A cousin of mine asked me to research her assignment topic ' Why don't politicians commit suicide?'. I agree, it is a complete rip-off from Chetan Bhagat's 'One night at a call centre'.But quite an interesting question to ponder on. These are just some random facts I collected...
Politicans who have committed suicide - total of b/w 40 -70 ( from Wikipedia)
Leandro Nicefero Alem - Argentina - Age 52 ( year of death 1896). He started a political movement called Radical Civil Union to overthrow the ruling government. His uprising against the ruling govt failed and his supporters and political followers deserted him. Unable to take what he felt as a betrayal he shot himself in the temple.
Viscount Castlereagh - Very unpopular politician who was reviled.But politically achieved a lot . Irish - Britain politician.Claimed he was being blackmailed for some perverse acts .. was asked to consult a physician( mental). Went back home and cut his throat with a letter opener.
John Christopher Cutler - Was S.Governer , Utah. Gunshot death at the age of 82. Reason - Ill heath plagued him and he wanted to end the pain ( significant - His death was at a very old age and his reasons extremely acceptable).
Most important ------
Adolph Hitler - When Soviet Forces entered Berlin in 1945, Hitler knew the war was lost and all that would face him would be torture and court martials etc.,So consulted his physician regarding the best way to kill himself. Married his GF Eva Braun on April 30th.
Same day , Eva and he killed themselves by the means of gunshot and cyanide. A potent combination.
These are a list of the politicians ( intersting ones) who have committed suicide. Interesting point among this ... is that a majority of them kill themselves by the means of gunshot. Reason ? As a politician are weapons easily accessible? Or the more honorary reason of a gunshot being heralded as being ' A HONORABLE SOLDIER'S DEATH'???? I think the latter personally.
Fact remains that the resort to suicide in the case of all of these politicians was more end all, than depression or unhappiness with life as such. The choice when all else paths do fail.
Questions I ask? Reasoning? Is it because the roads of a politician are paved with gold. They do not face bankrupty with all the money they swindle us off? Prestige , power ,bootlicking all theirs? When a student can kill himself over failing an exam , why does not a politician kill himself when he loses an election? What about that a large majority of politicians in India are faced with charges of murder, rape or at the least charges of corruption and bribery? Unlike common man they are always acquitted? The Jessica Lal case where the son of a ex Minister who shot her in a bar in the midst of many witnesses ..and 7 years down the lane they all turn hostile? So is suicide not an option because they always have ways out of any crisis they face?
Important and intersting article - In 2004, Amlashol Village , People were dying with lack of food , water after a crop failure. A politician called Sambhu Mandi told the press that the villagers would not die. That if the trees would not provide them roots, leaves and fruits the villagers could eat Snakes , Rats and Toads!???? An inhuman remark from an inhuman politician? You need to feel to kill yourself. Be capable of feeling those ups and downs in life???
Check out this article - www.spiked-online.com/articles/00000006DE6D.htm
About David Kelly, WMD Inspector, who killed himself recently. The author has some very intersting points. The press glorified his courage. The author says, " Since when did the point 'Only the good kill themselves' come true? Was Hitler good? Was Fred West good? ( serial killer ) Suicide is rarely heroic. It is the act of cowards ".
This statement gives weight to the other alternative. To become a politician requires endurance, stamina,cunning and perseverance.It is a great achievment. The achievments might not be heroic , might not be for the good of the country, but still it takes a lot to reach that point. There are many students who face exams . Not all kill themselves. There are those who thrive under the stress, are ambitious and do brilliantly. To become a politician - a successful known one, require that steel and ambition. Can you thus equate the politician with the student who thrives under stress and sets out to perform brilliantly?
Think it over.
Friday, March 17, 2006
Friday, March 03, 2006
THROUGH THE EYES OF THE VICTIM (BlankNoiseProject)
Is there any girl who lives who has not been harassed on the roads? I think not.Probably the first time ( which I am not ashamed to recount) I was harassed was when I was eleven years old. I can still recollect that day when an old man in a motorbike stopped me in the middle of the road, when I was walking back from school in the pretext of asking me for directions. No sooner had I given him directions ( not a word of which he heard), he told me," Don't you think you are too young to have breasts?" gesticulating towards mine. I was horrified.Before I could even scream out "Bastard" he had sped away. I remember going home that day, falling on my bed and crying all evening.I didn't have the courage to talk to anyone about it. For an entire week all I could think about was that horrid old man.You know what the worst part of being harassed when you are too young is ?
You are not indignant.
You are not outraged.
Instead, you feel ashamed.
Humiliated and ashamed of YOURSELF.
Like as if the sin was commited by the sinned not the sinner. It's like the attitude that some people carry towards rape. "She asked for it!".An oft heard remark.By the stupid narrow minded jerks in the world!
It was a couple of months later that my humiliation turned to outrage when a group of us girls gathered together and started speaking about it.The tales I heard were horrifying. We were all just eleven then and I guess the age where men know us to be vulnerable, innocent and unprotected. Too young for parents to worry about and too old to be protected by childish innocence.
One of my friends had been told to come to the back of a grocery shop to pick up what she had come for and when she went in, the grocer caught hold of her and started rubbing his hands up and down her chest.She had to bite him hard on his hand to escape and run away.I was onced offered a choclate by a shopkeeper if I came into his shop and saw the pictures he had.They were all pornographic and he did the same 'pinch on the chest trick'. Luckily there were four or five of us girls then.I wonder what would have happened if I had been alone? Another friend of mine had been stopped by a guy driving a car, again in the pretext of asking for directions. It was worse this time around.The guy had unzipped his pants and had semen coated on his hands and asked her " Do you know what this is? Shall I tell you what it is?".She cycled away as fast as she could from there.Another time when the same friend and me were skating in a skating rink at six in the morning alone, an old guy blocked our exit and removed his dhoti and started waving his penis at us.
Do you know what the one thing we all shared in common when we recounted these incidents was? We all of us blamed ourselves. Believed that the cardinal sin was comitted by us and not the perpetuator.Tell me one thing. Is it for this reason that children are targeted so much by these lechers? Because they know that we don't know how to react?
Pouring our hearts out was the best thing we ever did. I think we grew up overnight. Became wary and cynical.More watchful and distrustful of what every stranger said or did. Where previously we would smile winnningly at the stranger who patted our heads and butts, started to shie away and have that 'keep your distance' look in our eyes.Good. It atleast stopped us hurting.Kids do need to grow into adults.But incidents like this just help in hastening the transition.
The next year I joined Karate classes.Trained to defend myself.It helped that my Karate Sirs included kicks in the groin as a part of our lessons.They especially taught us girls how to defend ourselves and how to be watchful. It did help me.A couple of years later when a guy on a road reached out his hand to grab my breasts ( What is this obsession that guys have with breasts????? Is it that you don't have them??) ,I judged his intentions and knocked his hands off before he could succeed and walked away( I am yet to sum up the courage to walk THEM to the police station).Another time when my friend and I were going doubles on a very lonely stretch of road called Besant avenue, late in the evening, a guy in another cycle stopped us in the pretext of asking for directions. ( Is this the most successful approach till date??).When I pointed out the way he needed to go, he suddenly grabbed hold of my top. Before he could take two breaths I had punched him on his face ( I was still on the cycle) , opened my fingers and scored my nails down his face ( I bet it hurt like mad).My friend with equal presence of mind kicked his cycle and he toppled down. Before he got up we fled away. We didn't want to take the chances of him having any friends nearby. All this when we were fourteen.
