Ho Ho Ho

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1598401725


That's good'ol me spreading around some of the Christmas cheer. Hope you enjoy my item number

Until now, shootings in school were only things that happen in America; but the recent incident of two 14-year olds shooting their classmate in cold blood in Gurgaon has made us all think again. That the murder was premeditated has shocked us all the more. That the two teens belong to well-to-do & respected families and are old enough to know what is right and what is wrong only makes their crime all the more heinous. That the boys did not lack for anything in their life - love, care, affection, money, education - makes us wonder what was the motive behind the whole crime. The motive was that the victim had been bullying them for the past few months.

I wonder - how bad was the bullying that made the boys take such a drastic step. Was it that extreme or was it that the two killers couldn't stand up and fight? Didn't the school take note of the bullying and take any action? We also had bullying in various other forms, but w stood up against it and emerged as stronger n smarter people. We may have had the occasional 'War of words' as it happens among girls while I'm sure all guys have had the occasional fistfight. But a step as drastic as killing a person goes against the very moral and social fibre of society. Is this what our new India is going to be - people who fight at th drop of a hat, bloodshed being a common thing. Those of us in Delhi have heard of enough incidents of road rage where an unnatural display of aggression have led to untold tales of horror. I would be scared to send my children to school now if the kids were brandishing guns and pistols. I am in any case wary of sending my kids to a school where most of the children have been taught an ostentatious show of the newly acquired wealth and power of their family and abandonment of all morals and values in the name of conservatism. When there were so many witnesses, why did Jessica Lall and Madhumita's families have to wait for so long for justice. It was an open and shut case. But the witnesses were scared to speak up against the wealth and power of the killers - they feared for the safety of their families and their own. If the British took over India today, we would not fight them with the weapon of non-violence, but with loads of violence, I am sure.

I confess there have been times when I have actually wanted to kill someone - could be a teacher or a professor or examiner or that bitch eyeing my man or just that asshole who is very happily walking the road like its his own personal garden or just simply anyone who comes inf front of me when I'm in a temper. I really wonder had my father also left a loaded gun lying around carelessly at home, if I would have also just picked it up and killed someone.

All said and done, I do feel a little sorry for that poor child waiting for his parents in the juvenile home. They have for all purposes, as of now, disowned and abandoned their wayward killer son who has ruined their family name. I wonder what will be the outcome of his entire sordid tale - but one thing is for sure, that the two teenagers have definitely made a mess of this now. The arguement that they did it to protect themselves and take revenge against the bully does not deter from from the fact that they have killed a human being. They are now old enough to know that what they did goes against the very morals of society.

Uda ke rakh diya

Aimlessly channel-surfing yesterday, I started watching Sa Re Ga Ma Pa on Zee and boy was I bowled over.

This is one of the fist reality shows which gets members of the public to compete on the basis of their singing prowess. This particular International edition has been going on for the past 6 months or so and I have been following it intermittently. Now its between the top three who are vying for the top spot.

I caught their final episode before the Grand Showdown yesterday.

I had watched Anik singing 'Laaga Chunari Mein Daag' a couple of weeks back and well, I was left speechless.

Another time I saw Raja singing 'Teri Deewani' - again speechless.

Then yesterday, Amanat sang 'Tujhse naaraz nahin zindagi' - I actually had tears in my eyes by the time he finished. he sang with so much of emotion.

All three are winners in their own way and hats off to all three of them - they'r waaaay better than all those Mika, Rehaana etc etc etc. I don't even bother remembering their names now. Their albums would be blockbusters only on their singing and not because of the hordes of almost naked females going 1,2,3

Wishing all three all the very best for their Grand Finale

If you had an inflow of Rs. 50,000 per day, for the rest of your life, and you earned this money without lifting a single finger - Would you still work?

My first reaction was that I would immediately resign and spend the rest of my life in contented idleness - sleeping late, shopping, reading, watching movies, partying, traveling etc etc etc. You get the basic idea.

My second reaction was that I would get utterly butterly bored within a week with such a lifestyle. I know for sure that I am the kind of person who cannot loll around 24/7. I guess I would probably buy myself a full booksho[p and then devote myself to some altruistic purpose like working with pro bono with some NGO or something along these lines. I would also defintely take a year off and go for a round-the-world trip :)

What would you do?

Love or family?

