Childhood Is Short (Maturity Is Forever)

"Shouldn't you be going to see the people who've just come to pay us a visit?", expecting an answer in the affirmative or an explanation at length.
"No."
The reply was terse and prompt. It summed up the way a little girl perceived things. Life is very simple and uncomplicated when you're young and naive. It has been very aptly put in the line, "Childhood is Short. Maturity is forever."
I think most of us realise this for a fact when we're at the threshold of maturity or unluckily for some, when they're well past it. Life has a funny way of teaching stuff. Some learn it the hard way and some the easy.

What do you call a person who doesn't learn his lessons no matter how many times life teaches him one?

What Goes Around, Comes Around. But Why..?

There are pros and cons to everthing in life. For every good thing that can be associated with something, there's at least one bad that goes along with. God's/Nature's way of making things even. For his existence exists on the basis that He's fair! How much success He's enjoyed is another matter that can be discussed ad infinitum, ad nauseam for generations to come - and if you got generations doing all the work, we might as well not bring that debate here. For the moment we stick to the pros and cons of everything there is to life!

Lets say you're travelling to some far off place. You have a lot of choices as far as reaching that place is concerned because, like it or not, you have alternatives!! (Most of the times thats a bad thing - coz it only ends up confusing you all the more). Let's say I take a flight to that 'far off place'. I'm greeted well on-board. I'm catered to very efficiently. Beauty & Service. Now thats a combination that seems to appeal to everyone of us. You make-up your mind! From now on you're flying to every possible place that is accessible by flight.

The next time you take a flight and you hit nadir, rock-bottom, abyss. Its like falling off a cliff with no parachute. The service is paltry, the air-conditioning doesn't work, the flight is delayed because some stupid, loser, politician has to take that very 'fateful' flight. The thing is delayed beyond your wildest of imaginations. You lose your power to comprehend. You don't know whats going on around you. The flight doesn't even have air-hostesses. Air-stewards don't even come close to an air-hostess, unless you have queer inclinations.

Life's a leveller, you say? But who's keeping track of all this stuff? Surely he must have something more interesting to do! Why can't he just blog instead?? Does he really have to keep account of everything so he *levels* it all?

Thank God for nightmares!

We Will Survive! (I just wish some of us wouldn't >:P)

We survive everything life throws at us. And I mean everything!! Its not even funny. Come to think of it it must be a miracle that we survive as long as we do (sadly, for some). Thats like the understatement of the century. With all the imminent diseases, fires, syndromes, accidents, calamities, ammonia leaks just waiting to happen, we might consider ourselves really lucky to have been alive for this long!
And quite frankly, If I were God (how I wish I was!) I would've liquidated people by the dozen!! Yeah, yeah I know - I'm over-reacting a little, you think. But you should get to know the people that I have to deal with all day!! Ok, ok lets not get side-tracked.
It gets kinda scary sometimes with the kind of danger that shrouds us all around. There are a hundred million ways one can die or be killed - and just one to live! Now the mathematician in me says thats pretty unfair, if probability is anything to go by. But then again its hard to believe probability when *some* people live so they can keep vexing you like all the time! Sometimes i feel there is no God - but then I'm reminded of all the good things life has to offer and I quickly eschew all agnostic feelings for God like I abjure solving mathematics problems!
Its really strange that sometimes prudence should emanate from reading stuff that seem pretty frolicsome in the first instance. I'm particularly reminded of this Calvin & Hobbes strip that had Calvin musing on how arduous it is to have faith in Lightning (& in a way - God himself) when there aren't enough well placed lightnings to eliminate jerks (for good).
At the end of it all, I think we'll all survive the deluge of numbskulls and their weird ways like the insurmountable protagonist in just about every movie we lay our eyes on (barring a few exceptions). And who knows, we might even dance our way around bushes too! (I hope not - am a lousy dancer and I wouldn't want *her* to start hating me the moment she fell in love) :p

Bloggin' It Off..!

