Looking from a corner

These days I refuse to read the newspaper or listen to the news. Newspaper lays on my bed and I devour the page 3 and cartoons.

With the world busy in:

Assam senseless riots and general distrust

Corruption cases of mass scale being ignored casually

State of power and hence production at a tragic low

Economy going down for all the reasons

I was confused at how we could take everything so lightly. Why nothing mattered. 

And then it happened. I tried if Ignorance is indeed bliss... If I could ignore it all...Can't say that I am happy or at peace. 

But, I have lost the right to crib..

I feel like I am walking on a dirty mud road with poodles of water, walking on the side.... in my pretty dress, holding a lovely flower.

I don't look at the mud, the dirt, the filth. I just get a little more sideways, if I fear something may ruin my dress.

Just singing a nice song and turning my head when an unpleasant sight comes. 

I guess I am living life on the sideways... perhaps just getting by...

Stop and Stare

Something that I had written a long back, but just felt like posting here...

" 'I am unique' cried the snowflake" - Bill Wattersen- Calvin and Hobbes

Yes, it is unique... or is it or does it even matter?

As you distance yourself, lines get blurred, differences disappear, topography vanishes and everything becomes calm and homogeneous. 

Each electron is rotating at a tremendous speed around the nucleus. Each atom fighting with the other atom for that shared electron. There are numerous activities going on at molecular level in a single water molecule. So many different particles and animals staying in the water bodies, maintaining a delicate balance and yet the sea appears so calm. The chaos gets replaced by a certain calm the farther you move away.

I wonder whether the countless insects, worms, bugs posses intelligence, what so ever. Our definition of intelligence may be highly relative. They might not be smarter than humans. But may be some random ant stays happy that it can carry more load, or some poor bird proud of its voice or some unknown insect finding the shortest path to a food. But for those sitting at the top of food chain, they represent a specie, something to be looked down upon, a subject of study. Their thoughts and actions do not matter except may be sometimes as a group they are a little more than nuisance. Apart from that they can be casually shrugged of, walked over or forgotten.

"The universe does not care"  as is said in Watchmen movie. Whether I live or not, whether the complete human race lives or not, whether a blue planet claims life or not. We are a tiny microscopic level dot on the surface of a tiny planet of a rather small star in a rather big galaxy. May be we are also just a subject of curiosity for some higher specie. May be there is afterall no long term purpose of our life. May be we are just as insignificant as the mosquito that I just cursed. May be our issues are pretty trivial. May be it does not matter much whether Mumbai wins the IPL or Rajasthan does. May be nothing makes a difference. 

We think that we are going to save the planet. Or atleast one step less towards destroying the planet. But actually we can neither save nor ruin the plant. The planet or universe is too big to be destroyed or saved by petty humans. All that we are doing is saving ourselves. We can just prolong the time this planet takes our nonsense, bear us. We are moving in a certain direction, all that we can do is micro adjust the speed. Nothing else. And that direction is predestined for the race. And frankly, the universe does not care a bit!!!!

May be before I fall into a blissful state of indifference and acceptance, I should stop thinking. May be my disgust with humans is better than my apathy. May be the purpose of life is to watch cricket... May be...

Sleeping child

The problem with me is that I can't close my eyes...

With Assam burning over religious matters... people claiming that it is all political as  we have been too 'accommodating' with refugees from Bangladesh who are now bold enough to fight and cause unrest.

Major blackout in the country because of grid failure and all states and center just passing the buck...

Nobody listening to the man fighting against corruption in Delhi. That news just seems to be lost among other 'important' news like cricket. There is a lot of corruption in India, everybody admits, but the action that it demands seems to be missing...

A young girl molested in Guwahati, on a busy street. Her crime, getting out of a pub, intoxicated. And men considered it their birth right and moral duty to 'teach her a lesson'. And they were no hardcore criminals. They were normal people, living among us, just slightly demented and accompanied by mob-hysteria and a sense of 'superiority' that drove them to this heinous crime.

People playing petty politics... and corrupting unsuspecting minds.

