Day 5

I looked for a title for a while,
confused, i let go with a smile.
On a day with zero inspiration,
that i spent only on relaxation,
despite thinking hard and long
And trying my best to write.
All i have is a bunch of lines,
To make up for today's post.

Day 4: The great equalizer

Woke up early today morning. Was going through the newspaper while having tea. That's when i heard a real loud ring tone that was unfamiliar. I was wondering if Amma's taste of music had changed so much overnight! That's when i heard. "Haaa, naan Jaya maataaDta idini. Sanje 4 ghante ge bartini."( ha, this is Jaya speaking. Will come there at 4 in the evening). Jaya, ladies and gentlemen, is my maid. She carries a mobile phone, and can be reached on it in case she is delayed or there is unexpected extra work at home.

So out of curiosity, i went through Amma's phone. That's when i noticed a number of phone numbers that read something like, Lokesh-flower, Vasu-plumber, Suja- gardener. There was a painter, carpenter, mason and tiles layer in the list too. Asked her about all these numbers. She says, all of them are reachable through the phone. One phone call, we tell them the job at hand and when we are free and they are there on that day if they are free.

It got me thinking as to how much the mobile phone has changed their lives. Carpenters and plumbers are so hard to come by these days for small odd jobs. Their phone numbers get forwarded by recommendation if their work is prompt and good. And that means more business to them. All of them have a vehicle for transport and a mobile phone for connectivity. And we consumers, just have to make a phone call for the fixing service. Absolutely no need of visiting the store or waiting for the person to turn up. Make a phone call and probably another as a reminder. And have that leaking tap fixed without much effort!

About a few years back, the mobile phone was a thing of luxury.Today, it is hard to find someone who does not carry a mobile phone. I myself maintain two of them ;). And well, whether it is my dad or the chief minister or the gardener, one common thing between them is that all of them have a ten digit mobile number on which they can be reached!

Day 3: Escape!

There are days when I want to tear my hair apart, ditch the job, pack my bags and set off to a wellness camp or travelling up the hills. When I feel that I have had enough, what is the point of doing what I am doing, the whole purpose of existence gets questioned. The idea of seeing the world, without a care or worry starts creeping into the mind. If only that was an option everyone had!

Everything starts appearing wrong and the whole world looks like it is against you.

It is at that point that I stop and think of what made me hold on for so long. And i call Amma up. She brings in sanity and balance to my life.

And it is at this point that i apply leave for a week and set off home. Not running away. But taking a well deserved break after too much work. One week. In Mysore. Fresh air, endless cups of tea, and the joy of being at home.

Day 2: Just when you thought...

...that the rains would bring the much needed respite from the heat, that the pitter-patter will be music to ears, when you raise your head from under the umbrella to feel the drops hitting your face in full filmy style, when you step out of the air conditioned office into the open and smell mud, just then, right then the crazy car guy has to come and splash the muddy water on your dress! Damn the guy! And damn the roads in the city, full of potholes.

Dear God, please do something so that :

• The Namma Metro work gets completed blazing fast and there are fewer vehicles on the roads.
• There is more soil and trees along the roads so that the water can seep in and not remain on the roads.
• The people sitting comfy in their cars do realize that there are pedestrians who are walking on the road and are forever dreading the mud splash attack because of the speeding cars.

One day, I want to be able to walk around in Bangalore with the umbrella, enjoying the rain and not have a single worry about slush or stench or potholes! Just me and my tanhai and a nice rain song playing in my head, rim jhim gire saawan!

Project 365

Too much work, too little time, it is easier to update facebook status, 140 characters is much more cooler. Well, if one wants, then one can give an endless list of reasons for not updating one's blog regularly. I can give a bunch of excuses too, for not writing in the past 3 months. Instead, what i have decided to do is to take up Project 365. It is something that i noticed on a cookery blog and it hit off with me immediately. One post a day, for the next one year. Does not have to be a long drawn post. Can be a picture or a little vignette of something that left an impression- maybe an ad, a TV show or something on the way or at work. Am sure my life is not so uneventful also that i would not find one thing to write about and share.

