A Drive Within

Should you be an optimist after all?

2009-03-22T06:16:00.000-07:00

Little did you know about the universe when you were just born. All you had to do was survive with what was provided to you for your needs. You cared the least about the world, you had no idea who you were, what you were doing here and why you were even here. Well, at least most of us do not know the answer for the last one!

You were a tiny little creature for hopes, aspirations and dreams meant nothing to you. And then suddenly you grew up to be this gargantuan person with millions of thoughts, imaginations, wishes and so much more that life looks all the more complex to you. Living feels all the more difficult. Facing this truth makes you all the more miserable. But you haven't lost hope yet, have you? You know its all going to be alright and everything is gonna head to where you want it to. Call it hope and it does throw this enormous bright light on you and people appreciate you. For they might have different names to it. What some call positive hope, some confidence, some faith, I call optimism.

Kalil Gibran, the Lebanese American poet once said, "The optimist sees the rose and not its thorns. The pessimist stares at the thorns, oblivious of the rose." Optimism is the positive energy that makes people rejoice for an unfound victory. Being a mega optimist myself, I see it as a phenomenon that makes the self recover from a huge loss and still count on the next opportunitiy thinking, ''That's a definite score!" Perhaps it might not be, but this positive feeling about what has not been faced yet keeps me going. I heard this quote in a presentation and I cannot explain how much sense it makes. "Things in life work O.K in the end, if it is not O.K, it is not the end." But not everybody can afford to be optimist and I don't know if that is genetic or depends on the way a person is brought up. And I am most certainly not arguing for optimism here as the same concotion doesn't work out for everyone.

But what is interesting to ponder about is, is being an optimist the magic therapy after all? Should we not see the thorn while looking at the rose? Checking the box before doing it and having to uncheck it in the end paves the disastrous path way to a complete loss of self esteem. I wish I was arguing about how wonderful being a pessimist is as the reverse process of the above makes us smile. In most cases, failures are the biggest mysteries for optimists, for they don't know how to handle them. From what I have observed, people of this breed have given some pretty grades for themselves.

May be life is just a swing from the two corners of an unnatural circle that keeps changing shape, that keeps getting bigger as we go all ready to burst. And we have got so much stuck to the optimistic corner of the circle that one fine day it pushes us so hard, and so violently that we break open the circle falling far outside it. Just when we realize it is not after all that simple, just when we feel the pain of a failure, just when the thorn beneath the rose hurts us, we think "May be, I should have seen the thorn as well!" Again, being a realist is not what I am arguing for here.

Different people and different mindsets are just different enigmas. Different things render different cures to different levels. What works best for you is only known to you. Being an optimist is still what the world wants you to be, because that is what enchants people, that is want brings light not only into your life but also into the lives of all the others around you.

Random Thought

2007-10-30T09:16:00.000-07:00

It is strange how non-living things sometime speak the language of love to us. How surprised will we be if a whole entity of things which hardly mattered to us before, suddenly becomes all the more important that we are ready to quit many things in life for that? I have wondered many a times why the word "love" is related only between human beings more often than anything else. To add to it, these days love is more related to making love in that cozy little bed with a naked partner.

I have always developed an affinity with the place that I am living in. To be more specific, the place where I enjoyed being around. It was my school first, my small home town and I am not ashamed to say that I cried when I left that place. Of course, you might argue that it is for the people there and not for the place. But I certainly have a major disagreement with that because I tend to miss the tiniest details of that place which forms a part of the whole entity of being called school or hometown.

How many times have you felt nostalgic when you returned to your childhood place and saw that huge banyan tree across that school building where you spent loads of evening playing with friends while waiting for your dad to come? Is that because you miss your friends? Nope! Thats because human nature tends to relate incidents to places and hence we develop a bond with the environment.

I am finishing my work contract next month after 7 months. I am gonna badly miss it. Something that hardly mattered before...!

A Ride to Africa

2007-09-15T08:20:00.000-07:00

Ellen was lying calm down on the ground. It was a small tent made of thatched roof in the midst of the thick forests of Ghana. Her cheeks resting on her right arm, she was wetting the ground with her tears. She was one among thousands of women who were living in that camp in exile. She belonged to one of the oldest ethnic groups in Liberia called Kwa.

She had nothing left with her. Her mom was murdered brutally in Liberia a few years back. Her dad and her brother were forced to join the army a year back and since then, she had not heard from them. She escaped from Liberia with a group of Liberians to Ghana a year back. And that was the start of a miserable life for her. Ellen had to do all the menial chores for the locals to get a meal. Sometimes, she had to clean toilets to get a rotten bread and she badly needed that. If she fell sick, then she had to run without food.

Liberia is a country rich in natural resources like her neighbors Guinea and Sierra Leone. Diamond mines, iron and other metals were present in abundance along these regions of west Africa. In fact, Guinea had more diamond mines than Liberia or its other neighbor. The president of Liberia, Charles Taylor, a man known for his greediness, backed by a big group of tribes invaded Northern Guinea to take in possession the rich diamond mines. This war was greatly opposed by Guinea and also by Sierra Leone which was living in the fear of being invaded next after Guinea. So they partnered with each other and thus began the civil war of Liberia.

The Buduburam Refugee Camp at Ghana, that homed more that 42,000 refugees from Liberia was proving to be expensive as well as a head ache for the Government of Ghana. Though the United Nations was strongly supporting their presence in Ghana, the crime rate and the standard of living in Ghana depreciated because of the presence of these tribes. The government could neither send them back, nor could take an initiative to stop their inflow into their country. It was then that the Government of Ghana, that could withstand the troubles of the Liberians no more, came up with a brilliant and crooked solution.

Yet another tear, and that dried her eyes. She could hardly move her limbs for she was so weak. Ellen loved her 7 year old brother very much. Her brother and she went to the same school in Liberia. Though half as old as Ellen is, her brother was as matured and as smart as Ellen was. Initially things were quite smooth. But later, when the troops from Guinea and Sierra Leone joined together to defend the Liberian army, a lot of Taylor’s men went down. This greatly troubled him and he ordered the kids and all able men to join the forces. That was when the men and women started to fled out. The unfortunates, including Ellen’s dad and brother had to hold guns.

The Kwa had its own set of rules and regulations. The tribe would not allow men to marry twice, kids had to stay in forest for sometime to learn hunting before they can start their education, the women who were raped had to stay away from the whole community and they were not even allowed to talk to men and many more. The Ghanaians identified these and made good use of them. The government of Ghana formed a big anti-refugee force unofficially to control their population and scare them back to their country. The troops were camped near the Buduburam Refugee Camp. Whenever they found a Liberian man alone, they shot him and if it were a women, they raped her. This way, they curbed the refugee population and ceased the good living conditions.

Ellen was a victim!

P.S: And you thought I was writing a story?? Names are fictitious. But a lot of these are still going on in west Africa. This is only a bird’s eye view.

How many times have we heard of a war in Africa in BBC?? They go unheard. Life in Africa is not the same as it is in the rest of the world. There are 54 countries in Africa. How many can you name?? A 5?? Or a 10?? And there are 45 countries in Europe, how many can you name now?? A 40?? Or the whole 45??

Close your eyes and put yourself in their shoes. You and I might have probably been shot dead. Appreciate your life. Thank everyday you live. There are many under privileged people living in this world. When you complain the next time, simply put this question before yourself,

“ Am I suffering more than them??”

**This post was written in haste. Hope the message got conveyed.**

Wows And Phews

2007-08-12T04:52:00.001-07:00

It was 7.15 AM. I just had my breakfast and was ready to school. And my brand new bicycle was waiting for its first ride to school. Excitement every minute, enthusiasm reaching no bounds I put on my shoes and socks, grabbed my lunch bag and placed it in the basket my bicycle was fitted with. Tightening my bag on the carrier at the back, pedaling slowly I started riding my bicycle majestically. With my head up, waiting for someone to ask, “Vignesh, is that a new bicycle??” I made my way to school. As soon as I reached school, all my friends surrounded around that new entrant giving expert comments on why I shouldn’t have bought that and why I made the right choice buying it. Off goes the school bell at 7.30 AM and we all gather at the assembly hall for prayer. I had my cycle keys in my pocket and I couldn’t resist myself from feeling it every now and then just to make sure I have it with me. Irresistible joy!!

I went to the parking area at the end of every lecture to ensure that my bicycle is safe. It was a very long day. Have you ever felt like wiping the smallest pinch of dust on your new shoes?? As and when you find some dirt on it?? That was exactly what I was doing with that newbie too!

“Ding Dong”! Bus Stopping! Yet another bus stop with tons of people trying to make it inside the heavily crowded bus. Air-conditioned and highly clean, one of the best busses I have ever been on. I looked at my watch and it said, “7.15 AM”. I will have to get down in the next stop, take a train to the terminal. From there, I will be getting into the complex bus which will take me into the island. Inside the island will that Mercedes Benz van be waiting for me to board. I think I can make it on time to work today at 09.00 AM.

It was 04.00 PM and off went the bell. I rode my bike back home. Dad was home too, a bit early that day.

Dad: “Vignesh, there seems to be some exhibition in town this week. Do you want to go there?”

Me: “Wooow! yes! We can go there today daddy.”

08.45 AM: I am almost in the island. And there I see my company's Benz. I get into the van, switching on the TV and holding the newspaper in my hand I flip through the pages to find innumerable number of shows, performances, exhibitions and advertisement of shopping malls.

“Phew…”

Throwing the paper aside, I closed my eyes and asked myself, “Is this what you always wanted?? City life??”

Renovation Time!

2007-06-23T21:59:00.000-07:00

To Be Back Soon!

I can be your Hero!!

2007-02-15T23:34:00.000-08:00

It has been 8 years…And I have heard nothing about her. She was lost in the meadows…I thought, she is gone forever. But today morning, I got a call from her. She is out there…and she wants to meet me. She is in trouble…

“Hey Vignesh, you are the dumbest and the most idiotic person I have ever seen on earth. How can you be such a fool and an insane to be this stupid?”

Hmm…Yup! These were her words…One of my best pals in school days. She was one of the most caring person I have ever come across in my life. She took every right on me and scolded me to the brim…She wanted to see me as a great personality…She wished I should someday be talked by hundreds and thousands of masses. She…was a gem of a person. I liked her…may be I should restrict it to that now. I never had the guts to think about anything more than that. But at times, the “What If” thoughts popped up my mind…I knew it would be devesting the existing healthy friendship that we share.

Adolescence is when the mind contradicts with deeds. The natural attraction to a person of opposite sex is unavoidable. Well…And I am also a common man to experience these. I admired her. I liked the way she mingled with her classmates. Her softness, humbleness and her shyness to new people and elders is something that makes every person fall for her. And I was feeling so damn lucky to be in close contacts with such a person. She has been the heart throb of my school…Her cute looks was a major attraction for guys. Well and they attracted me too.

After the call I slowly rolled out…My car was with the mechanic. I had to get a public transport. She had asked me to come over to a nearby restaurant. I have never been to that restaurant. I hired a cab and got down at 09.30 AM. She had asked me to come over at 10. But, anxiety and enthusiasm urged me to come earlier. I was waiting in table 11. She said she had booked that table for the both of us. Plainly calm, I was waiting for her, recapping all those olden day memories.

We spoke through telephone for hours together. The whole school was in a way jealous of the relation we shared. The more my guy mates envied me, the more I started enjoying her company and feeling lucky. The board exams were approaching and we were on study holidays. I had to report to her everyday at the end of my study session through phone. And she did the same. We couldn’t meet and I started missing her. I knew I was falling for her and was getting crazier day by day. My exams were primary to me and I did concentrate on them. I had no clue if she really missed me and if she had such feelings.

The exams got over. We did pretty well and were satisfied. It was then vacation time. And I had to find an opportunity or a reason to call her up. I started missing her even more as this time around I had nothing to keep myself engaged. I called her up one day and arranged for a meet up that evening. Extremely private, it was planned along the corner of a dull street. She came in and I was trembling with fear, anxiety and worry. We had a formal talk for a while. Later on…

I told her, “Am missing you millions. I don’t know why, but these are days I really feel like being partitioned from you. And…And I wonder how I gonna put up without you if the necessity comes.”

She said, “Don’t worry, I will be with you always.”

“Always???”

“Hmm…Always…”

“Always next to me??…within my reach of my eye sight?”

“May be not, but u still can feel me within deep”

I took the hint. She just wanted to convince me. I wanted to tell her that she meant something more than that to me.

“Hmm…yeah! But…yes!...ahhh…I wanna tell you something. Please do not mistake me. I am dying out here everyday without telling you this.”

“Whats that??”

“Well….as you know I like you a lot. And sometimes I feel like dying off without you. I don’t know why. But I really want you for this lifetime. For this whole lifetime!”

“hmm…that means?”

“ I am in love with you.”

For a second her face turned pale. She didn’t have any words. A mix of unhappiness and depression…I suppose she didn’t expect this from me. I felt ashamed for a moment but felt much relieved for venting it out. I felt as if I had removed the rock that was lying within me. She turned back, raced her vehicle and was off. She spoke not a word…I never called her then and we didn’t talk to each other. I felt isolated.

A few days later, I had to go out to my aunt’s place far away from my hometown for a month. I knew I wouldn’t be able to call her from there. I wanted to talk to her for one last time before leaving. I did,

“hi”

“hmm…”

“I am leaving to my aunt’s place. Just wanted to talk to you for one last time.”

“Hmm…”

“I will be back only after a month.”

“Ok”

“I haven’t got a response for…...”

“I need time.”

“Hmm…Okie…”

“ “

---Silence---

“Okie. I am leaving. I don’t know if I will be able to call you when am there. So, just wanted to tell you, I am missing you…And am gonna miss you tons.”

“Hmm…”

“Take care…bye”

“….”

---Beep Beep Beep---

I left to my aunt’s place. And in this while her dad got transferred to another station and they shifted over. She didn’t inform me about that…she let none know about this. She left me in pain…She left me in sorrows…She left me in utter unhappiness, displeasure and dismay. I cried…cried everyday…cried till I lost all my energy…Every night was a nightmare for me. She haunted my dreams. Every small thing reminded me of her. She was everywhere. She was right when she said, “u still can feel me within deep”.

Someone opened the door. It was her…the same cute looks of an innocent girl…My Greatest Friend…She took her seat and glanced at me. She knew I had been longing to see her. My throat was choking and I had no words…I couldn’t come up with a “hi” or “how are you?”…Finally, I managed to get something out…

“How did u get my number?”

“I know everything about you.”

Then she showed me her diary that contained all my old telephone numbers, my addresses, my e-mail ids, my office address including one abroad. I was dumbstruck as I knew nothing about her…while she knew everything about me.

“Where have you been these many days…hiding from me?? Why didn’t you try to contact me even when you knew about my whereabouts?”

“I wanted to see you as a man…A man of great regard…not only for me, but for the whole community…which you are now.”

I didn’t speak a word. She then told me this…something which I couldn’t digest…something I couldn’t withstand or never expected…

“I love you….and I wanna marry you…”

I didn’t know what was happening around…for a moment I was lost…I didn’t know how to react to this…

“But…why suddenly??”