These days a guy who flicks our hair and whistles saying," What is the reason for your beautiful hair?' , gets retorts of "Sabeena or Ujala". A guy who accidently pats you on the butt gets an equally accidental knock on his head by a wayward elbow or even better, an umbrella. The guys who look you up and down get look-ups and downs themselves. But that too is just by a select few girls. Most still cringe in fear.The girls who are yet to learn to defend themselves. And what about those incidents where you cannot defend yourself?Reminds of ( read my post 'A scary experience', when an auto driver asked me "Aren't you scared of going alone in the night?" during a late night trip. I replied "No. I know Karate". To which he says " What if there are six or seven men? Then what will you do,huh?". I was paralysed with fear then.
But really? What could even the braver ones do? Sit back, be raped and say "Thank you" ?
p.s. I hope the girls who read this post of mine gain the courage to be brave themselves and know they are not alone. I hope the guys who read this know to not just never harass but also spread the message and get the same attitude grilled into their friends.And I hope that everyone who reads it understands that even young children are susceptible to being harassed and get easily traumatised by it.So keep an eye on them for such signs of withdrawal and educate them when they are still very young about what they need to watch out for.
I would like to thank BlankNoiseProject for the opportunity to represent myself in this blog-a-thon in a topic so close to my heart.
p.p.s I made the collage above as a true representation of what I felt.
You are not indignant.
You are not outraged.
Instead, you feel ashamed.
Humiliated and ashamed of YOURSELF.
Like as if the sin was commited by the sinned not the sinner. It's like the attitude that some people carry towards rape. "She asked for it!".An oft heard remark.By the stupid narrow minded jerks in the world!
It was a couple of months later that my humiliation turned to outrage when a group of us girls gathered together and started speaking about it.The tales I heard were horrifying. We were all just eleven then and I guess the age where men know us to be vulnerable, innocent and unprotected. Too young for parents to worry about and too old to be protected by childish innocence.
One of my friends had been told to come to the back of a grocery shop to pick up what she had come for and when she went in, the grocer caught hold of her and started rubbing his hands up and down her chest.She had to bite him hard on his hand to escape and run away.I was onced offered a choclate by a shopkeeper if I came into his shop and saw the pictures he had.They were all pornographic and he did the same 'pinch on the chest trick'. Luckily there were four or five of us girls then.I wonder what would have happened if I had been alone? Another friend of mine had been stopped by a guy driving a car, again in the pretext of asking for directions. It was worse this time around.The guy had unzipped his pants and had semen coated on his hands and asked her " Do you know what this is? Shall I tell you what it is?".She cycled away as fast as she could from there.Another time when the same friend and me were skating in a skating rink at six in the morning alone, an old guy blocked our exit and removed his dhoti and started waving his penis at us.
Do you know what the one thing we all shared in common when we recounted these incidents was? We all of us blamed ourselves. Believed that the cardinal sin was comitted by us and not the perpetuator.Tell me one thing. Is it for this reason that children are targeted so much by these lechers? Because they know that we don't know how to react?
Pouring our hearts out was the best thing we ever did. I think we grew up overnight. Became wary and cynical.More watchful and distrustful of what every stranger said or did. Where previously we would smile winnningly at the stranger who patted our heads and butts, started to shie away and have that 'keep your distance' look in our eyes.Good. It atleast stopped us hurting.Kids do need to grow into adults.But incidents like this just help in hastening the transition.
The next year I joined Karate classes.Trained to defend myself.It helped that my Karate Sirs included kicks in the groin as a part of our lessons.They especially taught us girls how to defend ourselves and how to be watchful. It did help me.A couple of years later when a guy on a road reached out his hand to grab my breasts ( What is this obsession that guys have with breasts????? Is it that you don't have them??) ,I judged his intentions and knocked his hands off before he could succeed and walked away( I am yet to sum up the courage to walk THEM to the police station).Another time when my friend and I were going doubles on a very lonely stretch of road called Besant avenue, late in the evening, a guy in another cycle stopped us in the pretext of asking for directions. ( Is this the most successful approach till date??).When I pointed out the way he needed to go, he suddenly grabbed hold of my top. Before he could take two breaths I had punched him on his face ( I was still on the cycle) , opened my fingers and scored my nails down his face ( I bet it hurt like mad).My friend with equal presence of mind kicked his cycle and he toppled down. Before he got up we fled away. We didn't want to take the chances of him having any friends nearby. All this when we were fourteen.
These days a guy who flicks our hair and whistles saying," What is the reason for your beautiful hair?' , gets retorts of "Sabeena or Ujala". A guy who accidently pats you on the butt gets an equally accidental knock on his head by a wayward elbow or even better, an umbrella. The guys who look you up and down get look-ups and downs themselves. But that too is just by a select few girls. Most still cringe in fear.The girls who are yet to learn to defend themselves. And what about those incidents where you cannot defend yourself?Reminds of ( read my post 'A scary experience', when an auto driver asked me "Aren't you scared of going alone in the night?" during a late night trip. I replied "No. I know Karate". To which he says " What if there are six or seven men? Then what will you do,huh?". I was paralysed with fear then.
But really? What could even the braver ones do? Sit back, be raped and say "Thank you" ?
p.s. I hope the girls who read this post of mine gain the courage to be brave themselves and know they are not alone. I hope the guys who read this know to not just never harass but also spread the message and get the same attitude grilled into their friends.And I hope that everyone who reads it understands that even young children are susceptible to being harassed and get easily traumatised by it.So keep an eye on them for such signs of withdrawal and educate them when they are still very young about what they need to watch out for.
I would like to thank BlankNoiseProject for the opportunity to represent myself in this blog-a-thon in a topic so close to my heart.
p.p.s I made the collage above as a true representation of what I felt.
Thursday, March 02, 2006
TO KILL OR NOT TO KILL?
A couple of days back I had this extraordinary dream.It came quite close to being a nightmare, but was not.Here it goes ---
It's late in the night and my entire house is pitched in darkness. I rise to go the kitchen for a drink of water.When I near the kitchen door, suddenly an apparition quite identical to the scary girl in 'The Ring' appears before me with her hands stretched out as if wanting to strangle me. I start with sudden fear. But my fear lives a short life. I reason to myself. Worst case scenario - what lies ahead of me is Death. And beyond death, what? Nothing. So it does not really matter.
Surprised by my lack of fear the apparition asks me, 'Why are you not terrifed?'. I explain. Amazed at my explanation, the apparition says, ' Alright. For this I shall give you a gift. A gift of being able to kill someone through ill thoughts. Were you to think really badly of someone, then they will die'.Saying this she kisses me on my cheek. I panic. I plead out saying, 'No! What you give me is no gift.It is a curse. An evil curse. I do tend to think quite ill of certain people. I don't want their blood on my hands.It would make me no better than you'.She stares at me for a while and says, 'A gift once given cannot be taken back'.
I feel incredibly upset at the thought. Can't stop thinking about what a heavy burden I need to henceforth carry on my shoulders.
