ECNALUBMA!! Alert anyone?!

I have been traveling by a 2/4 wheeler to my work place for nearly 5 years now..the one thing that catches my attention amidst all the day dreaming that i do is the sight of an ambulance. It gets me to think of the person lying on the bed inside the van who doesn’t have time on his hand, as much as anyone else on the road struggling to get to his/her work place/destination.
More worried than him are his relatives sitting around him, watching him hold and pull it off until the ambulance reaches the hospital…no situation can be worse than that…when you have to sit inside and peep out of the ambulance window to see the traffic piling up ahead and the ambulance struggling to make its way through the tedious clogging traffic..when you know you can’t do much but sit and wait to get to hospital…you would just feel like getting on to the mike and announcing/begging/ pleading/yelling to make way to the ambulance, deaf-struck people might just care enough to respond then?!
Its a scary scene really. I wonder if this is the plight of an ambulance in any other part of the better world.
Question: How can the Indian traffic Police afford to be so unresponsive to ambulance sirens? when they are taught and trained to handle such emergencies, why cant they act immediately, why exhibit such lethargy and put up a Don’t Care attitude?
I live in Sadashivnagar. For those who haven’t heard of this area in Bangalore, this is where the Who’s Who of Bangalore live…well known ministers of India to Celebrities to businessmen dwell in the state-of-the-art houses here… Sadashivnagar has some of the best 5 star/luxury hotels like Le Meridian, Hotel Ashoka, Windsor Manor, etc in its close proximity.
So guess what, when i travel back home after work, sometimes I end up waiting on roads in traffic for hours together waiting for the police to let go off the traffic after the ministers convoy has passed amidst elaborate security. Traffic comes to a dead halt till the convoy has reached the next signal junction and the escorts that accompany the convoy are out of site…What amazes me is that the coordination amongst the police at different junctions is so great that more often than not, the convoy, amidst all the chaos of Bangalore traffic, manages to maintain a speed of 40-50kmph.

This takes some good coordination and effort from the police.Is it so hard to implement this with ambulances, especially now, with all the V2V communication
gadgets? I wonder…

Sad to say, but my response to ambulance sirens has relaxed as well. Now I know better than to just honk at the person ahead of me in traffic, and act like I could make some difference, coz its simply too well known to me now that unless all the civilians are aware of what to do, one person alone can’t shake a grass. One just got to be responsive enough in such a situation that demands Action. To pass the message and let the circle inspector know that he needs to make way for the ambulance and act instantly, and then have the inspector react…Not happening … 😦
To me, Ambulance alerts and signals have become a part of the customary
idiosyncrasies while traveling, part of background noise on the roads and nothing
more…

Just when I get terribly frustrated about this system and finally decide to pen it down, I read something like this in the newspaper:
“Zardari convoy holds up traffic, woman delivers in 3-wheeler”

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Reservations – A Dogma that needs rethinking

Foremost, I am not here discussing any religion and fighting for any communal rights, nor am I using this to degrade/out shadow a religion/caste and their ways.
That said, coming straight to the point, I see absolutely no sense in Reservations by compromising standards and quality.
Going by the very Indian Reservation acts, the constitution has made certain provisions for the Protection of Rights & Privileges of deprived communities (although I don’t see what these communities are indeed deprived of today!!), where by, intolerably high percentage of seats in education institutions and all government jobs are reserved in favor of the so called backward/minority groups.
Leave alone getting into discussing if the very act of reserving seats is right or wrong, lets save the discussions for later.
But what is beyond my comprehension is that if the government is keeping aside a percentage of seats in colleges/jobs to be distributed merely based on caste and community, then, doesn’t it mean to say that the government is compromising on the quality of the outgoing graduates/work delivered to that degree?

If the intention is to encourage minority community and help them be seen in various fields, then, it makes sense for the government to allot seats to the backward community on merit basis and for a lesser fee. Encouragement can be given in many more ways, by providing the backward/poor classes education at subsidized rates and providing them with free study materials.

