Sunday, September 30, 2007

India calling…


I am back after a brief hide-n-seek with my blog. And its September again…..talking about addictive behavior and such things.….phew…I am still at it…. I surely know how to dwell on things for long. And my love affair with September continues…..

In between brainstorming on issues of sexual violence around the globe and listening to discourses from Belgrade, Cape Town, Dhaka, Karachi, Melbourne, Nairobi, Pretoria or preparing our presentations from India, I did indulge in my addiction …shhhhh!!!

Call it my love for numbers or statistics or such and that was enough to keep me away from anything pessimistic when mood in the room became gloomy thinking about what happens to a rape victim when she approaches a facility (medical or police or judiciary) for help. I am sure I along with my fellow researchers from all these places would come up with comprehensive models suitable in our regional context even though I did not give all my ‘thinking time’. And why not, it’s a moment of glory and it’s easy to float on the wave of adulation and that’s something I like…It gives you a definite high!

And the statistics tells that India is on the top of the world and I am not only talking about Cricket but two more sports. We are the world champion of T20 when our men in blue (or Dhoni’s devil) made others see only blue or green! And then in Hockey we became the Asian champion on 9 September. As if these were not enough I drag something from end of August (29 August to be specific) when we won the Nehru cup in Football.

Its sunny moment for India and it’s our moment at the top of the world. Ouch….60 is HOT! And then again it’s my September connection or sunny connection that makes me go ga ga in joy. When the weather is just right and when I like the way wind plays with my hair and when everything looks just oh-so perfect...oops...

My bytes on India continues out of the conference room…hope my friend from Serbia is still tuned in, are you? And my ode to September continues….

Saturday, September 29, 2007

Tack så mycket!



The other day I read a blog which is dedicated to my sunny connection (or me?) which made me think more on the Sun, the moon and the stars… and which further inspired me for another blog as I let my imagination loose after a jolly good evening…and I like to think!

Thanks Rahul for sharing your thoughts and interpretation.

After talking about the Sun and the Moon, I move on to the stars and why not???
Stars are all over…twinkle twinkle little stars with starry eyed people, star crossed couple…wow, is not that rhyming??? And our age old star mania, both with the ones on the screen and then with those on the sky!

For me Sun is synonymous with light, life, joy, brightness and things so positive, so charming, so colorful and all in all it exudes happiness. I never thought how so much of Sun could be oh-so different until I read that blog post… Well, coming to think of it : I do see the truth, I could feel the feeling. Yes, Sun does symbolize lonliness however powerful it may be, however important it may be. Yes, too much of Sun is not so full of life, it could be just so lifeless like in a desert. Yes, I can now see there are other sides of Sun as well like a coin.

And yet again its an awakening time for me…Sunrise time!

You take note as we talk about a Sun on the earth and her sunny side story: and this Sun has many stars and moons around her; all so star crossed …ummm, star kissed!

Sunday, September 23, 2007

You know what?


I sure knew I am addictive, people get hooked to me….but now I know I am addicted and I am hooked! This is addictive; I am doing it all day, everyday, 24x7. You know how it feels, I am completely hooked!

Intrigued? Well, read on…

Well, its not any man, nor a substance nor a drug neither any toxin but its some space under the world wide web where you can pour out your thoughts unabashedly and yet not ruffle any feathers or poke anyone’s ego…oops….did I really reach them whom I wanna bash, I wonder?!
And you know what?? I am hooked onto you, my blogspot!!

So, what do you think? Suggest a karmic solution, a rehab option or supply me the poison err pat my back with your comments…anyway, that’s your call and I sail on…
Yes, I am on the move and till I come back do keep me updated on whether someone really burnt her bra or smoked some dozen cigarettes…ha ha ha!!!
I am getting sinister by the day…oops..then what goes in the night, I wonder? I leave that to your creative imagination!!

¡Hasta entonces, adiós!

The Daughter in me


From fire to fair: from bra burning to babe worshipping, I have seen them all.

I am in a celebratory mood today and why not?
Today is ‘daughter’s day’ and I (along with many others) am thriving, basking in glory and soaking in all the bubbly err attention! And that’s definitely a good feeling for all of us, daughters!

