Culture, history, and the lack thereof (or, random musings at dawn)


I'd like to discover India. Does that sound strange? I know I've lived here all of my life.. but how much do i know about it? I sometimes think I'd like to see the world... the people, the cultures, the history... then I ask myself how I could ever hope for something that big, when I haven't seen my own back yard.. It's so easy to believe in, and slot people into, stereotypes.. (Don't we all?) but can human nature, much less mother nature be slotted that easily?

I want to travel. and by that I mean truly travel. I want to live among the locals. I want to BE a local. that's someone I've never been. I want a culture to call my own. I hear you laughing.. "you're Indian," you say... "you have culture.." sure my country has a rich and varied history, and since you can't have history without acquiring some culture, you must be right, rt?

Except than I am not my country. I do not "belong" anywhere or any when.. I want to know the history behind a place... not the kind they taught in school. I want to know about the men and women behind the legends... the people who became the heroes. those who built the monuments to time... and not just the ones who commissioned them.. I want to know those who toiled in the summer and in the monsoons.. those who, possibly, did not want the monuments built, but were forced to anyway... those who, discovered and loved these relics before the Archaeological Survey of India began to charge an entry fee... Those who lived and loved among the monuments to others dead, but not forgotten... the other places they saw... the grounds they walked.. the thoughts they thought.

I want to know what the ghoonghat-clad women of ancient Rajasthan would have thought of their bare-breasted sisters in the territories that became Kerala... What the Mughal men with their courtesans thought of the Dravidian priests and their devdasis... What the French in India thought of the English in India? More importantly, what the Europeans thought of the Indians... did they ever get beyond the "hmm..these guys could make us rich" phase...? How did palates accustomed to pièces montèes, and potato and meat stew react when they met dum aloo, sambhar and the aptly named gun powder? Did everyone get a round what we so euphemistically call Delhi belly today?

We've all heard stories about how the invaders — "they" ruined the lives of the locals "the us" and ransacked our culture? How come I've never heard of an Indian version of Pochahontas? I refuse to believe it never happened.. Maybe there was.. and maybe, the anonymous Pocahontas from the sub-continent (I'd like to think she was dravidian) refused to move to England, to be paraded as a "tamable native".. insisting, instead, that her John Rolfe take over the responsibilities of gruhasthashrama and, thereby, of her extended family! Maybe that killed him... imagine having to plan (and fund) weddings for all those younger siblings and cousins....and having to remember who's who among your wife's cousin's cousin's in-laws... (most definitely not for the faint-hearted!) And may be she then married some wealthy old man her father approved of, (of course no self respecting pop would've approved of some "Firang" back in the 18th century.. or that's what I've been told... doesn't help that the same people who tell me this are the ones who insist all Anglo-Indians are of Royal blood — more or less, anyway..) had a ton of sons (of course she didn't have daughters.. no self-respecting mother-of-sons ever does, does she? in any history... in any country and in any culture? Pardon my ignorance, but did Achilles have a sister? and would Thetis have dunked her in the Styx to make her invulnerable??) and died of old age, syphilis, boredom or child birth... and basically faded into the non-existence that seems to mark the lives of women in this part of the ancient world.

I've always found it strange that, in India, some courtesans are remembered better than queens... (Kinda ironic that a system that insists that women behave in a particular manner rewards the few who don't... but that's a topic for another day)... yet it's fascinating. The country is such a kaleidescope of cultures and of people, And when you haven't been born into one of the many available options, that choosing is hard. And not knowing your own, or your neighbor's, history makes it that much harder.. I hear u laughing again... "What idiot has to choose cultures?" All I can say is having a culture seems important to me... It gives you a norm.. and if you don't have a clear cut idea of what is acceptable and what isn't... It gets that much harder to decide if you are a conformist or a rebel... And maybe it's because I have stayed as far away as I could from my own...

(Lord knows well-intentioned folks have driven me nuts with their "OhmyGawdourcrapdoesn'tstink! We'renotthesedirtyIndians" brand of BS, and I'm proud to say I've returned the favour — "Youstinkmorecozyou'reneitherherenorthere" or "Howcanyoucallsomeplaceneitheryounoryourgrandparentshaveeverbeen,'home'?" doesn't make you very popular in the community, trust me)

So I want to learn. I want to know the history of the land. From before some of my ancestors left their potato farms in the land of clovers to wander among the sugarcane fields in the land of the idli... I want to hear the songs in the rocks... of the coal that once was a forest... I want to hear the stories of centuries past... I want sepia-toned memories awash with colour... I don't want to study culture and history... I want to live it..

"She's perfect for you, Man, there's got to be somebody for me."
I want to be Bob Dylan

People expect more from me than I have to give them.

Can a ritual ceremony force you to grow up? by you, of course, i mean anyone who isn't me.. cuz gettin me to grow up would take a lot more than a ceremony, rt? rt? actually, i think the answer'd depend on who u asked...

Sometimes, u get things you wanted... but then you're left wondering why u wanted them in the first place...

i like this song

Check these out.. Top 10 international destinations for broke Indian travellers, put together solely on the basis of currency conversion rates that I happened to come across...
10. Iceland: 500 Krona = Rs325
09. Jamaica: 500 Dollars = Rs276
08. Sri Lanka: 500 Rupees = Rs176
07. Slovenia: 500 Tolar = Rs108
06. Yemen: 500 Rials = Rs99
05. Guyana: 500 Dollars = Rs97
04. South Korea: 500 Won = Rs21.56
03. Somalia: 500 Shillings = Rs14.23
02. Zambia: 500 Kwacha = Rs5.12
01. Turkmenistan: 500 Manat = Rs3.81


oh, and FYI, 1 CYP (Cyprus Pound) = Rs 96.38 (or, Rs500=CYP5.17...just in case anyone was beginning to gloat[:D])

This is sort of popped into my head while i was rereading an old post.. First draft so please be kind..

My muse is out 2

He stepped out of the closet
Straight into my head,
A swirl of pink and violet
While others looked on,
a mix of confusion and dread

He flits in and out, between my ears
Prancing about most outlandishly
He knows every hope, every wish, every fear
And when I struggle to make sense
He helps me out, by arming me

With a word here and an image there
He knows that he's indispensible—
A lance-bearer from yesteryear
And if my thoughts aren't all together
Still makes me seem knowledgable

I'm not like the others, he once told me
I told him it really was ok
It wasn't a catastrophe
And when I'm lost for poetry,
I'm quite glad my muse is gay

The original's here
http://zephkeyes.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2006-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&updated-max=2007-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=48 in case you interested..

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is: Milady the Right Reverend Ulibak-The Great the Excited of Lower Slaughter Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title

Resplendent in her madisaar pattu,
The girl of only iruvatti-aaru
Looks down at her feet with no shoes
Red designs making maps with no clues
She's got the nadaswaram blues!

The maapillai sits in his yellow veshti
Yearly-morning cold makes him want to pee
shivering slightly, deep thoughts does he muse:
From now, his life he has to plan in irendoos
He's got the nadaswaram blues!