What would you choose if you had to make a choice between the two?

Would you sacrifice your love for family or family for love?

A difficult choice indeed..a.and whatever road you choose to travel will be full of obstacles. A tough choice indeed.

And whatever choice you make, I stand by you as a friend

New Shoes New Shoes

"New shoes new shoes
Tell me what would you choose
If they let us buy

Red shoes pink shoes
Pretty pointy bow shoes
Tell me what would you choose
If they let us buy

But, flat shoes fat shoes
Stamp-along-like-that shoes
This is what they would choose
When they let us buy"

I confess...I LOVE SHOES. I love buying shoes - be it comfy practical black sandals or that pair in blue to match that blue top or the sexy strappy pencil heels or the V slippers or chappals from Janpath or sneakers from Nike or just cuz I fell in love with THAT pair and oh look they have it in my size or there is a sale in my favourite shop and if I don't buy, their poor kid is going to go hungry :P

I love my shoes......
Right from my Nike oh-so-comfortable-floaters (my vote for the most comfy pair of stamp-along-like-that shoes definitely goes to them)
To my Bata chappals (I am a staunch Bata loyalist when it comes to bathroom slippers...right now I have the prettiest pair of white slippers with flowers on the V strap)
To my golden-coloured sandals (both of them)
To my silver sandals (with coins on the V strap)
To my black sandals (all 5 pairs of them. You see I am a sucker for black sandals - my logic being I wear black n white six days a week so I need lotsa pairs in black in all shapes n sized n heights)
To my white wedge heels (when I wear them my grandmom wonders how I manage to retain my balance walking on stilts)
To all my tie-up sandals (Oh they look so sexy, so comfy, so 'In', so chic, so cool, well I can go o and on and on like that Duracell battery)
To all my Osho chappals (I loved you all)
To all my jootis and the ghungrus on them(I loved them so much that I buried them in the back gardens of my PG in Pune...May you all rest in peace)
To my Power shoes (Pointy slingbacks - one pair in black n one in brown)
To my chappals picked up n he beaches of Goa (I can never go wrong in these)
To THAT pair of red sandals that I saw n the shop window the other day (Oh yes you are going to be residing in my wardrobe one day soooooon)
To all the future pairs of sandals to be residing in my wardrobe

Yes I love shoes...and yes Arjun will hit the roof when he sees me walk in with a huuge smile on my face and another shoe box in my hand....

These last couple of weeks don't seem to be going too good for me...I feel like I can't do one thing right, like whatever I do is wrong, like I forget the most basic of things, like I am letting down everyone time after time, like I am the stupidest person on earth and am the scum of the earth.

Spare the Rod and.... ??

As school kids, we used to have major competition amongst ourselves to see who got the most raps on the knuckle for not doing homework or who stood the most number of classes being an 'outstanding' student (pun intended) or who had the most number of lines to do for playing pranks in class or who had to rum more rounds of the school for being too 'active' (read unruly) in class or whose parents got called more number of times to school or who had more notes in the diary to be signed by the parents or who had more demerits or who was made to sit out a P.T. period for wearing wrong shoes or who had to walk around the most number of times in a month for wearing wrong shoes or who was made to unhem her extremely short skirt (which meant an inch and a half above the knees).

I don't think any of us suffered physically or mentally by being disciplined. Our parents too do it at home. Which parent has never scolded his/her child or punished the child in some way or the other.

In fact, I would say that we all benefitted from this (at least we knew which teacher gave the most severe punishments and the level of pranks to play in each class). I clearly remember the time we were caught reading an MB (yes people a MILLS & BOON) in class by the teacher and our book was confiscated. We had to beg for ages for the book to be returned. I remember the number of times girls would be called out of the assemble line and were handed a safety pin for unhemming their skirts (this would then not make it obscenely short any more, as in it would cover your knees). I remember the time we got pulled up for talking in Hindi in class or the time we got pulled up for talking English during our Hindi class.I remember the time we got called to Sister Gracia's office for singing HINDI MOVIE SONGS in class (I was in Class II at that time).

Of course, we were lucky that we didn't have extremists or sadists who shoved electric rods up our ass or made us stand in the sun for hours on end or molest any of us or beat any of us to death.

