember this.

One of the monkeys suddenly leaped from nowhere on to the girl behind me. I was pretty normal. But what I saw was something I never expected. The monkey, checked the pockets of the girl,looking for food and also opened the camera pouch and was about to check what was inside, but a dog came and the monkey was on top of a tree in no time. We were saved by the dog.

Conclusion : Monkeys are smart, and they learn a lot by visuals !!

Somewhere in the range of 2002-2004 : Dr. Kalra's Clinic, I was there for a checkup. I don't remember whether I was there for myself or just accompanying on of my friends. But what I saw was.

I young kid, not more than 2 years old, had a scratch almost 0.5 centimeter deep on his cheek. Not a good view. The mother of the child said it was monkey !!!

Conclusion : Monkeys are dangerous.

Some few months back : Another temple infested with monkeys, monkeys got hold of the clothing, and waited until we gave them something to eat.

Conclusion : I say smart, I say clever, I say Indian !!!

Yesterday : I was on a trip to a very dry but watery place. Confused ?? But trust me, it could not be described better than these two words used together. At some place a thought came into my mind. Suppose people ahead went out of there minds, something happened, and now all the monkeys are furious. I pushed the thought out of my mind. And I carried on.

Half an hour later, I saw as if somebody decided to play the thought which were running in my mind. And now the monkeys were furious. When we were climbing up, the monkey was directly above my head hanging on a branch. A couple on the left.

And then ...

A direct eye to eye contact with the monkey. The monkey gives a war cry, I get defensive, and give my own war cry. I continue walking and realise the monkeys on the left were directly now behind me. Cautiously I move side ways. The first monkey plans to attack and approaches. I thwart his attack, by a dummy bag throw motion. The monkeys goes far back. And this gives me enough time to get out of the danger zone. And so I did get out of the danger zone.

And trust me, until I reached to the place from where I started, I was on the look out for monkeys.

Conclusions :
1. Don't trouble monkeys. They only need food. You throw stones at them, they get furious.
2. Attack is the best policy of defense.
3. Don't think of anything bad, lest someone up there decided to have little fun with you.

There are few who know I afraid of monkeys, and those who know, they know it big time !!!

The Good Morning Mail !!!

There are times when everything is going wrong...and there are times when everything just clicks...well for me... these days its the former one!!


Friday morning, at work, I received a general Good Morning Forward from one of my friends. Usually I don't feel the need to respond to any of the forwards that I receive (sometimes I even delete them without reading them itself!!). But on that particular day, I did. And I did it in style which not many would want to repeat !!!

It so happened, that the particular mail, was sent to one of my another friend, couple of his colleagues, and it had the addresses of two ladies in the CC list. Well I wondered, why in the CC list and not with all of us.

I simply pressed ALT+L, deleted all the ids from the To field except his and my friend's. Wrote something about the ladies (it was something like, if they are single we are ready to mingle !! ) and sent the mail !!!

Did you notice something wrong ??

Well I did, as soon as the mail was out of my outbox, I realised, I didn't delete the CC list !!!

And so my day started on Friday.

The mail was aptly titled. "Good Morning"

Mentality of an MCP??

I was having this chat with du2 , below is a part from the conversation, that made me think.

kid : My friend was washing clothes, and I told him, get married.
du2 : You boys have the same mentality !!!
...
kid : And He said, "What will happen then, Now I am washing one's then I will wash two's !!"

Later I went on thinking of that mentality statement. I don't what enticed me, what she was saying, was right to an extend. One cannot expect to get married just because you want someone to wash your clothes, there got to be a more sensible reason.

But I guess it has nothing to do with mentality. I mean, could it be wrong, because whenever I go home, I expect my mom to take care of me. Does that tell me there's something wrong with my mentality ? Or expecting your spouse to take care somethings for you is wrong ? I mean, I am sure the person on the other side will also have some expectations ... and thats a definite.

May be this will qualify me to be an MCP, but that's OK. I think there is nothing wrong if I think some of the things to be taken care by someone else.

My Solitude !?

I have not changed,
I am only taking a break,
not from the people around,
but from the life around.

Trying to figure out things,
trying to stock take,
trying to keep myself busy,
away from those thoughts.