And then it suddenly hit me.That I was wrong.What I had been given was not necessarily a curse. Yes, it did mean I had to learn to temper the grudges and ill feeling I might hold towards some people. But then it gave me a wonderful power too. The ability to met out justice when all else failed. To wield some goodness in an oft corrupt and wicked world. What if I used this ability to kill the Manu Sharmas( read Jessica Lall) and the George Bushs of this world?Would it still be a curse or a modern day,my own 'Sudarshan Chakra'?
Think about it.
It's late in the night and my entire house is pitched in darkness. I rise to go the kitchen for a drink of water.When I near the kitchen door, suddenly an apparition quite identical to the scary girl in 'The Ring' appears before me with her hands stretched out as if wanting to strangle me. I start with sudden fear. But my fear lives a short life. I reason to myself. Worst case scenario - what lies ahead of me is Death. And beyond death, what? Nothing. So it does not really matter.
Surprised by my lack of fear the apparition asks me, 'Why are you not terrifed?'. I explain. Amazed at my explanation, the apparition says, ' Alright. For this I shall give you a gift. A gift of being able to kill someone through ill thoughts. Were you to think really badly of someone, then they will die'.Saying this she kisses me on my cheek. I panic. I plead out saying, 'No! What you give me is no gift.It is a curse. An evil curse. I do tend to think quite ill of certain people. I don't want their blood on my hands.It would make me no better than you'.She stares at me for a while and says, 'A gift once given cannot be taken back'.
I feel incredibly upset at the thought. Can't stop thinking about what a heavy burden I need to henceforth carry on my shoulders.
And then it suddenly hit me.That I was wrong.What I had been given was not necessarily a curse. Yes, it did mean I had to learn to temper the grudges and ill feeling I might hold towards some people. But then it gave me a wonderful power too. The ability to met out justice when all else failed. To wield some goodness in an oft corrupt and wicked world. What if I used this ability to kill the Manu Sharmas( read Jessica Lall) and the George Bushs of this world?Would it still be a curse or a modern day,my own 'Sudarshan Chakra'?
Think about it.
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE
I wrote this one when I was once in an extremely introspective yet euphoric mood. Looking back, I cannot find it in myself to be so euphoric and enthused yet can't help but wish I was.
It was a meaningful insight into the kind of life I would like to lead. The resolve to live happy.The decision to take each day as it came and live for the moment.Life is too short to dwell in misery and self pity. It deserves to be a celebration. A celebration of all we had,have and will have in the future. :) It's a beautiful world.Not sparkling white, true. But neither is it a dark brooding melanchony.I need to start loving all I have. And learn to change what I can barely tolerate.Not spend my life brooding on what I dislike yet make no attempt to banish it.I can't change the world. But in the process of enriching my life I do hope in some small way I can make the people around me happy and slowly move on to make a difference in the world.
It was a meaningful insight into the kind of life I would like to lead. The resolve to live happy.The decision to take each day as it came and live for the moment.Life is too short to dwell in misery and self pity. It deserves to be a celebration. A celebration of all we had,have and will have in the future. :) It's a beautiful world.Not sparkling white, true. But neither is it a dark brooding melanchony.I need to start loving all I have. And learn to change what I can barely tolerate.Not spend my life brooding on what I dislike yet make no attempt to banish it.I can't change the world. But in the process of enriching my life I do hope in some small way I can make the people around me happy and slowly move on to make a difference in the world.
Friday, February 10, 2006
MY LIFE AS A FRESHER :( AKA THE OMINOUS THREE 'O' THEORY (Courtesy :Megha )
The other day my Dad called out of the blue in the middle of the day and asked me ,"What are you doing?". Not wanting to befuddle him with technical lingo ( *ahem,ahem* , I liked using that.., but do not pledge to its accuracy), I replied, " Nothing much, Dad".To which he said " Oh? On the bench are you?". Quick to rise was my anger. My dad's remark was not particulary accurate. True, the work I do is nothing mind boggling but I was most certainly not on the 'Bench' as my dad put it.
A couple of days ago my brother in law ( ha!! The lucky soul who got to marry my sis!!) asked me, " So what's up at work?". Brutally honest I replied, " Don't keep asking me that question. The work I do is extremely monotonous". Then I hit the nail on the head! Eureka, I thought and then exclaimed to him " You know what? I am nothing more than an overqualified, overpaid, overworked data entry operator".And that precisely sums up my job.
Explaining the adjectives,
Overqualified - Data entry operators do not require a Bachelors in Computer Science and Engineering ( alas, also with a First Class with Distinction) !!
Overpaid - Have you heard of typists earning 17 K a month?????? :0
Overworked - I don't know the meaning of 9 - 5. My company expects me to log in an average of 9.5 hours a week : ( :( .And that is just on paper. Reality could quite easily stretch those hours!!
Therein I discover my true worth in the industry!!
A couple of days ago my brother in law ( ha!! The lucky soul who got to marry my sis!!) asked me, " So what's up at work?". Brutally honest I replied, " Don't keep asking me that question. The work I do is extremely monotonous". Then I hit the nail on the head! Eureka, I thought and then exclaimed to him " You know what? I am nothing more than an overqualified, overpaid, overworked data entry operator".And that precisely sums up my job.
Explaining the adjectives,
Overqualified - Data entry operators do not require a Bachelors in Computer Science and Engineering ( alas, also with a First Class with Distinction) !!
Overpaid - Have you heard of typists earning 17 K a month?????? :0
Overworked - I don't know the meaning of 9 - 5. My company expects me to log in an average of 9.5 hours a week : ( :( .And that is just on paper. Reality could quite easily stretch those hours!!
Therein I discover my true worth in the industry!!
Friday, January 27, 2006
A SCARY EXPERIENCE!
Two nights back I probably had one of the scariest experiences in my life.My cousin's wife was celebrating her birthday. We had this huge get together at her place with a huge motley of cousins who live in Bangalore. I was leaving that night to Madras for my rather extended leave to attend the weddings in my family.After much celebration, I reluctantly tore myself apart to catch an auto rickshaw to Majestic where I was to board the Chennai Mail which departs at 10.45. This was probably at around 9.30 in the night. Extremely early by Bangalore standards. By the way, I live at BTM, so the journey is a pretty long one.
The auto driver was a young guy, seeming harmless. Quite casually somewhere at the start of our journey he asked me in Hindi, " Memsaab, apko ithna raat pe ithna dhoor jaane me darr nahin lagta hain kya?Bangalore tho ithna be safe nahin hain" ( At this time of the night, aren't you scared to be going so far? Bangalore is not a safe city). I said "Nahin". And added to quell him "Mujhe Karate Patha Hain" ( No, I know Karate).He then turned and said in a rather husky tone,"Chae Saath Aadmi Aayenge tho aap kya karr sakthe hain, huh? ( If 6 or 7 men were to come then what can you do?).
