random

After I went out and bought the carton of Ginger Chai tea bags (yes, my friends, there’s one for each one of you. I promise!), I made a cuppa and allowed my mind to wander around – wanting my first post on this site to be really, really impactful. And naturally, as with such thought-processes, the mind remained pleasantly blank, while the tummy became pleasantly warm and full, with tea.

It was then that I remembered Lakshmi Rajan’s very nice reply to my email, telling me I could “explore my writing skills on subjects of my interest” and what could be more interesting than Life? So here I am – to muse on the week gone past – thinking back, its been quite a fun-filled week. Although, at the time each ‘funny’ event happened, it was not-so-funny and I found myself feeling quite murderous more than once. Ok, twice. Alright – several times!

It all began with Pongalo Pongal, which is a significant festival for us. Apart from the chakra pongal, venn pongal, vadai payasam stuff – and the quick puja because preparing everything took a lot of time and we could hear the collective rumble of the family stomach – there’s also this: giving tamboolam. Tray of betel leaves, real betelnut or a sachet of betel nut, kumkum, turmeric, a blouse piece, a dakshina (cash), fruit, flowers, a coconut and some yummy stuff – on this occasion, the handy chakra pongal.

I was feeling really proud of myself (you know what they say about the Pride-Fall sequence…) – everything went so well that morning. My pooja room looked cool – and I thought, secretly, of course, hey – am better than my mom at all this.

The next thing I knew – all my tamboolam sets had a pack of chili flakes from Domino’s Pizza instead of betel nut sachets. I swear they look so similar –and since I wasn’t wearing my glasses at the time, I goofed up. So you’re wondering – why didn’t I change them to the betel nuts? Because, my friends, I only noticed after the last one had been given – and there was one set dedicated to the Goddess before distribution.

Lesson Learned? Yes. NEVER use sachets. Only real betel nuts. And when visually challenged, please wear glasses. Plus, don’t even breathe a word about it to the family. They never let you hear the end of it – laughter unlimited guaranteed. For them, that is. Worse still, they’ll tell everyone willing to hear.

Ok. Life goes on, you know. Next episode later.

Editor’s note: Vidya Sury is a freelance writer from Bangalore. On behalf of all authors of GingerChai and readers, I Welcome Vidya Sury to GingerChai author panel. Let’s sip her various flavor of thoughts!

Ok , I want to write this topic for quiet long time , after reading the 25 random things written by blogger Shakti

So here it goes , finally ..

