Candy floss...

I was sitting late in the night again in front of my system, which had become the major part of my life now. My life had become extremely monotonous and uneventful. But the day I met ‘Cheeku’ my life had changed dramatically. Cheeku was this spark in my life which had a motive planned by God. But now Cheeku was not there but having him living with me for 2 weeks had rejuvenated my soul completely.

It all happened one day when I was going to my office yet again on a weekend. I was traveling in a local ST bus which was more rickety that a cot with 3 legs. After much grumbling and making faces, I finally managed to sit on the conductor’s seat, which he reluctantly gave after my continuous miserable looks. I was almost reaching my destination when I heard someone brawling and shouting. I strained to look back and saw a young boy and a man looking as if they were 2 scared mice trying to get free from a trap… and few men yelling at them. I did not understand the scene in the beginning. Slowly, I heard the other man (one of the mice) saying in broken English, “I take ticket baba. Purse and phone someone take away from me… my ‘babai’ phone. Please check na”. Then it struck me that he had been pick pocketed and probably dint understand Hindi or Marathi. From my place I could hardly see their faces. At least double the people were standing in the bus than the available seats. The man was crying and holding on to the child closely and balancing 2 –3 cartons together with his leg. Clearly he had taken tickets till the last stop, but some thug had robbed him and got down in the previous stop (as is usual in Mumbai). The guy he was talking to or rather pleading to check people around was trying to explain that the pickpocket has probably got down in the previous stop. But when the man was reluctant to get down, some 7 to 8 guys asked the conductor to stop the bus and literally threw him and the cartons out. The child and the man started screaming and the child almost got trampled under the big monsters around him. The people around were so rude and ruthless that they dint even allow the child to get down. He was now hiccupping. All this I was witnessing as a silent audience shamelessly having no other option, as it is quite common in Mumbai.

When the kid was crying endlessly, people started cursing him without even a remote clue of any guilt. Then suddenly he became breathless and that was the time when something literally slapped me hard on my face and made me rush to him. I carried him and stopped the bus. I did not bother for anyone as I dint consider them worth bothering. Almost near my workplace, I knew a big hospital nearby. I quickly summoned a rickshaw and hurried to the hospital. There I rushed the kid to the emergency and after around a half hour of struggle, I was called in by the doctor and briefed about the situation. The child was under tremendous shock and was facing trouble in breathing maybe because of some previous medical history. I went inside the room and saw him sleeping peacefully. The tiny stature, the fragile built of the kid melted my heart and I felt wetness near my eyes. I dint even realize that my eyes were continuously pouring. I went near him, kneeled down and touched his tiny hands. I looked at his innocent face and was scared that he might wake up at the slightest sound and will know about his current location and start missing his father (assuming that the man was his father). I sat there for another 1 hour 40 minutes when he opened his eyelids…He looked at me peacefully and asked me ‘meeru yavaru’(who are you) in a total charming voice. I knew Telugu. So I understood but kept quite. He mumbled ‘maamaiya’… I understood that as ‘Uncle’ in Telugu. I asked him his name and he whispered in a low voice… ‘Cheeku’. I melted completely. I told him not to fear and took him to the nearest McDonald’s. He had mixed feelings of excitement as well as fear, naughtiness as well as timidity, speed as well as hesitation in his walk. I told him everything that happened in my broken Telugu and was surprised to see his confidence in his talk at such a young age. He must have been hardly 4 or 5 but talked like a grown up. After a hearty meal, I asked him if he would come with me to my house. He hesitated and after a long silence, he nodded and said ‘only if you promise me to search my uncle”. I approved and took him happily to my house where I lived with two more ladies of my age. They were surprised about the incident and agreed of my action. One of my flat mates lent her shirt to him, which was almost till his knee. He looked like a huge teddy bear. We ate and played with him till 11 in the night. After he slept, we 3 discussed our POA (Plan of Action) for finding out his uncle.

The next day we gave a notice in the local newspaper and informed the police. Then after a load of questions, we came to know that Cheeku had come here with his maternal uncle to meet his parents after a year. He had been with his grandmother since last year as his father was struggling for a job and did not want it to affect the child. Now after a year he was going to meet his father. One year back he had been with his parents. He couldn’t recollect much but just said few things that he remembered. He talked of some big bridge with lots of dirty water below, of a big police station near his house with lot of police vans and many things which we dint quite take seriously as we did not really believe a child’s memory.

Thankfully my flat mate was on a night shift, which facilitated us in taking care of him by turns. Then after a futile effort of 2 weeks, one weekend we went to a nearby lake and were playing and screaming our hearts out after so many years… After college one rarely gets to go back to the playful mode. Thanks to Cheeku, we were having blast of a time. But after some time, I got tired and bought some candyfloss for everyone and we all sat down on the bench. Then Cheeku gradually started talking about his mother. He told that they used to go to such lakes every Sunday and his father would make him play on all the rides. His mother would similarly get tired soon and then buy candyfloss and they all used to return home late in the night. Soon he also said that near his house there were lots of lakes.

Late that night after everyone slept, I was still not able to sleep. I was quite disturbed and not getting sleep. Something was bothering me and I did not quite realize what it was. I went to the kitchen groping in the dark and drank some water. Came back and tried sleeping. No success. Then suddenly something struck me and I got up with a jump and switched on the light. Took out my diary and wrote few points and then feeling happy with myself, and slept in few minutes.