At that moment my blood chilled right to my bone. A seemingly harmless conversation took an ominous turn in my mind. I like a lot of the other women live my life tutting in pity and horror when I read stories of rape and murder in the paper, look up to the skies and pray that it should not happen to anyone I know ( praying that no one is raped seems so futile) yet live my life in that confident bliss of assurance that it will not happen to me. I have always been a very careful person. In all likelihood because I have learnt Karate and happen to be a brown belt. When walking alone in the night I am always on the alert and watch my shadows to see if I am being followed. Confident of being able to deflect any attack. But at that instant I was horrified. I have a terrible sense of direction as all of my friends would attest to( After 4 years, I still don't know the way to my college).I could not help but wonder whether the auto driver had been issuing me a word of warning or whether it was a statement of what was to befall me.
I did not know the way to Majestic. I did not know if he was going on the right route. I did not anything at that instant but my fear. Ignorance had never been less blissful.Adrenalin was surging through me at a rate hundred times more rapid that at any other instance. It was only at around 10.20 when I reached Bangalore City station that my fear finally subsided.At that moment I resolved with all within me that I would not travel alone at night.
Two days later I am yet to decide whether I ought to laugh at my silly fears.I wonder if my imagination had been playing overtime with that one remark made by the auto driver. Yet, another part of me tells me that exercising caution could never be futile.The world is not too safe a place. This driver might just make ominous statements. Another might not hesitate to put his words in action.
The auto driver was a young guy, seeming harmless. Quite casually somewhere at the start of our journey he asked me in Hindi, " Memsaab, apko ithna raat pe ithna dhoor jaane me darr nahin lagta hain kya?Bangalore tho ithna be safe nahin hain" ( At this time of the night, aren't you scared to be going so far? Bangalore is not a safe city). I said "Nahin". And added to quell him "Mujhe Karate Patha Hain" ( No, I know Karate).He then turned and said in a rather husky tone,"Chae Saath Aadmi Aayenge tho aap kya karr sakthe hain, huh? ( If 6 or 7 men were to come then what can you do?).
At that moment my blood chilled right to my bone. A seemingly harmless conversation took an ominous turn in my mind. I like a lot of the other women live my life tutting in pity and horror when I read stories of rape and murder in the paper, look up to the skies and pray that it should not happen to anyone I know ( praying that no one is raped seems so futile) yet live my life in that confident bliss of assurance that it will not happen to me. I have always been a very careful person. In all likelihood because I have learnt Karate and happen to be a brown belt. When walking alone in the night I am always on the alert and watch my shadows to see if I am being followed. Confident of being able to deflect any attack. But at that instant I was horrified. I have a terrible sense of direction as all of my friends would attest to( After 4 years, I still don't know the way to my college).I could not help but wonder whether the auto driver had been issuing me a word of warning or whether it was a statement of what was to befall me.
I did not know the way to Majestic. I did not know if he was going on the right route. I did not anything at that instant but my fear. Ignorance had never been less blissful.Adrenalin was surging through me at a rate hundred times more rapid that at any other instance. It was only at around 10.20 when I reached Bangalore City station that my fear finally subsided.At that moment I resolved with all within me that I would not travel alone at night.
Two days later I am yet to decide whether I ought to laugh at my silly fears.I wonder if my imagination had been playing overtime with that one remark made by the auto driver. Yet, another part of me tells me that exercising caution could never be futile.The world is not too safe a place. This driver might just make ominous statements. Another might not hesitate to put his words in action.
Friday, January 20, 2006
MAVERICK!!
Before you begin to second guess me, this post is not about Top Gun! It's about a book called Maverick by 'Ricardo Semler'. A good friend of mine loaned it to me recently. I am yet to complete it.I am somewhere halfway through it and find it to be an engrossing read.
The book is about Ricardo Semler and the complete revamp he gave his company Semco. Not just physical, in terms of furnishing,employee count etc., but in terms of management structure,style, principles..... actually, more or less everything!Started by his father, Semco was a not very profitable company which manufactured pumps for ships. Rick who joined it at the age of 18, not one bit slowly, diversified the company's operations to include dishwashers, mixers,pumps for tankers among many others! The unusual and unique aspect of Semco is not its products but the style in which it is run. Workers decide on their own wages, set their own targes, decide the work hours, decide the profit sharing strategy and are given the right to vote on a large number of things! Things like deciding whether to buy a company or the choice of a plot for a new factory are all made by the employees through voting! Wow! Isn't that really unusual? Just imagine.. you actually get to hire you project manager? You get to decide! That most certainly eliminates all sorts of employee dissatisfacton!! And the best part of it all is that Semco makes enormous profits!!!
I was commenting to the friend who loaned me the book that i found the book extremely fascinating and was quite astounded that the 'Semco Stragey' was actually feasible and succesful. I was telling him that though I found the methods used by Semler quite revolutionary and interesting, I wasn't sure if it was quite down my line. That I was probably too forceful and domineering a person to ever implement it!! And you know what he actually had the gall to reply?? No " Why not? You're not really so forceful! You are a very sweet and lovable person!! " ..but actually a " Yeah, you would never be able to do it!!!" Baah!!!!!
The book is about Ricardo Semler and the complete revamp he gave his company Semco. Not just physical, in terms of furnishing,employee count etc., but in terms of management structure,style, principles..... actually, more or less everything!Started by his father, Semco was a not very profitable company which manufactured pumps for ships. Rick who joined it at the age of 18, not one bit slowly, diversified the company's operations to include dishwashers, mixers,pumps for tankers among many others! The unusual and unique aspect of Semco is not its products but the style in which it is run. Workers decide on their own wages, set their own targes, decide the work hours, decide the profit sharing strategy and are given the right to vote on a large number of things! Things like deciding whether to buy a company or the choice of a plot for a new factory are all made by the employees through voting! Wow! Isn't that really unusual? Just imagine.. you actually get to hire you project manager? You get to decide! That most certainly eliminates all sorts of employee dissatisfacton!! And the best part of it all is that Semco makes enormous profits!!!
I was commenting to the friend who loaned me the book that i found the book extremely fascinating and was quite astounded that the 'Semco Stragey' was actually feasible and succesful. I was telling him that though I found the methods used by Semler quite revolutionary and interesting, I wasn't sure if it was quite down my line. That I was probably too forceful and domineering a person to ever implement it!! And you know what he actually had the gall to reply?? No " Why not? You're not really so forceful! You are a very sweet and lovable person!! " ..but actually a " Yeah, you would never be able to do it!!!" Baah!!!!!
Tuesday, January 10, 2006
SELL ME YOUR HEART....
"Sell me your hearts,I am here to buy"
raucously bellowed the heart buying man"
Give them to me, I'll pay any price
courageous among you,come if you can!"
"Run!Run! As fast as winds"
screamed petrified children scrambling away
escaping away from that horrible old man
leaving their unfinished games and play
"Why are we running? Who is that man?"
asked one child, new to that place"
To me he seems lonely,sad and dejected
Maybe we should ask him to once join our plays?"
Incredulously another stared at the boy
and asked "Did you not see that devil in disguise?
He is only here to buy our hearts!
That horrid old man with charcoal red eyes!"
"His wizened bent body is serpentine like
His fingers like talons, to tear you apart
He dresses in rags,has no shoes on his feet
and did you not hear him say that he would buy your heart?"