1. I am a Narcissist : I am proud , happy to say I am a bloody narcissist . I love myself . I love what I am . I strongly believe that One who don’t love oneself cannot love another one effectively.
2. I am a die – hard romantic : To put more effectively , I am one lazy die hard romantic. No wonder , I found my better half in a dream come true unlikely  scenario !
3. I am a big time Optimist : I strongly believe by the Bhagavat Gita’s quote  “ Whatever happened, happened for the good; whatever is happening, is happening for the good; whatever will happen, will also happen for the good only ”
4. I am a Dreamer : I dream  and I ‘m ‘njoying it ! Dreams drive our passion , dreams drive our vision. I used to dream while sipping chai, taking bath , when the nature calls , while riding . Though now , my dream session is restricted while driving for various reasons.
5. I am an Absent minded professor : Err .. should say rather Absent Minded Blogger. I have a bad memory that has given rise to many funny , awkward situation for me. If I remember them , will try to post a topic on it some day .
6. I am one big time lazy bum : Should i say more on this ? Nah feel lazy .
7. I am a Young Angry Man : Young ? mmm I think I can  still qualify for the word. Nevertheless , even if I turn 100 , I would be still young at heart ! I get angry but my anger is short lived. Bit short tempered , hmmm yes .
8. I Forgive and forget : The brighter side of me that could offset any negativity of my anger is that , I cool down pretty fast and forget the event and forgive those who made me angry in double quick time. Also , I have no qualms to apologize , if I find myself at the wrong side. Pretty nice quality , isn’t it ? Many a times , I would have forgotten the incident that would have made me angry with someone and when I meet them next time after quiet sometime , would be wondering what would have made me angry with them . While the other would be bit uncomfortable talking , I would have forgotten and in a goody goody mood with them !
9. I am an emotional type : Unpredictably emotional , that would sum it up better. I get emotional at times for simple things . I get emotionally hurt easily for smaller issues with the loved ones and I can amaze you at the same time being emotionally detached with seemingly more emotional issues.
10. I am less egoistic : Ego is a burden that makes one less flexible in thoughts and action , luckily I have less ego ruling my heart and head.
11. Heart over head : More often , I tend to take decision based on  intuition and what my heart dictates.
12. I Cry : Whoever said “boys don’t cry” probably lied. Men do cry but most deny. Men cry silently , but I don’t hide my emotions. If I feel to cry , I let my tears happily out ! Did I say happily ? sounds weird but I think that is exactly what it is , freedom for tears ha.
13. I get mood swings : I get mood swings and when I do get I go into a recluse and my wife can vouch for it ! but I recover very quick from it !
14. I got a colorful personality : I love colors . I love to dress up in bright colors. I love colorful walls , colorful articles etc etc  Bright colors enliven me and gives me energy !  I dream to own a customized  colorful , floral design painted  car one day !
15. I live in curio-city : Am one Curious boy err ok man ! I am curious to know about lot many things. What are those ? They can be anything and everything .
16. I love silence : I feel “silence” is a beautiful experience and two people in love can bond a lot through silence .  Just being together with silence around and within can bring a “wonderful” feeling “being together”
17. I love solitude : At times I love to be alone. Being alone kind of rejuvenates my mind and thought process. I don’t know about others but I feel I can effectively shut my mind and keep it blank .
18. I dislike secrecy : I hate being kept out of loop in any scheme of things or any events by those who I love. I would like to be informed of whatever happens , even if it might anger me . Eventually , my angers are short lived but If I found out later or come across later about any secrecy , I would be just enfant terrible.
19. History fascinates me : I love history. I love to read about , evolution of mankind , past civilizations . I wish there is a time machine to take me through various ages of the human civilizations.
20. Hinduism moulds me : Vedas and Bhagavad Gita inspires me. Sri Krishna , remains my eternal spiritual Super star for me . I consider Him -  A Friend , A Guide , A Philosopher , A Punching Bag , A Pillow , Myself.
21. Illayaraja , soothes me : The Maestro of melody of Tamil film music is my favorite music director. His 70’s and 80’s music are timeless classics that makes wonders to my mood !
22. I love nature :  I love trees , I love beeches , I love mountains , I love flowers , I love grasses , I love rain , I love sky , I love stars , I love sand , I love the smell of soil , I love Mother Nature.
23. I love cooking : Cooking is a wonderful art to practice ! Thanks to my bachelor days , I had spend quiet a good amount of hours in kitchen. Though , I won’t rate myself as an excellent cook , I love cooking and exploring new recipes . And , ya ! My wife has rated me the world’s best Tea maker !
24. I love to love : I Love . I Love to be Loved . I Love to Love. I Love the Love that matures in time in spite of differences and issues. True Love is like wine that tastes better as it gets old ! It needs
    to be tasted than imagined !
25. I am not perfect : Nobody is perfect and am not either. I have many imperfections but am always ready to correct it , if my imperfections have potential to harm others . If it does not harm others, am bit lazy to correct myself. Still , I am trying….

Well , Many months back when I wanted to write this post , I thought It would be  tough to write about oneself but once I started , I found there are lots to write about myself , After all , If one could not observe from oneself , what could we write about others ? So there are more to write about myself but then … The header is 25 Random things … so I stop here…

If you read this , Do try to write “ 25 Random things about you ” .. it makes a good experience that you would relish ! Do let me know about it too .. incase you decide to share it with world !

I was having a conversation with my aunt 3 weeks back when I visited my native. She is spritual. She has followed various path of hindu philosophies and finally she found her way in the teachings of  Vethathiri  Maharishi and Jaggi Vasudev , the founder of Isha foundation 

So I asked her about God and We . This is the essence of the conversation we had.

God is the Universal energy.