When I woke up I was clear about my plan for the day. Cheeku was jumping and playing all around with a balloon that we had bought the previous day. I discussed my plan to my 2 flat mates and they were very surprised at how it struck me and not them. One of them Neha was convinced that my intuition was almost correct. We asked Cheeku about some description of his parents. He said the usual things. After lots of futile attempts to make him remember Neha suddenly jumped and ran into the room and came back with a piece of rag. When she brought it close, I realized it was a small, not so old photo with a man, woman and a baby. She said she got it the locket that he was wearing. She had removed it to put a new thread for it. Neha left the house at around 10. Back home I packed up Cheeku’s things and got him ready. I cooked and we had a heavy brunch. Then we went to a nearby mall and did some shopping. We came back at around 4:30 p.m. and soon I slept. I was in no mood to play anything with him. So gave a coloring book to him which he happily started coloring. In around an hour my other flat mate also came. We were having tea when Neha came back at around 6 in a cab. We watched from the balcony. She seemed to have somebody with her. We were looking at each other surprised and confused because she dint have any relatives and we never brought home any ‘friends’. Her co passengers got down and were coming towards the gate when suddenly Cheeku started shouting and screaming with joy and ran towards the main door. He ran out of the house despite our futile attempts to stop him lest he fell and broke his beautiful little nose. But he did not stop and ran down the stairs from the 3rd floor till the ground floor and almost ran into the man. The man was shocked for a second on the sudden bump. But when he saw Cheeku’s face, he was overwhelmed with joy and hugged him tightly. We two although were getting what was happening still went down and brought them to our flat and after they sat, I recognized one of them as the same person in the bus who was with Cheeku.

They were 2 men and a lady apparently who were Cheeku’s parents and Uncle. Neha explained that my guess that Cheeku’s house was somewhere in Thane area was correct and she had shown the photo to a constable in the Thane police station. The constable smiled and took her to a lane nearby where in a flat Neha found the lady in the picture. Cheeku’s clues that there were many lakes nearby his house, a police station and other small description had given me that intuition. We talked for some while and Cheeku gave his mother the saree and shirt to his father, which we had purchased in the morning. Then they explained that Cheeku’s uncle had somehow come walking till their house after been thrown out of the bus and they were very worried about Cheeku’s safety. Cheeku waved to us as the cab started and promised to come back soon to meet us.
Today I was just pondering, sitting in my seat in the office on a Sunday after 1 complete week of Cheeku’s departure. It was 6 and I walked down the building of my office and past the gate when suddenly heard some shrill voice. I turned back to find Cheeku there waving and running towards me. I was surprised and did not respond for about a minute thinking it was just a dream. When suddenly he pulled my handbag and as I bent down, gave me a hug. I was all smiles and found that his parents had brought him along. He told me that now he will come every Sunday to meet her. I remembered something and crossed the road and called the candy floss hawker and bought for each one of us.

Gopal

The long wait ended when Purva saw her son come running towards her. He looked like none other than the little naughty Krishna about whom she had read numerous stories in her childhood and had prayed to God every day (even in that innocent infancy) that she should get a son like Him. She used to go into a trance for hours and enter a world where she conversed with the God himself. She was a normal young girl who was a successful professional in her career. Her parents got her married and after 5 yeas she had a dark, handsome baby. She had named him ‘Gopal’ seeing his complexion and she assumed to be the most happiest mother on the earth. All her prayers were fulfilled and today after 6 years of his birth, she was waiting for her little kid who was coming out of the hospital.

He was one highly impressive kid. He loved playing cricket and spent all his free time in examining the bat his father had bought him when he came back from an official tour. She had left her job for him as they had got this child after 5 years of marriage and after lot of complications. So she did not dare to take any risk. Although her in laws were also staying with them since after the child was born, still Purva thought it was the most important period of her life with her child and happily chose to be with him. She even did not find it appropriate to let her old in-laws do any work. Still she did all the justice to her decision. She woke her son up at early hours of sunrise and taught him lots of little shlokas and how to worship the Sun God (as He was the only God who was visible to any living or non living being) with Surya Namashkar. He obediently followed her and welcomed this part of the day with a pleasant smile. Then Gopal would do skipping (his favourite exercise) till Purva begged him to stop lest he got tired. Then after her husband went for work, she played with him for hours keeping him active and cooked and read stories to him. He knew all the songs taught by her mother by heart and was quite bright in grasping things taught at his school.

But in teh past one year her life had taken an abrupt 90-degree turn. Since the day she came to know about her son’s illness she had doubled her praying hours and went into trance again after so many years frequently. She had not known about it till many weeks until one day, late in the evening Gopal was weeping non-stop unlike his usual self. Being a 5 year old, he was a boy who rarely resorted to crying as a solution. So she was more worried and being a kid he couldn’t express his thoughts and was repeatedly pointing to his legs. She put some oil and massaged. She was such a lively mother that he started laughing uncontrollably within minutes listening to her stories of ‘Lord Krishna and the demons’ which he had been listening since years now and with whom he had started relating to by now. Then she fed him and made him sleep. This happened on number of occasions and she had started worrying a bit as little Gopal started limping one day. When asked he said he was enacting ‘Shakuni mama’ of Ramayana and both of them laughed heartily on his joke and presence of mind. The same day suddenly Purva noticed a swelling in his leg, below the knee. That’s when she decided she would take him to Dr. Sen who was her father’s friend and their family doctor. She was not a kind who would expect and depend on her husband for all external work. She understood the emergence of situations and acted very smartly in such situations always.

Dr. Sen performed loads of scans, tests and biopsies and finally verbalized their fear as ‘Osteosarcoma’, which she couldn’t even pronounce properly. She was in a state of mixed feelings which majorly consisted of sadness, anxiousness, happiness, tragedy, vengeance (to God as to how her kid could be targeted like this) and felt like an uneducated mother who couldn’t even pronounce her child’s illness. With the fear of being declared as an idiot, the very same day she had found out on the Internet that Osteosarcoma was the sixth most common type of bone cancer in children. It apparently began in the bones and sometimes spreads elsewhere.