Every year, about 27,000 doctors graduate from Indian medical colleges out of which a meager 15% to 25% come from general merit seats!
If this is the scene each year for medical courses alone, we can calculate the shocking figures of percentage of general merit seats when all other educational fields and government jobs are put together.
With this kind of promise to credibility, India will only emerge to be less competent globally. Also, this is one of the main reasons why students with good grades almost instantaneously consider migrating abroad for studies and better and fair opportunities, as a result of which, the best doctors, management icons and other intellectuals from India are serving elsewhere rather than in India.

For one, lets say you yourself belong to a minority community, if you knew the surgeon operating on your heart has not been a merit student and has come up
only with the aid of the bias in the system, would you still consider having him operate on you? wouldn’t you opt for a better skilled and a genuinely good doctor?

All said and done, I would like to ask those availing such reservation facilities if they feel good about being offered such a concession on grades and scores simply because they are a minority.
Isn’t it an embarrassment to them and their community by itself?
The message given out laterally by such reservations and quota system is this: The fact that you belong to such a community implies that you lack intellectual ability to compete fairly and you are not in par with those from general merit and so, you need a reservation and quota system in place to climb up the ladder and make a place for yourself.

Quota system must be banned if India must emerge as an arguably strong, promising and intellectual nation and give good competition globally.
Any such compromise on the military standards, medical abilities, political leadership, army, navy and air force and even sports for that matter directly goes to say that we cant have our best men on the job, which means that we are placing the expectation bar so low for ourselves when it comes to quality and productivity.
Sigh…
“The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present” (Abraham Lincoln).

Those were the best days of my Life!!!

Nostalgia…School’s Calling…
I just look back at the years that have passed by, all the emotions and thoughts stirred in my brain at once, and walk ahead to face the next day that’s in store for me, with a shrug on my shoulder and a smile on my face, nothing really to say.
Yes, I just have nothing more to say!! When you remember school, more often than not, you just have nothing more than probably “Those were the best days of my life :)” to say!!
Why is it that we spend more than 10 years in school and yet, we yearn for more schooling?
We have all the money in the world now but still cant buy those precious bygone moments with best friends within the walls of a classroom.
Now, I have no homework to do(just have thankless never ending work at office), no punishments for talking in class and being naughty(I would rather stay mum now to save some energy and restore peace), no black marks for poor performances(needless to talk about carrot and stick policy in IT companies), no complaints from teachers written in our diaries to bring back home(nobody really cares anymore, just make sure the work is done), no impositions to write for not doing home work(I have forgotten how to hold the pen in my hand,for now, I only type).
no rounds to run during Physical training (PT) periods for not polishing shoes(I lack fresh air and good exercise), no more waiting for school vans to pick up and drop(now that I do the job of a driver too, driving to and back from work everyday) no red circles marked in note books for spelling mistakes(no scpe fr spelln’ mstkes while smsing u c), no getting drenched in rain on the way back home and lying at home that I never found shelter(Is it raining? I am at office, no open windows, I didn’t realize) no more crushes and blushes(lets get serious in life, how much does the guy earn? ), no more giggling in the class during lectures till your stomach hurts(My stomach hurts all the time now, I eat at work place), no standing on the podium with a spark in the eyes to receive Individual championships, medals and certificates(I now compete for a star performer of the year/bravo awards) no sleepless nights thinking about crushes in school(I have a boy friend now, no choices anymore), and yet I love my school days and give anything to get back to school.
I now miss just anything and everything about my school- Stealthily nibbling chikkies, chocolates and channa(remember ‘Take It’ channa for Rs.5/- ?) during classes, linking and pairing up my friends with other guys n gals in the classroom, throwing chalk pieces and paper parachutes randomly at others and pretending like I am not aware of it, sharing and leaking small secrets amongst us and making a scandal out of it the next day, by-hearting a poem and delivering the poem before the whole class, kneeling down near the board with hands up for being mischievous in class. Oh, I so miss my friends too, who made my schooling very special:-
Jo – my best friend(Now after 13 long years, we still are inseparable), Divya, cute little girl with a sparkle in her eyes – with whom I studied from class 1 to class 10, Ranjani – we have laughed endlessly, and continued to laugh after school,even at home, Anu- The Ever blushing chick, Vivek H N- Guy with a great sense of humor,Prashanth- The scandalous and most notorious,my male counterpart for School Sports Captain – we used to religiously cat fight every day, Sukla – Mr. Hot tempered,Pavithra, Archana – the Karanth Sisters, Sudi- One to secretly share with me all the ‘guys-only-secrets’ safeguarded by our class guys, one of my closest friends, Manoj – not too loud, but the master mind behind most mischiefs, Rajini – prettiest of all faces, Lakshmi- the first ranker, Chotta-shortest of the lot but the most mischievous, Vani -The PJ queen, and the list goes on…

