Part 1: click here
Part 2: click here
Part 3: click here


 A quick word with his friends across the counter and some teasing remarks from them and he was back by her side. "Shall we?" he said, swaying his hand towards the door in one fluid motion. His casual demeanor surprised her. She probably wasn't used to hanging around men like him, he figured. As he held the door open for her, she got up smoothly and walked out, her firm posture affirming her confidence and style, and they walked out of the store to a few muffled hoots and comments from his friends behind the counter.
"This one's gonna be interesting for sure." he thought, walking into the coffee shop across the road. She had already walked ahead to the counter and asked for her drink. As he proceeded to do the same, Westlife's "Uptown Girl" started playing on the jukebox and he quietly smiled to himself at the irony of the situation. To his surprise, he saw her do the same and couldn't help but wink at her. She just smiled slyly at him and took her seat by a chessboard.
On the white side.
"She likes to be in control..." he noted.
Intrigued, he waited for her to make the first move.
"So, what's your name?" he asked. Standard pick-up line on a regular day, but this time, he really wanted to know.
"Why don't we keep it a secret for now?" she said, not looking up.
He remained silent as he watched her make the first move. Time usually slows down when you're playing something like a game of chess where each move has to be thought of slowly and carefully. And it did for the first couple of minutes. His careless attitude, the casual charm that had floored many a girl right from high-school faltered in front of this self-confident, haughty yet chic woman who had not only captured his attention but practically made him ask her out. Not the way things usually went in his life, and that had caught him by surprise. His conversation initially was that of a high-school boy on a first-time date, not knowing what to say.
"What's your name?",
"Where are you from?",
"So, what do you like?"...
He even thought of starting with a "Sup?" and held himself back in the nick of time.
But as all conversation happen, things started getting a bit smoother as he realized from her tiny smiles and raised eyebrows from time to time that she had been playing him all along, avoiding personal talk and making things difficult for him. Also, that he'd been losing miserably at the game that had been unfolding before his eyes. Time to buck up! he thought and started concentrating on the game, but soon he found that she was truly too good for him. Back and forth, back and forth they rallied their players, dancing to the tunes of their whims, battling invisible battles as he parried her moves with his, their each step revealing just a little bit about each other's thoughts. And beyond the chessboard, their conversation flowed with a rhythm that was just as surprising. He found that her personality was a lot like his own, but beyond that, she was an enigma. So secretive, a closed book to some extent. She revealed nothing about herself, wanting to talk about him instead, yet he sensed no bad intent in that. He himself had lost count of how many women he had tried the John Doe on so that they wouldn't be able to call him back the night after. But she didn't quite seem that type. Here was a woman who was so intriguing, in looks and in personality, and yet so secretive that he knew practically nothing about her. Maybe that's what attracted him to her even more. He didn't know, and that bothered him more than the prospect of winning or losing the game.

"And that's check, and mate." she said, leaning back and taking the final sip of her decaf latte, now lukewarm from the long game.


.

For part 1, click here.


There was nothing he didn't know how to handle. Street smart, reckless and suave, things came easily to him. With a natural charm and rugged looks, life was easy. He cared less about where life took him and liked to go with the flow. That morning, like any other, he hopped into his Mustang and revved up the engine. Nothing soothed him more and nothing pumped more adrenaline into his blood than the sound of her engine. He headed towards the Macy's outlet where he worked to start his morning shift. Money wasn't a concern for him. As long as it paid rent and got him a square meal, he was fine. That morning, though, he was late. So he pressed on the gas and let the Mustang dominate the road as she often did.

He sped through the signals, not missing a beat as each turned red just as he crossed them. He drove by this road enough each day to know how long each signal held. A few blocks away from the store, he pulled over at a signal. A chic Datsun caught his eye. Looking left, he saw a gorgeous woman behind the wheel, hair tied back and held together with a scarf, sunglasses donned over her eyes and a strand of stray hair wafting back and forth in the light wind blowing through her hair. Intrigued, he waited for her to move first as the signal turned green. The woman seemed to enjoy the casual ride, yet seemed lost in thought. She accelerated gracefully and raced past him in one smooth motion. He trailed his eyes after her and raced to catch up. She was going his way anyway after all. Two blocks down, she turned right and into the parking lot of the very store he worked at.

He couldn't believe it!

Pulling up next to her car and peeking into the Datsun, he knew there was something about her. Something mysterious...an air of detatched solitude that made her all the more attractive. He knew she was probably way beyond his league, yet he did not care. He never did anyway. Changing into his work clothes, he rushed into the store to find her browsing through a few clothes at the far end. This was the first time he got a good glimpse of her. With the sunglasses off, he saw that she had hazel brown almond eyes, almost oriental, wavy shoulder length hair tied back with a white silk scarf with maroon checks. She wore denim trousers and a stunning red top with a navy blue shrug. She was looking out the window, lost in thought and in the music plugged into her ears from her ipod, a red bag clutched in her slender hands and lips pursed in a lost look of concentration.

"Ah, what the heck!" he thought and handing over his shift to a colleague, took off his work apron, smoothed out his hair, straightened his clothes and with a confident stride, approached her.


"Hi." he held out his hand, and waited.




And waited.




She looked up at him with a gaze that was a mix of indifference and interest. An irony to say the least.








Then she finally let her lips part into a slight smile.

"Hi."; and held out her hand.




.

Been a long time! MICA's a blast and there's a lot to do. But in the midst of it all, classroom capers are commonplace. So, presenting a few of what I like to call Classroom Shayaris, courtesy yours truly being bored to death from four hours of sleep and a droning professor:


Tere pyaar ne kar diya pagal,
Tere pyaar ne kar diya pagal,
Shareholder's equity is called share capital!
Wah wah wah!
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Dum maaro dum, mit jaaye gum,
Dum maaro dum, mit jaaye gum,
A share's issue price can be at a premium!

(I think this deserves an applause :P )

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Dikhne mein toh tu lagti hai badi sweet,
Dikhne mein toh tu lagti hai badi sweet,
Liabilities and assets come in Balance Sheet!

(sadly jis ladki ko yeh shayari maari, she ran away disgusted. I haven't been able to figure out why :| )

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Kabhi khushi kabhi gum,
Tara pum pum pum,
Chai mein cheeni kum,
Piyo whiskey, piyo rum!
Waaah! waaah!

(this one actually received temporary appreciation)

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Tum mile, dil khile,
tum mile, dil khile,
I'm dying for some steak,
And loads of fish fillet!

(No breakfast, what to do :(

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Main shayar toh nahi,
Magar aye hasin,
Tu likh rahi hai secret mein,
maine share kiya toh sahi!

(after she told me she's blogging at her desk too :D )

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And of course....