They had told her that survival rates of 60% to 80% are possible for the Cancer that hasn't spread beyond the tumor, depending on the success of Chemotherapy. She had felt all her education go in drains when she heard most of the words in the sentence, baffling. Her thoughts went back to the Biology classes when she used to keep making sketches on the last page of her notebook. Needlessly she was repenting all that now. She came to know that they were going to do limb-salvage surgery (thankfully not amputation which involved removing part of a limb along with the Osteosarcoma) in which only the Osteosarcoma would be removed, leaving a gap in the bone that would be filled by a bone graft, which is usually taken from the patient's own pelvis (hipbone).
Now he came running out into her arms and she bent down to collect him in her arms and kissed her endlessly. He was so happy to sit on her lap in the car. They reached home and she handed him the gift she had bought for him. He happily and anxiously tore it open and found a beautiful bat in it…

Vacation

After the long awaited waiting time, I finally boarded the early morning flight for Chennai. It was a familiar ritual though I was dubious about the security checking now a days. Although my parents gave me clear instructions for each second I would be facing, I was just thinking of numerous possibilities that could occur anytime. Nevertheless, the short uneventful journey ended leaving no special traces behind it.

On reaching the destination, there was a lot to look forward to. The humbling surprise of having the eldest members of the family receiving me, my two baby cousins running around, dragging, loitering the whole house, my cousin brother in the hospital who was recovering from an illness, recovering the lost moments of past many months as quick as possible, all in one day did not tire me. Infact my soul was already getting rejuvenated and was looking forward for more in my village ahead for which I was leaving on the second day.

On second day of my short vacation, we left to Madurai wherein we planned to stay over night and then proceed to our village called Sivaganga. In Madurai I was quite excited seeing my cousins (who are ironically my mother’s best friends too) and their daughters. Somehow I have never felt a difference between our ages. Everyone there seems to be of the same generation. I just wished my mother would have joined too.

Early morning I reached the same old village where I have my earliest and fondest memories still floating around in my mind. As soon as I reached I rushed to my favorite small room which cannot be exactly called a store room according to me (although that is what it is) since it is quite close to my heart. Although it might sound ridiculous to have a store room for a favorite place still I can still feel the warmth, safety, the affectionate bear hug and my grandmother’s pleasant scent in the old grandmother’s sarees, some old things and other important ‘petty’ things.

My aunt loaded my head with lot of oil and made me have an oil bath which I was’nt quite familiar of. I don’t quite know the rules of the ‘oil bath game’. I ended up learning lot of things though. Not that I was really dying to take it but still I dint really mind it too. Soon the immediate effect of the oil bath could be easily seen on me. I had a sumptuous meal and did not actually know when to stop eating. Everyone was kind enough to suggest me to go upstairs and ‘take some rest’. They of course knew the effects of the oil bath.

I took a book that I had borrowed from my cousin upstairs and started reading. It was about some young girl in the country side living a life completely on her own doing some sort of animal husbandry, farming, etc. I could visualize everything from the narration of the author. The narration was so pleasant about the country side where she grew lot of fresh vegetables, fruits, had four dogs, cats and had a simple house which was nice and cold even on the hottest summer noon. I almost entered a trance and felt myself in the country side myself. Suddenly a gang of some men forced their entry into the room and something happened and there was lot of violence. I shudder even at the thought of a violent movie. Suddenly they came up to me and shook me badly. My arms were aching badly. I felt a shooting pain on my head and thought someone had struck my head. I was too worried for the lady in the country as she was the one who lived there always.

Thankfully, my sister in law woke me up saying that she has brought something for me to drink as I might be having headache due to the oil bath. Phew, the relief I felt at that moment. I had gone so dead asleep for almost two hours and the book had worsened matters. Anyway now I was better and left that room freshened myself and went to bring my nephew from school. He is in class I. They are preparing for the annual day which was a week away. He was in some dance. He was proud that he danced 9 times. I was feeling sorry for the kid as in that hot sun, the poor kids had to do so many antics, forgetting my own days in school no better than a circus performer, always going for some dance practice. Infact, even 2 weeks back I was part of a dance in my office. Anyway we came back, and went out to buy things for the next day school function. We went around the whole village walking and walking for around 2 and a half hours and on return going to the most desired bakery shop on constant special request from my nephew. After his constant pestering even I thought he must like the items in that bakery. Instead what he bought made me mad. He bought a 3 rupees biscuit all for a free tattoo of a famous film star. Arghhhhh!! The entire extra mile for this????

Next day was the function in school. It was a yearly ritual in which the boys of class X handed over a candle or ‘Jyoti’ after taking an oath and passing over the school honor to the next batch. It went well. And now I am sitting in Madurai yet again talking to the blog. Tomorrow is the ‘Aradhana’ function which I won’t be attending due to some unavoidable reasons. Two more days to cover up for some roaming around, shopping and cinema and then back again to pavilion in TTC.

Soul mate???

Whom do you see the most in your life?

Who makes you smile, laugh, cry, sad? can also give you pain....

The first one you see when you reach your workplace. Without whom you are uncomfortable?

Of course its my monitor(with the CPU)... So its monday and again i start my relationship with my monitor... We all come to the workplace, dont speak to anyone much and give first priority to the monitor than your closest frnd in teh office.. As if we all are married to the monitor.. Staring at it at close quarters always and time and again... smiling at it, may be someone else is creatign that effect but its the monitor which brings that smile, tear, skip of a heart beat or any other feelign in you!! Am i right?