Universe is not vaccum . There is an universal energyy and that energy lives in each and every tiny spec of the universe. God is nothing but this universal energy. The same energy is within each and every living being also but the energy is undermined , unutilised , forgotten , unrealized cause of our previous karmas. The karmic force influences our actions and reactions. Having said that , we the human souls , do have the energy to battle out and overcome the karmic force provided we have that will to do so.

Positive energy.

Her view of life is to embrace every events in life with postive energy. Be good to others , think good , live good. Inspite of that if things turn wrong , take it in right spirit and without being bogged down by the negativities of the events try to overcome it with positive thoughts. Her main underlined advice was to “Take things positively and deal things positively”

Everyone is born the same.

Another point she made and most important one is not to hate anyone. No one is born as a bad human. There is no bad or good person when he or she is born. The cirumstances,  the society plays an important role in choosing what he or she becomes. So in one way we in general are partly responsible for what a person becomes. So don’t hate anyone . Try to understand him and try to bring a good change in him.

Detachment.

Another aspect of her thought was – Detachment. She says its better to view the world in a detached point of view. Never allow the various hues of emotions of the world affect your own positive conscience. This reminded me the principles of Jeevatma and Paramatma which I learnt in Bhagavad Gita. ( will write an extensive topic on it later )

She has no kids. She said earlier she used to feel very sorry and demoralised thinking about it . But now she finds that even that is a blessing in disguise as she has more time and liberty to seek her spritual quest. Life will be simpler and easier if we take things in right spirit and embracing it with positive thoughts.

It was a brief conversation but enriched one.

As Obama becomes the 44th President of US there is so much of excitement , anticipation in air but the road is not going to be definitely smoother for the man who wants to involve "You" in the decission making.

I just stumbled upon this youtube video link of Kat Edmonson : Be the change that sums up what the common Americans  look forward to their new president. Watch the video along with the song .

Will he live up to the expectation ? Time will say . It’s definitely not going to be easy as Bush Jr has left a huge baggage of cleaning to be done both within US and outside its boundaries.

[YouTube=http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=nrv3hteHglI]

P.S > For those wondering who is Kat Edmonson , Read about her here

Couple of days  back , Bangalore witnessed the launch of India’s first ever air conditioned bus shelter.

This unique bus shelter located at Hudson Circle, has been sponsored by Bharti Airtel Limited,  in association with BIG Street, a subsidiary of Reliance BIG Entertainment Limited (RBEL).

The Airtel air conditioned bus shelter is situated on the pavement diagonally opposite to Sree Kanteerava Indoor Stadium and is adjacent to the pavement near Cubbon Park entrance (Kasturba road). With dimensions of approximately 25×8 feet, it can accommodate 20 people at a time and will be manned by a uniformed guard.

During the inaugration there where speeches like how this unique venture further boost the city image globally. Good.

My question is ” Do Bangalore really need an A/c bus shelter ? “ 

My answer : A Big NO.

• Karnataka  is already reeling under severe power crunch, the sillicon valley of India , Bangalore is starving for power and here we have a brilliant concept of ‘power hungry’ bus shelter  in this scenario.
• If someone thinks that fancy ideas like this will help making the once quiet city and now an IT power house , Bangalore into a Hi Fi city on the lines of Singapore and Shanghai , Sorry it doesn’t help in any way. What we need desperately is the basic infrastructure which has fallen apart and in complete shatters.
• Leave  alone A/C bus shelters in many place we have ill planned normal bus shelters and some place no bus shelters at all. Let the authorities fix up the basic shelter first before venturing into such misadventures.
• Instead of fancying around with such concepts it will do much good if they concentrate on providing proper and well planned bus routes for better commuting.
• Bangalore is no Chennai , Hyderabad , Delhi , Mumbai or most other cities of India  when it come to weather. Luckily Bangalore inspite of massive killing of green cover in the name of development and global warming , still have a pleasant weather through out the year. A/c bus shelters if at all needed would have been better in cities like Chennai or Hyderabad.
• Ok we have a bus shelter inspite of all this but then this  can shelter 20 people at a time. I am yet to see a bus stop  in bangalore where the waiting passengers are less than 20 !
• The irony is the The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) , the development authority of Bangalore , prides itself and comes up with such concepts when we have roads resembling moon craters  , footpath which is a nightmare to walk in daylight and in nutshell a chaotic situation on road.

