Archives...Written This Long Back...

8 REASONS WHY NOT TO DATE A DOCTOR...(NO OFFENCE)

A GYNAECOLOGIST would last "9 MONTHS"

A PAEDIATRICIAN would be too "CHILDISH"

A MEDICINE SPECIALIST may leave you "SICK"

A SURGEON may "TEAR" you apart

You may fall "HEAD OVER HEELS" in love with a NEUROLOGIST

A DERMATOLOGIST may give you "PASSION PIMPLES"

A CARDIOLOGIST may give you a "HEARTACHE"

You can never make up your "MIND" with a PSYCHOLOGIST !

And last but not the least(As submitted by Dr Jitamitra Mishra,himself an anesthesiologist),

An ANESTHESIOLOGIST may "TAKE YOUR BREATH AWAY"...!

The Sounds Of Silence...

A thousand words to say,

A moment's span of time...

Let this moment stay,

For a moment,be it mine...

Plenty I wish to share,

Some feelings to lay bare...

Some memories to restore...

A moment,I pray for...

Some words of joy,few of pain,

Loads to say,sane...insane...

Feigning petty anger,some words of repent,

So much to say,all i get is a moment...

Let the silence convey,

Say what i intend...

There are no words,

Its the silence that i send...

My Favourite Track...Continued...

Isam Bachiri(Morocco),Waqas Qadri(Pakistan) and Lenny Martinez(Honduras) gave the world an even more soul stirring and hiphop version of Cheb Khaled's original,when they sang Aicha...And in doing so,they gave me my favourite R&B track of all time...

"Aicha"...The Lyrics...

So sweet, so beautiful

Everyday like a queen on her throne

Don't nobody knows how she feels

Aicha, Lady one day it will be real

She moves, she moves like a breeze

I swear I can't get her out of my dreams

To have her shining here by my side

I'd sacrifice all the tears in my eyes

Aicha Aicha - passing me by (there she goes again)

Aicha Aicha - my my my (is it really real)

Aicha Aicha - smile for me now

Aicha Aicha - in my life

She holds her child to her heart

Makes her feel like she is blessed from above

Falls asleep underneath her sweet tears

Her lullaby fades away with his tears

She needs somebody to lean on

Someone body, mind & soul

To take her hand, to take her world

And show her the time of her life,so true

Throw the pain away for good

No more contemplating boo

Lord knows the way she feels

Everyday in his name she begins

To have her shining here by my side

I'd sacrifice all the tears in my eyes

Aicha Aicha - ecoute moi

Aicha....

My Favourite Track

"I Hope You Dance"...The Lyrics...

A few songs have ever moved me as much as this one has...Whenever I'm in the pits,this song never fails to revive me,and remind me that there's always hope...

I Hope You Dance...

(Lee Ann Womack)

I hope you never lose your sense of wonder,

You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger,

May you never take one single breath for granted,

God forbid love ever leave you empty handed,

I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean,

Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens,

Promise me that youll give faith a fighting chance,

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance,

I hope you dance....i hope you dance.

I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance,

Never settle for the path of least resistance

Livin might mean takin chances but theyre worth takin,

Lovin might be a mistake but its worth makin,

Dont let some hell bent heart leave you bitter,

When you come close to sellin out reconsider,

Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance,

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance.

I hope you dance....i hope you dance.I hope you dance....i hope you dance.

(time is a wheel in constant motion always rolling us along,

Tell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder where those years have gone.)

I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean,

Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens,

Promise me that youll give faith a fighting chance,

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance.

Dance....i hope you dance.I hope you dance....i hope you dance.I hope you dance....i hope you dance..

(time is a wheel in constant motion always rolling us alongTell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder where those years have gone).....

Why Save The Girls?

I'm a girl and so is my sister...We've been brought up by a single parent,our mother...

I've never seen a shred of regret in her for not casting away the two us when we were mere foetuses in her womb...Neither have we felt as liabilities...Rather we always were and still are her most precious assets...No,we are not heiresses to any fortune,we've just inherited the family's value of gender unbiasedness...None in my family look at the birth of a girl child in disdain,and as for me and my sister,we're looking forward to knitting pink booties when we're mothers...

I know how fortunate i am...Some say its because my family is educated,i call that balderdash...The girl child is regarded as an affliction in most of the affluent,highly educated families in the country...The statistics show that female foeticide and infanticide is on a dangerous rise in the coastal belt of Orissa,the so called "hub" of economic and social prosperity in the state...The interior,tribal dominated districts show a balanced sex ratio,indicating blatantly that education is not the limiting factor...

I know i have been fortunate for being allowed to be born,but how fortunate am i(as a woman)to be alive today?

I say,"Why Save The Girls?",when they are accountable for their every deed,while their brothers are not?When they are eve teased,when they are raped?When they are nothing but moral obligations to their unwilling parents?When they are bartered in illegal dealings?When they are abandoned for being unwed mothers,while the sire's deed is not unethical in the society?When they are made wives to husbands bought in the market for wads of money?And when,mercilessly they are tormented body,mind and soul for the rest of their living days?