Maybe it is monday thats makign me give those senile words. Anyway, I feel a strange emotional relationship with the monitor itself.. The fact is we have all become so ignorant of the art of writing and reading to and from a book and have become so used and fond of the monitor(in actual layman lang... now dont argue that its the CPU / memory processor/ motherboard...etc ) that we read even books in 'it', write through 'it', lend our readings to people thru 'it' (forwarding) and even helping people in crisis at times.. Simply every damn thing is done by the computer... which has sortof paralysed our sense and capability of reading, writing most (importantly letters ), going out on windy cold evenings with your family and enjoyign the weather rather than tryign to flirt with some unknown object/human/ evil in the internet, improving yoru handwriting rather than making it so used to typing that you type faster than your thoughts and on paper your words look like earthworms and runnign to your friend in need rather than forwarding the mails to n number of people requestign for help. We are all becoming more of handicapped machines... more than humans. No im not the kind of person who will criticize any new thing happening to the evolution and not going to keep grumbling about it... I believe the fact that reading books and writing letters not only improves our vocab but also gives us a human touch .. You feel more towards the person or event when you write it.

Anyway given that we draw our salaries with the Computer's blessings, we cannot ignore it completely. But we do have a life to live, give answers to give to the nature, our family, our selves. And we should not just become like americans who have more and more cases of violent childhoods than authors and painters. Well without ignoring the technological revolution, we can be humans... and try to have a difference betweeen future robots and the clan of Human Beings...

By another day!!

Like every other day, we went to the canteen and I saw the same old people perfunctorily moving in and out of the canteen each of them trying to swipe the card thrice at least and banging the door to alert the security guard outside to open it…. Like every Thursday there was some Chinese food and the freshers (you know one by their loud voices and their jumping jack mode) as usual were chirping around trying to get a place to sit. Two ladies very cleverly kept a handkerchief and went to get the food. Five others came and took that place and carelessly tossed the handkerchief to another corner of the table …the ladies came back and sheepishly took their precious hanky away feeling awkward and the five people who sat there were suppressing their bursting urge to giggle. All I seem to do is look around at people and wonder what they’re thinking about. Try to figure out if that girl has come today, or if that guy with a long nose has grown his French beard, what the girl with black specs frame is wearing today and what about the guy with long hair…how long has his moustache grown (I know he's making a futile attempt to resemble Aamir)… its an awesome sight to see people trying to make nasty things to their selves..…I although don’t know the reason why it suits some people so marvelously…Like John Abraham….. and Aamir… I hope you understood by now how unexciting my day has been ….Anyway just pray I have a better day tomorrow else you get the same and a day will come when the blog will refuse to save my hollow, brainless blabberings.. Written on Thursday evening and since my other blog got crazy, couldn’t post it there…So posting it on Friday….

Transfering my stupid blabberings to this blog from another one....Im so bored that im doign everythign possible to avoid sleeping..

Sundays....

Sundays are generally mean and devouring …… By devouring I mean that I actually Devour any sort of thing that can be associated with food…. But in the later part of the day around after noon, the guilt of consuming such a lot, consumes me and then I repent ….. This happens week after week. Hey its actually fine…im not actually much bothered hee hee. Then why the hell am I writing all this crap??? Just because that’s one thing I can do for this guilt ;) oh the work out? Ya I can do that too. But I guess this is easier than that right? And ya I’ll definitely start cycling from Monday...that’s tomorrow :(
Today there was a program in Jaya TV, for the great music hurricane, Ilayaraja. He is a great artist…That is definitely an incomplete sentence…There are some people whose greatness is such that you cannot find apt words for describing their greatness unless of course you are a poet… Im not…I can only say he is a great music director. He has the knack of making his music sound fresh even today. With every movie one tends to think that it must be the best from him, but he yet again proves to deliver better music with every movie….

Weekends

The weekends are loosing their meaning. Last few weekends have been non existing for me...I sang in that competition in Fine Arts Society in Chembur, Mumbai, which was simply great. This was the first time I was in a competition in Mumbai. In Dehradun, going to any competition meant, I knew many faces and I was very confident as the award and position have never appealed so muhcto me in my life. I believe in the sheer pleasure of experiencing the art and I just go there and perform. But this was a completely different game. I experienced a pang of jealousy on seeing those people of my age having learnt so much of music (all of them have been learning since childhood) purely because they were fortunate enough to be in a city like Mumbai and I not being that fortunate, At the same time I was feeling a sense of pride for being a part of Tamil Mandram, and knowing Maharishi Kavi Yogi Shuddhananda Bharati and having the opportunity to know, feel, and enjoy his songs. The greatness of his works is taking form of couple of websites, yahoo groups etc. I need not list his greatness here. My family has another group for it.. Anyway the Fine Arts Society thing went well. I decided to take part next time with a better song and prepare properly.

Then I read Paulo Coelho's book "Veronica decides to die". dunno how thisman manages to write a climax like that. Although you might expect that ending to happen, but still when you read the last page of his book, it makes you crazy and crave for some more pages. Its a feeling that cannot be explained with anything tangible. You need to read his Alchemist and this one to feeel it...Although this one is no where near Alchemist, still its good. Alchemist was simply awesome. I makes you think about your dreams, however dumbfully routine oriented a person might be...

Then i got hold of his another book Manual of Warrior of Light and another author's book called "Five point someone". I chose to take his book with me to office to read on my way. But to my utter disappointment, it is a MANUAL !!! sort of verses only ! no story and no novel....So the day was wasted without any reading :(((( huh.

