Bye Bye Blogger!

Guys its been exactly 5 months I started blogging here in blogspot and its alvida time! I am leaving blogspot and joining WordPress!

Here's my new url: http://especiality.wordpress.com

Please change your bookmarks - see you all @ wordpress!
Happy blogging oops WordPressing!

Over and out,
RJ

The Expansionist Meme - Tagged!

Nova aka World tagged me with this meme and here's my response.

Please thoughtfully consider the following, and choose one item for each of the categories below. (Be sure to describe your reasons for choosing)

Q: One religious work from a non-familiar tradition you’ll read:
A: I think its called the "Tanakh". I always wanted to know and read about the Jewish tradition.

Q: One music video–that you like–from your “least likely to listen to’ genre:
A: Main Yahan Tu Wahaan - Baghban (Amitabh Bachchan sung the song) I don't like super slow emotional songs - but this one is an exception coz' 1) Amitabh Bachchan sang it 2) I like the whole idea of singing a song over the phone :D nice noo?

Q: A book from a genre you almost never read, that you have read, or you will read (promise!):
A: Andrew Tanenbaum - Operating Systems and Networking :D :P

Q: Somewhere you’d never thought to go on holiday/vacation, and why it might be fun to go there?
A: Andaman and Nicobar Islands - I think the whole island thg is exciting. Somewhere far yet close kinda thgy!

Q: A specific food you’ve never tried, but will because of this meme, honest!:
A: Mongolian cuisine - heard a lot about it, now I am gonna try it soon. (As soon as this weekend!)

Q: A sport or game you really hate, or haven’t tried yet, but are willing to give one more go:
A: I like all kinda sports and game. I haven't tried baseball and given a chance would love to play that game. I also want to play that girls game - where they throw somethg closing their eyes and have to jump and land in a specific spot. Dont know the name but it looks exciting!

Q: A style of dance you probably won’t try (we won’t make you promise on this one):
A: Cha cha Cha, a lot of foot work and I think I will screw up big time!

Q: A career job you don’t feel you’re suited for, and why:
A: I can never be a doctor/surgeon - I can't see flesh, blood etc and be cool about it.

Q: An item that’s “thinking out of the box’ for this meme that hadn’t been included:
A: Probably the "next question please" :P

Q: If there’s one thing in life you wanted to do, and will do because of this meme, what will it be?
A: Meet up with Nova and play foosball with her :D

I tag my blog fellas to mention one item they did that bought a smile on their face. I got up to give my seat to a pregnant lady in the train and I felt unusually happy about it and smiled the whole day :)

Keep smiling, keep writing and stay healthy,
~RJ

Parents day, everyday!

A new message arrived. My gmail inbox subject line reads "Looking for great father's day gift ideas? 40% on father's day hampers and free shipping to India." This is from one of those send-gifts-to-India portals. I start thinking what would be nice for my dad and it reminded me of mother's day which was about 4 weeks back.

Sunday, May 11, whoaa! I got up early to call up mom! She was super excited to hear my voice and as I finished hearing her stories in her mellifluous voice - I was super charged! And it's known that in our family of 4, my mother and me suffer from logorrhea - atleast that's what my dad and bro feel!

Excited I was, planned to treat myself some chocolate kiwi walnut fudge from Joann's Patiserrie
& cookies. As I drove past main street, I saw about 20 old people standing with some hoardings which I didn't read then and looked around to see what was happening. Everybody around were calm, doing their work in the regular fashion and not seem to be distracted as I was looking at that flock of old people. One of the hoarding caught my attention and it read, "I am just like your mother, will you not wish me for mother's day?"

I thought it was some kind of fund raising events for mother's day till I read the next hoarding. They all were standing below their so called home called "St. Patrick's Senior Living Center" (Read: Old Age Home). The second hoarding read "Adopt me, I will be like your father", third read "Am I that bad to be abandoned?", fourth read, "Can you be my child to me?" and probably a 12 more hoardings like that. Being an emotional enough person, I felt purblind for a while. The 'Maa' song from TZP added that little extra effect!

The oldies standing there are in hope of someone who could come and take them away not because the old age home treats them with cruelty but coz' they could lead a dignified life and prove themselves and to their children that they are not that bad to be abandoned. Some don't curse their kismet and are patiently waiting for their children to come and see them for mother's day!

I quickly called up my mom again and felt a million times better when I heard her say, "Enna ma achu?" ?( What happened dear?) and I replied back saying, "Nothing, just felt like talking a bit more!" Amidst my lachrymose feeling, I still had questions in my mind and one of them was, "How could somebody hate their parents so much to abandon them?"

I switch on the repeat mode in my ipod and listen to the "Maa" song again till I drive back home! ~RJ

Sarad ki kahani, ek nadaan ki zubaani!

A successful IPL season and it was Rajasthan Royals(RR) all way along. Frankly, I underestimated RR big time. A big Kolkata Knight Riders fan it's been disappointing to see they couldn't even make it to the semi-finals. The IPL is over, RR wins the inaugaural IPL. Life's getting boring, so what next? Let's step one step backward and figure out how it all started. My version of the IPL prelude.

