The Odyssey

Guilt Ride.. In The Metro

2009-02-05T21:52:00.009+05:30

Okay. So I am. A concerned citizen.
Don't Get me wrong.
I really am.
And SOMETIMES, I do go overboard with my 'civic-sense' antics.

And this is precisely what happened in the Delhi Metro the other day.
A few days ago, I had offered my seat to two aunties on for two consecutive days. And it had made me immensely proud. and therefore, also started an urge to bring about a "Civic Sense Revolution" among the Metro commuters.

On my next ride n the Metro, me, and a friend, say N, decided to start with the men ~~shamelessly~~ sitting on 'For Ladies Only' seats.
The methodology was simple.

STEP1: Glare at the ~~shameless~~ man.
STEP2: Glare at the 'For Ladies Only' Sign.
Repeat as required.
If the man is still seated, LOL! Or chat aloud about 'irresponsibility' of the commuters. *By the way, THIS one works. ALWAYS! ;)*

CASE 1
And our first target was this sophisticated-ly suited uncle. Sensible, as he was, he just took two rounds of the vicious glares to get the point. But surprisingly, he got up, to offer us *me and N* the seat. Now THIS, was truly unexpected *and funny, at that point*. So after a round of the customary 'No-Thanks', N finally took the seat. And we completed the journey, choking with *controlled* laughter, with half strings of conversation.

CASE 2
On the very same day, basking in the glory of our 'achievement' as we were, we decided to give the trick another shot. So in the second train, the glare-game started again. And it worked! *yes, the second time!* But this man wasn't the sort to offer his seat. He simply changed his.
Now, The Hard Nut followed. This target *read: the ~~shameless~~ man* wasn't the sort to give in easily. So the 'loud' conversation followed, but of no avail. Then the L-ingOL followed. No avail. Then some REALLY loud talking followed.But this one, was 'One Shameless Guy'. He did get up, after all. When his station arrived.

CASE 3
I *with N forced, this time* decided not to litter the road. Instead throw my ice-cream wrapper in one of the dustbins at the Metro station. To my surprise, the stations had none. Neither Rajiv Chowk. Nor Pragati Maidan.
When I inquired the guards, they advised me to throw it anywhere outside the station. "No one would say a word. We'll see to it", they promised.
Left aghast, I *LOUDLY* told N about the feedback their website would receive later that evening.

Now, all said and done, I was feeling sort of strange. Not proud anymore, mind you. Partly because of N's criticism of our acts. Partly because of Mom's. And partly, because of this ever-indecisive conscience of mine. Yeh.. the same one that sometime ago, made me proud of doing so.

So, the conclusions I drew out of the whole experience were:
1. Men are not to sit on the 'For Ladies Only' seats. That is, IF ONLY, some lady in the compartment is not sitting.
2. Men sitting on the 'For Ladies Only', when no lady in the compartment is standing ain't wrong.
3. If the lady refuses to sit, then too, the man is eligible for the seating.
4. If a standing lady does not herself ask the man to vacate the seat, IT IS NOT ANY THIRD PARTY's *read: MY* business to play The Guardian Spirit.
5. You *or ME!*, at your own free will, can always offer your seat to any lady, or a gent. And be happy in the satisfaction. :) :D
6. Even though I did, give the suggestion on the DMRC website, the Metro stations can't have dustbins. For then, anyone, could throw ANYthing *read: even bombs*. Too much of a security issue, this one.

You know, the above stated is quite common 'sense', but learned the way I did, it feels like an 'experience'.

~~And she lived happily ever after~~
Till the next post.
Or the next Guilt Ride.
VACATE METRO SEATS FOR WOMEN. AND MEN.

PS: I just recalled, that I have ~~Bored~~ Board Exams. On my head. Almost.

Cause Of Worry, Ms. Dixit?

2009-02-03T17:41:00.002+05:30

And So, FINALLY, Shiela Dixit Has Somethind To Worry About.

A group on Facebook, '10,00,000 ppl in support of Delhi C.M. Shiela Dixit' has only 100 members.
Pretty expected, considering the daily torments like contaminated water, potholes, opend garbage dumps, bad roads and uber-slow CWG 2010 among others that Delhiites have to face.

'Dog'ing The Millionaire

2009-01-30T13:10:00.003+05:30

The world just doesn't seem to amuse one, does it?