However, if the new policy of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights does get implemented, the teacher will have no way to discipline the child. As children we were always told that our school was our second home and that our teacher was like our other parent, and she had all rights to scold us or tick us off. If this new policy comes into being, the teacher won't be able to even verbally tick off a student for playing the fool in the class. Besides by encouraging parents to file FIRs against teachers, the very idea goes against the concept of teaching being a noble profession. By encouraging parents to file FIRs, there will defintely arise several cases where such power would be misused by the students and parents, maybe where the student gets less marks, they file an FIR allegeing bias against the student. What is there to stop soemone from filing such a complaint? In any case, most Indian mothers are firmly of the opinion that their son can do no wrong, even if he is the gunda of the class. One remark from the teacher and parents will go filing complaints against the teachers. And what about those spoilt rich brats who need to be put in place? What is some student files a complaint stating that their fundamental rights are being infringed by being made to wear school uniforms? What if some student who did not do well in an exam and is too scared to tell his parents that, goes and says the tacher scolded him?

Teachers, as we know, mould the young minds - for which they may even require to pull up the young minds. This policy is rather extreme, in my humble opinion. If they have the right and duty to love and praise, conversely then they also have the right to criticise and scold. Taking punitive exemplary action against the sadists as mentioned earlier is defintely called for. However, taking such an extreme policy is definitely uncalled for.

Spare the rod and spoil the child or use the rod and beat the child????

What is your take?

Rail Gaadi

Kooo chuk chuk chuk....

Train journeys were so much fun as kids - it meant traveling to a new place, be it for a vacation or because of another transfer. After a certain point, my train journeys meant mostly the Pune-Cal route on our old faithful Azad Hind Express.

It brings back so many wonderful memories - of Mom coming to drop me to Pune the first time, of so many bags scared that I'd left that blue top behind and what if I wanted to wear it suddenly, let aside the fact that I hadn't worn it in the past 2 years, but 'what if' I suddenly wanted to.If I could, I would have probably packed up my entire room, complete with my huge cupboard and Hrithik Roshan posters and my knick-knacks, including that sunset scene painted waaaaaaaaaaay back in class III.

It brings back memories of Mom packing my favourite train ka khana - pasta for dinner and chicken and roti for next day. A 36 hour journey, which more often than not became 40 meant that we'd sleep like there was no tomorrow, prompting other passengers to wake us up to ask if we were feeling okay or needed some medicine. It meant that while leaving Pune, I'd pack noodles and chicken lollipops for the night and for the rest of the journey, we would survive on boiled eggs and coffee and chips and pepsi and other such junk. It meant the yells of joy afetr crossing jamshedpur cuz we were just anthr 3 hours away from home, the jhalmuriwalas boardign from jamshedpur and we talking about how cheap Cal is as compared to Pune, it meant the guys (and some of the gals too) smoking their last fags for sometime and disposing off the bottles, seeing the howrah bridge and crowding onto the door to yell and wave to the parents and family. It meant meeting so many interesting people with whom I might not have otherwise had the chance to speak to - like the trade union leader, the construction worker, the hawker, the old lady who'd walked the dandi march alongwith gandhiji, the young dude all nervous for his interview, the students like us who'd be all broke and ready to run errands for the older passengers so long as they fed us something. It meant hours of adda with friends, hours of antakshari and dumb charades, chatting up that cute guy from Wadia's in the next coupe, it meant endless hours of card games, it meant waiting for Manmad to ahve chinese for dinner and rourkela to have boiled eggs, it meant having poori and alu ki sabzi (radha-pallabi) at khragpur, it meant having that awful coffee at Nagpur (I still say they used the mud outside the station and nto coffee powder) and the last vada pav for sometime at Jalgaon. It meant making sure you had that bag full of khaana and mithai for the hostel failing which one would not be allowed entry. It meants hours of sitting by the window and watching the countyside go by. It meant the time we were nearly 12 hours late cuz we were stranded outside Jamshedpur since a tree had fallen on the tracks. It meant calling home and telling Mom, don't come to the station since we don't know what time we are going to reach Cal (the whole journey is actually an entirely different story and I shall do justice to it in another post sometime). It meant 10 people and 3 tickets, it emant spending the entire journey sitting near the toilets since we didn't have enough seats. In first year it meant breaking the ice with seniors and actually talking to them, not being oveawed byt he fact that they were in their 4th year. It meant the time I came home in third year w/o informing anyone simply cuz I wanted to be with my first Valentine - my Dad. It meant Mom freaking out when she realized that i'd travelled along. Till 2nd year, it meant going home for prep leave. It also meant that in final year going to the station bidding our final adiue to friends (who were my family in Pune) and to my second home - Pune. It meant taking 5 years of my life back to square one.

