"Z" for "Zombie like" and "Zzzzzzzzzzzz"

This is not another horror story continuing from H Howls Horror! This is just my state of mind as of now. I am sleep deprived. I am exhausted and I need a break. This time it was no mean feat to finish the A to Z 2014 posts  as I started working and was shuttling between two cities Bangalore and Hyderabad. In midst of hectic schedule, frequent travels and also many other personal chores I DID IT. Yay ! I finished the challenge. I did not just finish for the heck of it. I knew many bloggers, whom I religiously read and acknowledged their posts. The best part of A to Z is knowing new people and nourishing your writing skills. I didn't mind becoming a zombie as the journey was definitely fruitful. Of course there have been disappointments many times as many don't bother to visit the blog even if you read and encourage them, but this culture is prevalent from times immemorial, hence I did not bother. Moreover people need patience to actually read , feel connected and then comment . I know all this needs time hence I ignored the fact that many don't have ample time to visit , read and comment.

As of now I am sitting in Bangalore and writing from home finally feeling relieved that the challenge is over. I can BREATHE now and I can finally eat proper food by cooking :P . By the way I never like zombie or vampire movies .They are plain silly. Go Goa Gone is the first zombie movie ever made in India and I actually laughed a lot watching the silly / stupid movie. A group of friends go to an island in Goa on a holiday and in a series of unexpected events many turn to zombies on that island. The plot is, how they escape from the island and how they destroy zombies. The movie has many goof ups. I liked the slapstick humor where as few viewers didn't!

Anyway coming to the point this post is just to say that I will take the much deserved lonnnnng break from the blogging and just zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz, I mean sleep. Icing on the cake is I am going to Kerala tomorrow. Yipeeeee. I can't think of any other better option to unwind, relax and forget A to Z , blogging , bloggers, office and everything. I am going to Munnar - Alleppey and will be back on May 5th. Munnar has been my dream destination and I am so excited that I am finally going there. As Alleppey will be hot we will be staying in the AC house boat!

Yes the breath taking Munnar. Image source - here

Boat house in Allepey

So friends adieu ! I will always remember all those who supported me in this challenge ---  The A to Zers , my parents , bro and my husband. A special mention to people who read my posts even if they are not on the FB group! A BIG THANKS to them .Special thanks to my Mommy for the guest post. Bye bye folks! See ya on the other side. Stay fit and healthy and keep blogging :-* Finally a good bye song for you all from an old movie -Raju Ban gaya gentleman where Shahrukh Khan is saying bye to all his friends. Try this song even if you don't understand lyrics. I am sure you will feel it. I am already dancing in joy as the challenge ended. It is a cute and a straight from the heart song! Alvida means bye :)

This is  my finale post (26th post) for  A to Z challenge 2014. Yipeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

"Y" for "Yada Yada Yada"

No creative juices flowing as of now. I can't quit the challenge when I am almost near the shore, hence tolerating the wrath of A to Z , making a mental note that next year 99% I will not jump in to this fire and settling down to write my "Y" post simultaneously thinking to my self , "Y in the name of Arlee Bird did I take this challenge?" :P  !

You would have heard this phrase yada yada yada. This is similar to blah blah blah. 8 out of 10 times in a day I feel I am hearing to a person's yada yada yada where I am totally not related to what he is speaking. Take our a to z challenge for instance. At times I read posts which absolutely go above my head. I silently close the window and move on to the next if I don't understand it. If I understand you have all my attention but if it is yada yada I can't show any pretension. Same applies to real life conversations too in my case!

She: "You know yesterday we went to Wok Chinese."

Me: "Oh! wow."

She: "It was such a great fun you know . There was this fortune cookie contest and ......we won.......the girl in blue.......the guy at the door..........she was looking just ok..................... and yada yada yada !"

