Appreciate The Effort

I came across a very well written post on why people quit their jobs and I knew I had to write this one.

I remember one colleague of mine saying the words “That’s why people quite their jobs, they are not happy and they choose to move on and keep doing it unless they find one”.

The statement came at a time when I was amusing myself with sarcasm when I saw a mail from the HOD (head of department) asking to explain on an email received from the client side. All this happened when I took a loo break.

Before that an email from the client appreciated my team efforts for delivering in a short time. The HOD also acknowledged our team effort on the same email.

What amused me that day was the way the boss chooses to change sides without trying to find out what happened. It kind of reflects how much trust he has on his own team.

Anyone who has worked would know that the number of your mistakes pointed is always higher than the times your work has been appreciated. I would put that in a ratio of 10:1.

An office environment is nothing short of being in a sports team where everyone’s contributions decide the final outcome. Very few people actually realize this and treat their team in such a way.

I remember doing a presentation in one of the session how an employee morale gets affected with and without feedback being received.

The first stage was about the employee who joined the organization trying to give his best. In the second stage he feels lost when his efforts don’t yield the appreciation/recognition that he was looking for. In the third stage he loses his enthusiasm to give his best which results in bad performance without a feedback. With a feedback, he knows where he stands and gives his best and that gets him rewards & promotions.

In reality, the feedback session is nothing short of being told where one should improve and reminded of their past mistakes. Appreciating an employee rarely happens unless it’s outstanding!! How many of the employees manage to do that?

There is also a perception among the management that if they appreciate the work of the employees, it would send out a wrong sense of hope that they would be moved up the ladder. This is totally wrong!!

Not everyone aims of becoming a leader, how is one suppose to lift a team member’s morale without appreciating the effort he/she has put in, irrespective of the outcome? Does cribbing, pointing out their mistakes are going to make them do things right? The answer is NO.

People choose to work for various reasons, and not everyone is going to follow the office ethics!! It’s a myth if people think it works, no wonder office politics sustains because of the above reason, often finding people who are incapable to inherit the much desired position. Then again, it’s the management who holds the control over how much politics should be allowed to exist.

We end up spending most of our time in office than at home, which only keeps getting longer as one moves up the ladder. It does makes a difference on one’s state of mind on how one is treated.

Everyone likes to be appreciated once in a while. A small pat on the back, telling someone that they are doing a good job goes on a long way to boost one’s morale.

I have observed that unless one does an outstanding work, one’s work will never get appreciated even if it’s a good effort. How many times are people able to deliver outstanding work? Very few!!

Where does that leaves an average employee? No wonder after a certain period of time people quit as boredom sets in and the constant reminder of how bad one is doing.

If one wants employees to stop quitting, start appreciating the efforts not the result, and one could see the difference…

The Score Read 1 0 0

He flicked the ball towards the offside and ran towards the other end as he saw a fielder moving in quickly towards the ball and throwing it towards the bowlers end. He made a dive making sure he ground his bat through the crease.

The sound of the stumps being uprooted by the ball was heard. Shouts of “Howzzat” were called by the nearby fielders but the umpire was in no mood to give him out.

He got off the ground thumped his punch into the air, removed his helmet and pointed his bat to the people who came to watch him. It was his maiden century.

If you are wondering what this is about, well it’s to highlight the fact that I completed 100 posts, which I never thought I would.

Thank you, for taking the time out to read this blog and commenting on posts which means a lot to me!!

To summarize the whole thing, I am giving out a commentator’s award to each and everyone of you who choose to comment on this blog and still keep coming back for more :))

He took his guard again, hitting the ground with the wood in his hand, with his eye on the ball which he knocked down with his defensive shot towards the on side as he went on to add another run...

The After Effects

Nowadays, people are acting strange around me. I don’t know if it is the swine flu effect but I do intent to find it out.

Already the swine flu effect is showing on people as they walk around wearing masks, men tying a handkerchief covering up their nose and women holding one end of the dupatta on their faces while crossing the road. Yes there a few brave people like me who walk down the streets like everything is normal (I do wash my hands though, thanks to all the information that everyone is spreading about maintaining hygiene).
People give me disgusting looks, keep staring at me and talk under their lips or choose to stand away from me when I am standing in a queue.

The first time it happened, I immediately checked my fly thinking it might be open, but it was not. The second time I went to the public toilet twice to check in the mirror if there was something on my face that was evoking such a behavior. All I could see was my reflection.

I did realize one thing that such reactions would happen when I came in close contact with people. It's not like I have cold or I sneeze around, drops dripping from my nose to make myself a threat to them.