It meant going from one home to the other.

JAI HO PRATIBHA DEVI KI !!!!

Pratibha Patil - the first Woman President of India. Despite that there is no sense of pride or joy when I say this.

When we say The President of India, it should inpire awe, respect, pride, patriotism - sadly this lady inspires nothing but a feeling of shame that we have a person (I shall not insult myself by calling her a lady anymore) who has allegedly conspired protected her brother who has a murder charge hanging on his head, someone who swindled funds from a trust fund set up for poor students, someone who claims to talk to godmen long dead and gone, someone who has not cleared debts to the public exchequer, someone who is not aware of the history of the country of which she is the President, someone who has been reported guilty of financial mismanagement of her family bank and financial irregularities in repayment of loans by the Cooperative sugar mills run by the Patil family.... Nope this is not the person I want to represent my country at the international level.

Till June 2007, noone even knew who Pratibha Pail is. She was the last choice for th post of the President....

On the flip side, I'm sure alot of other politicians would however appreciate her being in the same boat as them. Alot of our present day politicans have been accused of murder and have even served time in the jail n such charges. Alot of politicians' families have availed of various benefits using their connections (Remember the petrol pump scam). Politicians in Maharashtra think it is their birthright in fact to misuse loans granted to sugar mills. Well then, I guess our new President is just upholding the national tradition.

Long live Pratibha Patil....Long live our new President

Pratibha Devi ki jai ho jai ho jai ho...........

Would people think I'm crazy if I say I'm overloaded with work ad I like it and I also like cribbing about the fact that I have too much work?????????

IT IS INDEED A SAD COMMENT ON OUR SOCIETY THAT...

• That in order to get justice, a woman had to strip to the near basics to draw attention to her plight and get justice
• That while she walked, instead of understanding and empathising with her, men leered at her
• That the police wanted to book her on the charge on indecent exposure in public
• That despite the fact that she tried to draw attention to her plight by immolating herself outside the police station, no heed was taken of her matter
• That instead of pulling up the concerned officers who did not take cognizance of her multiple complaints, the police is debating on her mental condition
• That we still physical and mental harrassment because of dowry
• That we still have parents who buy grooms for their daughters and term the consideration as 'dowry'
• That her own parents have not taken her in despite all the emotional and physical torture she faced and she had to live in rented accomodation
• That her landlords fearing retribution from her in-laws have asked her to vacate their premises
• That all the people who were aware of the fact that she faced such atrocities did nothing, not even make an anonymous complaint
• That she has been penalised for having a daughter
• That her on husband was the perpetrator of all these atrocities
• That alot of people on seeing Pg. 1 of TOI showing her marching through the city in her underwear got titilated and did not read the entire cover story
• That alot of people have criticised Pooja for walking on the streets in her undergarments without even asking her why she did so

I can only thank God for the luck and His blessings that I was born into a family where I never faced any bias because I am a Girl and love me for who I am.

I thank God that I married into a family where I am a daughter and not a daughter-in-law (No pun intended)

I thank God for giving me Arjun.

Kolkata - City of Joy

Home sweet home....

Yes its been six years since I have left Cal now and I won't be going back to stay there permanently anymore - but the memroies are there.The rains here in Delhi are now bringing back my memories and making me all nostalgic for Cal. I always say Cal or Kolkata - I hate it when some of my non Bong friends pronounce it 'KOLKATTA with emphasis on the t'

You just don't get chat anywhere in India like the chat you get in Cal.I miss the puchkas (2 takaar 4 te) and the churmur (pronounced choor moor) - a gooey mishmash of papdi and broken golgappas and imli ki chutni and lots of masala eaten in a bowl made of dried leaves and you use a papdi as a spoon. I miss the jhaal muri. One sureshot way we knew we'd entered the domain of West Bengal was when the mooriwalas would board the train from Jamshedpur and we'd buy jhaal muri worth five whole bucks and even then we'd argue with the guy saying the quantity had decreased. I miss the chicken rolls and the kaababs (spelled the way it is pronounced) and the egg roll and the mutton chop and the momos and chicken haakka (again spelled the way it is pronounced) and I miss the ice cream walas ka ghanti going tring tring at 4 pm when all the adults would be fast asleep and we kids would pool our paisas together and then 4 of us would share a vanilla cup (which used to be the cheapest). I miss having fish fry from Benfish and telling people that the nearest landmark to my house is 'Paanjaab bank' (you get the drift by now).

