Roots

How important is it to have a town that you could call yours?

Someplace which would always be home...

You can't always explain this feeling but one does get attached to places..more often than not these are places where you grew up..despite all their shortcomings some corner of your heart always craves and wishes that you could find your way back.

The point I'm trying to make is that it's not just about the house you lived in..there's so much more associated with a hometown...it is what lies beneath the surface..the people you know, the kids you played with and those you went to school with, the evening hangouts and the neighbourhood store...those quaint places..streets and corners with anecdotes associated with them... always knowing the best place to find most any thing that you could think of..food, shopping for clothes, you name it. I guess this is what constitutes your roots.

You might spend half your life away from your hometown but it's always a special feeling when you are back. And no it's not something that lasts a day or two I've noticed that it continues even after you leave..of course with knowledge of the fact that you'll be back again. But what if you knew that the next time you are back there would be no place you could call home?? If you had to stay overnight in a hotel or at a friend's or relatives place?

The word that closest describes that feeling is uprooted!!!

And to close a few lines from this classic by Jerry Lewis

The old hometown looks the same

As I step down from the train....

....It's good to touch the green, green grass of home.

The old house is still standing

Though the paint is cracked and dry

And there's that old oak tree

that I used to play on

Down the lane I'd walk ...

It's good to touch the green, green grass of home.

...Then I awake and look around me

At the gray walls that surround me

And I realized that I was only dreaming..

Getting High on Malls

What is it with shopping and women?
Is it some thing that can be ascribed to the paleolithic times when the women had to collect berries and flowers from around the habitat whilst the men hunted? If it is so it sure has evolvled into an artform (which for some strange reason men simply cannot appreciate!!).
Why do they have to check 4 different stores before they decide? And boy can they haggle!! They might not get along otherwise but send them shopping and they get along like a house on fire. That's the amazing power of shopping. My theory is that much like chocolates shopping triggers/tickles something somewhere which leads to a biochemical reaction within the female anatomy that makes them happy. What probably ruins that high is going shopping with a man. As hard as we may try we can never be convincingly interested in the object de'attention (Which by the way in a blink can change from a wineglass to a curtain!!)
And there's a reason...men you see hand were hunters and therefore tend to have a very focussed approach to shopping Which basically means... enter mall...choose shirt...walk out.
That brings me to the topic of malls in general. While the economists might be busy attributing the mushrooming of malls to the increasing disposable income we should not forget that these malls are catering to this primitive need for collecting berries and flowers!! It's just that with increasing education and employment this need has found a manifestation in the form of shopping. During paleolithic times they'd go out to pick berries but they'd pick flowers too..in the modern times they go shopping for groceries and comeback with cosmetics, clothes and shoes too!
They can shop when they are feeling low, they can shop when they're on a high. They can shop when they want to socialise or even when they want to be left alone.
And at some level I'm sure all women live every word of this song made popular by Barenaked Ladies

Well you know that it's going to be alright

I think it's gonna be alright

Everything will always be alright

When we go shopping
Well you know that it's going to be alright

When we go shopping

It's always lalalalala...

Shopping spree begin

It's always lalalalala...

Everybody wins
So shutup

And never stop

Let's shop

Until we drop
...Shopping with our friends

Shopping once again...
...It's never enough

Until you've got all the stuff

Too Much Love...

Have you ever been in love with something or someone so much that it hurt? In love so much that you started detesting it??

Think that applies to not only people but things you do as well. This other day wifey dear made fabulous Aloo ke Paranthey and before I realised I'd downed 6 parathas laden with ghee (just a clarification...my pleasantly plump appearance is NOT a result of such binges!!) the rest of the day was too put very mildly, uncomfortable. Don't know why but I seem to have this tendency to take to go overboard with my likes, whether it be favourite dishes or even work at times.