Now  tell me , Do we really need A/C bus shelter ?

What we need is a basic infrastructure . When am starving ,  all that am bothered is a basic meal and not a designer serving plate.

Mountain Story

“A son and his father were walking on the mountains.
Suddenly, his son falls, hurts himself and screams: “AAAhhhhhhhhhhh!!!”
To his surprise, he hears the voice repeating, somewhere in the mountain: “AAAhhhhhhhhhhh!!!”
Curious, he yells: “Who are you?”
He receives the answer: “Who are you?”
And then he screams to the mountain: “I admire you!”
The voice answers: “I admire you!”
Angered at the response, he screams: “Coward!”
He receives the answer: “Coward!”
He looks to his father and asks: “What’s going on?”
The father smiles and says: “My son, pay attention.”
Again the man screams: “You are a champion!”
The voice answers: “You are a champion!”
The boy is surprised, but does not understand.
Then the father explains: “People call this ECHO, but really this is LIFE.
It gives you back everything you say or do.
Our life is simply a reflection of our actions.

 
If you want more love in the world, create more love in your heart.
If you want more competence in your team, improve your competence.
This relationship applies to everything, in all aspects of life;
Life will give you back everything you have given to it.”

YOUR LIFE IS NOT A COINCIDENCE. IT’S A REFLECTION OF YOU!”

Men in white and khaki who man the notorious traffic of India. At times I wonder how they manage to keep their white shirts clean with all the pollution around them ! They should be made brand ambassadors of any premium detergent !! This blog is not about the white part of the traffic cops but the grey shade that prevails !

My first brush with the men in white came in the first year of my bangalore arrival ! Till then in my native , i had hardly come across traffic cops. Infact it was only recently few years back we have signals and traffic cops visible in our native town !! signs of progress !!!

Well back to bangalore episode,  during my fad end of my first year of bangalore , I had brought my new bike – a KB 125 – I took a left turn. The signal was very much green during the turn. Round the corner , i was stopped by a traffic cop who jumped to the middle of the road ! I took side.

” Show me the driving licence”

I flashed it from my purse.

” Bike papers ? “

I pulled it out from my back pocket.

He looked at me. I wonder what he read from my face.

” Insurance ? “

I patiently showed it too. He again looked at me . Looked at the signal.

“Give me 100 rs ” He asked with ease.

” err …. for what ? ” I asked in english , bad that I didn’t knew even broken kannada that time.

” Jumping signal !!! ” There is always a reason to frame charges , isn’t it ?

” but .. it was green when i took turn ! “

” No .. it was red . I looked back ” It was red when i turned now , but i was sure it was green then .

” no … it was green “

” 100 rs kodi (give) .. “

Well …. I understood he won’t leave me till i give something.

My first tryst with bribing !!! Did someone say giving bribe is offence ? well …. am a culprit then.

” I don’t have 100 rs … am student sir ” Trying to get sympathy.

He looked at me again. Mind reading !!

” 50 rs kodi “

” sir .. please … “

Finally we settled for 25 Rs !! Immediately i vroomed from the spot.

My second (mis)adventure wtih the men in white came a year later.

My friend and me had gone to MG Road for shopping. We had parked our vehicle in the parking lot. After we finished our shopping , we found the bike missing !!! Frantically we searched the stretch ! My eyes went across the wide road and i was shocked to see my bike being pulled into the tow vehicle !!! We ran across the raod. The tow guy gave us a look , nonchalantly said come and pick it from the station. We went to the cop and pleaded for the vehicle. He said no way pay the fine in court and pick it . We played the student sympathy card again !!! Finally we paid 50 rs and got away ! I was sure we had parked in the right slot but our bad luck it was on the border of the parking and non parking area !!! Anyways we have to bid goodbye to 50 Rs !