Aye Shibani!
Pee le thodi paani,
Yeh lecture chalta raha toh
Khatam meri kahaani!

(We both agreed to that!)

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I'll be back with more after a few more lectures! Till then you guys can plan on ways to kill me.
Until next time!
Ciao!

"I think I can take him." said Vic, rubbing his wrist with his right hand. "Hell no! You'll die before you even lay a hand on him." scolded Arya.

They were travelling from the southern parts of Rajasthani lands, to the lush greens up north, when they'd chanced upon a pair of robbers roaming that area in search of unarmed travellers. They looked like a married couple, the robbers, and when Arya studied them closely, they didn't seem that bad either. But then, as she gazed into each one's eyes, all she could see was nothing. No emotions, just a cold calculating mind. They were the eyes of killers, of one who had learnt to survive with nothing but their partner and the clothes on their backs. It wasn't a pretty picture. The woman walked with a catlike grace, almost as if she could slice open her throat before she could even realize she's moved. Her face was covered with a black cloth that draped around her shoulders and down her back, not unlike the famed Bedouins of the Arabian deserts. Through those drapes, Arya could see a long silver thing, probably a dagger, sticking out from her belt. The man, similarly clad, was more hefty and his arms were scarred beyond recognition, some thin as if cut from a sword, while some were deep gashes lining up his arm as if he'd single-handedly wrestled a desert wolf. 

As they approached the robbers, Arya tensed. She didn't like confrontations of any kind, let alone a fight. She was more of a peace lover. A diplomat so to speak. As far as she remembered, she had shied away from fights, even given up things just to avoid raising an arm, and it had worked for her till now. But the way they looked at Vic and her, she was certain there would be some exchange of threats, and most probably from the ever loose-tongued Vic, and she could not afford that. But then they could not afford to give up anything they had with them either. The deserts were merciless and supplies were essential.

The couple approached them. 

"Well well well...what have we here?" said the woman. 

"So clichéd." whispered Vic to Arya and rolled his eyes.

"Come on Vic, overconfidence killed the cat as well, not just curiosity." Arya thought and then wondered what made her think of that.

"A couple of travellers, like you two." said Vic.

"That I can see smartmouth. Anyway, I ain't one for small talk. We need supplies, you got them. Hand 'em over. Quick!" the woman said, her voice flat and emotionless, so much so that it took the two of them a second to realize the threat she'd implied.

"It's not a good idea to go up against them right now. What if Vic gets injured? Hell, he no doubt will get injured. Just look at that brute behind her! I bet he wouldn't even flinch if I kicked him in the groin." thought Arya. "Can't we negotiate...er..." she started.
"Riz." prompted the woman. "The name's Riz and this 'ere is my man Pasha. But what's in a name, eh? Now, HAND 'EM OVER!"
Arya observed that her raised voice had a distict edge in it. She most certainly was losing patience, which never was a good thing. And so was Vic. She felt his grip on her hand tighten as thoughts of a fight raced through his mind. Vic never was a thinker, and it was mighty hard to control him once he let go.
"No way, Riz or whatever your name is, these are OUR supplies and WE need them. If you think we'll just give up our food without a fight, you're bloody well mistak...!" Arya didn't even realize when Riz had moved, pulled out the silver dagger and held it against Vic's throat even before he could finish his bold challenge.
"Listen here boy, we have little time and even less patience to spare. Do you want to see your girlfriend here die? Or would you like to go first? Do as we say if you know what's best."
Vic wasn't a slow one himself. He sidestepped to his right and in the same fluid motion tried to grab Riz's arm, hoping he could twist it into his own grip but the moment he reached out, he felt a sharp piercing pain in his forearm. He jumped back a step, saw something move out of the corner of his eye and ducked just in time to see a silver blur fly past his ear, taking a bit of his hair with it. Riz was faster than either of them had imagined. She'd countered Vic's move with a short quick slice from her dagger, cutting into his arm, all the while anticipating his movement and thrown her dagger in the direction Vic would have landed had he not noticed it in the nick of time.
All this happened in a matter of few seconds and then, "VIC!!!" shouted Arya and rushed to his side. Vic kneeled there, clutching his forearm while blood slowly dripped through his fingers and onto the ground. "Stop it! Don't hurt him anymore!" she shouted, tears now welling up in her eyes. "Take whatever you want! Just don't kill him. Please!!"
Vic growled, an almost animal rage taking him over. "Stay out of this Arya..I won't let these thugs take away our food and water. Now stand back!" He roared, pushed her to the side and charged forward towards Riz who was now unarmed and watching them with a hint of amusement, as if she didn't believe in this drama.
"WATCH OUT VIC!!"
But it was futile. Time almost slowed down as Arya saw Vic charge towards Riz while Pasha unhooked a huge whip from his belt and pulled back.
CRACK! 
As a gunshot, the sound rang out in the air and suddenly things came back into perspective and she saw Vic flung upwards and then flat down onto the ground from his own momentum as the long black whip wrung his neck like a Mamba about to strike it's prey down. He lay on the ground, gasping for breath, tugging at the whip, writhing in pain and from lack of oxygen.
She could bear it no longer. Tears escaped her eyes as Arya fell to the ground, begging for mercy.
"Please let him go, I beg of you. He will die if you don't let him go. Let him go!" She collapsed on the ground, sobbing, got up again, trying to stand. Her mind was in turmoil and her body did not listen to her. Her friend was dying and she would no doubt follow him. Or get stranded in the middle of this desert with nothing to eat or drink. She could see Vic turning pale, his soul trying it's best to hang on to his body while the death-noose pulled it away from this world. She didn't know what to do. All she could say was "Please let him go. Please. Please!" Suddenly she found some strength in her an flung herself at Riz, she didn't know why. Riz raised one hand and brought it down hard against her face and she went flying back. She felt giddy, nauseous from the punch. Her face stung and blood flowed freely from her nose which was now bent in a way it shouldn't. She lay on the sand, watching helplessly as Pasha put one leg on Vic's chest and pulled the whip, a crooked smile on his face.
"This can't be happening. Not now...No.. no.." she repeated to herself.
Riz walked over and picked up her dagger. "Now what can we do with this thing. I wonder..." she toyed with it, tossing it up in the air, twirling it between her fingers as she casually walked up to Vic and knelt beside him. "You do have a big heart, boy."
"Please Riz, let him go. You can take all you want from us." pleaded Arya.
"Trying to save your food and your girlfriend..."
"Don't hurt him..."
"Let's have a look at it right now, shall we?" and she raised her dagger.
"No...no...NO!" Arya saw the hilt of the dagger gleam in the light of the setting sun.
Riz tensed her grip and brought it down on Vic's chest.