‘Happy daughters day’ to all you there; especially for those who could withstand social pressure in their walks of life; for those who escaped that brutal decision of their family and could breathe air after coming out of their mothers’ womb; for those who could be the torch bearer of an empowered generation; for those who could match steps with progress and technology balancing household chores with élan. I salute all those brave hearts and minds who took the challenge to bring on this earth their own girl child(ren) going against family’s wishes. Long live ‘girl child’! Look up and march ahead…the road is paved and it should be good if not smooth.

I am happy and daddy is having a jolly good time! And Sun is smiling, err shining.

Friday, September 21, 2007

I hate you Bitch!

I knew I would hate you the first time I met you on that hot afternoon last summer and I was right.

Well, it’s been many months we have found each other in the vicinity yet at the core we can’t stand each other….admit it, you bitch. However civil we try to remain in our daily interactions the truth is you always have an eye on me and more so now when you find me right under your nose. You know, actually I had taken a bad decision…but, not any more….

I can’t understand why you bring your fucking face in front of me every morning on your way to ------ and again so many times during the day during your countless ----time. I don’t understand why you hover around me pretending you came to meet someone else. I don’t understand why on earth you are so curious about what I do. I don’t understand why you hear what I don’t even think in my head and concoct a story. I don’t understand why you always think you could interpret correctly something about me when you just see things on façade. I don’t understand why you don’t understand that I am not like you. I don’t understand why you don’t understand that you have no business with my personal life. I don’t understand why you don’t understand that I don’t like you. I don’t understand why you don’t understand I give you a f***. And for so many moons I have been trying to tell you I could see the witch underneath the façade you wear during the day…err in life! And that I find you damn superficial and brainless even if you are holding that hot seat for long. And I REALLY don’t understand why you don’t get back to what you have at your desk….Get back to work, be professional.

And I know how you would feel when you come to know what I did today. But as always it came my way and I had no inkling till the last moment and then I knew how desperate you were for that…oops! I pity you. And I am happy I will not see you every morning hovering around me wearing that bitchy..err evil grin. You know, you can’t even imitate me there. First you don’t have a face like me so you can’t wear a smile like I do and then you don’t know how to smile.

Smile from your heart and the world smiles with you …oooo, I forgot that you don’t have one…bad advice there. Would you ever try to be genuine? When?

And you are a bitch and a bitch and a bitch and will always be ever and ever and ever…a super-duper bitch! I am sure you are fond of titles..there you go..on the fire! Burn your bra or lit a cigarette or go green or turn red or burn into ashes, I dont care.

Thursday, September 20, 2007

Fon(e)y Connexion!


I am a proud subscriber of Vodafone from today and it feels good. Well, not because I have any thing with a brand global or anything on that line. For those interested in hard facts err.. statistics: it’s the second largest telecom provider after China Mobile; I get this piece of information from my well informed brother who is in the helm of affairs in telecom sector.
I am not talking about any of that but an incident as I am reminded of one such from a time that has been so long ago…

It takes me to the year 1978 and to a city called as ‘city of Joy’. I and my entire nuclear family (sans my darling brother as he was still in my mother’s tummy or may be even not there….shhh..) landed in the city after our much talked about North Eastern sojourn.
It was one evening when all family members gathered to meet the new family. My parents left Calcutta as a couple and came back with a new addition… (That’s me!) And I was introduced to all the family members; actually, the other way around. For me that meeting was where those words got faces which I had only learnt to pronounce from those picture books one reads after your honeymoon with alphabets.

And as usual I was the show stopper or the garrulous most and no one complained (that’s how I would like to believe!). My memory seldom fails and I still remember how I caught attention of my maternal grandfather who by all standards the most suave gentleman I have ever seen in my life. I went near him, stood very close to him almost grabbing his knee (well, I was only that tall then to reach that far!) and said: ‘we got our phone connection today’ and then looked up to him to check whether he took notice of what I just uttered. He promptly grabbed me and made me sit on his lap and fondly asked me: ‘what is a phone’? And I very intelligently (as usual…can’t stop patting my back ..ha ha ha!) retorted back: ‘P-H-O-N-E- phone’. And he smiled. And then I looked at him again and said: ‘why, you thought I would say F-O-N-E?’ And next I heard a huge roar of laughter in the room.
And as usual I made people laugh….well, that’s a different story.