Have I changed,
Maybe, I can't be sure,
but the change in me,
does not demean you.

Its not that I don't need you,
but its only that,
I need my self with me.
I need to figure some things out,
get used to certain things,
chart a new path.

I wish you could understand,
I know you are trying,
but I also know you won't,
because we are just,
two different people at the end !!!

All I need you to understand is,
I need my solitude,
and when I am OK,
I will come running back to you !!!

And I know,
you will understand this !!!

Thanks for being there !!!

"Darr yeh lagta hai,
Kya yeh sapna hai,
Ab jo apna hai,
Kal woh kahan hai ? "
[KKG]

Common Sense !?

Whenever we are walking on a road, I usually get into this argument about which side of the road should we walk. The people who are with me, usually say on the left side (considering India or UK style, on which the traffic keeps on the left side). On asking them why, they usually say because thats the rule or some other lame reason.

Whereas, I always say on the right side. Reason being, that on the ride side you can see the car which is coming in front of you, and accordingly adjust your self on the road. (Forget about the footpaths, you wont find them, and when you do , there will be 2-wheelers trying to reach forward). Walking on the left side, I don't think I will see the car or whatever which is coming behind me and hence leaving everything on the mercy of the driver of the vehicle coming from the behind.

Walking on the right side, atleast you can be sure of yourself !!!

So which side will you choose ???

There was this saying we used when we were in school, went something like this !!!

"Common sense, is not so common these days !!"


PS : I have a theory on why people prefer the left side, but thats a material for a different topic.

Its a Beautiful Day !!!

11:00 PM - Go to bed. Think 6-7 hours of sleep daily is must. Not more not less. Set alarm for 5:30 AM.
.
.
.
5:02 AM - Wake up thinking something. Check the time. Tell your self you have to sleep till a minimum of 5:30. Go back to sleep.
.
.
.
5:30 AM - Feel something is vibrating. (It must be the cell). Starting ofthe song "Dare You to Move" and it is put in snooze. (Still have 1Hr 10 mins to head out of the house to catch the bus, can afford the 5 mins).
.
.
.
5:35 AM - Stop the alarm. Go back to sleep.
.
.
.
6:15 AM -Hear your name being called. Wakeup with a jolt.Stand up (and remember no water for 3 days. Thank God its the third and last !!).
.
.
.
Vola ... Water is still there !!
.
.
.
6:30 AM - Start the process of brushing your teeth.
(Random Thoughts about a person I don't actually know and how she is messing her life)
(Some mental notes, and then decide against them)
(Some more random thoughts about someone else.)
(Make a mental note that bath has to be skipped)
.
.
.
6:35 AM - Start to dress. Gonna be late !!!
.
.
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6:40 AM - Still getting ready !!!
.
.
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6:42 AM - Dash out of the house running !!! The dogs outside look up. Slow down !!!
Few meters down strart running again.Take the two turns and end up face to face with the neighbours dog. Notice that it ready to pounce. Stop !!! The neighbour grins and continues to walk his dog. Cautiously pass the dog. Start running again.
.
.
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6:44 AM - What the hell !! Stop running !!! (Breathless - Stamina ?? ) Walk at a fast pace and notice the bus. Few more meters and take the seat.

And its a beautiful day !!! :))

See the world in green and blue
See China right in front of you
See the canyons broken by cloud
See the tuna fleets clearing the sea out
See the Bedouin fires at night
See the oil fields at first light
And see the bird with a leaf in her mouth
After the flood all the colors came out

It was a beautiful day
Don't let it get away
Beautiful day

Touch me
Take me to that other place
Reach me
I know I'm not a hopeless case

What you don't have you don't need it now
What you don't know you can feel it somehow
What you don't have you don't need it now
Don't need it now
Was a beautiful day

[Its a Beautiful Day - U2]

...but we didn't ...

... there was a time,
when we had nothing to talk...
but we still used to find something,
even if it is crap...just to spend time

... now...
there was a lot
and I am sure
we had a lot to talk..
but we didn't...

... Till the day we meet again
In my heart is where I'll keep you friend ...
I will be missing you ...