There is no necessity of saving the girl child...Doctors in the state have banned abortions,as is the recent news,but it will only lead to more and more unwed mothers,and ofcourse the girl child being born to more and more reluctant parents...Let the foeticides resume...What consequences will ultimately unfold,is for the future to see...

The Stigma...

I'm Brahmin...Its not because i'm Brahmin that i'm writing this...

I have my share of sympathy towards the minority,but i often sit and wonder,do they need my sympathy...?Yes,they are ostracized in society,they are looked down upon,but it seems to me that the reason itself is this "QUOTA",which is supposed to uplift them...It is a vicious cycle for the minority,the tag of the quota segregates them,and it is the quota which ineffectually tries to elevate them...

Why not abolish all forms of quota?Isn't it unfair to the minorities that they have to take the aid of a reservation to get where they want to?As the facts state,14% of the IITians are from the Other Backward Classes,who've gained their entry solely by merit...So what is the need for a further reservation of 9% for the OBC?If at all there is a necessity,why not ensure the use of such reservations only once?Maybe to garner a seat in a graduate course...But as the present situation seems,the SC's&ST's are utilising the quota to attain a seat in high schools,colleges,for jobs,and even for promotions within a job...! Whereas the other minority communities like the green card holders get to use their quota just once...Also,it is a sorry state of affairs that the majority of the quota users are already well established and are in a position to afford a good education by their own merit...If such discrepancies have continued for decades,it is high time to nullify all the reservations for once and for all...

It would be of much greater interest to society and the economy if the eyes of our politicians were averted to the economically backward classes,not the the minorities living in the urban areas,benefitting from this very quota,generation after generation...There are thousands of tribals in the interiors of India,for whom the quota is insignificant...Shouldn't the government be doing something about it?

As i said,it is not because I'm a Brahmin that i'm writing this...Its because i fear,that if the current state of affairs prevail,in a few decades,it'll be we the Brahmins who will be deemed as minorities,and stamped with the stigma of bearing a quota which i so deeply abhor...

Without Water...

No,i dont live in Rajasthan...And yes,Rajasthan can have plentiful water also,as was evident in my trip to Bikaner in 2005...I live in Cuttack,my home nearing 3 decades in age...Ofcourse,i became a part of it much later,but from what i hear from my brothers,there hadn't been a single day without water here...Even during the cyclone of 99,when the municipal water supply was hugely disrupted,a well in the backyard had provided us with good,clean and ample water...But here i am today,writing my tale of woe,about that one fine day,when we were stranded without water...

Our house comprises of two floors,the lower being occupied by my introvert,reclusive brother,and the upper floor where the rest of us live...As a matter of habit,i clicked on the switch for the pumpset in the garage,and casually turned to leave,expecting the hum of the engine to reach my ear as i walked to the middle of the stairway...Somehow,the reassuring hum never came...Rather,a loud choke,a couple of splutters and a small bang was all i got when i reached the garage to check...It was dead...

I hadn't much concern regarding the pump and matter-of-factly knew it would be repaired the next day...However,in as dramatic a fashion as i could,i walked into the living room and announced,"Its Dead...!" There wasn't the gasp i'd expected,but a few furtive glances from Mother and my sister in law,in fear of an added burden to their already brimming list of household duties...Well,resignedly i said the pump had gone dead...It was then that the chaos issued...

Both my brothers hurriedly walked down to the garage to take a look at the lifeless engine..."It'll be fine tomorrow,wont it Nana?",i enquired...The frowns were all i got...It was already 8 in the evening,so i settled in for an early dinner and slept off...

Awakening at 8.30 in the morning,and casually walking over to the basin with my toothbrush,all i got was the sorry face of my otherwise cheerful Mum..."There's no water",she said,and the epiphany rang in my not so awakened ears..."What do u mean,there's no water?",i asked,incredulously,as if she'd drunk it all by herself..."Well,there's no water...U can brush with a bottle of drinking water,but that's all u can do...If u'd have gotten up earlier,u could've had a wash as well,but there's no water left now...",she explained,as if it was my getting up late that finished the water...Anyways,i brushed my teeth,as best as i could,and walked down to the crime scene,where both my brothers were already bent down over the pumpset,with a mechanic in tow...It was a serious matter,i concluded,as i saw both my brothers nodding heads in unision and working together without a single tiff...I set a mental reminder to jot down the date,as it was a rare scene indeed...Well,seeing the three determinedly trying to fix the machine,i sat and surfed,and read the morning headlines...

