Magic..

There was a bird I thought,
At a distance.. on that tree,
Ya, it looked like some creature that could fly,
So bird I called it, but which.. I wondered.
It had a long tail, like that of a peacock,
So peacock I called it.
It was sitting on the tree, and suddenly, to my surprise, it flew.
Now peacocks don’t fly so high.
It flew up till the building’s height,
A few stories may be, and up into the clear sky.
Then made circles in the air.
Magical rings they seemed to be,
With colours of shining yellow and gold.
Strange, but beautiful; and I stood in awe
Watching it dance to the tune it felt so.
Round and round, it swayed in curves,
Making beautiful shades in the dark sky.
With beauty, grace,
A happy smiling face,
And no one to comment,
It danced to its heart’s content.
Then left a bubble in the air,
That grew so big.. big enough to swallow it in.
Still, it danced inside, though I thought it would faint,
And left another bubble, that grew as large, but slightly smaller,
Which pulled the big bubble, and the bird,
And its wings, and its head..
And everything else..
Until it disappeared, like as if magically dead.
A dream it was, I was sure,
Yet it seems to be so real and near.
Ya, it was magical, that is true,
It made me write another poem, for you.
:)

Have never waited for exams
But now I do,
For it feels like finishing it off
In a day or two.
Wish they were now
In about a month or so,
Never mind the struggle it’d take
Confident, I’d make.
For I see no friend or foe
Only long ‘n lonely distances, to travel alone.

3. (Royal Welcome)

It was the end of autumn and summer had just begun. Nights ended sooner than usual. For a change, Princess decided to go for morning walks – all for fun, it was. But as expected she snoozed the alarm, twice. Heard a voice teasing her that she couldn’t keep resolutions. Then finally got up, ready to take up the challenge, lazily got ready and slowly tied her shoe-laces and set out. Little did she know about how wonderful it would turn out to be!

The moon was out there waiting to be seen by someone atleast, like, for the last time for that night, as if to say that it had done its duty, and now saying good-by for the day. The stars had already left. They are too proud of themselves being *stars*, but the moon is much more humble. So, the walk began.. it was cold and dark everywhere. Princess was wondering what she was doing at such a time on the national highway. Felt like going back home, and into the bed.. oh how nice and cozy it would be, but she continued just to keep up the resolution. Yawning while walking didn’t seem unusual at all.. After quite some time it was getting clearer ( is ‘getting closer to dawn’ a proper sentence?)

Pretty flowers of the Gulmohor and similar trees had begun to shed their petals. And they all lay there on the ground, as if to welcome the morning walkers. The pathway looked like a carpet, coloured in patches of red, orange and yellow. Some places were patched with dry leaves, and the rest of the road was bare. Wow! What a wonderful sight it was! Quiet a few vehicles rode that way, but surely they must not have enjoyed the sight enough. Then at a particular point, at a crossroad, one could hear the sound of water, trying hard to gush out, but unable to do so, probably because of a very small outlet. That was a starting point of a water pipe, a valve may be. But the sound of the struggling water was so pleasing to hear. And after some more time, on the way back home I mean, one could see the sky changing colours beautifully, from the initial darker shades of blue to it’s lighter tints, then to a mix of orangey yellow, and then bright, really bright. And all this setting for a delightful sunrise, which occurred in moments you couldn’t even count. Ah, so lovely!

Indeed it was a Royal Welcome!

2. (Involved)

“Seriously yaar, it’s been enough; enough of running away from boredom and these weakening thoughts. Enough of being idle”, Princess thought. “I’m gonna get involved, into some activity or the other. After all life’s motive is this, right? -to be involved into something until you never know what happened to you!!

Complex, is it? There could be complexities even more complex.

So, involvement is the key to a life of simplicity. Isn’t it?”

1. (Dry weather and the Diary)

It was a warm afternoon. The sun shone bright outside. Even a peep out of the room seemed to be eye-cracking. There was a power cut. So neither the fan would work, nor the PC, nor the TV. The radio was spoilt, and the i-pod had lost charge. Princess was bored. Dull day, so to say.