I miss the camardarie and the warmth of my para where everyone knows everyone - where the moment my taxi would pull up in front of my house on my return from hostel all the doors and windows of adjoining houses would open up and immediately all the kakimas (aunties) and didas (sundry grandmoms) would start saying ' Eki re...Poonaye ki tui khaaoa daaoa korish na theek kore? Dekh ki shukiye geche re ei meyeta' (What is this - don't you eat properly in Pune? You'v become so thin). I miss going to someone's house and immediately being plied with jol, mamlet (you were fed omlettes if you showed up between 10 - 1 in the morning and 3 - 8 in the evening), parle - g ba marie biskut ( parle/marie biscuits), lotsa mishti (sandesh/chamcham/channar toast/ras malai)....the list is endless. I miss the community feeling where all of us would gather on Ekadoshi (The 11th day of the Durga Puja) to watch the natok (drama) put up by the baachas in the para. I miss serving the para kakus (uncles) during bhog who would sit down to eat only after they had ensured that every single person in our block right form the oldest to the youngest, the richest to the poorest had eaten the labda, khichuri, aachar, papod and chatni (That was always the menu year after year). I miss seeing the entire city decked up for the Pujo with people out in their Sunday bests roaming from Garia to Sribhumi to Deshapriya Park to see the pandals.

I miss the bhelpuri wala who used to sit right outside school. I miss my friends. I miss City Centre'er Crispy Chicken. I miss the evening walks and games which culminate either in CA Market having rolls and thereafter on the steps of City Centre. I miss the wramth of my city. I miss the feeling of knowing that its impossible to lose your way there - someone or the other would lead you onto the right track and tell you 'Take 235, and get off at Minto Park, cross the road and then take S21. Tell the conductor to tell you when the stop comes.' I miss knowing that wherever I maybe in he city I still have a home in every para (Thanks to my innumerable relatives and friends). I miss the fests of our school days and the intense competition we used to have in HAM, JAM, Quiz etc etc etc. I miss going all the way from Salt Lake to Golpark just to buy that one book which you were just not getting in Landmark and CRosswords, despite placing orders for it a hundred times. I miss roaming the gallis of New Market wanting to buy everything I saw. I miss the joyous feeling when we could see Howrah Bridge as the train was pulling in. I miss the tram rides along the race course and cutting across the Maidan to get to Sangam Gate.I miss the intense conversation I used to have with my co-passengers on the bus rides. I miss going to Central Park for bhutta. I miss the chuttis we used to get when it used to pour and the lane leading to our school would get flooded. I miss wading through knee-deep water holding hands.I miss the songs and dances of Cal. I miss the hazaar pujas we used to have. I miss the bandhs when we would play baddy and cricket on the streets. I miss my friends who are all now in different parts of the country because of studies and/or work. I miss the impromptu adda sessions we use to have across the balconies.I miss the early morning trips to Dakhineshwar and the achars you get right outside Gangurams and then the boat ride to Belur Math.

I MISS CAL. I MAY NOT BE LIVING THERE ANY MORE, BUT ALOT OF LOVELY MEMORIES ARE THERE - AND OF COURSE MY PARENTS

I MISS CAL...PERIOD

.

JANTA KI RAAY???????

Doesen't janta ki raay count in the largest democracy in the world??????????

Don't I at least get to say who I would like to see as my President - as the Representative of my country - as the Leader of our Defence Force - the Final Decision Maker etc etc. Yes yes I know the President is only the titular Head bla blah blah - the de facto and de jure etc etc...

But I do have an opinion and I want a choice to exercise that opinion. I know we execrsie our franachise when we'r electing the Prime Minister.

In my opinion, the Prime Minister heads the Cabinet, he is the actual head of India, as in the working head. But its the President who is THE face of our country. His is THE signature which makes a bill a law, he is THE ONE who has the authority to declare India to be in a state of war, he is THE ONE who may grant a pardon to some poor soul and give him a fresh lease of life.