Coming back to the point; I happen to know someone who has spent the better part of life in love with this other person (who too I happen to know rather well!). Much like Liz Taylor and Richard Burton they too have been IN and OUT of love often. Strangely though all that pent up love seems to manifest itself in different forms in both these people. Whilst it's ignorance and silence for one, it is a very open and bitter topic for the other.

My take..why not cherish the times you've had together, accept reality and move ahead. It's the continuance, rather obstinately, of being in love that causes the hurt and anger. Easier said than done? Well, all I can say is that it does deserve an honest attempt. It's not gonna be easy but I am sure there always are positives that one can carry from soured relationships.

And in the end as usual here's the song (Courtesy:Queen) that sums it all up

Too much love will kill you

If you can't make up your mind

Torn between the lover

And the love you leave behind

You're headed for disaster

'cos you never read the signs

Too much love will kill you

Every time.....

..I used to bring you sunshine

Now all I ever do is bring you down

How would it be if you were standing in my shoes

Can't you see that it's impossible to choose

No there's no making sense of it

Every way I go I'm bound to lose

Too much love will kill you

Just as sure as none at all

It'll drain the power that's in you

Make you plead and scream and crawl

And the pain will make you crazy

You're the victim of your crime

Too much love will kill you

Every time

Simple Pleasures

Whoever said that romance goes out of the marriage after a few years needs to rethink. Flower and dance routine apart there's nothing that's complicated about romancing.

Looking back at the times we've (myself and wifey dearest) had as a couple, the most memorablemoments are those that we spent doing things like cooking a meal,collecting sea-shells at the beach, going half-way across town just to eat golgappas from a particular stall...the list is long but not forgotten.

I probably have said this before in FRIENDS and it holds true in this context as well;the key is to create one more such moment to reminisce.

I recently switched jobs and had to move from one city to another. Unfortunately that has meant spending time away from each other. The proximity has helped as we atleast get to meet on weekends. While I've taken up an apartment it's not furnished and that helped us create another memory.

What I'm about to narrate might seem to many as mundane but for us this is an addition to our list of memorable moments.

To cut a long story short, it was a weekend at a new place with not many friends..obviously the plan was to have a couple of drinks. So we went out bought some vodka and juice and got back home only to realise that we had no glasses!

Determined to stick to our plan, we eventually found a solution. Strangely enough while we were shopping we'd picked up a kitchen knife! We cut out the bases off the Kinley bottles and made glasses out of them. Term us what you may but it was fun.

As usual I'll close this one with a couple of lines from a relatively unknown song of Minnie Riperton (more popular for her song Loving You).

"The simple things
The lovely simple things
The sunset and the dawn
The simple things
The lovely simple things
I could go on and on and on

For the simple pleasures
Are worth more than treasures
That your paper money ever bring

This song is old, this song is new
This song is me, this song is you
I like to play out in the rain
I like the sun to shine again
And again and again

Each day so many things to see
And I'm so glad I am me
And you, my friends, are pretty too
And I'm so glad that you are you"

Follow Your Dreams

How is it that when you love doing something you always find energy to keep going? Well, that should be one reason why you NEED to LOVE what you do.

The past couple of months have been somewhat of a learning experience for me. I have stood by the side and watched in awe as my wife juggled her career, a nascent passion for theatre and visiting in-laws. Yes, there were times when she was at her wits end on whether to take a day off from work to spend time with mom and dad in-law or to spend an extra couple of hours at the workshop. All in all, tired or not, the entire workshop experience and then actually going ahead and doing the stage shows has put a glow equivalent to a 1000 watt bulb on m'ladies face. That and that alone would tell anyone how much this whole two months of jugglery has been worth it from her perspective.

Which brings me back to my point of one having to really love what you do.

Another example that springs to mind is of this friend of mine from my engineering days who transformed himself from a guy with no sense of rhythm or aptitude for music to an absolutely amazing guitarist who composes his own stuff today. It was nothing but sheer passion for this one thing that he wanted to do. He once shared with me that when he saw some of us guys jammin for our college cul-fest he promised to himself that the next year he'd be up there playing music and by jove he did!! Today, he's light years ahead of all of us guys whom he saw on stage.

