Happy Friendship Day

Rightly said, "friends are made by many acts and are lost often by a single mindless act". To have friends, you must have friendliness in you: selfless and loving, undemanding, with deep concern for others. Only then do you develop a sense of appreciation for this camaraderie. This is such a divine relationship. Truely consecrated. You unfold yourself, dare to be yourself and make yourself visible when a 'friend' is with you.You seek happiness, de-personalize and experience bliss in a friend’s presence. A friend is a mirror and you reflect every single bit of yourself in it! How can a mirror complain of the dancing things seen in it? This bondage crosses beyond caste, creed, gender, age, language and blah blah blah. What’s important is that string of connectivity no matter what the “string” portrays to you! You are in a true friend’s company when you speak just nothing but you have conveyed everything. Just being in their company can give solace and abundant joy. Such is the power. I personally believe that to foster and nurture any relationship, one has to be a “Friend” with the other person, be it between a parent and a child, a husband and a wife, a grandparent and a grandchild or between siblings.


On this day of “International friendship day” (which falls on the first Sunday of August every year), it’s time to recognize your friends and their contribution to your life. Friendship helps to bring peace and positivity to the globe - a great reason to celebrate! Without much ado, call all those old friends you haven't spoken to in ages…Tell them how much they mean to you. Remember the Girl Scout motto: "Make new friends and keep the old, one is silver and the other gold"!

And I seek this opportunity to profess that

You, Dear FRIEND,
have made a huge impact and difference in my life.
You are valued.
I am what I am because of you.
Thanks for being there!

Keep in touch!
Cheers!!

Sometimes in life ~

A friend who supposedly is a Mr./Ms. Clean drops in and your room is in a complete mess (My room is always in a complete mess [wink]). You don’t need to feel embarrassed about it. Those who matter don’t mind and those who mind don’t matter… [GRIN] Let the other person know that you have more to do in life than just keeping your room spotless all the time. Sometimes the things scattered around can spurt the creativity in you to do the unusual which otherwise is impossible!

Laugh out loud. Spurt! Clap your hands. Crack a stupid joke. Act immature and childish. It’s just perfect to feel like a kid. It’s only a feel good factor.

“Blame it on ghlerin, gastrin, orexin, obestatin, TSH, relaxin, cortisol, testosterone, adrenalin or just wat eva”!! It’s only but natural to blame it on the hormones. You sometimes are just NOT responsible for the actions you put up!

Just because somebody doesn’t think as you do, doesn’t mean he or she doesn’t deserve to be your friend. What’s the fun if you find roomful of your clones? You wouldn’t like it if you find every other mouth speaking the same lines, isn’t it? All of us are meant to be different. That’s how we are designed by God. It’s nice to have a debate (as long as it’s healthy and it doesn’t lead to any bitterness). Step in the other person’s shoes. Who knows what you discover?

You go for an interview and realize your nails are undone! Hellooo dude(tte), sometimes there’s just not time for it all. Isn’t it? And after all its me who will be working for you… not my nails!

It’s okay to pronounce words wrongly or speak a bad tongue. After all you learn when you make mistakes. Trying is what sets you apart. Nobody is born genius, after all!

Don’t be too bothered about how you arrange and use the cutlery displayed on the table in a restaurant. I accept possessing such finesse is appreciated but sometimes your fingers could give a very satiable feeling! Try it. Just use your hand and lick your fingers at the end. I bet, the taste shall linger for days [Wink]

Let’s say, you have a friend over a cup of coffee or you have been friends with someone for a long time now and you decide to set out for lunch. In the course, if you by chance spill coffee or 2 grains of rice on the table, mind it, it’s just ok. You don’t need to feel sorry about it. It’s ok. Some actions are involuntary.


Eat just wat eva is on the kitchen slab or straight from the fridge even if your microwave is working. Sometimes, you just feel that hungry. It’s perfectly human.

Ask for doggie bags in a restaurant if you have ordered too much. Hunger pangs cannot be measured!

Go out for a party or elsewhere with an unwashed hair. You never really got time…. So what? Just tie it up casually and you are done. Don’t look concerned. [Teethed smile]

Its fine to trip when you are wearing your pointed heels. Don’t feel embarrassed and look around. Everyone does trip at some point or the other in their lives.


It’s nice to pamper and splurge on yourself. Do not ruminate your thoughts on this, post a relaxing indulgence.

Well…. The list could go on……………………..

If you have nodded your head for anything listed above, then you exactly know what I mean. Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to get out of the “self-sabotage” image. You don’t need to be adept at it. We are not contesting in a Miss/Mr./Mrs. Congeniality!! Having said that, don’t make things very obvious. It’s time now to stop playing the self-blame game. Just learn the trick to handle those squirm-inducing situations…. Remember that mistakes only occur, not recur! [Wink] Anyways, don’t take life very seriously. Take yourself light so that the journey is smooth. Let not such petty things bother you much. It’s good to forgive yourself and others. Practice saying “Sorry” and “thank you” all the time. It doesn’t take much. For the big things you always do that, but it’s the small things that really matter in the long run. Don’t you think?