"Maatikitaan" the mridangam announces
Through the frills and the flounces
While unknown relatives sit there and snooze
It's a good thing, they won't get any booze
For they got the nadaswaram blues...

*dedicated to a friend of mine.. thx for the inspiration!

Glossary of possibly foreign terms:
madisaar pattu : 9-yard silk sari, traditionally worn by Tamil Brahmin brides
iruvatti-aaru: 26
nadaswaram: a musical intrument that resembles a flute, commonly the main piece played at Tamilian weddings
maapillai: groom (or guy gettin hitched at said wedding)
veshti: fancy lungi (A cloth, often of brightly colored silk or cotton, that is used as a piece of clothing, especially the traditional skirtlike garment of India, Pakistan, and Myanmar, says Answers.com)
irendoo(s): twos
Maatikitaan: hindi translation:"pakda gaya"; English equivalent: trapped. cornered..u get the picture(also refers to the beats played on the mridanagam at weddings)
mridangam: South Indian drum, the other main piece played at weddings

It's been so long, I think I've forgotten how to do it
What once felt like the most natural thing in the world, is now an effort.
I thought it was like riding a bike -
Once you learn, you're not supposed to forget.
But I have forgotten to write. Somehow.

Maybe its just all the blue, but I think this pic of the London Eye at night is one of the nicer pix i've come across all week.

credit to Andrew Hasson of Bloomberg News.

The law of the chain of events proposes that s/he who is charged with finishing the last leg of the process, will sit idle till half an hour before deadline and tehn scramble as said deadline whooshes past, amid angry glares from his/her superiors.
ZK

Been at my desk four hours now, and haven't had a thing to do. Hope i can stand the excitement till then

Highlight of my day: Finding a 100-buck note hidden away in the backpocket of my jeans.

Today I learned what the first sardine in the tin feels like.

I miss having places I can walk into, kick off my shoes and just hang out... the closest thing to that, is my house. but hanging out at your own place isn't quite the same as bargin into a pal's at 7.30 in the morning demanding she make u coffee, is it?

IF ONLY GAY SEX CAUSED GLOBAL WARMING
or
Why we're more scared of gay marriage and terrorism than a much deadlier threat.
By Daniel Gilbert, Daniel Gilbert is a professor of psychology at Harvard University and the author of "Stumbling on Happiness," published in May by Knopf.
July 2, 2006

NO ONE seems to care about the upcoming attack on the World Trade Center site. Why? Because it won't involve villains with box cutters. Instead, it will involve melting ice sheets that swell the oceans and turn that particular block of lower Manhattan into an aquarium.

The odds of this happening in the next few decades are better than the odds that a disgruntled Saudi will sneak onto an airplane and detonate a shoe bomb. And yet our government will spend billions of dollars this year to prevent global terrorism and … well, essentially nothing to prevent global warming.

Why are we less worried about the more likely disaster? Because the human brain evolved to respond to threats that have four features — features that terrorism has and that global warming lacks.

First, global warming lacks a mustache. No, really. We are social mammals whose brains are highly specialized for thinking about others. Understanding what others are up to — what they know and want, what they are doing and planning — has been so crucial to the survival of our species that our brains have developed an obsession with all things human. We think about people and their intentions; talk about them; look for and remember them.

That's why we worry more about anthrax (with an annual death toll of roughly zero) than influenza (with an annual death toll of a quarter-million to a half-million people). Influenza is a natural accident, anthrax is an intentional action, and the smallest action captures our attention in a way that the largest accident doesn't. If two airplanes had been hit by lightning and crashed into a New York skyscraper, few of us would be able to name the date on which it happened.

Global warming isn't trying to kill us, and that's a shame. If climate change had been visited on us by a brutal dictator or an evil empire, the war on warming would be this nation's top priority.

The second reason why global warming doesn't put our brains on orange alert is that it doesn't violate our moral sensibilities. It doesn't cause our blood to boil (at least not figuratively) because it doesn't force us to entertain thoughts that we find indecent, impious or repulsive. When people feel insulted or disgusted, they generally do something about it, such as whacking each other over the head, or voting. Moral emotions are the brain's call to action.

Although all human societies have moral rules about food and sex, none has a moral rule about atmospheric chemistry. And so we are outraged about every breach of protocol except Kyoto. Yes, global warming is bad, but it doesn't make us feel nauseated or angry or disgraced, and thus we don't feel compelled to rail against it as we do against other momentous threats to our species, such as flag burning. The fact is that if climate change were caused by gay sex, or by the practice of eating kittens, millions of protesters would be massing in the streets.

The third reason why global warming doesn't trigger our concern is that we see it as a threat to our futures — not our afternoons. Like all animals, people are quick to respond to clear and present danger, which is why it takes us just a few milliseconds to duck when a wayward baseball comes speeding toward our eyes.

The brain is a beautifully engineered get-out-of-the-way machine that constantly scans the environment for things out of whose way it should right now get. That's what brains did for several hundred million years — and then, just a few million years ago, the mammalian brain learned a new trick: to predict the timing and location of dangers before they actually happened.

Our ability to duck that which is not yet coming is one of the brain's most stunning innovations, and we wouldn't have dental floss or 401(k) plans without it. But this innovation is in the early stages of development. The application that allows us to respond to visible baseballs is ancient and reliable, but the add-on utility that allows us to respond to threats that loom in an unseen future is still in beta testing.

We haven't quite gotten the knack of treating the future like the present it will soon become because we've only been practicing for a few million years. If global warming took out an eye every now and then, OSHA would regulate it into nonexistence.

There is a fourth reason why we just can't seem to get worked up about global warming. The human brain is exquisitely sensitive to changes in light, sound, temperature, pressure, size, weight and just about everything else. But if the rate of change is slow enough, the change will go undetected. If the low hum of a refrigerator were to increase in pitch over the course of several weeks, the appliance could be singing soprano by the end of the month and no one would be the wiser.

Because we barely notice changes that happen gradually, we accept gradual changes that we would reject if they happened abruptly. The density of Los Angeles traffic has increased dramatically in the last few decades, and citizens have tolerated it with only the obligatory grumbling. Had that change happened on a single day last summer, Angelenos would have shut down the city, called in the National Guard and lynched every politician they could get their hands on.

Environmentalists despair that global warming is happening so fast. In fact, it isn't happening fast enough. If President Bush could jump in a time machine and experience a single day in 2056, he'd return to the present shocked and awed, prepared to do anything it took to solve the problem..

The human brain is a remarkable device that was designed to rise to special occasions. We are the progeny of people who hunted and gathered, whose lives were brief and whose greatest threat was a man with a stick. When terrorists attack, we respond with crushing force and firm resolve, just as our ancestors would have. Global warming is a deadly threat precisely because it fails to trip the brain's alarm, leaving us soundly asleep in a burning bed.

