Amour

Never knew that life would be so good and beautiful with you.

Never knew that you would take away all my worries,

Never knew that a talk with you would make me smile and roll with laughter,

Never knew that everything would so soon, lose its glory!

 

A stroll with you on the beach,

A date with you in the cockpit,

A lil' kiss on the cheek,

And a huge bear hug would make it complete.

 

So far, so Good

But what next is yet to be understood!

Misunderstandings as small as an electron

And misinterpretations as big as a cyclotron!

A great trouble in what they call a Paradise.

 

I leave it up to you, Sir, to decide

Whether to hold on to it

Or let it go;

Whether to make it work

Or make it a No No.

*

And the answer is...

YES!

Beyond the Zephyr

After a long time I am spending the weekend at home and the one and only reason for doing so is the freak accident I had in the morning (details in the post below). Since I cant go out anywhere today and moreover because of the power cut in the city, I have limited options to choose from. I had planned to take someone out for lunch but cancelled it because the pain in my leg is really bad and had I gone out, I would have not been able to enjoy either the company or the food. I also realised today that I have finished all the books and need to go and buy some new ones. I initially thought of rereading Montgomery's 'The Desert War' but for some strange reason decided against it even though I always find it awe inspiring to read about the LRDG, Desert Rats, the battle of El Alamein and the valour of the 'Red Eagles', the famous 4th Indian Infantry Division who earned the grudging respect even of Rommel and the Wehrmacht.

However, this post is not about my accident, neither about the Afrika Corps of Rommel nor the strategic genius of Montgomery. This post is about the boundless and limitless sky. This post is about the Zephyr, about life beyond the Zephyr.

Close your eyes, draw the shades, listen to nothing but yourself. Can you hear something? Can you tune in to the rhythm of your inner self? Is there something ticking inside you, something that is jading you? If the answer is yes, then read on.

Have you looked at the sky lately? Wait, don't think as I know the answer. No, you haven't and I wonder why. However, if you can recollect, when you used to watch the sky intently, what was the single biggest focal point for you? Think of it, you cant forget it. Above the horizon,  farther than the bluest hue, stark and true shining into view floats a majestic celestial body called the Moon.

The Moon might look forlorn and empty but only to those who are ignorant about the wide space that encompasses her. The Moon was never lonely and will never be so. She has for company the endless Zephyr that throws a protective blanket around her. The Moon might forget about the Zephyr but the Zephyr never would.

A few years back I heard a very touching line which said 'Love has many reasons that reasons themselves don't understand'. If you think of it, nothing could be any truer than this. But for someone who doesn't feel the need to love or be loved in return it might take a long time before the reasons get ingrained enough to become significant. However, once the reasons for loving someone and being loved in return become sacrosanct, there is no looking back. Promises once made have no scope for not being fulfilled.

Then again, if all of what I said above could be true always, this world would have been a perfect place. The Moon and the Zephyr would have been together, forever till the end of time. But, there is a catch. What if the Moon one day shuts off her aura? What if she just vanishes from the horizon and chooses to be elusive to the seeking eyes of the Zephyr? The Zephyr can always go and hunt her out but suppose the Moon doesnt want to be disturbed, the Zephyr would respect her decision and not switch on his RADAR. Afterall, we all need our respective space in life and Zephyr understands it very well.

At the same time, there is a life beyond Zephyr. Good, bad or ugly, only time will tell but if that is what the Moon has chosen, then so be it.

In the end, I would wrap up by quoting from the song that made Neil Young the Godfather of Grunge and made famous by Kurt Cobain in his suicide note (I wish he was still around but nevermind, will cover it some other time):

'Its better to burn out than fade away'.

Moon, do let me know how is life Beyond the Zephyr.

The Accident

I am hurt! Sounds strange, doesn't it? As my two year old nephew says, even Superman sometimes tumbles down from the sky. I am no Superman and neither do I proclaim to be one and yet, I got hurt today.

