Rachael...

The bell tolls….A streak of sunlight seeps through a hole from near the ceiling. This marks the start of the day. The footsteps are heard, with the occasional rattle on the door. John wakes up to this everyday for the past 4 years now. His days are long…and his nights are longer. He wakes up and sits on the edge of his bed. He stares down on the floor wondering if today is going to be any different. His neighbor/room-mate stirs and gets up to freshen up. The rattle continues. He fumbles under his pillow and pulls out a torn-edged photograph among other things like a diary and a few letters crumpled with age and use. He smiles gently as he strokes the photograph. It was a snap of a 6 yr old girl. The girl has a brown teddy and is all smiles. ‘Rachel’ he sighs as he goes back to the day when her eyes sparkled like twilight on getting the teddy bear as a gift for her 6th birthday. Such was her naïve and innocent happiness. He still remembers the day when his wife Janet clutched his arm, when Rachael fell down after taking her first step. “She is going to be OK” she whispered. And she was. The simple pleasures of life were all discovered through Rachael. Bubbles were a joy to her. Every burst of a bubble made her laugh and she was the apple of their life. They were picture perfect- a family to be looked upon. Always together, full of love and laughter. Until….He closed his eyes trying to block of his memory. He wanted to always remember how happy they were, and forget that fateful day, when the naivety of his only daughter was stolen. The images kept flashing back where she lay torn and tattered by the heartless bully. How could that predator even be turned on? She is a baby…a child who didn’t even understand what is being done to her? Did he even know that this little girl couldn’t even tolerate a dog to be tied, and now she is tied, assaulted and bruised? John had smiled when he saw the rapist in a pool of blood. He still remembers the way he carried his dearest daughter who was bleeding to death only to be stumbled by a body. “Janet!” he shook her. She was slashed in her throat. He wailed out aloud. Rachael slipped from his hands and breathed her last. “WHY!!” he moaned.
John jerked when his room-mate shrugged him by his shoulders and brought him to the grim realities of life. Another year…and he would be released. At liberty to wake up to the sunlight, and not to this piteous streak which warns him of another dubious dawn. But the smiles…the chatter….the tantrums…and the love. Can he ever get those back in life? The prisoner wipes of the tear which is trickling towards to Rachael. He treasures the photo under the pillow and gets up, staggers and lives on his life with memoirs.

To paradise and Back - New Zealand!

We had an amazing month-long vacation to New Zealand this December. NZ was truly a land of paradise where natural wonders never cease. It made me feel so small in this big and beautiful world...I was humbled by the majestic mountains, and moist with tears when my eyes set on the lovely lakes. Enjoy a glimpse of the country!


Lake Tekapo, South Island, NZ. One of the most breathtaking sites our eyes have ever set upon. The still blue water, outlined with snow-tipped noses on a canvas splashed with green ferns and blue & violet flowers, simply took our breath away. What could be more serene than having a church in such a location- Church of Good Shepherd, perched on a hillock and gazing at the God's lovely painting was paradise on earth.....hands down


One tree hill, Auckland, NZ.


Natural sulphur mud pools in Rotorua, North Island. There were unexpected sulphur springs all over this city and you can imagine the stench out there.


Milford Sounds, Fiordland National Forest, South Island, NZ. In the midst of mountains, enveloped with thick fog, were hundreds of waterfalls sprouting out. The slight drizzle, the mist, the snow-capped mountains with streams oozing out to form a plethora of waterfalls...the sight was just heavenly.


Natives of New Zealand.


Mauri sculptures and traditional designs.


Lake Kuwarau, Queenstown, South Island, NZ.


Fern - symbol of life.


Spooky trees in Cornwall park, Auckland,NZ.


Majestic Mt.Cook,South Island, NZ. Edmund Hilary tried his first mountain expedition on this peak.


Lovely churches in Christchurch, South Island, NZ.


The world's first and famous AJ Hackett Bungy center, Queenstown, South Island, NZ.

NO for NOodles!!