It remains to be seen whether we can learn to rise to new occasions.

Everyone thinks they're better than someone else

Moved yesterday. Got lost on my way to work today. took a wrong turn while exiting the metro station. So walked 15 minutes for a 5 minute distance. Still wasn't very late. relieved. embarassed, but relieved.
***
finished work on time (more or less) maybe i should get lost more often

The last two weeks have been crazy. I have switched jobs, uprooted my life and settled down into a new city in less time than the moon takes to wax or wane. Although, technically, saying i've "settled down" would be stretching it more than a little.

Truth is, I'm pretty overwhelmed by the sheer expanse of this city. After living off the company for about a week, I've found more permanent accomodation - rent won't kill me, I'm going to be moving in with old college-mate, and it's relatively well connected.

Here, I'd like to note, that colege-mate refers to someone who went to the same college I did, at about the same time. The non-use of the words buddy/friends/pal is intentional. We have no problems with each other, but we aren't quite the best of friends either.

The connectivity I was talking about... It's, as my colleagues put it, "only half an hour away", which is true... by train. I have new respect for distances. Back home, a half hour ride would have would have taken me to the next closest city.

But the locality seems nice enough. Took a walk from the house to the Metro station, and noticed signboards - a doctor, atleast 2-3 inexpensive looking restaurants, a gift store, telephone booth, a medical store and a few provision stores.

Did I mention there's a police station a stone's throw away? While I haven't actually tried throwing stones at the cops, I might need to someday. Don't get me wrong. Security doesn't seem to be an issue. And even though I said my to-be roomie and I aren't the best of friends, I'm pretty sure neither of us is going to attempt murder.

What I am worried about, is my over-enthusiastic landlady, who I suspect might try to kill me if and when I either refuse to eat her food, or am late with the rent. while the latter isn't very likely to happen, I'm hoping (desperately) that we won't be running into each other too often. With my propensity of sleeping odd hours, I'm rather optimistic that we won't.

And this is just the tale of my prospective first (almost) solo accomodation... I haven't even started on my (mis-)adventures at work.. been here about 4 days now, and already have a tale to tell. but, I think I'll save that for later...

What remains when memories fade?

'Non omnia possumus omnes'
We can't all do everything

He lay there when i opened the door. I thought he was dead. As that army of ants swarmed over his body, he suddenly convulsed.
I jumped. He stared back at me. I shut the door, repulsed.
He wasn't there the next time i opened the door. What a sad and painful way to go...
Maybe I shoulda just stepped on the little bugger...

being honest is hard work

bloggin is the best way to rant and not be heard

Too bad life doesn't have a CTRL+Z

I love baby-sitting. Especially since the freedom it gives you, to go off by yourself, instead being forced to socialise with ppl you don't want to...

I've started writing my "epic masterpiece". Pl come by once in a while, even if it is just to c if I'm still standing or if i've fallen flat on my face in the attempt...

Your results:
You are Superman

Superman 85% Spider-Man 70% Wonder Woman 62% Supergirl 57% Robin 55% Iron Man 55% Green Lantern 50% Catwoman 50% Batman 45% The Flash 40% Hulk 40%

You are mild-mannered, good, strong and you love to help others.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Quiz

Everyone wears a mask.
Some just do it better than others...

Quirky is good, she told me
I didn't argue
There are no labels for quirky

Quirky folks get left alone
To live in their quirky worlds
Anonymous and masked

Quirky is carefully wrapped
Till the bubble-wrap changes its form,
And quirky is lost as new labels are found
***************************************

I found this 55 word story contest thingie while meandering through the web and thot i'd try it out...

Here goes nothing:


She woke up shivering and swore. The heater was broken. Again. She climbed out of bed and headed down the stairs. The Christmas lights were still up - red and green.

She slipped into the kitchen, and opened the fridge. A glass of wine in one hand, turkey sandwich in the other. Life WAS good!


Tell me wat u think.. (if anyone's reading, that is)

Presenting, the greatest bathtime adventure since Barbie and the Unonut, the one eyed monster of Dweeboland........................................

Condoleezza Rice Holds Bathtime Talks With Undersea Representatives

WASHINGTON, DC—Delegates worked out a new cease-splash agreement and broke an impasse on temperature reform.

need I say more? go read!

I started this a while ago, but decided to finish and post today. Nedless to say, I'm at work, with some time on my hands.

It's strange that I would never have come across him, if I hadn't forgotten his father's name.
Lt Elad Grenadier, 21, was supposed to leave the army in a month. He then could have, and would have travelled overseas. But he did neither. Killed in an attack in Emmanuel in Israel, in 2002, he didn't even live to see his 22nd birthday...

Today, i met his father, a respected cardiologist Dr Ehud G., in town to promote a particular brand of stent. For the uniniated, a stent is a wire mesh type thing, with a balloon type thing inside, that doctors put in to keep your arteries wide open. So I sat through Grenadier senior's talk, all the while grinning as I thought of the absurdity of sponsorhip in medicine... and the cute but very married dude sitting next to me, another doctor, presumably from the US of A. (Before you ask, I'd noticed the ring)

I came away still thinking about various advertising strategies used today, and the various new avenues that ad guys had entered over the years (the cute married doc being completely forgotten by now), which would have been fine, if i hadnt needed to write an article on the meeting.

I sit at my computer and stare... not into space... not into the distance... but straight my computer screen, thinking, "350 words... where the 'eck was i supposed to bring those from?" After weighing my various options about an opening line, I figure, a simple straight opening along the lines of DrBlah came here to talk abt a buncha things, one being the saftey of this particular brand of stent... yada yada yada..." u get the drift, right?

Then it struck me. I hadn't made notes abt who this fantastic doc was. I mean, sure i had a piece of paper wid his name on it somewhere.... but where??? After seconds of frantic searching went by like long minutes, it struck me - GOOGLE! of course! why not? "because u don't know the man's name, dodo" a voice echoed in my miniscule cranial cavity. So i shuffled back in time, inside my head of course, and remebered Ehud... "good. that's a start. Now think harder," said the voice... and my brains came up with the connection, "somethin wid grenade in it.."

SO began the search. Ehud Grenade... "Do u mean ehud grenadier?" asked the ever helpful elf hidden in the Google server.. (you didnt actually think a machine could be THAT helpful, did you?) So, my head makes like a yoyo and i head off, looking for the father, only to be waylaid by the son.

Suddenly, my article (and the question of of sponsorship in medicine) disappeared into the crevices of my mind. Staring at me from out of the screen is a smiling young man, and he can smile no more. And he didnt deserve to die. It wasn't his fault...

Did he know, when he went to the frontlines, that he wouldn't come home? Wouldn't ever taste his mum's cooking... or hear his dad's voice, a rather nice one at that... never bug or be bugged by his twin younger brothers... Wouldn't love or be loved again... I wonder, did he leave a sweetheart behind? and how long did she wait?