I even had my body odour checked by my friends (yes, it was a surprise testing). They gave me an O.K. stamp. Of course I made that out when they fall to the ground unconscious but others who come in close contact with me seem to have a stronger resistance.
Yes, they do tend to cover up their faces with anything they can get their hands or best they run away from me. No I don’t nuke them with the gases that my digestive system releases. The gases that are released have not reached to the nuclear capability to make other nauseous. Bad breath again is not a problem, coz all this happens with my lips sealed.
It’s the strangers who act weird while my family and friends don’t find anything wrong with me. Nor did I saw them maintaining any distance from me. I guess then it should be the problem of the strangers and not me.
I will find it out sooner or later...

Anyways, I have subscribed to a number of SMS alerts which keeps coming in throughout the day.

BTW, have you listened to my message alert? Check it out.

P.S. I came to know how the swine flu transmitted from the swine to the humans. Here is a peek.

Mom's Nightmare

She kept pushing; still the doctor kept saying push a little harder. She took a deep breath and then gave the push with her hands holding the sides of the bed tightly. 

 

“The head is out” the doctor exclaimed, keep pushing he continued. She kept pushing until the whole body was out. The doctor holding the child informed the mother it was a boy, by then she was already exhausted but the news did make her happy, as she felt her prayers were answered. She had prayed for a boy this time to Lord Ganesha to complete her family. What she did not know that she was going to regret that later in the life and keep reminding the boy of the same. 

 

 Apparently the boy was born on Ananth Chaturdashi of Ganeshotsav. He was the only boy to be born that day in the hospital. He had grown up drinking buffalo’s milk as his mother found herself back in the hospital after coming home from the delivery. It is said that the boy is lucky that his mother survived to live and tell the tale.

 

What was among the rumors that he might have picked up the habits of the buffalo, but drinking buffalo’s milk often prevented him from getting into fights when anyone challenged him for one saying “Maa ka dhooth piya hain toh samane aa” (if you had drink your mother’s milk, than come forward) and he would then walk off saying bhais ka dhood piya (I had buffalo's milk) and turn his foes into friends. 

 

Growing up the boy gave the early signs of humans being related to chimpanzee as he would be often found sitting on the top of the cupboards and climbing the walls (with the help of his back & legs) between the passages that was used for entering the rooms. His mother can still recall how he made her living almost miserable with all his antics, the list of complaints that others would have. His aunt could very well open the Pandora’s Box when the child’s name is mentioned. He even made her run behind him, he thinks that she should be thankful to him for losing weight in the process. There have been so many feats that could be recalled about the boy. He broke the refrigerator’s door when he was being chased by the SisterHood Clan. 

 

Wasted a whole container of flour by raising it above his head, turning it upside down and getting hurt in the process. Got his head stuck in the window grill as he was showcasing his skills. Started a small fire in the house which was quickly doused off. He still thinks that his best act was when he broke the tube light with his badminton racket as he played an indoor badminton game in the hall. His name is associated with the highest number of bizarre incidents in the Family Book of Records. The boy had a good side too. He was one of the early ones who started praying to god and doing an aarti as he tried to imitate his elders. 

 

He also started shaving early as he wanted to grow big, later he realized that he was been fooled as the shaving kit turned out to be a toy given by his Dad. The boy showed his early signs of dealing with money by asking for pocket money a trend that he started in the family. He even invented the “paper ball cricket” (which involved the ball made of papers and tied by rubber band and the bat is made of cardboard) in which the sisterhood clan also took part. Being the youngest and living with the sisterhood clan he would always have to listen as everyone around him were speaking 16215 words per day while he could just utter 15669 per day. No wonder when he grew up, he was quite a listener!! He was also told by the clan that he was the “adopted” one but he knew it was one of their tactics to distract him from his mission. He has the family rabbit tooth that refutes their claim.  

 

As he grew up, he was often seen lost in deep thought trying to understand the world, the universe and in the process gain wisdom and wished to become a saint. He wanted to take sanyas but he was aware of his responsibilities. So he decided to do the next best thing of becoming a Cyber Yogi Baba (Hamari Koi Branches Nahi Hain) He was aware that he had caused too much pain to his mother when he was growing up. So he decided to ask her how to make up for it. He asked her to tell him “the one thing that would make her happy and proud of her son”. She replied that she did not want anything for herself and the only thing that she wanted was the boy to be happy.

 

The boy was stumped, all his wisdom could not help him decipher what she meant. It was only by trial and error method did he came to know that what she actually meant. That would be to cause less trouble or be good in hiding them from her and taking good care of her. The boy took pains to do avoid getting in trouble (still trouble has a way of finding him, after all they are friends). As a result of which he would often hear the much stated phrase once in a blue moon. 

 

Somehow the boy thinks that it’s his mother’s fault as she should have been clear on what she wanted from Lord Ganesha, did she forget that he himself was a mischievous child (I am not his reincarnation).  