Well, my FONE connection continues as my service provider still spells it that way. V-O-D-A-F-O-N-E- Vodafone.
And now you know I have new connection err Vodafone!

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Happy Birthday, smiling face!



Another birthday and my ode to September continues....

September is rather a birthday month indeed! Our good friend smiley turned 25 today. On this very day in 1982, Prof Scott E Fallman of Carnegie Mellon University for the first time gave birth..err conceived what was a series of three characters: a colon, a hyphen and a parenthesis and asked us to read it sideways to see whether it's smiling :-)

Voila! our smiling face, a symbol of good time was born.
Long live smiley !! :-) ummm, I am seriously smiling here! :-D

Quote-Unquote

On a sunny note, another one on sunny connection!
"Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth." Wow...so said Buddha.

Quote-Unquote


After all, no matter what happens, the Sun rises every day. Wow, what a sunny note !!
I am a sunny gal, dont you know?

September....encore!


"Though we've got to say good-bye for the summer .......Yes, its gonna be cold and lonely summer.....So let us make a pledge to meet in September and seal it with a kiss."

Thus goes the lyrics...err thats how I recall what Brian Hyland once sang. For whom? Any idea?!

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Buongiorno, Principessa!


Good morning, sweet princess! Welcome!

It’s such a sweet feeling to have your own child; it’s such a proud moment for any parent and more so, if its the first time around. And I am sure my friend felt just so after a wait of those 9 (or so) months when you get to see what was growing in your tummy; you get to hold what has been playing inside you and kicking you when you wanted to catch a nap! Congratulations and best wishes as you become the proud parent of your baby girl.

Welcome, sweet princess.

Monday, September 17, 2007

Lost and Found


Who moved my ch....err Tuborg? Did not I keep it here last night? May be I am imagining or I was dead drunk? Well, I and Denmark and for that matter anything Danish, goof up all the time, its nothing new. Hic hic!

Saturday, September 15, 2007

Living like a Nomad



Looks like mustard seeds under my feet had started to roll again…whoosh..and I am on the roll again! Wow, I like the feeling, moving on the fast lane, going atop thousand miles and being there where you want to. It’s a heady feeling to have those gusts of wind on your face, wind playing with your locks; I like that look, my unruly locks!

Payer tolaye shorshhe’- this Bengali proverb if translated literally in English would mean mustard seeds underneath your feet. The first time I had heard the phrase as a toddler was when my grandmother, a very accomplished poet/writer on her own right told this to my dad to mention his ‘today here-tomorrow there’ lifestyle with innumerable transfers in and around the country.

Well, I inherited his genes. I am a daddy’s gal, don’t you know?!!

As a child I used to dream to see all the corners of the World, cross all the oceans and travel to all the continents and I look at the list I have in front of me which lists the name of places I have been already and to which all I want to set my feet. I feel HAPPppY! It gives me a sense of achievement, a sense of pride and a sense of accomplishment. And the music on my ipod plays: where do you go? And I sing back: I will let you know!

It’s living like a nomad at its peak and I am lovin’ it. That’s how McD lures you....err sales those fatty burgers, not for me, though! Hmmm, I am so hungry and where is my fillet-o-fish???
Ooops, I remembered something…Its party time: Nous avons une partie ce soir; venez-vous?

Friday, September 14, 2007

Quote-Unquote


There are two kinds of people in the world. Those who walk into a room and say, "There you are" and those who say, "Here I am". Abigail Van Buren

Quote-Unquote

'Occassionally wrong and rarely in doubt', says who?

Thursday, September 13, 2007

Seven Seven...Dirty Seven!


I am good with words and not numbers, well thats how I like to think. But my report cards always told me and especially my dad that I have a thing with numbers!
Now what??? Numerology or Algebra? Well, none of that. I realized I remember things and also numbers, wow! Its about the cruise on the Nile and our group of Seven: three couples, who adopted me on board 'Nile-Ritz' and I.