She went up to her diary. This diary was the first lucky one that she must have ever used as a diary. And since this was a rare time of the year -one of its kind- as she had got a good long holiday, Princess had decided to make it beautiful. It was her responsibility, she thought. Indeed, it was this Dry weather that led to the birth of the Diary. She noted down random things and events that either occurred or were planned. She decorated her diary, literally. It looked good. Indeed, the year was being made fondly memorable. Though, the diary had many things hidden, while mostly revealing the fun part of it. Only Princess would know, and may be a few others. The rest was buried in memories to be forgotten. Now, this had turned out to be one asset she would never want to loose. Experiences and attitude, the outcome and their memories, were recorded in there. The rest was left to history.

It’s always friends..!!!

Sometime back, during vacations, a house in our neighbourhood was robbed; and robbed heavily. The family had been on a week long holiday for the rarest of times. And for some reason the robbers had their selected list of items – Branded clothes, Some money left open, and Mangoes! Yes, they robbed mangoes too.. Ate a few, left the peals there and took away the rest. Indeed, they were hungry robbers! (I wonder if they took away the shoes as well.. If at all they had planned for a Feast.) No electronics were even touched! Surprising! Coz they all lay there.. open.. Only ‘they’ knew why?!!!

Rumours spread. Such a planned and dined robbery was sure to be made by some known fellas (bastards). Known fellas are called friends, right? May not be best friends, but friends.. yeah!

It’s always friends..!!!

Similarly, only a friend can betray. For, for a friend to betray someone, one must have the privileges of a friend.

That’s why.. It’s always friends..!!!

Also, you do things, things in secret, and you wish them to be secret always. But you are caught. And when you are caught, it’s got-to be either by a cop Or a friend.

It’s always friends..!!!

It feels like a celebrity.. hehe!!

When you are tracked all through.. When every move of yours is followed.. You feel like a celeb.

When someone insists on befriending you.. When that someone does things to impress you, and remains unsuccessful.. You feel like a celeb.

When you are watched for even which way you look.. May be even which way you walk.. You feel like a celeb.

When that someone imagines what you might be thinking.. When they try to read your thoughts.. You feel like a celeb.

When you get free publicity for doing nothing.. When actually you abstain from doing something.. You feel like a celeb.

When you are a topic of discussion.. Whether the topic is sweet or sour, cold or hot.. You feel like a celeb.

When you are the center of attraction.. For no reason what-so-ever.. You feel like a celeb.

When you hide your head in the sand like an ostrich, and think that no one can see you.. You feel like a celeb.

When that someone cannot imagine the extent to which you can act like a celeb.. You feel like a celeb.

When in life you feel you are down.. Just moments before you realize that it’s all up.. You feel like a celeb.

When your life looks like a mess to others.. While in reality it may be just perfect.. You feel like a celeb.

When that someone performs a comedy of errors.. When you enjoy the attention you are getting.. You feel like a celeb.

When you are happy and unaffected by outside talks, words or deeds.. You feel like a celeb.

Isn't it?

SILENCE

Who said, “If Speech is Silver, Silence is Golden”, ??? - False it is.

For once, Tin happened to experience a whole new situation in his life, one like smelling the odour coming out of a sugar factory.

This was Tin – a jolly good fellow in every walk of life. He believed in keeping the atmosphere pleasant. Enjoying every moment being his passion for life, he would make new friends pretty quickly.

Now, he was a young guy, just out of college, and searching for a job. It was his interview day. He had applied in a large shipping agency and they needed lots of workers to join the crew. While waiting for his turn to come, unlike the other applicants who were getting anxious every now and then, this lad stayed cool. He was observing things around and trying to enjoy the ongoing skit, where helpers assisted the applicants and the interviewers. They were running around like as-if settling things out of a big mess. One such helper Avi was guiding Tin and a few others. Anxious interviewees made the atmosphere cold. Silence filled the air for most of the time and occasionally a few scared footsteps were heard. It seemed like a dungeon wherein a serial killer was waiting to do his job as victims approached him one by one. Tin broke the silence, made friends with Avi.

“Is this all we need to take in?”

“Yes, they won’t bother much.”

“How is it inside the dungeon?”

“There are two. One in this room and another in that..”