It is Saturday today and time for me to spend some quality time with my babe (picture above). She is a moody beast but no so difficult to handle if you know how to keep her satisfied. A lot of pampering, a little bit of stern glances once in a while added with tons of understanding and pleasure giving keeps the girl happy. After having spent endless hours travelling through rocky mountains and winding roads with her, I have come to regard her not as a machine but as an extension of myself. It is a symbiotic existence - I keep her happy and she ensures that I am safe.

I had not been able to devote enough time to her lately and so decided to spend the entire morning on Saturday taking care of her. I opened her up and checked her out and realised that she needed some expert care. So I closed her up, put her stuff back in order, gave her a nice going through once again and off I went to the Service Centre.

The problem with Royal Enfield is that they make fantastic bikes but when it comes to Servicing, they somehow lack the expertise or the drive to ensure customer satisfaction. And so, I ended up taking my Babe to the Service Centre in the outskirts of the city. And on the way there, I met with an accident.

Yes, I am hurt a little badly but I will recover soon. The bleeding and pain are nothing compared to what I felt when the actual accident happened.

It was a plain straight road, chock a block with traffic and vehicles moving at a snails pace. Suddenly, one lane opened up and everybody started gunning for that patch. I never drive rashly or fast but since it was an up slope, I revved up my throttle a bit and was overtaking a car when in the distance I saw a guy riding his bike while looking behind. Because of the chaos and the heat and the incessant honking of vehicles around me, I couldn't make out what the guys intentions were. Suddenly, he came bang in front of me, there was traffic to my right and a concrete wall to my left and this gentlemen on the bike was still looking behind and moving from the lane to my right to the left without giving any signal. And lo and behold, he came and crashed right into me, his handlebar hit my right knee, his engine slashed through my crash guard and I experienced a searing pain in my leg. He lost balance and came to a grinding halt. I was thrown off balance but years of training came back in an instant and I regained control over my machine. Applying brakes would be dangerous, slowing down would have been suicidal and so, I just came to the left lane, looked back and found the guy was allright and then moved on.

I was pissed as hell and mighty displeased because not only had I taken a massive hit but my bike had also been damaged. Luckily, I had almost reached the Service Centre and that's when I realised the nifty escape I had because of my bike.

The Royal Enfield Bullet is a huge and powerful beast and the only one of its kind in the entire world. Had it not been for the Bullet and its sheer size and the crash guard in front, I probably wouldn't have been sitting here writing on my blog. Proverbial escape probably but I would attribute it fully to my bike.

I had taken my bike to the Service Centre for some minor tweaking but now I will have to shell out a few thousand bucks. Never mind, I have always been in love with machines and found them much more reliable than human beings.

I will go back to collect my bike today evening. I am already missing her and hope she would be back in shape.

As for people who don't follow traffic rules and flout all norms on the road, I just have one thing to say - one day you shall not be so lucky.

The Incorrigible

I wish of spending time with you,

But, life catches me in blue.

I wish of talking long,

But, the day has something else along.

I wish to go out

To observe the skies unbound,

To witness the magic,

To see some dreams charismatic.

But, something comes by way

The energies, the spry...

I know, I do not have 

Anything but, a regret.

But, all I want you 

To know is..

I shall always strive to 

Turn the dice...

Beyond Ushuaia

Its been almost a year since I posted here. A year of near misses and happy triumphs. Moments filled with agony and some delicate ecstasies. A beaker full of joy and lots of soliloquy in abundant delicacies.

Some things have a surreal way of coming to life, some prosaic and unique way of throwing up one surprise after another. Sometime back, a very special person gave me food for thought and during my course of discussion with her, a very surreal feeling overcame me.

Amber colored mahogany,

Deep crusted monotony,

Whispering winds,

Taboos springing within.

I am still waiting for the day I reach Ushuaia with the one to whom it was promised to. The wait may be eternal but promises once made are never retracted.

This post, for a change, wouldn't make sense to anybody except the one who knows about Ushuaia.

