A journey…

A simple poem dedicated to eleven beautiful people!

I took a little journey to a sunny beach
To find myself, others and a connection to each
The first evening I didn’t know where we were heading
The next morning was different – in a room full of beddings!

AM was silent, a little stern, thought I
SSR seemed a very philosophical guy
And then there was PD who couldn’t sit still
AC was wondering how the time he could kill.

SA remarked about how ‘someone’ was late
While DC thought, “Oh, what a fatal mistake”
AP kept talking and throwing names about
AB was himself – speaking his mind out.

SM was observing as best as he was able
While AK brought all his experience to the ‘table’
SG was cold, with a pillow for a shield
While I thought, what would this experience yield?

The first awkward day and all were at sea
Groping, kicking and drowning were we
Our lifeline proved to be simple – a bit of Here and Now
The days after got better, we connected – and how!

We sifted through the present and a bit of the past
And we all connected with each other at last
I miss all you guys and cherish you too
My life is much better, simply knowing all of you!

The Anomalous Behaviour of Walter

There was once a little girl who loved her shoes. They were patent leather red shoes with silver buckles and little white chequered bows on the front. She loved the bows most of all.

One day, she was standing at the bus stop when her shoes encountered a bug on the grass.

Rightie said, “Hi Bug, good morning!”
“Good morning, Rightie! How do you do today?”
“I’m swell! Up and running! Alive and kicking! How about you?”

Now Bug wasn’t all that swell this morning and so said,
“Well… I’ve been busy as a B..U..G
and I don’t have enough time to enjoy life anymore you see.“
“That’s real sad Bug, tell me more”

A car passes by, fluttering Bugs’ wings. Little girl seems impatient at the bus stop, tapping her left foot.

Bug sighed, “I’m really not up to working this hard any more.
Life’s become dull, pointless and a complete bore.”

“Well Bug, why don’t you try something different today? Take the longer route home through Pollenville. The sunshine and butterflies will do you some good!”

“Rightie! How can you suggest that? I’m allergic!
To pollen, yes! All the sneezing will make me sick.”

“Now that’s strange, I’ve never heard of an allergic bug, but alright, try flying about a little. Why don’t you exercise your wings today?”

“Haven’t you heard me say?
I’m dead tired with all the work I’ve done today.”

Little girl’s left foot was tapping away and seemed a little jittery. The wait was making them all anxious.

“Okay Bug, our bus will be here any minute. Why don’t you eat out today? It might take the monotony out of everything.”

“Oh Rightie, if only you knew
How little my money can buy or do.”

CRRRUNCH!

“Walter, what have you done?” screamed Rightie and Little girl in unison.
“Aren’t you glad I put him out of his misery? I sure couldn’t take his complaining any more.”

And so Little girl learned about life and its dichotomy through this brutal lesson.

It's ALIVE!!!

I've been thinking of so many ways to revive this blog - and it's been a while! Some things that have crossed my mind...

A silly article about my bag – here’s a quick overview. My bag: It contains many things that I hardly use and the one thing I really need (pen/ ID/stun gun) is almost always lost in that black hole disguised as a leather satchel from Dharavi. But then, who would be interested to read about THAT?

I then thought about writing what I’d been up to in the past (almost) 3 years but I can summarize that in exactly one sentence. I escaped from Ememess (see post), hitched an eligible bachelor (yes, I got married) and ignored my blog. So there.

I even thought of being clever and making this post about my failed ideas for revival but that didn’t quite cut it – as you can already see. So what I will write about today is…

DUMB B-GRADE MONSTER FLICKS!

(Been seeing a few lately due to a recent short-lived illness)

These are mostly built around some radioactive croc/bird/dino/snake or, if budgets permit, a combination of the above, with titles aptly prefixed with super/mega/monster. Try the combinations – they’re fun. As a matter of fact, I don’t think there’s a MEGABIRD flick out yet. Ideas…

The cast is usually made up of several model-type aspiring actors who can barely get their lines out without bursting into hysterical guffaws/tears depending on whether they’re in the pool or not. (Oh yes, there’s got to be a water body somewhere). A few extras make an appearance just to make the movie bloodier. Don’t worry about having to endure them too long – most of the main cast and the extras are not meant to last the entire script. When the super/mega/monster makes its first ominous appearance - be prepared to say good bye to the only funny guy in the film. Too bad, he was the only one you could stand.