After the typical Bollywood-ishtyle entertainer Slumdog Millionaire drew protests against its name, Nicholas Almeida, a social activist and slum dweller himself, has filed a complaint in a local court against the filmmakers, saying the film's title was 'damaging and discriminating.'

Not only this, he has gone an extra mile to hold a naming ceremony for stray dogs in his slum.
And, adding to the zing, the names are - Danny, Christian, Loveleen, Freida and Dev!

Clever, isn't it?
But what such protesters need to understand is that the name Slumdog Millionaire is metaphoric for an underdog slum dweller.

Till then, Slum it up!

Deck The Halls..

2008-12-24T19:45:00.007+05:30

...With Boughs Of Holly
Fa la la la la la la la la
Ti's The Season To Be Jolly
Fa la la la la la la la la..

EEE!! There's something about ~~Mary~~ Christmas season that makes me pine for it throughout the year. I just love everything Christams - The Food, The Midnight Mass, The Decorations, The Carols *yesh.. I go mad singing them!*, Santa & his Reindeers *Rudolph is my favorite! :p* & the whole spirit. In fact, there was a time when I used to say that red is my favorite color because that's the color of Christmas!

To cut the loooooong story short.. I LOVE CHRISTMAS! AND I'M GLAD IT'S HERE!! *though I'm not attending any of the Christmas bashes - Thank you CBSE. Thank you SO VERY MUCH.* Nevertheless I'm Happeeeeee!

See, THAT's the thing about Christmas.. it makes me happppeeeeeeee even when I'm not exactly celebrating.

So I'll leave you with some of my favorite carols. Enjoy!

Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer

haha! I SO remember my kindergarten teacher going nuts explaining to us that it ain't because they like/come out in/ were born in RAIN that REINdeers are called so! :p

Deck The Halls! *Yes. With Boughs of Holly!*

Jingle Bells!

AND.. The Best-est-est-est!

Boymongoose <3!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!
AND A HAPPEE HAPPEE HAPPEE NEW YEAR!
err-- hopefully.. I'll post before New Year's.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

2008-12-17T17:05:00.008+05:30

.... ~~Bang Bang Zamana Bole~~
NO. The subject here is not Salman Khan's lame song, which is apparently the worst I've heard since Govinda's 'Meri Shirt Bhi Sexy, Meri Pant Bhi Sexy', apart from his 'Aksa Beach' crap, of course.

It Is....

DON'T YOU JUST LOVE THIS GUY????!!!!

If you do,Join Da Party!
If you don't, you'll have to. Or you Will.
He, by the way, is Sheldon Cooper. Leonard's best friend & roomie from the show 'The Big Bang Theory'.

You just HAVE TO watch the show to believe me how immensely adorable this cute geek is! Watch the show at 2030hrs on Zee Cafe.

Meanwhile, this can be your dose of Sheldon-ism --->

Or This -->

Penny: "I'm a Sagittarius, which probably tells you way more than you need to know."
Sheldon: "Yes... it tells us that you participate in the mass cultural delusion that the sun's apparent position relevant to arbitrarily defined constellations at the time of your birth somehow affects your personality."

Penny: "Imagine how I'm feeling :|"
Sheldon: "Hungry?"
Penny: *glare*
Sheldon: "Tired!?"
Penny: *glare*
Sheldon: "I'm really not very good at this!"

Sheldon: "But then some poor woman is going to pin her hopes on my sperm, what if she winds up with a toddler that doesn't know if he should use an integral or a differential to solve for the area under a curve?"
Leonard: "I'm sure she'll still love him!"
Sheldon: "I wouldn't."

THURSDAY. 8:30 pm. ZEE CAFE. THE BIG BANG THEORY.
DON'T FORGET.
WATCH IT. BELIEVE IT.

Meniverse!

2008-12-16T12:35:00.007+05:30

When I was a young kid, I wanted to be Miss Universe.
I even had this scrap book with pictures , biographies and what not of Miss Indias/Universes/Worlds etc etc.
But that's another issue altogether.
Now I've opted for PCM-B *Physics, Chemistry, Maths, Biology* and apparently, I want to be a Surgeon - OB-GYN/ Cardio-Thoracic/ Neuro. *Clearly, the influence is from Grey's Anatomy.* More on that later.

Here's the fish :
I took the quizzes on Youniverse and I've embedded what I found about my personality in the sidebar.
Apparently, I'm 'The Sofisticat' *raises eyebrow*.
Quite an insight!

