I looked in the mirror, and spotted two strands of white hair this morning. I know I have always had one strand that grows out of the same spot in my scalp with bull-headed determination, no matter how hard I try to uproot it, but the second one was new.
Now wait a minute.....wait a minute!
I was supposed to be wise by the time the gray hairs came! I have always wondered how the hair would know when I became wise enough for the colour change to start. Now, I see that the hairs just give you some time, and hope Lady Prudence has taken her turn and shone her brilliant rays on you. If you were goofing around while it happened, well...sad luck!
Assuming Lady Prudence follows a round robin style to make fellas wise, I would have to wait around with graying hair to get wise. All this while folks around me can look at my graying coconut, and assume I am wise.
Hmm....now, that's sounds enticing. I could offer a ton of advice that sounds more convincing than it really is, thanks to my "wise look". There is one problem - I need to get friendly with some younger dudes/dudettes who are willing to take my advice. Teenagers are out, since they don't listen to advice. I am quite young myself, so I would have to target my advice at audience aged > 19 and younger than me.
For those of you who have read this post probably know, that even if Lady Prudence scorches me with her rays, there is no way I am getting any the wiser. So, I shall live in harmony with self, few white hairs and a song on my lips!
Related links: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray_hair#Effects_of_aging_on_hair_color
Friday, January 19, 2007
Monday, January 15, 2007
Happy Pongal!
I have to start this post out by stating that eating is not one of my daughter's preferred activities. We expend considerable ingenuity in getting her to eat her meals without making it seem like a drag for her. I sometimes wonder whether she has read the studies warning people against junk food, because she prefers to eat none of that either. I see children in her day-care center munching and snacking with relish, while my little one sticks to roaming around with a juice cup, whose level seldom diminishes.
For Pongal, I had made vadas and payasam. As is customary, I set it in front of God as an offering. Just before performing the minor ritual before the offering can be eaten by us, I noticed a tiny hand sampling each of the vadas with a nibble, and placing them back on the plate in an orderly fashion! Never had I seen her sample some food like that. To offer the cutely bitten vadas to God was at once satisfying and rewarding!
There is a reason we call children Gods!
Happy Pongal!
For Pongal, I had made vadas and payasam. As is customary, I set it in front of God as an offering. Just before performing the minor ritual before the offering can be eaten by us, I noticed a tiny hand sampling each of the vadas with a nibble, and placing them back on the plate in an orderly fashion! Never had I seen her sample some food like that. To offer the cutely bitten vadas to God was at once satisfying and rewarding!
There is a reason we call children Gods!
Happy Pongal!
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Freedom
Freedom of Speech & Worship
Freedom from Want & Fear
Where liberty's torch is gleaming
And our way of life is dear
These were the lines in one of our school songs, the song affects me in more ways than I had imagined. I am witnessing a demonstration against the Bush regime imploring the US to stop sending more troops to Iraq.
This is what I love about freedom of speech. There is a small band of protestors gathered in San Francisco, replete with drums and bugles.
I love the sight of these determined people out in the cold, standing up for what they believe in.
The only thing that baffles me, is the fact that the Iraq war has been compared to Vietnam war so much, it should have sent unsettling signals when the first set of comparisons started. To sustain it to ensure that the Iraq war is the costliest mistake in really difficult to comprehend.
A mistake once is just that: a mistake
Same mistake twice : A stake too dear to miss
Freedom from Want & Fear
Where liberty's torch is gleaming
And our way of life is dear
These were the lines in one of our school songs, the song affects me in more ways than I had imagined. I am witnessing a demonstration against the Bush regime imploring the US to stop sending more troops to Iraq.
This is what I love about freedom of speech. There is a small band of protestors gathered in San Francisco, replete with drums and bugles.
I love the sight of these determined people out in the cold, standing up for what they believe in.
The only thing that baffles me, is the fact that the Iraq war has been compared to Vietnam war so much, it should have sent unsettling signals when the first set of comparisons started. To sustain it to ensure that the Iraq war is the costliest mistake in really difficult to comprehend.
A mistake once is just that: a mistake
Same mistake twice : A stake too dear to miss
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Why G-Shock gave me a Shock
Last week, my 10-year old nephew, Siddu, got a Casio G-Shock watch worth $100. I heard all about it from his mother, who also sent me this mail justifying the purchase. This was no mean purchase and there is a history that goes with it.
The following is the list of justifications offered by Siddu regarding why it was absolutely mandatory that he owned one!
Our comments are in blue.
1) Adarsh and Prabhman had G-Shock watches. Atleast Adarsh studies well and tops the class, I guess he deserves it, BUT Prabhman always gets marks that are lower than mine...even he has one.