Just then, a.. tired of life kind-off.. old man walked out and in through one of those dungeons. Poor fellow was given the job of the serial killer for that day.

“How is this taskmaster?”

“He is crack”.. (Giggles surround).. “very slow and Strict too.”

“And I am going to be killed by him, right??”

“Yes”.. “The other one is good. He is recruiting many.”

“Then send me there..”

Now, Avi seemed to be dog tired, still kept a smile on his face constantly, and that attracted Tin. Avi told Tin, it was a hard life in this agency. But optimistic Tin showed extra excitement like an ever-ready battery. Avi smiled. Probably, he remembered his interview day. He sent Tin in the better dungeon and Tin was happy. Tin got the job easily and was heartily glad, for now he had something to do.

He was to be boarded on a ship - Riana. But this also meant that he had to be away from home for months. Anyways, he had to do it. Excitedly, he boarded the ship at the earliest he could. There he met many others, different crew members doing different jobs in different departments. He befriended most of them.

Riana was beautiful. A small cruise ship when compared to the other ships of the agency, but very big one for Tin. It had three decks. The top was the open deck, with a golf court, a garden lawn with snacks and drinks. Cool blue waters shone on all sides during the day, and at night created a deeply chilled atmosphere. The middle deck had food and lodging facilities for all. The bottom deck included games, entertainment theaters, and party rooms. An alluring waterfall ran down from the top to the bottom deck, behind the stairway. Another tantalizing thing was a painting in one of the corridors.

“Wow!”, exclaimed Tin to his fellow worker, whose name was Rev. They were passing that way, towards the food-house. They both were managers of that food-house.

“That painting was got from an antique store.”, Rev said, “Beautiful, isn’t it? It will soon be shifted into our food-house. It would make a nice show piece on wall opposite the cashier”.

“Oh! Is it?”

Nod.

Now that painting of an unknown author was a special one. Rev had to take it safely somewhere, but this he hadn’t told Tin. He somehow managed to put it under Tin’s responsibility. Tin saw to it well and they often admired it for hours. One fine afternoon, when the ship landed on the shore, the police came in for a casual checkup. They found stolen gold inside the frame. Since it was under Tin’s responsibility, he was caught and put in jail.. actually Trapped..!! And jail is never a good place to be in.

Tin had nothing to say but that he was innocent. He preferred to be quiet, as no one would accept his plea. He was jailed for 2 years.

Now there were different facilities available in jail, for the prisoners -Things to do, to learn, that could earn them a living once they got out. Tin found new life in there. But how good was it? Once he got out, he could again apply to join the ship, but would they take him? And even if he got that job, would he be accepted by his fellowmen? Would he make friends the same way as before? Questions in his mind wouldn’t end. But one thing needs to be answered..

Was his new life worth?.. worth his silence?

for that oh so spl Autograph book..

Hello again.. :) [I’m back.. took some time, as I couldn't hang on to a single topic, and also lacked patience.
BigB has just started blogging, and look at the comments he’s got.. and look at us..!!! hehe, I’m just expressing my thoughts on what I’ve noticed. No envy.]

Ok, so here's what I’ve done while I was idle on this.. my blog.
Wrote a quote-turned-into-poem for the first page of her autograph book..

" Dear Teacher/Friend,

Write down a line,
In this book of mine,
For it will shine
Always, in future time.

You are my gift,
Special and dear,
The words you write for me,
I will always keep near.

Your memories,
I will always treasure.
And whenever I read them,
Draw immense pleasure.

So, what are you thinking dear,
Just take the pen and start scribbling here.. :) "

TP, but Fun

[Read the first two lines, then added a few more..]

Tu sui, mi dora
Tu kali, mi gora :D

Tu paus, mi themb
Tu wild, mi tame

Tu bucket, mi mug
Tu chadar, mi rug

Tu limbu, mi ras
Tu driver, mi bus

Tu kissa, mi purse
Tu patient, mi nurse

Mi dhag, tu ambar
Mi road, tu dambar :D

-- So, how was that?

I wasn’t money minded, until yesterday..