[-Puff Daddy, I'll be missing you]

White Nights

I don't know why I liked 'White Nights' in the first place. But as I was reading through it, something in it did bind me, that suddenly I was all respects for Dostoevsky.(Not that previously I hadn't any!!!). There was something in that story that appealed to me, I don't know what exactly. And I wanted to refer it to someone. Thinking back I don't really know why I didn't, but that doesn't matter anymore.

The story is amazing, I know, it won't appeal to many, but somehow, it gave me a lot to reflect upon.

For the character, it was something, like so close and yet so far, the feeling of something slipping which almost within your grasps. Somehow anything that is related to this automatically qualifies as a masterpiece for me. I guess this is why someone called me a pessimist. But I have always had the affinity for the underdog. I have always had great respect for them, for people, with whom life is not fair.

At the end of the story, the author, potrayed it that it could have been a dream. I could not really decide whether the character was dreaming or it happened in the real. It was left to the reader to decide, the uncertainty !!! But I think, now I realise what it actually meant !!!

There was also the desperation, the hope against hope, and taking things the way you want it. It is so very relative and gives a feeling that it is around.

As I said,

trust your instincts

and even though, and still

obey your thirst

PS : I admire this statement by Dostoevsky " I am a sick man ..."

The Mirage !?

My DreamLand is amazing,
its just plain wonderful !!
The 'simulations' based on the
ifs and buts.

I am OK with reality,
I tend to and
have learned to
take it as it comes.
Just to accept the norms of life.

But

Its the mirage,
which is created
when they merge,
Which is painful
and am not able to
come to terms with !!!

... and I wait ...

... and I wait for it to come,
and when it comes,
it goes by so fast
that ...

and then when it hits me,
that its over,
I go back to line 1
and start waiting all over again.

Everyday I wanna pick up the phone
and tell you that you're
everything and even more
(Missing You - Case)

But I know I can't !!!

Little Wonders (Rob Thomas)

our lives are made

in these small hours

these little wonders,

these twists & turns of fate

time falls away,

but these small hours,

these small hours still remain

let it slide,

let your troubles fall behind you

let it shine

until you feel it all around you

and i don't mind

if it's me you need to turn to

we'll get by,

it's the heart that really matters

in the end

The Saint, The Coward and The Human

Aimlessly, Wandering around,
Not being really sure where I am going,
earlier I had the shelter around
Now I just find them waiting for me on the sideways.

Its strange, when others give you advice
and expect you to follow it,
thinking they know what best for you
while they allow someone else to make
the important decisions in there life.

I wonder what intrigues them
is it the path that I take
or is itthe spectacle that I create.

Funny how we are not sure of whats best for us
but we know, exactly, what good for others.

Its amazing, that inspite and despite of your will,
you are still not allowed,
It hurts and it hurts even more
when you are told its done for you.

I usually quote,
"Its your life, and you are suppose to be the most important person in it"

It makes it easier for you to make decisions.

Also its enforces you to think of yourself and only yourself
because others can and will think the best of themselves
Its about time people realise,that, no matter what,
whatever happens in your life,
you and only you,
stand responsible for it.

Selfishness is not only desired, it is necessary,
not only for you, but also for the benefit of others.

and hence I re-quote and re-phrase

"Its your life,
and you are suppose to be the most important person in it,
and no matter what,
you are responsible for everything that goes on in it"

Travel on the Road

I prefer traveling on the road, then any other kind of travel. Not by rail and not by flights. Given an option, I will always take a bus or a car. I guess when I look outside the window, with the world zipping by me, with me sitting away from all this , unaffected.

It gives me a moment. To step aside, for a moment, take some time, away from whats going on, and reflect upon, whats going on, where its going and where it is taking me along with it.

Its just a time to introspect, to look upon, to understand.


I have always had, immense faith, in life. At times it gets hard, to understand what went wrong. But I guess, I happen to take it all with the stride. It all requires a little time. Thats All !!!