Only yada yada can fill the gaps when I feel totally out of place and when I am completely disinterested. She was clearly clueless that I am not at all interested in the little details of her life at-least at that point of time when I am seriously working err.. A to Z'ing' I mean. 

Next time if you see me lost in nothingness please cut your crap, concise the conversation and make it interesting. You need to be a good listener to talk so much. If you are not one then refrain from initiating conversations which never have a full stop :( 

A wise person once said that listen and silent have same alphabets and you need to be silent to listen!

Manager: "This project is highly important for the organisation. We should meet the SLAs . We should meet the metrics. You all should take breaks only when needed. Last year's statistics show that ...........our competent company............this tool improved productivity and yada yada and some more yada "

See this is how the frequency of yada yada increases. The more dis-interesting the conversations, the more is the frequency of Yada yada.

This is done with the help of toondoo.com but idea is mine!

If you really want to be a good conversationalist then involve the audience, cut short and be clear about what you say. Just don't do the yada yada :)

Today  I am KISS(Keeping it Simple and Silly)ing the post as I am totally exhausted and as I really don't want to do Yada Yada. 

Love You all. Another word with "Y" with out which this challenge would have been deadly boring is You. Yes , YOU ALL my dear friends who not only read my posts but also acknowledge it . So thanks from the bottom of my heart. Finalllllllllllllllllllllllly it is "Z" tomorrow and my post is going to be veryy short and more silly.

PS: Have you seen the movie Julie and Julia(Amy Adams and Meryl Streep Starrer). I watched it yesterday. More on it on some other day. It is based on two true stories and it shows how one can do wonders with blogging. The movie inspired me and I am sure it will inspire you as well! So keep blogging and do watch the movie!

This is  my last but one (25th post) for  A to Z challenge 2014. Hurray!!!!!

"X" for "Xerox machine"

It was getting late in the evening. Bhavana rushed to the library to get xerox copies of her anatomy study material. The book Gray's Anatomy for students costs around 6000/- INR and she cannot afford buying it. Most of the students get the xerox copies and prepare notes from them for exams. Exams are just in a week's time and Bhavana badly needed the material . In evening times people will form long queues in-front of xerox machine. Such is the demand of xerox copies in the college. To her dismay the queue was so long that she realized she won't be able to get copies that day.

Studying M.B.B.S. is no mean feat. Night outs, exams ,then practicals and then classes , exams , night outs. The cycle keeps repeating. That night Bhavana stayed back in the library struggling with anatomy and physiology book as she couldn't get xerox copies. Due to college fest and some other events and responsibilities she missed many classroom sessions and did not get time to prepare well this time and that night she was all worked up and worried as Anatomy and Physiology is her favorite subject. She is always fascinated by the subject and Henry Gray is her role model. Anatomy and Physiology is just not subject but magic to her.

Grabbing her fifth mug of coffee at about 1 A.M. she sat in front of the computer with the text book open and too many papers and markers strewed at her desk. She was sipping coffee and was lost in thoughts when there was the familiar bzzzzz sound of the Xerox machine. The lamp was on and the machine started working all by itself. At first Bhavana felt some one came in to library but when she realized no body was there , she thought it might have got switched on by mistake. "The person who operates it would have been reckless." She thought. By the time she reached there the lid of the xerox machine got opened and a blind flash of light and smoke started getting emitted from it. The first thought which stuck her mind was that it was a short circuit. She panicked and was about to rush to inform some one out side the library, when she heard a voice coming from her behind.

"Hello Bhavana. How are you doing?"

Bhavana: "What ? Who is this ?"

"This is Henry Gray. I saw that you were struggling with the anatomy paper and I came here to help you out. I know you are passionate about the subject."

"What kind of games is my mind playing with me ? What kind of illusion is this ? " Bhavana thought to her self.

For a second she felt like Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. and that she has some chemical imbalance in the brain.

"Don't worry Bhavana. I came here to help you out. I will teach you what all you are trying to read. Like this you can learn everything in short span."