Will 365 posts be an overdose? Dunno! Not even sure if i can keep up everyday. So not making it a hard and fast rule to write ;). But the idea is to try my best and write. It is more of an exercise also to improve my writing skills. More like a journal that will let me look back at the year that was :)

And no, this is not going to be an experiment that's all about I, Me and Myself. It is not a platform that am using to dump information about what is happening in my life. It is just a challenge to see whether it is possible to come up with one post a day.

And here i set off on the 15th of May 2011. One post, everyday!

Wedding Bells

No. I am not getting married. Not as yet ;). The title was only to get some traffic into the blog :P Here is my actual post:
As I was leaving her home, the aunty asked, "So, yavaaga oota haakstidiya?" (Roughly translated, "when am i getting invited for lunch?").
I took the question at face value and told her that she was welcome any weekend. That i have been coaxing her to come home but she never does! To it she laughs and says, "Not that oota, maduve oota!"
That's when i realize the dumbness of my reply. There is an awkward pause which dad tries to fill up saying, "In good time".
Last week, i get talking to a gentleman on the way to Mysore. We discuss a variety of topics like real estate prices in Bangalore and Mysore, traveling between the two cities, lack of B&B's in India, how the Home stay concept is now catching on well. I was feeling good about getting to have a nice conversation in the course of the journey. Then he suddenly asks, "So, you are what, 25?"
I was initially taken aback at the bluntness of the question. Composed myself and said, "Uh huh, not yet".
So he says, "Ha! Then you got time! For the wedding bells, you know ;)!"
Excuse me? Is 25 like an expiry date? Why is the whole world concerned about my wedding, oota and all the things associated with it?
Buy gold and they say, "Ha! You need it for the wedding".
Lose weight and you are asked if you are dieting before parents start looking for a groom!!
You are surveyed thoroughly if you by mistake end up at a wedding! "Oh! You stay by yourself in Bangalore? You can cook? Super!" I am consciously avoiding attending weddings or other gatherings these days! I mean, please give me a break!
There is no way i can mention a friend's impending wedding now without a few eyebrows being raised, as if to ask what reason i have to be happy right now?! I never faced peer pressure at school. But this is one place where i think the pressure will be imposed upon me!
To all the Aunts and Uncles out there:
You might mean well, but no thank you for your concern or photographs of prospective grooms. My parents are there to worry about my wedding. You don't have to remind them that i am growing older! Or that the number of "nice" ( you go figure its definition :D) guys is dwindling by the day! When i tie the knot, you shall be invited. I will be getting married for my happiness, not yielding to pressure! Till then, please let me be!

Some politeness please!

I know most marketing calls are pesky. And the ones that sound too good to be true almost always have a catch in the end. And the calls mostly come during an office meeting, or when you are doing something worthwhile or waiting for another important call to come in.

Much as i want to scream at the person on the other side for disturbing, i also realize that at the end of the day, it is their job! And a bad one at that in which they often hear a mouthful from the people they call. So if it is something that is of no concern to me, then i directly tell them before they start off their well practiced lines, that i am not interested, thank you. Or else, if it is some offer that i want to hear about, i hear it out, weigh the options and then end up telling them again that i am not interested, thank you for the information.

Of late, it has so happened, that as soon as i say, No ( and before i can say Not interested, thank you!) the person calling just bangs the phone at the opposite end. It is one thing to disconnect the call on a mobile phone. But banging a landline phone has a totally different effect. Makes me want to reach out at the other end and give the person a piece of mind about politeness. I agree i was not interested in the offer, but the least they can do is be civil and let me complete my statement or at least say an "Ok" after i say No. Don't they get taught these things at their training programs? And is graciousness reserved only for people who accept the stuff they have on offer? Is it too much on my part to expect politeness from them? I think not, because i don't go about hanging up on people like that. Maybe they have a pile of frustration from a deadline or after someone shouts at them for disturbing. But letting that show through in the next call is not done. They knew what they were getting into when they took up the job! One person's rudeness does not imply that the next person they call will also be rude. The next time someone slams the phone, I am going to try calling back the number and say thanks and tell them a thing or two about telephone etiquette.