I might need you to hold me tonight
I might need you to say its alright
I might need you to make the first stand
Because tonight Im finding it hard to be your man

Hey
More than angry words I hate this silence
Its getting so loud
Well I want to scream
But bitterness has silenced these emotions
Its getting hard to breathe
So tell me isnt happiness
Worth more than a gold diamond ring
Im willing to do anything
To calm the storm in my heart
Ive never been the praying kind
But lately Ive been down upon my knees
Not looking for a miracle
Just a reason to believe

I might need you to hold me tonight
I might need you to say its alright
I might need you to make the first stand
Because tonight Im finding it hard to be your man

-Hold Me Tonight (Savage Garden)

PS : Just that, one of my friends, made me realise, that I happen to leave a lot on TIME !!!

Dreams , Ahoy !!

Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board.
For some they come in with the tide.
For others they sail forever on the horizon,
never out of sight, ...

-Zora Neale Hurston

Legacy Characters !!!

We all reach a phase in our lives, when some of the people we know are not required, but are just there because they have been carried forward from the past. Even if some valuable time is spent with them, even if the memories are cherished, but as they emerge in front of you, now, the same warmth or closeness is not felt. Its then, when you realise, that that the role that person had played, is no longer plays an importance in the present script of your life.

I had always wondered, how certain things come to an end, by very minor changes in life, well the effects of these changes are huge, so we can't say the change was minor. And once again, I am overwhelmed with the feeling that I am no longer required, that the role of this certain character is over. And this is when you backtrack all the phases, and realise, what actually your character meant and why the character is, in the place, where he is now.

I guess this should add on to the previous statement I have made, friendship due to obligations. It is very difficult, for people, to remove these 'legacy characters' from there life, just because the past is very beautiful. And at times, it is difficult to send them packing, because you know at a certain point of time, they played a valuable role. But what the legacy character is feeling is not thought of, I guess, its being oblivious to the others need. I guess it hurts, when placed on a very pompous place, in the beginning, being treated with care and warmth, and taking that away, suddenly. In the end, it feels like, big words and no deeds.

From the first person's point, it is actually fair. Everyone has a right, to move on with their lives. Baggages, are difficult to carry, and everyone likes to shed them off where ever they can. Sometimes, it is not even realised, that there is a legacy character. There are always reasons or excuses why certain things are not coming up, they should be. And at times, it is obligation, doing it for the sake of other, why that character still lingers around, thinking that atleast that much she owes to the legacy character !!! Obligations !!! Its best if it is not there.

Things have to change, change is inevitable. Some are easy, some cause pain, but to avoid them is not possible. So its best to take the natural course. There are times, when you feel, that every thing is going with you, and suddenly, you realise, that the tides have changed. I guess its cyclic,
after every crest there is a trough, but again, after every trough, there is a crest.

Some Impressions, last for a life time, but
Some are more than Just Impressions !!!

I wonder !!!

I wonder ...

why in relationships, after some time, there is a full stop .... or
a comma...and never dot dot dot !!!

- borrowed from someone !!!

Hai Ram, Log Kya Kahenge !!!

Since long I have felt that whenever an Indian returns from abroad, after spending a couple of years there. The mind state in which he returns is usually the one in which he had left. It may have been updated with the Bollywood releases, but for a person who has hailed from the middle class back ground, he will usually ignore them to be for the rich and famous. During my flight back home, I came across an article by Shobha De titles "Dancing Queens" featured in The Week, she has talked about a lady from the British Land unable to understand why a Bride's Mother will do a solo dance on the now famous "Kajra Re". To me, still it sounds as pretty far-sighted in my circle, where it may still be a couple of more years away. The NRI lady, who is now baffled about the family traditional values which she has kept so close to her heart and guarded with near jealousy so that she wont be branded with a No-Longer Indian tag.

The question immediately pops up in our mind is that why, in India, we are drifted slowly but steadily towards the western culture and are including them in our rituals, whilst for people living outside the Indian sub-continent, try to be stagnant or worse move backwards and adopt the purer form of our traditions. Trying not to forget our roots and trying to be in touch with the present going trends, our minds are always drawn to that dilemma in making a that all so necessary choice of choosing between what we really want and what our traditions say.

The NRI Lady, in the article, has come up with arguments that are so true and reasonable. Taking one example of the Lady asking the whether it was acceptable conduct coming out of the Bridegroom's future mother-in-law. Go back a few years, I assure you, it would have been a tabboo.