Ever wondered what the limit to boredom is?
Seriously, every time you think you've had your share of boredom and that nothing can take this new found peak [or abyss - as you like to call it] to greater heights [or depths] - you just simply go out there & prove to yourself that given a challenge you can attain greatness from mediocrity!!
But have you ever thought [and i come back to my point] what the true limit to boredom is? Coz we never seem to know - and quite frankly no one even seems to care now, apparently! We just seem to have accepted it as a part of our lives. For the better or worse, is another matter. Like that time when you were so bored - you couldn't even find sleep (that, by the way, is one of the worst ways of getting bored, second only to night-shifts) or when you got nothing to do and your friend's phone is busy, which like leaves you with one less thing that can be done!
So, what is it about tedium that makes it so unsolicited? I mean for all we know, it might be in vogue in some other planetary system unlike ours? Maybe the 'people' there think exhilaration is just forthright abysmal or ghastly or whatever else they're supposed to think of it. Maybe 'they' look forward to night-shifts too! Na, that's too much to ask actually! :p
Have you ever felt that boredom gets you more boredom? Like one of those sale gimmicks that promise you two free things for everything you purchase - and that's kinda stupid coz that thing is totally hopeless in the first place! (But then again - that's life for you - if you didn't know already :p)

I seriously feel sorry for Taj Mahal. I mean imagine sitting there all day watching people watch you and not a thing in the world that you can do to change it! I think we should all be glad we're not some monument (although we do feel like it sometimes :p) But come to think of it, boredom is just there!! And try as you might - there's not one darn thing you can do to eliminate it (which is a SSOA)

There's Boredom Everywhere - some just blog it off! ;-)

Love, Actually??

Was watching this show on The Discovery Channel sometime back about the Chemistry Of Love [or the lack of chemistry involved in it]. It had a very significant and a very powerful point to make. Since Adam & Eve, we've been led into believing that 'Love' is actually a feeling that originates from the heart but that the very existence of such a bond between hearts can actually be refuted by Science & Scientists [what/who else?]. It was shown with substantial experimental proof that actually love is a feeling that has its roots in the Brain [Man this 'guy' is on fire. Every thing that we do, this 'chap' has got to be involved!!]. Way To Go, Mr. B!!
Now that might as well be the truth of the matter, but personally thinking of 'Love' in terms of some nervous stimulation on a specific part of the brain really kills the whole excitement and the adventure of actually 'Being In Love', because the whole idea of the heart 'falling for someone' is then just a vagary and not reality [which somehow or the other isnt as romantic, is it?]. This 'new found' data is more to please the Scientist in everyone than the romantic in every soul because although the truth, at the end of the day it isnt what we've been led to believe all these years [what a kill-joy!]. Imagine what a lover letter might sound like! Its been exactly [say] 2 days since my eye received your images on the retina and the brain sent [another part of the brain] a message telling me that you're the one for me! Eversince, my brain [actually just a part of it] has been releasing this 'chemical X' [we ordinary mortals don't wanna know what it is called anway!] that gives me a feeling that I'm in love with you! [Imagine someone actually getting this. Its pathetic, I mean if I don't like it knowing the fact that I just made it up a few minutes ago, I can't see why someone else receiving it will feel otherwise!] So much for an old-fashioned Love-Letter!
Which is precisely why this idea of the 'brain falling in love' although good in theory [and proved by experiments & data] isnt very popular among people [who more often than not avoid making life more complicated than it already is!]. A very famous writer [the name unfortunately eludes my brain ; )] had once said, "For years I believed that the most intelligent part of the human body was the brain, then I realised which part of me was actually telling that!!" So in a way it is really upto the individual to decide whether he/she falls in love with all his/her heart or just a small part of the brain. Another interesting question that comes to mind is what in the first place prompted people to think that matters of love were dealt with the heart?

Get Addicted...But Let It Not Be An Addiction!!