“I have been in love with you even since school days…”

She showed me her diary…dating 8 years back…I realized how crazy she has been about me. She was in love with me!!!!!!!!!!!! I couldn’t believe it. I wanted to hug her…and tell her that I love her more than anything else…I stood up and sat in the chair next to her…putting my hands around her shoulder…I said,

“You mean a world to me!”

“And so do you…”

Then she searched her bag for something…she took out an invitation and showed it to me…And this was another shock…A thunder which made me take back my hands from her shoulder. It was her marriage invitation…

“I am being forced to get married…But I really want you for this lifetime. For this whole lifetime…”

I hugged her tight…Cried…And kissed her…

*** The beginning of an ending. ***

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All rite…now please don’t ask me who this girl is. All the characters in this episode are just imaginary. I have never written this kind of posts. Just wanted to give it a try…Am sorry if it didn’t appeal you…And once again, this is purely imaginary!!
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P.S: This story was posted in another blog of mine which is about to die. And i didn't have the heart to let this go...So re-posted it here.

The Final Ride

2007-02-03T00:13:00.000-08:00

Jenny was so happy about the house they had found. For once in her life 'twas on the right side of town. She unpacked her things with such great ease. As she watched her new curtains blow in the breeze. How wonderful it was to have her own room. School would be starting; she'd have friends over soon. There'd be sleep-overs, and parties; she was so happy It's just the way she wanted her life to be. On the first day of school, everything went great. She made new friends and even got a date!

She thought, "I want to be popular and I'm going to be, Because I just got a date with the star of the team!" To be known in this school you had to have clout, And dating this guy would sure help her out. There was only one problem stopping her fate. Her parents had said she was too young to date. "Well I just won't tell them the entire truth. They won't know the difference; what's there to lose?" Jenny asked to stay with her friends that night. Her parents frowned but said, "All right."

Excited, she got ready for the big event But as she rushed around like she had no sense, She began to feel guilty about all the lies, But what's a pizza, a party, and a moonlight ride? Well the pizza was good, and the party was great, But the moonlight ride would have to wait. For Dan was half drunk by this time. But he kissed her and said that he was just fine. Then the room filled with smoked and Dan took a puff. Jenny couldn't believe he was smoking that stuff. Now Dan was ready to ride to the point But only after he'd smoked another joint. They jumped in the car for the moonlight ride, Not thinking that he was too drunk to drive. They finally made it to the point at last, And Dan started trying to make a pass. A pass is not what Jenny wanted at all (and by a pass, I don't mean playing football.)

"Perhaps my parents were right....maybe I am too young. Boy, how could I ever, ever be so dumb." With all of her might, she pushed Dan away: "Please take me home, I don't want to stay." Dan cranked up the engine and floored the gas. In a matter of seconds they were going too fast. As Dan drove on in a fit of wild anger, Jenny knew that her life was in danger. She begged and pleaded for him to slow down, But he just got faster as they neared the town. "Just let me get home! I'll confess that I lied. I really went out for a moonlight ride." Then all of a sudden, she saw a big flash. "Oh God, Please help us! We're going to crash!" She doesn't remember the force of impact. Just that everything all of a sudden went black. She felt someone remove her from the twisted rubble, And heard, "call an ambulance! These kids are in trouble! Voices she heard...a few word at best.

But she knew there were two cars involved in the wreck. Then wondered to herself if Dan was all right, And if the people in the other car was alive. She awoke in the hospital to faces so sad. "You've been in a wreck and it looks pretty bad." These voices echoed inside her head, As they gently told her that Dan was dead. They said "Jenny, we've done all we can do. But it looks as if we'll lose you too." "But the people in the other car!?" Jenny cried. "We're sorry, Jenny, they also died." Jenny prayed, "God, forgive me for what I've done I only wanted to have just one night of fun." "Tell those people's family, I've made their lives dim, And wish I could return their families to them." "Tell Mom and Dad I'm sorry I lied, And that it's my fault so many have died. Oh, nurse, won't you please tell them that for me?"

The nurse just stood there-she never agreed. But took Jenny's hand with tears in her eyes. And a few moments later Jenny died. A man asked the nurse, "Why didn't you do your best to bid that girl her one last request?" She looked at the man with eyes so sad. "Because the people in the other car were her mom and dad."

***An Unpleasant Truth***

Russell Peters 34.50

2006-12-01T09:26:00.001-08:00

Epdi irunda naan...Ipdi aaitten!!

2006-12-01T07:43:00.000-08:00

This is my first blog in Tamil. Non-tamil speakers...Apologies!! But, this wouldn't sound good in english.

Indru ennudaya Kadaisi exam irundadu. Aduvo romba kashtamana padam. Naano adil romba weak. Paritchai arai ku poi konja neram nimmadiyaaga ukkandu relax pannalam endru ninaithaal daan karumam kan munnadi varum. Angu irunda ennudaya "local" nanban oruvan vandaan. Oru sariyaana Local Party avan. Oru murai ennidam irundu ennudaya "Toilet Slippers"ai kadan vaangi kondu sendran. Adai thirumba tharavey illai. Oru maatham kazhithu avan kaalai paarthal ennudaya seruppu..."Ada naara payaley...idai naan toilet ku pottu kondu selluvenada...idaya nee lectureku pottu kondu varugirai" endru ketten. Sirithaan...

Naa sogamaaga irundadai paarthu dukkam visaarithan. Avan kannathilo oru "band-aid". "enna pa aachu" endru kettadukku "moaskeeto" endru kevalamaga oru paarvai vittukondu sonnan. Enakku sirippu thaanga mudiyavillai..Moaskeeto vai mosikki vittan pola irukku.Naan ennudaya sonda ooril irukkumbodu oru kaayam pattu adukku band-aid pottaley visaarippavar ellam "idukku poi band aid ah" endru oru 100 murai keppargal. Aanal ivano, oru kosu kadikku poi inda pistha panni kondu vandu irukkiran.

Aarambithathu paritchai. Naa ninaithathai pola, oru yezhavum theriya villai. "sonda kadai yezhudina mark poduveengala pa" endru kekkalam pola irundadu. Enna seivadu...naanum therindadai ellam yezhuda aarambithen. Kezhvi ku siru kuda sammandam illai yeninaalum "enakkum konja matter theriyum pa" enbathai niruubikka, kanna-pinna endru yezhudinen. Aanal evalavu neram daan apdi yezhuduvadu. 1 mani neram aaginadu. Naano therindadai ellam yezhudi mudithu vitten.

Parakku pakka aarambithen...Enakku munnadi irunda parangithalayano thiru thiru endru muzhithu kondu irundaan. Santhosha Patten...Aanal inda pakkam utkarndu irunda Gujarathi kaarano vegu vegamaga yezhudi kondu irundan. "Ivan enna yezhuda poran..Choli ke peechey kya hai paatin lyricsai daan yezhudi kondu iruppan" endru manadai thethikondu maru pakkam paarthal oru Chinki paiyanin paper kannuku therindadu. En kan thuru thuru endradu. "Etti daan paapomey" endru paarthal, avan yezhudi iruppadu oru mannum puriya villai. "Ivan appa kozhi pannai veithu iruppar pola irukku...Kozhi kirukku kirukkaran"

AC in kaaranathal en kai veda veda ena nadunga...Aasiriyaridam solli naan siruneer kazhikka pogi vitten. Varumbodu daan parthen...en pinnadi ukkandu iruppado "Samaya"...Semayaga irukkiraal. Avalai paarthu oru peru moochu vitten. Avlo ennai kandukkavey illai. "Ulaga azhagi Asihwarya Rai range ku act vidraley pa" endru ninaithu kondu mani ai paarthal innum 1 mani neram irukkiradu. Answer paper ai kuduthu vittu selvadukkum manasu illai...Paarpavargal ennai "onnum theriyavillai pola irukku" endru ninaipaargal. Adey samayam summa vum utkara mudiyavillai. Adanaal en calculator ai "pottu pottu" endru ellorukkum ketkira alavukku thatti kondu irunden.

En amma gnabagam vandadu. Paritchai yezhudi muditha pin sari paaru endru solvadu undu. Aanal indro "eduvumey sari illaye pa"...edai naan sari paarpen?? En appa gnabagam vandadu, 6m vaguppil padikkumbodu 25ku 20 madippen eduthaaley veetill yega thittu vizhum. Aanal indro, "Pass panni vidu da...kodi punniyam unakku serum" endru polambi kondu irukkirar en appa. Oru murai 100ku 60 madippen petren. Adarku miga varutha patten. Aanal indru en nelamayai paarungal...

Naan kammiaga mark vaanginaal enadu appa solluvaar, "Nee ellam mutta vyaabaram pannuvadarku daan da laayakku". Ippo ondru purigiradu, "Ennal muttai virka kuda mudiyaadu, muttai vaanga daan mudiyum".

Can you be any faster??

2006-11-30T17:16:00.001-08:00

Am I Unlucky??

2006-11-16T03:48:00.000-08:00

It is 16th of November, 07.22 PM. Hundreds of cops are standing outside the University Cultural Centre. Traffic blocked, Public Transport Stopped within University and the whole stretch of Lower Kent Ridge Road just opposite to the Engineering Faculty is closed for public movement. A helicopter landed right behind the University Cultural Centre at the helipad. Completely concealed and secret.

The American President George Bush was here in my university for half an hour to give away a lecture on Curbing Terrorism and the US-Asian ties in this mission. None of the students knew the exact day/timing of this lecture, though we knew that hes gonna be here sometime this week. So damn concealed! So many Police Vans and armed men gaurding the whole vicinity.

Last year, when our president Dr.Abdul Kalam came on a visit to my University, there was tight security and we were not informed about his coming as well . But fortunately since I had applied for his lecture even a week before (Which I got to know from some source), I saw him live. I should say I was Lucky.

But, this time around, it was rather restricted to the high officials of my university. So should I call myself Unlucky?? Ok. I will summarise. Ironically! A terrorist, came to talk about curbing Terrorism with loadsa security and concealment.Ridiculous!!

This is Hilarious!!

2006-10-31T08:55:00.000-08:00

Hey Guys!! Am held up with so many submissions, assignments and mid sem exams that life is getting stressful again. Anyway, just thought of sharing this video with you all. Check it out...Do observe how the guy in the video reacts. And I personally feel that native english speakers find it extremely difficult to speak a line without "F**K"!! Isnt that so??

On On Daga??

2006-10-10T20:35:00.000-07:00

They were walking along the roads, clasping hands and teasing one another. The fabulous four…Known for their thick bond of love, they were better known as the inseparables. They met after a pretty long time and were regaining the older momentum that they always shared and enjoyed. Aishu, Devi, Shwetha and Priya! The bravest ones, they have had the confidence of their parents to go on a tour together to Kriffil.

Kriffil is a hill station situated amidst the dense forests of Kiffaya in the north and Kalal down the south. One of the densest forests ever known in that region, these tropics contained many different varieties of wild animals. There were animals ranging from leopards to wild boars, lions to Pygmy owls and from chimpanzees to giant snakes. The forests were also inhabited by The Onondaga Tribes (Meaning – People of the Hills) who had settled in these forests several thousand years ago. Their small huts built at hill tops with fences around were clearly visible from the downtown of Kriffil. These tribes are known to be an extremely rough and wild group of semi barbaric, illiterate individuals who could eat any living mammal on earth.

The green vegetation in and around Kriffil made it extremely popular. Many were scared to visit the place because of animal encounters. People with bags hung behind and plucking fresh carrots from the garden and plucking tea leaves were found in abundance in Kriffil. The localities were extremely hard working and earned their bread only through plantation. The localities never seemed to have talked to the tribal people. Though they have come across them many a times killing lions or tigers, they never had the guts to go about talking and befriending them.

The four of them were staying in a private accommodation they had booked even before starting. The hotel was located at the centre of the hill station better known as the Quill Mountains as they contained the tallest reported mountains in the neighborhood. On both sides of the hotels were some good food outlets that served hot food and the Chocolate Tea which none would wish to miss if they happen to drop by there. Kriffil, even from the past, has maintained highest number of murders of visitors who suspiciously went missing at night times, leaving no clue behind. Many police officers who investigated these cases were themselves left clueless about the incidents. Though, these issues were not publicized in newspapers, the villagers and only the villagers knew these incidents.

The girls were very much excited to be here together without their parents. They had always wanted to spend such a peaceful and lovely holiday in a lovely place. They had roamed around all the nook and corner of Kriffil in just two days discovering lakes, water sources, pine forests, dams, plantations and grass lands on hill tops. The gang of four loved the weather in Kriffil and they were to halt there for 5 solid days. Soon, they began mingling well with the hotel receptionists and the tourist guides. As again, with their pleasing words, the girls came to know about the murders or rather the suspiciously surprising incidents of missing tourists who visited Kriffil.

They also learnt about the Onondaga tribes and their lifestyle. Aishu wanted to pay a visit to their huts which she could see from their bay window, but was opposed by Devi and Priya. While Shwetha remained dumb, she could hardly digest the fact that there were several unsolved mysteries going on in Kriffil. She immediately wanted to get back home for she started feeling scared. Aishu on the other hand was adventurous, though not strong by heart for she always pretended to be bold. The little gang had a lengthy deal of conversations the whole night and started to roll back the very next morning in their car.

They packed all their belongings and started at 05.00 in the morning in their car. The car driver Chellappa was a person in his late forties. He has been the driver of Shwetha’s dad for years. He treated these girls as his own children, treating them with extreme care and made them feel secure in his presence. They had to travel down the south through the dense forests of Kalal for more than 4 hours to reach the end of it. Chellappa too heard about the happenings in Kriffil from the girls.

In order to relieve their stress, Chellappa broke the silence, the gang was in.

“I was brought up in a place called Kalauthi which is at the north east of this Kalal forest.”

The girls were taken aback. He had never told them that he was a local as well. They started feeling comfortable for they knew Chellappa would know the safe way back home.

He continued, “These hill tops have always been under the arms of mystery. My mom had advised me not to get there, though I have many a times frequented to the downtown Kriffil with a faint hope of seeing something uphill. Even once I saw a Mahindra Jeep parked outside the hut there. Before people could realize what was happening, the Jeep vanished and again they were left in mystery.”

Shwetha asked, “But, how can the Onondaga tribes own or drive a jeep?”

Chellappa said, “Very true! That again was left in mystery.”

Aishu’s turn now, “Has none ever gone up to see what is happening there?”

Chellappa replied, “Yes dear, once the police squad paid a visit to the huts out there. But, they again informed the villagers that there is none other than the Onondaga tribes who live there uphill. Two young boys, who later came on a forest study once, tried reaching them. But, these boys were later found to be dead at the Kiffaya forest.”

“Uncle, even after knowing everything about this, why did you bring us here?? Why didn’t you warn us even before?” surprisingly asked Devi.

“Well, two years back, when I came here to pay a visit to my neighbors and childhood friends, they told me that the place is quite peaceful nowadays and there are no causalities reported in recent times. And moreover, I was confident that these Onondaga tribes really had nothing to do with that murder. The issue of missing tourists seems to have happened only in recent times. I didn’t really know that.”