Bhavana : "Really? I mean are you really Mr. Henry Gray?"

"Yes. You can compare it with the picture on the cover page of the text book." Saying so Henry Gray lifted the text book present next to the xerox machine.

Bhavana gasped. She pinched her self hard to make sure that she is not attacked by delirium due to continuous night outs!

Henry: "Why are you wasting time. Take a seat. I will just teach you what all you want to learn today."

Saying so Henry Gray started taking classes for Bhavana. He projected the diagrams and other key points on the near by wall.

Bhavana was in trance. She took the notes sincerely and was surprised when she noticed that she really was learning everything quickly. After that mysterious night it became her routine to go to library every night and take classes from Henry Gray. This was a secret which she didn't reveal to any.

Finally the exam day came. Bhavana was satisfied by her performance. She went to convey thanks to Mr.Henry Gray but she couldn't find him that night. She wondered if there was any means to communicate with him. The results were out and Bhavana topped in Anatomy and Physiology. It has been 15 days and there was no sign of Henry Gray. She was dejected and went to library to return the books she took for exams. She saw Henry Gray's transparent silhouette near the door smiling at her. She rushed to him. They both walked till the play ground.

"Thanks. Mr. Henry. Where were you ? I wanted to thank you."

Henry: "I know. I was helping another student in a different country, so was away. " He replied still smiling.

"Wow that is so cool Mr.Gray. If I want to talk to you next time then what should I do?"

Henry : "You actually can't call me. If it is really urgent I appear on 21st of every month at the same spot near xerox machine in the library and I stay here the whole day. We use xerox machines for transport."

Bhavana nodded and left. On 21st of that month she eagerly waited for Mr.Henry and after waiting for a while, saw that he was busily submerged in the latest issue of a science magazine. So Mr. Henry is also trying to increase his knowledge by reading about the inventions and progress in the field of science :). Bhavana wanted to talk to him about his life and times but she decided she will not disturb him till he finished reading!

Image source : here

Mr.Henry Gray - Eminent English anatomist and Surgeon. Image source : here

This fictional story is  my 24th post for  A to Z challenge 2014

"W" for "What? Why? Who? When?" - The never ending questions

I find it quite mysterious when I see that most of the questions start with W . It looks like that sinus curve or a statistical graph which shoots up and falls down. Every question has these ups and downs. Some questions make us happy, some make us feel odd, some leave us clueless. Don't believe me? Just check the interesting shape of letter "W", you will get it. All those questions which piss us sometimes and make us laugh at times and intrigue us some other times start with W. Questions sure lead to answers but there are few questions which don't have any answers but they are asked anyway . Given below are a set of such questions which sometimes seem too intrusive and some times don't have answers at all.

1. “What is your son studying? Our Rahul is going to IIT this year, so what are plans for your son? [A question asked for the nth time]
   

My imaginary answer: "Oh! Our son is doing journalism and his next assignment is on corrupted officers and all possible sources of their income." Aunty ji will definitely refrain from further questioning as every thing ranging from their Benz to IIT seat are earned illegally. 

2. "Why do you eat chewing gum so frequently? Do you smoke?"                                        

My imaginary answer: Miss/ Mr Dumb ass : We don't eat chewing gum. We chew and spit it.

3. "Why don't you eat mutton?"

          "Because I don't like it"

          "Why don't you like mutton?"

           Is the answer ,"because I don't eat it ?" @*##!#$.  Yes I am as perplexed as you are.

4. "Why does a mother-in-law tie a kali poth in Muslims? (an ornament which a women wears as part of marriage tradition) 

"Because that is the part of the tradition."

“That’s all is the marriage?!"

My imaginary answer (where I am kicking myself): "It is little less marriage than yours. Any problem?”

Image source :here

5. "Why are you staying away from your husband and working?"

"I got an opportunity here."

"But how are you managing? Your personal life will be disturbed you know!"