Well, well, well!! I always knew Internet could be addictive; I never knew I would get addicted to it! Hah!! What is it about internet that makes it so addictive? Really, I cant figure out for the life of me, why is it so addictive? It's like addiction to coffee for some, alcoholic beverages for others and God knows what!! Coffee contains caffeine which tends to make it addictive; alcoholic beverages contain alcohol [needless to say]. What is it about the internet? Something that I can't put my finger on and say well the internet contains "Formula XYZ" that makes it so addictive. Similar is the addiction with games, although Thank God I don't suffer from that [atleast not anymore ;) ]

This all started from the day my sister left home after getting married and I was the only chap left at home with Mom [my Father is in the office all day]. So I decided to end the endless gloom in my life by chatting with people online [which earlier wasnt called for and wasnt feasible considering that my sister and I used the Computer as and when we felt like it]. And although chat rooms tend to be a little too sloppy and insane most of the times, its also really stimulating as far as improving ones knowledge goes, provided one is ready to learn [and ignore people who won't let you learn]. So although you are addicted to the internet [and chat-rooms as the case maybe!] you never let your insanity get the better off you! Its funny why I say that, but actually everyone one of us has a tendency to lose his/her cool in times of gloom, boredom or at times when your mood has really taken a beating or you find yourself at the wrong end of a prank or slander!! But that only makes it more worse. Worse than being addicted to something? Ooohh! that's got to be something to look-out for!! But I've had better luck lately, apparently some problems with my LAN settings or the Firewall causes me to join the chat-rooms but not receive any messages for the past two days. As a result I dont miss chatting a lot like I did say the first day this happened -- but may be that has only to do with the fact that I've been doing other things now! God Is Great, Isn't He? [or is God a She??] Hmm.....fodder for thought!! :-?

Procrastinate Later !

Ever since i was young, one thing thats been with me all through-out my life (much like my shadow - only more faithful for it has been with me even at times when my shadow would let me survive in this world alone!). That thing is ofcourse my laziness and the indegenous habit of procrastinating things for later. So much so that my friends and family got into a soup because of this 'heavenly' habit of mine. I can distinctly remember when i was young and i used to get assignments for my vacation and all through the vacation i kept telling me, "Relax, your vacation has just begun." And on the evening before the school re-opened, "Oh God! I had assignments to do!!" The saying with my family was - "A Family That Stays Together Does The Assignment Together" This carried till the time i was in my third standard (My family helping me out i.e., not the delay - how i wish it was!).
About six years ago on my birthday, a friend of mine gifted me a book. One of the many quotes in it was the 'truth'.... "Today is the tomorrow you talked about yesterday" I recall it was in the evening of that very day (16th Dec.) when i was going through that very book that i had made up my mind and the word 'procrastination', 'delay', 'put-off' and the like would be not only deleted but shift+deleted (so i have no second thoughts of restoring the items from my recycle bin). I really felt like i was going somewhere from there. With the other quotes in the book that were very much written and printed so as to bring out the 'winner' in everyone who read it -- i thought that was the end of the days of mediocrity! No longer will i be one of the guys who'd just end up scrapping through to the top 10 in my class. I saw in me the future topper of my class (and he did look pretty since it was the man (boy rather) in the mirror). After having had such awe-inspiring thoughts all of the evening, there was nothing it seemed that could stop me. "Watch out everyone, Here I come!!" Oops too late, for now i was feeling sleepy! But what about the home-work? Turned out - the never procrastinate was procrastinate for later in practice. Oh! Was up nearly till mid-night doing what i ought to have done by the evening itself! It was then that it dawned upon me - Procrastination was not just a file that i could delete from my computer, it was the memory resident virus that had infected me since i was a child. I'm only glad this virus hasnt showed up for a long time now!! Else?? I guess this blog would have been up on blogger a good month or so into 2005! [Ah! no difference it would have made - still would have been a pain in the ***, isnt it?]