War has never made sense to me, but never have I come into contact to anyone who has actually borne witness to its sensless brutality before. ( I do know a cpla ppl in the forces, but they don't count)

He died fighting for someone else, willing also to kill people he had never met, and held no grudges against... except for the circumstances they met in, and an ideology.... strangers, like that old poem said, he may have bought a drink, had they met in a bar....

Happy New Year

I got off work a lil early.
Came home to a silent house.
Put my food into the microwave.
And switched the TV on,
to drown out a neighbor's party.

Trying somethign new. Tell me what you think

Zigzagging through ziggurats,
Enjoying the feeling of smooth
Pebbles beneath my toes -
Hues of blue and red
Run into one another,
As I smile and turn the page
----------------------------------
My life confuses me-
A lot of a little, and a little of a lot
Remains fragmented in a spiral brain
Illuminated by a candle -
Lit to find what was lost
Yet burning long after
Night has given way to day
------------------------------------

I've had some time on my hands...
so here goes:

You are 73% Scorpio

How Scorpio Are You?

and interestingly enough,

You are 73% Leo

How Leo Are You?

the two most egotistical signs in the zodiac!Now That's gotta say something!! :D

there were also the others, all in the 50s and 60s, (which is jus proofof how mixed up i am) but this was uincanny, so its up here

I know it's long, but... this is gonna be my last, front-page byline, for a while, and i love it (Of course, this version is the result of many sessions in the recycle bin often called the editing table) :D so please be kind, and comment.
Lotsa luv,
ME

Ahmedabad, November 4: Salicornia brachiata might not actually be a magic spell, but the plant is quite magical — it yields edible salt. This intriguing characteristic of salicornia, has the Central Salt and Marine Chemical Research Institute (CSMCRI) in Bhavnagar grow it on about 100 hectares of land.

Now, the CSMCRI has intensified research on this plant after they found a way to extract salt from it in 2002. The institute tried to grow the plants in an artificial environment at a field in Hathab. ‘‘But it didn’t work out well. In order to study it better, we needed to increase the quantity. So we worked on densifying it in its natural habitat,’’ says Dr MP Reddy, in charge of the study at CSMCRI. ‘‘Last year, we had about 60 hectares under salicornia cover. This year we have reached 100,’’ he adds. The ‘field’ covers about 45-50 km of coastal areas across the State.

The green fleshy shrubs, grow in marshy coastal areas and do not require fresh water for irrigation. Salicornia absorbs seawater and stores the excess salt, much like a potato stores starch.

Since it occupies otherwise infertile, saline land, the increased salicornia cover means an increase in green cover in the area. This automatically translates into more carbon credits for the country, explains Dr Reddy. The fact that it grows wild, makes it easy to densify, he said.

The technology for salicornia salt extraction, protected under a US patent, has been licensed locally, and the product is markedly saltier than table salt and is already available commercially as ‘Saloni’. ‘‘The difference in taste is rather inexplicable,’’ says Dr Pushpito Ghosh, Director CSMCRI.

Dr Reddy clarifies that sodium chloride, the main component of table salt, is what gives it its flavour. ‘‘Salicornia salt, on the other hand, contains a mix of potassium chloride and iodine, as well as other micronutrients, bringing down the ratio of sodium chloride. So, technically it should be less salty,’’ he says.

Dr Reddy, like Dr Ghosh, refers to the salicornia salt, as a ‘nutraceutical’, since the natural mix of nutrients, including calcium, magnesium, iron, copper and zinc, have led to a number of local doctors prescribing it in addition to traditional medicines for blood pressure. Currently, CSMCRI is working toward creating ‘a tailor-made salt,’ containing variable quantities of component nutrients, as per individual requirements.

Salicornia cultivation is also an economically viable process. Apart from salt extraction, the seed of the plant yields oil, rich in linoleic acid; the tips of the shoots are edible, too. ‘‘But only while the plant is tender,’’ warns Dr Reddy. ‘‘As the plant gets more mature and reaches the flowering stage, they develop more fibre. And then, it turns red and bitter,’’ he explains.

‘‘We briefly experimented in exporting fresh shoots, to the Netherlands, for use in salads,’’ reveals Dr Ghosh, adding that though the shoots were sold at about $8, per kg. ‘‘The freight charges made it non-viable.’’ The Director admits to being partial to the salty shoots.

Dr Reddy also vetoes the idea of national exports. ‘‘We already have too many things to eat in our country. Not too many people would prefer a wild plant.’’

Although, still in preliminary stages of research, Dr Reddy reveals that there is a possibility that the plant, in its mature phase, could contain leutin, an anti-ageing agent. If his observation proves true, salicornia research could soon, pay for itself.

TO everyone I haven't hugged in a while :)

hapeey birthday to me!! i like birthdays :D

Your Famous Last Words Will Be:

"Look ma! No hands!"

href="http://www.blogthings.com/whatwillyourfamouslastwordsbequiz/"
What Will Your Famous Last Words Be?

showing off... pl go check out my poems... these be the edited versions, and i've found, infinitely better than what's out here

luv n luk

The Muse is Out

A blank page stares up at me
As I attempt to sift through volleys of word.
Shot at me from my subconscious
The search for meaning is soon aborted.

Words swirl around my head
The vortex is a migrane
Thoughts remain half-formed.
The consistance of a bad souffle.

I make a desperate call
The phone rings, is answered.
"I'm sorry to have missed your call..."
The muse is out.

WHITE NOISE

I sit, staring into nothingness
Drowning in a sea of diluted thoughts.

Dreams, once technicolored, fade to black
Fanstasies, mere sailboats in a tumultous sea

My brain reflects others thoughts,
Shimmering wisps glinting off mirrors well-bronzed

People around me, beg to be watched.
Nameless faces, faceless names, merge one into another

I see, but am I looking?
I hear, but do I listen?
I exist. But do I live?

NOW THIS IS MORE LIKE IT
;)

What Kind of Smile are You?

You're the psychotic grin,and no one can quite tell if you're insane or just really hyper.You scare people,and i mean scare them a lot.Kati'd be friends with you though.You two could have sleepovers together and make pasta at 4 am.
Take this quiz!








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WUDJA BELIEVE THIS????

What is your French name?

Your French name is~Belle~It means 'beautiful'. You have a beautiful personality and are probably just as beautiful on the outside as you are on the inside. You are probably popular and have lots of friends. People love to be around you, for one reason or another. You love to be surrounded by people and feel involved and accepted. Although you sometimes wonder if you are accepted for who you really are...
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http://shoutoutaloud.rediffiland.com//scripts/xanadu_diary_view.php?postId=1155279417

What's really interesting abt this post, is that it was written by a guy.. go check it out :D

I've been thinking...

How could they do this to us? no nine planets? we're going back to pre 1930 days.. I could and would go on about this, but i think Michael Alison Chandler and Mary Otto have it covered in their Washington Post article How the Facts Align (Go check it out.. Really worth a read)

Now back to my own meandering questions....