The actors you will have to learn to love are the professor types. They are the sexy scientists (oxymoron, anyone?) usually one of each sex – who are the only two people on the planet who seem to know the beast well. They will dodge him-her (the radiation makes them all hermaphrodites) in ways you cannot even imagine and even outsmart the thing (if that’s possible) a couple of times. Surely, there will be some near-death experiences in between the forced chemistry and a couple of love scenes.

The entire free-for-all bloodbath is set on an exceptionally unreachable and unplottable location: usually a deserted island or a super-secret research facility. This makes getting help take long enough to last the entire length of the movie, by which time you wish you were the one being rescued or, at times, eaten.

If you haven’t seen any of these brain scramblers recently, please do. I’d put it on the fifty things to do before you die list and I’ll try to keep up the pace with my posts from now on!

The 'How Cheap Can You Get' Quiz – for FREE!!

Please take this quiz and be as honest as you possibly can and think of all the freaks in your life that some of the stuff applies to!! (Special thanks to G - my partner in crime!)

1. You’re half an hour late for a meeting with pals, you:

a) Take the quickest route to get there, money doesn’t matter.
b) Take a quicker route than the one you would normally take.
c) Take the slowest possible bus: it doesn’t cost a thing and your pals will wait anyway because you’ll conveniently lie to them about how you got entangled in your grandmother’s quilt before getting out of bed.

2. You’re throwing a party and you want to make sure people remember it, you:

a) Get a professional to do the décor.
b) Take a quick course in party décor to brighten up the place.
c) Call up your artist friend and expect them to spend a whole lot to do up your place for free.

3. In return, for your friend's birthday, you:

a) Arrive early to help him/her prepare.
b) Arrive on time and give your friend company while he/she prepares c) Pretend you have other pressing family matters to attend to and make yourself the guest of honor by showing up last and leaving first.

4. The gift you get your friend is:

a) Something he/she would like and would use.
b) Something that you think he/she would like and use.
c) A hideous piece of clothing even your mother wouldn’t wear, but that was on sale three seconds before the party started.

5. For your annual year-end ball attire, you pick:

a) Something unique, tasteful and classy.
b) Something slutty, to remind yourself that you do have your assets in place.
c) An outfit that sports your biggest asset only, even if you end up like a tennis player playing the wrong sport!!

6. You're out with your guy's friends and you really want them to like you, so you:

a) Plan the outing and take care of the food. b) Sponsor the booze, why not spend on your man and his best mates! c) Simply show as much skin as possible so that they don't miss out on noticing you, after all it's free and takes less effort.

7. When strange guys/girls shower you with gifts (even though you have no intention of going out with them), you:
a) Kindly decline the gifts, you’d rather set the record straight.
b) Keep the tiny earrings, but return the silver and gold.
c) Take it all – do people ever return gifts?!??!

8. For your wedding gown/ suit, you:
a) Splurge on your wedding attire: you gotta look like the bride/ groom.
b) Pay as much as your budget allows, okay maybe a little less!
c) Turn up the charm and sponge off an expensive designer dress for free!

Ok, so here’s the deal…

Mostly a’s – you’re my kinda person! Stick around!
Mostly b’s – there are some of you out there, but don’t worry, I won’t disown you if I know you! Mostly c’s – stay the hell away from me and my friends. You know who you are!

I’M BACK!!! (and how!)

Well… so I’ve been away for a while. I blame it on my moods and a bit of blogger’s block and many other things like… projects, exams, projects, vivas, projects, a mini-vacation, some more projects, magazine work, interviews, projects and finally – the summer project!!

So, I’m still with the summer project – the final presentation being due in another week and I must say that I began work on a skeptical note considering that this would be yet another GROUP PROJECT (check previous posts) and an extended one at that – lasting two whole agonizing months. BUT – and this is important – I’m amazingly surprised that I’m actually having fun this time around!! The project is going superbly well, very much on track, and we really enjoy our time on the job. Here’s a glimpse…

THE ARRIVALS: I’m usually the first to arrive, followed by R, Ro, N and then S. Also, S being the only guy in our group, most of the girlie catching up (like how was your weekend, what did you do when you went home last night) happens before S arrives. But truly, we do love him – so it’s nothing personal.