I guess all of us at some point in our lives, come to a point where we take that leap of faith and just jump into something we always wanted to do but never really got around to.

So here's an ode to to all those who did....and for the rest of us who're still waiting, here's lyrics from a song performed by Poco that just stuck.....

There are images around us, in everything we see
Some are real and some are fantasy
To the one who sees his vision, to the child who lives his dreams
You're the one to decide what you're gonna be

So give it your best, and don't worry about what some may say
Follow your dreams, it's really all that you can do
Give it your best, and remember that life is what you choose
Follow your dreams, and do what you love to do

There are places you'll remember, and times you may recall
Faces that refresh your memory
May the thoughts that you will picture, help you come to see
That you're the one to decide what you're gonna be

So give it your best, and don't worry about what some may say
Follow your dreams, it's really all that you can do
And give it your best, and remember that life is what you choose
Go on, follow your dreams and do it,
Follow your dreams, and do what you love to do...

Cherish

I have often noticed that most us tend to change topics when the discussion gravitates to someone that is no more or at times about someone who's no more a part of our lives.
My strong belief is that this approach seldom eases or gives vent to the hurt or pain that we are so carefully attempting to guard. Also perhaps an indication that we have not reconciled to the facts.
If life is a story strung with memories and pictures of the past; many beautiful ones and a few of them painful; then does it not make more sense to look back at the times you had?
What is it that makes us walk away from this walk down the memory lane? Is it like a smoker getting back to smoking? Are we really afraid of the craving for more that this memory jog will create?
Such fears I guess, are unfounded.
Every time you reminisce it's actually an emotional roller-coaster... you are bound to cover the happy and the sad both!
Like I mentioned earlier in Separate Lives there are many people whom we're close to, but we still do not make a serious attempt at staying in touch with them or know that you're never gone see them again. If we can dig out ole tales of our times with them, then why not people in the category we are discussing.
My reasons for saying so??? Well, these are perhaps another set of people whom you'll not see or meet...These are people with whom you had better if not equally great times with.
I remember reading somewhere that if a lifetime is nothing but moments you remember...and if you could somehow compress all these moments together...Then, a lifetime is perhaps just a couple of days!!!!
So why not cherish these special moments spent with those special people in our lives?
Couldn't help summing this up with a few lines from a song by Kool and the Gang..
"Cherish the love we have... Let's cherish the life we live... Let's cherish every moment we have been given..........."

Separate Lives

How many people do we get to know during the course of our life time? When we meet them, while we meet them do we pause and think about the kind of impact they make, are making or will make on our lives??

Relationships too like many things else, build up into a crescendo and then fade. We meet people, make friends, spend lots of time together, become almost inseparable and yet when we part ways, seem to go on for years without even stopping to think what happened to the person with whom we spent so much time with.

The kids in the neighbourhood, classmates at school, at graduation, at post-grad, colleagues at work; where do we not have an example?

We move through different countries, cities, organisations and keep adding to this list of people whose status would be "Not known".

Our time and thoughts are tied with our work and our immediate family.


And then one fine day there's a chance encounter, a mail, a phone call and it snowballs, again building up into a crescendo only to fade yet again. Another memory created, a record updated.

We journey through life...meeting some people at some point again...never to meet a few others and surely meeting new ones as we continue living.... our separate lives!

Twilight: The Nothingness of Transition

How often have we all cribbed about the fact that we are overworked? I guess despite the fact that we get to hear it ever so often; it’s not a REAL crib. We actually love the fact that we have enough and more to do. In someway being given more work to do seems to be something to be proud of for most (for all you know you might be the docile donkey that doesn't throw tantrums!).

Coming back, the realisation that you NEED to work only comes during spells where you have none!! They say that work expands to fill available time; the converse in my opinion does not hold and time seems to be stubbornly in-elastic refusing to fleet when there is nothing to do.