Its called "Sarad ki kahani, ek nadaan ki zubaani!"

Sarad Paar: A top notch politician, chairman of the IPL organising committee. He's the big one and he wants all the moolah!

Nimbupaani: Supposedly, one of the world's richest beings around. 6 family members and 600 servants live together!

Rukruk Khan: He's numero one in the movie circuit. He's got the charm, the 6-packs and K-K-Karan!

Tendlya: He's numero one in the cricket arena. He's got the injury, the advertisements and the nails to bite!

Plus supporting cast - thanks to all!

Sarad is all upset with Sabhish Kandra(Owner of a television channel) because he entered the cricket world and is getting all the money and fame. Sarad decides to earn some black moolah using his idea and sketches out a plan overnight. He decides to call the top people from page 3 circuit after his thought - "Chailaa, maala suru karaaycha hota aani hyaani kelaa! Kaahi tari karaylaa havaa, gheto mi henchi barobar aani kapil chi pan maarto! Mee IPL suru karto"

He needs initial funds to execute the whole idea and calls up the "fund-man" Nimbupaani.

Tring tring...

Sarad: He-lo, kaise...se ho app sirji..hum-hein hein yaad rak-koko

Nimbupaani: Abe Sarad kabhi sudhrega, itnaa paisaa toh lutaa cricket se, muh ka operation nahi karvaaya ab tak, kanjus! Kya hua thik se muh kholke bol

Saarad: Woh chodo sir, paisa daalo, double karke detaa hu. You see double return in just 2 months sir!

Nimbupaani: Huh? Paise daalo double karegaa? Yeda samjhaa hai kya re. Saale, main idhar Chilaince mein baithe ande ubaal raha hoon?

Sarad: Sir, aap puri baat sunlo. IPL cha-alu karenge. Logon ko nangaa karenge, Rukruk Khan ko nachaayenge! Kaun-si te-am chahiy-e bolona??!!

Nimbupaani: Apna Tendlya chahiye mereko, bas team mein woh hua toh kaafi hai! Baaki semi-final aur finals apne ground mein hona chahiye!

Sarad: Thik hai, tikh hain sir, Mum-bai lelo aap

Nimbupaani: Haan, besttt! Anil bhi bahot udd raha hai aaj kal, mast jalegaa saala. 2 mahine mein 30crore ko 600crore maltab ek naya ghar!

Sarad : Ha-an, uss-kaa tu ten-shun mat le! (chailaa hyaala marathi yet naahi, malaa hindi yet naahi)

Nimbupaani: Tu apne muh ka kuch kar re, main jaa raha hu sone!!

Sarad : Haan sir, cheque bhej do aap. Bye.

So Nimbupaani decides to buy the Mumbai Indians, the city with the biggest corporates, big sponsors and ofcourse Tendlya!

Now, Sarad is nervous and calls Tendlya to update the story!

Tring tring...

Tendlya: Ailla..hello kon?

Sarad: Aga Anjali, Tendlya la phone de zaraa

Tendlya: Ailaa...Sarad kaka mi Tendlya-ach boltoy!! Team koni ghetli?

Sarad: nimbupaani ni!

Tendlya: Ailaa..changlaa zhaala..rakkam pakki karun taak tu..faayda zhaalaa pahije aaplaa!

Sarad: Faayda hoyel re..tulaa kaay vaatla!! Fukat naahi baslo mi ithe, tu jaasta kaalji nako karus! Tuzaa naav asnaar team madhe mag tulaa aadhi injure sangoon amhi baaki players na paathvu! Tu aaram kar aani te RMF cha deal madhey maaza percentage...

Tendlya: Ailaa.. ho denaar denaar! Injury mastaa, chaalel-chaalel!

Sarad: Chal aata Rukrukla fone laavto

Tendlya: Thik aahe, thevto aata!

Next up, Sarad Paar decides to call Rukruk Khan.
Tring tring...

Sarad: He-lo

Karan: Hello, you're speaking to Karan Johar in RRK's Mannat and...

Sarad: Abbe gud boy, coffee peelana kam kar aur RRK ko phone de saala apna hostgiri kab band karegaa kya maloom

Karan: *Sob* Aapko acche se baat karne nahi aati kya *sob* .......... RRK its for u!

RRK: Hello ?

Sarad: K-ya re, bhabie gh-ar pe nahi hai k-ya?

RRK: (background music playing - eeeehhhhhhh kantabehen) Kya hua bol sarad?

Sarad: Pai-saa kamaane-ka hai k-yaa ??

RRK: K-k-k-k-kaise???

Sarad: IPL chaalu karegaa .. ba-hot lut-egaa public ko..kya boltai tu?