Chellappa drove the car quite fast. He wanted to take these girls safe back home. He was given with a huge responsibility. The forest roads were deserted and were looking really old. Huge trees enroute, and dense leaves blocked the sunlight from falling on the road. It gave a dark look and the time was just 05.45 AM, while the sun was still rising. The roads were echoing with the shrill sounds of frogs and other tiny creatures that really scared the gang. They closed the window panes and started praying with their hands folded.

Chellappa advanced, “Years ago, there were reported robbery in these areas. The tourist vehicles were stopped and were demanded to hand over valuables. A few kids were snatched from their parents, the eyes dug open with spoons and forks and their eyeballs were believed to be sold abroad. But, due to frequent police raids they later on got reduced in numbers.”

The girls were now pale. They started blinking at each other in utter terror. Priya started weeping. Chellappa didn’t want to scare those girls anymore. So he switched on the radio and started consoling her to be brave and asked them to cheer up. He drove just a short distance that he was stopped by the forest officers. They checked his license and the car permit and asked him to take diversion as regular path was blocked because of a tree fall.

This new road was a small pathway that led deep into deeper and thicker forest. Chellappa had never been in this road, but still hoped that he would find a way out. The roads were getting darker and darker owing to thick leaves and Chellappa switched on the head lights.

“Uncle have you been in this path before?” worriedly questioned Shwetha. He didn’t want to dishearten them saying a “NO”. So, just to make them feel comfortable he lied by saying, “Yes, many a times”.

He drove down the path, not more than a mile. He suddenly noticed something strange. He stopped the car and glanced through the window down the hill in which he was driving. He saw that there were more than 10 people hiding under a very old bridge and talking to one another. They all wore black wool shawls and had a stick. A person in the front had a lamp in his hand and was instructing them. Chellappa knew that danger was right out there. He didn’t know what to do as he had no other way other than going ahead. The way back was extremely tedious to take as it was too narrow to turn the vehicle back.

He advanced the car and spoke not a word. There were 4 more U bends after which lay the hurdle. He started thinking and calculated the distance. He was left with less than 5 minutes to make a quick decision. He drove ahead, 3 more U bends left and he had absolutely no idea on how to proceed. He asked the girls to lie down so that they don’t get scared seeing the road. They obediently agreed to his words and off went the next one. 2 more U bends left and Chellappa was panting. He still didn’t know what to do. He raised the engine and pressed the accelerator hard. The car moved violently along the narrow road and safely passed through all the bends.

They were now less than half a kilometer away. The men in black shawls rose up from the bridge and raised their sticks to stop the vehicle. A few stood across the road and ordered him to stop the vehicle. Chellappa stopped the vehicle 500 meters ahead. Raised the engine and pressed the accelerator so hard that the car moved vigorously violent. The men in black shawls were scared and before they could shout at him to stop the vehicle, Chellappa drove the vehicle on them. The two who were standing on the way were smashed and the window panes became red with blood. Chellappa didn’t turn back and rode as fast as he could. The girls woke up with a jiff and shouted in terror seeing the blood marks.

Chellappa drove the vehicle with the same madness and shock that he removed his leg from the accelerator only after reaching home!!! And the girls reached home safely!!

The next day morning newspaper read:

*************************************************************************************
The Onondaga Mystery Resolved

Two persons believed to have lived in the huts uphill in Kriffil were found dead along the forests of Kalal. Police officer Alex who spoke to the reporters said that these dead people were found to be the ones whom the squad saw during their raid uphill. The whole mass living uphill has been found to be the notorious criminal gang that had involved itself in many robberies and murders before in Kiffaya and Kalal forests. The police nabbed them and took control of their possessions that include a Mahindra Jeep and brought to an end the Onondaga Saga.

*************************************************************************************

Back in Time

2006-09-27T02:14:00.000-07:00

It was 06.00 in the morning. I got down from the train. It was a tiresome journey of 9 hours. The weather was pleasant or quite cold in fact. I was yet to reach my destination. I found the railway resting room. Refreshed myself with a bath and then got a newspaper. A hot cup of milk was all I wanted. I made myself comfortable in the waiting room, fetched a mug of milk and started glancing through the newspaper. The first bus was scheduled only at 08.30 AM and my watch read 07.45. The bus stand is just out there, close to the railway station.

It was a local daily newspaper that I was holding in my hands. A newspaper that probably would have been printed with the help of “the worst quality” paper was filled with more ads than the actual news it contained. I then dropped the newspaper down and started to move slowly. The railway station was looking deserted. There were really very few people. The station office had a station master and a superintendent. They were writing something and the porters, two in number were sitting at a corner and boozing their beedi. The locals seemed to have planted many trees in the railway station. Adding to the cold climate, these trees were waving wildly indicating a possible downfall. There were two lonely seats at a corner under a big banyan tree meant for passengers to sit.

The big banyan tree seemed to be the biggest tree in the railway station. Many leaves were shed down by the tree and as far as I remember, that has remained to be the oldest tree in the locality. I sat in the seat under the banyan tree and was enjoying the cool breeze. There were a couple of dogs that ran across the tracks. Behind the railway station one could clearly see that there were small individual houses with fences around. They looked like single unit houses, those that contained only a single room.

It was 08.15 AM and I rolled out of the railway station to the bus stand and got into the bus that would take me to my destination. The rest of the journey I knew was just for another hour. As the bus started moving, I laid my head back and relaxed. May be I didn’t want those memories to haunt me again, but they did.

My family and I lived in a small village. There were hardly any families living in that village. It was a peaceful place to be at. We had all the basic amenities that we needed. My dad was posted in the bank in that village and was holding good respect among the villagers. The whole village used to address him as “Manager Sir”. Though my brother and I had to travel a long way in my dad’s office jeep to reach school, we loved the place for its peacefulness and its people who were helpful and knew what respect is. We didn’t have many friends in the village, but there was this rich old Chettiar lady Kamakshi amma, whom the village respected and loved. We always used to spend time in her mansion. Chettiars are known for their wealth and no wonder Kamakshi amma’s house was huge.

Kamakshi amma’s husband Kannappan Chettiar died 14 years ago in an accident when he was traveling in his car. Kamakshi amma has restricted herself to the corners of her house from then on. She never mingled with the villagers. Initially I was scared to go to her house. But later on, I started loving to be in that mansion in the presence of Kamakshi amma. She always had a soft corner for me and my brother. We both used to have some great hours playing hide and seek with her. Huge pillars, deserted rooms, big verandah, lengthy garden, age old doors made of real Burma teak gave her house an old touch. Kamakshi amma was getting older day by day and she was then in her late sixties. The couple were once the happiest and most generous ones, but for the fact that they didn’t have a child. They prayed with all their heart, but were unanswered.

Kamakshi amma cooked her own food and the watchman got all the necessary stuff that she needed. Even once my father came to see Kamakshi amma to enquire if she wanted some help. But Kamakshi amma firmly said she is fine and she can manage. I respected and loved Kamakshi amma for her affection she had for us. I have slept with her many a days in her house and my mom felt happy, for I remained to be a good company to that kind old lady. Though Kamakshi amma had many relatives, they had never turned up to see her. After her husband’s death, Kamakshi amma really had no visitors or rather she didn’t wish them to come.

The locality said that Kannappan Chettiar had also earned the disregard and anger of many people for his short temper. Many still say that Kannappan Chettiar was murdered purposely by people who didn’t like him. Even there were rumors that his own blood relations wanted to see him die. After his death Kamakshi amma was hence left with none. Her blood relations too weren’t strong enough to soothe her. I really didn’t know if Kamakshi amma purposely wanted none or none really was there for her. I was rather too young to understand such things and all I wanted was to see a smile on Kamakshi amma’s face. I treated her like my own granny and gave her utmost respect that I have to. Kamakshi amma too loved us for she always liked kids.

Their Mansion During Kannappan Chettiar's days.

My dad was helping out Kamakshi amma with her money and property affairs. On the first of every month he used to withdraw the interest money and used to give it to her. He was holding their land papers and also kept their jewels in the bank locker. Kamakshi amma always trusted my dad for my dad has been trustworthy to all the villagers. Many who were illiterate and a few, who bothered not to check their bank accounts for balance, relied on my dad.

Later were those days when Kamakshi amma was getting down day by day. I could no more find the usual smile that used to be on her face. My dad and two other co-workers along with a person in black coat came to meet her every other day. My dad never told me what was going on. I knew very well that Kamakshi amma was facing some problem. Later on I pestered my dad to tell me. He didn’t. Later I over heard my dad and mom’s conversation about this.

Kamakshi amma’s sole property, her mansion was being sued by Kannappan Chettiar’s brothers about the ownership and their portion of it. Kamakshi amma had no other place to go if where she was living is taken away from her.

I told her, “Amma, you can be with us in our house ma. I will take care of you.”

She smiled and with the same sorrow face told me, “I have got another place to go da kanna…Where there are many people who will love and take care of me. I will go there”

“Will you not stay with us then amma??”

“I will da kanna. But not this time.”

I wasn’t convinced, but was happy that she will be in a place where there are many people who will love her company. I moved out and left to my home then. I had to study and do my homework. Later in the evening, there was huge chaos outside my home. I ran out to see what was happening. There was a huge gathering of people and everybody was trying to break open Kamakshi amma’s mansion. When I glanced up, I was terrified. I saw the scene of my life, that which I can never forget, that which will haunt me for the rest of my lifetime and that which none should ever see.

Kamakshi amma set herself ablaze in her kitchen. And I could see the yellow flames glowing in her body. Kamakshi amma was running shatters from here and there. She was shouting in her loudest voice. She then slowly fell down on the floor.

She became a “That”.

A sudden Jerk, the road was still the same uneven rugged path I had seen many years back. I was getting back to sell our land which my father was gifted by Kamakshi amma for his wedding anniversary when he was working here. I really didn’t want to sell it off. I still wanted it to be with us as a sign of remembrance of Kamakshi amma. And off went the whistle, I had to get down. I did…

Those streets and the same thatched roof houses…The same tall chimney coming out of the rice mill, the same well mannered people…THE SAME!!!!

Reminiscence of the past!!!!

Background music!! ?? !!

“Gnabagam Varudey Gnabagam Varudey…”

Haha…okie. Konjam over ah build up kuduthutten nu ninaikaren. Anyway, hope to come up with a better post next time.

P.S: Many many thanks to Kamakshi…Name that appealed me the most in this post! And once again, this is purely imaginary

What is in a name??

2006-09-09T21:28:00.000-07:00

We have been to Supermarkets and plazas a lot many times. We have bought electronic goods, household utilities, vehicles, eatables, stationary what else and what not?!? And every time we go searching for goods in Carrefour, Wal-Mart, Fair Price or Nilgiris we always look out for the branded ones. Say, Reynolds for pens, Ruchi for pickles and Lays or Pringles for Chips. Am I not right?? Yes! We are always on the look for branded ones. And we seldom prefer to get something new. Of course for a few, the majority doesn’t really wish to risk it. But for something really innovative in the product’s (New) looks or its name, we mind not to give it a look. If only the advertisement we watch in TV appeals us, we buy that.

Reynolds’ advertisement always has something like, a boy writing an exam with that pen finishes it off in a jiff and gets a centum. Doesn’t that sound illogical?? Unless the child is a prodigy, is that in anyway possible?? And even if it were true, is the pen only responsible for such a brilliant performance?? We being so attracted by the advertisement and the product’s brand recognition, go for that. While another pen from a different company with a better quality remains unnoticed next to it. “Reyn’olds – for your success in examinations”…Say if there is another one- “kleen-bolds – For better handwriting. No guarantee about exams!” would we buy that?? Of course not! We are blind folded by the brand name and the tag.

Coming to pickles…”Ruchi” (Meaning – Tasty)…is predominantly popular. Well…The name has nothing to do with the stuff inside. Say there is another pickle company called, “Fungi” would we still be open to try it out?? Of course, the name has definitely nothing to do with pickle inside. But why are we not ready to take it? The name doesn’t mean that the pickle contains fungi…But even then, its name doesn’t appeal us. And it rather created a disregard for the product on us.

There are so many other cases…Imagine, I run a company that sells the following goods.

“Eard worm” under wears, for comfort,
“sucks” vapor rub, for quick relief from cold,
“shud doun” computers, for fastest performance.
“shittuu” bread loaves, for a refreshing morning.
“buttuu” biscuits, for a break with tea.

Would you guys still support my business?? Absolutely not…You would buy a “pilot” pen for 15 bucks but not a “cleaner” pen from my company for 10...Because name is all that matters to us…

Well…Forget the case of the supermarket. Practically in life…From any person, all along the place one heeds from, name is what matters us a million. Initially after coming to Singapore it was so disgusting for me to tell my batch mates that I am from ‘karaikudi’ and I have also lived in a place called ‘kalpakkam’ for a few years. They would look at me up and down once they hear this. May be because Chennai or Coimbatore is much more pleasant to hear and are branded. Did I not get admission in this university even after heading from such a place?? Are we not in the same square now??

This happened last week…there is this senior akka here whom I met only a few days back. I introduced myself to her. And she in turn told me that her name is “Vel” and I was like, “Well??!!…What a weird name!” (Yup! Am also a common man…And as it goes, “we are much bothered about the name”). Later on did I come to know that her actual name is “Velachi”. Then did I realize that she felt embarrassed to tell it out to me. But, what is there to be embarrassed in this?? It is her-own name and after all what is in a name??

****** once attended a conference in a small village in Tamil Nadu called “naiyachatti” for re-naming it. There was unhealthy debate and unnecessary quarrels on the issue.

He rose up and addressed the gathering, “Dear folks, there are three “tti” which Tamilians always have regard for – They are Patti, Chatti and Kutti.

(1) Patti (Meaning-Dog in Malayalam) – Was introduced in one of the super star movies. It also means underwear as in “Patta Patti”.

(2) Chatti (Meaning-A small vessel used for cooking purposes) – The song based on which became very popular (Chatti suttada da kai vittada da!). And finally

(3) Kutti (Chick) – [No explanations needed na??]

And your village’s name is one among the ‘ttis’. So, feel fortunate to have such a wonderful name. Why change it?”

The gathering was very impressed by these words and agreed to go with ******’s suggestion. With the course of time, the government renamed the village…As it had no other job to do!

Amaaaazing!!!

2006-09-08T06:41:00.000-07:00

Listen to this song...Tribute to Youtube...This guy has got such a melodious voice...And he was the one who was declared the winner by Paul Renetto(The Video blogger gene) in the "Video Bloggers Popularity Contest". Now Enjoy!!

Give it a Bit More

2006-09-01T11:54:00.000-07:00

“Reckless fellow!” shouted my dad after seeing my messy bookshelf. He always had the doubt if I would remain organized at least after getting into university. Well…I was rather more reckless and un-organized after coming here. Life here has never been easy. The academic part is so damn tough that they hardly let us breathe free. And especially this semester is ‘brutal’ to me. Being in such an environment of pressure and competition, how can one be organized? Well…it may be possible to the several many Chinese guys who can work for 20 hours a day straight. But, for a person like me, who is lazy it literally is impossible. My study table is always messy with books scattered around along with my stationary, my laptop, iPod and all kind of stuff. And suddenly, if out of nowhere I experience the force and clean my room, then the very next day it will be back to square one.