I have witnessed (and lately experienced) in professional/working life, what I’d term the nothingness of transition. This is the time span after a change (a role change/a change of job) where you are not expected to be contributing in a real manner in your new role.

Takes me back to the days as a kid and reminds me of the times when you had to move into a new neighbourhood. The feeling of being the new kid on the block, the having to stand and watch the other kids play…

Well, that experience also reminds me of how life prepares you…the fact that you need to deal with the change. You need to make the first move and go and talk with the kid who acknowledges your presence, perhaps smiles and waves at you. The other option ofcourse is to wait till some kid makes that first move.

Be that as it may, it’s twilight that signals the change, it’s neither day nor night.. ….and in this nothingness lies its tranquil beauty… the hues of dawn or even dusk with its soft sun…. one a symbol of a new beginning, the other a meaningful end.

Confessions of A Couch Potato

My wife always used (she still does) to crib about the way I would just plonk myself on the bean bag and not move for anything be it food, phone-call or to get the door. My logic was that I needed to catch up on all the news and since I had no time to read through all sections of the newspaper, the boob-tube was my window to the world.

I admit! After living in denial for the larger part of my life, it’s time to come clean. Not that I wanted to or the fact that I can’t (physically) hide it anymore. I have realised this over the past one week that I spent at home.

In all fairnesss I was unwell. However, the liking I took to the bean bag continued well into the extended weekend (Courtesy: Pongal) and made me realise that I have all the symptoms of one!

Not only did I watch all the re-runs that they telecast through the week, I also caught up on the ones I missed on the all day marathons over the weekend. And here’s how it dawned; by the end of the 5th day at home I noticed that I had the container full of snacks within an arms length, a jug of water, all the remotes (TV/Set Top Box/VCD Player and the Satellite Radio remotes) right next to me, ofcourse both the landline and the handphones were within reach and handy, I did not bolt the front-door just so I could holler “It’s open” should anybody have knocked. The only redeeming factor was though I had the strongest urge I’ve ever had to order a pizza and coke, I abstained. OK! The truth is I would have succumbed to that too had wifey dearest not reminded me of my recent bout of illness!!

Well, the couch potato test at http://www.queendom.com/tests/minitests/fx/couch_potato.html put to rest all doubts that I had.

On a serious note, I read a report that says that the anticipated economic gains in terms of increased tourism and purchases by hosting the Commonwealth Games at Melbourne this time will be offset by the possibility that a sizeable portion of the population would stay back home and watch the games and would thus stop spending or spend less while they put their feet up and watched the Games — “the couch potato effect."

Whoever said that sitting back home watching TV didn't hurt anybody better think again!!

On Resolutions

Yeah..yeah we've made resolutions more often than we care to...and surely much more often than we've lived upto.

Every December, the promise that the new year holds is overwhelming. I guess the optimist in us always believes that the best is yet to come. What if life already is as good as it gets???

Then again, there's this part of us which believes that we should change somethings about ourselves. Always felt that resolutions are about undoing conscious choices made by us. Like stop drinking, quit smoking, reduce weight, find another job....(Guess all these would figure on the "Top Ten Most Popular New Year Resolutions".

Personally, I have come to the conclusion that resolving to do something is putting undue pressure on self. Furthermore, announcing the list in public is plain suicide.

Read somewhere that "realisation" is half atonement. So realising about things that are not right with your life is half the job done. Problem is...it's the easy half.

The more difficult half is actually changing and setting things right. But hey! Rome was'nt built in a day, was it??

As someone once said "I cannot say whether things will get better if we change; what I can say is they must change if they are to get better."

So here's to change!!!

Playin Hookie

How often have you called in sick at work? Well, I don't know why but I think that maybe "I am not feeling too well" or "Am down with a fever" somehow do not seem weighty enough in front of your office folks to merit a day off. The "Take Care!" from your colleagues sounds more cautionary than concerned.