The sports day celebrations, the punishments, exams, gossips make me nostalgic even to this day.
How every silly little thing seemed important to me then! We were just not aware of anything beyond our note books, exams, friends, secrets, ranks, clean uniforms, little crushes. Even new/fancy pencils and erasers could bring a bright smile on our faces and a single mark more than our counterparts in tests could make our day.

Everyday would begin with a long prayer, followed by NEWS reading and thought for the day.
Classes would commence and we would start counting minutes left for short break.
Lunch breaks were never enough for all the talks and gossips and teasing and playing around that we did.
It was almost impossible to sit through the ‘Last period’ of the day, all of us would pack our bags before hand and wait for the bell to Go.
Just how can i forget this prayer, every day in school had to end with this cute little prayer, with folded hands and closed eyes:-

School is over for the day
Done out work and done our play
Thank you God for the beautiful day
Guard our school by night and day.
Thank you God.
Good Evening teacher, Thank you teacher.
🙂

Masala Dosa, By-2 Coffee.

Slrrrup, Slrrrrup!

If you are a Bangalorian, you will definitely agree that there is nothing more refreshing than this combi – Masala dosa, by-2 coffee.
Well, many reasons for that.
One, even in just any mediocre restaurants in any galli of Blore, Dosas and Coffee taste good.
So you don’t have to think twice before ordering a dosa and a cuppa hot strong coffee.
Two, this is easily the most affordable and delicious filling item you can order and feel good about!
Three, I think By-2 coffee concept is cooool 🙂
Its not for Nothing that you see ppl crowded at different Dosa points in almost every locality in Blore.
Some of the best places in Blore for Dosa and coffee are Ganesh Bhavan(Jayanagar 3rd Block), CTR(Malleshwaram), Vidhyarthi Bhavan(Gandhi Bazaar), Mmmmmm, yummmmieee.
I am sure you can keep this list going.
Recently Best Dosa-Coffee contest was launched in Blore and Ganesh Bhavan won the crown!!

My opinion on preferred dishes always stand the same:-
In spite of the the variety of dishes easily available in the best of restaurants now,like Chinese, Italian, continental, yada yada yada, dishes like masala dosa,idli-vada-sambar, pani puri-tikki puri-boti masala, and even Corn(muskin joLa ) and softy (:-)) will never go out of vogue, at least as long as people like me exist on earth!
One more thing that i think is most romantic is stopping by a dhaba or a ‘kaka aangadi’ (if you know what i mean) for a cup of tea. Nothing can beat that!
Also, the very fact that these are very cheap and affordable makes them taste even better . Agree or disagree ?!
Of course, needless to say we must always keep hygiene in mind when we decide to stop by a road side shop.

Now, shout with me-
Dosa – Coffee, ZINDAABAD!

Some habits die hard…

Today we were randomly talking during break and happened to discuss Habits. I decided to share it here.
Habits can get very peculiar and unique and even annoying at times, After a discussion, A friend of mine and I had once concluded that at times, the most important decisions in life were made while in the loo!!
Well, come to think of it, Loos are the best places for deep thinking! lol
While in school, i had a habit of shrinking my nose every now and then, I used to do this to adjust my spectacles on my nose correctly.
The habit continued to remain with me even after I switched to lenses, without my awareness. Just any onlooker would find it funny that I should casually shrink my nose every few seconds. I gave up this habit only after watching myself in the video my uncle shot without telling me.
Man, I hated to even imagine that those cute guys I was trying to impress and also those guys who had a crush on me would have noticed this ugly habit of mine!

