Short Vacation

Well, I'm back from a short 4 day vacation in Pune, and it's been a good one... It was good to see Mehaan after such a long time... especially since he has been talking and doing a whole lot of stuff... The first thing that he mentioned when I walked in was to point out where I need to take off my shows... And then he proceeded to tell me everything that he was doing...

The trip to mom and dad's place was pretty eventful too... He was thrilled to go there after such a long time, and of course my parents were too... It was good to see him talk around the house... Try and show them how he's learning to swim, with his bottom up and him pretending to be in water... Chasing away dogs, as usual, in his own style by holding a stick which is invariably longer than him... Dancing in front of them and expecting a big round of applause when he stops... It was good fun... he also managed to enjoy fresh mangoes from the backyard... and a good time in the neighbouring garden, enjoying the slides and the swings... Mom had a good time cooking up all the delicacies for him, with him approving each and everyone of the dishes post a round of tasting...

The funniest part was watching him swim... His instructor seems to be a vey cool guy, and our man seems to be pretty popular there... The only problem was that our man was more focused on me than swimming that day... So when the time came for a jump from the high platform... He went into the water screaming "Dadaaaaaaaaa"... and landed on his bottom... Very unusual for he always lands pretty straight into the water... No problems tho', we had a pretty wet evening, with us going to a mall and buying one of his favorite "Giant Tennis Balls', which has become the favorite of all the kids in the society...

And talking about him talk... He is really picking up the words and their meanings... It seems when Minzie goes to buy mutton at our regular shop, he goes, " Mutton hai... Taaza hai... Achcha banega"... And in addition, the day when I was lying beside him just before he wakes up... he opened his eyes, saw me lying there watching him, said ," Eyesh Kloshe Karo"... and went back to sleep wrapping his arm around me... lol... funny guy...

Managed to buy a decent DVD player too, for Rs. 3000/-... which was alright, for the MRP was about Rs. 4500... So most of the things are falling into place quickly, which is good news... I also got the IT return from the department after 2 bloody long years... And now I can repay the money that I borrowed from Bro... This should leave me with only the Educational loan next december and probably I can start renovating the house too... So now it's abck to Nagpur in the daily rigmarole and let's see how things move...

Water water everywhere, but not a drop to drink

The water situation across the country is grim... For a country which is completely dependent on Monsoon for the Agricultural industry to survive, I think we are doing a really bad job... A precious commodity such as water is being polluted by rampant urbanisation, industries and lack of water management tools... Rain water harvesting, is yet to take off in a big way, though the concept has been in place for some years now...

So what can a common man do to save water?? A whole lot of things... to start with install WC's which require less water, the traditional Indian WC's are fantastic examples... You can effectively use 5 litres of water, and clean it instead of the 15-20 litres required for Western WC's.... Second thought would be to reduce the usage of washing machines, which in turn consume a much higher quantity of water, or use the water saver mode in the machines... Harvest water, by putting the pipilines out of the wash basin/kitchen sink in the ground... We really don't use too many checmicals in there... Effective management of underground water reserves is another key to solve this problem...

Like mom says, "The Fourth World War will not be for oil but for water"... I agree with her... And it's high time we take immediate actions to stop Global Warming... Govt's should invest in better and more efficient Public transport, than providing sops for the automobile sector... Ban plastic bags, they clog up the water sources and make them toxic...Both the north and south poles are in grave danger... All this will result in an increse in sea level, leaving very less space for fresh, potable water...

Personally, I feel, it's also high time to stop selling carbonated drinks, which just add color and soda to regular water and is being marketed at an exorbitant price... Sorry Coke and Pepsi guys, but if we want our kids to see this planet in a better state of affairs, we have to start today...

Just yesterday

It's interesting to note... how quickly kids grow up... My nephew is about a year old... And he just seems to have so much fun by himself... BTW yours truly has become a very good friend of his... He refuses to call me uncle and yesterday he actually shook my hand... that was quite an event for his mom...

He was just chilling out yesterday with his new found friend, and a small beach ball that was bought for him... That reminds me, I'll have to buy something for Mehaan before I go home... Cause the time gap between my arrival in Pune and the time taken to reach home is quite less... Let's see what we can get in the time frame available... I always feel thrilled when i speak to him... it's always nice to hear him... too bad i'm not with him in one of the most expressive stages of life... I hope he'll forgive me when he grows up...

It's not difficult, but rather easy to realise that I have really not fulfilled any of the roles expected out of me... I've never been a good son, nor a good brother... I hope I'll become a good father...