P.S. In case you are wondering what prompted this post, well today is the day when her nightmare began and shows no signs of ending…

Looking for Answers

I happened to have made an entry in the journal saying that looking for answers is futile, its like one never gets the answers when one is looking for and often ends up finding them when it could be of no use or doesn’t matter as one moves on.

I happen to have the book “The Fifth Mountain” besides me that I started reading. Funnily enough the note from the author talked about related to what I had written about.

Reminded me of this post.

P.S.: I was looking to read other books by Paul Coelho but none were available except this one.

Take A Stand

Mayur ended the call on his cell phone; went inside his house sat on the sofa stretched his legs on the table and spread his arms around the sofa.

“I thought she would listen to me, and agree to make the changes on whose name the flat is going to be, but she did not….” He said to himself.

After a moment of deliberation, he said “What difference does it make anyways? Once I marry her, I’ll get a flat and a share of her wealth. All that I have to do is tie a mangalsutra around her neck and rest of all the expenses would be taken care of by her parents. Once married, I will convince her to add my name instead of her as the owner of the flat”.

Never in his wildest dream he had seen this coming, where he would see himself moving into a flat from a slum and get a slice of huge wealth without spending a penny. All he had to do was marry a girl, who was constantly being rejected because of her dark complexion.

His face broke into a smile; after all he was the one who was going to have the last laugh.
__________________________________________________

Such marriages do take place where the girl belongs to a well to do family and the guy is inferior in respect of status. Most of these alliances takes place as the family of the girl find it hard to get a boy of their status in the community or the reasons could vary from the girl been highly educated, being of too dark complexion or for other reasons.

Not all such marriages that take place are based on “Get Rich Quicker” route there are sometimes genuine individuals involved too.

Our society norms are such that once you grow older, one is expected to get married and start a family of their own and if they don’t do so, then rumors starts spreading on the probable causes for being single.

The lackadaisical attitude of the girl’s parents who treat her like she has become a burden on them and if she is not married after a certain age, people will start wagging their tongues!!

What is the point in getting a daughter married in such a way which appears nothing more than a business deal?

It would do more good to give the girl more freedom and letting her live the way she wants to, who knows she might find love in the future instead of giving her away in such a manner where dark clouds looms over her future, which can only be predicted after marriage.

On top of that, where is the self-respect of a man who cannot stand up for themselves and prefer to depend on their wife’s kitty. The man would end up utilizing the wife’s fund for more than often instead of finding it through other means of resources.

In such marriages, there is a role reversal where the bride takes on groom’s role and the groom plays the bride, providing other amenities such as a flat to live in, in case the groom does not own one or help him set up a business.

Such marriages do go through a litmus test of the society wherein the groom would be constantly reminded how his life has changed due to his marriage (this will only hurt the individuals whose motive was not money, a male bruised ego can take bad turns), as for the girl too, life is not going to be easy especially when the shameless relatives talk about her how her marriage got fixed in her presence.

What is the point in getting married in such a way? so that the parents feel that they have fulfilled all their duties? or the girl to think that this is her fate and that she should live with it?

There is more to life then just settling down and starting a family, something that we, Indians seem averse to.

The society norm needs to be broken when it starts to strangle the people for whom it was built for….

The Threat SMS

Last month, around 9 in the night, I was working on the PC when I received a Threat SMS on my cell phone which was lying besides the monitor, the message read something like this: 

 

Excuse me, Don?t dare to call up on this number,
Or else u would have to face sever consequence from police
And I will finish you off 

 

The first thought that came to my mind that someone was playing a prank with me, as the message came from an unidentified number thinking that one of my friends had changed his number and this is their way of letting me know about it. I did not bother to call up the person; instead I decided to send a message asking the person’s name. One or two hours had passed since replying the message. I got a second message from the same number, this time saying: 

 

Stop all this nonsense

 

For a moment, the thought came to my mind that may be it’s a girl who is getting irritated because of some loser sending messages continuously and she might have accidentally send the message to the wrong number which would be mine in this case (the thought of a guy being behind this did not came coz in such cases they would prefer to call and swear expletives or the message cannot be expected to be so polite if this was a genuine case). I still had my doubts though…. Giving the benefit of doubt and still thinking that someone was pulling a fast one on me, I decided to send a second message asking them what their name was and they probably send the message to the wrong number. Again there was no reply soon. I was staying up late night playing a newly downloaded game on my cell phone when I got the third message from the same number which went like this:

 

What is Mobile?