The problem is you might have used up the "Not Keeping Well" routine some time i.e. the day you just wanted to stay back home and watch the match... or the morning after the night when you went partying and you just could'nt kick the hangover in time to make it to work...

Like they say the problem with lying is that you MUST HAVE a great memory in order to remember what you told and to whom the last time round. The highest level of this "art form" is when you start knocking your folks off! Once again a problem coz you need to keep track of the imaginary branches of your (or your wife's) family tree that you keep chopping off!

So the next time you're faced with a dilemma of what to tell the folks at work when you really aren't well? Go for the truth ! But ofcourse, this time the detailing comes automatically...the sore throat, the coughing bout....it really works. Amazing thing is that you end up on a guilt trip the day you are actually telling the truth!!!

So is Playing Hookie really worth it?? Well, if you could do it when you were in school, why not now? If being mature and responsible means loosing spontaneity, then growing up is no fun.

All of us have risen beyond the call of duty many a time, working late hours, working holidays and postponing vacations. So, go ahead, you've earned your stripes.

Being responsible does not mean not playing hookie...it only means knowing when to.

On Diwali, Diya's, Daaru and Teen Patti

Was there in Delhi for Diwali :The festival of Lights, the festival where gifts, sweets and dry-fruits are exchanged as a symbol of prosperity. The festival of Diwali mela's and crackers and of course the festival of Diya's, Daaru and Teen Patti...No other festival I know of has this many dimensions... We all have heard the term "festive spirit" an awful lot....over the years the only spirit that I have witnessed during festival time is the one that gets consumed!!! Well, this Diwali was no different for many Delhites. Yes, the unfortunate blasts did dampen the "spirit". The dead were remembered with candles and diyas being lit at site of the blasts in their memory. Coming back to the lights part....there was an abundance of the varieties of Diyas and Candles that were available in the market. What seem to have caught the fancy of most are the floating candles.Ofcourse the Chinese had a good part to play as there were lots of crackers from China. I remember having to dig out the old "ladi" (string) of lights every Diwali and standing with a tester in hand and extra bulble trying to get the lights working. Now only a fool would go through the pains. You get beautiful LED ladis with all kinds of different flicker combinations for 25-30 bucks!!! Use and throw!! But I am a true blue Indian...I believe in Use and Re-Use and Re-Use till the damned thing doesn't work!! Meanwhile a growing majority took to what has become the "thing-to-do" during the weeks preceeding Diwali...playing Teen Patti aka Flash or for the uninitiated lot a card game most preferred for gambling. I guess like all other things this too has a mythological connection. It is believed that on this day, Goddess Parvati played dice with her husband Lord Shiva and she decreed that whosoever gambled on Diwali night would prosper throughout the ensuing year. What goes along unsaid with this is the modern tradition of drinking! Reminds me of Big B's dialogue in Sholay ....the one where he goes "daaru bhi tabhi peeta hai jab jua khelta hai"...or something along those lines. Now, I have been willy-nilly a part of this whole daru and teen patti tradition but what used to amaze me is the single minded dedication with which people approach it. During the 2, almost 3 weeks that preceed Diwali, people meet up for playing cards almost every second night with the frequency, hours of play, booze consumed and the stakes increasing as Diwali night approaches. People don't really bother whether the host is known to them or not, as long as you have an invitee along with you almost anybody is welcome. In fact the more the merrier!! There's a common purse to which all contribute to an initial agreed amount and from the winnings as and when. This helps recover all the expenses for the party. No free lunches here!! Like I mentioned the drive to play is so high that no matter how late you were the previous night or how much you lost or how much you had to drink the previous night does'nt seem to come in the way of going for the next patti session!! Another thing is how much people are willing to stretch over and above their means to be able to be a part of this craze. People win big and loose bigger...Diwali in many ways is a great leveller.. The common question when friends meet is not "How are you doing?" but "Are you up or down this season?"