SRK: Arre waah! Idea mast hai re!! Idhar meri bhi lagi padi hai, yeh Akshay bahot footage khaata hai aaj kal! Aur tune Akshay ko koi bhi function mein bulaya naa-toh yaad rakh. Mein King Khan hoon kuch bhi kar sakta hoon mere films promote hone chahiye aur mujhe naachne bhi milna chahiye udhar

Sarad: Demand bahot karne lag-aa hai tu a-aj kal!!! Thik h-ai..dekh-ta hoon main kya kar saktaaa hu ....kaunsi team legaa? Mukesh ne Mumbai le li hain

RRK: Havrat saala.. kitna kamaayega!! Kolkatta de mujhe, Dada bhi form mein hai aur udhar ka public bhi yedaa hai, sab uthke aatein hai match dekhneko

Sarad: Th-ik ha-i , Kolkatta te-raa..

RRK: Ek kaam kar na, Ugly Zhinta ko bhi pucchh - nahi toh mere pe shak aayega sabko ki despo hai publicity ke liye karke!

Sarad : Abe paagal hai kya, uske paas kya hai, uski toh abhi koi film bhi nahi a-ati! Kaam karta hu, Fajitabh ko fone lagaata hu??!!

RRK: Sharad faaltugiri nahi chahiye haa! Main idhar paise de dekar King Khan bann raha hu aur tu usko mere saath kyo bhid raha hai?? Budda khajayegaa poore stadium ko aur mereko limelight nahi milegaa. Tu Ugly Zhinta ko lagaa, bombay dyeing leke baithi hai woh Nadia Mess ko yedia banaa!

Sarad : Abe Mumbai Dyeing bol, woh Aaj Kurkure aake gaadi fodega tera, aaj kal mar raha hai woh bhi publicity ke liye!

RRK: Sach baat bolu kya re sarad - jab usne Fajitabh ka ghar foda naa, main aur Chori bahut khush hua maloom. Saala kuch bhi bol lekin budde mein baat hai
Sarad : Ha-ha-ha.. *cough* Chal fone laga-ata hu Ugly Zhinta ko ..

RRK : Haan chal bye. K-k-k-karan where did u go?? (background music playing - eeeehhhhhhh kantabehen)

So this way, Nimbupaani buys Mumbai Indians, RRK buys the Kolkatta Knight Riders and Sarad convinces Ugly and Mess into buying Punjab!

It begins and voila! Its a success! Probably success is an understatement! When we think of that one thing that can surely be a bit, its either Bollywood or Cricket. And IPL gave us a perfect blend of the two. People were happy, and so were the team managers, players and our very own Sarad Paar. What it needs to be the IPL champ is not the celebrities, not the corporate houses but a good captain leading from the front and a blend of high-performing players. RR had it all! They deserved it!

Disclaimer : This should be taken lightly with a sense of humour. This is not to hurt anybody's feelings or sentiments. Any similarity of name, events, location is purely co-incidental. The author of this post has fully respect for Sharad Pawar, Subhash Chandra, Kapil Dev, Mukesh Ambani, Anil Ambani, Sachin Tendulkar, Shahrukh Khan, Karan Johar, Amitabh Bacchan, Ranbir Kapoor, Aishwariya Rai, Preity Zinta and Ness Wadia. Raj Thackery too!

P.S Thanks Neetu, Deval, Gauri & Altaf. Anubha - thanks for everything! You da best!

Paanch minute hain tumhare paas! Paanch minute!

5 minutes is 300 seconds - as if nobody knew!! These 300 seconds sometimes feel so long and sometimes just fades away even before you could react. I had tagged Anubha about her take on 5 minutes and here's her work. Isn't she the best and cute? Since I loved the topic so much I wanted to come up with my version of 5 minutes - hope you enjoy reading this too!

Ever wondered why this 5 minutes acts weirdly crazy on us? The extra 5 minutes of the morning sleep dismisses quickly leaving behind a not-so-rhythmic sound of the alarm clock. The buzzing never seems to happen when you are all geared up for a trek, a visit to a water park or a hill-station outing. Ever wondered why?

Read on: It's just not about the extra sleep, it's about a zillion things that the happens to us in the daily routine. It's 4:55PM, I am at work, absolutely seeing every second ticking away, but it doesnt't seem to end. This time, perhaps, the 300 seconds just decided to move at a pace of 3000 seconds! Phew! Earlier in the same day, it was my weekly status meeting and obviously I forgot to get my reports done. For my status meeting at 11AM I started to work on my report at 10:45AM and the 15 minutes just vanished. Aaargh!

Scene this - My friend is smiling and staring at the laptop. I asked him, "Dude, wassup? What are you smiling at?" He responds back, "Arre, woh aanewali hain 5 minute mein!!" He is over-joyous and is watiting for his girlfriend and they chat their weekend away to glory. I meet him almost at the end of the day and he shoots a statement, "Twas so quick yaar!!" (Damn, it was more than 8 hours!!)

5 minutes before a break during a lecture seem so long and the 5 minutes of the break seems shorter. 5 minutes of the flight delay when you plan to meet your girlfriend seem long and the 5 minutes while kissing her goodbye seems shorter.

Ever wondered why? How does these 5 minutes matter to you? Why?

Yet to understand the tale of 5 minutes,
~RJ

I want to be a girl!

Folks, before you start your thinking engines, this ain't any kind of a ribald humour neither am I promoting the sex change operation. But if there is another life that I could live, I want to be born as a girl! I have my own reasons and maybe this would get through your gates too.