And the last few days, I haven’t been able to find time for doing laundry. Thanks to my mom for she got me so many new sets of dresses before I started from home that I can manage without washing my clothes for a month. But, the sight of the unwashed clothes in the room irritates me. How I wish someone to pick them up and drop them in the laundry NEXT DOOR! And today morning, I gathered those and put them in the laundry. By the time it got washed, it was already time for me to leave for my lecture. In a hurry I grabbed the washed clothes and hanged them so messily outside for it to dry. Well, literally I had piled them up under the hot sun!

I have never done these kinds of jobs when I was at home. Even in the evening hours when my mom asks me to fetch the dried clothes I used to give her lame excuses and bail out. But after coming here, it is completely another thing. I have to take care of myself. I have never realized this and am still living on my own ideals!

I came to my room for lunch and I was surprised to see that my clothes were hanging so neatly. They weren’t the way I left them in the morning. Someone had set that pile of clothes rite. There was none around and I didn’t want to go about and ask someone if they had done it. After my lunch I left to lecture again. I was just wondering as to who could have done that. That reminded me of the Tamil movies wherein the hero (a bachelor) would be stunned to see his breakfast ready on his table and his clothes neatly washed and hanged without his knowledge. Later on he would go about discovering that it would be the job of the heroine who either pities the hero or has developed a crush over him. Wuh! All kind of imaginations and I walked back to room slowly after the lecture.

And this time, I was even more shocked. The clothes were neatly pressed and placed in a rack outside my room. And my block maid was around. I then realized that it was she who had done it. A Chinese women in her late forties, is so sincere in her job that one can always see her cleaning our block. She knows not a word in English but greets every one of us in the block with her smile. Her duty is just to clean the floor and grass. But she never hesitated to do more than that. After all, she is not being paid for setting our clothes right in the hanger and to remove them once they are dry. I enquired my friend next door and he told me that she is such a sincere lady and that she helps him with his cleaning work too. I was awestruck.

Well…I have been in Chennai for quite a few days and I have seen the servant maids working there. They do nothing more than what they have been asked to and if they were asked to, it would be for an extra pay. Am not accusing the Indian masses, but finding the rarity of such Tamilians when compared to the Chinese. This maid values what she is doing and does it to her best. She is giving the maximum she can. I wanted to thank her and so called up my Chinese friend to teach me how to say thanks in Chinese. He taught me and I went out, told her “Shey Shey Aunty”. She was in great smiles for she got the appreciation or rather compliment for her job, which she deserves.

When it comes to us, many of us still aren’t ready to give the extra bit. We think, “Why should we? Why not others?”. Why shouldn’t we when it can help a person out or when it can prove our worthiness or our interest in the job???? Let it not pay us more…let it not be of any use or any advantage to us…Why should we not do it for the sake of others…for the sake of someone who depend us or for the sake of some stranger who will feel thankful if we get that done??? I have learnt this in my primary schooling, “Work is Worship”. But, have we ever made attempts to treat our work so???

Two phenomenons…Work and Worship,

Work: We hardly do that. Unless we are paid in thousands of dollars we hardly work. And even if we do, we find some way out to get to home, sit back and relax watching a movie in the TV or watch some mega serials which run on and on and on.

Worship: We have stopped doing that. The middle class used to be the most god fearing and believing ones. I am not trying to say that we don’t believe in god now. We do! We definitely do. But the sincerity with which I pray god is far far lesser that how sincere my dad and mom pray god. This generation hardly finds time, a matter of 5-10 minutes for worshipping the god in the morning. Do we??? Are we sincere everyday in praying?!?! Yes, we are. Only when we are in great troubles or when we are handling a challenge. Otherwise, we are pre-occupied with our own routine.

Well…Where is this leading us to??

****** (Read as ****), the cousin brother of Leo da Mirci and the son-in-law of Leonardo da Vinci once remarkably mentioned in a gathering of more than 5000 people along the farm sides of Anchiano, in the very presence of the great artist,

“ If you Worship your Work, then even a Wark is a Warship for you. Though a warship cannot be a wark and the wark cannot participate in a war, the work that you worship can win the war for you!”

P.S: Meaning of wark: A small building.

WE ARE GOIN TO PLUTO – THENGABOYZ

2006-08-25T02:25:00.000-07:00

“Don’t wanna be just driver, all my life
Am gonna pack my bags and leave this town, grab a flight,
Fly Away, on Thenga Airways…Fly me high…
……
We are going to Pluto…
Back to the planet…
We are gonna have a party…
In the unlimited sky… ”

Singing so, the thenga boyz get into the thenga craft designed to fly at a speed of 2500 kilometers per second. They were on a mission to Planet Pluto. The travel time was roughly estimated as 825 hours which is 34+ earth days.

The ground staff hears ME saying, “This is the Captain…The craft is scheduled to take off at 1030 hrs GMT. All arm doors closed please…Once again, all arm doors closed”

Then my friend, the pilot of the craft Mr.Anku contacts the ground station, “This is the pilot of the craft “TB PNP9”(Which stands for Thenga Boyz – Peep into Pluto, the 9th planet)…Is this Victor??”

“Oh Yes Anku! Go ahead”

“Victor, what is our Vector?” (Reminds me of the tamil ad, “muthu unakku yepdi da ivalo sathu…)

Victor then says the vector and am reminded of my vector mathematics which I learnt in my 8th standard. My tutor was a very old person and a wise man. His English was a bit different from ours. Of course an old man will have his own difficulties in pronouncing words properly. Once the whole class burst out to laughter when he said, “This year vector mathematics is “eejy”(Easy). But next year it is “dippikult”. I usually can’t control my laughter and I was the one laughing out in the loudest tone. I was later sent out of class. I felt really hurt and the next time he came to class, in order to imitate his English, I stood up and loudly wished him, “Guja Buja Jir” (Good Afternoon sir).

“All Arm Doors Shut Captain” says the Aircraft Engineer, Mr.Santel.

“Thank You”.

“Temparatures set to 25 degrees. Pressure Set to 1 ATM. Shall we switch on the propeller?” asks the last person on board, the co-pilot Mr.Soodai.

Heaving a big sigh of enthusiasm and trouble, “Yes, Propellers on. Take off from lane 5.”

We lead the craft to lane 5. Lane after lane as the craft crosses, my doubt if I would return home alive increases. But, on the positive side, I am on a mission which none really would be fortunate enough to be on. I have been given a huge responsibility.

“We are in Lane 5 now, Belts Buckled up. Engines 1 and 2 be switched on. We are Going to Pluto in thenga craft!!!!.”

Thenga craft…well…That reminds me of my childhood. Playing in the streets and picking up quarrel quickly was my hobby. I would play along with a small gang of my age group (around 7-8). The guys scold each other “maanga madaya”. In order to say something back, as rhyming as they said the other person returning it as “thenga madaya”, the first one arguing that maanga is better than thenga and the other one opposing this…waaaah!! Eventually the two parties start arguing that “manga” is better than “thenga” and vice versa. Those days were really carefree…I still feel that life would have been much more pleasant if I had remained a child.

The craft crashes into air and moves at a speed of about 5 miles a second along the run way. The craft was on land for about thirty seconds when it was taken on air. With a blasting sound, it flies high above. The speed was increased gradually till it reached about 2000 Km/s. Within a matter of 30-45 seconds it could reach as high as thirty thousand feet above the ground level. The pressure had to be monitored very frequently as a drastic & sudden change of pressure could be dangerous. The crew would then feel as though their faces are being torn apart. Everything was computer automated. The crew just had to check for celestial bodies during the course. It was an hour and the crew was much relieved after the safe take off and travels in the assigned orbit.

“This is the Pilot TB PNP9, we are on our orbit. We are experiencing mild turbulence. This in no way is unsafe. We plan to deviate from the orbit by 5 degrees for another 23 minutes where we find lesser clouds. Restoration will be done later. Do we have clearance? Over.”

“This is Oveur from soodamanipuram ground station. You have clearance, Over.”

“Thank You Oveur, Over.”

"Captain, can't you take a guess on how soon we can get to our orbit?" asks the co-pilot Soodai.

"Well...not for another two hours."

"You can't take a guess for another two hours?" shouts back the Aircraft Engg Santel.

“Machan, mokka podaada da.” says the captain with a giggle.

Then deviating from the orbit by turning around the steering, the captain reduces the speed of the craft. The co-pilot on the other side is calculating the fuel consumption rate and the effective fuel left. Santel kept monitoring the performance of the engines and there was Silence! We were yet to believe the fact that we are going to land in Pluto, to unearth more of its secrets. The solar system’s oddball object, considered to be the smallest planet is one of the most wondrous one. Its moon called Charon and the two mysterious bodies Nix and Hydra, are going to be unveiled and explored. We wanted to get back home with success stories and our experiences with the unique planet.

The Pilot kept contacting and updating the ground station. The computer would take care of everything from now on. Then, I turned around to chit chat with Santel, Soodai and Anku. They have always been my good companions and best friends. We four are inseparables. There were times when we slept together sharing the same bed. And even once, we ate in the same plate. We got dosas from a road side shop and ate them until we realized we had eaten about 20!! We wanted to be together at all times. But, fate forced us to part and I was sure that someday we would re-unite and it so happened. I was the happiest person in the crew. More than the fact that we are going to Pluto, we are going together is what energized me. They had always been with me. Encouraging, supporting and advising they showed me the right path and we all walked together holding each other’s hand. I would love them forever as ever…And I am sure I can’t be without them.

We looked through the glass from the control cabin or the cook pit and all we could see was a dark sky. Some stars blinking here and there, but we seemed to near none. Great deals of calculations were done before the start of the mission. Loads of physicists across the globe performed research and analysis hours together. And we are now carrying with us their hopes and confidence. Physics! And that reminds me of my physics lectures in my high school. Slowly sneaking through the back door was the most thrilling activity we ever had in school. I preferred to be a back bencher always and when it comes to physics class, I had never been able to control my sleep.

There were concepts from thermodynamics, mechanics which I hated. But of course, even from those days I had a craze for space science. I have studied a lot about meteors, meteorites and about celestial bodies. Reading about Shoemaker-Levy 9’s stories and about the impact it would have created to Jupiter was really enthralling for me. Even I have heard about the K-T event, leading to the extinction of dinosaurs, which was theoretically proposed to be the impact that Chicxulub craters created while crashing on Earth. And today I really am seeing the truth that interplanetary space is littered with rocks tens of meters in diameter or less. But, we have advanced crater detection system which would lead our craft safe even at a very high velocities.

A sudden and a loud thud! The craft was hit by a celestial body…It shook the craft for a moment. Before we got to our seats, there was another one. It sounded as if someone was banging the door with a big hammer and we are hearing that in an amplified speaker, keeping our ears so close.

We were scared. Everybody on crew was panicking.

I took control of the steering and checked the orbit monitor. It was a bit uneasy for me to find so many rocks and debris on the orbit.

“Impossible!! It wasn’t like this in this orbit. We have to get back to our assigned orbit…NOW…RITE NOW!!”, saying so, I was shouting at the loudest of my voice before I could realize that my crew was already preparing for that.

Another one…This time even more furious…Thud Thud Thud…We lost our hope of life…The propeller got badly hit. The craft might not move if the propeller refuses to work. We reduced the speed. But in vain…

One last hit…A very very loud bang…We closed our eyes…Silence!!!...And then Peace…

I opened my eyes…And I just realized that someone is knocking the door. Oh my goodness! “It is time for me to wake up.” What, was I dreaming all this while?? Yes!! I was…It was my friend whom I had asked the previous day to wake me up. He was the one banging the door with the fullest of his strength. I was too disappointed…So are you people…rite??

Well…Certain things can only happen in dreams and so is this…Later on when I was surfing, I discovered that Pluto is no more considered to be a planet. The astronomers have removed it from the prestigious list and the solar system is now left with only 8 planets. The sweet little and tiny boy is not a “star”(As in super star) anymore…Making my heart, I just wave my hands and say, “bye bye Pluto!”

Click here to read the news article about Pluto’s removal from the list of planets.

P.S : This blog is solely dedicated to Captain Nand Kumar who graciously permitted me to travel with him in the cockpit for two hours on my way back. I got to know so many things that the captain, pilot and the co-pilot do for our pleasant journey. Thanks a lot sir! You are the one whom I admire the most and u will remain to be my inspiration forever. Thanks Again!!

A Drive Within

2006-08-16T12:32:00.004-07:00

"Next time you go to bed, don’t think of how much you have earned that day, how many times your boss appreciated you that day or how many good things your colleagues told about you that day. Think of the time you did not give your loved ones, the time that you sacrificed to get all these. Think whether it is really worth it."
- Leo da Mirci.

“My brother is like any other brother in this world”. Whenever we both are together, we have the fun of life. We tease every single person on earth. He makes me laugh at the way he makes fun of my dad and mom even in their very presence. We play together. Be it cricket when he was quite young and I could cheat him so easily to bowl me more number of balls than what I did or soccer when he would push me down forcefully kicking the ball to the goal, we have had the fun of life. We picked quarrels so often that many a times I hated his presence. Though in his absence, I would search for him and keep enquiring about him. If he cares not to come home for a long time, then I would call him up and scold him for not being home this long. Another few minutes and he will be at home roaming here and there.

He gets angry so quickly over people but is very innocent though. A plain hearted fellow often falls for my pranks. A very helping person, he got all my project materials printed out and would sit besides me, talking to me and being a good company during late night hours when I worked for my research projects. I don’t exactly remember when, but when he was quite small, say when he was around 6-7 years old, I made him bend down and gave him a thrash with a slipper telling him that it would create an impression on his back, which would look very nice. He obediently bent down and got that single thrash from me. It was quite funny when I did that. But today, it sounds very unfair or rather rude to have done that!

When I am off from home on camps for a week or more, then my mom used to tell me that he was very down. A person who knows not to express his emotions for others is a good friend of mine rather. This time around, when I flew back home, he was more than excited to see me back. Giving up everything for me and doing all kind of helps that I wanted him to, he sounded more matured and helping. We shared all our secrets and were really being like class mates, helping the other out at times of difficulties.

He was being scolded for something by my mom and dad one day. I was sitting at the verandah and he was in his tuition classes. My mom and dad were preparing to advice and scold him for what he had done. He just appeared at the gate. I silently asked him to roam around for a while outside. And he sneaked away. I have never done such a thing with him before. May be a few times for my friends during the class hours to escape from the torture of the prof.. But, with my bro, it was the first time and I felt as though our bond was getting intensified.

I flew back last week and after that I spoke to him only yesterday. He sounded low and his tone was quite down. He seems to have not performed well in the public speech on Independence Day and is quite unhappy with it. And also, the research project he is working on seems not to be going on well. He is clueless about how to proceed and his team mates too are not co-operating with him. He is very dejected and mom was telling me that he cried for hours yesterday.

“I feel responsible. I haven’t spent for him, even 1% of the time I spent for my fun and enjoyment.” Today I sit down and think of them…

When he asked me to teach mathematics during my vacation, I never did or rather lost my patience easily and scolded him that he would never ask me again, because I wanted to have fun watching TV and listening to music.

When he asked me how to present his projects and how to deliver public speeches I cared not and asked him to do it in his own way. I had no time for him.