  ↓

   ↓ 

   ↓ 

   ↓  

 ↓

  Neeche neeche kya dekha raha hain
Hath main kya kabutar pakda hain

 

It was 1:30 in the night when I got this message; I was now 100% sure that one of my friends has to be behind all this. I know two people who stay up late and even narrowed it to one as he worked in the evening shift and is also known for changing numbers frequently. I decided to call but I did not know what was coming for me next. The voice said “Hello”. I did not say anything for a moment as it did not sounded like any of my friends. “Who is this” I asked. 

 

“I have been getting a lot of abusive messages from you for the past two days. I am warning you to stop all this” the voice sounded like someone who was older than me and sounded disturbed. That made me take the call seriously and I explained the person how I thought that someone was playing a prank on me by sending the “Threat SMS”. He again told me to stop sending the messages and asked me whether this is a good time to call anyone? I once again explained him how I had just received a message from your mobile and asked if whether he was sure that the number sending him the messages was from my mobile number. He spelled out my number and I told him how that is simply not possible. I asked him his name and he said “Rajiv Jain”. 

 

I gave my memory a push to recall. I did not know anybody by that name. “Why do you want my name” the voice said with fear that could be felt in his voice. He told me that he would call up the next day in the morning to talk about it. I kept the phone down saying thanks. By the time I kept the phone down, my sister was standing outside my room listening to the whole conversation. I told her and Mom what had taken place right from the start. 

 

My sister started grilling me “Try to remember, you haven’t uploaded your number to any sites” She went to say how foolish I was to call up the number something that she does not even when she receives a message saying Happy Birthday from an unidentified number. I went back to my room thinking about what just happened, how something like this could be possible. When it comes to gizmos and gadgets, I know a lot of stuff especially on how it can be misused. So I was pretty sure that it was not the case here. Either the other person is lying or there is something else going on here.

 

As I was asleep, I told myself there is nothing to be worried about and there was this gut feeling that things are not like they seem to be. My instinct has been right on many occasions and I decided to go with it. The next day I was expecting a call from the person in the morning, which did not happen. I had donned my detective cap by then and decided to investigate the matter. 

 

My first task was to find out which network did the cell number belonged to which was easy all thanks to the internet. I came to know the number belonged to a new cell network operator launched recently. That helped me narrow down to one of the suspects behind this mystery. I decided to call that friend of mine and inquire whether he has got a new number; coz I remember very well of him telling about changing to the new network as it was giving away a free umbrella for every subscription. He denied it and asked me what made me that question. I went about telling him about the incident right from the scratch as it was narrated before. 

 

My friend asked me you did not get afraid by such message? I said what is there to fear; after all I have not done anything wrong. He told me maybe someone might have pulled a prank on me and asked me how does one complain about it. The only thought that came to mind was complaining to the cell operator about such an incident taking place. Soon the topic changed and I realized that my friend’s voice was different. He had just woken up and was not keeping up well thanks to the cold and fever but was feeling better. I was in my room reading the paper in the afternoon when the thought of the person not contacting came to me. Minutes later, I got the fourth message from the same number saying:

 

Hello don’t give miss call

 

I did not even bother to reply thinking that if he is indeed getting so much troubled, he would call me up. I was sure that if I came to know that it was someone I know then he is gone, dead, and kaput. Sometime later the phone rang; it was from the same number. I picked up the call and this time the voice sounded different. The person on the other side kept threatening me saying that I am sending him messages with expletives, giving him miss calls and that if I did not stop, it won’t be good for me. I tried to pacify the person saying to cool down and listen to me first before he starts abusing me. He still kept threatening me saying that he has connections with the underworld and the police. That just did it. 

 

I stopped being nice and told him how I have also connections and tried to reason with him why I would try to send him messages when for the past couple of days I have not send it to anyone? I told him he was trying to make a fool out of me by saying abusive messages were being sent from my mobile. I told him that is not possible and that if he is so dead sure I’ll file a complaint with the police and then see what happens.

 

He was still not done, telling me that he would file a complaint. I again asked for his name, this time he told me it was “Rajiv Mehta” and again try to make him understand that why would I do such a thing in the first place? Soon his tone changed he kept asking me “Pechana nahi kya” the voice on the other side said. “Pechana nahi kya” the voice said again. This time I actually took notice of the voice and I said “Ma****” and yes it was him. I made sure I gave him an earful. 

 

It was the same suspect whom I had called in the morning. He wondered how I came to know which network the number belonged. I came to know that I was not the first one but the second victim. The first one happens to be one of his girlfriends; who just refuses to talk with him when she came to know that it was all a prank. The next thing I know, I was being asked for some mushy messages so as to cool her down. 

 

Thanks to his cold and fever his voice sounded very different than it normally is. That’s why I could not nail him the other day.  