Puzzled the child looked at his newfound mate
and said, "All I did see was an old man,all alone
with eager bright eyes and a longing smile
crying for friendship,though weary to the bone"
The child then turned and he ran and he ran
as fast as the winds towards the heart buying man
The heart buyer watched amazed at such an extroardinary sight
until the child came, stopped and reached out its hand
And then with eyes gleaming, a strange smile lurking
he clapped his hands in untold glee
and asked"Have you come to sell me me your heart?"
"No",said the child "You can have mine for free."
-Deepti ,2004.
raucously bellowed the heart buying man"
Give them to me, I'll pay any price
courageous among you,come if you can!"
"Run!Run! As fast as winds"
screamed petrified children scrambling away
escaping away from that horrible old man
leaving their unfinished games and play
"Why are we running? Who is that man?"
asked one child, new to that place"
To me he seems lonely,sad and dejected
Maybe we should ask him to once join our plays?"
Incredulously another stared at the boy
and asked "Did you not see that devil in disguise?
He is only here to buy our hearts!
That horrid old man with charcoal red eyes!"
"His wizened bent body is serpentine like
His fingers like talons, to tear you apart
He dresses in rags,has no shoes on his feet
and did you not hear him say that he would buy your heart?"
Puzzled the child looked at his newfound mate
and said, "All I did see was an old man,all alone
with eager bright eyes and a longing smile
crying for friendship,though weary to the bone"
The child then turned and he ran and he ran
as fast as the winds towards the heart buying man
The heart buyer watched amazed at such an extroardinary sight
until the child came, stopped and reached out its hand
And then with eyes gleaming, a strange smile lurking
he clapped his hands in untold glee
and asked"Have you come to sell me me your heart?"
"No",said the child "You can have mine for free."
-Deepti ,2004.
Thursday, January 05, 2006
INSPIRED WRITING ON TOILET WALLS!!
I got this awesome forward today in which some budding poets had unleashed their creativity.. It had me positively laughing my head off ;) Here goes.....
The budding poet!!
Here I lie in stinky vapor,
Because some bastard stole the toilet paper,
Shall I lie, or shall I linger,
Or shall I be forced to use my finger.
Perhaps it's true that people find inspiration in toilets.
I came here
To shit and stink,
But all I do
Is sit and think.
There are also people who come in for a different purpose...
Some come here to sit and think,
Some come here to shit and stink,
But I come here to scratch my balls,
And read the bullshit on the walls...
Toilets walls also double as job advertisement space.......
(written high upon the wall)
If you can piss above this line,
the Singapore FireDepartment wants you.
Ministry of Environment advertisement.
We aim to please!You aim too! Please
On the inside of a toilet door:
Patrons are requested to remain seated throughout the entire performance.
And finally, this should teach some a lesson... Sign seen at a restaurant:
The hands that clean these toilets also make yourfood...
please aim properly.
Wasn't that really good?? ;)
The budding poet!!
Here I lie in stinky vapor,
Because some bastard stole the toilet paper,
Shall I lie, or shall I linger,
Or shall I be forced to use my finger.
Perhaps it's true that people find inspiration in toilets.
I came here
To shit and stink,
But all I do
Is sit and think.
There are also people who come in for a different purpose...
Some come here to sit and think,
Some come here to shit and stink,
But I come here to scratch my balls,
And read the bullshit on the walls...
Toilets walls also double as job advertisement space.......
(written high upon the wall)
If you can piss above this line,
the Singapore FireDepartment wants you.
Ministry of Environment advertisement.
We aim to please!You aim too! Please
On the inside of a toilet door:
Patrons are requested to remain seated throughout the entire performance.
And finally, this should teach some a lesson... Sign seen at a restaurant:
The hands that clean these toilets also make yourfood...
please aim properly.
Wasn't that really good?? ;)
Monday, December 26, 2005
THE SKEPTIC
I saw this quote the other day which I really liked.. It goes like this...
The skeptic tries to explain why belief in something is irrational. The observer asks the skeptic, “So then why should I believe you and not them?” The skeptic replies, “Don’t.”
The skeptic tries to explain why belief in something is irrational. The observer asks the skeptic, “So then why should I believe you and not them?” The skeptic replies, “Don’t.”
Friday, December 23, 2005
UNROMANTIC BE DAMNED!!
My sister is currently in a rather worthwhile quest. She hunts every nook and cranny for her long remembered - less encountered friends to invite to her wedding which is in February. Her visit to Bangalore serves the dual purpose of spending time with her beloved younger sister and distributing invitations.
The other day I accompanied her when she met up with her friend and his wife. The four of us went out for a coffee and tiffin at a place called Brindavan Hotel at MG Road. One of those typically Southie restaurants with long acrylic wood tables and identical chairs with fans running high above in the ceiling and waiters with those funny caps on their heads, matching their uniforms and a small sized towel slung on one shoulder. Get the pitcure?
Well her friends were very nice. A very sweet, not long married couple who seemed to talk lots and laugh even more. There I was, unusually silent, observing thier conversation when something the husband said absolutely got my gall!@!@*!! My sister was telling them " I wont take much of your time. You guys can make it to a quiet and romantic dinner for two after this at some good restaurant" when the husband replied " chae!!chae!! We never go out like that and all Ramya. We both are very unromantic. We are not into such romantic outings ". I was quite tempted to at that moment hit him in the eye and say " Speak for yourself, dude!!!". I was quite stunned at the assumption he just made that his wife would not like any romantic gestures. Give me a break! I doubt there is any girl who would not like her guy to get just a tad bit romantic atleast on occasions. A girl who does not like to be taken out for dinner and to use the quite familiar phrase 'wined and dined'. Newly married at that!
At that instant, I couldn't help but wonder.Are there really a lot of guys who actually presume that a girl does not like to be wooed? That a little bit of caring would be too amiss?? If there are,all I can think of telling them is "How presumptious can you get in just assuming that a girl would like things to be completely prosaic as you do??"Doesn't it strike them that the girl might secretly long for ( yet never admit) a little bit of that extra hint of caring?
Unromantic Husbands be damned!!!
The other day I accompanied her when she met up with her friend and his wife. The four of us went out for a coffee and tiffin at a place called Brindavan Hotel at MG Road. One of those typically Southie restaurants with long acrylic wood tables and identical chairs with fans running high above in the ceiling and waiters with those funny caps on their heads, matching their uniforms and a small sized towel slung on one shoulder. Get the pitcure?
Well her friends were very nice. A very sweet, not long married couple who seemed to talk lots and laugh even more. There I was, unusually silent, observing thier conversation when something the husband said absolutely got my gall!@!@*!! My sister was telling them " I wont take much of your time. You guys can make it to a quiet and romantic dinner for two after this at some good restaurant" when the husband replied " chae!!chae!! We never go out like that and all Ramya. We both are very unromantic. We are not into such romantic outings ". I was quite tempted to at that moment hit him in the eye and say " Speak for yourself, dude!!!". I was quite stunned at the assumption he just made that his wife would not like any romantic gestures. Give me a break! I doubt there is any girl who would not like her guy to get just a tad bit romantic atleast on occasions. A girl who does not like to be taken out for dinner and to use the quite familiar phrase 'wined and dined'. Newly married at that!