I found the answers to many of these questions this Diwali. As they would say in Delhi... I was "UP" this season!!!

Crazy Lil Thing Called Love

How often have you heard people say that they're waiting for the right person to come into their life. Well I heard it AGAIN recently and that set me thinking. No I am not setting out to define what love is...

Is there truly such a thing called love at first sight?? Well a friend and a roomie of mine from engineering days used to fall in love every week!!! OK..OK... I am exaggerating. He'd spend days and plot how he'd propose. Unfortunately...he never got around to doing it on any of the seven occassions that he professed love for a female.

All said and done....you need to know a person well to like somebody and then to start loving them and I dont know whether you can pre-determine your liking for someone whom you dont really know. Even with all the vibes, it sure takes time before one of them muster up enough courage to say that they're in love. If I may take the liberty to generalise... I guess thats the way it goes for most.

On the other hand the generation preceeding us was one where marriages being arranged was the norm. But aren't our parents in love with each other? I guess like many other things people learn to love. It IS possible for people to fall in love AFTER getting married.That brings me to another point. Does marriage have to be the next thing?

If love be liking someone so much that you want to spend the rest of life with them, share your hopes and dreams with them and in turn share theirs, if love is wanting others to take you as you are and for what you are... then I guess love has to mean being friends...friends for life!!

Reminds me of that Michael Bolton song...."How can we be lovers if we can't be friends....."

So here's to people learning to love and to finding that friend they can spend the rest of their lives with.

F.R.I.E.N.D.S.....Family You Can Choose!!!!

For most of us the growing up years of school are the times that we cherish. I bet many of us were asked to write essays on "My Best Friend". Looking back at the years gone by, almost feel that friends are the family life lets you choose. Not to say that the I have complaints about the one I have (and no I'm not buttering up to my parents!!!).
I'm sure all of us have those cousins who irritate us no end and uncles who are snoots and aunts who's son is better than you at everything. But when it comes to friends its different. These are people you've chosen to be with or those who have chosen you to be with. Either way it's a two way street. When you're with friends it does'nt matter who picks up the tab after a couple of drinks at the pub. You don't maintain books..most loans are on non-returnable basis! I guess what sets friends apart is the that there are no set expectations from friends..just that they are around.
My favourite friend moment was when a friend of mine called me and asked me what I was doing and when I said "Nothin" pat came the reply "Me too! Come over and we'll do nothing together!!" Thats what friendship is all about. The ability to do nothing together! Who hasn't spent endless hours just hanging around! Milkshake at ones place, followed by sandwiches at the next guys place.

Having said that, with friends you don't have to ask. We've all told those little lies for a friend. A little bit of truth bending. And no, friendship is not only about covering up its also about showing the way to the best of our capabilities. Yes, sometimes plans go horribly wrong.

Friendship is a spirit that does not age..you can press the pause button for days..months maybe even years and start from where you left off. Friendship is not only about reminisceing the moments spent together; it's about creating one more moment every time you do!!!!

As John Lennon put it..."I get by with a lil help from my friends..."

The Thin Line.....

Emotions like everything else in life are a part of a continuum. They do not appear in discrete packets. There is an intermediary stage before irritation turns to anger, a smile turns into a laughter, between pulling someones leg and being mean and when assertiveness becomes stubborness. Most if I may add are from the perspective of the watcher than the do-ee (I picked this from Everybody Loves Raymond)

So the question now is whether there's a thin line separating these stages, how many degrees separate these stages and who owns the line? My guess is its most always the watcher.

Brings me back to the fact that everything that we say or do today is driven by perceptions (good or bad, right or wrong). Though we've made great advances in Communication Technology what has taken a beating is the Inter-personal communication. We are too shy or too proud to go ask people what they think about what we are doing, have done or plan to do. Resultantly, we assume a reaction of a certain kind and go ahead with whatever we wanted to do..."I ate the entire chocolate because I thought you did not want it" or "We went and watched the play..didn't think you'd be interested" There are ofcourse zillion such examples.