My next adventure was a some two years later . I took a turn and found 4 cops ! Two on the side of the road including the inspector. Two on the middle of the road. The guy in the middle of the road stopped me , I slowed down and took side. I don’t know what devil was inside my mind then. I did an unexpected thing. I slowed down . I steered slowly to the side. The cop loosened himself seeing me slowing down. The devil in me made me suddenly raise the acceleration and I made a ” S ” and fled ! I admit it sent a pseudo hero feeling in me but if i had been caught my cop that moment when i fled , I wonder how the situation would have taken a turn !!! Breaking the law ! Bad boy !

Somewhere later again i had to pay some 50 rs , this time my emission certificate had expired.

The last time was some few months back. I had all the papers intact. I saw the cop in the road ahead. I could have taken a turn but I was thought to go ahead , I have the papers and am not in a hurry so why to fear even if they stopped. The cop stopped me. He asked for the papers. I calmly parked the bike and moved my hand towards my back pocket to my purse. I Freezed . I had forgotten my purse and papers at home !!! Argh ! I looked at the cop with a idiotic look. He pulled my bike key.

” Pay the fine”

” Sir , i forgot my purse and papers , how can i pay ? “

” Talk to the inspector”

I went towards the inspector. I told him my sheer bad luck.

” I will write chalan , pay in court “

” But sir .. “

I know how to tackle the situation. I went back to the junior  cop.

” Sir , i stay near by only … i forgot the purse and papers .. please understand”

he asked me where i stay . I told him . Infact my home was only 2 kms away from the spot. He looked at me again . Somehow he seems to be convinced.

” Ok , do one thing leave the helmet here and go get the papers”

Cool. Men in white with white heart !

I thanked him and took the key and left the helmet with him. When i was about to start the bike ..

” Wait .. what if in the next signal a cop stops you for no helmet ?!! “

Sensible guy indeed ! I thought , he may leave me .

” Do one thing , leave that bag you are carrying and take the helmet “

Well ….. he is double sensible !

I left the bag i was carrying with him. Sped to my home. Took the papers and purse and came back. He glanced through the papers and gave it back and the bag too. While i started the bike , he slowly asked me , give me something atleast for chai with a smile. I smiled back. I gave him 25 Rs and exited.

My (mis)adventures ends here as of now. One thing i learnt from experience , when caught my traffic cops don’t talk directly to the senior inspector over there. Always deal with the junior cops , if you want to get away without chalans. If you argue with the senior , he will not entertain in public any out of way dealing. It has to go only through the proper channel , in this case the junior cops. Secondly , be friendly with them. Don’t raise your voice . I have found many many do this basic mistakes and end with heft fines and running around station and court. Well , if you are law abiding citizen , do pay the proper fine .

Well , i have my papers intact now . I take care to part my bike in the proper parking lot without even a slightest chance for getting into no parking line. Since am grown up now , i don’t allow for getting fooled like my first experience !!! So am trying to be a proper driver in the road !

P.S > Well am not generalising all the traffic cops to have grey shades. There are good cops , bad cops like good people and bad people elsewhere. My salute to the good cops who take pains ( and pollutants along with ) to serve their best to control the bad traffic situation of our roads.

If there is one invention i desperately wish  would happen soon , it would be Mind recorder and Player . Lets call it in short MRP.

No dont get me wrong , I am not eager to tap other people’s mind . I want a device to record my own mind. Yes , One’s own mind ! All the varied thoughts of importance that flashes in my mind screen and some of which gets translated into blog happens when am riding. Even the idea of this topic came in one such driving occassion. Naturally , i cannot stop my vehicle inbetween the traffic or every second minute on the sides to jot down my mind thoughts nor am i blessed with a great memory to store it and retrieve it later. These days most of my “ gem “ of lines and ideas blooms when am riding. Earlier some years back , I used to get the thought flow in bathrooms ! But now bathroom has ceased to be my creative spot. Its the driving that gives me a creative high ! I know as much as one should not mix drink and drive , one should not mix too much of thoughts and drive. I cannot help it though. Even if i don’t intentionally think anything , my mind analyses random subjects and comes up with my own  take on it while driving ! How I wish those driving times that i have a recorder to record all that goes through my mind ! *sighs*

Scientifically speaking , i think it should be possible to convert our thought process into 0,1 and into bits and bytes and store it in gigabytes and terabytes. After all as science says our thoughts process is carried by neurons in a kind of electrical pulses. So obviously that means there is a method waiting to be invented to convert it into data and record it in a readable format !So it should be very much possible in near future atleast to have a MRP . I wish it happens in my life time !