Anyway tomorrow I'll start Five point Someone...Fine Arts Song competition results will be out on Sunday...Lets see if i make it to the second round :) it wont be a surprise to me if i dont though.

Ambition

Couple of days back I was just sort of demotivated by the fact that I was not realy studyign hard for past some time...I was in the idea that i am becoming incompetent and the thought was driving me crazy....However, I got this long needed motivation which I plan to read now and then to keep my motivation level at a decent place....Just came across a site that was saying things to make you feel better.....

....Don't get used to your weaknesses. Instead, use your dissatisfaction as motivation to succeed. Now success doesn't necessarily mean fame and fortune. Rather, it means the achievement of YOUR personal goals. Better to be a poor poet and happy than a rich businessman and frustrated. Here are some more points to keep in mind regarding ambition and success.
1. Lock in on your dream as a missile locks in on a target. Remain focused on it. Always keep it in mind. Take Abe Lincoln, for instance. While still unknown, his friends would hear him frequently say, "Some day I shall be President." Despite the enormous obstacles he faced and numerous failures he experienced, he remained steadfast. When you can see, taste, feel, smell, and hear your dream in your mind, you will inevitably bring it to pass.
2. Mark Twain (1835 ~ 1910) offers sage advice, "Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great." In their vain attempt to be great, those who belittle you grow small, so ignore what they have to say.
3. Don't depend on others. Stand on your own two feet. Don't be like those who complain, "No one is showing me the way. No one is guiding me. No one is helping me." Life is not about waiting for answers, but about discovering them on your own. Your true nature is that of an adventurer, so live like one.
4. Good negotiators always ask for more than they wish to receive. This way they can negotiate 'down' to what they really want. Take a similar stance when you set your goals. That is, try to achieve far more than you hope for. So, if you fail to obtain it, you will at least achieve your original goal.
5. Acknowledge that sacrifices and effort are necessary to reach your goal, and be willing to do whatever it takes. Or, as Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda said, "When you go in search of honey you must expect to be stung by bees." True, the path to success is not without pain, but it is without suffering; it is not without effort, but it is with the joy of accomplishment. So, face your fears and don't be afraid of taking risks.
6. Have a dream, but don't be a daydreamer. Be a visionary, but don't dwell in fantasy. Don't ignore many possible small successes while dreaming of an impossible achievement. Stretch yourself, but not to the extent that your limbs fall off and are made useless.
7. If you're out of work and can't find a job you're qualified for, what do you do? Some people refuse to take low paying jobs and prefer to wait for 'better' opportunities. This type of thinking is not a sign of ambition but of a lack of understanding that opportunity is found everywhere. After all, success is not to be found in a job, but in you. It is an attitude. It is a willingness to make the best of what you have. A friend of mine is an example. He fled his war torn country with his wife and children. Arriving with just a few suitcases and enough money to survive for a short period of time, he took the only job he could find, a low paying one. Today, several years later, he is still earning far less than he would in his native country. Yet, he now lives in his own condo, has a new car and computer, and both children graduated the university and have good jobs. My friend is successful, not in the sense that he has a 'good' job, but in the sense that he is happy. Instinctively he had followed the simple philosophy of Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 ~ 1882) who wrote, "Without ambition one starts nothing. Without work one finishes nothing."

Why Lawyers should be cautious before askign questions.......

In a trial, a Southern small town prosecuting attorney called his first witness to the stand. The witness was a grand motherly, elderly woman. He approached her and asked, "Mrs. Jones, do you know me?"

She responded, "Why, yes I do know you, Mr. Williams. I've known you since you were a young boy, and frankly, you've been a big disappointment to me. You lie, you cheat on your wife, you manipulate people and talk about them behind their backs. You think you're a big shot when you haven't the brains to realize you never will amount to anything more than a two-bit paper pusher. Yes, I know you. "

The Lawyer was stunned.

Not knowing what else to do, he pointed across the room and asked, "Mrs. Jones, do you know the defense attorney?"

She again replied, "Why yes, I do. I've known Mr. Bradley since he was a youngster, too. He's lazy, bigoted and he has a drinking problem. He can't build a normal relationship with anyone and his law practice is one of the worst in the entire state. Not to mention he cheated on his wife with three different women, one of them was your wife. Yes, I know him."

The defense attorney almost died.

The judge asked both counselors to approach the bench, and in a very quiet voice, said, "If either of you bastards asks her, if she knows me, I'll throw you in jail for contempt."
Haha

Navratri

Navratri, 'The Festival of Nine Nights', is celebrated during the first nine days of the Hindu month of Ashvin (September-October) which coincides with the end of the rainy season. This season is considered to be an auspicious one as it is generally associated with the sowing of seeds, and watching new seeds sprout - a sign of prosperity and abundance. Most people consider it the best time of the year to undertake or start new ventures.

It commemorates the victory of Goddess Durga over a demon, 'Mahishasur', hence she is also called 'Mahishasuramardhini'(Goddess who slained Mahishasura) . Endowed with power, by the blessing of Lord Shiva the demon started destroying innocent people. The gods invoked Goddess Durga and asked for her help. The goddess, astride a lion fought with the demon and cut off his head.

It is an occasion for vibrant festivities throughout the country. During Navarathri, devotees of Durga fast and pray for health and prosperity. Different manifestations of Durga or shakti are worshipped every night. Devotees and young enthusiasts dance the Garba or Dandiya-Raas throughout the night, in keeping with the exuberant nature of this festival. The Navarathri festival celebrations at Ahmedabad and Baroda are famous throughout Gujarat. Here the evenings and nights are occasions for the fascinating Garba dance. The women dance around an earthen lamp while singing devotional songs accompanied by rhythmic clapping of the hands. In Punjab, Navarathri is a period of fasting.


In Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka dolls called Bommai kolu are placed and decorated. Goddesses Lakshmi, Durga and Saraswathi are worshipped for three days. Gifts of coconuts, clothes and sweets are exchanged. Scenes culled from various stories in the epics and puranas are displayed.
The internet has only brought more colors into these celebrations with e-greetings and now there are temples which conduct even e puja...
http://www.eprarthana.com/sify/navarathri/navarathri.asp

Nokia Facts

Huh...I got nothing to write? Hmm yeah...actually yes...Not much happenings...So am just filling the blogs with such things....
Nokia interestign facts....
(1). Imagine your mobile battery is very low, you are expecting animportant Call and you don't have a charger. Nokia instrument comes withreserve Battery.* To activate, key is *3370# your mobile will restart with this Reserve andyour instrument will show a 50% increase in battery. This Reserve will getcharged when you charge your cell next time.
(2). The Emergency Number worldwide for Mobile is 112.* If you find yourself out of coverage area of your mobile network andthere is an emergency, dial 112 and the mobile will search any existingnetwork to establish the emergency number for you.
Do share this important info with others too. Hope you'll never need to useit though! And interestingly, this number 112 can be dialed even while thekeypad is locked.

By the way I love the Nokia the most...Its just an awesome creation by man...

So this is Krishna my cousin....

The art of cooking????

Ya exactly...Hi people...dont get paranoid reading my crzy heading...Im in no mood of discussing about cooking...But of course..I have been cooking for some time now...imean since my parents have gone to my hometown, and my dear aunt has a broken leg...i am staying wth her and torturing her, her hubby and son with my aweful edible experiments...i say its edible as noone has yet started suffering from a stomach ache.

I had hardly any time this weeekend for any tv browsing or blogging. No nothing of that stuff i do generally....cooked and found it really interesting as I had everything and a maid at my disposal...Vegetables that i can make of my choice..menu that i can decide...Wow what a luxury...At home I can never decide anything without any discussion(f course which is always HOT) or an extended argument....

Ya, the maid....who had to do everything I told ...but hello>???? she doesnt know my language...She speaks some crazy pure Telugu that i and my cousin can make no head or tail of....oh god what a situation...She keeps calling me "ammagaru" or worse "chinna ammagaru"..Arghhhhh....That female....Even my cousin loathes her presence...She majorly just stands and looks at me expecting me to give her some order....Ohh...Actually she is here to help my aunt as my aunt is bedridden. instead she keeps moving around like a lousy cat around me.....Anyway enough of her...I think I should leave to cook the dinner....and haha...maid has gone now....so i can work without she coming between my steps....ok ppl c ya and tc...

LIFE AND DEATH

Destiny has finally won the race with mankind. Yesterday night the prayers of many people was heard by the almighty and he made a rational decision of giving peace instead of pain, freedom instead of bondage, shock instead of worries. Yes He did listen to our prayers. He did analyse the situation. After all He is The Creator, Sustainer, Destroyer and Almighty.
Of course, we have been taught that He knows what, to whom, how much, when, to give and to take away.. And don’t we know that the one thing that is certain in this lifetime is that eventually we all must die. Isn’t it also true that, we see and hear about millions of people dying everyday? Yes, we understand that after departing the soul either reaches the Almighty or takes rebirth. The final act in the drama called ‘Life’, has been brilliantly enacted. Death is a natural aspect of life, and there are numerous epic tales, sacred scriptures, and vedic guidance that describe the reason for death's existence, the rituals that should be performed surrounding it.
Now moving towards Hinduism. According to me Hinduism is the greatest religion not because I am a Hindu or not because majority of India consists of Hindus….Hinduism explains every aspect of life clearly and has scientific explanations for every law it has. According to Hinduism, the first mortal to meet his fate with Death was named Yama. This dubious honor makes him uniquely qualified to lead the way for others after death. The sacred scriptures of the Rig Veda, which call him King Yama, promise that all who have been good will receive "admission to Yama's paradise and the everlasting enjoyment of all the heavenly pleasures, include the restoration of a sick body, the maintaining of family relations and the highly desired apotheosis".

They say 'the soul departed' after life. That the soul is happy and relieved after departing from the worldly pleasures and 'maya' . The concept of soul gives an immense satisfaction to us that your loved one 'is there' somewhere.... The image in the begining of this article is like our life.....See it upside down and its 'Death'...So its a perception.... My grandfather expired last night peacefully and without pain.

"If Tomorrow Never Comes"

Good evening people,Im in a very low mood today. My grandfather is not well and I am not in a position to do anything for him except of course pray…I am praying and wishing that he is saved by the Great almighty person up over there….So I dedicate this song to everyone out there who knows me….I just suddenly got scared that what would happen if there’s no tomorrow for me???? So please read this famous Ronan Keating's song that touches every soul who listens to it.....