How many of you enjoy noodles? OK…but not me. It is nothing to do with the palatability of the dish.....but something to do with the co-ordination of the slithering food, the fork and the mouth. I cannot agree that slurping the noodles with the ooosh sound is un-mannered. After many attempts to take a bunch of the entanglement with the fork went in vain, I resolved that forking it down and twirling it around so that the food wedges itself between contours of the utensil was OK. After years of practice of forking down and twirling, I became a master of this art.
Last week was a luncheon meeting with my company’s biggies. It was a posh Thai restaurant, and wanting to make use of this opportunity, I ordered the item which was the most expensive on the menu. I didn’t even bother to see what kind of a dish it was. And any surprises on what the waiter got for me…Oh yea…Flat noodles, in a pool of sweet and chili thai sauce. Aarrghh…The contents of the plate sure did look tempting, but am I to face this ordeal in front of my boss and the biggies. I comforted myself and with a dash of confidence, I took the fork as if I was taking a pistol out of the holster. I thought I would do it my way of twirling it around and ingesting it. I was so involved with this, that I never even paid attention to what was going on in the meeting. The first twist was successful and I kept doing this as fast as I can. ‘Nita. Are you sure this project will be completed in time?’…the boss directed the question to me. He caught me off-guard, when my enemy was making its way to the mouth. The slimes started to unravel itself and started dripping down my mouth. My mouth was playing games trying to catch the slipping ribbons and I concluded that oooshing it down is the best possible way. I bent forward to my plate, to prevent further disaster and ‘oooosh’ I started to blow in, and the boiled dough quickly snaked its way up. Now, everyone on the table grimaced at my noodle-eating-etiquette and I am sure there would have been a mental comparison to a beggar eating food from his bowl. The meeting continued without waiting for my answer, and needless to say, I stopped eating after that. I turned around, and guess what ....I saw a chinese eating chow-mein with chopsticks!!! How does he ever manage to do that?? I still wonder…

On the reels...

My first ever tag. Thank you Chriz. But I have to say I am not a movie buff and I am going to suck at this....Anways, read on.

1. Name five of your all time favorite movies.....
(i) All Maniratinam movies
(ii) Sound of music
(iii) Notting Hill
(iv) Kanda Naal Mudhal (Tamil)
(v) Shawshank Redumption

2. Name one movie which you recommend as a "must see"
I actually have 2:

(i) Namesake - A must-watch for every American Desi.
(ii) Blood Diamond - Caprio simply amazed me. U wouldn't wear a rock again after watching this.

3. The one and only one movie that you've seen the most number of times in a movie hall
"Bombay" - One of the masterpieces of the ace director 'Maniratinam'.

4. Which movie comes to your mind first, when you think about the funniest movie?...
Finding Nemo. [Well, I warned you that I wud suck]

5. Which movie made you really emotional?...
Water - Deepa Mehta (the most controversially critic'ed director). The little girl Chuhiya was brilliant.

6. Which movie series, do you think, was as interesting as the first part in the series?...
Shrek.

7. Which movie, according to you, didn't live up to your expectations, after all the hype you've heard?
Dasavataram(Tamil) - I am a big fan of Kamal Haasan, and even though he didn't disappoint me, the storyline flopped big time.

8. Which movie, really surprised you?...
Anbe sivam(Tamil) - Great story, superb direction and very reflective dialogs. It really surprised me, that it didn't do well in the box office.

Sands of Time

The hand keeps moving-slowly but steadily. He celebrates with rings and bells at his every milestone – 3600. He sings for himself for his accomplishment, and admires his own determination to never look back – the past is gone…the future lies ahead…even its just by a second. Time is a standing reminder that every second is precious. We hang it on walls, tie on our wrist, neck, what not….but does it really serve the purpose.
Most people just use it as a bleep to hurry our actions, quicken our steps, and reach the destination. But does anyone really care, as to what its real objective is? As ironic as it may sound, time does not to alarm us of the breezing moment and urge us to accelerate our motions. It is rather a reminiscence to slow down. Enjoy the moment and indulge in the surrounding, rather than hastening our pace as if life has a big task of checking off all the to-do’s.
Just think….how many of us, really have sat down and breathed, enjoyed and relished a moment. We are almost always in a hurry to finish a task, to close a chapter, to slam a door, to gulp the food, and finally to shut our eyes to sleep. I am a classic example of this. My routine has become so stringent these days, that the smallest deviation would ruin it. My every action fits as a glove to the passing minute. My mind is so tuned to the monotony that I don’t even realize that going the other way and taking a wrong direction could sometimes turn out to be pleasant. I once remember taking a road trip to a summit.
Its only after we started ascending, we realized that we are on a wrong route. But it turned out the nature and the scenery around was so breath-taking, that we forgot we are map-deprived and we are not in fact en-route to our planned destination. Our regular trip would have been so planned, with anxious glances over the google maps, and panicky eyes to reach the destination, that we always tend to forget the reason for our vacation….the purpose to enjoy and relish. Try to do a something unplanned….you would surely enjoy the outcome as well.
So, slow down and enjoy…after all, life is not measured by the number of breaths that you take, but by the number of moments that take you breath away….