I didn’t have the patience or time to teach him the kind of world I have experienced and how he has to withstand and overcome that. I didn’t find the opportunity to teach him what shrewdness is and how he has to exhibit his potent to the world.

I have done nothing for my closest friend. I have remained selfish in my life thinking of my peers, my future and my enjoyment. I repent today for being an irresponsible brother who bothered not about his blood relation. And I just think, “How nice it would have been if, I were with him to help him out of all his difficulties and obstacles he is facing now, to hold his hand and guide him through the rite path and to be a good philosopher, a good guide and a good friend of him”…but in vain!

I have nothing to say…Other than to cut a sorry and a shameful face…

"FOUR" U!!!

2006-08-05T22:26:00.000-07:00

Well well well…Sorry people! I Was out of this blogging world for quite a long time. It was vacation and I became too lazy to post something new. And now, am back! Back to my own land of wonders.

Infinite numbers, non-terminating sequence of single digits and yes, there are countless numbers in the number system. And yet ‘4’ is unique in many ways. My argument is supported by the forthcoming evidences.

4, whose English name is “FOUR” is again a 4 lettered word. Also, 4 is the only number in which the number of letters in its name is the same as the value of the number. With the 4 letters that form four, namely, F, O, U and R, just four meaningful words can be formed namely, OUR, FUR, FOR & OR. Though the combination FRO (as in “to and fro”) is also possible, in no context it is used alone.

The first letter of 4 is F. Did you know that, of the hundred most commonly used words in English, only 4 of them begin with “F”? They are find, first, from and for. One of English’s most vulgar words F**K, is also a four lettered word, which starts with F. It is usually referred as F-Word or F-Bomb.

Consider the numbers from ZERO-NINE, the letter ‘O’ appears four times, namely in zero, one, two and four, four being the last one in the row. Again, between ZERO and NINE,

U - Occurs once. (1)

F - Occurs twice. (2)

R – Occurs thrice. (3)

O - Occurs Four times. (4) Which contains all the numbers from 1-4.

Also, between Zero and Nine, there are just 4 four lettered numbers, namely zero, four, five and nine.

Be it cabs, cars or busses…All of them are four wheelers. Many animals, or in fact most of the animals have four legs. Even leap years are those that are exactly divisible by 4. Being the first non-prime number, it is the only number that can be obtained by adding or multiplying the same number with itself. 2+2 = 2*2 = 4.

The significance of four also surrounds the four seasons, summer, fall, winter, and spring, The four Directions, North, South, East and West, the four sides of a perfectly symmetric shape, Square and also the four stages of life, childhood, teenager, middle age (adult) and last but not least old age (grandparents)

For Chinese and Japanese, 4 is a number of frights...lol.. The word "four" is read as "si" in Chinese Mandarin and "shi" in Japanese, a close homonym for the word for death in both languages and in the Cantonese dialect spoken in Hong Kong.

4 in Chinese

Now, fetch a piece of paper and write the number 4 on it. Rotate it 90° clockwise, and hold the paper in front of a mirror. You will again find the image of 4 on the mirror. There are 4 numbers between 0 and 9, whose mirror images are itself when rotated by 180°, namely 0, 1, 3 and 8. What is unique about 4 is that, it is the only number, whose mirror image obtained is itself with the least angle of rotation.

Four is the number of manifestation and material reality. It is a number of order, structure, power, and earthly dominion. Four is also the number of the prototypical complete family: a father, a mother, a son, and a daughter.

“Four free-flow pipes flow freely” is considered to be one of the most difficult tongue twisters in English on four.

So guys…Lets “four” from now…lol

HUGZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ….

Masthi Ka Paatshala - The End

2006-06-18T23:30:00.000-07:00

I was making myself feel like a kid of their age and was talking to them as just another friend. I asked Khadir, the 5 years old student, “Where is your home??”…He pointed his finger in a particular direction and I could see a small hut with no proper roofing. “Will you take me to your home??”…He didn’t give me a reply. Turning to Isaf, a 4-year-old talkative girl whose brother Rashid is the most naughty fellow in class, I asked her, “Do you know the name of this boy?”…She said “No!”…And I introduced the both to each other. Another girl entering the class was welcomed again with a Good Morning and I made her sit in the place I was sitting. I stood aside watching these young buddies when Reshma, the shiest girl in class moved a bit from her seat and asked me to sit with her. I was moved and then did I realize that they are in need of affection and love.

We started with prayers, which they already knew. And then we proceeded to yoga. They were already taught 10 yogas which they did every morning. After completing them, we asked them to relax their body by lying flat on the floor and closing their eyes. I was instructing them…”Relax your forehead, Relax your eyes, Relax your nose………” and so on. Every instruction was followed by a Tamil translation for better understanding and also for the enhancement of their English language. The yoga session was followed by a rhymes singing session by our girls. Sanju and Vidya had prepared few rhymes the day before for teaching them. Then we asked them to count from 1-100.

I would ask them to be as much louder as they can, which usually resulted in blasting chores. And also to involve their participation, some of them were made to sing rhymes alone. The three days passed of like this with some new game being introduced every day. One day, we took them out of school to the play ground…We formed trains, bikes and cars and we taught them signals. I could see the excitement in their faces. We conducted story telling sessions. We narrated few stories and we asked them repeat us. In order to include their participation we would often ask them some questions of yes/no type and would ask them to raise their hands. For instance, I asked them, “How many of you understood the story” or “How many of you eat dairy milk chocolates?”…And I asked them to raise their hands for a Yes!

We danced with them…We asked them to perform something on stage…American Idol inside class…lol…We taught them how to make paper boats…They were indeed very happy to learn that…And at last I taught them, the Tribal Language…South African tribal way of communication…Okie! You wanna learn it?? Here it goes…Repeat these words loudly…

Heyzukuzimba….

Heyzukuzimba….

Heyzukuzimba zimba ho…

Uh ah!

Hoyya Va!

Hoyya Hoyya Hoyya Va!

They enjoyed repeating this…They loved our company…We were almost done…The last day, I gathered them and was talking to them…I asked them to be Good Children…I asked them to respect and love all…I promised to meet them after 6 months…We gave them a dairy milk chocolate each…They thanked us and left the school happily…

The satisfaction that I have derived through this camp is unaffordable…I should definitely thank the children and the school management for giving us an opportunity to mingle with the kids and be a kid…And if you guys get one such opportunity, Just Done Miss It…

HUGZZZZ….

P.S : Pictures--!!Shall post them soon...

Masthi ka Paatshala...

2006-06-04T03:45:00.000-07:00

Words always fail to express the true emotions within deep. And again I am stumbling and scratching my head for the apt words to express the happiness and satisfaction I have carried back home after 4 days. I am very sure now, that this satisfaction I have derived is invaluable. You can’t get this pleasure with money. You can’t get this joy for all the influence and recommendation you have on earth. You gotta experience it yourself. You gotta involve yourself in this. You are then sure of understanding what I mean and the real depth of that “Satisfaction”…

Yeah! I am just back from the summer camp organized by us for the tsunami-affected children of a small village called “Panayur” near Chennai. These children are being offered free education in the school “Gurukulam – A trust Children’s School” run by the flight captain Mr.Nand Kumar. The school is situated along the seashore and so is captain’s home…Oops palace. The camp was supposed to be for 3 days and was organized by students from my university including me.

It was 06.00AM and I could hear my mobile ringing. I picked up the call and found that it was my college buddy Havesh…I asked him to give me a wake up call and so he did. I woke up quickly and got ready for something that I have never been on. I had breakfast at his place and we hired a Cab to reach Panayur, which took as about an hour and half. We reached captain’s house first and met his brother who was the head master of the school. He escorted us to the school and when we reached the school it was already 09.30AM. The children were asked to come at 10.00AM.

Sanju and Vidya engaged themselves in making chart works, while myself and the twin brothers Srivatsan & Sudarshan roamed around admiring the scenic beauty of the place. We could see the horizon. We could see the point where the sky merged with water. The place was really romantic and peaceful. It was nearing 10.00AM when more students started pouring in. We waited for another couple of minutes. It was 10.00 already and we had about 20-25 students inside the class. Havesh was greeting these students with a “Good Morning” while Uma was taking them in and made them sit.

I took a seat among the students and was chit chatting with them. All of them were only about 4-6 years old. They were too young and hence were shy as well. Many children had lost their father in the disaster. A few had lost both their parents…Riyaz, a five year old kid said, “ My father didn’t return from work. They say he is still in the sea catching fishes…He will come home one day to meet me”…Rashid said, “Our old house was totally damaged, we are now living in a smaller house here.” They are very poor…And this tsunami had taken away whatever they had…Making them still poorer…Young Orphans and I was facing many of them before me…They don’t have TVs, neither do they have proper facilities…not even a proper roofing…Many of the children seemed to be living with their uncles and other relatives…I could see the ruins of tsunami still…Its been a long time since the tragedy happened…But the ruins still remain…I cursed the government to have taken such great measures!!! Ironically…

P.S Will post more pictures soon...

To be Concluded...

Admired by an Admiral (err...) - The End

2006-05-28T07:26:00.000-07:00

Around 11.00 she came into my stall with her friend. I was getting nervous to see her in and am still wondering as to why I felt so. She came along with her friend and bought one sheet to play a round. Well…I didn't want her to go out of my stall disappointed…But I was helpless, because there were several others playing the game simultaneously. I wanted her to win the round. Wondering, I handed her a ticket sheet with a smile. She smiled back making me feel the warmth and the friendship we both shared.

The round started and I found her sitting with her sheet very nearer to me, the conductor of the game. I could exactly read the numbers in the sheet she was holding. Two Draws!! And no number matched with the one she had…Well Two more!! And I heard someone else shouting…"wow, I have got two"…I got pissed off…I somehow wanted the impossible to happen…Two more and no ink marks in her sheet…I took the seventh one and casually read the number aloud dropping it in another pouch…It didn't match again…

Taking a deep breath, I realized that I still had just 8 more draws to make her happy…I wanted to find a way out of this pity situation…What if none of the numbers matched with hers?? What is she gets annoyed and thinks I should be cheating all of them?? Of course, it is human tendency to think of possible cheatings on our defeat…And she too was a human!! Doubts poured over again and I frowned thinking of any possible estrangements that would follow. But she was matured enough and I was sure, she would not take such silly crap to her heart. I was not convinced yet and I made the next draw, the 8th draw. I read it aloud and found to my excitement that one of her numbers matched at last.

A single strike on the sheet and I sensed that victory was nowhere near. I was hearing people shout in amazement about their progresses. Well…what am I to do now?? I still have a very short time. I have to think and act fast. Then a sudden flash! And everything was looking perfect…I planned to CHEAT…That sounded too mean to do…But anything to make her happy. Anything to see that smile on her face!! Anything to see her go out satisfied. No game is thrilling without cheating. Believe it or not, you are, all the more excited or annoyed while you are cheating or when you are being cheated. Just once, and I promised myself not to get to this again.

The nineth draw and this time around, I did not read aloud the number that was in the "draw sheet" I had taken out. But I read aloud the number that I remembered seeing in her sheet when I peeped into it earlier. The second strike and this made me more inducing. The 10th draw and this time too, it was a number in her sheet. I cheated again. 11,12th draws and I purposely read out two numbers that were in her sheet and not the ones I had obtained through the draw. All the rounds passed of like this and finally she ended up winning the game. I handed over her reward and she said, "Thanks!"…Her smile haunted me again and she left the place making me feel happy as well…

I admired her for who she was…A year passed off and her father got transferred to Bombay…She left the town leaving me with no way to contact her. With time she too got lost from my memories…

*The title reads, "Admired by an Admirer"…But because I am reading too many detective novels nowadays I had written it as "Admiral"...lol…Have Fun buddies..*

Admired by an Admiral (err..) - 2

2006-05-24T20:52:00.000-07:00

Karaikudi...Another small township near the southern corner of India…It has always been a calm place…May be a good place for me to study and grow…No distractions…More parental and teachers care…Well I loved the place…Has fate ever been so nice?? Huh never!!

Today, I went to the local "Mela"(Exhibition or carnival)…Not a big and pompous one…But the typical village exhibition…I do not want to give much description about that and leave it to your wildest imagination…And Of course…There were giant wheels…Call it a roller coaster and I do not mind much about it…Sitting on it, some thing made me traverse back into time…And then, again I call this "mind" as a Migrater…It migrated today too…

I was a high school student…Trying hard to concentrate on my studies…I wanted to top the list…But, things always work out the way we would not expect…That is why the say, "Expect the Unexpected"…Yeah! I had just entered my 10th grade…The start of an important year of my life…And as fate wanted it to be, things went on…

There was this girl in 9th grade…My junior…People say, "Not-So-Good-Looking one"…I too should agree that…But a very very talented girl…She was good in studies…Though not as good as many were…She had loads of extra curricular activities record…Once she had to face an accident…A fatal one…But somehow, by god's grace, she was spared. That created sympathy on all of us for her. But it created something more on me. I can't define it till date. I am sure I was not behind her, but she had something that I didn't find on many…May be her good attitude or her friendliness…Gosh! Forget it; she created a new life on me every time I saw her. Whatever you call it, I would say, she was a very good friend of mine.

I had just got my books for the year and was preparing myself mentally to face the first public examinations of my life…Celebration time was near in school. Annual day function was nearing and this time around they had planned to conduct this special event called "Mela-2002"…That was planned to be a complete students' organized exhibition with students themselves putting up stalls with food stuff on sale or some entertainment stalls. They called it a "carnival" in kalpakkam. I too had volunteered for the same. On the day of the carnival, I had put up my stall by 08.30 in the morning. My friends too were there to help me along. There were so many stalls put up by my fellow school mates that included Snack bars, Roll the ball, Lift the cola, Ice cream shop…hell many…And mine was "Thumbola Thunder"…

Thumbola is a gambling game…A game of luck…There are no restriction on the number of players. Each player will be given a sheet with 15 numbers, arranged in 3 rows, each containing 5 numbers ranging from 01 to 99. The conductor or the referee will draw numbers from a lot of 100. Each time a number is drawn, the conductor will read aloud the number so that the player can check his sheet for that particular number. If he finds one there, he will strike it out. There are several rounds in a single game and at the end of each round, the player with the highest number of strikes will be given a reward.

But I made the rules much simpler. According to my rule, there will be only one round in a game. The round will have 15 draws and at the end of the 15th draw, the player with the highest number of strikes, will be rewarded with money. My school buddies had never heard of this game and were really interested to play it once they heard about it. My stall was overwhelming and by 11.00 I had earned more than what I had expected to.

It was by 11.00'o clock that....

To Be Concluded

Admired by an Admiral (err...) - 1

2006-05-22T01:19:00.000-07:00

Really sorry for staying away from blogging world for quite some time…Was been enjoying the week through like heck…My friends coming home and playing cards, computer games…Wuh! I am getting tired of this enjoyment in fact. And today being a Sunday, my dad came home from his work place. As usual my mom started my morning with, “Vignesh, it is 10.00”…A while later, “Vignesh, it is 10.30”…I really got frustrated and said, “Let it be mummy”…I woke up later and got into action pretty slow. My mom had her delicacies ready for me. Once I finished my morning lunch (lol) I got glued up to the sofa.