These are difficult times... Times which create havoc, and can literally destroy a person... Let's see... Like a close friend says,"Only time will tell"...

"The Fool"

Astrologically, my sun sign is Aries... The first sign in the zodiac, the beginner... It is also represented as The Ram... In Tarot Cards, the sign is reflected to that of a fool... And so here goes the verse...

THE FOOL

Since the wise men have not spoken, I speak that am only a fool;
A fool that hath loved his folly,
Yea, more than the wise men their books
or their counting houses, or their quiet homes,
Or their fame in men’s mouths;
A fool that in all his days hath done never a prudent thing,
Never hath counted the cost, nor recked if another reaped
The fruit of his mighty sowing, content to scatter the seed;
A fool that is unrepentant, and that soon at the end of all
Shall laugh in his lonely heart as the ripe ears fall to the reaping hooks
And the poor are filled that were empty,
Tho’ he go hungry.

I have squandered the splendid years
that the Lord God gave to my youth
In attempting impossible thins, deeming them alone worth the toil.
Was it folly or grace? Not men shall judge me, but God.

I have squandered the splendid years:
Lord, if I had the years I would squander them over again,
Aye, fling them from me!
For this I have heard in my heart, that a man shall scatter, not hoard,
Shall do the deed of to-day, nor take thought of to-morrow’s teen,
Shall not bargain or huxter with God; or was it a jest of Christ’s
And is this my sin before men, to have taken Him at his word?

The lawyers have sat in council, the men with the keen, long faces,
And said, ‘This man is a fool,’ and others have said,
'He blasphemeth;’
And the wise have pitied the fool that hath striven to give a life
In the world of time and space among the bulks of actual things,
To a dream that was dreamed in the heart,
And that only the heart could hold.

O wise men, riddle me this: what if the dream come true?
What iF the dream come true? And if millions unborn shall dwell
In the house that I shaped in my heart,
the noble house of my thought?
Lord, I have staked my soul, I have staked the lives of my kin
On the truth of Thy dreadful word. Do not remember my failures,
But remember this my faith.

And so I speak.
Yes, ere my hot youth pass, I speak to my people and say:
Ye shall be foolish as I; ye shall scatter, not save;
Ye shall venture your all, lest ye lose what is more than all;
Ye shall call for a miracle, taking Christ at His word.
And for this I will answer, O people, answer here and hereafter,
O people that I have loved shall we not answer together?

No Rain

... Life's feeling like the popular song by Blind Melons... "All I can say is that my life's pretty plain...I Like Watchin` The Puddles Gather Rain... and All I Can Do Is Just Pour Some Tea For Two... and Speak My Point Of View... but It`s Not Sane, It`s Not Sane'....

Nothing's much has been happening around... I got lucky with my Statistics exam, and received a "Good" grade in it... Although I know I completely blew it off... Over-confidence... Ahhh!!!... And now that everyone's back in Pune... There's nothing much to do... Life's pretty quiet when you don't have anyone to talk to... I guess...

Well, seems like everyone has their own share of good times and bad times, and all of us will go through whatever we have to go through... lol... probably some with a smile and some with a frown... It is interesting to note how things are turning out to be tho'... the only consolation is that hopefully all the major expenses will be taken care of by the end of this year... That's a good sign... Cause then I can start saving for our man's education... which is going to be quite expensive i suppose... let's see... nevertheless, i will ensure that he has enough to spare....

this city will eventually ensure that I get bloated up... i've never felt so full around my waistline as i do nowadays... you can thump the belly... if i have to put it in a really crude way... lol... But then, there is this wonderful idea that I have come up... Probably we should visit Japan for a vacation next year... I think it'll be good for our li'l man to look at different cultures and enjoy them.. It'll probably be a life changing experience for me too... who knows... lol...

Rains... Ah!!!... What an amazing feeling... The smell of wet earth, the sound of the raindrops falling... Some of life's fondest memories are a part of this season... when we were in college, there used to be this one small shack by the seaside who used to serve draught beer… and me and one of my friends would sit on the beach… and drink beer… chatting non-stop… and when it started raining, we’d just be sitting in the pouring rain, watching the ocean slam the shores… the beer in our hand… now refilled by the rain… it used to be so much fun… the bar tender would carry additional glasses under an umbrella, along with something to eat... And the memory of walking down from Dadar to Chembur in one of the days when Bombay was flooded... voila...

Our man has joined swimming classes, and it seems he's thoroughly enjoying himself... good... it's always nice to see him enjoying things... i am planning to buy a Handycam to make sure that i capture all his li'l movements... it'll be quite interesting to see how he reacts to it when he grows up... lol...