What’s most hilarious is this incident that happened in my sister’s class room.
After the test papers were distributed, this student(lets call him Pappu) went to the lecturer to bargain for more marks or he would fall in the ‘below avg category’
that would have to take up the test again.
He is in this gross habit of throwing up saliva while talking, and apparently till date he has never felt embarrassed.
Should anybody feel embarrassed, its always the other person talking to him!!
So while bargaining for more marks, the lecturer kept on declining his appeal for a couple of extra marks. The chap, all desperate and hell bent on getting some free points, in the process of convincing the lecturer, threw out a huge ball of spit and
a part of it entered the lecturers eyes!!
The lecturer, being a not-so-loud-person, not knowing how to handle this nasty situation, gave him a stare for a whole 15 seconds and scribbled a +5 on his sheet and pushed him away!! The whole class burst into laughter and Pappu was glad his habit fetched him some extra marks but never felt ashamed of it!

Consider this. How many times has this not happened to you –
–> You end up sitting next to a person in the queue/bus/train who is constantly digging into his seamless nose pits, concentrating hard on picking his nose like you have never before concentrated even when you watched India strike a six on the last ball.(Aaaaargh)
–> You get into an auto rickshaw, half way through he stops to take a leak, you get all paranoid and look into your wallet for change just so you don’t have to
take change back from him, and you realize that you have a single 100 rupee note(Sigh!)
How abt this-
You are sitting in a crowded bus on the aisle seat , person standing next to you is blissfully scratching his ass to Glory?!! (:|)

The Jeans way…

Why do some guys spend ages in the same pair of dirty torn jeans when they can afford to buy any number of new clothes, Ever wondered?

I have always believed that choosing the right clothes is very important for a person.

We are not getting into a discussion of what to where and when, for i am not even close to being a fashion designer.

But, clothes you wear speak a lot about your attitude.

In the process of wearing fancy/sober/bright/gaudy clothes, what we are really wearing is our Attitude.

For example I choose to be very smartly dressed on certain important days of the week, smart for me means a pair of jeans and a t-shirt/medium fitting comfy top, a snug fitting jacket. A stylish and non flimsy, (and needless to say NON golden strapped )watch is mandatory. Preferably shoes so I don’t end up dragging my feet all over the place (yeah, I cant really walk very comfortably with slippers on).

I call this smart because it makes me feel smart, in place and confident.

When I wear jeans and get ready to go to work, I am also getting ready to face obstacles, difficulties that I might encounter on that day. I am ready to take things on my stride and stand by what I believe, and at times just shrug my shoulders and get going with a Don’t care attitude.

These little obstacles and difficulties may be misconduct on the part of an onlooker/scalawag, an accident I come across on the way to work, an assault/harassment that I witnessed, tough time with my manager, arguments and discussions with parents/friends…just any thing i care to react to in a certain ‘my way’.

I have been wearing jeans more or less everyday for more than 15 yrs now and it has so become a part of my skin.

Jeans is undoubtedly my comfort zone, for at times, it even helps me take right decisions. How?

Like i said, jeans have merged with my genes for a long time now, for it determines a particular characteristic in me.At times when its important to weigh the consequences before taking a call, and when decision making becomes crucial, It helps me to think “my way” and prepares me to face the consequences of the decision I stand by. I cant clearly explain how these things are really connected, except that I feel that I am there for me if I am in my regular outfit- jeans, or cool pajamas.

Its like my comfort zone where I can find solace if not solutions all the same, some sense of belonging.

Some ppl have a special thing for Jeans and go paranoid when they cant find a particular pair of jeans befitting the occasion. I belong to one such category too.