Does walking in pace with time, means to change yourself over time so that it suits the people around you rather than you? There is always an external force that requires us to change. It usually is in the forms of our friends and relatives and that hidden competition between themselves. The fight to always proves who is better. And then the billion dollar question is, what is better. Better can be not forgetting what our elders told us, playing by the rules or better can be not leaving the grip of time and beating it to its pace.

I wonder in which context "Hai Ram, Log kya kahenge" will apply now.

To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary
To one without faith, no explanation is possible !!
St. Thomas Aquinas

Hai Ram, Log kya kahenge, hum abhi tak pichdi duniya ke hain or
Hai Ram, Log kya kahenge, hamari sanskriti kahan gayi !!

For us its always been what we are thought of in the society rather than what we are thought of in our mind ourselves. The decisions are usually made by thinking not what we feel is right, but what the general perception of being right is.And that general perception changes with the place you live and the company you keep.

Home Cooked !!

Well I have done funny things in life. I remember during school times, the chemistry lab was something different from me. There was one particular incident which I don't forget. During the study of AgCl3, I brought the solution home once. I don't remember what I was thinking !!!. Playing with the solution, I don't know what I intended to do. I did spill some of the solution on myself, specifically on the hands.

Lazy as I am, I didn't bother to clean, because anyhow I was to head for the chemistry lab itself. ( I was a strict non-follower of the Lab Rules ) With some of the Liquid in my hand, I rushed down to reach my labs. During the walk in the sun, I realized my hands had magically turned black. It did not strike me immediately what had happened.!!

But for full 3 days, people were frightened, whenever I drew out my hand for a shake, to such and extend that they would jump and pull back there hands and would not shake it !!

Well that story is just a by-product. The main story is, in another experiment, I produced a lot of ammonia. And I went on to smell huge amounts of it for some time. I later realized that ammonia affect the outer layer of your nose's inside. This resulted in many side-effects including the leaking of my nose very frequently, cold or no cold.

Now past few weeks, and previously also I noted, I have not been able to smell things. To the extend that smell of burn whiles I am at the stove is not noticeable to me. I wonder whether it is temporarily or long term. But it sure has inhibited the amount of pleasure I could and should derive from eating various foods.

Mahesh Dattani in his article "Home-Cooked Love" (featured in The Week) points out that, it is the combination of the senses from touch, smell, and taste because of which we Indians will never be able to recluse the Home-Cooked feeling.Whatever we say, and wherever we eat, the best cooked food has always been and will be, for us Indians the food cooked by Ma !!! 90 % of the strong billion people will agree with me.

I always used to wonder, that japenese will never get that feel, as cooking is not part of there daily routine and agenda. But right now I am desperate to have that feeling. And finally after almost a year, it will come again tonite !!

To end, I will quote from Maheshs article
" I regret that I was never a part of the process of making food, but I am eternally grateful that I was at the receiving end "

I think it Sums it up in the best possible way !!!

The Wind like the Small

The Wind like the Small

The wind like the small
Never lets the sea smile
Whenever awake
Troubles her for a while
Moving here and there
and the water behind
Its like a mother
after her child

And when the child tires
he stops and sleeps
The mother calms down
and takes a sigh of relief.

-dedicated to my mother

Insecurity ... or is it ??

I came across a Garfield Strip recently and I have added it here also (though without asking there permission !!)

John wants to ask Liz for a stroll in the park, which he does ask. Liz replies very casually she would. So far so good. An expression of joy. But then what makes John ask the next question, Can I come along ?What was he thinking when he asked the question in the first place.

I am sure, most of us would have come across simillar situations. It may not be between a guy asking a girl out, it may not be of you being a third-person watching the conversation like Garfield. Rather I believe all of us would have met people who would come repetitively to you and ask you the same question again and again by simply re-phrasing it. Or so it may seem.

I have particular interest in this strip, because I can relate to it to an extend and I could make out in very probable terms what was going in John's mind.