Like I don't know :-( This is something I am getting very frequently these days. People often throw questions at you which sounds like their genuine concern but actually it is their genuine curiosity! I just shrug in response. Too much intrusion is something I can't tolerate. I can even tolerate a hidden spying camera but I can't tolerate intrusive people.

6. Why don't you join us all for outing? You can have fun. What will you do sitting alone at home?

          My imaginary answer: I actually can't have fun with you all. I am phobic if I have to face too  much of crowd and I have lot to do even if I am alone, but my actual reply is, "I am fine."

7. What is the salary offered to you? How much do you save?

Now this is one of the most irritable questions mostly posed by elders. This is mostly followed by the statement, "You are lucky to get that job," even before you finish the answer. Curiosity for sure kills the cat but here their curiosity increases the desire in me to kill them.

8. Which caste do you belong to? Or which region/ religion do you belong to? How can you speak Telugu so fluently being a Muslim?

I am fed up of these FAQs. I am very patient whenever I respond but some think I am not a Muslim girl as I speak fluent Telugu. Some conclude that I am not from South even before I reply. That part is irritating.

9. What is your age? 26? Why are you not married yet?

My imaginary answer: I am waiting for a Nawab from Luck now who is filthily rich. He will be coming for swayamwar next month but in reality this is the most embarrassing question which can be posed by any one and every one ranging from 20-70 which has no answers .

It just feels like the above question vanished in to thin air when the below question starts making rounds. People who swallowed millions of question marks may have to suffer from indigestion if they don't throw up what all they swallowed. Now this question actually takes the cake. 

10. When will you plan kids? It is high time you know.

This sometimes pisses me, sometimes scares the shit out of me as I feel 1000 eyes are piercing in to me with every set of eyes reflecting the same question, when will you bear the kids? Everything is measured by your gender or age and norms are all pre-fixed :(

These are the top 10 random questions which came to my mind, which were and are asked by people from various walks of life around me. People with highest IQ and people who have brain the size of a hen's , every one is entitled to question you but the same questioner will curse you if you ask answers ;). This post is not an offense to any one but if you took the offense then sit and think why did you get offended :) ? How much ever you try, these questions will never end unless until you go and live in cave. If you are a social animal you need to develop patience and easier ways to not get entangled in the coil of that question mark "?"

image source : here

Have a good day :)

This is my 23rd post for  A to Z challenge 2014

"V" for "Vernacular", "Versatile and Victorious Raghu Dixit" :-)"

Raghu Dixit- Many of you in India must have heard the name. If you haven't then this is the good time to know about this man.His huge fan following shows how much respect and love he gained all these years. Raghu dixit was a gold medallist in Masters in Microbiology and proficient Bharatanatyam dancer. He sacrificed his education in which he was not just an average but a gold medallist, solely for the sake of his passion in music. I can’t feel anything but respect for his passion in whatever he does. He is a self taught composer and musician originally from mMysore . He settled in Bangalore and worked in many Kannada films and has performed in more than 250 concerts till date along with his band Antaragini . Antaragni's repertoire included an amalgamation of Indian Classical, folk and Western rock, funk, pop and country. Antaragini means the fire with in – which aptly suits the band as they have a flare and burning passion for music .Raghu dixit whose full name is  Raghupathy dixit is a singer- song writer and music composer and producer. The catchy thing in Raghu’s music and concerts is the amalgamation of Indian Ethnic music and styles from different parts of the world. Not only Indian but his unique combination of Indian traditional sounds mixed with western influences made him stand out of the crowd.