Who are these couples? They looked like retired couples on holiday when I was assigned a huge table, all to myself right next to them. And little later I knew their food preference as they were not able to fill their plates with Egyptian delicacies. I was observing them, well, not that I was smitten by any one those three men but I was a vegeterian myself that time. (What?? travelling in Egypt and vegeterian! Yes... ) I guess the manager on the deck was also as observant as me and decided to join both the tables, obviously after getting a nod from both the sides. And we became SEVEN and we had ONE common thing between us: greens...go greens...ooops, yikes!

And for those 4N-5D it never occured to me I started the trip alone. We talked, joked, ate, drank, danced, played (I still remember those games of table tennis, hope they got back those ping-pongs I sent all over!), and again played (this one is for those games of cards and Tambola or shall I say 'Bingo') and had a blast.

The list of common things increased as we mingled, which included two languages, one vacation a year and then a common civilization (the Indian Sub-continent). Thus started our story.

Anyway, coming back to numbers: how Dirty Seven came into being...read on...

If you have ever heard Sudanese/Egyptian accented English then you would comprehend this one better: but I give it a shot with my words! In this part of the world (or shall I say people from here) 'T' is spoken with a slight dip in 'Z' and thus all words starting with a 't' like 'the' etc would sound like 'zte'. We had a winner in our group in everything, be it the Bingo game; or belly dancing or fancy dress competition.
It was that game of Bingo again: it was when we needed a 37 to complete the row and win a 'pyramid' and we were not able to locate a 'zirty seven' on our bingo coupons! And then one among us said 'Bingo' and prompty went for the prize and then another started to shout "Dirty Seven- Dirty Seven' and our group got a name. And we were christened as 'Dirty Seven' ever since. Long live SEVEN- SEVEN- D-I-R-T-Y-S-E-V-E-N!!

So, where is Dirty-Seven heading in 07? Well, where else but to one of those SEVEN wonders (have you checked the new list, its still there, no??)! Seven...oops see you there!

Dialogue Collage: Art of Confusion


Wow, I progress from monologue to dialogue, at least in this post, that is! No, it isn’t.

I talk a lot, I am a talkative person, I am a monotonous talker, I am a monologue marathon, I am a chatterbox and I am what I am. What? I thought I make sense and that’s why you listen, I did not know you can’t hear and that you can’t say….ooops!

This blog finds its place as I am asking myself questions and looking for answers from people (do I??) whom I have come across in life, people whose comments had struck a chord somewhere yet did not create a symphony, people who liked listening to me yet did not understand what I meant and people who confused me with their own ways of confusion….or that was making of Confuscious?! Wisdom galore! I would not get there. I would not try. I hate confusion.

Have you heard of a phrase, ‘we are (two nations) separated by a common language’? Well, G B Shaw said that first and I heard it again yesterday, oops! And it was not the first conversation, not even the second...actually, I lost counts after all those chatterathon.
Why that phrase? Well, may be I did not have the twang or simply because I was not making sense and others were not following what I was saying. I guess thats something you know when you make those first few conversations and don't wait for the marathons to get over.
And I am confused as when you say what you say and people laugh, you feel they are enjoying or you think they think you are funny or a fool; meaning you communicate, you make sense and others understand. And communication continues.
People look forward to hearing from you as that makes them happy and you feel they understand you; you convey meaning and you communicate. And communication continues.
And then after an epic communication series you hear it ...what? Why that phrase happen? Either people are confused about something or trying to confuse you. I guess people learn to express what they think before the river changes its course. Diplomacy personified??!! No one would find a patron in me here, never.

I did not know I was talking to make no sense (thats sort of an insult for someone who exists because she communicates) or the other had an ear-plug, is it? Thankyou very much for the comment but I have been successfully communicating so far and none complained. Wish some one found out the indicators of cultural difference at the outset without wasting time,energy,resources. Wow, someone forgot to ask for tips from an Anthropologist or ran out of logical excuses...hah! Wake up, life is not so logical, anyway.
Well, you cant impress me much, that goes the lyrics here.....Ohh, its such a shit...all crap (sic)

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Come September


September has always been a special month for me ever since I have come out of my mother’s womb. And I am sure it must be for many others, for good reasons and bad. Don’t we all know about Osama’s success: the infamous 9/11?