Shadows

Have you ever been mesmerized by the dancing of the shadows...the light seeping through an object to form a beautiful pattern...a tune, a rhythm? Sometimes a shadow looms larger than life, and at other times crunches tiny. It all depends on the source of light...which I equate to 'attitude'. One's sorrow, or one's joy...all depends on one's own attitude...attitude towards life. If a person faces a hurdle, and refuses to jump over....he frowns. If he jumps over only to fall down, and refuses to get back on....he cries. Only a person who takes the struggle as an oppurtunity to prove his mettle,smiles. Let not the source of light determine your shadow. Take things in your stride and follow a level-headed rhythm.

Victimized

 A sniff here, a sniffle there…
   Hot tears well up…when I think how miserable this can get.
 ‘Why me?’ I wonder each time….only to be attacked by another monster.
  ‘Aarrggh’….I cannot get back on my feet.
 Every muscle, every tissue aches….all for me trying to fight back a struggle.
   A struggle that I wrestle in this bad, filthy world.
 I am not a taker….I am a giver!
   I am willing to share my love…..can someone share this FLU with me….:( 
 So far Kleenex has been my only friend…..sob,sob. 

Perception

Click on the picture to view content, otherwise your 'perception' might be wrong.

A Friend

You lifted me when I fell,
Your laughter reflects mine,
Your shoulder shifts for my grief,
Stronger we grew with time…

The endless phone conversations,
Naughty but nice…
Sweet are the memories
That I’ll ever cherish and entice.


We laughed, we played…
Never a thing to bother..
We still have time to think..
For now, lets just gather.

There were moments when I was scared
But you just took up the blame,
You held me through life’s blind turns
And made my life more tame.

We promised we would never…
But life took a turn,
We chose the different pathways..
To embrace life and learn.

On the crossroads, we meet again…
‘Is this you?’ I wonder.
When tears started rolling…
This is our friendship still so tender…

-Nita

I see...I hear...

Bright as a day…
Brush of the breeze…
Azure in the sky…
Brown in the woods…
Green blades of the grass…
Silvery waters gleam…
Yellow sunshine smiles..
Violets that bloom…
Golden honeysuckles…
White puffy clouds…
The distant song from a black cuckoo…
Purple butterflies flutter…
A picture of the ranges.

Gray clouds floating above…
The sky darkens…
The drizzle succumbs…
Raindrops on the red petals…
Green frogs croak…
Red and black ladybugs crawl out…
Russet snails trudge along…
Thunder and lightning strikes…
The ground dampens…
The patter ceases…
Sunshine smiles…
The palette of a rainbow.


The nestle of the birds…
Crimson of the twilight…
Shadows loom…
The hoary moon emerges…
Hoot of an owl…
Rustle of the trees…
The silence of the night.

Bright as a day...the flow of a pen...

These are a few of her favorite things...

My daughter has a list of favorites and each one is so cute...It would bring smiles when she grows older and reads this....'To you, sweety!'

Her favorite color: Orange
Maybe time would change her and help her see the nuances of other colors…..but right now…she loves anything Orange. And ofcourse, her favorite fruit is an Orange too...

Her favorite cartoon character: Diego
Funny…I tried to inculcate ‘Dora’ into her. She is a lot more intellectual and I thought she would go bi-lingual just like Dora and learn a foreign language. But her inclination was more towards Dora’s cousin Deigo. Maybe she has a crush on him….she loves everything about him…and has a full set of cutlery of him….:)

Her favorite food: Anything chicken
It says it all. Once I remember she jumped at the sight of chicken during the month of Purataasi(the month when we restrict to only vegetarian food). She was so excited and started gobbling it down.