"NO...NO....NO!!!" 

Arya sat up, screaming, as she saw the dagger slice the air as it moved swiftly towards his chest. Her mind could take it no longer. Her vision blurred...

Suddenly, there was a searing pain in the back of her head, as if someone or something was pushing at it. From the inside. Her mind screamed and she threw back her head, screaming along with it. The pain originated from the base of her skull and shot across to the top of her head like a bolt of lightening. She saw Red. Violet. Magentas..colours she could not name. Her entire spine was ablaze with heat. She heard her bones crack..no, crackle, as if they were paper being crumpled and crushed. Down her spine, the bolt of lightening pain moved down to her legs and back up again into her groin.
She let out a feral scream and her body began to change.


.

It seems that nowadays, the only times I blog or write is when I'm high. Which is why I blog less these days :P But seriously, words flow easier when you're drunk. Be it words you say or type. Although typing becomes a problem and I'm thankful for my awesome predictive text programme to correct my shitpot English when I type drunk. Anyway, as I was about to say...and as I've said many times before, what better way to get high than on life and with friends?
Well, I got selected to MICA, which is arguably the premier institute for communications management in India, and I couldn't be happier! My dream is becoming more and more real. Slowly yes, but surely it is. Two more weeks and I leave my home, my friends and childhood memories in Mumbai and shift to Ahmedabad for two years. MBA is gonna be a huge step for me, and however much I may downplay it, I'm nervous as shit. Hostel life's definitely something to look forward to. And since I'll be gone for two years and then get placed God knows where, this will probably be the last time I'll meet some of my friends here in Mumbai. I met a bunch of them today, and they gave me two awesome ties to wear at MICA, so a BIG thanks to all of you.
You guys rock!

Lately, I've been spending major time at bookstores, reading this wonderful graphic novel series called Buddha by Osamu Tezuka. Him being the godfather of Manga n all, it really lives up to his reputation and expectations. I'm on the fourth novel and can't seem to wait to read more. Sadly owing to my broke state of finances, I really can't afford to buy these books, so I read them on the couches of the nearest Crossword bookstore. I do plan to buy them though in the near future. I used to think Buddha's life was all about preaching the values of Buddhism to his followers(boring as I saw it to be) but NO, I was so wrong! His life was as exciting as it could be! You guys should really pick this one up!



Also, THE FIRST RAINS ARE HERE! We got a nice drizzle going here in Mumbai, and the Earth smells heavenly! I can just sit at my window for hours listening to the rain and the sounds of nature. Luckily(and unluckily in some ways, though I won't elaborate on those) my home is in a very green part of town, so much so that we have all kinds of insects, animals and lizards all over this colony. So much so that it's almost like a mini jungle out here. I'd found a seven foot rock python under my car last monsoon. I found an amazing variety of insects taking shelter from the rains under the stairwell leading to my doorstep...now usually insects creep me out, but these? They were beautiful! Vivid Violets, brilliant blues, emerald greens, magnificent magentas even! I couldn't believe the myriad of colours that were crawling about on the ground! I wish I had my camera with me so you guys could check them out. Maybe next time.

Anyway, I'm quite buzzed now, and need some shut eye. So with the crickets singing me my lullaby and the rains pattering on my window, I bid you adieu and hope I write more often so that I get to talk to you guys sooner!

Cheers and happy monsoons!

P.S. Some great golden oldies playing on the radio. I'm loving this day more and more!

Before I tell you guys about the final days at Sri Lanka, and to get my writing cells warmed up and running again, here's a tag by Insignia. A simple one really, so lazy me doesn't have to think too much about it :P Then again, I never do think much in the first place. So, here goes...

Oh, and along with it, there's also an award from her as well:

Thank you so much Insignia!

A good turn is one that's passed along. So I'll be giving this award to all those whom I tag 

*evil grin*

Now, what this tag is all about? I have to write 3 GOOD THINGS about me, me and ONLY ME!! BWAHAHAHAHA!!!!

ahem.

Still, makes sense, since as Insignia said, there are three cakes, so three things ^_^

For the first cake....

I am a sucker for emotions. I feel for anyone who feels sad, dejected or low in any way whatsoever and tend to want to help them even if it means going out of my way.

Onto the second!

I can get along with almost everyone, meaning I'm a nice guy. Now I don't know whether that's really a good thing or not, coz quite a few times I've got stuck with those icky-sticky-nosy types that I couldn't bear to be rude to. But still, being nice is nice.

And now for the third and final helping of sweet sweet cake!

I'm not too picky about stuff. As long as it fulfils my basic requirement, I'm happy.

Well, the cakes tasted great, and I'm gonna share it with:

Esther

Umesh

Nidhi

Nikhil

Pick up your award and tag guys!!

And show some love for Nikhil at Catastrophic Creativity. He's just started blogging and does it great!

Cheers!

Post-breakfast Gerard took us to the insanely huge botanical gardens in Kandy..I mean really really insanely huge...146 acres! Try walking across that! We had about an hour and half to cover it all. Possible? Even Mastercard can't help us with this one!! We pretty much roamed ourself silly around the HUGE gardens filled with the most exquisite flowers and trees that you can find! Some were so small and delicate I felt like they'd just fall to pieces if I touch them while other plants(yes plants!) were so large, I could probably hide in one of them! And then there were the trees! The old stolid behemoths of the natural world, humongous in size, and ever growing, spreading their green wings, providing shade to the creatures beneath them. Benevolent beings, observing all but disturbing none. I was in awe of them. If this was what I felt in a botanical garden, just imagine what it must be like in the real rainforests! I'm gonna go to the Amazons for sure, if it's the last thing I do before the world destroys itself in 2012 :P

Well we barely covered one fourth of it in an hour and half, but in the bargain, saw some of the most beautiful flowers and plants in my life; especially the orchids! Oh my! Each orchid looks like a little being peeping out of it with it's hands joined. I have never seen anything so fascinating in my life! Oh and I finally saw a Pink Orchid too :D So Miss Rane, here's one to you! Creepers, climbers, mahogany, ebony, teak, rubber, vines, leaves!! Oh my! There was just so much to see and so little time....it's true for everything in life I guess...A long long walk and several oohs and aahs later, time was up and the Elephant orphanage beckoned.


Now this orphanage was started by rescuing some of the baby elephants that were abandoned or orphaned due to poachers(damn bastards should be shot at sight!) From the time it was started, it has grown into a great success with so many of the elephants thriving and living a healthy life here. When we reached there, the eli's were having a gala time down at the riverside taking a nice cool bath. After an hour of riverside frolicking they stomped their way across the busy streets into their home. Back at the shelter, the baby elephants were then fed milk through really big bottles that they gulped down in seconds and all of us were like Is he really full or was that just a snack? but then one bottle per baby elephant seemed to be it. I finally got to see the grandmaster of that entire orphanage, the first elephant to be rescued and brought to the centre - A massive ten or twelve foot tall blind tusker! It was so huge I had to crane my neck all the way up to look at it! It was awesome at the same time really sad to see such a magnificent creature so critically disabled that it had to be kept in chains to prevent it from hurting itself or other elephants at the orphanage.