One of the most important reasons I want to be a girl is the priviledge of giving birth to someone. Guys - all of you are also involved in the process but as always we do the easy thing and get out leaving the pain for them to suffer. I would love to see myself giving birth to someone and taking the onus to bear that pain for once. I know this could sound as a wacka cracken thought but in this age where fathers are killing daughters, children killing their parents, husbands killing wives, death tolls taking a top gear and all this happening mercilessly , I want to give birth to feel special, to feel that something and then hear someone say to me, "You did good, you were brave. He/She looks exactly like you". Whoa! I get the jitters!

Read on - I am not crazy! I feel a million percent that girls are smarter than guys in most of the aspects. Scene this: Our family of 4 finished lunch and we are all helping mom to put the used utensils in the sink. My mom tells my dad to transfer the left over dal to a smaller utensil so that she could clean the bigger one which she used to cook the dal. And what follows is super fun - my dad obviously picks a smaller utensil pours the dal into it just to find that its much smaller to hold everything. Mom gives him a stare and tells him in tamil, "aacha..oru vellai ki iru vellai acha" roughly meaning "Did you successfully manage to increase my workload 200%?". My dad is helplessly grinning. This is a comparison of a 30 years experienced, distinction graded Civil Engineer vs a metric passed woman!! My mom could say what would fit into what with her eyes closed - not because shes trained on household chores, because she's a woman and women are smarter! Let's just plainly accept it!

It's not only about a housemaker, consider an architect, an interior designer, a fashion designer, a choregrapher, a painter - I am sure their work is better than a male conterpart. The reason is women see colors, the way it should be seen, they see it with all liveliness. I would think one of the major reasons this happens is because they talk about others earrings, their dress, their hairstyle, neigbours furniture etc. Talking about these things invariably improves their creative mastery. Can you imagine a guy saying, "Dude, that's a nice tie-pin. I wanted to buy one like that for ages?"

Many of my friends complained that its the gossip that we can't handle. I am so sure that guys love all the gossip. The husbands like to hear from their wife about their neighbours job, trust me I have seen such cases. Once in the elevator, a guy telling his colleague, "Did Tanya file her divorce? She was screaming over the phone the other day, I think it was her husband." The other guy asks, "What was she saying?" If woman gossip, men gossip too!

Lets give them their space, its ok for them to talk about earrings, necklaces, scarves, shoe color, finger rings, lipsticks when you talk about X-box, PSP, BMW Z series, Ironman & cricket!!

We don't want to live in a planet where everybody think from their mind. We need people to think from their heart too and only they can do it. For those who think women can just take decisions thinking from heart, remember we have a political leader of a ruling party and the President of the nation as live examples.

I wanna be a girl and hail womanhood! (P.S I am not a feminist!)
~RJ

Note: All my guy friends I still love you and I am not gay! Feel happy that I can be your girlfriend in your next life! LOL!

Sweet smell of failure

"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" - Winston Churchill

I normally don't like to paste articles from forwarded emails, new articles, internet sites etc. but this was special. KKR - Kolkata Knight Riders is not performing well in the 1st season of IPL and here's something that the team owner had to say to his guys.

SRK's SMS: "Story time boys... I told you if you keep losing you have to bear with my long, boring msgs.... This is your punishment.... Many times I have made movies which don't do well.... When I'm doing them, of course, I don't know they won't do well.... The story is written by somebody else and I just do my bit as an actor. But I have a way of dealing with flop stories, I try my best to keep my character in the film at a level that it makes a failed story also special for me....

I enjoy the work.... I make jokes about the failure.... And, of course, feel awful about it too.... So, right now, all of us have become part of a failed script... A bad IPL script.... Let's try and keep our characters worthy of still looking back at this story and remembering it as a special story becos we all worked very hard at this....

So, chin up and don't spoil yr character in the next two games.... Let's go out with a bang and not a whimper.... In films, we say u r only as good as yr last film.... So let's make the whole world know how good we r in the last (maybe not) two games...

Also, do ignore all this bit about Dada, me and John having issues.... It's a normal thing in the world.... People like to hit you when u r down.... So, we will be hit.... No stress.... It will make us stronger.... The only way to avoid this is to win.... That's one of the reasons why everybody likes to be a winner....

On the other hand, the beauty of failure is that it brings people together.... So, let's stick this out together.... You know me well enuff to know I am not the kind of owner who has issues with the team 'cos of losses... I am too much of a sport myself to get beaten by defeats.... Like you guys are.... Like Dada and John....

I am still trying to understand the code of conduct expected of me at the matches of the IPL.... ICC... etc.... After I understand it, I will decide whether to accept it or not.... Till such time, I will be with you guys at the hotel... in the meetings etc., but won't come for the matches.... So, please don't ever feel it is anything to do with us as a team....

I am as dedicated to my Knights as I am to my kids.... Only, I won't be coming to the class room till the headmaster's rules are understood by me.... I am a bit anti-establishment kind of a guy, so I apologise for this quirk to u all.... So, head's up.... Have a good match and let's make 200 runs tomorrow.... This 150 seems to not work any more."