I always wanted to know things. I could never understand why, they said 'ignorance is bliss' . I am so reminded of the donkey 'Benjamin' in Animal Farm by George Orwell.

Now, I wish I could close my eyes and just ignore the mess. Build a cocoon with all the pretty things and live blissfully.

Just pathetic

I watched this episode of Crime Patrol 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvQhGWEjQJk

For those who are unaware of this serial, its based on real life incidents. Often it brings on unknown faces of Indian society, sometimes highlighting the despair, sometimes callousness, sometimes selfishness and sometimes humanity. It has shocked me more than once....

This one tells about a small village in Maharashtra, where small farmers took loan from landlords. Since, most of the farmers were illiterate, landlord would put wrong calculations in the name of interest, so much so that farmer could never repay it and would be forced to work for free for landlord. Also, his future generations would be forced to work for the landlord for free.... Until once a farmer, took to educate his only child, a girl. The intelligent girl, worked part time and helped his father repay the loan. This annoyed the landlord so much that he got the girl, all of 17 years, kidnapped and raped her and finally made her write a letter that she was a willing partner before dropping her back after a week. The poor soul was in a state of shock and committed suicide. Until then police were reluctant in catching the landlord who was a powerful local politician.  He is in custody now after villagers got to higher authorities, sadly, chances are that he would be out soon, ready to reign with terror again..... 

For  a long time, people there would not educate their kids... would be willing to be slave for ages... would live in fear.... 

Out of the blue

If Masterchef of different countries is ever a clue of how the people are. 

This is how I would understand people are in these countries:

Americans: Bitchy, Boisterous and Arrogant

Indians: Winy and emotional

Australians: Fair, friendly, good winners and losers

Australia has surely risen a few notches in my wish-list. If Australia tourism is a promoter, good job ;)

Wedding Planner

Some of the blogs that I am addicted to, often talk about how arranged marriages screw up ones life. Like:

http://celestialrays.wordpress.com/2011/05/12/logic-vs-lagnam/

and

http://indianhomemaker.wordpress.com/tag/arranged-marriage/

That you get married to a man you don't know, you may end up losing your own life in the process. That when you have not "known" the person and his family long enough, you would not know how he (or they) would react in any situation. Whether you are marrying a monster or your prince charming... and it is more likely to be former.

Some of my friends have also shared bitter experiences of their other girl friends, agreeing to marry a man arranged by their family and regretting the decision with all their lives.

I know that this is not entirely wrong. Indian society is skewed in favor of men.

But, the view it portrays of arranged marriages is not entirely right either. Like every other thing, marriage (arranged or love) has to evolve with time. It needs to adapt to changing needs of society.... And that one needs to accept more for arranged marriages. Parents should just introduce the guy and girl and express their opinion, final decision should lie with those who are committing for life!!!

Girls and boys alike need to tell their parents that they are open to the idea of arranged marriage, but on their conditions. The concept of saying "yes" to the first "guy" you meet doesn't work anymore. The idea of not meeting or chatting or talking before confirming is out dated too. 

If girls are independent and confident, they should know their priorities and be comfortable exerting them. We need to know that being unhappily married (and may be dead) cannot be better than being happily single.

My husband and I had arranged marriages. He wasn't the first guy I met, nor was I the first girl he met. We met several times, before our parents met each other or even us. We knew our basic traits and standings before we committed to each other. And we were fine with that. I have retained my surname, my job priorities and my beliefs and so has he...

I can't say that we haven't had our share of "teething troubles" post marriage or everything has been hunky-dory. But, I can't imagine being with any other man now. ... And I absolutely adore my in-laws.

I certainly don't regret my decision or how life has turned to be. And I believe this is how ideally marriages should be arranged !!!

It feels good !!!

It feels good:

• When a riksha-waala that you take tells you that he owes you five bucks and you should pay less.
• When air-hostesses in a flight take extra care for an invalid old man, explaining all security procedures to him personally and attending to every unsaid need of his.
• When you find a shop-keeper searching for you because you forgot your camera at his shop on a busy day.

I guess I shouldn't give up on the world as yet...