Coming back to the thin line.... Is there a way to set the bar? Can we actually define words like anger and come to one common understanding on what it means and when it actually sets in?? If we actually did, I bet we'd wipe out the entire man-woman poking around gig. On second thoughts, life then wouldn't be too much fun either.

Guess the only way to get around this is, that as an individual, much like an umpire in cricket we have to display consistency in our interpretation of the rule and call that delivery a wide or a no-ball at exactly the same point everytime and regardless of who. And as the saying goes in cricket "The line belongs to the umpire!"

Closure...Putting 2 and 2 2gether

What’s with the human mind? Why are our minds constantly in this great hurry to jump to conclusions? Any inputs from any of our senses seems to trigger the absorb, process, analyze and deduce sequence.

You see two colleagues of opposite sex sitting together and having lunch…bang they must be going around. A colleague walks away to take a call on hand-phone…you go it must be his wife or at other times must be a placement consultant! Cricketers are not faring well… Oh! Those guys spend more time shooting for commercials than in the nets! There are numerous such examples of people doing such things (would have done it ourselves). Well! Lets face it we are judgemental.

We give no room for things to have happened as a coincidence or out of force of habit. For many of us there HAS to be a reason behind every event and occurrence. Therefore the need to create, maintain/change and manage perceptions. Then starts the battle between one’s self-image and perceived image. For many of us perception is reality.

We are a species that takes its place in the evolution chain to seriously. But why take our analytical capabilities so far?

I do not want to know why it smells great after a drizzle nor do I want to find the reason behind why a sunset or a sunrise look best from the beach. I just want live in and enjoy the moment!

Best laid plans.....

How many of us set out to fail? Well! Stupid question, but the fact is that not many of us set out to succeed either.

Most of us keep going ahead in life and believe in the song que sera sera..whatever will be..will be. Much like the piece of paper whose ascent and direction are determined by the gust of wind that blows it from one place to another.

There are yet some of us who don't give their best till their backs are against the wall. Yes, five-setters are fun and nothing pumps an individual like coming in from the back and winning when the chips are down. But I bet that King Becker would himself concede that you can't possibly come back from two sets down in every match and win the slam.

Thats the big picture. Its about winning the slam with as little taken away from you as possible. Its about winning not just one slam but as many as one can. So don't always wait for your back to be against the wall before you fight back, see that you dont get pushed against the wall.

Yes, there's very little that one can control in terms of the environment and how it changes around you. But, one CAN control how one responds to that change and that is the key.

Halcyon Days........

Float back to the days
Where the days were long and the nights were longer
Times when we were young and the nights were younger
To the days where our thoughts were free
Times when the breeze was cool and so were we!
Bottles emptied through the night
A minor argument, a big fight
Things that went wrong and those that went right
Endless movies and highway rides
Guys who spent hours in front of the mirror admiring their looks
Guys who slept through the night while others sat with their books
Guys who topped, yet others who flopped
It all comes back when you walk down that lane
A drink in your hand without bothering who pays
Beautiful memories........those Halcyon Days

Chasing your dreams

How many of us actually end doing what we always wanted to do? Infact how many of us have really wanted to do the same thing all our lives?? Have'nt we all gone through our fair share of finding our calling?
Questions for which perhaps, the answers are more questions. Fact is that for a majority of us life pretty much takes it's own course. For those who end up living their dream, they did'nt wake up one fine morning and find that life's course had taken them straight into their dream alley.
Chasing your dreams is all about choosing your own destination, plotting your own course and invariably about swimming against the tide.
Amitabh Bachchan was not hounded by film makers the day he decided to pursue acting as a profession. But the change he made was he decided that he was willing to give up all else to become an actor and he persevered.
Dreams are'nt going to come true if the urge to change the way the things are around is'nt preceeded by a strong urge to change yourself! The first change has to be in YOU!
A few lines ripped from MJ and modified by yours truly.
"Wanna make a change,
for once in my life,
Wanna make a difference
wanna make it right........
I'm starting with the man in the mirror,
I'm asking him to change his ways..."