Its called the calm before the storm...The morning passed by without much event,there seemed to be no need for water anyways...It was after lunch that the need arose...A desperate need at that...I had to clean my bowels,i just had to...Well,i controlled the urge as best as i could,but it left me uneasy and irritable...How i needed water...! I asked my brother about the well in the backyard,and he said that it had been long abandoned,nothing but moss and frogs...! The irony of it was the drizzle outside...My brother,caring,and affectionate as ever,told me to stand out in the rain...It would serve as a good bath,he teased...And as for the other need,there were several old newspapers which couldn't have a better use,he said...I felt like tearing out his hair,as i always do,but i had neither the energy,nor the interest...However,i did engage in keeping a bucket of water outside in the rain,hoping it would fill up...God has a sense of humour too,but it isn't humorous when the jokes on me...The rain stopped as if it was awaiting the bucket,and the 5 o clock sunlight streamed in...My urge was dire now...I saw the others,everyone uneasy,and tired,but for the fatigue of working endlessly...And here i was,hadn't lifted a finger all day,and ready to burst...! I begged my brother to fetch a bucket from the neighbours...He pointed out,they were out on a holiday,and once again asked me consider his other advice...

7pm...The storm was at its might,raging with fury inside me...! I stuck on,not an option in sight...Mother gave me a Lopamide tablet,but to no avail...The storm raged...

8pm,brother gave us the news that the problem had been fixed,and it would take another hour for the tank to fill up...It set my spirits up,but the one hour wait still proved to be a battle for me...

9.03pm...Water...! Precious water...! Well,as the story goes,all's well that end's well...The only aftermath of the storm was me pouring an entire jug of water on my brother who'd tormented me the whole day...!

I plan to join the "Save Water" campaign soon.....

Chicken Biriyani....!

I love food...Its evident from my appearance...Genes are responsible too,but it isn't as if i've been living on bread and water all my life...A hearty meal always makes my day...From typical Oriya cuisine,"Dalma and Ghanta" to well prepared Maggi(not soggy, and overcooked),good food always lifts my spirits...It runs in the family...We're an enthusiastic lot when it comes to good food...We appreciate the efforts,and lick our fingers clean at the end...Some of my cousins manage to keep their tummies intact,no matter how much they eat,but then they've been blessed with good genes...I've got the good genes too,the ones controlling my taste buds...

The men and women in the house are all good cooks...I'm not,not yet as i see it,but i'll soon be,i'm sure...It runs in the family...Its a matter of interest,Mother says...She religiously follows Tarla Dalal and Sanjeev Kapoor,and we religiously follow her when she puts her theory into practice...I dont like cooking,as i said before,i dont like it as yet...Maybe someday i will...Or else,if my stars are right,i'll marry a Sanjeev Kapoor protegee...However,my stars have never been right till now,its a hopeless guess that they'll ever be...

We're having Biriyani for lunch today...So instead of learning how its made,i'm penning down my opinions on good food,which i doubt anyone would ever be interested in...Anyways,Mother still hasn't called for me,but the aroma beckons...Chicken Biriyani,here i come...!

On The Move...

Life hasn't been static...From changing homes to changing emotions,life's everchanging...

We recently moved,I had just gotten used to where i was,and then we moved...We came to a new place,though not entirely new...

I remembered spending my childhood here,some of my best memories were in this home...There'd been kittens who became cats,and cows that calved...There'd been a couple of coconut trees,a row of jasmine bushes...A shop called Dakshin Gangotri where my two elder brothers took me for an ice cream,whenever i missed my own home,and spent afternoons sulking...And i missed and sulked a lot...There'd been long games of Monopoly with my brother...He'd always win,and i'd sulk...He had a good hand at the game...

There'd been card games too,on the terrace in summer...My grandmother(Aai),taught me 29...There'd be lots of stories too...Myths,folktales and experiences...Aai would tell us,and we would sit in rapt attention...Aai was always good with children...Its something about the way she looks and does things...She always wears white cotton sarees,her face is always in smiles,and she speaks softly and soothingly...She's animated with children but she'd listen to their troubles with so severe a frown as if a broken pencil and pulled hair meant the world to her...I guess,she speaks to children as children want to be spoken to...

Ah yes,the home(Aai always distracts me)...So,we've moved,and now we're in a new place...There are no more cows,but the descendants of the cats still roam about...The coconut trees got uprooted in the cyclone of 99,but the jasmine bushes still stand...Dakshin Gangotri closed down,and i'm too old to sulk now...The monopoly currency is now tattered...We've lost interest in 29,and Aai hardly comes by...The stories have been said a thousand times to each child in the house...And it is an extended family...So,there's been change...Maybe i've changed...My mother says i was a quiet child,its hard to believe,i bawl at simple things these days...I'm hardly in awe of the cats and kittens or the coconut trees...The smell of jasmine irritates me...Dakshin Gangotri is no match for the Devil's Own at Cafe Coffee Day...The folktales have given way to paperbacks...Suddenly there are more mosquitoes biting me on the terrace at nights,so i sleep in my room...Monopoly is a waste of time...I'd rather be scrapping my friends...

Yes,there's been change...From changing homes to changing emotions,life's everchanging...Change,constant change...............