 

P.S. I am waiting to meet him so that I can beat the shit out of him for pulling such a crap. BTW, my friend did not get that umbrella as he brought the new number through a friend under a different scheme.

The SisterHood Clan

Born and bought up in one of the flats in Bombay, they went to rule the place. This is the story about the Sisterhood Clan with whom no one messed.

The place ran according to their whims and fancies. They always had their way as they had the power, the power of five. The only way to become a member of the clan was to be the female gender and be related by birth.

Their luck was going to run out soon. They were going to be part of the history. It was the beginning of the end. The prophecy was out there on the wall. The birth of a boy in the family was going to change everything.

The Sisterhood Clan was aware of the prophecy; so they started wielding their power on him. They made him do things that he won’t do. They tried to turn him a member of their clan. They had put earring into his ears, a bindi on his forehead and a pony out of his short hair. The only thing they could find was a dress of his size. The manhood in him survived that day.

That was not the end. They tried to expose him when he came out after a bath wearing only a towel. They laid a trap to call him in the hall to find something. As he went on the search, without knowing behind his back an effort was made to pull the towel with a camera ready for the click. The boy knew how to tie strong knots so the towel did not gave in. To make fun of him they even gifted him a pair of inner vest and underwear on his birthday.

The kid being divine never complained, accepted everything with a smile. To maintain their control over him, they decided to make him pay “protection money” every year and that too to each member of the Sisterhood Clan.

To make everything look legitimate they tied a Rakhi across his wrist and in return he would hand out the money. No body found it suspicious. Being the youngest in the family he could have chose not to give in, but there was a time for the end to come and so he obliged.

As the kid grew and mingled with the Sisterhood clan, they found it hard to hold back their emotions and the affection that was developing among them but no one dare to talk about it.

The boy’s charisma had the clan in awe. He was treated with love and affection by each member of the clan. They accepted the boy in their fold and the clan ceased to exist. Each one of them vowed to protect the boy when he would need their help. The boy too promised to help them in their need but mostly in their tasks which turned out to be a day to day affair.

The tradition of Raksha Bandhan is still followed today and the money handed out in return for the rakhi tied. Only now it represents the affection of a sister and the money a token of gift from a brother.

The boy is none than me who put an end to the Dangerous Sisterhood Clan without any fights :)))))))

Let me give a brief description of each member of the Sisterhood Clan who helped me learned the ways of life (I was going to write a book soon on how understand a women and put an end to the guys misery, but they made me promise not to reveal the secrets of women).

Sister I: She was the "Ringleader" of the Sisterhood Clan. She was the one responsible behind all the harassment & pranks played on me. Nowadays, the only thing she wants is to see me get married. One must have heard about the “list”.

Sister II: The “Talented”. She taught me all the tricks of the trade. She is so talented and could learn anything that she wants. I picked up that trick from her. I used to act as her assistant and she as my boss. I happen to have sign a non-disclosure agreement so cannot reveal much.

Sister III: The “Book Keeper”. Everything that she did was by the book, so much so that almost everyone got influenced and they began to read books. Thick and heavy books which I thought were meant to use as means of weapon in a fight, now I end up reading them.

Sister IV: The “Loudspeaker” who would warn if someone was coming when they were pulling their tricks on me. She still likes to believe that I was born to serve her. Her favorite line is “What have you done for me?” The irony is I do end up serving her. She is the one who is responsible for me developing so much patience.

Sister V: The “Kid” of the clan, she would run errands for them. For her my phone no. is the IT helpline no. which she dials every time any of her gadgets starts acting weird. I also end up being a counselor and at times polishing my skills of being a “pakav” (boring) on her.

The Day Bombay Flood

I was in the morning shift that day, deep into my work and no time to look here and there. Unaware of what was going on. Every time I popped my head up, I would see one of the managers, supervisor or someone else looking out of the wall-sized windows. I turned to look outside and it was raining.

The clock ticked three and there was no sign of anyone telling the morning shift to leave. Few people from the evening shift turned up; still there was no sign of leaving the place.

I was running out of patience, so when I saw my superior walking towards me. I got hold of him and asked him about leaving for the day. He took me to his superior asking if I could be released. “If he thinks he can manage, then let him go” was how he replied. I wondered why he would say that but I was going to find that out soon.

I was happy to leave the place and had given my usual Colgate smile to my friends who saw me standing at the lift door and telling them that I was leaving for the day. What I did not know was how soon the expression on my face was going to change.

As I got out of the lift on the ground floor, and walked towards the main entrance, I could see water gushing in and half of the building space disappear in it. I stood there for a moment and looking amusingly as the water was been thrown forcibly back on the main road from the nallah (drain) that stood besides our office building.