One thing that I did remember to do was to buy poopaper :D Alisha Iyer over at The Eternal Chatter of a Capricious Mind had sent me a very interesting mail when she heard that I was going to Sri Lanka that said there was a shop that sold products made from Elephant dung! How awesome is that! :P So I just HAD to buy something from there. So I got a model elephant and a few notebooks made from elephant dung. And No, they don't stink. Elephants are veggies, so their poop doesn't stink when dry :D
Well, that was it for the day...we skipped an elephant ride since I think each of us has done that at least once before, and we had a long long journey of a few hours ahead to our next destination -

Bentota beach!! Yeehaw!
Sun, surf and sand! Here we come!

Good morning Lanka!!

Five-thirty was the time to leave and we were to go for a...


wait for it...


HOT AIR BALLOON RIDE! 

YAAAAAYYYY!!

Seriously, I was so excited! It would be my first time in one of those! I've always imagined floating across jungles and mountains and the sea in one of those! I think my wish was answered this time!
As we reached the take-off location, we could see the behemoth raise it's head, undulating it's innumerable coils, waiting to strike.. *shudder*...

Ahem...sorry, got carried away...

Actually it was a magnificent sight, the balloon taking shape as air and helium was slowly pumped into it. Finally, after about ten minutes, it was ready and we climbed in and the balloon took off. With us, there were a local Sri Lankan family of three and two Israeli sisters Sowanda and Akheili. Our pilot Justin was great, been flying for five seasons in Lanka and really good at it.

As we went higher and higher, the view slowly unfolded before us...crops, fields, forest and hills. To our right, there was the sun, just peeking out of the horizon and growing larger in size, drenching everything it touched in a golden hue. The hills were covered with mists that had just started to clear up and drift slowly with the wind. We went higher than the lowest misty clouds, higher than the hills and the trees grew smaller and smaller. The view, coupled with the amazing weather from last night's thunderstorm was just the perfect blend for flying. Below us, the lake spread out and it was so clear we could actually see a few large fish even from such a great height! It was getting quite hot though each time Justin fired the gas to make us rise higher. The tricky part of ballooning is not the flying but the landing. You've to find the right spot close to a road to land and if you miss it, you're in for a hell of a walk! Luckily, Justin managed to land us in a clump of seven feet tall grass, plants and weed and we had to half climb, half crawl out of the basket to get onto the road. Once all of us were out, Justin handed us glasses of champagne and we celebrated the successful flight. A little friendly banter and we headed back to our hotel. In the car, the Israeli sisters told us they'd been to Himachal, Kerala, Maharashtra and so many other places and that they loved it here in India. All I thought was that they'd been to more places in India than I'd been. Which is a bit sad but true in so many cases. We are great tourists in other countries but barely travel our own.

Anyway, we came back to our hotel and chilled in our room for an hour or so. Watched Death Race just for the heck of it. After checking out, we headed to a buddhist temple of Buddha. It was a magnificent golden statue rising about a hundred feet above our heads. It had a row of statues of monks holding offerings leading to Buddha, and from afar, they looked so real I stared at them for minutes, wondering why they weren't moving ahead!

Dambolla caves were another marvel of Buddhist architecture. They are a series of natural caves in the mountain that the buddhist monks used as their prayer grounds and meditation halls. One cave had 56 buddha statues surrounding the main floor where the monks would sit chanting the Holy Name. The atmosphere there, even with the tourists and small halogen lights, was so serene that it was easy to imagine a hundred monks chant in unison, their voices merged as one omnipresent sound of God. The same cave had a curious and supposedly divine phenomenon - water which usually drips towards the ground, seeped against gravity up one side of the wall and dripped down onto the middle of the cave from it's highest point. Call it reverse osmosis or plain divinity, it was a phenomenon to behold! Me and others carrying cameras were informed not to take photos with any Buddha statues since that would be disrespectful to Him. All around the caves and even that mountain grew lotus and water lilies, the native flowers of that area and the symbol of Buddha. I'd wanted to sit there and meditate for sometime, but time pressed upon me. It was a 2 and 1/2 hr drive to Kandy where we went to check out the Temple of the Tooth, so called because it has the actual tooth of Gautama Buddha. Upon arrival, we found a lot of security and armed forces there because of LTTE bombing of that temple in 1998. A curious thing that left me wondering was that when the bombing happened, all of the temple was damaged except the chamber where the tooth was kept. Divine protection? I'd like to believe so.

Inside the temple was a gallery with Buddha's life story as well as how the tooth came to be here. I was told that the temple of the Tooth was rebuilt and expanded three times by three different Kings. Here, prayers are held 3 times a day - 5:30am, 9:30am and 6:30pm - that is the only time when people are allowed to go near the golden casket where the tooth is kept. The casket is opened once in 4-5 years and amidst a mega-scaled celebration of traditional dance, music and prayer, the tooth is shown to the public. It happened last year, so sadly we missed it by a year. Dammit! :P

"Good morning ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to Colombo airport. Outside temperature is 25 degrees. Please ensure you take care of all your belongings when you leave the plane. On behalf of the crew of Air India, this is your captain wishing you a pleasant stay. Thank you."

Lanka.

Land of Singhal where the shaker-of-the-three-realms, Ravana grew his empire, and also the place where Rama defeated the rakshasa king and enforced the power of dharma over adharma. And now, we were there - my sister Sanghamitra, her husband Manu and me. One Mr.Gerard, our tour guide greeted us with a warm handshake at the airport. Over the course of the next few days, he would take us around the island country, showing us the sights and sounds to be seen. And as I found out, we couldn't have got a better guide. I shall be posting his details up at the end of my post so that any of you guys who wanna go there for a short vacation can get in touch with him directly. Anyway, back to the story...we handed him a crate of Heineken beer that he'd asked for from the duty free shops inside the airport. It turns out that his daughter is a flight attendant with Sri Lanka airlines and getting a bottle of scotch is not an issue for her since it's just one bottle of liquor, but not and entire crate of beer. Anyway, a big toyota SUV as our ride found me dozing off to sleep in minutes, exhausted from waking up so early to take the flight. (Why do international flights require us to reach the airport at such unearthly hours I could never figure out) When I woke up, I found us pulling into a bright outdoorsy restaurant named Saruketha. A friendly attendant greeted us at the entrance with folded palms and a soft "Ayubowan" which means "long life". It was such a nice refreshing and traditional welcome. We called for some glasses of juice and for main course came a sea-food platter filled with cuttlefish, crab, fish and prawns...and what gravy! Exquisite! I think I had twice my own capacity with that food!