2) When we went for the Scout camp, the guys with alarm clocks on their watches used to get up on time and they were so mean that they did not wake me up....I got up only when Sir came and called. So I need a watch with an alarm clock! (Psst: He still needs to be shaken up at home to get to school on time, though the alarm clock has arrived)
3) I lost watches before ( he lost 2 worth Dhs 10 or 20 each!!) because I had to remove them for PE class or cricket practice! I would leave it somewhere and not find it. With a G-Shock, it is for 'Sportsman' so I don't have to remove it each time. Even if a cricket bat 'got it' or I did a 'dive for a catch', it won't break.
4) For athletics, you can set the timer for races....I depend on someone else to do it for me ( to check if Sir is timing me right). I can try and beat my time each time!
My sister claims I could have become a far better athlete had I been given a G-SHOCK by my father. I was the more athletically inclined one in the family, and hence this comment.
5) It has a back light that is so smart...it works like a torch. In case I get stuck alone in some dark mountain also, I can use it to see. He needs company even to go to the next room at night!!!
6) If I want to know the time in California or London, I can use this watch. Remember last time you were checking the time for a phone call for your office, you checked on the Internet...next time you can just ask me.
My sister wanted to know the time in Vienna for a conference call. Yeah next time she can JUST ask Siddu to plan her international conference calls!
In the light of all these justifications, he got it for the following reason : He was given Dhs 100 as pocket money for his scout camp. He brought Dhs 92 back ( he bought a packet of Lays Chips, a juice and Bourbon biscuits with Dhs 8 , he explained ) and said
" Amma, I saved up for my G-Shock. If Maama gives me pocket money ( he gives him Dhs 5 a week), I will save that also and pay for it. It costs Dhs 146 ( Adarsh said so - the penultimate source!) ...so how many weeks of pocket money should I save?"
My sister's heart melted for keeping track of his expenses, for thinking of saving for something he wants and for being honest. As a reward, he got his G-SHOCK. As it happened , his dad selected a better model in the range and paid Dhs 375 instead of Dhs 146.......this model has a cool blue dial and a better shock absorber!!!
I wait with bated breath for the First Person of Indian Origin to bag the Olympic gold in Athletics, and if he happens to be from my family - what more can I ask for?!
The following is the list of justifications offered by Siddu regarding why it was absolutely mandatory that he owned one!
Our comments are in blue.
1) Adarsh and Prabhman had G-Shock watches. Atleast Adarsh studies well and tops the class, I guess he deserves it, BUT Prabhman always gets marks that are lower than mine...even he has one.
2) When we went for the Scout camp, the guys with alarm clocks on their watches used to get up on time and they were so mean that they did not wake me up....I got up only when Sir came and called. So I need a watch with an alarm clock! (Psst: He still needs to be shaken up at home to get to school on time, though the alarm clock has arrived)
3) I lost watches before ( he lost 2 worth Dhs 10 or 20 each!!) because I had to remove them for PE class or cricket practice! I would leave it somewhere and not find it. With a G-Shock, it is for 'Sportsman' so I don't have to remove it each time. Even if a cricket bat 'got it' or I did a 'dive for a catch', it won't break.
4) For athletics, you can set the timer for races....I depend on someone else to do it for me ( to check if Sir is timing me right). I can try and beat my time each time!
My sister claims I could have become a far better athlete had I been given a G-SHOCK by my father. I was the more athletically inclined one in the family, and hence this comment.
5) It has a back light that is so smart...it works like a torch. In case I get stuck alone in some dark mountain also, I can use it to see. He needs company even to go to the next room at night!!!
6) If I want to know the time in California or London, I can use this watch. Remember last time you were checking the time for a phone call for your office, you checked on the Internet...next time you can just ask me.
My sister wanted to know the time in Vienna for a conference call. Yeah next time she can JUST ask Siddu to plan her international conference calls!
In the light of all these justifications, he got it for the following reason : He was given Dhs 100 as pocket money for his scout camp. He brought Dhs 92 back ( he bought a packet of Lays Chips, a juice and Bourbon biscuits with Dhs 8 , he explained ) and said
" Amma, I saved up for my G-Shock. If Maama gives me pocket money ( he gives him Dhs 5 a week), I will save that also and pay for it. It costs Dhs 146 ( Adarsh said so - the penultimate source!) ...so how many weeks of pocket money should I save?"
My sister's heart melted for keeping track of his expenses, for thinking of saving for something he wants and for being honest. As a reward, he got his G-SHOCK. As it happened , his dad selected a better model in the range and paid Dhs 375 instead of Dhs 146.......this model has a cool blue dial and a better shock absorber!!!
I wait with bated breath for the First Person of Indian Origin to bag the Olympic gold in Athletics, and if he happens to be from my family - what more can I ask for?!
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