Why do we have to make do with one of the also rans as our President. Oour outgoing president, Abdul Kalam Azad, a world famous scientist, a visionary beyond par and a man who was above all the political games and muck. A man to whom we the next generation can look upto and learn from, a man who came from the back and beyond (as we the urban dwellers would say), a Muslim to boot to head ISRO, to head our country, a man who thinks its the children and students whose opinions are important and not to be dismissed, a man, an author, a motivator, a teacher, a leader, a man who would never compromise on his principles, someone we can all look upto and so will the rest of world. Which country can say with pride that they have been led by a nuclear scientist.

And now in his place who are the probable contenders - a bunch of political washouts, also-rans, yes-men and chamchas. Men who would never hesitate to compromise on their scruples and the country to save themselves and their party and their leader, not to mention a quick buck on the side. why don't we just auction off the chair. men who wouldn't think twice before passing some worthless bill into a law (something like more reservation for the SC/ST/OBC - others stop studying and working)

Imagine a scene where the auctioneer (now that would start another race) brings down his hammer to say "Going once going twice and sold to the man with the big red huge suitcase"

And while I am at it, how is it that in a country of more than one billion we cannot come up with some women as contenders for the Presidential post. I propose Shabana Azmi for one, Kiran Bedi as another and Renuka Chowdhury as a third. And no I will never ever consider Mrs. Sonia Gandhi's name as President becasue of the very simple fact that she is not an Indian by birth. She will never be able to gauge the pulse of the nation and at the risk of repeating myself, SHE IS NOT AN INDIAN.SHE IS AND WILL ALWAYS REMAIN AN ITALIAN.National pride is also something.

It appears that the elections for the highest post in the country turn into an arena for all the politicians to showoff their political might (read number of votes) and call in their favours. This should ideally be an election where we, the people of the country have a say - Of the people, by the people, for the people in the true sense of the term.

JANTA KI RAAY LI JAAYE AND JANTA KI RAAY SUNI JAAYE

MELTING MOMENTS

Its soooooooooooo hottttttttttttttttttttt.........

Common refrain yes, and I'm sure most of you are by now sick to death of hearing me say this (especially Arjun cuz poor guy has to bear the brunt of my anger when the light just conks offf at night)

Ughhhhhhhh, yes that is the WORST thing ever - trying to sleep and there being no light for 3-4 hours. Calling up those idiots sitting at the pumphouse is of no use cuz they are never informed about anything on earth except to say that 'Hume nahi maloom light kab tak ayegi'

So there we are swating like pigs and dogs and any other animal you care to name...I swear that if any HUDA official ever shows up before me at such time, I shall not be responsible for my actions and their aftermath.

SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPIALIDOCIUS

Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay

Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!

Even though the sound of it

Is something quite atrocious

If you say it loud enough

You'll always sound precocious!!!!!

The longest word in the English languauge. Sadly, the exact origin of the word may never be pinned down, so this will be, for the time being at least, an incomplete report. But it is a fact that the word considerably predates the 1964 Disney movie Mary Poppins in which it was prominently featured.

In the West End and Broadway musical, everyone runs out of conversations, and Mary and the children go to Mrs. Corry's shop, where you can buy them. Jane and Michael pick out some letters and spell a few words. Bert and Mrs. Corry use the letters to make up some words (whose existence Jane doubts). Mary says that you could use some letters more than one time and creates the longest word of all in this song.

In the movie the song describes how using the word is a miraculous way to talk one’s self out of difficult situations and even a way to change one’s mood. It occurs in the film’s animated sequence where Mary Poppins is harangued by reporters after winning a horse race and responds to a reporter’s claim that there are not words to describe her feelings of the moment, and her life long dream of being in theater. Mary disagrees with that claim and begins the song about one word which she can use to describe her feelings. Following the successes of the film and musical play, the word has been used as an adjective signifying rather redundant superlatives, such as “the most absolutely stunningly fantastic” of experiences.

The word was never used in the original P. L. Travers books. The common theory is that the word was created by Richard and Robert Sherman for use in the song of the same name in Mary Poppins. This is far from the case. A lawsuit that was filed after the movie came out by Life Music, Inc., against Wonderland Music, the publisher of the Mary Poppins song. It was a copyright infringement suit brought by Barney Young and Gloria Parker, who had written a song in 1949 entitled "Supercalafajaistickespeealadojus" and shown it to Disney in 1951. They asked for twelve million dollars in damages. The suit was decided in the Shermans' favor because, among other reasons, affidavits were produced from two New Yorkers, Stanley Eichenbaum and Clara Colclaster, who claimed that "variants of the word were known to and used by them many years prior to 1949".

