Welcome to wherever you are....

A few days back, i read a post which brought out a couple of things that are always whirling about in my mind and so find a way some of my posts too.. one a smaller picture of the way we treat other humans, and the other a slightly larger one, of who decides what role i got in life - human,indian, keralite,middle class,all body parts functional,career in marketing etc..

A bit of thought also made me realise that there could be many ways of looking at it. One could be remaining blissfully unaware and not even contemplating about the existence ofHis plan. Another could be recognising it but not too bothered by it. A third, which i see around me and sometimes within me, is the recognition with a step further.

He made me to be here, now, the way i am. somehow, somewhere i have earned the right and i belong this way. His plan also has taken care of the pain and suffering i see around me and these are not the things i should be concerned with, its a part of the bigger canvas. The last, is where i hope to be at some point of time - a recognition of the plan but with the compassion to help out where i can...

until next time, does He have a Plan B?

The Search

It was towards the weekend that i realised that a lot of it was lost. i cant remember the single moment of realisation, but i have a feeling it was subconsciously being lost all the while, yet the extent was not so large as to trigger the alarm...

And so i started searching for it... i used it both at office and home, actually everywhere, but since i couldnt search everywhere, the search was broadly categorised into home and office..i figured it was the office because i was careful about its usage at home, what with the wife keeping a close watch and all.. i asked my colleagues, who while promising help, didnt have too much of an idea on what could be done...i even spoke to my boss and said that this was aserious matter, that he should take it up at some forum, and that i would have some of my attention on it so i dont lose it further...

i checked all the drawers and the cupboards, the loo and even the comp, since it was also in the usage domain - excel, word, the internet.. all the while i was getting clues, but nothing concrete..and then, slowly but surely the realisation dawned on me that it was being lost everywhere- all the places mentioned above and more.. and i also realised that it was being lost even as i searched for it - Time....
until next time, you think Google can help?
The trigger was a comment on one of the egroups i am a part of..

Bombay Dying??

No, it isnt a doomsday prophecy... its just a manifestation of the 'what fun without pun' phenomenon :)...

its about the brand many of us have heard of, and worn too, as part of our school life... a few days back i saw an ad of theirs, which said there was a discount of upto 60% off on bath towels (yes, occasionally i do that too), but conveniently not mentioning where their outlets were...but as luck would have it, we managed to find one (purely by chance).. i think my last visit to a Bombay Dyeing showroom would have been around 6 years back, for trouser material!! and that was in good old God's own Country, where the premium on education might also have inadvertently lent some of its sheen to the outlet from where school uniforms were bought... and therefore, it had a touch of class to it...

but this visit told a different story... most of us can judge the way a shop is doing just by looking at it... a faulty signage, casual staff, the decor, the way stuff is arranged, all of them can tell the story... and from this shop, i could sense a gradual decline from the good old days.. yes, the towels werent bad, they still have good bedsheets according to D, and the Vivaldi shirts were also quite okay, but these are perhaps the last wall of defense...

and so, while some brands have smoothly made a transition - surf, rin, lux, colgate, parle.......for some brands- dalda, gold spot, binaca, solidaire, anikspray.... this generation's memories might be the last wall of defense...
until next time, sometimes clothes make a man's memories too

The Brain

Some favor the left side and some favor the right...

I, for one,hate taking sides..

on a side note, can intellectual property be called virtual estate??

until next time, posticide :)

A Generation Awakens

Well, Mr. Mehra, if the editing was slightly slicker, they wouldnt have fallen asleep in the first place.. hmm, yes, that might have been a bit unkind, but those overboard reviews did irritate me.. and so, no review, but an argument on the thought process behind the movie..( yes, i am making an effort to be intellectual..hehe)

while i do not dispute the fact that an attempt has been made to create an awareness in the minds of today's youth, perhaps the similarities of the azad-bismil-bhagat singh scenario and the occurences in the current times are too strong a stretch of imagination...the nation's freedom was something that each individual would feel strongly about, but today, so many generations have been moulded to the 'adjust' mentality towards corruption, nepotism, and the casual way to administering a country that it is too difficult to pull them back colletively..how many of us would not pay a bribe in this day, this era IS about convenience and what money can do for you... and therefore it is an issue that has to be addressed at an individual level..will this movie make you do that.. it didnt make me..to paraphrase what madhavan said in the movie, if you want to make a difference join the police,the army, the IAS, politics and live your ideals..