We all would have prepared ourselves in our lifetime for a goal which would have come to us in a manner easier than expected. I believe John would have half expected Liz to turn down the offer. And with a very casual answer and utter of joy, John's mind would have questioned, can this be right, is this possible. No, there has got to be a misunderstanding. Probably the only weaklink he would have found and confirmed it whether he was part of the subject which they were discussing. Something which we all do, when we book tickets of our journey, or when we deposit cash into bank accounts, or when we fill any general but important forms. We all try to be dead sure, to leave no room for misunderstandings. To confirm things in the way we understood it to be. Many of us rely on things to be understood implicitly which are not important, but things which are important, we try to double check.

For some this instance may not be that important, that you need to double check. But when you are waiting for something to happen for quite long, and then when it happens, you feel like double checking. I have done it. Other people may term it insecurity of the person. I am not sure whether it is appropriate to say if it is insecurity, because I don't exactly understand the meaning of the term insecurity. Insecure of what, that you may fail, I thought it was called pessimism. But rather the script has described beautifully the few things which we all deal in our life, which are different for each person, no matter how close you are with them. There priorities and their expectations. It also briefly touches the concept of pessimism and of observers in a conversation, who try to draw conclusions without understanding the emotions and the needs of the two people involved in the conversation.

We all admit that each person has his own priorities in life, his own expectations of life, his own goals in life. But almost all of us fail to understand that each person has his right to choose the way he lives his own life. The freedom to choose choices which others may not think of at all. The freedom to make decisions. And with this freedom, you might want to double check things which others may think of as naive and unlogical.

You are not as dumb as you look !!

While I was coming to work, something just shot into my mind from the memory lanes.
There was a cricket match between the Sri Lankans and Zimbabweans at the Harare Sports Club. Looking back hard I remember it was a Test Match. I was part of the Sports Club guys who had some duties assigned. One of them was the checking the right people are entering in the tobbacco stands, which were meant for the few privileged. There were tickets which were had a certain stamp. People with those tickets were only allowed inside.

The problem was, some of the clever ones, were passing on the same ticket to their friends, once they entered inside the stands from the sides. So we had to come with some thing that would do away with these kind of things. I simply blurted out, we can tear that stamped portion and keep it with us. It was the most obvious thing to me as well as the first thing that came to my mind. It actually was a good idea also.

And pat came the reply:

"Good Idea, You are not dumb as you look !!"

Its hard to say GoodBye !!!

Is it hard to Say GoodBye ??

It is harder for the person who is staying behind then compared for the person who is leaving. No doubt the person who is leaving, does feel the pain of parting, but the pain is subdued by the fact that there is something else for which he is leaving. There is something else which is going to replace what he had present. Though the replacement may not fill the shoes completely, but atleast there is something else to look forward to. There is always that anticipation, which occupies the mind of the person. The 'What's in store' clouds the mind.

But for the person who is staying behind, for the person, who has to continue as if nothing happened, it may not be the same story. There is nothing more added only removed. There are no reasons for the anticipation to be driven, there are no next stops. Usually the person feels a void which is left after someone leaves, which is not present in the first case. It has been filled temporary with the feeling of going on to the next stop. That euphoria, which arises when you move to some place new, to some place afresh, to some you have been looking forward to.

The Festival of Colors --> Life !!!

Its Holi soon, the festival of colors and
God must be a Painter, why else he would have so many colors in life !!
( A Beautiful Mind )

So enjoy every color in the spectrum, and choose your favorite color to wear. The Rainbow is an interesting thing, it is not tangiable, but we all can see it. It shows all the colors in the spectrum, so that you can choose yours and also it allows you to find out the reason behind the choice.

Don't let the pollution spoil your rainbow, so that your rainbow is only a few colors, because pollution makes things grow black and gray. And certainly you don't want your rainbow to show you shades of gray!!

Well life is about doing many things, and doing things which you like, because its too short to do things which you don't like (duh!! everyone knows that ).
But it doesn't mean that you decide things you don't like, without giving it a fair chance. Life is not about being happy, its about not having any regrets. Happiness and Sorrow are all part of life which make it so wonderful. Infact, you need sorrow in life to appreciate how valuable happiness is.

So wish you a very bright, colorful and joyous Holi, and that you celebrate Holi, in your own special way each day !!

Wishes for the Festival of Holi to You and Your Family !!

And yes I hope you Dance !!

Being Judgemental !!