Money should be flowing.. from place to place, person to person, bank to hand, hand to bank, hand to wallet, wallet to shopkeeper, wallet to vegetable-seller, wallet to my hand and then back into the wallet, wallet to my hand and then to the one in need.. Whatever the case may be, to me.. money seemed to be either flowing (through my wallet) or stagnant (in others wallets). But I always felt it was made to be used.. like in.. to play games (the games we had played as kiddos – dukaan-dukaan, remember?). Till date, I still think it is meant only to be given to the shopkeeper, so that he gives you what you want. Easy thing to do, isn’t it?... hmm..... Hey!! Also to my college, so that I can someday graduate.. and to my evaluators, re-valuators, the varsity in general. They all seem to be in need of it.. that’s why they keep asking for it every-time.. are they in need, really? Or is it that they are just attracted to it for some earthly reason? I did not understand, until yesterday..

Yesterday was the day.. The D-day of my earthly life, Life that needs money, the one most precious thing created by a group of moving earthly bodies called humans. It was this D-day when I actually thought about the need for money. Discussed how I’d use it, when I’d earn (whenever that would be). It was an impossible task for me to do alone. Thank god for the company of my kiddo sis. Or.. so I had thought about her, coz yesterday she seemed to know more things-to-do than me..!! And again.. the money seemed to be free-flowing out of my wallet.. like captain cook salt.

God!!! I thought. Now I can get a small glimpse of what it would be like afterwards. And also understand a bit of what those words.. (what are they?.. haan..) money, earn, burn, save and the other similar ones mean.

Even after living on this earth for so many years, after having shopped for things in most of those years, after having done quite a few things to join educational institutes, after having gone to the doc so many times, after having starved that day when we did not have enough in-hand to eat coz we had used it all for journal binding, I still lived in ignorance. That’s why I said, “I wasn’t money minded until yesterday..”

Greenday – I walk alone – my way..

I walk this dirty road
The only one that I got-to walk along
Knowing where it goes
Is just the reason for me to sing this song
I walk alone, I walk alone
I walk alone, Alone ya
The crowd is moving all around me
My shadow’s lurking well behind me
The sunshine makes my eyes go, in and small now
Now as I walk alone.. ta tada tada tada..taada..

They spray their mouths in air
’n decorate the pathway all along
Why it’s me again
I wonder, as I walk along
I walk alone, I walk alone
I walk alone, Alone ya
The smoker’s walking right in front ’o me
He’s looking like a moving chimney
As his cigarette is gives him company
Now slowly I take a turn.. ta tada tada tada..taada..

I look up all around
At everything that my vision shows me now
Hangings everywhere
But the kids play, is what I’d love to share
I walk alone, I walk alone
I walk alone, Alone ya
A new lane I see so curiously
I wonder where about it goes now
The building seems to come a ’lil closer
So here my dest. I found.. ta tada tada tada..taada..
ta tada tada tada!

:)

Fantasy:

Fantasy = daydream, fancy, hope, vision, flight of the imagination, castle in the sky.

I always had a fancy thought, as a kid of std. four or so, of seeing everyone traveling only on cycles, and the reason was it’s eco-friendly nature.. I used to think proudly. So then.. there would be nothing like rich or poor. Only one’s ability would decide where one would reach.. hehe!!

On thinking about our graduation day, I always got the vision of all of us -friends- wearing the black cap and holding a white paper roll in the hand.. all standing on the steps for a class photo. And then.. we take off the cap and flung it in the air together.. wow! it’d look so nice.. Feel even better - a sense of achievement. My friend even told me that such a thing doesn’t happen in our college.. but the word graduation still brings to me the same vision. Got lots of would-have’s (things I’d do) with that photo :)

A little sweet, a little sour, a little close, not too far.. all I need is to be free..

Random Thoughts

Had been to water the plants this morning.. n wow! I saw quite a few flowers, in the otherwise mostly green garden. There were roses of all colours.. red, pink, yellow, orange.. I guess spring is finally here, after the long winter. Ahaan!! Now I know.. these business minded people make good use of this time. It’s just so easy to please someone with a flower right? No wonder.. Valentine’s Day is celebrated around this time of the year!! Hmm.. fine. Everyone has the freedom to do what they want, whenever they want. If only anyone could get me a green rose, I thought.. (of-course a non tinted one) ;)

on our Visit to the cement factory

We had been to visit my friend’s cement factory.. one of the much awaited things to do. Had thought thought ’n thought, said said ’n said, but nothing was done in this case, for semesters.. until yesterday. So.. gathered all friends together and made the day totally ours.