Sangha went trigger happy and got overexcited with the entire bamboo-palm tree setup and ran away with my DSLR....then realized she couldn't operate it and then me and Manu were all LOL over her. Our meal ended just in time as a sudden shower of rains that we'd seen in the horizon earlier caught up with us and we had to scramble to safety and dry land under thatched roofs.

Travelling through Lankan roads is almost like travelling thru Shillong. You're always passing through forests with bright green leaved trees bending over from both sides of the road in a dense wild canopy that allows the occasional ray of light to shine through onto the dark pitch roads. Led by the sunkissed path, we headed to Sigiria - the great hilltop fortress of a diabolical king who built this great castle after killing his owm father and fleeing his state. And this fort! What a marvel of medieval archtecture! Built in the fifth century A.D., it was equipped with natural rainwater fountains, sentry posts at  progressive heights, naturally cooled seating areas and even different types of swimming pools for his 500 concubines(yes! 500! Wonder what he did with all of them...what stamina man! :P ) 1250 steps to the top left me drenched in rainwater, sweat and a feeling of elation and achievement. Natural degradation has broken the clay walls of the fort and left a 360 degree view of more than three acres of jungles in any direction and the blue mountains beyond. Talk about wanting to spread my wings and fly!

It was a long and scary climb down the other side of the fort, and the stone steps of that age were pretty small and almost half the size of my foot. So for all the 1250 steps down, I had to step sideways. Pain in the ass I tell you! But on the upside, it was an amazing drive back to the hotel with lightning illuminating the road for us in flashes that lit up the sky. The rooms in our hotel Ameya Lake have a peculiar quality. Each room is named after a different species of tree or animal. Our room no.90 was named after White-browed Fantail Flycatcher.. Really nice room with a HUGE bathroom and loads of space. It's funny...each hotel room makes me want to redesign my house like that. Anyway, the climb left me with an aching desire to jump into a swimming pool and cool off. So I took the next best option - a nice and hot bath. Soon I found myself sighing in relief in the tub with some great music playing, as I typed my experiences of the day into my phone.

Alright, for those of you who want to visit Lanka, contact Mr. Gerard - 0722 850540 / 077 1123446

He is one of the best guides I've come across in my trips over the years. Really nice sophisticated guy with loads of contacts, he's been doing this for the past 17 years.

Guys, I'm almost back from a short trip I made to Sri Lanka, which is why I haven't posted in so long. I'm currently in Chennai at my sister's, chilling with pizza and drinks :D
Anyway, I just wanted to send a short message to all you guys from an email I got sometime back. This is quite important to all of you who travel a lot, or even very little, and since it is so relevant to me coz I've been travelling a lot these past few months, I wanted you to know about it too. So read on and pass it on:

You arrive at your hotel and check in at the front desk. When checking in, you give the front desk your credit card (for all the charges for your room). You get to your room and settle in. Someone calls the front desk and asked for; example Room 620 (which happens to be your room). Your phone rings in your room. You answer and the person on the other end says the following, 'This is the front desk. When checking in, we came cross a slight problem with your charge card information. Please re-read me your credit card number and verify the last 3 digits numbers at the reverse side of your charge card.'

Not thinking anything you might give this person your information, since the call seems to come from the front desk. But actually, itis a scam of someone calling from outside the hotel/front desk. They ask for a random room number. Then, ask you for credit card information and address information. Sounding so professional that
you do think you are talking to the front desk.

If you ever encounter this problem on your vacation, tell the caller that you will be down at the front desk to clear up any problems... Then, go to the front desk and ask if there was a problem. If there was none, inform the manager of the hotel that someone called to scam you of your credit card information acting like a front desk
employee.

This was sent by someone who has been duped........and is still clearing up the mess....

P.S. Please everyone, help spread the word by forwarding this email to everyone you know.. Who knows, you might just help someone avoid a nasty experience.

Gandhi.

The word inspires.

As I walk into Sabarmati Ashram, the cool air greets me with the aroma of damp soil, the fragrance of first rains that make you want to close your eyes and feel each raindrop as it splashes onto your skin. The maali(gardener) watering the plants nearby nods at me and smiles a half-smile revealing teeth yellowed with years of chewing paan. I walk on into the gallery that depict the hard self-restricted path of dharma that was set by Lord Rama and adhered by the Father of our Nation.
As I walk through the glass panels filled with images of pre-independence India, of the trials of Gandhi, I am transported back to the yesteryears, my vision a soft yellow sepia. I faintly hear the tens of thousands of people, men in white khadi kurtas and dhotis, women in white sarees, slowly proceeding through the lanes of a forlorn city, singing "Ae mere watan ke logo..."
A single tear rolls down my cheek as emotion fills me up. They say knowledge is power. How true that is...each little bit of information that I read filled me up with the lost emotions of patriotism and love...love for what, I do not know...my country, my family, maybe the little pup wagging it's tail at me at the end of the corridor. I do not know. But love it is. A sudden thought flashes before my eyes of how thankful I was to have what I have, and of all those who sacrificed their livelihood, their lives, because of whom I can now stand here as what I am...

I stroll on the damp grass, sandals in one hand, the other in my pocket, lost in thought when I reach a small clearing which was the prayer ground. Each morning, the residents of the ashram would gather here, in front of the Mahatma's quarters and fold hands in prayer, palms pressed against each other as the strong yet mellow voice of Gandhi resonated all over the ashram. I stand here, eyes shut and realise that the vibes of the achhoots(untouchables) and other residents chanting as one could still be felt here, faint but it's there nonetheless. A half hour in the gardens of the ashram and I leave, lost in thought and a muddle of emotions in me, with a silent promise that I shall be back to this haven from yesteryears that has kept all the feelings, all it's roots held close to it's bosom, never forgetting, never letting forget, yet retaining it's sense of safety and compassion.
As I sit on the front seat of my car, I switch on the radio, lean back and shut my eyes, slowly transported back to the fight for independence as the music of "Ae mere pyaare watan..." drifts softly from the speakers...and then it all fades to black as I slowly drift off to sleep...

 Happy Earth day!

Really now? What's so happy about Earth Day? The fact that we're making so much progress that we forget how much grey we're building up and how much green is lost in that process? The fact that right now, in the time that I take to write this blogpost, and entire species, somewhere on this planet just became extinct? The fact that Dubai saw hailstorms, the entire Eastern hemisphere disappeared under the embrace of a gargantuan tsunami? Or the fact that each day we breathe in more toxins than Mother Earth has ever breathed since she was born?
We paint a bleak picture my friends.