PS: Apparently, I think I'm obsessed with the word 'Apparently'.

Something Has Happened...

2008-12-13T11:48:00.003+05:30

... To My Sense of Humor.
Seriously? Seriously?!

Yes. It is my worst nightmare. Or maybe one of my really nightmarish dreams. But recently, I have observed my inability to comprehend the basic-est jokes.

CASE 1

A : Yaar, tell me what to write for Julius Caesar ka character sketch.
B : Yes. Yes. Julius Caesar was the protagonist of the play by William Shakespeare. Also, Caesar is an essentially important daily use item. We use it for making our maths project... yadda yadda yadda
(A, B, & C begin to laugh. I join in the laughter, though unaware of the 'joke')
Me : Ha! Ha! Ha! Par sense kya bani?
(A, B, C & a couple of background laugh-ers give me shocked glances.)

***

CASE 2

Me : Main toh teri fan ho gayi!
Y (who, by the way, was a 6 year old) : Toh thori hawa mujhe bhi dedo.
Z : Isse kehte hain sense of humor.
Me: Matlab? What was the funny part?
Z : Isse kehte hain sense of no humor.

I. Am. Embarrassed.
Amen.

PS: If you didn't get any of the above jokes, JOIN DA CLUB!!

GIve MTV Roadies a Break

2008-12-06T18:55:00.006+05:30

This is precisely why you should *after all!* give MTV Roadies a break.

..And if THAT was not enough..

I mean just look at Raghu *and his twin* in their The Scorpion avatars!

Seslie MTV, when you came up with this, what were you expecting? "Aaj desh mein, jab bacha nahi sota, toh maa kehti hai : Beta, so jaa, varna Raghu aa jayega!"

*ooooo mommee! I'm shooo shcaredd!*

Mumbai - 26/11

2008-11-29T15:57:00.007+05:30

"Aye dil, hai mushkil, jeena yahaan, zara hatke, zara bachke, yeh hai Bombay meri jaan"
*Yes Raj Thackeray, sue me, I said Bombay. Besides, that's almost all that you can do*

This song, does kind of express the 'Spirit of Mumbai', the Maximum City of India, the Tinsel Town. But for once (again), Mumbai has been brought down to it's knees, as columnist Sushmita Bose puts it. Mumbai, at heart, is a normal city. It has fallen, again, it has been burnt, beaten, beaten till it was exhausted, till it could bear no more. Any city by this time would've asked for time to cry, to mourn, to gather all its fallen pieces and stand straight. But this is precisely where Mumbai's extra-ordinary 'spirit' comes in. It has composed it's grief, only to project it into anger, anger that will rage like embers. The bombs are now silent, but replaced, by the screams of lakhs of Mumbaikars, all supported by a Billion other Indians.
It was first, a fight against terror. A battle, rather, A battle that raged on for three days. A battle that left hundreds of families mourning and countless others numb. A battle, that left a nation to repent its regardless attitude towards its bravehearts. I salute the martyrs of the inhuman terror strikes - ATS Chief Hemant Karkare, Mr. Salaskar, Ashoke Kamte, Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan among numerous others.

But, there is one more accomplishment that must be accredited to this terror strike, something, that it most definitely intended - it has shaken, stired and finally woken up a Billion Indians. It has given voice to gazillions of emotions, which are now outpouring throughout the cyberspace, expressing themselves in newspapers, on radio, and some, silently doing their bit. The fire has been lit, and I see it extinguishing not in near future. Change will come. It HAS to. We will bing it. It's time we shine in more than merely the stock market. Of what avail is the 8% growth in the GDP, when we cannot assure our citizens of the most basic safety? Will the vows to reform the system, take affirmative action, make India shine, remain merely well-written phrases in our ministers' election speeches? Or is it something we're actuaaly going to do?

Here is the story of Harish Iyer, a responsible citizen, who made an effort, and greatly succeeded, in doing his bit.
Support Harish and people like him.
DO your Bit.

Our fists are clenched in resolve.
The fire is yet burning.
Please, don't let it extinguish, please!
Heal the World. Make It a Better Place. For You. And For Me. And the Entire Human Race.

"ऐ मेरे वतन के लोगों, ज़रा आँख में भर लो पानी, जो शहीद हुएं हैं उनकी, ज़रा याद करो कुर्बानी"

Update at 1655 hrs IST: The Times of India consultant editor and noted food critic, Sabina Sehgal Saikia's sad demise has now been conformed. Let's pray for her soul to RIP.

yeh. yeh. yeh.