Wondering how to kill my time, I just turned over…I noticed something lying on the sofa…It was a 100 paged small size notebook with a blue wrapper…I remembered working with it days ago…Once I opened it I recognized that it was my proverb log book…My English teacher in kalpakkam(A small township where I once studied) had once asked us to write a proverb a day...Mind is always a Migrater…It carries our thoughts from places to places and finally to those nostalgic moments…And so it did today…

Many years ago I was living with my mom in Kalpakkam…A small township near Chennai…I was about 10…The township was dominated by a floating population…dominated by people who are always on the move by transfers and just halted there in the midst…Multi racial, multi lingual…Multi in everything we could define…My class was full of bright students…I wanted to be one among them and I strived for that…There was this girl in my class, Bhubaneswari Parida…She topped the class in every single exam…I still remember how she regretted for scoring a 98/100 instead of her usual 99/100…Well, the real brainy dudete I have ever seen…I admired her for her brilliance and also for her lustre…May be I should call it the radiance she exhibited…

She and her talents were mesmerizing…All time favourite of the class…Eventually, I too fell for her…May be not the “falling” which I would define today, but that was different…I wanted to be in her company…And at last that materialized…We were made to sit together in the last bench…but! Another guy was also made to sit in-between us…He would never allow me to sit with her…And at last, I somehow managed to get him seated in the next bench, leaving the both of us alone…I loved her company…She helped me a lot with my studies…At free times, we played to the core…We both used to play “Arms”…Wherein each one will place the right/left arm joint on the table and clasp the other’s palm…Trying to push the other’s palm on two opposite directions, the winner was declared as the one who managed to completely push the other’s arm down to the table…Her right arm was really null and so while playing it with the right arm, I kept her hand under control and extend the game to such a long time that she will declare it as a draw…Admiring her in this short while and pretending to be trying hard to win the game was a real challenge I had faced…

Two years, and my mom got transferred…We shifted on to another township…As time passed of, I lost contacts with her and she too got lost from my memories :(

To Be Continued…

Volatile Beings...***...

2006-05-16T00:55:00.000-07:00

Prologue
I would like to extend my sincere thanks to “Dr S.C.Innocent” (Name of the person involved…S.C stands for “So Called”. The person will hence forth be called Sci, read as “sky” for better readability). But for that person, this blog wouldn’t have been possible.

Long Long Ago...

Sci has been a good friend and philosopher of mine. He was a branded innocent by onlookers. We had a longing relation and “it” as I believe was healthy. One of my very best buddies, we involved in mischievous activities which was witnessed by many with a stun. We went together to school, together we ate everyday and together we went everywhere. Sci knew very well the depth of our relation. We spent days together preparing for our final exams we had anticipated to score well. I do not wish to describe much about the relation we shared as you guys will know how I would value a friend. My previous blog on “My Friends” speaks.

Many Days Ago...

We were to part. The separation I believed would not be a hurdle in our paths or in our relationship. I truly believed it would be the same case with Sci. I cried on Sci’s shoulder before the hour. I was not sure if we would meet again. I was trembling if we would lose contact. Sci walked away to get into the bus. It was a public area with loadsa people around. I didn’t care and I strongly believed that I should go by my heart. I was in utter tears. Immediately I called Sci and asked to get back for a while. I wanted to see the face for one last time. I realized that day what Sci had meant to me. And I wondered how I gonna be the man I was, without Sci around. Sci turned back to stare at me for the last time and I found that Sci was not in tears at all. I was very very sure that Sci too would feel my absence though I found no indication of it on the face.

Few Days Ago...

Days passed off. Months rolled out. Mickey, as brown says ticked. Many series of incidents which I never thought of “happened”. Sci started ignoring me. Sci developed a new circle of friends which I was struggling to get. It was a good thing that my friend was blending into a good gang. But what troubled me was that, Sci started ignoring or rather started being unfaithful to me. My friend (Sci of course) started lying on my face when we met once and even went to the extent of hiding things from me.

Few Hours Ago...

Days later I found to my horror that Sci was trying to get into a relation with someone on earth even from the days we were together. Sci had deliberately been hiding this from me. I really wonder as to why my friend thought it wise enough to hide such a silly thing from me. I really wonder as to why people like Sci are so volatile to change their minds as and when they like and want. I really wonder as to why my friend “should have been”/is so unfaithful to me.

A Personal Note :

Dear Sci, if you are reading this blog by chance and if you have recognized that it is “YOU”, I am complaining about, then I have only one thing to tell you, “Do you know what it means to trust someone??"

Epilogue
Never ever trust someone unless you know you have a place in their heart.

...Been to Bed with a yoga master...!!...

2006-05-14T22:04:00.001-07:00

MTBH-2

**This Marks my completion of one year in this blogging world.And MTBH stands for My Trip Back Home.**

Four hours…Reasonably a long period to send a chill down one’s spine…Well And I was enjoying every moment of it. The thrill, the enthusiasm and the exhaustion with which the four hours passed off! Though at first, the sultry climate made me feel worse, I got used to it in the process. Loving the way the four hours passed of, I still wonder if I will be able to forget that instant in my life…Unaffordable pleasure…Unbelievable joy…It went on and on with no disturbances…The bed was getting hot and I felt the heat on me…Yes! I was getting nervous with every movement…I was getting more and more tensed…I felt the pain…But that was nowhere compared to the joy…And I was admiring the creator for blessing me with this…

Today was the first time in my life…Never imagined that I too would get into this trap…Never ever thought I will be fit enough for this…I knew one thing for sure…”I was developing a craze for this in the past few days”…And am still wondering as to how I made it so earlier…Of course there are people who get into this in their younger ages itself…But how on earth did I??

I was sitting plainly calm…Wondering when and where to start…Gaining my confidence I stood up and approached the bed slowly…The object of ultimate pleasure was lying there untouched...making my fingers softer than they really are, I grabbed the back…Knowing not what to do next, I opened up and ran through my fingers on the middle portion…they induced the killer instinct on me. I found the smell addictive and got hypnotized in fact…I somehow wanted to exploit this first opportunity…What if I do not find another one as mesmerizing as this is…Doubts poured over…And I got into work…My mind said “Faster” and I sensed my heart beating faster as well…

A long wait and it ended today…I was feeling too embarrassed and immersed into it at the end…I was wondering as to why the creator had to end it in such a way making it a bit bitter…It left me paralyzed in fact…I am struggling to think clearly and my mind is trembling, making it difficult for me to concentrate…I am not able to face people and their questions. Somehow I realized that this is what is called as “hangover”.

Though it is over, I will remember this intercourse for this life time…My first and most exhilarating. It re-energized my veins…re-booted my physical system…and refreshed my mind…And now I have realized the words of my friends…They said, “It is amazing”…It really is…One of my friends recommended this masterpiece…At last, I admit it as well.

Well Yeah! If you guys guessed it rite I am talking Dan Brown’s Angels and Demons…I wonder if you misinterpreted the above series of actions…Today was my first intercourse with a novel…Never in my life have I read novels…May be because I am too lazy for that…But today this awesome piece of work made me spell bounded…Well, the heading sounds a bit of sexy…But if you had read through it, you will realize that the novel ended with, ”you have never been to bed with a yoga master, have you?”...And about this novel all I can tell is, “Futt bucking’ly genious”…

My Trip Back Home -1

2006-05-10T21:47:00.000-07:00

Hmmm...And you know I am relaxing...Off from taxing hours in University, I am trying hard to sleep lesser at home...haha..One little pleasure in life...To be at home and enjoy mom's food with the TV running throughout the day...And I am off for this holiday at home. Life at home is definitely easier and relaxing.

I landed on the 3rd of may. My uncle, cousin and my granny were there at airport to pick me up. Ofcourse my dad and mom cant come as they live in a place far from Chennai. I had fun at my granny's place for two days with my cousin and then I started back to reach home. That was a journey of about 9 hours by bus. My friend had accompanied me and we were talking about his college chicks(...oops) and other stuff. Back home I met my mom and dad just to find that they were too happy to welcome me after about 4 months.

Last week was the most surprising week. Election hungama...Well what can I say about that..."A Comedy Show"...I was laughing my *** out watching the election canvasing/propaganda...For those of you who are not a resident in Tamil Nadu I will give you a small pinch of what happened here...

There were two major parties contesting...One was "Mummy"'s and the other one was "Thatha"'s(The tamil version of grand dad)...Thatha promised to give away "FREE COLOUR TV's" to all families if thatha won...Initially mummy criticized that...but later on mummy too promised saying that she will give away "FREE COMPUTERS" to all students getting through their 12th grade examinations this time...Yock! How I wish to have born a year later...I would be receiving that free computer...And then in some other constituency one uncle was saying "I will give free rice to all"...And in the midst cinee heros(those who are totally outta scene now) getting into politics and hosting comedy shows...Vijaykanth uncle - Once in one of his movies, he was twisting his moustache and two rogues fell down instantaneously and got hurt...And that uncle stood in this election and few people voted for him just to ensure that he doesnt get back to films...Now the counting is taking place...Many expected to see a "Mummy Returns"...But history repeats itself and it seems a new era of "Thatha Returns" will happen...

One thing that makes me wonder...Where the hell is this money coming from?? When they need huge sum of money for helping the tsunami hit, when they need loadsa funds for helping the draught affected..Where is this money for distributing TVs and computers coming from?? Are they really going to distribute them?? Or are they just Lies?? Why didn't they distribute these things even before?? Why should they give away at this time of elections?? Why the hell do they wanna get the prestigious seats of MLAs when they are not going to do anything for the people??

Corruption...That is all I can associate with this...Whoever gets to win starts corrupting the society...Bribery, rowdism...What else and what not...Are we trying to elect the best leader?? or are we going according to the give aways?? But who is the best leader..Is there one?? All these questions remain mysteries of politics...Are we going to be heard?? Absolutely not...Are we going to make a change.?? Are we going to bring about a just rule??And the list remains endless...It is extremely pitiable to find this situation of politics prevailing here...

What can we as youth do about this??

She Picked...It Pricked

2006-05-01T09:27:00.000-07:00

I am really sorry about the previous weird blog. But that was written in real frustration. And heres something that will make you think...Go ahead...

My dad and mom are Government Servants and are prone to frequent transfers. Many a times my dad will be working in some place while my mom will be working in a place much farther than that. My dad used to come home for weekends and that used to be the only time we had a family meet up. And when my mom gets transfer to a place nearer to my dad's work place, it so happens that he gets transferred to some other station. That used to be a regular event and I had been with my mom at all times while my dad manages alone.

Once my dad had got tranferred to New Delhi. He left to Delhi and settled down there. During our vacation, me, my mom and my brother went to Delhi to spend the 2 months with him. We had some excellent time there...Agra, Kedarnath, Karolbagh, Conaught Place..What else and what not...In Delhi, there were "friday markets", "monday markets", "tuesday markets". Each day had its market in a particular place. That ran throughout the year. It so happened that the "friday market" was very nearer to our home. We never missed to go there on fridays. Eatables, clothings, fruits, vegetables...wuh!..Soo many things were available and one would definitely get confused with the choices one has before...

Me and my brother loved the choley bhaturey that was available for RS.6 in two or three stalls. To tell the truth, we didn't get the same good taste when we tasted it in Rameshwar's(A popular restaurant in Delhi) for about 40 bucks. On that particular day too, we went to a choley bhatturey stall and had one full plate. Even after eating that, we didn't have the satisfaction of eating to out heart's full. So we got another plate for each other and started eating that. I was gulping it in fire's pace with the mango achar(pickle) while my brother was even faster...

That was the moment...That was the instant...That was the second...Well what can I say about that...My brother while eating, happened to drop ONE SINGLE choley down to the ground...It was a single round thing...The tiniest portion of what we had eaten...And then, I just turned to find out that A Poor Girl was watching us eat...She was as short and as tiny as a knee deep stick...I guess she would be around 10 years old...

Immediately, finding the choley drop down, she ran front, grabbed the choley, ate it and ran as fast as she could...

Well...I just stood there wondering if that one single choley would make her dinner...I was wondering as to why I wasnt satisfied even after eating one whole plate of choley bhatturey, but she was satisfied with that one single choley...I was wondering as to why she ran from that place in jet's speed...I was wondering at god's creations...

Poverty...That is all I can associate with this event...Well when u can ask a middle aged beggar to work and earn...What would you ask that girl??...Born poor...Her parents dont have money to get her food...How do you expect her to get to school??uniforms??books??distant dreams...they dont have money to get a shelter or clothings...How do you think that girl can gain a descent position in the society...Do you think shes gonna become a doctor or a district collector some day??...haha...Never on earth will such a thing happen...

Is there going to be a solution for this in the future??...That still remains to be a mytery...This time around I am planning to go to this school which is run by a flight captain for the children affected by tsunami in Tamil Nadu...I am planning to spend a day with them...I want to teach them something I can...I wanna elite their lives...Ofcourse I cannot be another Mother Teresa, but I can contribute a small portion I can...That itself will make a big difference...

And here goes a video that you guys should never afford to miss...It is really really touching and you guys will then realize as to how lucky you are...Do remember to increase your speaker volumes before you open this...And you will see how Rusting the other side of the coin is...What are you going to do about that??

Before I round off...For you guys to contribute...Here goes the link to hunger site...You click it and they get food...Dont forget to click atleast 5 times a day...Book mark this site now...Hunger Site

*************************************************************************************
It has been 4 hours since this blog was published...I jus got a call from my senior saything that we gonna have a summer camp for the children in that same school for three days this month end...And we gonna be organizing it...Well..I was simply overjoyed to hear that...And if you guys wanna know which school it is..."Gurukulam-A trust children's school in pannayur-Near Chennai
*************************************************************************************

Examinations - Do they really matter??

2006-04-28T07:11:00.000-07:00

Quite some time since i blogged...And now, after finishing my exams am back here...Last week was very very stressful and I had to undergo some really annoying moments I have never come accrss before...Yeah! I had my semester examinations. And I have now completed my second semester of study in Engineering. One big exciting thing is that I gonna have 3 months vacation and I gonna fly back home and stay there for a month or so. Going back home and being in the habitat is always an exciting idea and when there are just a few days for it to materialize it is more exciting. And before I pack off my things to start, I am still wondering about this...""Examinations - Do they really matter??""

Well, this is what happens on each day of exam. I will be there in the venue half an hour before. The climate being horribly hot makes me wet with sweat. As each minute passes my Blood Pressure raises a bit. Anxiety is all I can define or relate with this. My friends coming over and asking me if I have covered this...that...And then the door is opened for us to get in...The moment I get in I will feel extremely cold (coz of the air-con ofcourse) and I find my hands shivering...Then goes the unending list of instructions..."You are not allowed to start writing until you are told to do so....blah blah"

Atlast the most awaited 2 hours...I go through the question paper only to find that I can hardly answer a few questions...I find most of the exams very relaxing...Nothing to write!!!...The exam ends and I am on the hunt asking guys about their performances...I can always find a few saying "screwed up"...This friend of mine is so obsessed with shi* that he rates the exam as "It was shi* lah"...Thats infact better...There comes another friend of mine shoing his mi* finger...lol...Another guy bragging that he royally raped...Well soo many expressions and so many disappointments.

And this is what is reality...