'Drink' and 'Drive'

I was travelling in an auto on the way back home, engrossed in the traffic and the traffic of thoughts!! A spanking white Skoda Octavia zoomed by. And I just couldn’t seem to take my eyes off the car. Well well well… hold! It’s not the car that caught my eyes but the billboard behind the car… It read –

Surely Drink and Drive!
Drink COFFEE and Drive!!

I being an aficianado of this bitter brew had to love this 'instantly'. I could almost smell coffee![Tongue out]. The billboard surely added a zing to the car!

I plan to hoard the same post behind my car. Oh well, that when I buy one though! [Wink]

The pied-piper

It was 2 past 10 in the afternoon and the weather was kind of sultry. A divine enchanting melody which was heard from a furlong distance fell on my ears and pulled me to the room window. As I stood by, I could distinctly make out the captivating tune which was plain but emotive. The microtonal inflections, ornamentation and glissando this bansuriwala achieved by varying his breath and the way he beautifully changed his embouchures which made the higher and lower octaves was mind-blowing. I could identify that he played “jinke mari na” which was followed by “ninna nodalentho” (tracks from the latest kannada movies). And I now could see the melody maker who came down playing his tunes on the woodwind pipe! So very soothing and sublime! Fascinated, I stood and wished he kept playing all day long. It was truly enthralling. I was transcended to yet another world. An oasis of calm was instilled in my mind!

For this wonder flautist, who renders some incredibly alluring tunes, road is the stage and people on the road (and some like me who listen to him standing behind the blinds) are his audience (devoid of the appreciation though). He plays songs, one after another. A few kids on the street watch him keenly. Some dance. Some sort of a “bitti entertainment”!! But the irony behind is that this self-taught artist (who stays blessed by the God of flute, Lord Krishnaa) is here to showcase not his talent but the bamboo reed columns which are beautifully arranged in a quiver like container worn on his back which he intends to sell for a mere 10 bucks to feed his family, who eagerly wait for his arrival in the evening. ‘Ellaaru maaduvudhu hottegaagi genu battegaagi’! Heartrending and tear-jerking!

I was pulled back in the moment as I realized that the piece of music had now started fading in the air while I was engrossed in deeper thoughts. He had travelled to another street in search of a buyer!! As the thoughts crept, I was reminded of the last few lines of William Wordsworth’s poem “A solitary reaper”

Whate'er the theme,
the Maiden sang
As if her song could have no ending;
I saw her singing at her work
And o'er the sickle bending;--
I listened, motionless and still;
And, as I mounted up the hill
The music in my heart I bore,
Long after it was heard no more.


This few minutes of song kept lingering in my mind through the day. Shall cherish this in the time to come. And I shall recollect “Once came a pied piper on my street neither to chase the rats away nor to abduct the children but to rob the hearts”.

Boulevard of Broken Dreams

Have been listening to this song for over a year now. It seriously is so good tat I can neva get enough of this song. "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" is the Grammy Award winning track from Green Day's studio album, American Idiot. I love to listen to this song HIGH volume, every time! One of my fav Green Day’s song.

You truly gotta read between the lines to understand the vital signs and get the essence of this song! Not everyone is fortunate in their journey called life to walk on the “boulevard of broken dreams”. You get to do this only when you hitch-hike. In fact, it is the Road less travelled that am speaking about. And I must say I am much destined to have had an opportunity to go thru such a road. Trust me, It’s fun! And remember, its “you and only you” who has to travel this road and none (mind you none!) shall accompany you, no matter how exciting the journey is!! And hence this song stands closest to my heart. Now, Go ahead and enjoy this song… Awesome lyrics and an awesome rendition.

Link to the song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxfpMGLMZ7Y

I walk a lonely road
The only one that I have ever known
Don't know where it goes
But it's home to me and I walk alone

I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of Broken Dreams
Where the city sleepsand
I'm the only one and I walk alone

I walk aloneI
walk alone
I walk alone
I walk a...

My shadow's the only one that walks beside me
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Til then I walk alone

Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Aaah-ah,
Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Ah-ah

I'm walking down the line
That divides me somewhere in my mind
On the border line
Of the edge and where I walk alone

Read between the lines
What's fucked up and everything's alright
Check my vital signsT
o know I'm still alive and I walk alone

I walk alone
I walk alone

I walk alone
I walk a...

My shadow's the only one that walks beside me
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Til then I walk alone

Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Aaah-ah
Ah-ah, Ah-ah

I walk alone
I walk a...

I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of Broken Dreams
Where the city sleeps
And I'm the only one and I walk a...

My shadow's the only one that walks beside me
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Til then I walk alone...

Jus get started!

As everyone in the world of blogging, I too had my share of apprehensions about creating my blogsite. My dearest friend kept pushing me (thanks to her! It may well be the reason why you are reading this). I din know how to start, where to start and when to start. As usual, swalpa starting problem!! [wink] But I had to do it. I cleared my table. Sharpened my pencil. Started jotting (a rough work before I could put it on!). Now because it was the first one I had to sneak up on my thought, the flow and look at it from several angles.