‘Neha the Tech Saavy’:
Her favorite internet site(s):
1. www.starfall.com
Its an amazing site and I should say with a peeking guilt that her world of wisdom was through this online preschooler’s site. She learnt a lot of words and was enthralled with her navigation capabilities…be it the mouse or the touch pad. She can recognize any letter and exclaims on what comes on the next screen…Really proud of her!

2. www.toysrus.com
May be she got bored of telling us her wish list and we keep postponing the promises. She sought her own pleasure in browsing through the product catalogs and zooming the one’s she likes or the seeing them in action.

Her favorite appliance(s):
1. Telephone: She has to start the conversation before handing the phone over to us. I love to hear her imaginary conversations. She pauses so realistically between lines and responds to an imaginary question. She is brilliant!!
2. Laptop: Has a craze to switch the power on and off. Had a hardisk crash and the rest is history!

3. Remote control: Thank god for the DVR. She simply rewinds if a capturing doll advertisement swishes by or forwards if it’s the News…
4. Dad’s Treo mobile: She was brilliant with it! She clicks and navigates through photos and music non-chalantly with the stylus ….a skill that even I haven’t mastered.
5. Camera: She is a great photographer! She manages to take snaps which actually fits our profiles in the frame….though we have to move a lot inorder to align with the lens.

Her favorite activity: Scribbling and painting. Lucky for us, she is not a wall or carpet scribbler.

Her favorite costume: Anything with pockets. Its for her collect dimes and she says she will buy lollipops and gummy bears with it.

I got a ticket!

     Nah…not a ticket to the ‘Dasavatharam’ movie….yup, you guessed it right….a ‘traffic’ ticket….:( I am abashed, especially since it was a speeding ticket….that was cruelly irresponsible.
     The day started off OK….got up from the right side of the bed (I sleep on the right side…my husband on the left), got dressed in time, jumped into my car, dropped off my kiddo at school and took the regular route to work. OK, got to explain a little bit about this roadway…it is a plain reservation road, with absolutely no buildings…and if there are, there are very few and far apart. It is surrounded by mountainous ranges on both the sides and two ominous graveyards en route. Its very nature-stricken road, and I have stopped once or twice to take photographs…Now, coming back to my experience. This reservation road has a speed limit of 55mph. Today morning, I was listening to Jodha Akbar with full tempo, and was trying to karaoke with the instrumental version of ‘Jashn-E-Bahaara’. Well, that didn’t turn out too good….but within the safety of my car(yes with rolled up windows) I pitched my voice and in parallel slammed on the accelerator. So now, the whole vista was the scenery, AR.Rahman, me singing, clubbed with the speeding. Now, remember I told before, that the speed limit was 55….well, err…I didn’t remember that at that time. So as my right foot kept easing into the accelerator, and my speedometer kept swaying gently to the right till 75mph, the blue and red lights started flashing on the rear view mirror out of nowhere. For a second, I ignored it and then something told me ‘Girl….you have to pull over!’. This is my first time ….I didn’t know the basics. I immediately removed my seat belt and stepped out to extend an apology. I managed to showcase a pathetic look and stood up…”Freeze!!!!” came the shout. I stumbled back into my car in a split second…..’Oh! Gosh! I quickly raced my mind through the driving lessons I had learnt….He could have tazed me…I obediently put back my seat belt, rolled down my window and looked solemn and straight ahead. The cop came over to me, and asked for the usual….the driver’s license, insurance copies, etc etc….I nervously jumbled through my dashboard only to hand over an expired insurance doc. ‘This is expired ma’am’ came the quick answer after briefing it….`Hmm…he is indeed a competent officer.’ Scrambling through the bunch of crap again, I extended the right one….I had to speak something now, or else he is going to sign off a huge sum…’I am sorry…I was running late for a meeting….This is my first time…I shall never do this again’. He nodded through my apologies and didn’t show any sign of sympathy. He handed over a paper, and said ‘Please sign this’. I thought it was to prove that I was indeed sorry. “Pay the bill in the defensive driving class and you won’t get any points”. ‘Huh…’ I was wrong to think he was going to let me go….Tough one indeed.
I mumbled an OK and searched for the amount that I had to pay….120$$ and a 6-hr driving class. 6 gruesome hrs!!! Aarrgghh….I put the blame on AR.Rahman, turned my music into something sober and sped off….no, no , trudged to my office. Hmm….`I got a ticket.’…sob, sob.