As I stood there contemplating my next action, I found two other colleagues of mine who were also wondering what to do now. Soon the three of us decided that we will go out through the second entrance which had the road connected to the main road which happened to be the only way out.

The water level was relatively low on the road but as we got on the main road, it kept on increasing and reached up to my waist height. That reminded me of someone telling in the office that two people had ventured out but came back as the water level had submerged their bodies with the exception of their heads.

The water had so much force that it was dragging people with it; human chains were formed for safe passage of people from one side to the another. Even the cars that were left on the road were moving with the current of the water.

We kept moving ahead only to find that there was a drain kept open in the middle of the road which was acting like a whirlpool, somehow we manage to keep hold of ourselves and overcome it. Once that hurdle was clear, the water level kept receding low and we kept walking towards the railway station which was at a good distance.

My colleagues made a call to their families through a local PCO as the cell phone networks were jammed and informed that they were safe and coming home. I on the other hand did not call up my family thinking that I had just a 10 minute distance to reach my house.

Once we reached the station we bid goodbye to each other. Normally, I used to catch a bus to reach my place which was not there today, thanks to the rains. There were auto rickshaws parked on the side of the road but none agreed to take me to the destination, so I ended up walking to my home.

By the time I reached home it was already 5:30 on the clock. In normal circumstances it does not take more than 15-20 mins to reach home and back to work by the bus, but it almost took more than an hour to reach home.

The rest of the morning shift stayed back till the next morning. To pass time they played antakshari and then they were back to work as there was nothing else left to do. There was hardly any food left in the cafeteria as nobody saw this coming.

I reported to work the next morning only to hear that people (the morning shift which decided to stay back) who come from far away places decided to walk all the way to their homes in case they don’t get a lift in between. The transportation system was still down but a few vehicles were plying on the road.

News channels kept flashing the news of people stuck in their cars, buses and how they were being rescued provided food and shelter by strangers and then they were people who lost their lives to this day. Stories were being told by colleagues about animal carcass flowing down and conditions in their area.

What is pathetic to see that even today the disaster management that was formed to tackle such situations is nothing but an utter failure where if it rains heavily, places still get flooded and every time we keep hearing the beaten line “This time we are well-prepared and equipped to handle such situations”.

Tagged: Seven Wierd Things About Me

It was raining tags and awards on the other blogs that I keep visiting, still the weather was warm and sunny during the day and cold in the night at my blog. I was caught unawares when Shewtz decided to send some tag clouds over to my blog. I could do nothing but let the tag rain.

Here are the seven weird things about me that you don't know:

Collection of Chocolate Wrappers: I have a large collection of chocolate wrappers. I am not chocolate lover but I do collect the wrappers. I also have collection of key chains and calendar cards. The only one active is the chocolate one. Read this post to know more.

Junkie: I am already preparing myself to keep busy with junk that I collect and hope to put some good use after my retirement (which has a very long way to go). Here is a snap of some of the junk I have. The only thing that I have created something is a fighter plane that was made from the wood chunks that I found on the terrace as a kid.

Gory Stuff Make Me Laugh: I find gory stuff funny something that others don’t.. I loved the scene in the movie ring (the Japanese version) where the girl comes out of the TV set. For that matter the scene in the movie Saathiya where Rani Mukherjee accident takes place, I found myself laughing amused by the way the accident takes place and so fast.

Adding Numbers: I picked up the habit of adding numbers on the number plates of the vehicles plying on the road when I used to walk to home from classes, due to boredom. The result of that act resulted in that I can add up numbers really fast and other things too.

Reading Newspaper Twice a Day: I read newspaper twice a day. Sometimes when I have nothing to do, I just go through it once again. On Sundays, I do it anyways as I keep some articles for later reading.

Watching Movies: I can sit and watch movies all day thanks to Star, HBO, Pix, Zee Studio and now WB channels. Sometimes I even watch them from in between or watch two movies simultaneously. Till now, I have watched three movies at one go.

Perfectionist: Yup I have the perfectionist keeda in me. If something is not done the way it should have been, it causes stress to me unless set right!!

I am sending this tag cloud to Rashmi, Deepali, Adisha & Chriz

Gals & Mate, Have Fun :))

Tales of A Tall Guy

 



Everyone has high expectations from the tall guy as he walks on the streets people keep looking up to him, which makes him happy from inside.

He is always susceptible to head injuries especially when he is getting down from the BEST buses (of which he got hit many times) and also while entering & exiting his building premises. The tall guy can also hurt himself when he enters houses with lower ceilings and the fan is going in circles and has to make sure that he does not raise his hands.

The tall guy is very easy to find when the meeting point is in crowded places. All one has to do is look up and there he is standing tall. He also has no difficulty in finding people in such crowds. The tall guy is smiling now.

