Long lost relatives

The most annoying thing about parties , specially weddings; where long lost relatives suddenly appear; is the comment-

"Kitni badi ho gayi!" You have grown so much. You were so tiny when I saw you last.

When this kind of statement (or exclamation) is made, I feel like saying " Ya right I'm no going to oblige you by staying as tiny as a microbe forever." Obviously, we grow up. It's human nature. I can't be the exception to the law. Ofcourse you cannot (or aren't supposed to) say this to your grandma's sister's mother-in law's daughter. Or your mom's aunt's sister-in -law's mother. Or to an ugly looking aunt with a big wide grin and a deep lipstick who loves squeezing people to death and pulling their cheeks off.

Ofcourse you can't do such a thing when so and so's mother ( sister or whatever) so sweetly bore your urinating on her favourite Saree when you were tiny and who after so many years is surprised to notice that you have grown up! Obviously it's a relief coz she is wearing another designer today!

Meeting relatives who seem to have been lost in the Kumbh Mela and found after ages can sometimes be a real bore! Yet you have to be polite and are expected to remember aunts and grannies who rocked you when you were six months old.

And they go on and on about how naughty or sweet or cute you were and how you never visit them now and it's been ages and we must go to their place someday and it will be such a pleasure and blah blah blah.... and whichever auntyji or chachiji or bhuaji you meet will say the same thing. Over and over and again and again. Every party every shaadi, every time. I am so bored with all this taht I'll stop writing about this and listen to what my mom's cousin's mother in law's sister in law has to say about when she saw me asa a tiny ultra microscopic being.

Jeane

Jeane was sitting quite comfertably in the class, humming her little song when someone sitting in the very behind,far away; emmited some kind of weird sound. It was a giggle, Jeane deciphered. To jeane's horror, the giggling didnt stop. The person from the far giggled at everything. Everything was funny. But when everything is funny nothing is funny any longer. Jeane sighed and waited for eternity for the class to get over.

camera friendly!

The government can hire our bolly stars to spread awareness about environment issues. If SRK shows his dimples and tells me to plant trees I sure will be more than inspired to do so. If Ranbir Kapoor grins and tells me to save I definately will. If Shahid Kapoor smiles down at me and tells me to switch off lights and fans I will surely do it!

Jeane's adventures

Jeane was sitting quite comfortably in the bus, humming her little song; when a lady stood beside her and put her potbelly on Jeane's shoulders. The potbelly sat quietly on the already  burdened with cardigan shoulder and its discomfort began(the shoulder's not the potbelly's). It is quite obvious that heavy potbellys  protruding out of not- so- young- pretty- ladies are not comfortable pillows for young shoulders!

Doing what is right

I am all for justice and individual rights and feel elated when I read stories about the "wronged who are triumphant after the justice tug of war." One feels empathy for the underdog because one thinks that one may be in the same situation at some point of time. Its human tendency to feel for the minority, the needy and all kind of victoms. Even if we do nothing to help and forget about it all in five minutes! But once in a while( maybe blue moon, maybe decade) something pulls tightly at the safely hidden strings of our heart and we actually take some action and help someone out. We may donate blood, we may take part in a rally, we may make a poster; whatever we can do, we do.



Yes, that happened to me once-I really felt something, an urge to help. If anyone remembers, in 2007 there was this poor guy who loved a rich girl whose rich dad was against the match and the guy died? It was big news in West bengal, stories about it were filed for more than a month. A candlelight vigil, a protest march and a petition was held to get justice for the guy- a CBI investigation to be precise. I was one of the protestors.

Taking part in something like this brought in a few changes.
1. It made me more confident.I learned how to talk to perfect strangers.

2. I learned that if I believe in something, reallly believe in something, I am as confident as can be and can convince others too!

3. I realised that change can happen, that "we" are the change, the aam junta has power to change however sceptical people are.

4. I learned to light candles and got over my fear of getting burned something i had developed ever since i had got burned badly when I was 9

5. But best of all it inspired me to "do" other things in future and reinstalled my belief in justice

If helping someone has helped me so much then I am all for helping people, justice and individual rights!

Cricket friendly?

Recently my parents had gone to see a Day and Night Match between India and Sri Lanka at Eden Gardens. This occurrence instantly got me thinking. In this age of global warming and carbon footprints, we are all thinking of ways of saving energy. Almost everyday we read articles telling us what we can do or rather what we should do to literally save the planet.


Aren't we all nodding our heads and promising ourselves that we'll close the taps the next time we brush our teeth and use a bucket and mug instead of a shower next time we enter the bathroom? 


Aren't we all switching of the lights and fans to reduce the energy used as well as our enormously large electricity bills? Are we all  taking off the plugs of our chargers when the batteries are fully loaded? 


We indeed are being told to do all these and more to keep the environment healthy. 


I too want to make a humble suggestion, not to individuals but to all cricket associations around the world. Scrap Day and Night matches! Utilise the daylight and play while the Sun shines. Can't that happen? Something to think about huh? We will save loads of electricity if we do this. 


All the cricket lovers will think that am talking nonsense! But one can think about this with an open mind. When the Twenty20 concept was new everyone was sceptical about it but it worked wonders, didn't it? So why not abolish day and night matches altogether? It would work if we make it work.


Cricket for environment anyone?