Ushuaia is not the culmination of all efforts. There are many more things that lie beyond it. Ushuaia is just the beginning. Let the journey begin...

The Gift

For a moment, just think of this...

It is one of those random ordinary days, the birds are chirping sitting in the trees and the fan is whirring away merrily inside the room. You are going through your daily work the same you did yesterday and the day before. Suddenly, there comes a big package nicey wrapped and full of surprises in front of you.
You are bewildered, you are dumbfounded. How did the gift package make its way to you? Is it intended for you or does it belong to someone else? There is nobody around to unravel the mystery. You look around to spot someone and realise that yes, the gift is meant for you. You feel a little curious, a little elated and your heart starts pounding because you want to find out the contents of the gift box.
You cut the ribbon and open the box with nimble fingers. While you had been expecting to get just one gift, there were more than a dozen packed nicely inside the box. Now comes your time to feel dazed. How can someone do this, it is simply fantastic! The sender of the gift sure must have put his heart and soul into arranging the gifts and packing them together.
You start unwrapping the gifts one by one. Each gift brings a smile on your face, sets your heart aflutter. You feel on top of the world to know that someone cares so much that he spent days together hunting down things that you would like. Not even in your wildest dreams you would have thought someone make so much effort just for you. It is unbelievable, it is beyond ordinary. You simply love it.
So far so good! But hey, now that you have got your goodies and are riding the happiness wave sky high, how about letting the sender know how much you liked the gifts. Courtesy demands that you must atleast appreciate his wonderful gesture. You go out thanking people who have actually not done anything for you but fail to thank the guy who actually brought a smile on your face.

Now, whatever I have written above is not some imaginary story plot of mine but something that I have seen time and again, so much so that when it comes the time to gift somebody, I actually ask myself is it worth the effort.
The Magnetic Compass, Jonathan Livingstone Seagull, the Buddha Bar, the CD's/DVD's, memories etc - all got rusted and wasted. I guess I sometimes do way too much, I should hold back, not indulge so much on people.
I still don't understand why people are like this and so henceforth, I have decided that come what may, I am not going to go out of my way to make somebody's life special. Exceptions will always be there but then, one does feel bad when someone close does this to you.

Sifar - The ReAwakening

So many things to speak
And a lot many words to say
Some become the bounty green
While some remain in the hay.

Take a pinch of salt
Mix it in with lime
The sweet tangy taste entwined
Brimming over with salty brine.

Wonder where it all started
And I wonder how it stood
The test of time so mysterious and enigmatic
Can't believe nobody checked under the hood.

Zephyr it is that stays aloft
Floating leisurely miles above
Soaking up the heavenly glow
Spreading cheer down below.

Sifar is an existence
Ingrained with a delicate rhythm
Wonder where the glory goes
When she tucks in all her halo.

Peaceful coexistence and wonderful bliss
Happy rhythms with dollops of zing
Mile high dreams on towering beams
Sifar to Zephyr, the story begins.

The Beast

We drink, we fight
And sometimes we dope;
Once on the run
We never stop.

We relish mutton, pork, beef
And also prefer snakes and dogs.
If you dare
We might even go for your peacock.

We got the best girls
And they are Hot!
The guys are cool
And we never miss our shot.

Don't mess with us,
We might do bad;
If you must know
Our fist spells death.

We rule and we are
The Devils from the sky;
Don't mess with us because we are
Worse than Vipers crest.

Mess with the Best

Die like the rest!

*

Petit Méchoui. That's what we call it in French and I am referring to the picture above. Ok fine, you don't know French but hey, if I translate the word then I can bet that people will start fleeing away. Don't believe me? Here goes...

It was one of those lovely salubrious days with good easterly winds and a hint of rains in the atmosphere. We had a long day climbing down from the mountains and were too damn hungry.

After discussing (at length) what to do, we decided to go catch some snakes. But then, as they say, the slimy creatures were nowhere to be seen and our hunger had hit the roof. Somebody suggested 'Méchoui' and we were a little lost because it was nowhere to be seen.