Is the cosmos rewinding or looping, on some far out plane? Is that why our concepts of time are changing? If there was a hiccup in my current plane of time and space, would i even know it? Would my life reloop over a certain 'time' frame? like that movie 'groundhog day' i think it was called. It's strange how movies are making me question the universe... Like last night's I heart Huckabees ( no! it's not I love Huckabees ask wiki)... Are we all micro-parts of the blanket? or is there too much Chaos for order to survive? If im in the blanket, who decides which part? Does `which part' really matter??

Either way, I've realised a few truths about myself -
1. I did not wake up hallucinating last night at 3.45. My neighbours WERE awake, and they CAN be that loud!!
2. I like quirky. If something's quirky, it just means there aren't enuf ppl who care abt it. If there were, there'd be a category.. I think that's what happened with smart/dumb, right/wrong, funny/otherwise, ... quirky means there aren't enuf ppl who relate to it. SIMPLE.
3. I have gone so used to, and scared of, saying, "I don't know", I've stopped asking questions... (till i found myself awake at 4 am with nothing else to do)
4. I believe that with enough chaos, comes order. I also believe, that there is order in the universe, even if I haven't found it yet.
5.I believe in love, but that does not mean I'm not shit scared at the thought of it. Obsession is so much easier. (no risks an all, in case u wonderin what that's about.)
6. I also believe that love, not faith, can move mountains. How can there be trust, if there is no love?
Can there be one without the other?
7. I pretend.
8.I believe most people, especially me, hide behind a facade called activity. I, for one figure that if ppl think i'm busy doin somethin, it won't matter that i dont feel or think about what really matters.
9. I believe that even shit happens for a reason.
10. I'm scared I might grow up some day, or worse, wake up one day, and wish i'd grown up.. (DON'T ever want that to happen.

I think this is the most honest i've been with myself in a while. I'm not sure how I feel about it yet.

What it means to be Anglo...
(and how to check if u are one)

Okay, so someone sent me this as a forward, but hey, it makes sense, at least to me, (i think)

Here goes...

Your Aunties and Uncles get REALLY offended if you don't greet them with a 'Mornin', 'G'Afnoon', or 'D'Evenin'

You have a fight or watch a fight on: a) Christmas Dance b) New Years Dance c) A wedding

You say we are White Washing the house for Christmas!!

You think the hottest Anglo tailor is 'Gani' and he left you waiting and hoping on Christmas Eve!

On Christmas you wore a 'coat & skirt' made from 'Garden silk' and patent leather 'coat shoes'!

You walked in late to church and walked out early after communion.

You and your family go to Mass with everyone wearing the same material, Father and Son have the same material shirt, mom and sis have the same material skirts, and when you go back home the same material is used for your curtains and the sofa covers.

You didn't own a tie and a suit but still wore one at the Christmas dance...

Your mama prays to all the saints and every single version of Mother Mary ever known to human kind...

You ran into one of the stalwarts of main road and they went "what macha - long time no see" or "Cousin got any change da, never ate from morning macha" you give them something and they are off...full swing, smile on their face to the grog shop.

You still use words like "grog"

You and 5 other friends pooled in about 10 rupees each to buy a quarter bottle of booze

You walk into a dance with a quarter bottle bulging in your suit pocket

You went to an Anglo dance, and your band, when testing the sound system, spent 30 minutes of 1-2, mike testing, 1-2, mike testing, 1-2, mike testing, 1-2... (you get the picture)

Of all the dances in the world, you know what "Tiger dance" is!

At Anglo weddings, nana says to pass more wedding cake so she can put some in her bag to take 'ome.

You have witnessed the following - Aunty Dolly is laid out and between prayers Uncle Willie wails "How you can leave and go without telling one word chile".

By virtue of growing up around Tamilians, you think it's absolutely "OKAY" to dance in front of a dead body!

You say "Don't get a Kottu from me!!!!!!!"

You say DONO (Don't Know)

You got the "FIJACKS" atleast once in your life. (got the frights/were moody)

All the underwear in your family are called "Jocks", "Jungies" and "Flyingfoxes".

You know exactly what species of ants "bully ants" is.

Your Sunday was longer than your Monday.

You ate "kanjee water & rice" when times were hard!

You have pepperwater, rice and pepper fry for lunch on Saturdays

You have coconut rice, ball curry and devil chutney for lunch on special days.

If Ginger wine and Kul Kuls are a 'must have' at Christmas time.

You are convinced that everyone else in India is a bloody pye dog , Pariah Bugger or Wog.

You refer to every guy as "bugger" in a conversation.

You buy Jow and Bones along with the meat.

You use the phrase How mad nah!!! and if u use "blimming and blinking" in every other sentence (still don't know
what they mean - as swear words)

You use the phrase "thatny" - for that only

You respond with a "Namind (never mind)Child"

You willingly go to the market to make some extra pais (paise).

You smoke half a buggie (beedi) or fag (cigarette) now and keep the other half for after lunch.

You asked your mum where something was that you misplaced and she answers. "On my head"

You walked in your short pants and T-shirt to the natta shop down the road or drove around on your bike to your friend's place like that.

You know what a natta shop is.

You're at British or Lala's and thinking "look at these pies how they 'beep' up the place".

You've been for one of the dances organised by Passange.

Your mama told you, "I'll slipper you, mind!"

If I said 'Who' and you replied Mother Boo!

You know the answer to the riddle "Where was Moses when the lights went out?"

You played "Miss Mary Mac", "Ice-cream soda" and "who stole the cookie from the cookie pot" during school
breaks

You've sung "Ging gang gooly..." at Sunday school or wherever!

You played Ringa Ringa Roses, Ringing the duck, Dog Shots, Musical chairs, n sung Hotel California more than
a dozen times.

You sing "She'll be coming down the mountain..." to & from a picnic.......

You stuck a pin in the bottom of your rubber slipper strap to save yourself from buying a new strap.

You think 'She wears my ring' and 'Put your sweet lips a little closer to the phone' are still the two hottest songs
in the world.

Somebody calls you "dorai" or "missi amma"

You're working in a call center even though you haven't finished your 10th std

You often refer to yourself as an "Angloinyin"
------------

and o,
"Where was Moses when the lights went out?"
"In the dark".. hey.. don shoot the messenger!!
---------------------------

It's strange how beautiful muddy river water can be, as it twirls beneath the bridge you're standing on
It's strange how u can live most of ur life in a city, and yet be a stranger to its secrets...
It's strange how bits of a song can stick in your head and pop out at the appropriate moment
It's strange how much of an impact people leave on one anothe, without meaning to...
It's strange how one true cliches are...
It's strange how much one person's life can change in a day... a moment....
It's strange how strange one just can be
It's strange how much i love me.
I wonder if i'd marry me...
---------
Narcissistic or wat???

Fair friend of man,
Prometheus was,
Who brought them fire
An inspired the great holy wars

Fire came to earth,
With the Gods' own ire:
He was bound night and day,
for stealing the fire.