The world is not kind to him as he has to struggle with his day to day routines be it with chairs which are shorter than his knee length, has to cramp his legs when in the backseat of cars and also been used as a height measuring scale for others.

Come rain or shine, the weather always plays tyrant with him. The sun rays often find its way to fall on him making him sweat, while others stand behind as if he is a big tree providing shade. During the rains, no matter what the tall guy carries to protect himself from the rains, he always finds his pants wet. Being tall helped him during the day when Bombay was flooded; the water was up to his waist height!!

The tall guy struggles to find a girl who is taller as he is. All he could see is pretty faces in small sizes :( Finds hard to maintain relationships with them as they keep looking up to him and he keeps looking down causing a sprain in his neck. Should he carry a small stool with him when he goes on the date next time? He is wondering what couple would they resemble when he gets married, the Amitabh-Jaya or Abhishek-Aishwarya?

People keep asking the tall guy about his secrets of him being so tall. All he would say is that it is in his genes :)

He would always find people trying to bring him down to their levels when he visits the hair saloon and has to lower himself in the chair. He even finds people trying to reach his level when they try to keep their arm on his shoulders.

He has a hard time finding variety for his shoes as getting shoes of his size are not available everywhere.

The tall guy always stands out, be it a group photo, meeting or get together. Even his attempts to hide himself to take a small nap or work on the small drawing etched on his notepad fails miserably. At times he finds others trying to hide behind his back but he has nowhere to go :(

Even the bed in which he sleeps is small, his feet keeps dangling out.....
 

Unwanted

Bharat never thought he would be seeing this day in his life. He was lying on one of the beds of the old age homes. He lay awake in the endless night wondering how he ended up here.

His own daughter Veena had thrown him out of his house saying that she could not afford to take care of him anymore and that she had her own children to take care off. Her husband had left her and it was him who brought back her to his place and encouraged to work.

Finding himself on the streets he called up his only son Vijay who had settled abroad who suggested that he better take shelter in the old age homes. Not once did he say that he would try to resolve the issue or that he could stay with him.

With the help of his friends, he found himself a place to sleep at night in one of the old age homes. Though retired, the 63 year old decided to take up an accountant’s job to fend for himself.

As he closed his eyes, tears kept flowing down through his face as he tried to sleep with troubled thoughts haunting him…

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This story is actually based on a news piece that I came across. This is just one of the realities of our lives where when people get old they are thrown out on the streets by their children or left at old age homes as they cannot or don’t want to take care of them. No section of the society is untouched by this phenomenon.

What I fail to understand is what prompts this decision even when they are aware that it’s wrong and how they go on to justify it. Parents go on to make sure that their child gets the best of everything they could provide, so what changes the relationship between the children and parents when they grow up?

My best guess is that as children get more involved into their lives they tend to become detached to parents who are less involved. Then they just start treating them like any individual they come across without giving a thought what they had done for them (Their normal justification would be, they are suppose to do that).

My question is what should a parent do to make sure that they are taken care of in their old age? The problem is that at most times one can not do anything about it. Coz when one is raising a child that is not the question that haunts them, its only when they reach a stage in their life where the tables are turned and the children need to take care of the parents, that they come to know how successful they were as parents.

At the most, parents can make sure that they make a will and do not disclose about it any other member of the family and avoid transferring properties in the names of their child if the children don’t treat their parents properly.

What such adults do forget is one day they are going to finding themselves in the same situation and who knows they could find themselves at the mercy of their own children…

The Review

I saw the TV premier of the movie “Slumdog Millionaire”. There has been a lot of controversy involved around this movie especially the way India has been depicted and the debate brought on by an actor’s blog. Also wanted to watch Frieda Pinto’s acting whether she is good enough to share the limelight with Hollywood stars.

When the movie first released, I hardly felt the need to watch it somehow I had the feeling that the movie was not that good. So ever after winning 8 Oscar awards, I still did not change my mind on watching this movie. When I saw the promos of it being aired on the television, I made sure I watch it to find out the truth whether it deserves the hype or not.

Here is my verdict. The movie failed to make an impression on me and I am glad that I did not go to the theatre. The story of an underdog who goes on to become a millionaire, if one has watched closely enough it is a typical Bollywood dished out movie with a Hollywood style of finishing to add to the overall taste (just like a pinch of salt perhaps).

I am thinking of catching up with the other nominated movies to know how this movie went to win the Oscars. There were heavy contenders as far as I know from the story plot. I am wondering how a movie goes on to win a Best Picture or Best Director award without any members of the cast being nominated for their roles while this was not the case for the other movies nominated under the same categories.