Lectures : "This is a nucleus..."
Tutorials : "How does a nucleus look like??"
Exam : "Prepare a Nuclear Bomb"...

haha..The level of difficulty is too much...I wonder if the profs set question papers just to ensure that they find lot of blank pages in the answer scripts!! And thereby making the job easier for them??!!...What are exams really meant for?? Are they meant for testing our knowledge in the subject or Are they meant for meant for the profs to have fun mocking at our answer scripts??

Relative Grading...And i still dont understand what that means...They say "They draw a bell curve with our marks"..."I am still holding the temple bell to fetch me a good grade"...Whatever be it...I am not going to bother too much about these exams anymore...But this time, I hope to get good grades as I desprately wanna get streamed into computer engineering by the end of next month, which requires a descent score ofcourse...

Examinations are real botherations,
Father's Isolation,
Mother's Consolation,
Causes nothing but Frustration,
Permutation and Combination...But Finally Dejection,
Afterall they are also Man's Creation,
And thats why I feel it is better to do Cultivation.

Tell me your observations...lol

Chooo Chweet...;-)

2006-04-17T03:30:00.000-07:00

This particular picture makes me forget all my worries and difficulties when I keep staring at it...You smile at it and the baby will smile at you back...It works and I feel a great pleasure in doing so...Pictures can mean more than words...And now you guys tell me!! Have you ever seen anything sweeter than this????

I the Pity of English..!!!

2006-04-14T02:38:00.000-07:00

Its been a long time since I wanted to write this. Atlast I managed to get it live today. This friend of mine makes great attempts to speak fluently in English. Read some of our dialogue sessions and be amazed with his supernatural english.

Few excerpts from our conversation :

Dialogue : 1

Situation :

We both are participating in a competition on innovation. This happened on the last day of submission of our project report...

Frnd: hi
Me: hi
Frnd: how is ur report?
Me: yeah...finished almost
Me: going to submit
Frnd: today is the last day for submission
Me: oh yeah...
Frnd: 3 pages means bothside or single side
Me: single side only
Frnd: how many person in your group
Me: we are four...
Frnd: all NUS student?
Me: no ...i am the only NUS student
Me: others are in india
Frnd: very good
Me: how about ur report?
Frnd: i never give all my idea to them
Me: y?
Frnd: just give the hints about my plan.....
*(This is toooo much...hm...)*
Me: ok
Frnd: is it select then prepare the overall technolgy
Me: oo great idea..
*(Oh my god...!!)*

Dialogue : 2

Situation :
Once the results of the contest were out...

Frnd : Hi
Me : Hi
Frnd : how is competition??i loss
Me : I too dint get through...
Me : Okie...Leave it...
Frnd : How is about the AB1234
*(AB1234 is a module code...the worst module in the univ.)*
Me : It sucks.
Frnd : have u finish the tutorial?
*(Aiyoo...I pity english..sigh)*
Me : Nope...
Frnd : ok.me the go now.
Me : Bye.

Dialogue : 3

Situation :
The results of student accomodation were just out and he buzzes me.Hm..

BUZZ!
Frnd : Hi
Me : Helloo
Frnd : were you got accomodation?
Me : I have got Raffles hall. And you?
Frnd : I have get PGP.
Frnd : Nearby there is is
Me : oh..
*(Sigh..What does he mean??)*
Frnd : I not know about raffles hall. Is it two room also?are one room?
Me : Yeah!
*(Oh..Two room?...He means double room)*
Frnd : I got one room.
Me : Each student is entitled to one room only na?
Frnd : No...I got one person room.
Me : Oo okie
*(he he)*
Frnd : I think the rent may the same
Me : I dont know!
*(Bah! I the forget english now...lol)*
Frnd : I leave now. I catch u later.
Me : Bye

Dialogue : 4

Situation :
I am doing my online assignment...due : 11.59 pm...and the time is 11.30 already. I still have umpteen questions to work out when I hear this BUZZ!

BUZZ!
Frnd : How u?
Me : hm? Oh Fine.
Frnd : what do u?
Me : Online Assign...You finished??
Frnd : not yet.....do some and i confused..So i leev
Frnd : last minute server may down.
Me : Yeah.
Me : Went wrong 4 times in qn 2. So pissed off..!
Frnd : Dont I got two times.
*(Wondering what he meant)*
Frnd : ok no problem still you have more time to do it,,,,,
Me : Uh???????
Me : Could you see the applet item properly?
Frnd : don't worry to much...my version don't that item...i need to update my into new version,
Me : Okie...how about tomorrow's presentation?
Frnd : not yet....i never start yet...
Me : Gosh...All the best..C ya later...
Frnd : Ok. good night.
Me : Bubye

Lolz...hope you people had a nice time reading this...Keep blogging...

HUGZZ....

Aerobics and Bush

2006-04-08T00:37:00.000-07:00

I heard quite sometime before that Bush was off to some strange land for relaxing and doing Aerobics. I just managed to get some of those pictures and here they are.

""I think I have to start...""..*yawns*

""Oh!! My costly pair of shoes...ahh...grr...ushshh...""

""Oh my god! I am being crushed...Rice! Oops, shes not here""

""Hey Laura! Is that you??!!""

""Oops I am feeling giddy! Thank god I dont have brain.""

""Usshh..I am done for the day!!This should be the work of Osama Bin Laden to have put up these many rocks here.""

And thats all I managed to get. But if you guys wanna see the complete video of his Aerobics performance, here you go ... You can even change his posture with the mouse...Its time for us to teach him a lesson...Good luck people!!!

P.S : Its quite addictive though...

My Friends : A Drive Within

2006-03-30T09:59:00.000-08:00

"Hey Machan, The principal is around, Let us get inside the class"...Those words of Senthil, one of my best friends, are still echoing in my ears. We the freaky four guys were the most mischievous and active guys in our class. Me, Senthil, Suresh and Arun...The inseparables...

"Play while you work, but play while you play"...That often used to be our moto.We never bunked school as we felt it impossible to be without each other...Our little community, the first to engage in a prank, the first to cut the classes, the first to run to the playground during play time and the first rank holders in the class...We guys always grabbed the first four ranks in the class...We felt fortunate to be studying together in the same class...We were always the back benchers and the mischief makers...We attended same tuition centres, we opted for same second languages and were similar in every aspect...our thoughts matched and we became the best peers our school had ever seen...

From L2R Senthil, me, Arun & Suresh

Arun always used to be a hard working guy, concentrating every single word the ma'am used to utter...Senthil, me and Suresh...We three never listened to the tutor...We would always be busy downloading ring tones or playing Snake in Senthil's mobile...that was our pass time during classes...Our record books always tend to remain empty with nothing being copied from the board...At the end of the class, Arun made it a point to ask questions to the teacher and we three made it a point to make fun of him when he is in action...He bursted out to laughter and thereby gets scolded by the teacher...That used to be real fun for us...

Examinations always used to be botherations for all of us from civilizations...We felt doing cultivation is better than taking examinations...during exams, I had to sit next to Suresh, the branded brilliant fellow in our gang...Arun and Senthil also shared our exam halls...We discussed answers in the exam hall(oops! It is not copying you see...Just discussing ;-) ) and passed it forward as well...The best thing is that we never got caught...Senthil sitting five benches behind whistles to grab our attentions...Arun, plays around with his fingers to get the answers...Eventually, we were the most notorious gang there too...

Physics lectures...Ah...I still remember how terrible they were...There were about 250 people in a big hall and we the four were the back benchers there too...Opening the back door stealthily and crawling outside the class was an easy task for us...We escaped from there and ran out to the corridors...One of our classmates who tried this later, got caught...That eventually came to be known as the "Little Elephant Boy Game"...lol

Night studies were popular among us and we talked about every damn thing on earth under the name of Night Studies...Being in a small town, we could not manage to get to a pizza hut or a Disco Club...Our only recreation place remained to be the Railway Station...We made sure to go there once a week...Standing over the tracks and seeing who manages to stand there for long without losing balance...Pushing the other down and balancing oneself over the other always used to be a thrilling activity for us...And we still remember those lovely experiences of life...

Atlast, we faced our final examinations...The results were later out and to our amazement, we ranked the first four in our class and we managed to be in the top 10 of our school...We reaped more than what we expected or what we deserved truly...We thanked the god and started planning for our future..."We should land up in the same college" said Senthil. We hoped so...but fate turned that out...We landed up in four different directions...

From L2R Senthil, me, Arun & Suresh

That was the last day...We knew that we cannot rewind back our days and we are going to part...We had an eat out and Senthil was the first one to leave the town...The next day I was supposed to leave...The other two guys had planned to leave a bit later...We were at the bus interchange to give a warm send off to Senthil...The final moment...It was there and we were to face it...The most disastrous moment...we gonna take back our memories...but we are not going to be with each other anymore...no more night studies...no more Railway Stations...No more...

I sensed a drop of tear in my eyes...I controlled it to myself and stood there hugging the guys...We had our final hugs..Apologising, consoling...For the first time in my life I realized what a person can mean...How life can be incomplete without someone...How it is to part people who are dearer to heart...We wished good luck for our lives and missions...We exchanged our final thoughts and advices...We bid adieu to each other...And I stood there trying to wave my hands to bid them goodbye...And the bus rolled out...ending our "journey together"...

When one journey ends the other journey starts...Afterall Life itself is a journey amidst tough times and sweet experiences...though we have parted each other, we carry those sweet memories and remembrances with us wherever we go...

I am Back

2006-03-30T08:45:00.000-08:00

Tiresome work, loadsa "home works" and regular CCA activities..Hence, I was off from this blogging world...Now I am back, not refreshed, but to refresh myself...Sorry my dear bloggie...

LOVE !!--!!

2006-03-19T06:12:00.000-08:00

Love...One of the most preferred words in english.Have you ever been behind that??...And none has an answer "NO"...Relations might differ,but the inner feeling and the emotions are the same...Everybody has different ways of defining this supernatural word...but it still carries the same message and the same intensity in every heart. And it is often said that god lives in a place where love is. A drive within my oneself and my perspective on this...Go Ahead and Do remember to share your comments at the end of the article...

I was just born...In the arms of my mother most of the time...Everybody around, lifting me and kissing my cheek...But, my mom was unique as she was the one who cared for me a lot...I started loving her...

I was 3 when I joined school...Every morning my father dropped me in school and took me back to home in the evening...I often used to cry and my dad was always there consoling and convincing me...Thats when I realized that my dad cares for me...I started loving him...

I was 6 when I was quite happy with my school...My teachers taught me what world is...and how I have to tackle it...I was too young and couldnt understand why I was being taught all these...but I felt that my teachers care for me...I started loving them...

I was 10...And I hear my mom shouting,"Vignesh, Have you completed your home work?"...Uninterested in any of my academics, I lean over the lap of my grandma answering her with a hesitant "No"...My grandpa softly advising me to do the job made me feel a sense of being cared...And I started loving them...

I was 13 when I realized that I will need friends...I got a few and ""my friends"", always around me, playing and making fun of every damn thing on earth...Helping me when I am in need and sharing every single emotion...I knew they care for me and I started loving them...

I was 16 when I managed to get a girl friend...Doing anything she asks me to, I also realize that she cares for me too...I then started loving her...

I am now 18 and in an university...The week's tiresome job makes me dumb...but still, I get involved in whatever I am doing..."Wrold's 21st best university" and once I listen to this I am all up with happiness...Afterall I am also a part of it...My university is making a man out of me and I know that it cares for me...I am loving it...

I will be 21 when I will find myself owning a company...My own creation which I dream about...I will work day and night for my company & the company will pay up for me with good returns and great fame...Then will I understand that I care for it and the company cares for me as well...I will start loving it...

I will be 25 when my mom will be standing next to me sobbing...(Ah...I no I am not a girl...but my mom is a women)...Getting married to a girl, who is going to take care of me for the rest of the life time...I will start loving her...

I will be 30 when I will find my shirt pissed...My Children, for they are going to be my loved ones forever...I will want to take care of them and I will start loving them...

I will be 40 when I find my parents old and unhealthy...I know I will have to take care of them...I will still continue to love them...

I will be 60 sitting in an easy chair with kids around...They will be my grand children, who I know would like to be with me rather than their own parents...I know I have to take care of them...And I will start loving them...

I will be 70 finding myself weeping next to my parents grave...Missing something within and searching for that love they shared with me...I will curse myself for caring them much lesser than how they cared for me. I will still love them, forever...

I will be 80 lying on the bed...Named as being "Nuisance", I will be recollecting those past lovely and youthful days of mine...For those memories will make me happier...I will realize only then that I am the best companion of my oneself...I will understand that I will have to take care of myself without troubling others...Only then will I start loving myself...

So, Love has a deep impact on everyones life...Love has the capability of making revolutionary changes...but for love, no roses smell good, no fruit tastes good, and nothing on earth seems beautiful...Believe me!Love can bring in Life on the Dead, Essence on the dried flower and happiness on our faces...

This lifetime is too short...Love and be Loved...Love You .. ~~!!--!!~~

The Extremes--~~!!

2006-03-11T03:33:00.000-08:00

Ah...Does the heading sound wierd??..I am sure it will...I just thought of sharing this which i realized in the last two days...The Extremes... So, naturally the next question arises as to what the two extremes are...Well, They are the Unbelievable and Unreliable Creations..But whose creation? Ofcourse they are man's creations...Well Well Wel..Go ahead and you will realize it for sure...Though the following thought may sound wierd for a few, I am here to say that it is just my view ;-)

First to go with, lemme write about the Unreliable creation. Many generations have passed by and developments are taking place at fire's pace everywhere. Advancement in communication, developments in media what else and what not...At this juncture, I gonna call something the unreliable and stupid creation which most of you would disagree...Think you should have guessed it by now...Yeap! It is none other than the Idiot Box-2---Computer.(I believe TV is the idiot box 1 ;-} )...Ha...Power point slides for lectures, programming for every single phenomena on earth...this computer is dominating man's activities...The other day I was sitting before my PC. I was irritated to find it booting up damn slow...At last it booted up just to make me reboot it once more...When I rebooted it again it revolted against me in logging in...Chalo, reboot again...This time the Idiot Box 2 refused to open up any application...Sala, Reboot again...And now, it dint get me connected to the internet...I thought, "oh! What the hell is this!!??!!"..I simply closed my laptop and dozed of...So this unreliable creature has become my sole workmate but for whose help I cant move a dust...

Hourly Hazards, daily demonstrations, weekly wars, bi-weekly battles and Regular revolts are must with this Fit for Everything unreliable creature. My math lecturer always talks about some website and he tries(never succeeds) to open the website in class just to get embarrassed. So, this Idiot Box 2 is always ready to embarrass people increasing their BP and testing their temper!!!

And now, I come to the sweeter part of life...The Unbelievable creation...I was just coming back from my university's open house function...loadsa goodies, decorations, beautiful booths and what else??...Ofcourse the Balloons...Have you ever celebrated your birthday party without Balloons?..The answer is always a big NO !!...But whats there amazing about them...Well, there are several wonderful things about them...There are two ways balloons are being blown up...Mouth blowing which is usually co2 and machine blowing which is usually helium...Helium balloons are the most wondrous ones...They are lighter than air and tend to fly up once the hold is left...