Random thoughts to ponder….?!

1.Did Washington just flash a quarter for his ID?
2.What does a seedless watermelon come from?
3.Why is it called a building when it's already built?
4.If you cannot drink and drive, then why ask a driver’s license to purchase liquor?
5.Isn’t it a bit unnerving that doctors call what they do “practice”?
6.Why is the man who invests all your money called a broker?
7.A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a Train stops On my desk. Well…. I have a work station..?!

8.Why does your nose run and your feet smell?
9.If pro is the opposite of con, is progress the opposite of congress?
10.Why is there an expiration date on SOUR cream?
11.Why does one get in trouble for WRECKless driving?
12.If the front of your car says 'DODGE', do you really need a horn?
13.We are born naked, wet, and hungry. Then things get worse.
14.Why do they call it "chili" if it's hot?
15.Why do ballet dancers always dance on their toes? Wouldn't it be easier to just hire taller dancers?
16.How much deeper would the ocean be if sponges didn't grow in it?

Well…and with so much of wise thinking, let me unveil some ‘quotes’ that should not be attempted to ponder…

•“Please open the windows and let the atmosphere come in!” – Engineering Professor.

Now this would be a good remedy for the global warming.

•“Open your socks before you come to the computer lab”- Comp. Teacher in high school

She was the reason for my torn socks

•“Please stand in a straight circle” – PT Master

No Comments.



Well…I am not a smart ass either. Here are some of the instances where my brain cells just wasn’t up to the speed-

•I opened a new cereal box on a Sunday morning for breakfast. Just then the words ‘Best if used before’ caught my eye…Without reasoning it out that the instruction refers to something called ‘Date’, I handed the box to my husband to ‘Use it’

•I was walking merrily in the downtown, when a white guy in an equally joyous mood shouts out to me ‘Hey…Whats up?’ . I immediately looked up at the sky, and wondered....`Huh! Nothing dumbo!’


Shall keep appending to the list, as the wise owl ages….

Smiles.

Strolling down the memory lane in Chennai...

Strolling down the memory lane in Chennai…

Turned out to be a nostalgic day today….turning back to the pages of Chennai- the city I grew up in. Sniffing on the tiniest memories, dreaming about our favorite hang-outs, the bustling sounds, the hustle in the streets…. I look around my present milieu- the hum of the air-conditioner and the squeak from the fan….so much for a hot afternoon!

Travel with me down the streets of Chennai….

Marina beach: The shimmer never dies down. This is a no-expense respite on those sizzling summer nights, where building sand-castles in not just a dreamer’s delight. The panorama of kites and balloons and an ice-cream dripping down from a child, is sure to crease a smile on anyone’s lips. Such is the power of this expanse.

Pondy Bazaar: I miss this the most about Chennai. For shopaholics like me, this is a constant quencher. The delight of the wide variety of clothing, street hawkers, the constant ringing of horns, the autos snaking through the jam-packed traffic…..this place is a never-ceasing drama.

Restaurants: The coning of a paper-roast dosa is a well-kept secret in Chennai. The array of side dishes and the mouth watering recipes can even urge me to board the next flight.

Theatres: College days best spent. An examination results board will not gravitate as much as a crowd as a thalaivar’s movie.

Every molecule of my memory cells is filled with my native. The nook…the corner…the street…the turn…every single thing holds a remembrance….sigh!

Silence

Serene in dark, Sanguine in light…

Pain comes with every wave, stumbles over rocks, reaches the shore…

But each wave traverses back, to start a new rush…a new pain…it never gives up.

The show continues…day in and day out…with its steady hum, the drilling duty.

The hum soothes our nerves, gazing into the horizon…gazing into his eyes…

The twilight dims into darkness…just like how he turns his head away, bored to look…

The hum dies down…it is the pain of silence…

The water glimmers waiting for the wind to whine…the wind waits for the water to break its hush.

The ego raises…the silence prolongs…each give up on each other…No more pain, no more waves.