There is no denying in one fact though, the word “Slumdog” will be used as a racial slur against Indians. Regarding the debate that has been brought by the actor’s blog if one has watched enough Bollywood movies; they would realize that the common man is no more part of the Indian society. Most of the movies would show the actor hailing from a rich family and they live in palatial houses, which most of the Indians can only dream of buying. Where is the Amol Palekar who represented the common man? Somehow I have this feeling of him getting replaced by Abhay Deol (with the exception of certain movies). Something that is close to reality and people could relate to. Why is that Hollywood movies tend to be closer to reality whereas ours far away from it?

The movie showed the life of the people who we choose to remain ignorant about. I liked the Taj Mahal scene the most where Mumtaz was said to have died in a road accident. I don’t believe the movie is good enough to win the Oscars; somehow my interpretation of a movie winning an Oscar would be based on how the movie moved one in a certain way and the feeling remaining in the end or making one think even after it had ended. This movie fails to do so.

Frieda Pinto is hardly there on the screen. A 5-10 min role which makes it hard to tell about her acting abilities. I hope she is good enough to get signed by Hollywood. I also hope that she is aware that this won’t last long that coz not many Indians or for that matter Asians do not have things going for them. One’s looks matter a lot. No doubt Ben Kingsley (real name Krishna Pandit Bhanji) who played Gandhi had a longer stint coz no one could not make out, that he was of Indian origin and not white as he is mistaken. Bend It Like Beckham is a good example, the lead star Parminder Nagda got overshadowed by Kiera Knightly who had a small role and went to working in big budget movies. As for Dev Patel, he seemed to carry just one expression through out the movie.

In the end, the real winners were the slum children who played the main characters childhood coz there lives have been transformed in a big way and hope that they are able to make the best out of it and stay on top of whatever comes their way.

I am proud of A.R. Rehman and Resul Pookutty for making India proud :D

Hard To Believe

I reached her place, and was sitting in the hall with others. After sometime she came out draped in a saree looking beautiful, flowers on her hair and most importantly wearing that beautiful smile that one can hardly forget. I made sure that I capture it with camera.

Somehow I found it hard to sink in the feeling that she was going to get engaged today. Time flies so fast. She belongs to the Sisterhood Clan (I’ll write about that later). She is one with whom I have grown up. I have already started wondering about how life would change with her getting married. I am already feeling that I have got old to write like this :D

We both are of the same age in fact she is just five days older than me and I am the one who has to live with the tag of being the youngest. Whenever such family functions takes place I find myself capable with multiple abilities that I don the role of a photographer, a task master and sometimes carrying out the errands.

I always have a role to play which makes me share the limelight. The first time it happened on Sister II marriage where I had an important role to play. It was captured on video and I was there on the screen for more than a minute with a Mundus (Pagdi/Turban) on my head. The result of this fame was that I got my first marriage proposal. The second time with Sister III was just hilarious; I thought soon we (there were others with me) are going to play rail gaddi around the couple.

This time round I was going to gift clothes to my would-be brother-in-law. As I presented him and we both posed for the cameras, I found it hard to stop smiling as after presenting him the clothes, we again posed with a handshake, kind of make me feel like I was attending a summit. I also had a photo session later with the would-be bride and the sisterhood clan joining, with one missing.

As everyone came on the stage to give their blessing to the couple, in the end I also went up in the end and stood next to my would-be brother-in-law. There was a lot of speculation going on who is taller, him or me. I won hands down :))

As I got down from the stage and stood nearby, one of my brother-in-law’s mother got hold of me. Somehow she seemed to be in awe of me. Every time she sees me and the only thought that comes to her mind is of getting me married. There was also a debate on what height should be my would-be wife, with others pitching in.

We went back to her home later. As I said the feeling was yet to sink in, so I was leaving I kept my hand on her head like an older brother. I am protective about her and am hoping/praying that she is blessed with a happy married life.

I am already wondering whom I should call when I am bored. I always felt better talking to her coz I can talk any nonsense and still not feel foolish. She was my partner in crime. Marriage would change all of that.

I would miss her, or am I already missing her :P

Human Psyche

I am starting a new series (a first for me) on Human Psyche. It would be about situations and how people react to it. It would be about people who react differently to a situation than logic permits. Giving my take of the situation and you could yours. It’s not about passing judgments but to understand the human nature.

The human mind intrigues me, I would be doing good as a shrink or as a counselor but I realized it late and by that time I was already out of college :(

Being an observer, I have often seen how people would not follow the logical route and would do something different to come out as a winner or end up losing to the situation badly.

Its about analyzing what made individuals take the decisions they did and kind of help us deal better with our situations in the present or the future.

P.S.: I don’t have any clue how I am going to pull this off, but I will and do let me know if the effort was good enough. It might take time for the first of the series to hit the blog, so be patient :)