I carried a few balloons out of the hall and left them in air freely..I was really really amazed to find them flying on and on and on...Up above the sky crossing the clouds and having no intensions to come down...They passed quite a great distance when the rounded shape of the balloons seemed to me like a single dot of an inch. I stood at the same place looking up the sky and wondering as to how I would feel if I were a balloon flying higher and higher with no restrictions and no destination...Unlike a kite, those balloons were not controlled by anyone and I stood awestruck at the same place till i lost sight of those 5 balloons I possessed a while back.

And to be honest, Life is a combination of sweet and sour experiences and we ought to live along with em...Thats life and thats how the world is

The Ultimate Destination!!!

2006-03-09T22:38:00.000-08:00

The Heading by itself suggests that the blog is going to about some place on earth...TheUltimate Destination...The ever active and rocking place on earth.The place wherein you can find everything you would like...A calm sea shore...A busy City...A peaceful ride in the water...The pleasant walk in a grove...Rocking Plazas...Discos, Night Clubs and loadsa other stuff which most dream about...You will understand how wonderful earth is and How Amazing Life is...Where else??...The Ultimate Destination...Singapore...My Sweet Little Home Town...

A small country cum city with a few km across the land, this home town of mine has everything to provide me and the visitors who are here to enjoy its enriching beauty...Raffles place, the busiest place in Singapore is were the great malls and offices are located. This place is always crowded with business people on the move and deligates coming from other countries to their offices here. Huge structures, brilliant lightings and ofcourse the Esplanade building wherein the arts festivals are conducted portray the ever active city Singapore.

Fun, is all I can associate with Sentosa, the island resort of Singapore. Sentosa is connected to Singapore by a bridge and also by a rope way. The island solely for Fun lovers and visitors is full of amazing stuff. Be it cinemania or Undrewater World or Butterfly Park or Dolphin Lagoon or Animal Encounters or The Prestigious Merlion or The Volcano Island...All one can find there is FUN...Completing all the rides, having a bath in the Sea along the Siloso Beach in Sentosa will make the trip to Sentosa more exhillarating. Visiting Sentosa in Gang with a Volley Ball along will make the experience more enjoyable.

A stroll along the Changi Beach, a day in the world's best international airport-Changi Airport and a night in one of the best night clubs-Chinablack will make the visitors more enthusiastic. The coconut grove along the Changi Beach will offer a very pleasant memory of the past. The huge plazas, be it Plaza Singapura at Dhoby Ghaut or being it Jurong Point at Jurong East are stocked up with the latest electronic goods which one would have never imagined about. The Movie Theatre Golden village is always up with the latest movies and offers something more than what the others have.

Having said all this about Singapore, I think it would not be fair if I fail to mention about my university. The best place for the youths to be at...National University of Singapore...Thw world's 21st best university and the third best in Asia. The huge campus which can never be walked across has shuttle busses running throught the day till 2300hrs. 13 faculties, 30000 students and thousand staffs brings about glory to this institution of mine. The University hall, with its gigantic looks stands at the centre of the university displaying its vibrant nature.

So, if you are planning to visit Singapore, plan your visit well in advance and do remember to make it a point to visit my university as well. I am sure, you will enjoy the trip and do let me know!!!

The ultimate destination- Uniquely Singapore...Come over and you will realize it...

Wat d Hell!!!

2006-03-03T05:30:00.000-08:00

WT_??? This was what I asked my dad when he told me that few deemed universities are hiring goondas to bully and kick their college students...

What is happening??? Only now am i reading the online version of The Hindu to know how horrible things are working out...My blood is gushing out and my hands are full of goose bumps...Anger and Agony to a person who is in no way related to the university or to the system of education!!! The relation - My Indian Friends...binds me and causes that irritation...

I remember when I was in SRM trying for admission...My dad was asked to pay up 1.75 laks per year, inclusive of all fee and hostel accomodation...I refrained saying the money was too much and was quite disappointed...But today, after reading those articles in The Hindu I realize I am wrong.

A student died, management calling up police to "Deal" with students...What the hell is happening?? Is this what called as Dictatorship under the wrong rule?"? So annoying!!! What has the management to repond for those students who are paying up lakhs for a course which they are unsure of a B.Sc degree??? The thing which i really wonder about is that, when the students pay up so much money, why isnt that being used up for infrastructure development or for bending up with the AICTE norms?>? So wheres the money going then?

When the students are calm and are doing silent demonstrations, why the hell should the management throw stones on the students?? They think the students to be their slaves to kick them as and when they like??Ah...And I found it soo disgusting to read the fact that students were asked to evacuate their hostels by 03.00 in the morning...Where can one go at that instant of time? Especially the girls?? And The Hindu reads, " Closure of the college". What does this mean? Permanent closure?? Where will the present batch of students go then? who will be ready to take them in ??

I attended the SRM counselling. I was told by the management that there are lots of faculty staffs and the student-teacher ratio is 1:40. So are they bluffing to convince the students? To procure their money?? I really shudder to find the pitious state of these students...

Then goes the students' violence, breaking up of computer labs...Here I think the guys are wrong...They are the ones gonna use it...And If they gonna break them up themselves, who are going to be the sufferers? It is quite obvious to get angry, but there are different ways to express anger...Ofcourse I too beleive that Violence is the best way to set things rite...but not this kind of violence.

I wonder as to when these issues will get set...sigh...And till then my condolences to those of you in SRM and other deemed universities,,, :-(

Wah Rey Wah!!!!

2006-02-23T04:12:00.000-08:00

Wah Rey Wah!!!!What an excellent movie.

I caught it by a whisker.My friends had invited me to this movie many days before. They had planned to watch the night show by 12.00 am in Jade theatre in City hall, singapore. But then,I refused to accomapny them as I felt that it might not be worth to be watched at that hour of a day. But I was wrong.

Two days back I went to the theatre to watch the evening show by 06.00. Only after reaching the theatre I came to know that there is no evening show and the show is scheduled only for 09.00 pm. Thought "Oh No!"...Even then I was not disheartened and got the ticket.

I was roaming around and had some amazing food at anna lakshmi, an Indian restaurant which provides excellent food. I was free to have how much ever I wanted and was free to pay how much I felt like. So, after having food, I roamed around and whiled off my time in plazas till 09.00. Then I went to the theatre and glued up to my seat.

As the movie progressed, I was very much impressed about Amir Khan's jovial acting. I had lot of fun till the first intermission. It was sound blasting and futt bucking. The second half was quite serious and sent a chill down my spine. Felt very painful about the state of India. Its quite true and the best thing of the movie is that they have stuck a deal between the past and the present.

Sidharth is kinda soft guy and I wonder as to why the director thought he could be a good person to take Bhagath Singh's role. If you had watched the movie, "The legend of Bhagath Singh" you can sense it. Coz Bhagath was a very brave person...but sidharth cant even raise his voice. Anyways, that was quite acceptable.

The concept of the movie is the same...youth taking the law into their hands....but the way the story has been presented as the movie has been terrific....Again Rehaman rocked...REHMAN I LOVE YOU!!!! And everybody have played their roles fantastically....Not to forget,Alice's hindi accent is greatly appreciable and her role is worth mentioning...Hope to see her again in other hindi movies...

Above all, If you are an Indian or atleast if you had been in India for quite a bit of time, then I am sure you would like the movie. Beleive me, YOUR BLOOD WILL GUSH OUT OF ANGER AND AGONY...

Dont miss it...

Thats Life & Thats how the World is...

2006-02-22T04:44:00.000-08:00

I read this story recently in a book and was moved by its reality...Go ahead and you will feel it...

Once upon a time there was a small boy who used to play by a river side. One morning he found that by the river side an alligator had got caught in a fisherman's net. After seeing the boy, the alligator pleaded him to cut the net for it.

The boy replied, "No, I cant, If I do so, then you will eat me out. So, I will not do that. "Hearing this, the alligator said, "Dont worry my boy, I will be grateful to you if you do so. I will not kill you for you are going to be the one saving my life". The boy was not convinced at all. But, after a lengthy deal of conversations and promises by the crocodile, the boy finally agreed to help it. He started to cut open the mouth portion first and as soon as its face was opened the alligator caught hold of the boy's leg with its mouth.

The boy started crying and shouted, "This is not fair...You shouldn't kill me as you have promised". The alligator replied with a gentle smile, " Thats Life and Thats how the World is". The boy started crying more vigorously and said, "We shall ask someone to judge this case. Please dont kil me before that". The alligtor agreed.

A group of donkeys passed by. The boy stopped them and told the whole story. The donkeys, being terrified by the alligator's gaint looks said, "The alligator is right. Thats Life and Thats how the World is." Then the boy looked up to see the pigeons. He told them the whole story and asked for justice. The pigeons thought, "If we happen to talk against the alligator, then it would kill our young ones someday"...Thinking so, they said,"No my dear, The crocodile is right.Thats Life and Thats how the world is..."

The boy was now pleading with the alligator when a rabbit passed by. The boy now stopped the rabbit and pleaded for justice. The rabbit then saw the crocodile and said, "You mighty crocodile, whats your argument for this boy's words." The alligator tried to say something.But the rabbit said,"Hey, I am not able to hear you, remove your hold from the boy and speak clearly".The alligator said,"Do you think I am a fool?If I leave hold of him then he will run away".

The rabbit replied,"When you have a powerful tail how do you think the boy can escape from your grip". Now the alligator was convinced and released its grip from the boy. At once, the rabbit shouted, "RUN". The boy fled away immediately. Only when the alligaor tried to life its tail to attack him, it realised that the tail portion was still under the net and the boy hadnt cut it yet. The alligator started yelling at the rabbit over the injustice. The rabbit replied, "Thats Life & Thats how the world is..."

The boy brought some villagers along with him and kiled the alligator. The dog which accompanied him, chased the rabbit and killed it off before he could prevent. The boy now thought, " Thats Life and Thats how the world is...".

Whatever we do good to this world, the world is going to pounce upon us. So, it is always better to act intellectually than kind heartedly. In this story, both the boy and the rabbit who had the intention of helping others were put to trouble. As a moral, We should definitely help others, but at all times we should act carefully, as this world is full of perils and pit falls.

2006-02-21T19:50:00.000-08:00

Going 4 a MP3 Player?

Yoyo guys and gals,

Raising trends of the electronic market clearly shows that people are very interested in electronic products. As it always happens, there is a craze among the public for new e-goods. The young masses, preferably in schools and universities prefer to buy these goods first. To be more specific, the young bloods are very much attracted to the e-world.

MP3 players are being dominant in the market. So many comapnies coming up and rocking the market with their own versions of the MP3 players. Of course, the market seems to be dominated by Apple's iPod followed by Creative's Zen. Creative's MP3 players are being disadvantaged by the fact that they dont offer colour monitor. But iPod has got a variety of features. So if you are planning to buy a new MP3 player, go ahead.

Think iPod is THEE??

Taking iPod into consideration, the few features offered in the iPod NANO(2 GB) are, Music, Notes, Calendar, Songs, Photos, Games and contact list and a stop watch. This holds to a maximum of 350-400 songs(Said to be 500). The clarity of the photos is quite appreciable, but not very good. We have so many devices to show up our photos and hence this feature of iPod dominantly remains useless. When the gaming console industry is blooming up like anything and mobile phone comapnies coming up with great games, I wonder as to why iPod came up with too kiddish games like solitare which will not be prefered by many people. It doesn't solve the purpose. But just to give it a good touch these features have been added. In spite of this, iPod could have come up with better features rather than the same old ones.

The device(iPod Nano) is unbeleivably thin. Have a look at it and you will be amazed to handle it. The head phone is quite good, but a sony head phone with iPod works far better. The device is really user friednly and the display is quite ok. Once the device is fully charged it works efficiently till 12-14 hours on the max. The most frustrating is this, the device can be charged only from the USB terminal in your computer. If you wanna charge the device without the help of the computer then you are asked to buy a new charger for $13.50. I wonder as to why Apple done it so. The songs can be divided up into as many sub folders as required and it is also possible to move to the exact section of a song from which u wish to listen to.

You can also go for larger capacity versions of iPod. But to be frank, it is quite easy to update the songs then and there rather than going for a 20GB MP3 player which will ruin your wealth. As a piece of good advice, or to compare between iPod and Creative, Creative's Zen is too bulky in comparison with iPod. Also, the colour display always has its own beauty. Can you find anyone with a black and white mobile phone now???

Howsever the trend may be, plan your requirements and invest carefully and ingeniously...For more informations check up here for

iPod and here for Creative's Zen.

Good Luck...Not to forget, Happy Webbing....

Stay Tuned!!

For other such interesting stuff...visit my website - www.thewebberworld.bravehost.com or you cal also visit www.webberworld.tk

thank you for your support

2005-05-15T10:38:00.000-07:00

KNOW ABOUT LIFE!!

Know the chemical definition of life!!

Definition:

Life is a laboratory where the reagents are happiness and sorrow.

Description:

Every man’s life can be considered as a chemical reaction. The reactants represent his childhood and the products represent his future. Remember, “You get the products only if you use the correct reactants”. Be pleased that life is a solvent in which the concentration of solute particles, as perils, is high. It is the duty of every individual to make the solution diluted with these problems.

Consider the following homogeneous equation.
Manners+Moto+Mentality →Mortal
Caution! The above equation holds good only if all the reactants are in pure state. The reactants (M, M, M) combine in the presence of a catalyst to form a true mortal. This is how life should be!

Life too is a periodic property. As the age increases the maturity decreases.

1
AGE α ---------------
MATURITY

Life too is an organic compound, which emphasizes that one should live to

Let Live

Live ===== Love

Lead

1. Let others live
2. Lead
3. Love, Love & Love

The above compound is unsaturated as life is an unending or unterminating episode of sincerity, devotion and truth.

CONCLUSION

Believe me,

God – Supplied the chief ore of life,
Nature – Concentrated this ore of life,
Time – Roasted the concentrated ore of life,
Man – Extracted the impure metal (life),

But, who is going to refine it?!!!!

By,
R.Vignesh Babu,

A Drive Within

Should you be an optimist after all?

Random Thought

A Ride to Africa

Wows And Phews

Renovation Time!

I can be your Hero!!

The Final Ride

Russell Peters 34.50

Epdi irunda naan...Ipdi aaitten!!

Can you be any faster??

Am I Unlucky??

This is Hilarious!!

On On Daga??

Back in Time

What is in a name??

Amaaaazing!!!

Give it a Bit More

WE ARE GOIN TO PLUTO – THENGABOYZ

A Drive Within

"FOUR" U!!!

Masthi Ka Paatshala - The End

Masthi ka Paatshala...

Admired by an Admiral (err...) - The End

Admired by an Admiral (err..) - 2

Admired by an Admiral (err...) - 1

Volatile Beings...***...

...Been to Bed with a yoga master...!!...

My Trip Back Home -1

She Picked...It Pricked

Examinations - Do they really matter??

Chooo Chweet...;-)

I the Pity of English..!!!

Aerobics and Bush

My Friends : A Drive Within

I am Back

LOVE ~~!!--!!~~

The Extremes--~~!!

The Ultimate Destination!!!

Wat d Hell!!!

Wah Rey Wah!!!!

Thats Life & Thats how the World is...

LOVE !!--!!