At that instant, I couldn't help but wonder.Are there really a lot of guys who actually presume that a girl does not like to be wooed? That a little bit of caring would be too amiss?? If there are,all I can think of telling them is "How presumptious can you get in just assuming that a girl would like things to be completely prosaic as you do??"Doesn't it strike them that the girl might secretly long for ( yet never admit) a little bit of that extra hint of caring?
Unromantic Husbands be damned!!!
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
A VISIT TO TIRUPATI
On Saturday, my sister and I decided to make an impromptu visit to Tirumala. We boarded a volvo at Majestic at around 9.30 in the morning. We reached Tirupati at about 3.30. After buying tickets for a Darshan we started our climb. It took us about 4 hours to reach the top, but was absolutely worth it. The mountains in the dark were tinted red with the setting sun and cool breeze washed itself against our faces. It was beautiful.
On reaching we booked a room. When we went to collect the key, I made a rather terrible faux paus. The guy at the counter asked us " Are there men?" in telugu. Not to be proved any inferior, I decided to reply back in Telugu. I said "Odhu" ( No in my dictionary). He jerked his head upward stalling in whatever he was writing and said "What?". Deciding that he was rather deaf I repeated "Odhu". He looked rather stunned and my sister was suddenly jerking me back. I turned to her and said " Did I say anything wrong? What does Odhu mean?". With a very embarassed smile directed towards the counter guy she whispered to me "It means Dont Want". I was like "Oh" and then burst out into paroxyms of laughter. Luckily the guy at the counter seemed to have a decent sense of humour. He smiled and gave us the key.This was probably at around 9.00 in the night.
When we went to the room, much to our misfortune the loo was disgusting, the room not cleaned and the mattresses were damp. After much debating we decided that god would certainly forgive us if we didn't stay for a Darshan. We immediately returned the key where we had a lively argument with the counter guy, refusing to pay cash for cleaning the room. Saw no reason to. It had not been cleaned for us. We saw no reason to pay when we had not even occupied the rooms. We then went to the office to collect our caution deposit. The young punk at that counter actually demanded 10 bucks to give us back our CD. My sis was all set to pay it, when I just turned to her and was like " Forget it. There is no way we are paying a bribe in Tirumala!!!". Grabbed the money from the punk's hand and ran out of the place. We then boarded a bus to Tirupati and from there took another bus back to Bangalore at arount 11.30 in the night to reach at 5.30 in the morning.
We were feeling extremely guilty for not having had a Darshan so had a bath and left for a Balaji temple at Domlur to assauge our guilt. End of a trip which was a series of unfortunate/fortunate events!!!!!
On reaching we booked a room. When we went to collect the key, I made a rather terrible faux paus. The guy at the counter asked us " Are there men?" in telugu. Not to be proved any inferior, I decided to reply back in Telugu. I said "Odhu" ( No in my dictionary). He jerked his head upward stalling in whatever he was writing and said "What?". Deciding that he was rather deaf I repeated "Odhu". He looked rather stunned and my sister was suddenly jerking me back. I turned to her and said " Did I say anything wrong? What does Odhu mean?". With a very embarassed smile directed towards the counter guy she whispered to me "It means Dont Want". I was like "Oh" and then burst out into paroxyms of laughter. Luckily the guy at the counter seemed to have a decent sense of humour. He smiled and gave us the key.This was probably at around 9.00 in the night.
When we went to the room, much to our misfortune the loo was disgusting, the room not cleaned and the mattresses were damp. After much debating we decided that god would certainly forgive us if we didn't stay for a Darshan. We immediately returned the key where we had a lively argument with the counter guy, refusing to pay cash for cleaning the room. Saw no reason to. It had not been cleaned for us. We saw no reason to pay when we had not even occupied the rooms. We then went to the office to collect our caution deposit. The young punk at that counter actually demanded 10 bucks to give us back our CD. My sis was all set to pay it, when I just turned to her and was like " Forget it. There is no way we are paying a bribe in Tirumala!!!". Grabbed the money from the punk's hand and ran out of the place. We then boarded a bus to Tirupati and from there took another bus back to Bangalore at arount 11.30 in the night to reach at 5.30 in the morning.
We were feeling extremely guilty for not having had a Darshan so had a bath and left for a Balaji temple at Domlur to assauge our guilt. End of a trip which was a series of unfortunate/fortunate events!!!!!
Thursday, December 08, 2005
LADY SUSAN
I just finished reading this book.
Lady Susan is one of Jane Austen's rare unpublished works. It was written in an epistolary fashion ( letters of correspondence - I know!! I was like what???? too : ) ). Bibilomania claims that though Austen completed writing the novel , it was never published because the vogue of writing books in an epistolary fashion was long past.
I disagree.
One of Jane Austen's most famous masterpieces, Pride and Prejudice , was originally written in the form of letters and was titled 'First Impressions'. After her publisher declined to publish it, she re-wrote and transformed it into the ever famous, ever lasting and ever impressing 'Pride and Prejudice' which ranks as one of my favourite books. If she could rewrite 'Pride and Prejudice' why could she not 'Lady Susan'?
Probably because of the simplicity of the theme which would have been quite unremarkable in the regular tried and dried style of writing. I speculate. I do not judge.
But anyways, Lady Susan did deserve to be published. The self titled protagonist of this novel 'Lady Susan' is quite deliciously wicked. Not in the style of Scarlett in 'Gone with the Wind'( you end up Empathizing with her , never SYMPATHETIC-that would be the biggest insult to Scarlett!), but more malicious, more conniving and just as unconcerned with the results of her trifling with the lives of the people around her. A manipulative bitch in simple terms. : ) .
Her character,her actions are portrayed in a fantastic manner; unfortunately, to the exclusion of all other characters in the novel. Therein lies the weakness of this novel. Unlike her other novels where every character is clearly dilineated and given an individuality that could quite easily carry itself outside the lines of the novel , here, most of the characters are held firmly in place strictly by the storyline. They could never survive outside the book.The end too seemed a little abrupt. Expected, but abrupt.
Yet, Lady Susan is a book worth a read and a sigh of admiration as it's very language, description and predictable irony is so purely 'Jane Austen'.
Lady Susan is one of Jane Austen's rare unpublished works. It was written in an epistolary fashion ( letters of correspondence - I know!! I was like what???? too : ) ). Bibilomania claims that though Austen completed writing the novel , it was never published because the vogue of writing books in an epistolary fashion was long past.
I disagree.
One of Jane Austen's most famous masterpieces, Pride and Prejudice , was originally written in the form of letters and was titled 'First Impressions'. After her publisher declined to publish it, she re-wrote and transformed it into the ever famous, ever lasting and ever impressing 'Pride and Prejudice' which ranks as one of my favourite books. If she could rewrite 'Pride and Prejudice' why could she not 'Lady Susan'?
Probably because of the simplicity of the theme which would have been quite unremarkable in the regular tried and dried style of writing. I speculate. I do not judge.
But anyways, Lady Susan did deserve to be published. The self titled protagonist of this novel 'Lady Susan' is quite deliciously wicked. Not in the style of Scarlett in 'Gone with the Wind'( you end up Empathizing with her , never SYMPATHETIC-that would be the biggest insult to Scarlett!), but more malicious, more conniving and just as unconcerned with the results of her trifling with the lives of the people around her. A manipulative bitch in simple terms. : ) .