- Nita

Color 'Red'

What else could we relate to the color ‘Red’ except anger. Anger, fury, rage, resentment…all relates to the color red. Wonder why? Why doesn’t one go brown with anger…probably because of the blood rush when you get angry. Do you know it really feels good when you vent out your anger on someone or something. Vent out…yes good comparision again. I can imagine all the AC vents being closed except one and feel the cool air gushing down. That’s exactly the way one feels when all the anger inside onself is let out. The calmness after a storm;the coolness after a wind;the wave after a tsunami. “Tsunami”…anger in nature…that’s a true example. When I watched the re-runs of the wildness of the sea, that’s the wrath of nature. Animals, nature, humans…that’s a common personality; that has to be in and out once in a while. When all that is stumped inside, it is very difficult to express feelings.
Today my emotion of the day was ‘Anger’. That is definitely obvious from my initial start. Anger for no apparent reason…at no particular person. Plain anger…waiting to be let out. Who else could be the victim except poor hubby. From morning I was angry at everything, on everybody…feel that I am psychotic? No…that could be you too on a fine sunny Sunday. I was angry that the fish didn’t eat good…mad at my daughter because she was playing too much, wild at my Mom for saying something and mad at my boss for making me work too much….all poured onto my partner for not being a good soul-mate. It happens to everyone, anytime…not menopause…I am not so old. After verbal abuse, with conversation which was definitely not amusing nor G-rated, I storm into my room and shut the door, laid on my bed and imagine what…I felt good!! That was brutal, I know…to have stained my hubby’s soul and physically abusing a few utensils…I still felt good. Wow! I could be brutal…there is a terrorist inside me. Bless people living with me under the same roof. I walk out sheepishly smiling, but too coy to smile at him…the innocent victim of my outburst. I pretend to continue my act of impulsiveness, only to find the Newton’s second law flashing before me…”Every action has an equal and opposite reaction”…’Opposite’ ..I don’t know; but definitely equal. After all I deserve it..don’t I? After the brawling is done by him, I crawl into my bed ….cooing myself to sleep…I have learnt my lesson of the day…the color ‘Red’ is definitely not pleasant….sigh! What a day!!

Calligraphy

Yesterday was an exhausting day. Exhausting because I was about to venture the art of writing in my daughter. 'What's exhausting about that?' I hear you. That means you probably don't have a loose-fingered kid or maybe you are not tasked with coaching your offspring. Either ways, I envy you. Well, back to my story. My daughter is not dumb...She can rattle away on the keyboard, use the brush on MS paint, at ease with Motorola Razor....but give her a P-E-N-C-I-L, and she looks back at you like a caveman trying his first-hand on fire. It finally started...She managed to grasp her index finger around the tool and land it on paper. OK, that's the fist step. Now the real mission: Writing #3. After a few strokes, I let her take the lead. She started off right...Got the upper curve and THUD! The numero looked back like an unambitious '7'. "Where is the line which goes in and out in the middle??" I questioned her. She looked back at me through her pleading eyes which are now swelling up with tears. Ohh...poor thing. "OK sweety. Let me help you". I mould over her right-hand, leading through her navigation. "Swell..there you go. Now, I shall let you do it". She starts off again, got the curve right...good...stops mid-way , turns left, goes for a while and BAM! She landed on her feet again! Now this is a questionable-question mark!! Is this ominous of my dream that she would become a best-selling writer! Aarrgghh...after cajoles and encouragements, she finally does it. Not something that the numeral would be proud of....but it would pass for a comprehensible secret agent code...well. I am drained out of my patience by now...."Good girl....That's enough for now. But tomorrow, we have to do #8'. Oooo...that's a fusion of 2-3's. Fine, let's take one day at a time....So much for the art of writing...:)

In her slumber….

She runs towards me with open hands….encompasses me in her tight embrace , purring ‘I love you mom’. Her brief kiss snatches the deepest veins.
When her finger curls around mine, during our serious conversation walks, I feel the whole world leads me. It is me who follows her most of the time.
When she cries during her good-byes each morning, my heart bleeds for you…’You will be OK sweetheart’ are only words to soothe her…I don’t mean it and those hours of separation are my hours of paranoiac heights.
When I first weaned you…I cried…I don’t want you to grow older, darling. I want to hold this bond true.
At work, every one knows you are my only crush. I tell them your tales, spinning fantasies and bright imagination to make you look intelligent.
While driving, I only want the distance to shorten and the time quicken to hold you in my arms.