We left home early in the morning, but started the actual journey out of the city a bit late.. a lil bit. Similar was the case while coming back. And that happened because of unmentionable reasons. Unmentionable because.. it’s about the rare expertise girls have in finding and following routes. Oh! Before you think otherwise, let me tell you.. we’r really good at this, better than most most most others :) And such things happen only because we want to stay connected, ’n saath-saath, so to say.

On-the-way-rides were fun both the times.. even with the normal chatting, music, and the country-side views.. and the not so normal search-the-right-ways. This becomes a vital issue when u don’t know where the shortcut turn is and are trying to find it in dark evenings. Add to it.. getting caught in the mini traffic jam.. ’n thus becoming a lil restless. But how else do u learn?.. learn to discover, use read the notice boards meant to guide travelers, get out of the situation ’n feel a sense of accomplishment, and.. learn to listen! So, such things must happen. What’s the fun if u go the right way always.. isn't it? (we should sometimes go to the left also;)

Btw: I missed out something.. my driving session:

On our way back home, I was asked to hold the steering wheel for a while, kind-of an open invitation to me to try my hand at driving for the very 1^st time.. wow!!.. I caught it tight at first.. trying to understand the movements.. (of the wheels that I couldn’t see.. and the curves of the road that didn’t actually move).. and the moment I stopped trying to understand.. I instantly, fell in love with it! With a wonderful guide, teacher, friend on the hot seat, I did not have the slightest hesitation of what I was doing. Neither did I have to accelerate, nor apply the breaks, nor do anything with the clutch. While I was enjoying this.. there were 4 of them on the back seat.. on full alert (coz the speed was nearly 100) Hehe, they, who were till that moment relaxing, almost tired and half asleep, were now.. I can say.. on their toes, ready to scream at any moment. But they got no chance.. instead they they too began to enjoy the ride..(I thought so, because of the pictures taken at that moment). So now I feel.. aa.. well.. Confident, that I too can someday take anyone for a wonderful ride on the country side.. :)

’n ya, the cement factory was.. like a cement factory.. well managed, out of the city, with efficient labourers ’n good machinery to produce good product, comfortable guest rooms, real good cooks, and a jhoola :)
As for the factory’s cement processing info, any chemistry book would give u the details. That’s why I did not mention it. Don’t mind ok.. ;)

Sirsi Talk (Season -2)

[Written on public demand ;)... or call it the panch-request(read as: punch-request)... after reading Season-1]

We again went on a trip to Sirsi this holiday season. This time.. with the complete hum-panch group, as compared to the trio of season-1. While going, we were a little impatient to finish-up with the journey. The bus was noisy. This time.. the plane, on the way to Hubli, had already taken off, but, it was moving pretty slowly, to our surprise. And the nine Bahubali statues still lie there, but with little maintenance. Also,every town now, I guess, has this new fashion of possessing a new, meagerly-used bus stand along with the rushy-pushy old one.

This time our stay was divided. One night in this house, and another night in the other. What to do.. two families, two homes, two nights, requests/demands from both sides, and our convenience! :D
Our days were on roaming - visiting, repeating some journeys along with a few new ones, recalling..was like revising memories of season-1.., still making it a new experience as we panchams were together. We enjoyed with everyone, be it at home, out, dining table, bus, bed or bathroom! :P