Who wouldn't want to work with a front-runner with such amazing sense of leadership? The message is motivational, inspirational & commanding. For folks who want to cavil this thought, we should just buy the fact that he's indeed the "King Khan".

Cheering for KKR,

~RJ

இது என்னுடைய முதல் தமிழ் கட்டுரை!!

சந்தீப் டேகு செய்ததினால் தான் இந்த கட்டுரையை நான் எழுதுகிறேன். என்னுடைய முதல் தமிழ் கட்டுரையை எழுதி போஸ்ட் பண்றதுக்கு எனக்கு ரொம்ப சந்தோஷமா இருக்கு. முதலில் சந்தீப், காயத்ரி, அனுபா மற்றும் வித்யா அவர்களை ப்ளாக்ல சந்திப்பதில் ரொம்ப சந்தோஷமா இருக்கு. இவர்கள் எல்லாருமே எனக்கு நல்ல நண்பர்கள் மற்றும் சிறந்த எழுத்தாளர்கள்.

அதிர வைக்கிற மாதிரி ஐடியா கொடுப்பதில் சந்தீப் பெரிய ஆளு!!!!

சில நாட்களாக நான் நிறைய கட்டுரைகள் படித்து அதனுடன் என்னுடைய கருத்துகளையும் பரிமாறி கொள்கிறேன். சில நாட்களாக நான் போஸ்ட் பண்ணுவது கொஞ்சம் கமி ஆயிடுச்சு. ஆனால் இப்பொழுது எனக்கு என்னுடைய தாய் மொழி தமிழில் எழுவதற்கு வாய்ப்பு கிடைத்ததினால் உற்சாகம் அடைந்து உள்ளேன்.

இது இல்லாமல் என்னுடைய இடுப்பு அளவு 36 இல் இருந்து 32 ஆகா குறைத்து உள்ளேன் என்னுடைய கடின உடற்பயிற்சியால். மற்றும் அதை 30 இல் இருந்து 31குள் குறைக்க முயற்சிக்கிறேன்.

இவ்வளவையும் நான் எழுதி ரொம்ப டயர்ட் ஆயிட்டேன். நிச்சயமா இத படிச்சு நீங்களும் டயர்ட் ஆயிருபீங்க :D

இதே போல எழுதி கொண்டும் சிரித்து கொண்டும் காலத்தை இன்பமாக அனுபவிப்போம்!!


P.S This is my mother tongue tamil. Sandeep this post is coming out just coz' you tagged :). Anybody who could decipher this piece of text would be a genius!! Waiting for all your comments and I tag Gayathri, Anubha, Vidhya - post something in your mother tongue!!

Ambi & Prithvi - thanks a ton for helping me get this act together :D

Chicken burrito with no chicken please!!

In about 2.5 years, I have travelled enough to observe the antics performed by our people in flights. An acrid debate would follow which believes this is just an exception of crowd - but it is indeed a larger exception. A bunch of aviophobic people packing the dhoklas, teplas and farsan get onto the bird. Believe me packing your teplas is not bad - it's indeed a good idea but we also need to understand and respect the culture of the visiting nation.

I would like to share my experience during my flight from JFK to BOM. I was busy enjoying the movie Hera Pheri after my dinner. The smiling Punjabi family next to me was loud to the extent that the sound scale was over a 100 decibel and it could penetrate my headphones to the ear drums. The head of the family wanted to come out(he was seated in a center seat) for his bio-break (10th time in 4 hours!!). I decided to do some stretching, given no choice but to get up from my aisle seat. There was some space close to the emergency exit door and I decided to stand there for sometime till my Punjabi neighbour could get it. He decided to join me and started talking about his kids, their American wives, specifically the Black American wife of the younger son, bad service in the flight almost everything when I patiently waited for him to finish and get back to his seat which would allow me enjoy my rest of the movie. By this time, an air hostess passed by and shes asked us, "Sir, would you like some ice-cream?" I said, "No, thanks". My dear Punjabi friend replied, "Oye, ice-cream ko chod, beer-sheer hojaye!". She just smiled and walked away.

Now this is not the only problem we carry on our backs. We start to believe that for the hefty sum we paid for the economy class we should get all that's available. The so called whites look down upon Asians for many reasons - lack of hygiene, lack of dressing sense, loud talking, rushing for no reason, no patience, anger, uncool attitude, too much involvement in other people's life and the list goes on.

We all need to also understand that we as Indian travellers, Indian software engineers, Indian doctors, Indian shop-keepers in a foreign land are brand ambassadors of India and at all times should be proud to represent our country at par with others. A bit of decency, a bit of awareness of the other culture is very important during travelling and living in a different nation.

Another funny incident that shook me was when I went to this Mexican joint called "Taco-Bell" with one of my vegetarian friend. She was quick enough to tell "A chicken burrito with no chicken please!!". My reaction was, "What??!" and she smiled and said "Chalta hain!". The "chalta hain" is a killer word!

We can either think and improve ourselves or learn from others. The other option is to say, "Saala desi, yahan aake bhi sudregaa nahi!!"