Prometheus lay shattered
As the gods watch in mirth
At a hungry bird
Checking his liver's daily growth.

Then the Son of Zeus
Hercules was his name,
Slaying the bird, he won
a round in that celestial game
-------
Promethus lies unbound
Free, yet still in pain...
The shackles are gone,
but the memories remain.

Nights are disturbed
by slivers of shadows
As niggling doubts
into nightmares flow

Can time really heal
An unbroken heart
That was sliced into two,
Right at the start?

Ronald McDonald's tired of grinning



"I'm tired of smiling," confessed Ronald McDonald on Tuesday. "I've been at it for 8 years now! gimme a break!" he growled, visibly upset. The man often seen outside a popular chain of family restaurants that bear his name, explains, "For the first three years, it was fun. Then it got boring. Now it's just plain annoying". When his heart rate returned to normal, Ronald denied rumors that his impending retirement may not necessarily be voluntary. "I do not have dental problems," he said.

"Do you see these pearly whites? They're mine... all mine..." he asserted stoutly before being overcome by a fit of manaical laughter. Once the laughter subsided, however, he acknowledged that his "lower jaw does tend to hurt occasionally", Scottish lilt in place. He continued to maintain that his jaw has no connection with his plans for retirement asking, "How long can a guy keep grinning in the hope that some kid, somewhere will smile back?" He later confided another and possibly the most important reason for his proposed retirement- "I miss wearing a kilt."

How can anyone be honest with others if they aren't honest with themselves? Even if they are honest, how many people know who they are, or what they stand for? And i believe that no one can be at ease with themselves unless they are aware of these things. How can anyone be expected to be comfortable with someone else, if they aren't comfortable with themselves? Any answers?

II

The curtains are drawn across the stage
Lights fade out slowly
Till total darkness prevails

Suddenly, a flash of phosphorence
The stage lights up. The spotlight is on,
Radiant- even through the darkened screen

Drama unfolds before unblinking eyes
Shielded by the pouring rain

The sky - a chameleon:
Red, Orange, Black,
Interspersed by violent white.

The darkness looms, occasionally,
Lights soon return, and zigzagging paths
Mark the stairway to heaven.

Lights go off, come on again...
The darkness has not a chance.

I turn off my night light
Staring through a shut window
At Ma Nature's spectacular display

Act one is over, the curtain reopens
The stars come out, their time for hiding has past.
It's the clouds, this time-

The wind appears - a major player,
The earth heaves a sigh of dry relief

Black turns to grey, and grey to white
But not for long, the show must go on
So the curtains will be drawn,

The spotlight will come on,
Act Two will follow, And three...
And four... And five...

PART I
Dark clouds part a mezzotinted sky
While the petrichord rises from the earth
Wave after wave, almost an assault
As senses awaken. One at a time

Heavenly Tears, they've oft been called
That flow when Gaea takes the fall
For ornery children's hearts impure
Then tears turn torrential, even temerous

Thor and Ty, thunderously ally
To capture images of a luminous night
While gushing gauntlets gather force
Unshielded souls shatter to smithereens

Yet, diaphanous blooms in glorious disarray
Soak up the shadows of the rainbow
And hormones surge as Jupiter awakens,
Emotions direct, not rhyme nor reason.


(Not too sure if this has any kinda continuance.. would love some feedback.. pleeaz? decided to stop here for now. so, part 1)

Midnight Musings I

I sit to write, and stars appear
Before my eyes
White contrasts with white
Music fades -in and out-
surreptiously in the background
Creating, or destroying,
(I know not which)
the moment words begin to flow.

The stars begin to fade...
but not from my eyes
as I sit, starry-eyed
In awe of the world...
in puzzlement -
of superconductors,
LPG engines,
Modifed salt crystals,
Reattached fingers
that once were dead.

Images cloud my mind
White on white no longer
The stars disappear...
Only to be replaced
by spots of varying greys
I know not which to gaze upon
To form a pixelated Image
Of life, as it passes me by.

whoever said "The only thing constant is change wasn't kidding.

That's more or less all i have to say for now. That, and this "Why can't things ever go back to the way they were?"

Here's another post from work... (except that this is closer to my original story) some things u just can't help ;)

From the lab to the salt pan, from protein molecules to your plate... Scientists at the Central Salt and Marine Chemical Research Institute in Bhavnagar have re-defined the "free-flowing" in free-flowing salt. They have used Glycine, an amino acid, to change the shape of salt crystals from six-sided cubes to a relatively more rotund 12-sided structure called a rhomboid dodecahedron. This means that salt crystals will now be less likely to stick to each other and the sides of your salt-shaker, even in the monsoons.
Normally, Sodium and Chlorine ions get stacked close together, giving salt its cubic structure. Scientists at the Institute studied the spacing of the ions and found that it was similar to that of glycine. They also found that when glycine was added to a saline solution, it stopped the growth of the crystals from the sides, thus changing its shape. “The glycine molecule essentially sits on top of the salt molecule and causes the cube’s sharp edges to wear away. So the salt crystals won’t stick together. It’s like a ball bearing,” explains Dr Pushpito Ghosh, director of the Institute, adding “With only one point of contact, the crystal is more likely to roll off a surface”.
Usually, any moisture will cause a minuscule amount of salt to dissolve. When the water evaporates, salt crystals tend to stick together. Glycine is also more resistant to water, so damp weather would not affect the modified crystals as much.
Glycine, being am amino acid, is part of the body’s genetic make-up leaving no question of health risks, clarified Dr Ghosh.
Possibly the most interesting part of this discovery, is that it would be viable in a country like India where maximum salt production occurs by natural evaporation. “Our initial fears that minerals and other salts present in sea water would be a problem proved needless,” says Dr Ghosh. As of now, the initial costs of glycine could inhibit mass production. “But we are working on that little detail,” says Dr Ghosh, talking of recycling excess glycine as a viable option. “Anyway, only minuscule amounts of glycine actually go into the salt crystals”.
A detailed paper on this freshly patented technique is due to appear in this year's July 5 edition of The Journal of Crystal Growth and Design, an international research publication.

HOW COULD I NOT POST THIS?

You Are Bart Simpson

Very misunderstood, most people just dismiss you as "trouble." Little do they know that you're wise and well accomplished beyond your years. You will be remembered for: starring in your own TV show and saving the town from a comet Your life philosophy: "I don't know why I did it, I don't know why I enjoyed it, and I don't know why I'll do it again!"

The Simpsons Personality Test

Your Superhero Profile

Your Superhero Name is The Wing Dazzler Your Superpower is Witchcraft Your Weakness is Love Your Weapon is Your Venomous Saw Your Mode of Transportation is Slide

What's" your Superhero Name?

