The eunuch episode

Yesterday, enroute to Andheri station, my auto rikshaw's stuck in a traffic jam ...
... so far it was just another day in [paradise?...not really... but i love that song! :) ]

yes, it was another day in the life of the average Mumbai citizen ... spending half of one's working life in the horrible commute ... yawn ... nothing much to do but stare at all the ditches on what were once lovely tarred roads ...

I could only imagine what wonders would emerge from these ditches -- maybe a flyover here, a footover there, the entrance to the planned metro railway there --- hey, could some of these ditches be hijacked by anti social elements? --- I can imagine a phone call to the powers that be "Give us Rs.1 crore if you want this ditch back ... otherwise we will fill it with concrete!! ... not the silly putty that your lame contracters use to pave the roads... we have real concrete!!!" If no one else, at least the water mafia will pay up and take control of the ditch and sell the "mineral" water :)

Anways, I decided to use the latest "value" talkplan that the cell phone rep had sweet talked me into... i decided to use the traffic jam to network ...

[my boss used to say "when you are not working, you should be networking". He changed his stance when the IT department complained that most of his minions spent office time on Facebook and Orkut... they had taken the 'not working - networking mantra' to heart, I guess :) ... ]

anyways, so as I started scrolling through my contacts list, wondering who I should call, I heard the voice that so many in Mumbai dread ... the voice of a eunuch 'requesting' me to pay some cold cash for some warm blessings ... of course, if I did'nt pay, I may be spat upon, slapped, or [if I am lucky], cursed to hottest part of hell...

But, I was too damn bored and did'nt want to part with any money... so I ignored the first "request"... but he/she was persistent and asked again ... and this time added my last name to the request ... but, as this word is also commonly used, I did not respond ... but the third time around, I was shocked ... the request was ...

"Hey Anup [Last Name concealed on request], give me some money... dont be so damn stingy!"

I was shocked .. I had heard that eunuchs have magical powers... powers to bless and curse... powers to see the soul through the eyes ... [okay, okay, so maybe I am exaggerating here :) ]

Anyways, before the scaredy cat in me said "meow, I'll give you all the money you want!", I realized the source of the eunuch's magical power to guess my name....


... I had forgotten to take off the identity card that was hanging around my neck! Apparently, eunuchs in Mumbai are English-literate :)

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I dont know if I will return to active blogging... but, I couln't coming back for this one as my wife found this incident too damn funny... cheers to all and to all a god day!!!

The wannabe poet has finally found his rhyme ...

I can hardly believe this ... but it has finally happened ... the one I've fallen for ... has also fallen for me ... we are now engaged ... and engaged in ... understanding each other ... fighting ... making up ... making plans for a lifetime together ... and praying that God be at the centre of it all ...

The wannabe poet has found the rhyme of his life ... and is actually quite speechless ... no poetry ... and no stories ... just a calm realization that all this is such a wonderful blessing ... just the not-so-calm anticipation of life ahead ...

Wish you all loads of love, peace, and joy ... now and forevermore ...

Breathe ...

Even monkeys love a nice stroll in the clouds ... :)

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Just spent some quality time at Khandala/Lonavla ... particularly enjoyed the drive ... especially as we passed through "serious precipitation waiting to happen" ever so often :)

What I've learnt ... Part 2

When I was a kid, we didn't have cable. I had to make do with just the national channel. I would feel very left out when other kids would discuss the latest (pirated) movies that the friendly neighbourthood cable guy would beam every day … So I adapted … I made it a point to listen to the discussions the first thing in the morning … and later in the day, I would start a conversation about the movie ... of course with ones who hadn't seen the movie … I would narrate the movie and the funny dialogues and chase sequences in a way that they felt that I'd seen it over and over ... Of course, sometimes I would get into sticky situations coz' I was generally ignorant about a lot of the 'icons' … I didn't know the difference between Jackie Chan and Jackie Shroff … neither did I know who Fido Dido was, or who Madonna was :) … But, all that made me a great listener … And I still am ...


When I was a kid, I didn't have a GF … never felt the need for one back then … I had a lot of friends who were girls, but I wasn't ready for any 'relationship' then ... Guess, it was coz' I wasn't as 'excited' as the other guys ... possibly because I hadn't watched any 'movies' beamed after midnight by the socially conscious neighbourhood cable guy who humbly sought to 'educate' the masses about the birds and the bees ... more power to the media, anyone?

Now that I think about it, I have never faced as much pressure to find that special someone than back then ... peer-pressure was a way of life, and I wanted to be just as cool as the others ... and to be hip, I needed a GF ... So I adapted ... Soon enough, people were whispering ... that I was in a relationship with one 'Nisha' ... that we were going around for almost a year now ... that no one knew about it, as Nisha was in a different school in a far-flung suburb ... the Nisha angle made me quite popular for a while ... but I soon grew tired of answering some pretty good (and dangerous) questions ... and after a lot of planning, and a lot of fanfare (read depression), I packed her off to another city ... I brooded over Nisha for maybe two weeks, soaking in the sympathy and attention like a raisin in a bottle of rum :) ... After the Nisha episode, no one in school questioned/teased me for not having a GF ... even after a year, I would still tell curious people that I wasn't over Nisha, and that I wasn't ready for any relationship ... Ah, the good old, complicated days ... :)

The best thing that came out of the Nisha episode - To pull off the scam, I had to understand the troubles/feelings of people in relationships … I did this, primarily by putting my listening skills to good use in countless conversations with friends who were in 'relationships' ... Over the years, I have only added to my knowledge about relationships by reading, listening a lot, and of course common sense ... I know today, that the succes to most relationships lies in constantly trusting, forgiving when that trust is broken, and most importantly - knowing when to talk and when to shut up


When I was a kid, I lied too much ... mostly to fit in ... to get people to just accept me, if not like me ... I am no longer a kid, but I see the very same thing being done by so many adults today ... and it makes me sad, as I've realized quite early in life, that I can't please everyone ... I've realized that I shouldn't even try to do so ... as, even if I succed, people wouldn't really be liking/accepting me for who I am ... they just like the lies ... and I no longer want to live a lie just for their benefit ...


I have learnt that life is not about how much money I make or how many things I accumulate … it's not even about the number of friends I make … it's about whether I make a positive difference to this world … If I leave this world a better place than what it was when I got here, I'll consider it a successful life ... I know that I probably won't do something that changes the whole world for the better, but if I manage to make it a better place for even a few people, I'll be happy ... and God willing, I will do so ...

What I've learnt ...

People hurt people ...

no matter how good they are ... no matter how good they think they are ...

sometimes unintentionally ... sometimes otherwise ...

and ego often prevents reconciliation ... though the heart is remorseful

People who know the value of a heartfelt apology... and ones who know just how self-destructive an ego can be ... can prevent unnecessary heartache and guilt and failed relationships ...

After all,

... Life's too short ....

Poem - The love of my life

The love of my life
Is dancing ... with the love of her life

It's a beautiful night
What a wonderful sight

The smile on her face
The twinkle in her eyes
Amazing grace,
And it just feels so nice

She glances my way,
And her smile says "Hi"
I smile and wave back
While my heart says "Goodbye"

The love of my life
Is married ... to the love of her life
She's finally happy
... And so am I

Poem - Too much to ask?

Oh, to be accepted
To love and be loved
To trust and be trusted
To listen and be listened to

Oh, to have peace
Oh, to be patient and kind
To have a clear conscience
A truthful and faithful heart
A thankful and positive attitude

Oh, to be a faithful friend
Oh, to be friends with God
Oh, to be able to walk in love

Is it too much to ask?