Keep smiling, keep posting!
~RJ

The "R" in my life

As a kid, I couldn't pronounce the alphabet "R", instead of R it would be Ya. For instance, Ram would be Yam. This happened till the 10th grade. I was thinking about one funny incident that happened when I was in my 6th or 7th class. My mom told me to get bread from the shop close to our house.

So I am at this shop called Sai-Krupa and ask him, "bhaiyya, bread dona". He ignores me and I again ask him, "bhaiyya, bhaiyya bread dona". This time around he gets irritated and gives me a blade. 7'0 clock blade. I was like, "bhaiyya, yeh nahi..bread chahiye" and he replies saying, "yehi blade hain humhare paas".

I am totally embarassed and point my finger towards the bread and tell him, "woh chahiye Wibbs ka bread". He angrily replied, "toh bread bolona...blade kya hain". I was sadly thinking to myself - "kitne time bola...samaj mein nahi aaya aapko". Similarly, I used to fear that nobody should ask me my name. My name is Bharathiraja. Let me be frank and tell you, when people asked me my name i used to say "Bhayathiyaja". There's no take away from this post, I remembered this incident today so thought of sharing it with you guys!!

Keep yeading and keep yolling...oops..keep reading and keep rolling!!
~RJ

That's my bro - featured!!

Check this out! He used the camera and he's featured. It's a short post about the yet to be launched Mahindra Ingenio. It's featured in cubi[CC]apacity - the Indian Automobile Arena.

This is what an iPhone can do :)
~RJ

Break the ice or wait till it melts!

[Based on a true life story] :D

Kurty told me the other day over some conversation that it was difficult for him to break the ice, but once he does he can sail in pretty smoothly. What about me? Do I have the same problem? - Phew! I think I have that problem too! It's called breaking the ice & sometimes it can also be called breaking the face. One quick inputs from my wannabe rockstar friend was pick-up lines. I feel pick-up lines with all those add-ons don't work. I asked him a few examples of pick-up lines and here's what he had to say - it's just a few of his whole lot!

Did the sun come out or did you just smile at me?

You see my buddy there? He wants to know if you think I'm cute, smart and sexy

Do you have a map? (She says: No, why?) Because I keep getting lost in your eyes

If you were a tear in my eye, I would not cry for fear of losing you

The last time I saw you, I was dreaming

Funny isn't it? Later I realised I could find all of these in the web. My friend has a book full of pick-up lines and he carries them all the time. Ok - I just made this one. Pick-up lines can be funny but it's not encouraging for the girl. The least she could do is smile or the worst she would do is slap! You don't want to be there in either of the scenarios.

So what else can one do? Maybe a smile. Just a plain smile. I have tried this and many times what followed was ignorance. Some girls can be rude or they just wanna make you look funny. She might give you the worst look as if you did something disgusting. Some sweet girls smile back and others smile at everybody claiming to have a sweet smiling face - you want to stay away from those. My take on a smile is - A smile might work sometimes only, you should try it once!

The safest bet is to be yourself. Just move your ass and start a striking conversation. A conversation should follow after being enough observant. What she wears? what she holds? Is she a gadget(ipods,cell phones, portable dvd players) freak or she reads a lot? All this would just help you start a conversation with her. Now when you start a conversation, try not to kill the conversation. Ask her a question for which she has to explain the answer and not finish up by saying yes or no. Do you love to read? Vs You are a reading freak, how come you can read all the time?

It's easier said than done. All I know is it's more harder than you imagine it would be to start a conversation. A bit of confidence might show you a way.

Being punched on the face a numerous times, signing out in dysphoria!!
~RJ

Special thanks to Divya aka Sheval, Shveta, Neets & Kurt!

Will you "dowry" me!!??!

Believe me or not folks, but eavesdropping is poppin! You learn how happy you are when you listen a sad story, realize how lucky you are when you listen about a fateful destiny, makes you feel richer when you hear a poor speak and sometimes eavesdropping gives a bit more!

Location: Newark Penn Station
Scene: Waiting for the 5:49PM South Amboy Local train. A boy gets super excited meeting his friend after a long time (I am guessing the "long time" bit of it)

Boy: Hey felli
Girl: Andy, hii!! how have you been?
Andy: I am doing well Sherry! I tried to call you up in the morning today

(Both look very Indian and for some reason I was inquisitive to know their real names. Andy gets a phone call and he answers saying "Anand here" & Sherry still has her work I.D hanging around her neck which read Sherin Yeleswarapu)

Sherin: My flight was delayed by few hours so got in a bit late
Anand: So, how did it all go?
Sherin: The market is down these days, so the trip wasn't very fruitful
Anand: What do you mean?
Sherin: Dude, the stocks are soaring high and our family can't afford it. Moreover, its against my ethics to pay and get married
Anand: Oh! it still exists, I mean..uhmmm..is it still a practise?
Sherin: Yea! ask me about it, an engineer is worth a five hundred thousand, a doctor costs around the same, a lawyer is a ten hundred thousand, double the figures for a US degree.
Anand: Aww..thats sad!! Btw who marries a lawyer - just kiddin Sherin!
Sherin: (smiles) Do they want a girl or her money? Its really sad.