"If Tomorrow Never Comes"

Sometimes late at night
I lie awake and watch her sleeping
She's lost in peaceful dreams
So I turn out the lights and lay there in the dark
And the thought crosses my mind
If I never wake up in the morning
Would she ever doubt the way I feel
About her in my heart

If tomorrow never comes
Will she know how much I loved her
Did I try in every way to show her every day
That she's my only one
And if my time on earth were through
And she must face this world without me
Is the love I gave her in the past
Gonna be enough to last
If tomorrow never comes

'Cause I've lost loved ones in my life
Who never knew how much I loved them
Now I live with the regret
That my true feelings for them never were revealed
So I made a promise to myself
To say each day how much she means to me
And avoid that circumstance
Where there's no second chance to tell her how I feel

If tomorrow never comes
Will she know how much I loved her
Did I try in every way to show her every day
That she's my only one
And if my time on earth were through
And she must face this world without me
Is the love I gave her in the past
Gonna be enough to last
If tomorrow never comes

So tell that someone that you love
Just what you're thinking of
If tomorrow never comes

SHOCK

Have you ever heard of girls who would earn for higher research?? Sounds familiar right? I believe it is so but how many of us know that the drive to study turns most of us blind and we land up sometimees in deep s__t. I know of two girls in the novel Robin Cook wrote and believe me it is a SHOCK. Cutting-edge technology and personal greed converge in this spine-tingling novel of medicine run amok. Deborah Cochrane and Joanna Meissner, students and close friends, spot a campus newspaper ad that promises to solve their financial problems: an exclusive, highly profitable fertility clinic on Boston's North Shore is looking for donors. Deborah and Joanna figure they can perform a good deed in helping infertle couples, while earning some money for themselves. Although rumours surface of a fellow donor's unexplained disappearance, they remain undeterred and possibly don’t realize that the medical profession does have some dangerous affairs too which can affect even common man! The procedures seem to go smoothly, but second thoughts and curiosity prompt the two women discover more. Stymied by the clinic's veil of secrecy, Deborah and Joanna obtain employment there to continue their probe. Working under aliases, they soon discover the horrifying true aims of Dr Windgate's research, immediately putting their lives - and their sanity - irrevocably at risk.
The same effect as in TOXIN. And as usual he avoids too much use of technical jargon to make it reach common man…A must read

http://www.twbooks.co.uk/authors/rcook.html

The weekend was just fine. As usual not moving from my place for 2 whole days. Trying to fish for some good movie and TV programs resulting in indefinite browsing of channels. So saw awful as well as good movies, some of them that i would never even think of seeing. They include "Mein prem ki diwani hu", "Khwaish", "casper"(cuz the nth time), "hum aapke hai kaun"(again for the nth time), saajan, hadh kardi aapne, Bridget Jone's Diary(again a repetition but tooo good), and so on.......

YA this movie Khwaish was a horrible cheap attempted copy of Erich Segal's Love Story! My god! ask them how they got the heart to spoil the bestseller so royally! Bullshit. nothing else. Even the dialogues were utter copy of the 'such an awesome great book'. I mean cant they make a movie in a decent inspired way that at least uhave to try and think which book had that story?? Is it necessary to show off that u lack the creativity that a movie making requires??? Oh im sorry. they of course WERE showing their creativity in the lady's clothes. Phew!!!! utter stupidity....
Remember the dialogues in the 'Love Story ' where he calls her a bitch and she calls him a bastard? And the one when she is at his parent's place for the first time and he says that they need to go and she says ' We must stay back for the dinner'. He asks why and she says quitely 'because Im hungry!'.....
It sounds so light when u read it....here the two actors sound as if they JUST HAVE to finish off the lines of dialogues out....ABSOLUTELY NO EMOTIONS....

And of course I managed to see the IIFA awards in Amsterdam cuz i wanted to see AB square and Aish number...kajrare....phew. man they made u watch the whole thing bfore they could show u that 'coming up' song.....i was sick of seeing the word 'coming up'. Why do they have to tell u that its coming up when ITS NOT coming up????? or they must write 'cmoing up in 2 hours' so u do other things instead of making ur mom shout at u for getting glued to the screen. (although i know even she was glued to the other tv secretly ;))
Hey i wish Swades would have got the best film and best director award...anyway bye for now........

The monk who sold his Ferrari !

I read Robin Sharma’s “The monk who sold his Ferrari”. Man, I must say this man sounds more influential than the most powerful politician in India. He can change lives like that! I immediately went through his site (http://www.robinsharma.com). Very impressive. Maybe im getting too excited, but i guess the book had some magic with it. The book is a simple one giving you easy steps to attain a more powerful and meaningful life. I loved the sayings that he's used like "The purpose of life is a life of purpose". How many times do we think about such things. We are so entangled with our 'career goals', jobs, salary hikes, increments, certifications and stuff that we forget to get the certifications of our own life, hike our own life, health and most of all the mind. But the book makes you realize all that you are missing and wakes you with a thud on your head :)
The lawyer in this book who narrates the story and the one who goes through a brilliant experience in a fictitious place called Shivana are both common men. Thats the beauty of the book. A man who is highly under the pressure of worldly pleasures and is living a life of a burdened soul turns into a handsome, strong and enlightened soul ... A man whose goal was to earn 300 million dollars, changes into a monk who lives on what he calls as "Live food" !.

Infact the book is an experience. One cannot explain it in words. You should go through it. So ppl, thats not just one more book onto my bookshelf now. Its a new piece of treasure in my locker now.....

Angels and Demons by Dan Brown

Angels and Demons.
One of the first books of Dan Brown even before the Da Vinci Code was written. The book ‘Angels and Demons’ talks about the long lost brotherhood of ‘Illuminati’ which means “holders of the light” and who are rumored to be a group of people who are part of ‘satanic’ work. They are believed to be part of everything from Mafia to Harvard University to International Banking. For more information goto http://www.conspiracyarchive.com/NWO/Illuminati.htm . Dan Brown also reveals to us the art of ambigrams. Ambigrams are those signs which hcan be seen in the mirror and 180 degree upside down and look the same.