in my mind the movie that made a better impact was farhan akhtar's lakshya.. it was a casual selfish individual's journey towards becoming a heroic soldier, and somewhere along the way, his realisation that there was more to the world than just him - society, nation and his responsibilities to them...that movie didnt work at the box office, so perhaps mr.mehra is right after all in trying to arouse the fervour in his own way...
until next time, nothing can awaken those pretending to be asleep....

On a different Note

Rs.1000 - a single reddish note.

She gave the single note to the salesgirl and smiled in satisfaction. The money was equal to a day's pay for her, but it was worth it. She had gotten herself a bottle of tan lotion, something she could use on her vacation to the beach. she was looking forward to the sun, the sand, and the time away from her relatives.

She took out the 10 notes and counted them again, just to be sure, and smiled in satisfaction. It was the money she had earned in a fortnight, by selling groundnuts on the beach. Enough money for a short trip home. She was looking forward to a few days away from the sun and the sand and a little time spent with her relatives.

until next time, the price we pay...

And who'll be the judge of that??

'Oh, thats not bad for his experience and ability' immediately took me to SwB's post sometime back on how we judge each other based on what we do, and where we have reached in our career.. its a regular occurence in many discussions - the interest and attention generated is very much in proportion to one's designation, place of work, salary, job profile et al...but whats also regular is that we are judgemental, period..

where i come from, families also get judged by the jewellery the woman of the house wears for functions.. at other times, they get judged by the talents of the kids they produce, ridiculous as it may sound... in other places,the wedding functions thrown are indicators of the family's stature and financial position..

And its just not reality alone, on the virtual paths we travel, there are those of us who judge blogs on the comments generated, and those of us who like to think that we are above such trivial things, and judge based on the quality of the post, or who all link to the blog...

perhaps its because we are so used to finding happiness outside ourselves, that we are forever searching for others to compare with, and get the satisfaction that ' i am better than him/her'..its funny because even when i write this, i have to force myself to be non judgemental...and its also funny, we forget about the judgements when we compare favourably, and think about it only when we dont match up.. a defense mechanism automatically pops up, and we argue on why it isnt exactly as rosy as it looks... and so it shouldnt surprise anyone that the conversation ends with 'but i bet he slogs till midnight...

until next time, and they say judgement day is coming...

Legacy Issues

Yes, i can understand the techie eyebrows shooting up, but its nothing to do with system related legacies..its more to do with the original usage of the word, long before they had thought of computers...Like i have said in a post not too long ago, in addition to the fact that we love reading, there is also possibly a subconscious reason for buying books.. it is perhaps a way of transmitting ourselves to those who come after us.. because the books we have read also tell a little something about the kind of persons we are, and also share the ideas that in a way shaped our thinking... i also write the date of purchase of the book so i can sit back a long time later and smile at the books i used to read...:)

I have started collecting Ashok Banker's Ramayana series, also because of the fact that it might be slightly more appreciated than the ramanand sagar vcds..:).. though i bought it quite a while back, i started reading it only recently.. the author has a disclaimer that there are lots of versions of the ramayana, and he has tried is best to be as true to the original version by valmiki as possible...but he has written it very clearly keeping the current generation in mind... there is definitely a difference in the style of storytelling..

this is almost like a desi 'Lord of the Rings' interms of characterisation and narration.. for example, i am not too comfortable with a 'Harishchandra Avenue' in Ayodhya or Shatrughan being called 'Shot'!! but its still a good book..and so while i may be leaving behind a legacy, i should keep in mind that books are also the perspective of the author and can be way different from what i would want it to be...
until next time, dont believe everything you read :)