Her character,her actions are portrayed in a fantastic manner; unfortunately, to the exclusion of all other characters in the novel. Therein lies the weakness of this novel. Unlike her other novels where every character is clearly dilineated and given an individuality that could quite easily carry itself outside the lines of the novel , here, most of the characters are held firmly in place strictly by the storyline. They could never survive outside the book.The end too seemed a little abrupt. Expected, but abrupt.
Yet, Lady Susan is a book worth a read and a sigh of admiration as it's very language, description and predictable irony is so purely 'Jane Austen'.
Wednesday, December 07, 2005
TO WHOMSOEVER IT MAY CONCERN...
To whomsoever it concerns
I hereby solemnly pledge that the below stated facts are true to the best of my knowledge -
1. I hereby reiterate that I have indeed completed by Bachelors of Engineering and am not a III std pass, leave alone a XIIth pass as you seem to presume me to be.
2. I also believe myself to have completed my Engineering degree in Computer Science.
3. Further more I do indeed know how to operate a computer and do NOT require a step by step manual on how to switch it on and be taught how to use a WORD document or how to fill in numbers in an Excel sheet.
4, Oh, I also do know my numbers of 1-9 and have indeed learn how to add, subtract, multiply and divide contrary to your inability to believe so.
4. I also declare myself to not have an IQ of -141.
5. In the certainty of your disbelief, I request you to approach the Human Resource Department and obtain a copy of my resume and photocopies of my original university and school certificates( oh, my!! they do exist!!) which attests to the afore mentioned facts.
Thanks and Regards,
Deepti
I hereby solemnly pledge that the below stated facts are true to the best of my knowledge -
1. I hereby reiterate that I have indeed completed by Bachelors of Engineering and am not a III std pass, leave alone a XIIth pass as you seem to presume me to be.
2. I also believe myself to have completed my Engineering degree in Computer Science.
3. Further more I do indeed know how to operate a computer and do NOT require a step by step manual on how to switch it on and be taught how to use a WORD document or how to fill in numbers in an Excel sheet.
4, Oh, I also do know my numbers of 1-9 and have indeed learn how to add, subtract, multiply and divide contrary to your inability to believe so.
4. I also declare myself to not have an IQ of -141.
5. In the certainty of your disbelief, I request you to approach the Human Resource Department and obtain a copy of my resume and photocopies of my original university and school certificates( oh, my!! they do exist!!) which attests to the afore mentioned facts.
Thanks and Regards,
Deepti
Monday, December 05, 2005
DEDICATED TO ALL BOOK LOVERS!
A friend of mine sent me a link to an article that expresses what i totally feel in words i could not even begin to frame! It's fantastic...
http://www.hindu.com/lr/2005/12/04/stories/2005120400270600.htm
http://www.hindu.com/lr/2005/12/04/stories/2005120400270600.htm
Wednesday, November 30, 2005
SAL DAY!!!! :)
The last day of the month is just like a Friday!! The excitement that you feel every Friday, when you know that the weekend is just around the corner is just amazing!It's the same delight that you get the last day of every month when you know that your salary is going to get credited to your account!
To be precise I have exactly Rs 65 in one account and Rs 74 in the other right now ( The amounts can't even be withdrawn at an ATM!!) . But I really could not give a damn. Because i know , I can feel the money that will be mine tomorrow! And that sure does leave me grinning away to glory already counting the many ways I will spend what will be mine!! I got this adorable forward today that quite describes my state!! It had two pitcures. One title TODAY BEFORE SALARY where there was this rather pathetic starved dog with a begging bowl in front of it . The other picture titled TOMORROW AFTER SALARY had a dog with a rather contented smirk across its face reclining on cushions hugging a pack of cup cakes. The minute I looked at these pictures I was struck with a profound sense of deja vu. A strange sense of affinity and kinship!! Ah.. to what extents the mighty do fall!! Living with my dad was easier on the pocket, definitely!!
To be precise I have exactly Rs 65 in one account and Rs 74 in the other right now ( The amounts can't even be withdrawn at an ATM!!) . But I really could not give a damn. Because i know , I can feel the money that will be mine tomorrow! And that sure does leave me grinning away to glory already counting the many ways I will spend what will be mine!! I got this adorable forward today that quite describes my state!! It had two pitcures. One title TODAY BEFORE SALARY where there was this rather pathetic starved dog with a begging bowl in front of it . The other picture titled TOMORROW AFTER SALARY had a dog with a rather contented smirk across its face reclining on cushions hugging a pack of cup cakes. The minute I looked at these pictures I was struck with a profound sense of deja vu. A strange sense of affinity and kinship!! Ah.. to what extents the mighty do fall!! Living with my dad was easier on the pocket, definitely!!
Friday, November 18, 2005
THE DONKEY
When I was in a school, I had this amazing teacher called Nalini Parthiban. Most people found her incredibly boring. She was. She lived in a world of her own where every molecule surrounding her was fascinated by literature. When she would start talking about a particular writer, a book or a poem that fascinated her ,her eyes would light up, a delighted smile would settle on her face and she would start gesturing rapidly. The very sight of such passion made me love her. Love the depth to which she loved literature. Admired her ability to dissect any obscure piece of writing, analyse and hunt every single hidden meaning within what seemed quite cut and dried. I remember this one instance which happened probably when I was in the IXth. I had read a poem by G.K Chesterton which I had found quite enchanting. The language, the rhyme, the sheer descriptiveness of the poem captivated me. When I went up to Nalini and showed her the poem , she directed her delighted smile at me and said "Yes, this is an extremely good poem by Chesterton. But do you know what it means?". I was flumoxed. I had never thought about what the poem meant. When she explained it to me, from being enchanted, I fell deeply in love with the poem. It was such a simple poem but had such a sweet meaning behind it. I'll post the poem now and leave anyone reading this to guess the meaning.
THE DONKEY
G.K. Chesterton
When fishes flew and forests walked
And figs grew upon thorn,
Some moment when the moon was blood
Then surely I was born;
With monstrous head and sickening cry
And ears like errant wings,
The devil's walking parody
On all four-footed things.
The tattered outlaw of the earth,
Of ancient crooked will;
Starve, scourge, deride me: I am dumb,
I keep my secret still.
Fools! For I also had my hour;
One far fierce hour and sweet:
There was a shout about my ears,
And palms before my feet.
G.K. Chesterton
When fishes flew and forests walked
And figs grew upon thorn,
Some moment when the moon was blood
Then surely I was born;
With monstrous head and sickening cry
And ears like errant wings,
The devil's walking parody
On all four-footed things.
The tattered outlaw of the earth,
Of ancient crooked will;
Starve, scourge, deride me: I am dumb,
I keep my secret still.
Fools! For I also had my hour;
One far fierce hour and sweet:
There was a shout about my ears,
And palms before my feet.
Sunday, November 06, 2005
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME !!
I'ts my Birthday today. I turn twenty two. But somehow the thought does not leave me one bit excited. Somehow I can't fathom anything special. To be honest I find the day quite depressing.
When i was a kid I had an obsession for birthdays. November 6th was always the most exciting day of my life. I used to adore the attention, the fun and most importantly the gifts. When the day passed and it turned November 7th , I would immediately start a countdown to my next birthday. My dad and brother always said that 'Deepti has 365 friends for 365 birthdyas'.I think as a kid I probably lived for birthdays. Especially mine.