PRE-LUNCH: We’re all in by now, and a couple of us will get a cuppa from the vending machine, someone will fill one of the water bottles and when we’re all comfortably settled - the games begin…. We basically spend our time imitating people, laughing about movies, having deep discussions over marketing strategies, bitching about college, sniggering over internal jokes and accomplishing some work in the process.

LUNCH: Regardless of what the other groups do – we always sit together. The five of us squeeze onto a table for four where we continue our gossip or our discussion depending upon the mood for the day.

RELAXATION: Library time!! Some unwinding (like we actually need it!) where S checks out a couple of newspapers or some important mags like TIME and the likes. Ro tends to skip the library session, R and N usually flip through Femina or some light picture book … Me – well, all of the above and then some!!

POST-LUNCH: A session of giggly madness, ideating, brainstorming, synergizing and all that management mumbo-jumbo rolled into a nice enjoyable package of mindless fun… yes, even our work seems like fun when the five of us get together.

I cannot explain what it is that makes this team function (and have fun) like it does. Maybe it’s the fact that we all have our domains and there’s hardly any toe stepping, or maybe it’s just the right mix of people, or the right temperaments brought together, the right skill-sets – I have no clue! All I know is that this summer project is a pleasant surprise and a testimony to the fact that EVEN group work can be fun – when you get it right!

Sleeping on a case of coffee...

So Elena has a case. To study, analyze and evaluate others on. Oh no, she isn't a professor. It's a role she has to play - and will be evaluated on. Yes. Confusing.

But not nearly as confusing as the case!! A case of coffee. A case on coffee. A case to tuck under her pillow in the hope that something creeps into her dreams that might help her make sense of the java jumble. Whew!

It would take the brilliance of Holmes on this one - but alas not so elementary for Elena!

Just Another Day

You need to know: This is something I found lying around in an old folder. I'd written this about four years ago - it's incomplete but I would like to know what you think of it... Good or bad... I'm open to a review!

I wake up to the morning rain. I love the rain. The steady beating of the drops onto the windowsill calms my warm and sleepy head. It is time. I must rise and seize the day.

Coffee's brewing. The warm, brown aroma fills the room and my senses are awakened. The water breaks onto my face. The thin, transparent sheet shatters into a million stinging droplets. They tickle my skin, play with it, tease it. This amuses me.

Jazz on the radio. The soft, smudgy melody enters my brain. Note by dusky note. Somewhere in the midst of telephone numbers and forgotten errands they make their esoteric home.

Crumpled sheets must be folded and smoothed. I do this with apathy. My bed gains tidiness and loses character. The doorbell rings and is discordant with the radio. My brain is not happy with this asymmetry.

Yesterday's world infiltrates my home on sheets of paper. I learn that a child was being born on a bus as grime left fabric in my washing machine. Time is so eventful. I remember to buy fruit.

The sepia-coloured brew thaws my insides. I drain the cup and am left feeling hungry. The apple is squeaky between my teeth. The flavours mingle. Bittersweet.

I walk into my second skin and enter the world of the dressed. The face in the mirror needs attention. A little putty to smoothen the flaws and a dash of colour from a tube. My painting is finished. It is presentable now. I can show it off to the world.

I leave my home and a melody seeps into the voice in my head. It’s the voice that does my thinking. Familiar tune. Perhaps the morning's notes surreptitiously intruding a non-musical moment? I smile.

One foot follows the other with effective mindlessness. They keep time as the world bobs to their rhythm. Perhaps the whole world exists solely because I perceive it. Interesting thought. Egotistical.

My timekeepers slow down as I step onto that metal box with wheels. My eyes read the words. Get more from your car. My mind reads the signs. Get more from your car. Get more from your care. Get more from your cares. Get more from your caress. It is easy to occupy my mind. Caress more from your gut.

Purged air brings the taste of coffee back to my tongue. My transient neighbour is startled. I’m not sorry. My mind laughs. I smile. Another sign reminds me to alight. Spoil yourself. Toil poor elf.