I come home…with dreams, with anticipation….and I hate it when I see you sleep. The most beautiful sight I have ever seen. Eyelids closed, hugging her doll, saliva drooling out of her mouth, and legs curved. How I wish I could shake you out of your slumber….and bring you to the reality. How much more am I going to miss in life? It would be too late, when you leave me for your life…Wake up sweety…I love you!

Your dearest mom

Best of the worst

These are some of my best reads of the day....


THE WORST HIJACKING


We shall never know the identity of the man who in 1976 made the most unsuccessful hijack attempt ever. On a flight across America, he rose from his seat, drew gun and took the stewardess hostage. "Take me to Detroit," he demanded. "We're already going to Detroit," she replied. "Oh ... good," he said, and sat down again.



THE WORST BANK ROBBERY


In August 1975 three men were on their way in to rob the Royal Bank of Scotland at Rothesay, when they got stuck in the revolving doors. They had to be helped free by the staff and, after thanking everyone, sheepishly left the building. A few minutes later they returned and announced their intention of robbing the bank, but none of the staff believed them. When they demanded 5,000 pounds in cash, the head cashier laughed at them, convinced that it was a practical joke. Then one of the men jumped over the counter, but fell to the floor clutching his ankle. The other two tried to make their getaway, but got trapped in the revolving doors again.


THE WORST ANIMAL RESCUE During the firemen's strike of1978, the British Army had taken over emergency fire fighting and on 14 January they were called out by an elderly lady in South London to retrieve her cat which had become trapped up a tree. They arrived with impressive haste and soon discharged their duty. So grateful was the lady that she invited them all in for tea. Driving off later, with fond farewells completed, they ran over the cat and killed it!!




LAWYERS VS INSURANCE



This is the best lawyer story of the year, decade, and probably the century. A Charlotte, NC, lawyer purchased a box of very rare and expensive cigars,: then insured them against fire among other things. Within a month having smoked his entire stockpile of these great cigars and without yet having made even his first premium payment on the policy, the lawyer filed a claim against the insurance company. In his claim, the lawyer stated the cigars were lost "in a series of small fires." The insurance company refused to pay, citing the obvious reason: that the man had consumed the cigars in the normal fashion. The lawyer sued .. and won! In delivering the ruling, the judge agreed with the insurance company that the claim was frivolous. The Judge stated, nevertheless, that the lawyer held a policy from the company in which it had warranted that the cigars were insurable and also guaranteed that it would insure them against fire, without defining what is considered to be unacceptable fire, and was obligated to pay the claim. Rather than endure lengthy and costly appeal process, the insurance company accepted the ruling and paid $15,000 to the lawyer for his loss of the rare cigars lost in the "fires." NOW FOR THE BEST PART... After the lawyer cashed the check, the insurance company had him arrested on 24 counts of ARSON!!!! With his own insurance claim and testimony from the previous case being used against him, the lawyer was convicted of intentionally burning his insured property and was sentenced to 24 months in jail and a $24,000 fine. This is a true story and was the 1st place winner in the recent Criminal Lawyers Award Contest.

Oru Desiyin Kural

Do you sense the painful reiterating cycle of events for every desi living in the US? Do you want to know how?....

This is how the life of a normal undergraduate with a BE degree in an accredited Indian institution takes a spin upon receiving the graduation hood…..

At the mark of the 21st bday --Peer pressure- GRE/TOEFL – US college admission – Visa application – Approval – Wild-eyed at New york nagaram – Room mates – Sondha samaiyal – Sodhapal samaiyal – Burnt fingers – Teary memories – Financial assistance – On campus jobs – Assignments and homeworks – Graduation smiles – Externship and full time – Visa status – Car purchase – Marriage proposals – Fly for engagement – Non stop telephone jabber – Chat sessions extend – Phone cards extended – Return for marriage – Pilgrimage tours in India – Resume work in US – H4 wife cribs – Dive into real estate – 4 bedrooms and 3 bath for a husband and wife – Mom arrives for daughter’s delivery - Baby bloomers – EAD and Greencard follow – 3 airline tickets keeps postponing India trips – Lack of vacation time – Daycare for the kids – Another car for convenience – Life goes on – More expenses – Less time – More stress – Less smiles – Citizenship arrives – Plans to return back to home country – 35th bday – Heart problems – BP – Lie down in a 2-bedroom flat in Thondairpet(1cr) – CONFUSED ON WHAT TO DO NEXT!!!