You Are a Visionary Soul

You are a curious person, always in a state of awareness. Connected to all things spiritual, you are very connected to your soul. You are wise and bright: able to reason and be reasonable. Occasionally, you get quite depressed and have dark feelings. You have great vision and can be very insightful. In fact, you are often profound in a way that surprises yourself. Visionary souls like you can be the best type of friend. You are intuitive, understanding, sympathetic, and a good healer. Souls you are most compatible with: Old Soul and Peacemaker Soul

What Kind of Soul Are You?

Your Famous Last Words Will Be:

"Look ma! No hands!"

What'>http://www.blogthings.com/whatwillyourfamouslastwordsbequiz/">What Will Your Famous Last Words Be?

The State was jolted when terrorists targeted a tourist bus in Srinagar killing four persons from Surat. This sparked off a series of protests by various organisations. VHP was the most vocal and had called for a boycott of Kashmir. But the tragedy and its aftermath have not affected the flow of Amarnath pilgrims from the State this year. In fact, the numbers have reached a new high. As of now, the registration trend shows the number of Amarnath pilgrims this year will be much higher than that of last year.
According to Jammu and Kashmir Bank, which is the nodal agency for registration of pilgrims, this year’s figure has already crossed last year’s. ‘‘Last year, it was about 6,500. This year, registrations have already crossed this figure and we expect about 17,000 pilgrims from Ahmedabad alone. On May 31, as many as 1,200 people registered. Since then, the daily average is about 800,’’ said Kidarnath Dhar, assistant general manager of the bank in Ahmedabad. For this year, the Jammu and Kashmir government has also increased the Gujarat quota of pilgrims to 54,600 from last year’s 21,000. This quota is to be monitored by the Jammu and Kashmir Bank and it is independent of the number of registrations done by private tour operators.
The break-up of the quota (of 54,600) is like this: 16,800 each for the C G Road, Vadodara and Surat branches of the bank; 4,200 for Satellite branch.
This year the actual yatra is during July 15-August 9.
Private tour operators say this year they are receiving more registrations. It was only for a few days after the terrorist attack on the tourist bus last month that killed seven tourists from Surat, that people were not showing much interest in going to the Valley. But that was just for a short period.
Like Ramesh Thakkar’s Navbharat Tours and Travels has so far made 500 registrations, against last year’s 350. Their target is 1,000 reservations. ‘‘We hope to register this much,’’ said Thakkar.
Chandrakant Shah of Sri Vardayini Travels says till now 200 pilgrims have registered with him, whereas last year the figure was 180. ‘‘The figure will go up, and this year the business is good,’’ said Shah. For regular pilgrim Hemant Khosti, this year’s yatra will be his 15th. ‘‘This year, I am taking my 16-year-old son with me. I was there when the terrorist attack on the tourist bus took place, but that was just one-time incident,’’ says Khosti.
There’s no stopping them:
J-K Bank, which registers pilgrims, expects the numbers to cross 17,000 against 6,500 last year.Looking at the response, J-K Govt has increased State quota from 21,000 last year to 54,600.Private tour operators say they have crossed targets.



Is this the kinda writing i really wanna be doing all my life?

Sure people tell you to think. Let's face it. Everyone has had some one come to them one day, with or without a particular reason who's told 'em to 'think'. I have a question for all those thinkers out there. Make that a couple. First. What IS thinking? Second. How do u think? I'm not talking about the biological process here. I'm talking about people who seriously sit down and decide to think about a particular topic. Maybe I've been doing it wrong all my life, but to me, thinking is a process where I let myself float around from one brainless topic to another, kinda like tasting them, turning them around in my mind, till I find something sufficiently bizarre or funny to spend a nickel's worth of time and energy on it. Then I move on.
Next. Can you remember what you are thinking about all day long? I honestly, truly and most sincerely cannot. Especially when I have to answer questions like "WHAT ON EARTH WERE YOU THINKING?" All I'd like to say is, "obviously, I was thinking about something that made what I did (or was going to do , at the point of time in question) seem like a good idea. I mean, WHAT KINDA LAME QUESTION IS THAT, ANYWAY?

Besides, since no one taught me how to think, how can anyone blame me for not doing it often enough? More often than not, when I hear the phrase , "Think! Goddammitt! Think! Use your head!", I catch myself straining to picture myself using my head... Somehow, all I get, are multi-colored circles, spinning around in the dark vaccousness that is the inside of my head. Other times, even the circles and dots desert me for more fertile lands... Now is one of those times.

When I began, I thought I had a lot to say, now I'm not sure...
When I started out, I tried to think. Now, I've given up... Imagining is so much easier...

Although that gets me to another question. how does a deaf-mute think? Most people I know, and I don't know that many, are not deaf or mute, and think in sentences, in ideas, in words... So, another question. Naturally. Do thoughts have to be coded in language or language? Will it be the end of thought as we know it if people forgot to speak? I doubt that. Seriously. Next time someone says something, guess if they thought about what they said. In most cases, the thoughts in a person's head are private. Words and language are their passage to the public world. So I'm guessing, language may end if thought ceases, not the other way around. But the lack of a language need not mark the end of thought. There're always pictures, aren't there? If the Neanderthal Man could do it, surely the uber liberated 21st century metro/retro/homo/hetero-sexual man could do too... And if you're wondering if there's a pattern to all these words on this page, I'm not sure.. THIS is just an example of how my mind works. Ciao

Done with College. Joined the gainlessly employed. bye bye Chennai. Hello AHmedabad. So much to talk about. No time to do it. will check back soon. Jus in case anyone's interested or listening...

Of Witchdoctors, Evil Spirits and AIDS

Even after science has taken man to the moon, there are some things that have not changed. Man is still as superstitious, still as questioning, still as trusting as he (or she) has ever been in the forces of nature. While scientists look for the cure to AIDS, there are still those who believe that ghostly possessions are the world’s greatest problem. They have even made this their livelihood.

L.Govindan, nestled away in a small hamlet near Nilavur on the Yelagiri hill is one such ‘Witch Doctor’. When asked about the biggest health problem on the hill, he looks around, crosses his fingers in one of the oldest and commonest actions to ward off evil and says “ghosts”. Ghosts allegedly target women more often. “They are brought in with their hair open and torn clothes. They get very violent and yell abuses and generally act wild.” He adds, “There are some things that can be done to get rid of the ghosts, but it takes time.”

Acording to the only Primary Health Care Centre (PHC) on the hill, AIDS and TB are the two biggest problems they have to deal with. There have been about 42 new cases of the HIV reported in the last three years. The occurrence of TB is now diminishing, but it is still a problem.

Govindan claims that TB is caused by spirits eating away at your happiness. As far as AIDS is concerned, there’s “nothing like that here”.

People trust Govindan more than they trust the doctors in the PHC, say his neighbours, most of whom also happen to be his nephews.

This distrust of doctors was echoed in other villages around Yelagiri as well. According to people in Nilavur and Mangalam, there are too few doctors, and they are too far between. Women in Thaayanur would rather have their babies at home or, if possible go all the way to Tirupattur to find medical help, rather than make their way down to the PHC, where doctors may or may not be available. Even the nurses there are very rude, often making fun of women in labour, said Kannammai, an Octogenarian grandmother of four.