2008-11-19T16:23:00.002+05:30

*Like you care to glance at the date on my last post.*

Fine, so I haven't been blogging for quite some time now. And, well, as I may add, I have missed it! Missed it... as in not the whole "oh-i'm-pining" kinds.. missed it during SO many blog-worthy moments I have experienced all this while *yeh right.. as if I can recall even half of them.*
So, anyway, cutting the crap short, I'd say I really felt this urge to type *dang, I couldve done the random gfudisgfgfuiswjdsf on Word as well*.
But hey!
So, perhaps I'd be blogging more!

Cheerio!

Phks!

2008-07-16T17:02:00.007+05:30

Phk! I've just realized that as sit down to post something on my blog, I just can't type.. not fast.. not slow.. I just don't know what to type!

Phk! I've NOW realized that posting posts related to your posting related stupidities is not such a good idea!

Phk! I'd thought of so many things that needa be vented out 10 minutes back. And now, I can't recall one!

Phk! I'm typing with a speed less than 10 words per minute!

Phk! the 'phk' is so explicit with the transliteration option on!

Phk! Mommie's coming this way!

Just When..

2008-05-15T17:44:00.005+05:30

I've been noticing a lot of spontaneity in my life lately.

JUST WHEN I realized I needed a break from school *and all that unwanted baggage that comes with it* , the holidays began! The Holidays, I must add, are going at a very fast pace. Dammit! want them to slow down.

JUST WHEN I had made up my mind to completely enjoy my holidays, I was reminded of the impending doom that will follow *read :: the First Terminals* the break.

JUST WHEN I was cursing God/Global Warming for the unbearably hot weather, it rained! And I SO love it!

JUST WHEN I had developed some interest in The Gentle men's Game *courtesy: DLF IPL and Shikhar Dhawan!*, Chetan Bhagat came out with his third book - The 3 Mistakes of My Life, which too, has Cricket for it's theme *well ya, kind of!*. I've been lucky to be able to read the book *which, I may self-praisingly add, I managed to do in 5 hours flat!*. A review of the same, coming soon.

JUST WHEN I started finding Shikhar Dhawan hot, a batchmate started thinking she can give me competition! Ha! Poor Silly Little Girl. *evil grin!*

JUST WHEN Delhi Daredevils were playing really well *for a change!* and Shikhar Dhawan took to the crease, it rained! And ultimately, we lost to Kings XI Punjab. *weirdly silly name, if you as me*

JUST WHEN I thought my life lacks any excitement and its been quite some time I haven't had a good dose of gossip, my sister's best friend eloped! *silly girl. sillier because she took inspiration from Jab We Met! Can you beat it?!*

JUST WHEN I have started enumerating this list, I've run out of the 'Just-When' situations! Dammit! I'd counted 12 some time back!

poof!

Of Changes...

2008-05-11T20:47:00.001+05:30

A TAD lot has changed since my last blog.

My Residence has changed.
So has my phone number.
And my bus.
And my bus stop.
My much awaited vacations have begun.
Delhi Daredevils have lost 3 matches. *or was it 4?*
Mom has agreed to get me a nose job done! *after I'm 18, that is*
My room walls are now pink. *sigh! I miss the good ol' red ones!*

okie! So it's mother's day!
Like every other time I planned a lot for the day. And ended up doing the tiniest fraction of it. But that, just does not show how tiny my love for ma is.
I mean, ma is perhaps the only person on this whole Earth *or for that matter, Mars, Venus, Jupiter, Bah, Bah, Bah* whom I share SO many thoughts with. It's strange how I connect with her better than with any of my friends. She would be knowing my deepest secrets *the censored versions, of course!* that I would've told her during my much inebriated states.
No matter what, I lubb my mommie very much!!

oOps! Mommie calling.

A sequel to the post. Coming Soon.

Gettin' Taggy!

2008-04-15T17:33:00.007+05:30

Fine!
I Have not been tagged.
So What?!
My Ctrl, C and V keys are working just fine! :D

Let's get taggy, baby!

1. Grab the book nearest to you, turn on page 18 and find line 4.
"He visited Paris, Amsterdam, Rome, Florence, Venice and St Petersburg before returning to Wentworth Hall in possession of a Raphael, Tintoretto, Titan, Rubens, Holbein and Van Dyck, not to mention an Italian wife."