One of my best friends carries herself pretty well even at functions like marriages and naming ceremonies in a pair of baggy jeans and a T-shirt, totally oblivious to the fact that oldies around are giving her looks with raised eyebrows not knowing how to react to

her outlandish dress 🙂

I have felt the need to express gratitude to the concept of jeans for some time now, and this is my way of doing it.

This is a tribute to ‘Jeans’ and all the jeans lovers 🙂 Let’s go the Jeans way…!!!

Death and After…

Yeah, I know, this is one very common but interesting topic you generally get to read.But before you start imagining things, let me tell you right away that this has NOT got anything to do with ghosts or spirits. Now, having said this, if your spirits are already dampened, then, sorry about that. You can still save a couple of your precious minutes by exiting this blog right here. But if you want to save yourself from one grave unforgivable mistake, if you do not want to live half of your life with the worst possible regret, then read on.

I chose to speak about death simply because I had a few thoughts hovering in my mind. And when thoughts overflow, this is where I pour them. 🙂

Very recently, I lost my uncle to Cancer. This is the third time that ‘ Death’ kissed someone in my very close circle of relatives. The first time death struck my family, it gave me an unforgettable blow, some thing from which I have not been able to completely recover even to this day-It took away my favorite person, the sweetheart of my family, my Grand Dad.

I personally believe that Death takes some virtual form, may be that of a human being (Or shall we say Yama?). Although I do not know exactly what Death looks like, I know for certain that Death, when it hits, it bears an unfading impact on the person’s family. Although I do not know for sure if the moment for the arrival of the death for a person is deterministic, I know for sure know that when Death becomes one with the person, it cant be undone. It is probably the only loss of such indescribably huge magnitude that cannot be made up for in this world, even to a small degree. Every time Death strikes some one very close to me, it gets me thinking about it all the time, it is always at the back of my mind irrespective of what I am doing, what time of the day it is.

And then, comes the toughest part- finding answers to some of the toughest questions that often pop up in my mind, out of the blue. This requires some serious thinking. This blow called Death might approach different people in different forms and ways, but the one thing that is certain is that the magnitude of this big blow on the every person’s family is more or less the same.

Everybody goes through the same trauma, the same thought process and most of the times, the very same questions pop up in our minds. Like say – Did it have to be him/her? How can it be that a person was very much alive and “existing” till yesterday and is no more today? What is death exactly? What is it that is missing in that person if he has to be dead now, is it just the heart beats in layman terms? How can I even imagine a world without him/her? What about all the good times that I have had with this person, will they now only remain bygone memories?

Many such questions come and go…some answered and some unanswered. Some of these questions only remain at the heat of the moment, and as time passes, these questions go into the oblivion unanswered. Probably this is what they mean when they say ‘Time heals everything’?! But there is one thing which will always remain with you till the very Death strikes you, and that is – REGRET.

Regrets for not being there for the person when he/she needed you the most. Regrets for not completely understanding his/her feelings, regrets for hurting him/her at times. Regrets for not taking good care, showing due love and affection, regrets for not bringing that smile on his/her face. Regrets for not expressing benevolence and gratitude, empathy and consideration to your loved ones, particularly parents and grandparents.

I have pondered on such thoughts ample number of times, and each time I have arrived at only one answer. The only way to ensure that you are not given to regrets is by showering infinite love and affection. Learn to be oblivious to small unpleasant incidents that happen in everyday life. Realize the importance of parents in your life, realize that parents can only get older as time wares, and elders are meant to be treasured. Remember that any amount of explanation and reasoning after losing the person will not help and this regret will continue to haunt you for the rest of your life. Remember that we will also become old one day, and history repeats.

I sometimes feel it takes the death of a loved one to teach us what life really is. To this day, I haven’t been able to make up for this void that was created in my life the day my grand dad died, and I know that the space in me that can never be filled again.

Parents are the only asset that you can die for. Act now before its too late.

–When we lose one we love, our bitterest tears are called forth by the memory of hours when we loved not enough. ~Maurice Maeterlinck, Wisdom and Destiny, 1901, translated by Alfred Sutro