Oh shucks, I forgot, you don't know French. Fine, Méchoui is Sheep and tastes very yummy though not as good as snakes but as I said before, the crawlies were nowhere to be found.

Anyway, we found out some nice sheep for ourselves, had it skinned and cleaned and started a nice charcoal fire. Once the marination was done and the Barbecue pit was nicely stretched out, the sheep was mounted on the skewers and slowly turned on a shallow fire.

I ain't much of a Chef and my culinary skills are normally restricted to savouring the delicacies and so to cut a long story short, the sheep that we had was very juicy, nicely done and yummy to the core. Lemme know if you want our 'secret' recipe, its worth the taste!

Together - You and Me.

Here I am sitting with my best ink and paper

I have a feeling I am thinking, I am peeping deeper.

Is this the way I wanted my life to be

Is this where my destiny had to take me?

Sometimes in life things do happen

Happenstance by chance, things going dapper.

Deeper than water, bluer than the sky

Good things do happen and so be the eager Beaver.

I have a heap of questions

I have a clump of notions...

Love, hate, relationships, illusions, reality matrix

But some things happen that I can never fix.

O! What is a heap of questions?

It can never be bigger than a mouthful of sky.

And what about the clump of notions?

It can never be larger than the Zephyr.

Love the good, hate the bad,

Relationships happen, illusions become snappier

Reality is a fix, the big seated matrix

Many things happen, why should you get fixed?

These words mean so much to me,

Never have I been answered with such an unanimity.

I am now in love with the mouthful of sky,

The relationships, the illusions, the notions.

I feel those words reflect me, my self, my unexplored me.

A new dimension these words have given me

And now I want to feel them till my core and

Understand me.

*

17 Jul 2007

1935 Hrs

It was another of those random monotonous days when boredom hits the ceiling and leaves you high and dry. I was sitting and talking with Minki who is the sweetest of all my friends.

The AC was at full blast, we had created a frigid zone at the place we were in and having exhausted all options to kill time, we hit upon a brilliant idea. Minki and I decided to start writing something, anything. As long as we got to kill time, we didn't care a damn about what we could conjure up.

And so, up we grabbed our pen and paper and let our grey cell's do the thinking. We decided to write a poem, one paragraph at a time. Minki expresses herself in very creative ways and I asked her to set the ball rolling and then I followed suit.

Apart from all the crazy lil' things that we do, I love Minki for one thing - it was because of her that I explored a totally new area. Sharing one's thoughts and matching them with another's expression and coming out with some creative streaks sure is a herculean task.

Thought this poem was our first collaborative effort, it certainly isn't our last. We have also written a nice sweet story set in the blue waters of an Indian Ocean island and the last word written saw us swimming in the crystal clear ocean water.

Yeah I know you're reading this Sheryl and trust me, even Minki had been talking about getting you back over here.

Humour Across the Border

True story from the 1965 India-Pakistan War

Khalsa troops posted near the border had hung their Kaccha's and Baniyaans on a barbed wire running along the perimeter of their post. It is a usual practice to fence off a minefield with barbed wire so that accidents can be averted but in this case the wires had been erected by the Khalsa troops just for the purpose of drying clothes.

Funnily though, an advancing column of Pakistani tanks thought otherwise and assumed it was a ploy on part of the Indians to make them think it was not a minefield. As a result, the Pakistanis made use of their 'brilliant' tactics and applied their ever so superior tactical minds and changed their axis of advance. Consequently, they wound up in the actual minefields located on the sides of the post and the entire Pakistani armoured thrust came to a screeching halt.

So, in this fight between the Kaccha's and the Pakistani tanks, the Kaccha's saved the day! In fact, not only did the Kaccha's save the day but also helped the Khalsa troops to live another day and wear the Kaccha's again! Hehehe!

Khalsa Roulette

Khalsa troops caught a Pakistani soldier on our side of the fence.This Pakistani chap (the brave soldier that he was!) started pleading the Khalsas to let him go.