Happy Earth Day! Here are some stats:

1. Experts say that exposure to pollution causes 40 percent of deaths annually.(from worstpolluted.org)

2. There exist populations around the globe with blood lead levels ranging from 50 -100 μg/dL, up to 10 times the WHO reference levels for protection against neurological damage. This decreases IQ levels for every 10 points increase in blood lead level. And they say people are becoming stupid. Why people from third world countries appear smarter than the developed ones? Coz you're polluting a lot fucking more!

3. The IUCN-World Conservation Union, the planet's largest conservation network, produces a "Red List" of threatened species. In 2007, the list contained 16,306 animals and plants in danger of extinction; there were 16,118 species on the 2006 list.(from History.com)
Two hundred friggin species in ONE year! That's just unreal!
I'll tell you what. What happens if mankind gets attacked by a more powerful species? Probably the world will pool together all it's nuclear WMDs and blow the fucking shit out of those aliens, right?
Imagine what the animals feel like.

Earthday.org boasts of a whopping 31,466,123 green acts or pledges as of this moment. That's great. But where do all those actions go once the "hype" of Earth day or World Environment day pipes down? Sure, there are some millions of people who do their own bit to save the earth, and after all, little drops of water maketh the mightiest of oceans; but what happens when that ocean itself starts going dry because of global warming? Or maybe just overflows back onto you?
Reduce, reuse, recycle.
How many of us remember watching Captain Planet on Cartoon Network? The eco-friendly superhero who fights bad guys who loot and plunder the environment. Wonder why they stopped that show! We need a Captain Planet now more than ever. Heck, we need the League of Captain Planets to stop what's going down globally right now.
We paint a bleak picture my friends.

Happy Earth day!

Not all is lost though. Even with the seemingly wanton destruction and mass murder-ish situation that our poor Mother Earth is facing, she has a glimmer of hope. Earthday.org outlines a few Do's and Don'ts to do our tiny bit, mere mortals as we are, so that it really does make a slight difference, locally if not globally. You can pledge for each action on their site as well, but make sure you fulfil your pledge faithfully rather than simply join the bandwagon.

1. Make children to habituate that planting trees will save our earth. Educate the people to use solar power.
2. Recycle, I won't waste, and try to be as efficient as possible.
3. We will shop at the local farmers market, using our own bags, and eat as many locally sourced meals as possible for the entire year.
4. Ride a bike
5. Reduce the electricity usage in general life.

Dear bloggers and readers, you're probably the most socially aware of all communities online because of the wide and varied spread of blogs. You must have been a part of, or at least known about environmental causes last year as well. So I ask you, and ask yourself, how many of these did you do this past year? Regularly.

It's not too late. It's never too late because the Earth is our Mother. She will always make exceptions for us to improve because we are her children. But even a mother has a threshold of pain and suffering. Let us not make her suffer anymore, for if we do, she will punish us. And then, the picture, let alone be bleak, will cease to exist.

Our Mother is calling to you. You have the power, you are capable, it's up to you.
Do you hear?

Before I get to my blogpost, how many of you like Paani Puri?

Everyone, right? Right?

Right.

So how'd you like to wear Paani Puri? That's right! There's a spanking new clothing line of custom designed tees called Paani Puri! Beat that! When I first heard of this, I thought it would be like any other t-shirt brand like Tantra or Urban Yoga. How wrong I was! It's not just that. Rather it's not even that! Paani Puri solely aims at bringing true art into T-shirts. They're T-shirts with a concept, a single goal of making sure that each t-shirt you wear is unique, striking, yet connected, and it features our favourite chaat of all times!

Nahi samjhe? Each T-shirt has a Paani puri somewhere in it!

Superb designs and a great concept.
If  you haven't already, check out their teaser video to get an idea of how creative and whacky(read: stark raving mad hehe) these guys truly are.



Okay, promotiongiri ho gaya, now on to my main point :P

They launched on Tuesday, April 22nd, which was yesterday.. The SOBO Store, Chowpatty saw an entire wall laid out with Paani Puri T-shirts in a splendid display of pop art and colour. With memorable symbolisms of Batman's Joker and Pink Floyd's Dark side of the moon incorporated into their designs, the tees really stood out in the crowd. Even their packaging is unique with a custom comic-strip feel telling the real story of how Paani Puri came to be. And yaar, itni jaldi hai toh go check out their website right now and read the story there. To top it all(and ladies, this one's for you!),  Imran Khan, who's a good friend of Rish came with fiancée Avantika and had some chuckle time and chilled out interviews with NDTV. I got intro'd, clicked some pics of him :D although I'd liked to have one clicked with him for all my lady friends :P He's a really nice guy :)

The day went by quickly. SOBO had a few other designers strutting their stuff in the store as well and it turned out to be quite an event with Paani Puri getting more than it's share of admiration with the designers themselves showering some appreciative critique on the designs and showing interest in them. A successful launch to say the least!
I don't think words do justice to art, and neither does procrastination and writing some long and boring descriptions. So, here are the photos!!!

    

  

While these may be the formal parts of the day, don't think we didn't have some fun as well! Behind the scenes, there was quite a bit of madness going on :P

For the full set of photos including some of the candid moments with the guests, check out the Facebook page of Paani Puri. 

Enjoy! And remember, 

Think outside the puri!

AAAAAAAAAaaaaahhh!!

I won't say I'm back. I'll just start typing as fast as I can!

Utsav at Illegal Briefs (yea the chaddi chor types Briefs) said the latest Youngistaan Ka Wow ads starring Gamemaster Gogo...erm....Sanjay Butt and Ranbir Ka-poor trying to score off IPL. How many of you guys believe that? Raise your hands.
One...two...three...ah crap! All of you...
Here's a list of my top three movies that practically survived on their sponsorships since they had horrendous scripts and equally bad acting to follow them up. I mean reall REALLY bad acting. Have you tried watching two men talk inside a glass doored cabin? Lip sync them with a Lady Gaga music video and that's about what you get from these movies. With lots of guns, leather and other shit that's supposed to be uber sexy.
So, here goes!