It was a ‘Come September’ for me this time, literally! I was waiting for it; well, my birthday month. But this year I was waiting for a reason, waiting to see something, waiting to know something…I am a curious being, don’t you know!? And what a wait that it was and what a revelation that it has been!!! It is a Double Whammy for me and believe me you not, I had a safe landing…oops…my nose!! And most importantly, my heart is in place and so are my feet and I am walking again. My logical friend (a female) asks me bitterly, if ‘its all good’ then why are you talking about it??? Yes, it is good to know that your intuition is your best friend and you only have your answers and that no one can decide for you and that one should not ignore the first signal and wait for a ‘seven-month-itch’ (Hey, doesn't Seven and September has a connection?? Thinking in French?). And then it is important to talk about things in life, its essential to express and let others know how you feel and its good to share what you learn, spread the education (as if people care?). Ooops, expectations again! The practical me is angry as she says ‘Did not I tell you to cut down on potatoes..err expectations?’ Well, it’s human to err and I am no different as they say experience makes what you are and I am happy that I have added on some, if at all. It reminds me I had read it somewhere, where, I ask? O’my bonnie baby, is not that your tag line on all those e-notes you send me; why did not I get the meaning then?? It’s all my eyes’ fault, sexy eyes or Spanish eyes…whatever! My eyes were blind or I blind-folded them (I have a naughty thought here..wanna know???). And I liked the act!!!

As I am giving a quick read before I press ‘publish post’ I am also readying myself for yet another celebration, its Happy Birthday time for my brother …and where is the crystal bonsai…oops…where did I keep the gift???? Ouch, this hurts, its that ‘seven month itch’…where is the ointment, could you pass it on, please???

Thanks, my dear birthday boy for dragging me out from where I was and introducing me to the world waiting for me…..Happy Birthday, my bonnie baby! And we sing along a song, do you??
And I say ‘hej do’ to that ‘seven-month-itch’!!! Ooops..thats in Swedish just so you know. Hope you are reading it.

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

She Walks in Beauty


Every one is going ga ga over her; she was talked about in the past and she is being talked about now and why not, she is the epitome of beauty! While everyone is at it I also grab my moment under the sun…err moon (Though it’s so very unlike me. I seldom tread a path taken by many just so you know!). She is a gorgeous thing on earth ever since she happened and this one is my ode to love, my salute to something so eternally beautiful (oops..again this is so unlike me, worshipping beauty and I? Well, there is always a first time, no?).

Folks, hold on, stop rolling your eye-balls, she is not any female (hetero is the word for me..hic!) but she is our very own Taj Mahal!

I was waiting for that moment to set my eyes on her white marble body, for that special moment under the full moon light. And it’s such a whale of an experience. Wow! and I was floored, my eyes were moist, my throat was dry and heart was beating fast or dancing with joy??!! My joys knew no bounds and I was thrilled…well, that joy was short lived thanks to some rude security personnel who goofed up their watches from the pick-up point and then again at the screening points and my love affair lasted for just about 20 minutes instead of 30 minutes for which I had paid a special sum to ensure my date under moonlight…well, don’t you know good things don’t last for ever?!
But the ‘die-hard’ in me has plans to make it last longer and here is wishing that I could work with Uttar Pradesh Police Force one day and get night shift patrol duty at the monument and quench the romantic in me. Wah, what a thought! I very much could spend all my life admiring the charm and the romance of those moments. Who knows that could open doors for alternative career options of a poet or a creative writer...making of a maestro…ahhh…the 'alert me' says shouting, “wake up! You dream a lot.” Oh, yeah...its time to get practical!

If visiting Taj under moonlight could be so heady, I can only imagine how Shah Jehan used to feel looking at his beautiful wife, the great Mumtaz Mahal. He decided to make this beautiful mausoleum, befitting her beauty who died at childbirth in 1631, a tribute to love and beauty from a husband, a lovelorn, heartbroken Mughal Emperor called Shah Jehan.

Well, now I know for sure ‘beauty rules’! Ooops, why did not I know this before….alas…all those beauty crowns could have been mine…ha ha ha!!! At least someone mentioned a Taj souvenir to me, thats not bad!!