With lots of mistakes in the sentence formation and the facts, Dan Brown has attempted to write a book which will lead an overwhelming turist attraction to the “Vatican City”, Rome. The Rome has been a topic of awe since age old times. But with this book, Dan has made a good effort to capture the majesty of the Catholic modus operandi during the conclave ceremony. Although there are some places in the book where you do find the facts incredibly twisted( like assuming that the Hatha Yoga is a Buddhist practice!) and incorrect Italian use, the book keeps you rooted till the end and is a bestseller (by the way I wonder who gives the ‘bestseller’ title). You can find the errors in the book in this link, http://www.dannyscl.net/2005/01/dan-brown-is-fraud-list-of-errors-in.html, which are really convincing. Dan, famous for his research on the books he writes, can actually not afford to make a twist to the historical facts, current facts(like the depth of the Tiber, dimensions of the St. Peter’s etc.

Anyway the book is a must read. Not to miss it revolves around the ‘Antimatter’ created by the CERN (Yes the real CERN) in Geneva and the young physicist from CERN is the one who helps the hero solve the numerous mysteries behind the killings of the ‘preferitis’ . The Preferitis are the favorites, from which group the most likely successor as Supreme Pontiff is elected. Five of the Cardinals selected as preferitis they are murdered brutally by the killer. The plot is neatly planned and executed by the Chamberlain of the Pope, who thinks that the Pope has committed an unforgivable sin and takes a revenge, when he finally come to know that the Pope was not guilty. A mistaken understanding which results in the death of the Pope and four cardinals.

The book gives you a lot of information about the Catholic methods and terminology and is infact a very good advertising for the Vatican tourism department. They would be having a blast of tourists after the book. Check it out here-> http://www.nerone.cc/romemtm/nuovosito/newtours/angelsdemons.htm

Amazon.com:

“It takes guts to write a novel that combines an ancient secret brotherhood, the SwissConseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire, a papal conclave, mysterious ambigrams, a plot against the Vatican, a mad scientist in a wheelchair, particles of antimatter, jets that can travel 15,000 miles per hour, crafty assassins, a beautiful Italian physicist, and a Harvard professor of religious iconology. It takes talent to make that novel anything but ridiculous. Kudos to Dan Brown (Digital Fortress) for achieving the nearly impossible.Angels & Demonsis a no-holds-barred, pull-out-all-the-stops, breathless tangle of a thriller--think Katherine Neville'sThe Eight(but cleverer) or Umberto Eco'sFoucault's Pendulum(but more accessible).Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is shocked to find proof that the legendary secret society, the Illuminati--dedicated since the time of Galileo to promoting the interests of science and condemning the blind faith of Catholicism--is alive, well, and murderously active. Brilliant physicist Leonardo Vetra has been murdered, his eyes plucked out, and the society's ancient symbol branded upon his chest. His final discovery, antimatter, the most powerful and dangerous energy source known to man, has disappeared--only to be hidden somewhere beneath Vatican City on the eve of the election of a new pope. Langdon and Vittoria, Vetra's daughter and colleague, embark on a frantic hunt through the streets, churches, and catacombs of Rome, following a 400-year-old trail to the lair of the Illuminati, to prevent the incineration of civilization. Brown seems as much juggler as author--there are lots and lots of balls in the air in this novel, yet Brown manages to hurl the reader headlong into an almost surreal suspension of disbelief. While the reader might wish for a little more sardonic humor from Langdon, and a little less bombastic philosophizing on the eternal conflict between religion and science, these are less fatal flaws than niggling annoyances--readers should have no trouble skimming past them and immersing themselves in a heck of a good read. ……”

Iniya Puthandu Vazhthukkal

To all the Tamilians living all over the world who manage to get to this site by mistake or intent. May God give you all the good things in life and the year ahead.
The month of Chitthirai has arrived and with it the Tamil New Year’s Day; April 14th – an occasion for celebration for Tamilians all over the world. Greetings of “Puthandu Vazthukal”, (Happy New Year), are exchanged with fervour on this day, which is supposedly the day when Lord Brahma (The Creator of the world, according to Hindu mythology) started creation.

The day starts with viewing the 'kanni' (the auspicious sight) at dawn, in the expectation that beginning the New Year by looking at auspicious or favourable things will bring good fortune throughout the year. The auspicious things include, gold and silver jewellery, betel leaves, nuts, fruits and vegetables, flowers, raw rice and coconuts. This is followed by the ritual bath and a visit to the temple to pray for a prosperous and happy New Year. After which, the Panchangam (almanac) is read. The ladies adorn the entrances of their houses with ‘Kolam’ (design made with rice flour) and deck the doorway with mango leaves. A grand Car Festival is held at Tiruvadamarudur near Kumbakonam every year on April 14th. Also during the month of Chitthirai the marriage of Goddess Meenakshi to Lord Sundareswarar is celebrated as ‘Chitthirai festival’.

The highlight of the festival is the 'Maanga Pachadi' (a dish made of raw mangoes, jaggery and neem flowers), which is at the same time sweet, sour and bitter. This signifies all the different aspects of our life.

April 14th also happens to be the Bengali New Year Day, Naba Barsha, which begins with the ‘Prabhat Pheries’ (an early morning procession) with songs and dances welcoming the New Year. In Kerala ‘Vishu’ is celebrated by Malayalees commemorating the beginning of the astronomical New Year in the Malayalam Calendar.

The Tamil Calendar, which has 12 months from Chitthirai (April - May) to Panguni (March - April), has a 60-year cycle.

TAMILCALENDAR
Chitthirai April 14th to May 14th
Vaikasi May 15th to June 14th
Aani June 15th to July 16th
Aadi July 17th to August 16th
Aavani August 17th to September 16th
Purattasi September17th to October 17th
Aipasi October 18th to November 15th
Karthigai November 16th to December 15th
Marghazi December 16th to January 13th
Thai January 14th to February 12th
Masi February 13th to March 13th
Panguni March 14th to April 13th