I got onto my 5:49 train with a powerful thought - Do they want a girl or her money? Very true, isn't it? I was wondering how the attitude of a selfish and a selfless mind works. A selfless mind who will leave her parents & family for you, cook food for you, change her last name to yours, accept your habits & mannerisms and many more against a selfish mind who needs all this and money for just getting married!!

Folks, its marriage, so let's keep it simple! Love for love, trust for trust and compromise for compromise! Let money not intervene our decision of loving or marrying somebody. At the same time gals, if your father wants to gift the son-in-law something huge expensive - we all really love such care! Lol!

Love thy would-be,
~RJ

Just say "No"

I am always amidst funny incidents. The other day at the train station a beggar (if I can call so) or an extensively money deprived man walked up to me and my friends and said, "Guys, I have to get till Linden. I have 5 dollars and need 2 bucks." Ahem - I am new to this country, I don't know how they treat such people here, should I say no, run away from there, smile at him or stay put-a thought that suddenly irrupted into the conscious mind.

I chose to play safe and just nodded my head in an disapproving fashion(READ: Indian fashion), Shai turned his face, so did the other guys standing along. He vociferated, "Guys, just say no! Don't turn your heads the other way". At that moment I felt I should have given him the 2 bucks!! A white man (No - this is not a racist term here, a white man is called "a white man") smiled at me and said, "Did you see that beggar with a f***ing attitude? You ask money and you showing such huge starry attitude". Phew! I felt a bit relieved! I took the train back home and was thinking to myself, the beggar made a point. If I had no interest of giving him 2 bucks I shouldn't have ignored his question, rather I should have said, No!

I also think its probably more to the Indians, we take it so personally when we have to say no. It's not that we lack assertiveness, we just feel its necessary to meet everybody's expectations. When asked one of my friends, he said, "I feel guilty when I say no" - trust me one of the smart workers at work.

Saying no at work, to your boss, to your relatives, to your parents, to relationships-both which work and don't work, sometimes to beggars should not be difficult. Also with saying no comes the fact of accepting "no" as an answer.

Say no without feeling guilty, say no with confidence.
~RJ

Do you have children?

Folks, I am gonna be writing more frequently now - I promise. I have been busy watching IPL and reading "The Reluctant Fundamendalist" by Mohsin Hamid. I have also started studying again and it feels good to be doing something different than the usual.

I wanted to share an interesting conversation that happened during my recent kickboxing class - Damn! I was so confused!

Xena, a japanese girl, petite & strong has been training for 3 years or more. We were engaged in our regular kickboxing drills wherein at one point you just stay out waiting for the other guys to complete their drill. She started talking to me in the class of more than 10 people. I was a regular and picked up the moves pretty well, pretty soon - maybe she kinda liked my determination! I am not being pompous.

Xena: hey, your moves are good & too soon
Me: hey..thanks a ton! Your kicks look powerful too. I am Raj and u..?
Xena: (smiling) I am Xena. Yeah! I am surviving
Me: You taking the class on Thursdays too?
Xena: No, I have a late class and I hate my school
Me: (smiling) You sure do. I work and I like it, moreover, this class and tennis keeps me refreshing
Xena: Not that I am a ubbie, it's just that I hate the long commute. Again, I have no choice as my daughter learns dancing in Jersey City.
Me: Daughter??..!! (Here's where I start getting confused & my confusion never ends. Remember folks, I told you she was petite, looked between 18-22)
Xena: Yeah, she keeps me on my toes
Me: How old is she?
Xena: The elder one is 15 and the younger one is 11
Me: (about to faint) Ok ----I had no other choice but to respond as if I expected the answer---- nice, should be fun
Xena: Do you have children?
Me: No, I am not married yet
Xena: (confused) Yea, but do you have children?
Me: (confused to the core) No (by this time my mind was completely shambolic)

I walk away from that place with a confused look and asking myself, "Do I have children? - damn".

Thats when I remembered my friend telling me when I first entered America. He said, RJ always remember 2 things. First, don't forget the cross streets when you street park you car. Secondly, if somebody asks you "do you have children?" doesn't mean you have to be married!! It is highly possible that a girl might say, "these are my kids and they are living with my boyfriend. I am not married yet."

This is kinda difficult for me to digest because my culture back home in India teaches me to get married and only then have kids. I ain't complaining about the American culture, I understand they have been following this for ages and the Indian culture maybe anal for them. I am just not comfortable with these questions because I can't answer them. Lol!

I am Indian by birth, I understand, I respect & follow my culture. I respect all the other cultures in the world too. If you happen to be in the States and face such a question, be prepared to answer!!

Over & out.
~RJ

Whoaa! Indian Premier League

I have been off for a while now coz' IPL is addictive. Indian Premier League is a 3 hour high action packed cricket game and I have been hooked on to it day-in & day-out. It's also a combination of bollywood and cricket - two big jank in India. Even though SRK might deny and say "it's purely cricket", there is some sense of bollywood attached to IPL.

My bet is on KKR - Kolkata Knight Riders! I am a Knight Rider!
Long Live IPL, long live cricket! I will be on my writing spree soon!