Its something interesting. Suddenly I am noticing it is everywhere. Before we go into a shop, take our meal, start work or infact start our day itself. The very time we think of something, there is this flow of imagination that is already taking place, and it leads to, no matter how hard we try, we have already perceived in our state of half knowledge, whats it gonna be like.

Approaching a problem, with a pre-meditated mind, results in conclusions based on half knowledge. Allowing us to take a partial view of events around us, just because there is already a mental picture, of how things should or should not be.

The same kind of impression we carry about group of people also. I recently came across an article echoing the same thoughts, though it does goes deep into the whys and becauses. Just because if one has done it, it is suddenly thought which will follow will do the same. Life would be so easy, won't it, if it were so predictable ?? Specially the fact that, once we hear of an African, either sympathy or fear clouds our minds. We expect either the fellow will be a thug or that his life, childhood is so full of hardships that he not deserves our sympathy, but has a right to it.

These sentiments, which we develop wantingly or unwantingly, do have there polarizing affects.

Diet Coke ??

Well since childhood, I have like the taste of Diet Coke compared to the normal Coca-Cola. I was never able to explain why !! Even when we all would go out somewhere, and every one would order the normal drinks (including the gals) and would settle for the normal stuff, I will always give a try for the Diet one. Whenever I have returned with the Diet, I have been given curious looks, implying.. Weight Conscious ??
I have never been able to put a counter statement to it.. and soon I stopped even replying to it.. just the normal grin of mine.

Every one knows, my taste buds drool over strong coffee, with strong smell as well as bitter chocolates, not the regular cocoa less ones available normally. Black Espresso Coffee, Irish Coffee (without alcohol obviously in India) and 60+ % cocoa content chocolates.

After much looking up on the internet, I realized, it was not these things in particular that intrigued me, but the Caffeine content. Though ofcourse, the smell of Strong Coffee is still the best !!!

Diet Coke contains more Caffeine compared to the Normal Coca-Cola !!

I guess this would be the same probable reason why we prefer Thums-Up (its Thums -Up not Thumbs-Up !! ) over Coca-Cola and Coca-Cola over Pepsi

Dreams

It is said, in Dreams, all your senses are ...to some extend....active except the sense of smell. I agree with that. Of all my Dreams I remember, there is not a single one in which I remember smelling something. I remember seeing, feeling the temperatures, hearing, tasting but I don't remember any smell.

For past some time, I have tried to work on my senses, when ever I remember to and also have the time for. I say it is an easy way re-living those cherished moments which happen to stay with time. Though blurriness increases with time, I have been able to trace back to many years back. To do all this, I have always started with something I like and trying to feel the texture, the taste, the smell. Though interestingly I haven't been able to smell, for the last couple of times
I have tried.

Interestingly, I think, am I living a Dream for all these times ??

I was angry that
No one told me that Life will be difficult...
until I realized
No one told me it would be easy ...

Its just what I have chosen it to be !!

Just another ..of.. SAHARA

Well to add on.. I remember.. during the last days of college.. when one by one.. people were heading home to start there life...All of us used to hear stories..about crying on the stations..on the bus stands.. when boarding the rickshaw ... It was like an era coming to an end.. and sure it did...and I used to wonder when we will go.. it will be the same...How will it feel ?? I used to think thats how we all will end up also..with tears in our eyes..
But on the D-Day.. when the first batch of us left...8 June 04... me, anu and mehandi...As we were boarding our ride back home..I clearly remember ..we were all laughing .. we were all smiling.. the very usual we.. in front of our house... to as far as .. I even remember.. when I said... " Who's gonna miss u guys.. I am just thinking... that I am gonna miss Agra" and with a burst of laughter .. I was in the sumo...
It was not that we didn't care.. I guess it was just that .. we knew.. it was not the end.. and that it didn't change anything.. anything at all...so there was no need to be sad about... and that we all wished eachother and ourselves.. a new beginning with cheerful faces...It was a New Beginning...with out an End to previous one...

In Life, there is never never a Happy Ending...!! If it is Happiness.. it has not ended..!!

PS : Its not that we didn't cry, we all cried, it was just that.. Some of us had cried after we left, Some of us before... Some cried with all.. Some cried alone..