Khalsa: OK! We'll play a game. Take this dice and roll it. If you get 1,2,3,4 or 5 you'll die.

Pakistani: So if I get a 6, I'll live and you'll set me free?

Khalsa: No! In that case, you roll again!

What a Pakistani Does Best!

Two Pakistani Ranger's are driving around in their vehicle, looking for something to blow up with their G-3 rifles and 9mm pistols. They are just having a regular good time listening to some crappy songs and cursing their CO when all of a sudden they see this goat with it's head stuck in a fence.

Paki-1, being the Johnny-on-the-spot, jumps out of the vehicle, drops his trousers, and, well, you know, does what a Pakistani does best.

After the initial "josh" wears off, Paki-1 looks back and realizes he's been ignoring his best friend. So he looks over his shoulder and says, "Hey! You want some of this too?"

Paki-2 is thrilled - he can barely believe his good luck. "Yeah, sure!" Excitedly, he quickly jumps out of the truck, drops his trousers, and sticks his head in the fence!

Pakistanis and Female Donkey

This scene is set sometime during the Kargil war near the Line of Control in PoK (Pakistan occupied Kashmir).

A senior Pakistani Army General decides to go to a front-line village and inspect his troops. When he arrives in the village, he is very surprised to find a female donkey in the camp.

"Lahole-villa-Kuvat," he yells, "Why is there a female donkey in this battle field?"

"Well," the Pakistani soldiers answer with embarrassment, "The Indians are bombing this place since several weeks, and all the village girls are gone. So, uh, when we need women, we only have this donkey to... ... ..."

"Fucking hell!" the General angrily interrupts the soldiers, "We are the great Pakistani Army! How could you do such disgraceful things?! I don't want to see this donkey around anymore!"

So the Pakistani soldiers chase the female donkey away. In order to strengthen the discipline and keep an eye on his soldiers, the Pakistani General decides to stay in the village and commands the operations.

And the Kargil war goes on...

After a couple of weeks, the General starts to feel the need of ... !

"Well," he thinks, "My soldiers may be right. Life is tough here without sex especially under such a heavy Indian shelling!! After all, a female donkey is better than nothing...". So he orders his soldiers to find the donkey back.

Once Pakistani soldiers bring back the donkey, the General jumps out of his office, unzips his pants, stands behind the donkey and starts to F*ck the animal.

When he finishes and feels finally released, he notices that hundreds of soldiers - amazed and stunned - are looking at him with big eyes.

"Come on, guys," the Pakistani General says, "Don't look at me like that. Isn't it the way you all have been doing before?"

"No, Sir", answer the Pakistani soldiers, "Before, we used to ride this donkey and find women in the next village."

The Train Ride

An Indian chap and his pregnant wife were traveling on the TGV in France. A few Pakistan Army officers were also traveling in the same compartment.

As every body knows, the Pakistanis think they are a little too smart and also try to show their superiority in all aspects, and so they tried to act little smart and embarrass the Indian. They thought at the same time, it would be a good way to pass time too.

So, one of them went and sat beside the man.

The 'Smart' Pakistani officer asked the man, "Are you an Indian?".

"Yes", our chap replied proudly.

The officer then said, "Is your wife pregnant?".

"Yes", replied the man. He was a bit annoyed by the question as it was obviously visible that his wife was pregnant and the officer still asked that question. But he kept quiet.

Now, the Pakistani officer thought it was time to have some fun.

He asked the Indian, "If it is a boy, what would you like him to be?????"

"I'd make him a Software Engineer", the man said proudly.

"What if it is a girl?" asked the Pakistani officer.

"I'd make her a doctor", the man replied.

Now, the Pakistani officer gave the man a naughty grin and said, "What if it is neither a boy nor a girl?"

The smart Indian realized the whole point of this officer speaking to him. He realized that these Pakistani Army officers were trying to embarrass him so he decided to give it back to them.

The Indian chap thought for a second, returned the same naughty smile back to the Pakistani officer and said,"In that case, he will join the Pakistan Army!"