I would have those traditional birthday parties with a cake, streamers and balloons decking the house, a new dress and lots of friends and relatives bearing gifts for me, :) I remember this one instance where I refused to allow a cousin of mine to my party because he had not brought any present for me. I was like 'Giri! Don't you know that you are supposed to bring the birthday girl a gift? I can't allow you to my party'. Quite the precocious one, wasn't I?
My brother would in the night take me for a walk and buy me a pack of phantom sweet cigarettes ( I adored that stuff!!) as a birthday gift. And I would be so thrilled!It would be the final icing to a wonderful day.
Once you grow older the way you celebrate them turns different. Now its more of going out for lunch and dinner with friends and family. Its still enjoyable but so much more sober. Lacks the adrenalin surge and the excitement that traditional birthday parties with gallons of presents would offer. That wonderful feeling of being the most important person in the world that day.
Anyway, Happy Birthday to me.
When i was a kid I had an obsession for birthdays. November 6th was always the most exciting day of my life. I used to adore the attention, the fun and most importantly the gifts. When the day passed and it turned November 7th , I would immediately start a countdown to my next birthday. My dad and brother always said that 'Deepti has 365 friends for 365 birthdyas'.I think as a kid I probably lived for birthdays. Especially mine.
I would have those traditional birthday parties with a cake, streamers and balloons decking the house, a new dress and lots of friends and relatives bearing gifts for me, :) I remember this one instance where I refused to allow a cousin of mine to my party because he had not brought any present for me. I was like 'Giri! Don't you know that you are supposed to bring the birthday girl a gift? I can't allow you to my party'. Quite the precocious one, wasn't I?
My brother would in the night take me for a walk and buy me a pack of phantom sweet cigarettes ( I adored that stuff!!) as a birthday gift. And I would be so thrilled!It would be the final icing to a wonderful day.
Once you grow older the way you celebrate them turns different. Now its more of going out for lunch and dinner with friends and family. Its still enjoyable but so much more sober. Lacks the adrenalin surge and the excitement that traditional birthday parties with gallons of presents would offer. That wonderful feeling of being the most important person in the world that day.
Anyway, Happy Birthday to me.
Monday, October 31, 2005
DRIVE SAFE..!!!
I left to Hyderabad from Bangalore on the 27th night.All set to enjoy my four day Diwali vacation. The season being a hectic one, and me having not booked my tickets two months in advance had to travel by bus. Fact is , I hate travelling by bus. Especially if it is an overnight journey. My bus which was supposed to leave at 9.30 dilly dallyed waiting for some passengers and finally left at 10.15. After a rather bumpy journey, at around 8.15 in the morning we were finally about 50 kms from Hyderabad when we got stuck in a traffic jam. The reason? A bus travelling from Bangalore had collided with a truck coming in the opposite direction.A headlong collision.End result?
Five people died instantaneously.
The bus had been trying to overtake the bus ahead of it when due to brake failure it collided against the lorry. The bus I was travelling on was about 10 buses behind the one that collided. A couple of people in my bus were completely spooked out. They could not help but keep repeating "Oh my god! I normally travel by that bus. It's just that this time I could not get tickets to come by that". The fear of disaster. The fear of death. The eeriest fear that one can come across. It is the only one unexplained, unexpected and irreversible.
And the only thing it can leave you saying is "If only.....".
Everyday in the papers we read about people dying in automobile accidents. Yes, I know. There have been more terrible disasters happening lately. The bomb blasts , the train in AP that derailed killing hundreds, the floods that have inundated our entire country.... the list goes on. But fact remains that there are certain things that are within our control.
You cannot say that you will not go to markets and thereby avoid bomb blasts. You cannot just lock yourself in your homes and say I will not travel by planes or by trains. But you definitely can drive a lot more safely.
About a year ago a friend of mine and me went speeding in the morning till tears were involuntarily dripping from my eyes. The thrill of it all was.... beyond fantastic! But in retrospective , I can't help but feel , was it necessary? What if we had skidded to deformity if not death? The oft used and tired slogan 'Speed thrills but kills' is more appropriate than it has been given credit for.
There is so much of tragedy in life that cannot be averted. So much of pain and suffering that we must need experience. Yet so much of tragedy we can avert just by driving safe. Just by deciding to not speed through life.
Drive Safe.
Five people died instantaneously.
The bus had been trying to overtake the bus ahead of it when due to brake failure it collided against the lorry. The bus I was travelling on was about 10 buses behind the one that collided. A couple of people in my bus were completely spooked out. They could not help but keep repeating "Oh my god! I normally travel by that bus. It's just that this time I could not get tickets to come by that". The fear of disaster. The fear of death. The eeriest fear that one can come across. It is the only one unexplained, unexpected and irreversible.
And the only thing it can leave you saying is "If only.....".
Everyday in the papers we read about people dying in automobile accidents. Yes, I know. There have been more terrible disasters happening lately. The bomb blasts , the train in AP that derailed killing hundreds, the floods that have inundated our entire country.... the list goes on. But fact remains that there are certain things that are within our control.
You cannot say that you will not go to markets and thereby avoid bomb blasts. You cannot just lock yourself in your homes and say I will not travel by planes or by trains. But you definitely can drive a lot more safely.
About a year ago a friend of mine and me went speeding in the morning till tears were involuntarily dripping from my eyes. The thrill of it all was.... beyond fantastic! But in retrospective , I can't help but feel , was it necessary? What if we had skidded to deformity if not death? The oft used and tired slogan 'Speed thrills but kills' is more appropriate than it has been given credit for.
There is so much of tragedy in life that cannot be averted. So much of pain and suffering that we must need experience. Yet so much of tragedy we can avert just by driving safe. Just by deciding to not speed through life.
Drive Safe.
Wednesday, September 07, 2005
THE BATTLE OF CHANGE Vs CONSTANCY
Sometimes in life you take decisions that end up steering your ship in a completely different direction. I like that. For all my life I have always moved in whatever the direction the wind has taken me. Change they say is inevitable. But we always tend to resist it. The harmony of living with constancy in our life is something most of us yearn for. The unknown is something best undiscovered. I am no different. For all my life the only times I have not berated change is when it has been inevitable. Never have I actively sought for it. The one time I did was two months back when I opted to move to Bangalore. Most might regard it as nothing but a step as tiny as that of toddler.There are people who have dared to travel farther and plunge into the forbidden seas. But for someone like me moving out of home and living in a different city, away from family, friends and the known faces of unknown strangers was more close to being a leap. A giant leap. The first week was rather hard to take. I spent nearly every waking moment wondering if I had taken the wrong decision. Should I have opted to live in Chennai? Did I really have to leave all things familiar to plunge myself into the unknown, not pushed; but of my own free will? Its been three weeks now. And I'm slowly starting to settle down. Slowly but surely. The doubts will never be gone. But they stop to plague me. And the important part of it all is that I am proud of myself. Proud of the fact that I let things change. Proud that i let myself resist constancy . It might sound like something too paltry to be proud of . But for me it comes close to an achievement. For having finally dared to steer my own ship, suddently I dont want to let it go anymore.
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