Not knowing when or how to begin is a problem we’re all quite familiar with. Be it any just anything that you aspire to do, taking the first step is the most difficult aspect of any creative task. Somewhat sardonically, it has to be admitted! It’s a declaration of intent and getting started can feel like the end of a period of free and endless thinking. Giving shape and form to ideas and thoughts can feel like you are selling them short or limiting them in some way that feels uncomfortable. You have your own fears of being accepted by the audience of interest. You dont really know how well people could receive you. The fear of rejection is all that a man cannot take and hence the “starting problem”, “oh! What-if” or “Oh! What-if-not” kinds.

Now as I say this, I get a lil nostalgic. I still remember the day I submitted my first painting. The jitters I had when I enacted my first role as a child artist. The trembling voice with which I sang the first song. My faltering footsteps of the first dance to the tune of “merry-go-round-the-mulberry-bush”. I remember the first few lines of the poem I scribbled. Or as with most of us, it could be the first job interview we have all given, the boy/girl that we have or have wanted to propose [wink].Everything that you wanna do and have done has to have or has had its “first”. You jus gotta make the move. I do agree that it needs a vital mental and emotional preparation. Some times you tackle the most difficult and challenging problem first. Usually this is coz you have already sussed out how to solve it, or you’re so bursting with energy and excitement that you need something major to attack and venture on! Your instincts and creative intelligence shall definitely help at some point.

My dear friend, as you read this, I only have to say that, “If you have an urge to do that ‘something’ in the corner of your heart, push for it”. You must have your adrenaline rushing. Each one of us has a list of “1000 things to do before we die”. But only a few succeed in doing them all for they either do not know where to begin or too bothered about what-will-others-think-about-me. Seems like tats a syndrome! Sometimes you gotta be a dare devil. Have the I-Don’t-care-what-the-world-thinks-about-me attitude. After all you cannot impress everyone on this earth. N mind you, you gotta live your life. Have no apologies for the vanities. ‘Just-Do-It’. For its only one life you have to realize your dreams. We can’t leave our lives in the ‘Fill-in-the-blanks’ state. There are often some things left undone, some words left unsaid, some feelings left unexpressed, some dreams left unrealized about which we crib and feel sorry about and end up thinking at the later part of your life, “if-only-I-said-it”, “if-only-I-did-it”. Why have regrets? Wake up and do it. Ask questions. Apart from asking ‘why’, ask ‘why-not’. Start anywhere. But start now. Right here. Right now. No excuses. No prevarication.

Unleash…”U”! Get set and Go! Rock on! All the best!! [Thumbs up]

The aura of invincibility

It poured. It lashed. Drama unveiled! The beauty of the game was graced with the two great men on grass. U know what I am speaking about. True! Tennis it is. Wimbledon 2008 Men’s single - finals! A 4 hour, 48 minutes of ‘test of wills and calibre’. The longest and the greatest in the history of Tennis. What a match! The captivating five-set duel and the quality of tie-breakers. Nerve wrenching. Nail biting! Nothing short of spectacular.


Hailing from a family which religiously follows tennis, I have grown up with the game. Now, neva before had I witnessed a match of this sort (Will I eva?). The unbeatable Roger Federer (The ‘god of Tennis’ of the present era) on the one side and the new matador, Rafael Nadal, on the other side of the net. Eyes of the men were truly enigmatic. The energy they dissipated was colossal. Tough one it was. Both deserved to be the winners. It could be Fed’s hardest loss by far but what’s a game if there are no wins and losses? That’s called sportsmanship. The spirit has to stay! Its only but fair to have a winner and a loser. Wilma Rudolph quotes “Winning is great, sure, but if you are realy going to do something in life, the secret is learning how to lose. Nobody goes undefeated all the time. If you can pick up after a crushing defeat, and go on to win again, you are going to be a champion someday”.


I could barely breathe during the third set. Lo and behold! I was tucked in my seat. But Yo! hold. I got back my breath. Fed was back in the game. He ought to stay! Though Fed is a genius, he is a human. And for a human it’s only but natural to err and falter. Nadal’s resistance was magnificent which was underlined by the fact that the world number one was able to convert only one out of his 13 breakpoints he generated over the course while sending down 52 unforced errors over Nadal's 27. This truely set the standards for the man. It’s after all a game. And it happens! I am not playing any favoritism here. Nadal has been the toughest contender to Fed. And he truly “deserved” to WIN. But yet, the supreme shall reign. Federer possesses the sublime skills that most players can only dream of. Nadal can neva be a threat to Federer. Nadal is to Federer as Agassi is to Sampras.

Never the less, the Swiss star shall always Shine bright. Undoubtedly, Federer is a champion. And time shall reveal this. As Jack Dempsey quotes “A champion is the one who gets up when he can’t”. Like the phoenix bird**, Fed too will have the time to prove, he is “The Invincible”!

**(It has a 500 year life-cycle, and near the end the phoenix builds itself a nest of cinnamom twigs or aromatic wood that it then ignites; both nest and bird is consumed by the fire and are reduced to ashes, from which a new, young phoenix arises. The phoenix bird symbolizes immortality, resurrection and life after death)