1. Evolution

Oh.My.God! I mean really OMG! It's probably been ages since I've seen a movie that I laughed so hard at! Two college professors, one hormonal female scientist and a firefighter cadet fight an alien organism that tries to take over the world. Should be interesting right? Right. Apparently the only thing this alien thingie is allergic to is Head and Shoulders(wtf ?!). So they fill a firetruck with H&S, shove it down the giant alien's humongous arse-hole and fill it's insides with shampoo, thereby defeating it and saving the world from total domination. Ignoring the fact that it's plain stupid, one and a half hours of watching the movie ends it with:
"For smooth and silky hair, use Head and Shoulders!"
Ha! for advertising a product! :D

2. Mission Istanbul

A promising journalist gets posted to Istanbul to cover a controversial news piece about terrorism. Aided by a turkish commando and catwoman, he battles the good fight. Pan camera at a parking lot. Our two heroes and one feline heroine are style-maarofying, waiting for something to happen when lots of big muscular guys from the Istanbuli akhadas appear out of nowhere like a new level of Prince of Persia. Our journalist friend almost shat in his pants at the thought of fighting these thugs when Lady Huntresswali goes to her jeep, opens the boot and pulls out an icebox.

"Tumhe darr lag raha hai? Lo Mountain Dew piyo. Kyonki Dar ke aage jeet hai!" (wtf! pt.2!!)

As soon as all three have done a bottoms up of their cans of Dew, they go "I am The One!" on all twenty thugs sending them flying into the air.

After the movie I was convinced Mountain Dew would drive Red Bull and Viagra both off the market!

3. Blade Trinity

Okay, she's hot. SO WHAT? Apart from wearing hopelessly tight leather pants(okay, I like that bit too..), Abigail, the third member of the Blade team has the unusually weird habit of creating a custom iTunes playlist for every time she goes vampire hunting. I mean seriously! her iPod must have seen more action than her in the movie. Apart from being fucking senseless in having loud music blaring in your ears when you're fighting blood-thirsty undead people, how does she even know when her friends are in danger? For all we know, in her mind it's all, "BIFF! POW! WHACK! You are my sunshine, my only sunshine... WHAM! SNICK! WHOOSH! .....you make me happy, when skies are grey... KABOOM!"

Apple must have been mighty pleased with all the action their iPod saw.

Now, let me know yours!

Hi guys!

I haven't quite posted in a while. Heck, I haven't even visited all your blogs that often, reason being that I'm giving my MBA interviews. So bear with me and I promise I'll be back soon coz I remember I'd left Alice on the verge of discovering wonderland and I'm very curious to know what happens there. So, on that short note,

BRB!

Be good y'all.

I'm the nice guy. 

I'm the one that sets everything aside 

if he sees you in trouble. 

I'm the one who puts things in perspective

the one who tells you to take it easy.

I'll bend over to accomodate your wishes

to see to it that you smile.

I'm the one that takes care of things,

each time there's something to be done.

I'll look for a million ways to satisfy you

A thousand means to make it happen.

I'm the one you turn to each time you're hurt.

I'm the go-to guy.

But there's a thin line.

And the day that line gets crossed......

I have that friend whom you never wanted to talk to and yet called him your friend. The one that would incessantly call you, ten times a day, daily, every day of the week and each time starts of with "Dude, what're you doing man?" YOU JUST CALLED AN HOUR BACK! I'M DOING THE SAME THING I WAS BACK THEN. SLEEPING! IT'S 12A.M. FOR FUCK'S SAKE! GET A LIFE!
The other day he called and went on and on and on and more on about the "freakin' ass sexy movie that will kill you coz it's so funny and you really have to watch it!" and then went on to repeat the dialogues from the movie and all the while me being the polite idiot don't say much and don't hang up either but all the while I'm screaming in my head YOU'RE TOTALLY WASTING THE MOVIE FOR ME AND I'M BETTER OFF NOT LISTENING HALF-ASSED ATTEMPTS AT RECITING A PUN AND I DON'T WANNA DIE EITHER!. Still, there's some hope for him in that he knows he does that. Yet he does it. Nope. No hope at all. Maybe I should hire a ninja to kill him. Yeah, just watched Ninja Assassin. On second thought, ninjas are too cool to kill him. I'll find a troll or something and let it loose outside his house :|

My school reunion is coming up this saturday! It's been more than five or six years since I've met all my old school buddies. It's gonna be awesome! Food, drinks, music, dance. And "Neha" will be there too :D Let's see if that dance works out for us even today xD Oh man! I can't even begin to think of the times I've had in those ten amazing years I spent in that white and blue building full of kids.
Can't wait! Can't wait! Can't wait!!!!
I'm gonna be all smiles all week long!!

Oh and Prince of Persia - The Sands of Time is releasing this weekend too! I gotta feeling this weekend is gonna turn out alright!

Oh and speaking of I gotta feeling, if you haven't already, you HAVE to check out this video.

Cheerios y'all!!

Alrighty, even as Alice takes her red pill and everything goes blank around her, she's gonna take a little break. Actually I am. I have some pressing matters I have to attend to, and while that allows me to pen down my thoughts here, rant, rave, scream, shave...okay not shave..still, rhyming matters to me :|  Anyway, as I was saying, I'll continue to blog, but Alice will be taking a long-ish break outside wonderland.

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Saw Alice in Wonderland yesterday. For the story revolving around Alice revisiting Wonderland, it wasn't as impressive as I'd expected. Still, Ron and I went for the movie simply coz we had nothing to do. Now, this one's a 3D movie and the movie hall was asking for a deposit of Rs.100 for a pair of 3D glasses which would be refunded when we leave the hall. Now this was probably the first time someone had ever asked me for a deposit for a pair of 3D glasses, 100 bucks no less! So I really didn't know how much to pay. But when I got to the front of the line, a lady came rushing through one side and demanded two pairs and paid 500 bucks. The man handing out the glasses paid her back the change, turned to us and asked, "How many?" "Give me two please." I replied. The man handed me two pairs of glasses, asked his assistant who was collecting the money whether we had paid or not. Get this, before I could say anything, the assistant actually said, "Yeah. They paid me!" I don't think I have ever felt the urge to laugh so hard as we walked away from the counter. I figured I'd simply refuse the refund saying I hadn't paid. After the movie ended, I was so engrossed in chatting with Ron that I handed the man my glasses, took 200 bucks for both our pairs and walked away. Only when we were out and onto the streets did we realize what had happened!

Movie tickets = Rs. 100
Getting a refund without paying a deposit = Rs. 100
Net cost of movie = Nil
Realizing that we'd watched a movie for free - Priceless!

There are somethings money can't buy. For everything else there's stupid assistants :P

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Summer's here!

It's that time of the year again!

of shorts and shirts, 

beaches and babes, 

mangoes and melons!

Humid work days,

warm weekend nights,

School's out, college too!

Everyone's home for summer vacations.

Christmas is cool, rains are wet,

but nothing like summer to make you sweat!

Enjoy the summer guys! Happy sweats!