Most of his songs are influenced by a Kannada poet Shishunala Sharif.After meeting Ravi Chandra Rao a flautist  and a talented violin player H.N. Bhaskar their music evolved and as days passed by Raghu met  Manoj a violinist trained in Western classical and they all started giving delightful performances. It didn’t take much time to become the best band in Bangalore after winning a Radio city competition. Antargini was disbanded in around 2004 .  Antargini’s arrival and the doorway to fame however came when they were invited to open for Bryan Adams to perform in front of a crowd of 30,000. However as the priorities differed Ravi and Bhaskar exited the group . After Antargini disbanded  Raghu went on to form The Raghu Dixit Project, which he likes to refer to as an open house for musicians and artistes from different genres to come together, collaborate and create a dynamic sound and expression.

Raghu Dixit

Along with many Kannada films he sang a song in the bollywood movie Quick gun murugan and also made his bollywood debut with the film Mujhse Fraandship Karoge. Recently he sang in a movie Bewakoofiyan and performed in Coke Studio as well.  His songs Gudgudiya , Khidki, mysore se aayi are few to name which are famous among his fans. His self titled debut album was launched by Vishal-Shekhar in 2008. If you all are aware of The Dewarists, The Raghu Dixit Project collaborated with songwriter Guru Rewben Mashangva on the song "Masti Ki Basti" for its first season.

Raghu has performed in many shows and concerts  all over the world in U S , U K, Japan , Russia , Korea , Japan so on so forth .Along with many international concerts he also performed in many Indian institutes and MNCs as part of their cultural festivals.They performed at Yash Raj’s studio too.

With his experiments Raghu became the symbol of India’s blossoming alternate music scene. He has been referred to as India’s biggest cultural export of recent times. Do read the article on Hindu about him. An excerpt from the article - Raghu and co. put life and new meaning into age-old songs. He pauses and bursts into resounding laughter. “It really is like answering nature's call, you can't force the thought or the tune. It takes its own course and way.

with his band

Raghu dixit instantly touches your heart. He is natural. He sings from the heart . His clothes , jokes , music everything is quirky and if you sit along with him you will be floored by his passion . To know some facts about him visit his official website .Raghu didn’t touch a guitar until he was 19: He was in college and a classmate, who had long hair, baggy jeans, and impressed girls by carrying a guitar and singing English songs, challenged him. As a bet, Raghu learnt to play a rock song on the guitar in two months. Considering Raghu came from a traditional South Indian family where Western music was not the norm (he would sneak listens of Phil Collins and Wham), this was a Herculean feat.

He says he joined the software company to pay the bills like we all do ;)  He gained his first fame through radio and wrote many radio jingles too. He brings ancient songs and music to contemporary audience. No wonder his music is unique and too good to be turned off. His songs are at - https://soundcloud.com/trdp . My personal favorites are “No man will ever love you like I do”, “I still love you” and “Gud gudiya”. Tune in to them and am sure you will want more and more of it

For music enthusiasts there is also a book On “Raghu dixit Project” available on flipkart. I am in love with this charmer’s voice and wish him all the good luck from the bottom of the heart. He says every 200 kilometers in this country, languages change, the dialects change and the food changes, lives and lifestyles change and my music is unique and probably the USP is that it's sung in a vernacular tongue… it adds mystery.” - (Source: wiki) 

 His lyrics are about every common man's emotions and experiences. Music is indeed the language of God. Let’s hope he rocks the world and his music wipes off all the boundaries on the map !

This post is a tribute to versatile Raghu Dixit. Vernacular means "the language or dialect spoken by the ordinary people of a country or region."

This is my 22nd post for  A to Z challenge 2014

"U" for "Umwelt"

Umwelt as per wiki means the environment or surroundings to which a particular organism is adapted to or which affect its behavior. In simple words it comprises of everything which makes up the “model” of the world suitable for an organism to live. As I started thinking about this word nothing other than “facebook” came to my mind. Facebook is umwelt to all possible human beings from a toddler to a retired old man. A toddler creating a profile is slightly tough as he can punch only the air with his fists and not the keys of the laptop. Parents of today are more than happy to create an umwelt for their kiddos who just started breathing the not so fresh air of the earth and are rocking the world in their cradle.