2. Stretch your left arm out as far as you can.
Pourquoi?

3. What is the last thing you watched on tv?
Video of Akon and Wyclef's Sweetest Girl.

4. Without looking, guess what time it is?
4:47?

5. Now look at the clock, what is the actual time?
5:01. *dammit! I'm supposed to be asleep by now!*

6. With the exception of the computer, what can you hear?
That annoying noise of the fan.

7. When did you last step outside? What were you doing?
A minute ago. Signing a courier receipt.

8. Before you started this survey, what did you look at?
My Inbox.

9. What are you wearing?
Now, how does that make a difference?
Clothes, by the way.

10. Did you dream last night?
No.

11. When did you last laugh?
How the eff am I supposed to recall that?

12. What is on the walls of the room you are in?
Wallpaper.

13. Seen anything weird lately?
Yup. The mirror.

14. What do you think of this quiz?
bah.

15. What is the last film you saw?
Spartacus.

16. If you became a multimillionaire overnight, what would you buy?
*geez!* lemme see..
SUV!
Clothes!
Shoes!
Books!
*err-- will I still be left with money?*

17. Tell me something about you that i dunno.
I am. Deadly afraid. Of Ladybirds. *hides under the table*

18. If you could change one thing about the world, regardless of guilt or politics, what would you do?
BAN size zero.

19. Do you like to dance?
Yeah, baby!

20. George bush.
What about him? :S

21. Imagine your first child is a girl, what do you call her?
err-- how about.. say..Tamanna?

22. Imagine your first child is a boy, what do you call him?
Hello? Now where did this family planning stuff come from?

23. Would you ever consider living abroad?
yeshh.

24.What do you want GOD to say to you when you reach the pearly gates?
"Go Back! The Earth needs you! "

25. 4 people who must also do this meme in their journal.
iono!

Lesson of the day: Get Taggier, Baby!

PS: What's up with this 'Baby!' concept?! Where did it come from? I've used it thrice in this post!

Quote of the day..

2008-03-27T16:32:00.005+05:30

..overheard in the afternoon at the bus yard

"Ek yeh sun, aur ek yeh hot banda*points at a hot guy standing at a distance*.. matlab main kaise jiyun?"

=))

..........

Today I've broken all my records.
I stood outside the class/sat on the floor for 2.5 periods in continuation.
*though I did enjoy it* It was SO weirdly-humorously-embarrassing! *poof!*

..........

As far as my recent addiction to Punjabi numbers goes.. I've started listening to Malkit Singh too! And.. I thank 'the-girl-who-ate-everything-and-didnt-even-burp' for the same! :D

..........

Time is running out *yeh.. i do like the song by Muse!*. But time, is REALLY running out! Somehow, I'm just unable to find time to play/study/read/listen to music. I wonder why, though! hmph! Seems like I need to manage time in a better way!

..........

I just realised that after gazillion attempts, I am JUST unable to write mean things about people! I mean.. I created this blog for.. uhh.. many reasons.. and one ov them being.. to write everything *read: even heartlessly mean* things that I feel. But, I'm not able to do that. I, am not able to do that. I AM JUST NOT ABLE TO DO THAT!
Why, God?? WHY??
*poof!* I wish I acquire The Skill with time! *which, btw.. is running out!*

..........

More Later.
Cheers!

The First One..

2008-03-25T15:58:00.000+05:30

*err.. is this the same name I gave to the first post of my last blog? uhh.. whatever!*

Geez!
It's The First post! And I don't have anything great to tell. Except for the fact that I've finally chucked my laziness and begun to ~~write~~ type.
..........

Sometimes.. conversations turn out to be SO stupidly-weirdly-funny!
Take this for instance.. When Classmate A asked Classmate B for his assignment *of which he had no intention of submitting* and Classmate B refused.. here's what followed...

Classmate B: ...kha le mujhe
Classmate A: main vegetarian hoon
Classmate B: toh main bhi ek podha hoon

I mean.. wtf!?
*In another similar case, when an 11thie had refused to give his assignment to another 11thie.. a great fight between the day scholars and boarders had broken out!*

..........

I have started listening to HELL LOT of Punjabi songs *strictly not the ones like those aired on MH1 and other regional Punjabi channels!* these days! And I like them!

..........

Guess dazz it for now.

More Later.
*absurd way of ending The First Post? yehh.. I know.. but.. w/e!*