 "Let's see how deep this rabbit hole goes" said Alice, racing after him, her mouth wide open as the Rabbit with the Incredibly Large Butt jumped into the hole. "My word! That must be a huge hole for his butt to have fit in there." she said, and jumped right in.

Falling usually had it's benefits. For starters, you didn't need to dry your hair after a bath. The wind did it for you. Also it got mighty hard to breathe at times. The air had a ridiculous tendency to rush out of your lungs when you were falling, Alice observed. It irritated her slightly, but overall she didn't mind. But this hole was different. Alice noticed that she wasn't falling as fast as she wanted, and even though her skirt puffed up like a big umbrella, she didn't think it was the cause of her oh-so-slow fall. As she looked around, curious sights met her eyes. There was a man in red and blue spandex with black webby patterns crawling down one side and he waved out to her and threw her a Mars bar. Alice loved Mars bars and smiled back although she couldn't quite figure out where he'd pulled that bar our from in the first place. Those tight spandex really did stick to every part of your body...*ahem* On her way down,  she glimpsed a few more almost-familiar faces - A Man in a Brown Paper Bag Mask duelling with Three Blind Mice With Swords, a young man in an alarmingly revealing yellow underwear yelling at the top of his voice and beating his chest, and an attractive young boy named Repeater Pan who, every time he laughed, floated up a few feet and fell down again. Couple of hundred tantrums, yawns, a few long naps, some candy from the nearby trees and fifteen and three quarter hours later, Alice looked down to finally spy the ground.

Slowly but steadily, Alice dropped onto the ground and started dusting her dress when she realized there was a table close by. And it wasn't just a table, it was a Round Table. And on one side of it sat a bald black guy wearing a long leather coat and dark sunglasses without rims.

"Miss Alice. Welcome.", he said in a monotonous voice.

Alice was quite surprised when the man spoke her name. But she was a smart girl and regained her composure soon, and since she'd been taught manners well by her governess, she curtsied.

"Hello sir, may I know how you know my name?" she asked.

The man sat up in his seat, adjusted his glasses, wiped his bald head with a lace handkerchief and spoke.
"Let me tell you why you're here. You're here because you know something. What you know you can't explain. But you feel it. That there's something wrong with this world. You don't know what it is, but it's there. Like a splinter in your mind, driving you mad. It is this feeling that has brought you to me. Do you know what I'm talking about?"

"Why no sir, I don't know what you're talking about. I was chasing the Rabbit with the Incredibly Large Butt when I fell into this hole." said innocent Alice.

"Ooh that Rabbit! I'm gonna whoop his white ass when I meet him again...ahem...sorry, pardon my language. Where was I?"

"You were telling me why I'm here."

"Oh yeah...well, here are two pills. You take the blue pill, the story ends. You wake up in your bed and believe…whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill, you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes."

"But sir, to be honest, we're at the bottom of the hole. I already know how deep it is."

"Pick one!!"

"Which one? I can't decide!"

"ANY ONE dammit! Just choose!"

"Don't pressurize me!"

"Choose will you! I'll lose hair with all this stress."

"You already are bald!"

"Shut up and pick one already!"

"Okay."

So saying, Alice chose the red pill.

Since I've been on a dedication spree, I thought it was high time to have my very first award ceremony!

Para pa raaa!!

here you are supposed to clap, cheer and go wild.

seriously.

do it.

^_^

Okay, so here goes:
1. Beautiful Blogger Award

This was recently gifted to me by the wonderful Georgina at Olive Me, and I have to give it to 5 more bloggers. So, taking a cue from her, and coz I follow you guys because you truly are beautiful, this one goes out to five of my newest blogger friends:

Yemiledu at..well...Yemiledu :P
Harshita at her Chill-Out Zone
Mohan at Mohan's Blog
An Ordinary Gal at My Mind, My Thoughts, My Feelings
Urvashi at URNER - URvashi's corNER


2. Honest Scrap Award

This one's for all those who speak their mind. The ones who know what they think and pour it out into words. Those who are aware that they might be speaking shit but don't give a (s)crap about it!(sorry, just had to put that one in there :D )
The Honest Scrap award goes to two special bloggers:

Hannah Miet at My Soul is a Butterfly
Cheryl at Starbucks Break

.3 Passionate Blogger Award

This one is for that blogger who pours their heart and soul into this space they call their own. So, this goes out to:

Rane at Soul of a Woman
Sally-Sal at You. Me. No adult supervision...



Congratulations to all you guys! 

You're awesome!

Hey!

Been a long time!

I guess I forgot how much I love this blog of mine. Well, not quite. I can never forget this place.
But I procrastinate :| Probably coz I've been so darn busy, what with MBA entrances and guitar lessons and a hundred other things on my To-do list that I've put off for AGES and piled up on top of each other. Those of you on my facebook list, I've managed to keep in touch... but all you bloggers here are the ones that I missed so much! And more than blogging, I've missed reading all my favourite blogs! Right from Abhinav's Slogs of witty sarcasms to Madhuri's weird and wonderful che-isms(and lately her dad's too :D ), Nidhi's filmi romantic posts that are too sweet(and sometimes confused :D ) to Peter's peterosophies and some really good vibes, Mysterg's current round the world trip and his adventures, Cheryl's hilarious and smartass stories of her life(and she got me saying the word Awesome too much..so did Barney Stinson, but that's different), Insignia and her latest rib-tickling misadventures with grammar and what not, Esther's super-cute posts filled with love from her big heart, Ana's obsession with Raccoons and animal nicknames, Annie's musings, Prince's silent contemplations (that speak louder than any spoken word), Sapna's world thru her unfettered eyes, Kajal who got me inspired enough to write poetry and who has given a glimpse into the real soul of a woman, Sally with her superb narratives without any(I mean ANY) adult supervision ;) , Chriz's crazy stories that leave me laughing my ass off(though I rarely comment :P ), Divsi's simple stories of the simple people she meets(and leaves with a smile), Dewdrop simply coz she sparkles in the sunlight(in the beautiful way, not like sucky Edward Cullen :P )....

Oh there are SO many of you, I can keep going on and on. For those whom I've mentioned here, you're truly wonderful , awesome, kickassly fantabulous! And you know it. For those of you whom I haven't mentioned here, that's simply because I have probably not read you enough to write an opinion here. Rest assured, I'll dedicate many more posts to all you guys :)

I wanted this to be my 100th post, thanking everyone, but today, it felt right. I started blogging from a coffee shop, my very first post. And right now, I'm sitting in a coffee shop as well, alone, lost in my thoughts, relaxed, sipping an Iced Mocha. It simply feels right that I dedicate this moment of black and white flashback on a 14" television to all you wonderful readers and writers who inspired me, made me laugh, cry, think, forget to think.

From me and my Mocha,
Thanks =)

;-)