These days were like.. made to fulfill our wishes.. wow! Felt so good, and satisfied as we saw them happening one by one. The visit to the rocky waters, and the amazing field-like view of the flowers in the nursery.. were among those special wishes. This time we had been to the Krushi Mela, organized by ‘some’ organization, in favour of the local farmers. They had a beautiful show set up for everyone to enjoy. The flower nursery was also a part of this exhibition. In the centre of the ground was a live musical, dance, comic show going on. This was surrounded by stalls.. of all kinds. I’ll talk about my favourite few.. The silkworm stall displayed the entire life cycle and the method of silk production with real keedas(silkworms). It seems that a single worm produces almost 1000 meters long silk thread. Rich keedas, aren’t they? Other wonderful things were the tents.. skillfully decorated, one with paddy, another with jackfruits, another with coconuts.. of all types.. and another with areca-nuts... That was one amazing style we saw for the first time. Also, the trees there were beautifully lit with lampshades, side-lamps and other small bulbs. It gave a really pleasing sight in presence of the single-lingual crowd that I don’t like. Thus distracting me and giving a good feeling of having attended the display. (Btw: crowd is what I don’t like and single-lingual speech is what I don’t hate;) They also had handicrafts made of cane, jute and wood. Another interesting thing was.. the natural plate making factory – a bull tied to a machine took rounds continuously while the machine produced dry, leafy, strong-enough food-plates. Wonder how the bull didn’t seem to feel dizzy! :-?

The next day.. we had the most wanted thing to do.. trip to Yana :)
Hired a vehicle and fled off to the rocks, all excited! It was the ghat section. But no dizzy-bizzy feeling.. all were into the singing mood, enjoying the ride and the ghaty scenary. To our surprise, uncle was taking a video; and we did not know it was our’s until we saw it at home later that night.. mast video bana hai, comedy knows no bounds in there! :D
Ok!! so.. after completing the long journey.. we began our trek towards the yana rocks. The walk was good.. enjoyable, amidst thick trees and a narrow pathway. Soon we heard the sound of water flowing.. though we saw it only a few times, it generated a feeling of ‘wow!’ from within. After the walk, there were big, uncomfortable steps to climb. But the sight of the huge, cracky-looking rocks and the exitement to reach them finally, was enough to get us moving. It seems that the continuously flowing water has made a Shiv-linga.. on the rock, and so they have made a temple over there. And that was the reason for us to go over.. round the temple, on rocky, amazingly beautiful pathways.. bare-footed. Later we got nicely roasted on foot, because this place is a manganese storehouse/ore. So imagine how hot the mud would be. Ah! We heard lots of screams and shouts. We climbed everywhere possible, and relaxed in the marvelous scenery. Photo sessions were continuously going on. Unmentionable Comics happened at the tap-waters. We were told that there are 61 such rocks in the entire forest area, but we saw only two -huge ones.

And then, when we did not want to get out of there.. hunger was the key.. we went to Honnavar, got our stomachs over-full and left to see the Sunset at Murudeshwar.. another wish from season-1 fulfilled here. No jatra this time.. I was heartily glad :) wow! but the beach was full:( ~~lovely waves though :)
And as it was just a few minutes to sunset.. we saw masses of people.. don’t really know if they were young, old or kiddos.. all being drawn towards the Sunset Point. It was indeed a worth watch, with all the effort rewarded instantly. (Not like our stupid exams, with delayed unsatisfied results). The Sun must be feeling so precious, so much loved, that so many people flock to see him, time and again.. Everyday.. at different places. Lucky he.. enjoy!!.. both he and we, the Showman and the Audience :D

Then next day we came back home.. that’s it. But the journey was funnily enjoyable. Playing background vocal music for the fellow travelers, we sure made their journey memorable, but the happier ones were we. One fellow was getting a little restless.. felt like giving him one box on his face.. but he behaved himself well in advance. At lunch time.. we irritated the conductor.. went to buy biscuits and he had to wait for 1 full minute extra. There was no lunch, but we played food-antakshiri.. this is one nice game, playable anywhere, anytime, with anyone. We reached one-n-half hour early and that was indeed a very pleasing end of the journey :)

What should I call it?

Well now.. have you seen the main theme of anything changing anytime??
Or should I say.. have you seen the title of any product changing??
I have done that.. changed the title of this.. my blog.. every now and then in the last two months, that now I’m confused as to what I should call it.
First i had called it princess writes..
then changed it to it's me.. Snehal
then, :) and a picture
and now it is Snehal writes..
Arranging, changing and re-arranging.. tried everything but nothing seems to be absolutely fine.
Can you help me out?
And.. that is also the reason for me adding all these pictures over here.
Let them be, or ??????

Oops... btw: HAPPY NEW YEAR 2008 :)

now that's like me.. (naturally, Snehal)