Must It Go On

Fashion must go on,
Gucci, Versace and security cordon.
Lovers galore and posh,
Life risqué and debauch.
Fast cars with leather fine,
Diamonds dazzles and shine.
Fly Paris for no reason,
Stay at Four Seasons.
Pâté and caviar,
Champagnes no bizarre.
Months of cruise at sea,
Best greens to tee.
My life is a big con,
Damn! must it go on.

Tea, Coffee & Mom

I do not remember when I first tasted tea but I do remember my mom trying her level best to wean me away from it. The old trick - dude you would look like what is in the cup didn't work for me. I didn't have affinity to milk at all. My mom had ample supply of it from the Jersey cows which she reared but alas! I was no taker for their milk. I would run away, hide, fake being unwell etc. from that glass of milk. But what I remember most was the involuntary tumbling of the milk glass followed by sever scolding and the compulsory spanking. It almost happened daily and I have a strong belief that it was the milk fiend; he didn't like my attitude towards milk and to teach me a lesson would tumble the tumbler. I had absolutely no hand in it and before I would react or offer explanation my mom's wrath and fury would have taken over.

Then she gave up. And I was fed nectar of tea leaves, sweetened just right with a hint of milk. I didn't mind her warning that I would grow weak and small which unfortunately turned true. I have to confess that I have tried quite a variants (white/green/oolong/tisane) but  I come back to the good old intensely sweetened overcooked tea leaves sometimes flavored with ginger/cardamon/cloves/cinnamon etc. I never cared for health benefits of tea and still don't, I just love if for the thing it do to me.

Somewhere along I discovered coffee. I for a while liked it better then tea and started demanding it. Mom was happy initially as it had milk but she happen to read/hear that it is not good for health - she confused caffeine with nicotine and its supply was limited thereafter. But my love for coffee brewed more through the college days. Today, I swing between the regular cappuccinos, espresso and the exotic ones which I can’t even pronounce.

I have always found it difficult to choose when given a choice. Coffee or Tea and I always end up making a wrong choice and then cringe all along looking at the other person's drink and sipping regretful what I choose. I am not definitely absolutely a coffee or tea lover - my loyalty sway.

I only have ONE rule - Coffee on dates and Tea at home ;).

Love AND Hate

I was waiting for her. The last thirty minutes had been the most difficult of my life in a good way. They were restless but blissful moments; finally she had agreed to meet me and I was not certain if she would be there. I didn’t want to be stood up; I would have so hated it. In these thirty minutes, I had seen and experienced more then what I had in my lifetime. I had never been an observer and never cared how people look, how they talk, how they behave and how they react and moreover how vulnerable they are.

She had asked me to wait for her at this busy street corner. On my right was the tea shop, it was more of a stall with a patched up tarpaulin serving as a canopy and saving the tea lovers from the burning summer sun. The smell of the overcooked tea with ginger was awful and just behind was the stationary shop. I am not sure

why she picked this spot but I heard her say, 'I would see you there at 5 PM. 'Where there?' I said in a meek and shy tone. 'The street cornet near the tea stall' and she walked away smiling; she looked and sounded as happy as me. I gave my college lecture a miss and gave a slip to my friends and was there at 4.30 PM.

I looked at my watch it was 5 PM. My heart was beating fast and my mind racing faster then the subway train. My eyes searched for her in the crowd and while the eyes did the searching my mind practised and rehearsed and re rehearsed what I was to say and how I was to carry on with the conversation. I was happy and never had been in so high spirits.

Then it happened. I heard a deafening noise and the next moment I was on the ground and all I could hear was loud voices all around. I could see the blood gush out of my stomach but felt no pain. I passed out and never ever woke up.

How we hate us?

Finally some respite. I heard it's raining intermittently in the hills. Bless us. Finally! We would see some cheers and hopes. Hopes in the hearts of the farmers and cheers to the habitants of the plains - the sun has been harsh on us this April.

Only God knows who is to be blamed for this change. The favorite whipping boy has been the deterioration of the environment by us - felling of trees, emission of gases etc and then the other view - delay in disturbances.

One thing is destined - we would perish much more before this earth at the rate we are killing each other.

How we hate us?

Spot the LEADER

I have been reading about leadership tonight; the though primarily sprouted by a discussion on the FB group. Google returned 110,000,000 results for 'leadership'. No, I didn't read all of 110,000,000 pages but yes I did cherry pick some and found that almost everybody has a view on leadership. It's sad that we still search for one true great Leader.

Let's learn how to spot the leader (my way). Look for some of these qualities:
-Humility. I am no better or worse and would elevate you.
-Vision . Do I see a clear and vivid picture.
-Integrity. Are my actions and value in sync.
-Competence. I have earned my stripes.


It's baffling how some of us hog the limelight; some avoid it and some sulk as they couldn't get it. I have been the avoiding type with shades of sulking type. Some people shine not because they are born to shine but because they have the self belief and conviction to make a difference (I spot a LEADER there). Also, one can't borrow charisma it has to be build. They say you have to be other minded (trying to add value to others) to build charisma. Charisma would get you audience but the character would keep the audience. Character has to be bolstered by integrity. And what about integrity?

Yes, you right! We live in complex time indeed.