Halcyon: The Wonder Years

Halcyon was, rather is the name of the cul-fest of SIT, the institute from where I graduated as an engineer. Here's something I wrote a long-long time ago about how it all started.

"You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one..." So went John Lennon and since then a whole new generation has dared to dream and do. SIT (Siddaganga Institute of Technology) till 1994 had its fair share of dreamers and yes people did laugh and scorn at those who even talked about having a Cul-fest at SIT. "Impossible", "Are you f@#$*& crazy", "Who the hell would want to come to Tumkur of all places?" Believe me these are the mildest. And then God said
"Let there be light."

Genesis:

It just takes a spark to set a house on fire. Two guys chatting over endless cups of tea at one of the Tapris set the ball rolling. It was exam time, odd semester. "I'll speak with the second year
guys about it" one said, "I'll pull in some guys from the third and fourth year" said the other. Ordinarily, this would have been the end of very successful small talk. But, the doers had arrived!

A couple of days later a small gathering on the B.V Block roof-top formed a quorum though unofficial, for the first Halcyon meeting.
Ideas shuttled back and forth and probably, the skeleton of the festival was drawn.

Another exam tension relieving session? No way! The seeds were sown.

Exam time and a couple of guys were still thinking about the festival, the creative juices were flowing along with the adrenaline. The inner circle was probably formed around this time.
These were the brains and brawns behind the success that Halcyon is today.

What's In the Name?

Ever heard of people coming back early from their semester break? Well? these guys did.

Now, the biggest test lay ahead. They had to talk to the management about their grand plans. They were prepared for any eventuality right from the number of events to be held to the budget and of course, the all important name. The name has a story of its own. Not
going into that, it would suffice to say that out of a range of names HALCYON was chosen with a broad consensus and not without opposition. There was however, a very serious and sincere suggestion to call it "SIT Inter-college Cultural Festival".

A long exchange of ideas and the principal and the chairman of the cultural committee were ready to take the proposal to Swami ji. It did not take him long to decide.

Good news! Yes. Work done? No way!!!


The First Time Is Always the Hardest

They had got the go ahead. But, with less than one and a half months to go there was lot of work to do. What's the big deal? Well, this was the first time an event of this magnitude a three-day state level inter-collegiate cultural festival with 22 events was about to be held.

The Avalanche Effect

The campus became a beehive with debates; jam sessions and antaaksharis going into the wee hours of the morning. The intramural competitions evoked an unexpected and unprecedented response.

The spring in the step was obvious and infectious. Students did not complain about the 7:30 AM classes and evenings were eagerly awaited.

Witty banners around the campus and the hostels were one major feature. People actually waited for fresh punch lines every two days. A mini advertising coup, that too in an engineering college.

The campus was decked up. One couldn't have asked for a better build-up to the actual festival.

Judgement Day (s)

Day 1
0800hrs IST
Scene at the canteen. "I'll be happy if we get 5 colleges to come" cut to the reception at Birla Auditorium "Just two colleges???"

0900hrs IST
The floodgates open. An unexpected 16 colleges have sent their teams. Take off.

Day 2 & Day 3
What happened next is a blur all I know is that the eagle had landed. The rest as they say is history. Halcyon was on its way to becoming the best fest in Karnataka.


Down the Memory Lane

For a good many SITians Halcyon is a door down the memory lane which they'll knock upon often. The names of the guys who started the fire will perhaps fade away and never be mentioned. There will be tall claims by some as to who started Halcyon. But the two guys who
sat over that cup of tea will always know!!

As far as I'm concerned my part as a story teller is over and I know one thing for sure "Ondu kings and by-two tea" do go a long way in creating history!