Well , thinking about it there will be severe side effects and worries along with the invention. All good inventions are tend to be misused . So after the invention of this great device , we may have to tackle a host of problems . Foremost , hacking of our mind recorder !!!! Imagine , someone hacks our recorder and steals the whole data !!! The one final frontier of our own posession shall be gone for ever ! Privacy completely screwed up. Like the current computer hackers , there will be whole set of people hacking minds for fun , for serious crimes. OMG !!! imagining more into it shows a very scary , sorry , chaotic picture ! Our personal life , professional life etc etc all may go topsy turvy !!! Along with it will come a host of new age Anti-virus companies providing security solutions for our mind !!! What if some nerd implants a deadly virus and controls our mind ??!!!!

Argh …. I don’t want a mind recorder in my life time atleast !!!! I think at times , its better to carry forward our life with little drawbacks with a peace of mind rather than complicating it with advanced technologies and loosing our mind !!!

The president – elect of USA , Barrack Obama along with his family is scouting for a pet dog to walk with them into the white house in January. In victory day speech , Obama had promised his daughters that they would get a puppy ! So atleast this one would be a promise definitely fulfilled. Its a tradition of US presidential household to have a first pet in white house !

So Americans are debating , discussing , arguing , wondering which breed type would be best for Obama family ! In true American way , there will be talk shows , debate shows , polls etc on the First pet !

Coming back to India am wondering about the idea of having First pet of India ! Considering everything is getting westernised these days , are we not ready for First pet in our Rashtrapati bhavan ? We better be. India being unique inspite of the rapid westernization throws up a complete set of new problems when we talk about First Pet.

As usual the problem would start with the breed. Unlike Americans who have just to pick the First pet among the many breeds available , we have many interesting but our own unique complications.

• To begin with , Should the First Pet be a purely Indian native breed or can foreign pedigree allowed ? Obviously some section of people would vouch for Indian breeds like Rajapalayam , Caravan hound , Combai , Rampur hound , Kanni , Mudhol hound etc while other section of people will say breeds like Alsatian , Dobberman , Great dane , Daschund , Beagle , Pug etc should be allowed !
• Ok even if settle with Indian native breeds . There will be problem in plenty of south indian breeds or north indian breeds ! So is it going to be Rajapalayam or Rampur hound ?
• To complicate more we have Bhaiya Rampur hound , Madrasi Rajapalayam , Marathwada Mudhol hound !!! So choose any one and be prepared for brickbats !!!
• Ok finally we settle somehow on one breed to make it to First pet but then we will have some NGO’s protesting against the concept of First Pet and crusading for animal rights ! We will see some celebrity writers , actors also jumping into the fray to protest and hog limelight !!!
• Be prepared for some section demanding that street dogs should be adopted and not the high pedigree ones bought from kennel clubs !!!

Uffffs !!! So much of complication !!! Along with all this there will be security problems !!!

Damn it ! We don’t want First Pet of India !!! Sorry Americans , this is one thing we won’t borrow from you . We have so many other doggy issues to handle.

I feel like a fish in a dried up pond of love            

I feel my soul gone pale and colourless

I feel myself shrunk to the smallest size

I find my shadow larger than my life

I feel to be hugged but none to hug

My emotions fail me

My senses fail me

My body feels woody

My mind heady

I want to cry but too weak to cry

I stare at world but the world seem to look elsewhere

When I feel lonely ….

Am stranger to me …

————————————————————————-

Two days back when my wife and me had a small tiff  I had keyed this lines in my mobile sms box and stored in draft mode !!! I showed the lines to my wife now , the smile in her face told me ” you are not alone …. ” I am not lonely for sure !!!