~RJ

Whose land is it anyway?

I was born in Srivilliputtur, Virudhunagar district in Tamil Nadu. Due to my dad's work which shifted to a new location, we quickly packed our bags and moved to Jamshedpur, Bihar where I did my pre-schooling. We relocated to Mumbai in the late 80s coz' my dad got transferred to Mumbai. My dad also spent many months working in Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan & Delhi. My question is which state do I belong now? I always felt I am an Indian. The recent Raj Thackerey furore has alarmed me to an extent that, I feel very controversial saying I was born in Tamil Nadu but raised in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

Thank God we don't need a passport and visa to travel to the different states in India. We can kill the issue saying it's a political gimmick, but that's not the solution. A similar incident happened with the Cauvery water dispute between Karnataka & Tamil Nadu - whose water is it anyway? I can see a day when I have to carry oxygen cylinders to different states coz' I won't be allowed to breathe the air that belongs to that state.

Ironic to the incidents happening these days, I started feeling I learnt the wrong pledge in school which states, "India is my country and all Indians are my brothers and sisters.....". Maybe we should have different pledges for different states. Mine would go this way, "Maharashtra is my state in India, all the water and air in Maharastra belongs to me and I won't share it with anybody. I would also not be involved in any good deeds happening outside Maharashtra". Mr. Raj Thackerey, give us a break!!

My friend who hails from Singapore feels, India is a menagerie of hospitable people living together, respecting each others religions, languages, race and feelings. The feeling is mutual for my friend living in United States. When outsiders talk so highly about our country why do we prove them wrong with our immature thoughts? I strongly feel Indianness is in my blood, I believe the phrase "unity in diversity" evolved after experiencing a feeling called India.

Finally, I would like to state that, "Mujhe na states ke naam sunayi dete hain, na dikhayi dete hain. Sirf ek naam sunayi deta hai I-N-D-I-A" :)

Proud to be an Indian!
~RJ

Show me the money!

One of my friends signature has a line after his name & coordinates which reads "I look at Forbes 100 richest men, if I am not there, I go to work". Out of curiosity, I asked him, "Do you really mean it? to which he replied, "If I am not there, I would feel I haven't achieved enough?" I left from that place thinking to myself, "Is money that important in life, that sombody thinks it as a goal to be achieved?"

As usual, I started reading through bulletins, talking to friends, read almost everything on how people perceive the importance of money. I came across a quote which goes like this - "When you have all the money in the world, you fail to recognize youself & when you have no money with you others fail to recognize you!" - anonymous. Now this quote strikes a balance between the importance of money & perhaps, other things. Other things could be family, friends, work, health etc. I asked my friends 2 different questions.

1) Does money make you happy? - the responses were in negation when pitted against family, friends etc.



2) Does money make you unhappy? (Does the financial problems concern you? is the right way of interpreting this question)- A firm "yes" came out as an answer from most of my friends. Out of the 10 folks I spoke to all prioritized (most important - important) in the order of family, friends and money. Nobody said money is not important :). My dear friend Kurt believed family+friends+money = peace. I couldn't agree more!

Let's not get lost in the process of earning money that we forget ourselves, our family and friends. Money can buy everything but happiness.

Earn enough, spend sensibly, care more, he happy!
~RJ

Promises to make!

I wanted to make two promises after too much complaints from all you guys.

1 - I will keep my posts smaller, so no long posts from now on :)
2 - I'm no Guru and so I won't be preachy (or preachy-pox!!)

It's all. Keep reading and appreciate all your valuable comments.

Quick note on life after death. I always wondered what happens to life after death. What remains? what goes? who stays? who runs? what happens to the mind & who will cry when you die? Surprisingly, I found this book in Crossword, with the same title. Who will cry when you die by Robin Sharma is one of those reads which inspires you, motivates you to do more, makes you feel energetic! It's a self-help book, so all you fiction folks stay away! A line to remember from this wonderful book.

When I was growing up, my father said something to me I will never forget, "Son, when you were born, you cried while the world rejoiced. Live your life in such a way that when you die, the world cries while you rejoice"
-Robin Sharma, Who will cry when you die?

Folks, if you get a chance grab this book. It's quiet an interesting read. I am working on my next short, non-preachy post, ciao soon!

Let's live "our" life,
~RJ

In dino...

It's all about loving yourself in the first place. Reading all posts by my preachy-pox friend makes me think just that. It's really strange how things fall in place once you start loving yourself. You start caring about everyone and everything around you, you start observing things that you generally wouldn't, you start doing simple things, which you otherwise wouldn't have done and these are the things that make you feel better, not because what you did was huge, but because such a seemingly simple thing still made a world of difference to someone.

I am keeping this post abstract for a simple reason that many of you would have started having these experiences after having read the earlier posts that my dear buddy has put on board and that you all would personalize this post by including your own experiences between the lines.

Signing off with a few lines from a song that is one of my favorites!!

In dino....dil mera....mujhse hai...keh raha...
tu......khwaab saja...tu......jee le zara...
Hai tujhse bhi ijaazat, karle tu bhi mohabbat...

-Praf.