They for sure don’t have to rock the world with their facebook profile or a page. It’s funny when a busy dad working in a software company creates a profile for his month old son and sends requests to everyone snatching the baby’s freedom and privacy of creating his own profile when he grows up! The same parents after 10 years will for sure complain about their son and his fellow friends as they will be spending unusually long time in front of the computer. Dad will buy an iPad or a Samsung galaxy tab for a 15 year old and repent later as he gets transfixed by the tab and spends hours holding it ignoring people around him. The sleek and beautiful umwelt was provided to his dear son by himself and hence there’s no scope to actually restrict and complain much.

I remember a time when umwelt to me meant our 4 room quarter with a beautiful garden well maintained by mom. I used to help her in gardening. When power used to go off without any prior notice during those hot sweltering summer nights we all used to gather outside our home under the natural AC of a Neem tree along with neighbors whom we all knew by names and played antyakshari. We used to have a candle light dinner and enjoy to the fullest even in the midst of mosquito bites. Now all a kid wants to do is stay in his own private umwelt and play temple run or angry birds in an air conditioned room. It’s surprising to me when I see an eight year old absorbed in apple products playing all the games to hearts content. The boy is cut off from social life at an early age. By the time he grows he might suffer from social phobia. Social phobia or social anxiety is a condition which is predominant these days. The way a 9 year or 10 year old kids make facebook their C/O address disheartens me.  I had a latest experience in a wedding where a 14 year old girl was totally immersed in her smart phone and the facebook app. I was trying to talk to her but she was lost somewhere. I also have a smart phone but what is the point of going out in a gathering when all you want to do is check your updates and live in your cozy dim corner even there?

Image source : here

A mother to a Son: “Why are you always sitting in front of your laptop? It is not good for your eyes. Go out in the garden area and play.”

The son takes his laptop to garden area and starts playing there. You all would have come across this joke on internet in the recent past which holds true for many kids.

“Mom. Do you know that the fucker who is involved in match fixing earned some 50 lakhs!” says 11 year old Aakash to his mom much to her bewilderment.

“Aakaaaaaash. Where did you learn these words?” stormed Aakash’s mom.

“Oops. Sorry mom.  The other day I saw a comment on some photo on a website where many different words were used for that match fixer. Honestly it just came in the flow mom. I am really sorry.” Replied Aakash.

At some point of time both mom and son stop bothering about the cuss words in the movies, TV or internet as they are abundantly available anywhere. Kids follow the footsteps of parents. If parents are happy in their virtual umwelt then kids have no other choice than getting adapted to the same umwelt. It’s not uncommon to see a father and daughter staying in touch only via facebook comments or pings. Friends can be partners in Farmville or criminal case but very few people take time to meet in real and have a cup of coffee and a happy face to face conversation.  It is high time for everyone to start thinking about their cozy umwelts where they are in touch with whole world but they are absolutely oblivious when it comes to knowing a neighbor. It’s a task which they feel is tougher than adding a friend on facebook. They are ready to add the neighbor or a person sitting in the next cubicle in office if he/she sends a friend request!

“You feel like having greenery in the blue ground

You don’t want to hide behind a wall, you want to be found

If you are unheard you make a lot of sound

You shout in rage and cry as if you got a wound

Slowly thy fans and the folks arrive one after the other in a round

These figures are better than your savings. You can smile and turn around!”

The above poem is dedicated to facebook users who enjoy the facebook veggie delight every day. The veggie delight here means the people who are as good as vegetables on face book. This poem is also for those who think facebook can heal and seal all their wounds. All offence meant to them!

 So, what is your umwelt? Do you want to change it?

My favorite Tea time posts from yesterday :)

Dee takes me to flashback with Throwback- Back in my day 

RajRupa's lively Train Travel experiences 

Suzy Que's Temple

Richa's Time for Change

This is my 21st  post for  A to Z challenge 2014