Monday, September 10, 2007

Mirage or Marriage


We just had a school reunion, and we relived our past drenched in nostalgia, laced in an overdose of double meaning vocabulary (some learnt for the first time that I could utter them and I for sure was surprised more than once and asked myself ‘how come its me all the time that my innocent words are sounding so...ummm.. sexy?!’).

Now coming back to the course of interaction, I guess it went on following a set pattern: people start gathering, people talk, and people exchange numbers and then people disperse. And what people talk? Well, definitely about others lives and the most personal the better!!! Someone starts counting the number of singles in the group on the lines of a cricket coach recounting fall of wickets! Somebody would simply turn into an agony aunt or uncle (depending upon gender) to solicit marriage, giving their voluntary services to the most unwilling customers…err.. friends. I silently say a prayer for all the singles in the group before the assault starts.

Well, marriage is a personal choice and decision; some marries early and some late and then there is a whole drama called finding the right chap..err match, even if you find one you have to make sure whether that would stay or stray and overall that bloody decision making process makes you feel like a dog (it reminds me I have to get rid of those dog biscuits myself…what a joke!) and more so if you are a representative of fairer sex even with right amount of education and moolah and sans those cellulites. I am sure in this insecure time as ours even a single man must be seeing stars in the day when it comes to arriving at a decision even if he knows he is not getting younger by the day.
Well, so, you all self-certified agony aunt/uncles, do you get the right picture now??? And most importantly, if marriage is the panacea for all those ‘imaginary’ ills then who would not want to bow for the holy vow? I am sure even though single-hood is smart, single-hood is envied and sought after but with our cultural norms (self imposed or socially imposed) it’s what we all would normally want (oooo, when someone wants to become a zen guru or a nun, please forgive me!).

But then a reunion is a reunion and for that matter a meeting is a meeting and why we have to follow a set pattern (oh so boring stereotype) as if social behavior is programmed. Well, they are actually programmed by our culture but are we not sounding as if we lost our heads and forgot to talk about other things under the sun??? What about rainbows (it rained this afternoon, may be we missed that pattern on the sky!!!)??
And at the end of the day when I am reminiscing about what all we talked, my bloated stomach reminded me..oops…we forgot to discuss what all we ate….burp… drank, did not we??? And in my head I hear a song ..It happens only in India…(do you remember the lyrics by any chance and can you sing along with me??)

Saturday, September 8, 2007

O’daddy!




Sending children to schools and that too to the ones you want, could be the most challenging task for any parent if you are from the city I come from and from the time I am living in. But someone had a lucky trip down there! It’s my dad and I guess he must have been the luckiest dad in terms of being able to send his daughter (and his son) to the schools he wanted in different cities and when he wanted with his untimely transfers.

The first one, an all girl’s school in the heart of a city in ‘city of joy’, had fascinated him when he as an NCC cadet set his feet in that huge stadium overlooking a school and he dreamt of sending his daughter to that ‘lake side – park side’ school one day. And the great Lord had granted him the wish, first with a daughter and then with a posting in that city when the daughter was just at the right age to go to school! It gives me a good feeling whenever I am reminded about this story… (You know, I love all that sentiments and things like that). But the ‘naughty-me’ is not satiated and intrigued about the source of his fascination since my mom came from a different city altogether and hence studied in a different school!!!! But the daddy’s girl in me says shouting…'don’t you know about his fixation with percentages and report cards????'. Oh yeah, good academic records, of course….



The second school from my daddy’s list is in the heart of the capital city with a name of a hill which is synonymous with the hot seat in the greatest democracy (oops….I am almost sounding like a quiz master and hey, don’t you scratch your head…its Raisina). He had heard about it during his innumerable visits to the capital city and wished his children (this time my brother had joined the team) to go to this school if he ever gets posted in the capital. His wishes were granted again when he got transferred to the capital in the middle of a year (to make the situation tough for us!). We both, brother and sister, had to sit for admission tests in an unlikely time to get admission (in the middle of an academic session as we were switching from different states and also different boards) and lo, and behold…the school had just one seat in each class we were to get in. And his wishes were granted again. Touch wood!

What do you say…is not my dad LUCKY?!