He is famous in these parts, with people coming from as far as Dharmapuri to visit him. In fact, a family of three waited patiently for him to finish talking to The Word. Not wanting to break patient confidentiality, he simply said they were having family problems and wanted his help. Their ‘treatment’ would last about three days, he said. During this time, the family would be his guests.

On average, treatment lasts anywhere from 1 day to a week, sometimes, even longer, with treatment costing anywhere between Rs.150 - Rs.7000, depending on the severity and type of affliction. He acts as psycho-analyst, physician, and guidance counselor to those who approach him. He believes that talking to people helps them in difficult situations, “especially for women having abortions.” When asked if there were a lot of abortions in the area, he explained, “Most men go down to look for work in the plains. So the women folk are left behind with only a handful of men. Occasionally, things like that happen… women whose husbands have been away for months get pregnant. Then they have to have abortions.”

He says he has perfected the technique of ‘aiding’ abortions. His method is non surgical, and non-invasive, he says. He powders a mix of dried herbs and adds it to milk, which the woman needing the abortion is asked to drink twice a day. This needs to be done for 4 days and the foetus ‘dissolves’. This is one of the few ‘treatments’ he allows away from his watchful eye. He even claims to have cured a paralytic with his exotic sounding chants and local herbs.

Govindan gathers his cures from among the native flora of the region, which means dipping into the wealth of the nearby reserve forest occasionally. Do the authorities have a problem? “No”, he says. “I don’t disturb anyone, so I don’t have any problems with anybody. Besides, I know where to find what and it’s all close enough. So I don’t take too much of anything at a time.”

However, if you go looking Govindan, do not expect to find the “Witch Doctor” of popular culture. He wears no animal skin or feathers. Neither does he wear a necklace of animal teeth or claws. He is unassuming, clad, like most other men in the area in a lungi. While his home is a good 20 minute trek up hill from the Yelagiri YMCA office, past ragi and rice fields, Govindan isn’t exactly cut off from civilization. He stays tuned in to the rest of the world thanks to his dish antenna. On being asked why he needed a Dish, “Simple. Cable wires don’t reach all the way here,” he replies, pokerfaced and then breaks into a wide grin.

Things to do when u r rained in

Ok, so this old.. but it still holds true... and considering that my brain seems to have escaped from the rest of my body, this just about suits my current mindset. Kinda hoping i'll be rained in soon.. the heat is gettin to me!

* Stare at a candle - It improves your concentration, not to mention increases your spiritual consciousness

* Do the Piggy Dance - if u dunno the Piggy dance, make sumthing up. As long as it's some thing u'd be too embarrassed to do outside the safe confines of your room, it's perfectly acceptable! [p.s. it also burns calories;)]

* Try establishing alien contact

* Wish you were anywhere but where you are. For effect, wish aloud in different tones of voice. Make up exotic sounding accents as you go along

* Sing at the top of your voice. Try to drown out the thunder. Don't forget to practice air guitar as well.

* Hurl abuses at the Gods. Call them insensitive for ruining your perfectly laid plans. ( never mind the fact that your perfect plans consisted of staring at a piece of lint!)

* Design a super bike so outrageous, it would take a superhero to ride it!

* Plan your funeral, write an obituary

* Make a list of things you'd like to do before you die

* Imagine you are going to be stuck indoors forever, with no electricity. Come with a worst case scenario. Compete with friends for the worst story.

* Wish you had stocked up on the bread and cheese you passed by the last time you went grocery shopping

* Rearrange your closet while trying not to burn your favourite sweater that's become your lifeline

* PRAY

* Write a love song. then refer to idea number 5

* Practice tying your shoe laces. If you don't own shoes with laces, BORROW!!!

* Come up with and practice an Oscar/Grammy acceptance speech

* Make up new words and insist that they are part of traditional Zulu or something or, come up new meanings for existing words. Call your friends dumb if they deny their existence. You can also accuse them of not trusting you if they question your "meanings"

* Come up with a longer list than this. the weirder the better!

:D

I'm Han Solo... who are you?



You're Han Solo


The Classic Star Wars Test

Brought to you by Tickle

find your element
at mutedfaith.com.

Self Promotion Number 1

If u aren't bored with the stuff here, go check out
http://sharepoetry.com/user/show/Zephra%20Keyes

Beep! Beep! It's Me. Cogito Ergo Sum. I can't hear you. I have a banana in my ear.

Beep! Beep! It's Me. Cogito Ergo Sum. I can't hear you. I have a banana in my ear.

Thy names are many...

Vulcan, Hephaistos, Agni, Dazbog, Bel, Amaterasu, Fudo, Kagutsuchi...


Embers glow.
Red heat turns white
ever hungry,
all consuming
Many names, one face.
Vulcan, Agni, Bel...
Feared and revered,
Since time began.
Now, a power embraced,
A religion unto itself.

I'm an illusionist, apparently

find your element
at mutedfaith.com.

Circles

It's funny how a day that started so bad could end this good...

The persistent ringing of my mobile phone woke me up at 8.30 The voice on the other end of the line said, "I'm sorry, but I just heard he died. Thought you'd want to know."

I did. And sad as I felt, I knew there was nothing I could do - not for him, not for those he left behind. So, after mulling over the mysteries of life and counting my blessings, I decided to get on with my life. Classes were attended, assignments completed and handed in...Others concerned were informed, of course... Essentially, it was just another day of my life.

Till in the evening, at least. It's funny how you don't really notice how much time a day actually is... This was my own personal lesson for the day.

A smattering of people - each absorbed in his or her own work, contentrating on the computer screen in front of them. A phone rings again. This time, it isn't mine.

"Yes sir, I'll tell them"
A list of names is repeated.
"Ok. So these are the ones going to Mumbai?"
"And the others? Delhi? Oh. Ok"
"Yes sir, I'll let them know. Thank you so much sir."

Suddenly, personal work is forgotten. Ears strain to catch snippets of a one-sided conversation. The call ends. A squeal goes up. It soon multiplies... Squeals turn into shouts. Frantic text messages fly back and forth. Congratulations are in order. Two-thirds of the class is now employed. Jubilations all around.

And I wonder at how a day that began so bad could turn on its head and end like this.

But this is not the end of the day. There are 10 others, who do not form part of that enchanted list. Friends. Distraught. This time, there IS something I can do. A hug has always worked wonders. Free of cost and not regulated by the government. The magic works as always.

Then we head out to a pub; but don't really need the alcohol to intoxicate us. The reality of a job sets in. Exhilaration increases. Everyone gets high. On music. On life. On the possibilities that it brings.

A day that started so bad ended this good... A Full Circle and a Half.

My wave

My element. this is me.
A crashing wave.
I go up. I come down.
Static is what i am not.
As lazy, as unpredictable,
as everything a wave can be..
this is me.
---------------------------------




Pic @ Elliot's Beach, Besant Nagar.