There was also some vague rumour at some point that the word was used to refer to Irish whores. Apparently, some article of Maxim (No I don’t read it, this part I got off the net) had stated that the word was actually invented by turn-of-the-century Scottish coal miners and was used to request “the works” from prostitutes by men too shy to recite specific acts. I think this is a load of bullshit. Who believes Maxim – for satisfying etymological queries anyway?? (Maybe to satisfy other urges…ahem ahem)

Anyway, it is also a fact that a 13 year old in US of A (where else) won $25,000 by correctly texting "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" in just 15 seconds...with no spelling errors.

The word is mostly used by children (and by adults like me who attempt to bring out the child within them sometimes) to means something superbly fantastic, excellent, amazing. Roots of the word have been defined, as Richard Lederer writes in his book Crazy English as follows: super- “above,” cali- “beauty,” fragilistic- “delicate,” expiali- “to atone,” and docious- “educable,” with the sum of these parts signifying roughly “Atoning for educatability through delicate beauty."

SUPERCALIFRAIGILISTICEXPIALIDOCIUS!!!!!!!!!!!

ODE TO CHOCOLATE!!!!!!

I am a self-confessed chocolate freak. I neeeeeeeed to have some form of chocolate every single day - yes I know that is precisely why I am putting on wieght but, 'Ki kara paaji, control nahi honda' :p

I shall further stress on the point that it is a proven fact that chocolate has a number of beneficial effects on one's health.

1) Nutritional Value
The nutritional value of a 100 gm bar of chocolate:-

Calories Protein Carbohydrate Fat
Milk chocolate 588 8.7 54.5 37.6
Dark chocolate 544 5.6 52.5 35.2
Cocoa Powder 452 20.4 35.0 2.56

Cocoa contains phosphate and other minerals that work against the tendency to produce oral bacteria. Moreover, chocolates contain potassium, magnesium and several vitamins including B1, B2, D, and E.

2) Dil ka Doctor:
New research indicates that dark chocolate, like red wine, contains a substantial proportion of flavinoids - possibly good for the heart. A 1.5 ounce chocolate bar contains about the same amount of total phenolic compounds as a 5-ounce serving of red wine, which has been associated with a reduced risk for coronary heart disease.

3) My Immunity Strongest:
Further it is a well known fact that chocolate stimulates the secretion of endorphins, producing a pleasurable sensation similar to a 'runner's high', the high a jogger feels after a long stretch of running. These pleasurable experiences stimulate the body to produce a powerful antibody called secretory immuno globulin A, which strengthens the immune system.

4) Mood Upar Lifter:
Eating chocolate results in higher antioxidants, which cuts cholesterol. It is a powerful fighter of fatigue and not only boosts your spirit, but also raises your energy levels as well. It is also an anti-depressant. Chocolate contains a neurotransmitter, serotonin, which acts as an anti-depressant, while its other properties also have a stimulating effect. Chocolate reduces the formation of internal blood clots, further reducing the chances of a coronary blockage. Certain heart patients are prescribed aspirin, in order to prevent the formation of blood clots. Cocoa complements this property of aspirin.

5) Love-life
And chocolate is also an aphrodisiac......the rest shall be left unsaid!!!!!!

I shall not feel guilty no more when I eat chcOlates - after all I have to take care of my health yaa

So bring on all the Cadbury Perks, gooey chocolate cakes, choclate avalance, hot chocolate, chocolate fudge, choclate pudding.....CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE

INTERESTING AND LITTLE KNOWN FACTS

• Under the Indian Sarais Act, 1867, it is a punishable offence for ‘inn-keepers’ not to offer free drinking water to passer-by. Recently, a Delhi five-star hotel was taken to court by the municipal corporation on the grounds that the hotel was not doing so
• The oldest law in the country has been in operation for over a century and half. The one sentence 1836 Bengal District Act empowers the Bengal government to create as many zillas as it wants. The Act still exists
• Only about 40 per cent of our laws are in regular use. Independent India has till now found no conceivable use for the rest
• The Indian Telegraph Act, which was passed in 1885, when the concept of television obviously didn’t exist, has been invoked five times in the past three years by Doordarshan over telecast rights of cricket matches played in India. This very nearly derailed the telecast of the 1996 World cup
• The Police Act, 1861, still requires a policeman to take off his cap or helmet before a member of royalty. A ridiculous provision that nobody has thought of removing so far.
  The Indian Contract Act and the Specific Relief Act, 1963 have overlapping areas, leaving enough room for confusion. A person sacked from a job may decide to sue his employer under the Indian Contract Act, while the employer may take refuge under the Specific Relief Act
• Section 108 of the Customs Act and Section 171A of the Sea Customs Act are identical, offering a wide choice to both trigger-happy enforcement people and offenders looking for a loophole to slip through
• The Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators Act, 1976, a variant of COFEPOSA, whose sole objective is to forfeit illegally acquired properties of smugglers or forex manipulators and applies only to those convicted under the Sea Customs Act, 1878 and Customs Act, 1962
• One can prove that the economic reforms are actually against the Indian Constitution. Article 39 of the Directive Principles opposes polices that raise disparities in income and wealth. Therefore reforms, or for that matter, any policy statement, can be stayed on the ground that it’s widening the guilty between the rich and the poor
• Under section 14 of the Hindu Marriage Act, a couple cannot get a divorce within one year of the marriage, even if one of the parties is found to be insane or a warranted criminal. Even in case of divorce by mutual consent, Section 13B allows a lock-in period of one year before the grant of a divorce
• Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code says whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse "against the order of nature" can be imprisoned for life and fined. Which means homosexuals and lesbians are outlawed. And oral sex is illegal. All this, by laying down a behavior code, violates the privacy of citizens
• Only rape is jailable offence, not sexual molestation
• The Lunacy Act takes a harmless epileptic to be the same as a certified lunatic
• Poor, homeless person are often harassed as the Vagrancy Act allows anyone who’s "loitering with intent" to be booked. (How do you prove that you had no "intent" as you loitered?)
• Thanks to a piece of ridiculous legislation called the Prevention of Seditious Meeting Act, 1911, an independent India can still disallow a prisoner from wearing a khadi Gandhi Cap.
  The Police (Incitement to Disaffection) Act, 1920, has been used just twice. Once against Lokmanya Tilak. The second time was in 1981-against the author of a pamphlet that commended the police for forming an association to demand better rights. (Striking textile mill workers had rioted and the cops had stayed way)
• The Indian Stamp Act or the General Court Fees Act, of which every state has individual versions
• Each state also has its own civil procedure code apart from the Central Code
• The provisions of the Indian Electricity Act, 1910, Electricity (Supply Act), 1948, and the Indian Electricity Rules, 1956, prevent Central intervention at the state level, while also discouraging foreign/ private investment
• The Hire-Purchase Act of 1972, never metamorphosed into an Act. For a Bill to become an Act, it must be passed by both Houses of Parliament, but this was passed by only one House. Due to lack of interest in the Bill, it just lapsed. This has resulted in a piquant situation, buyers of vehicles on hire-purchase/bank loans can’t be prosecuted by the financier not the vehicle repossessed even if they default on repayment, because there’s no law for it. In such cases, the only recourse open to the financier is to send thugs to the defaulter. However, a wily defaulter can run rings round the lender by lodging dacoity cases against the lender, and claiming that he had a large amount of money lying in the car when it was seized
• The State of Rajasthan has always opposed provisions of the Narcotics, Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, as many of its communities ritually smoke marijuana at wedding ceremonies
• No one have a foreign coin collection work over #500
• Even a visiting foreigner can’t mail a cheque abroad because the law doesn’t allow "sending currency instruments out of the country"
• An exporter can’t sell a consignment at a discount after it has reached the buyer. He must bring it back and declare it to the RBI afresh, an impossibility in the case of consignments of perishables or goods with low shelf life. Naturally, if you are an Agro exporter, you take big loss and shut up, or you break the law
• The Rent Control Act, which not only discourages private investment in real estate by disallowing market fixation of rent, it forbids landlords from evicting or taking any step against defaulting tenants

I DON'T LIKE TO BE ILL

The title says it all - I guess. I don't like being sick.I don't liek being ill. I don't like getting others all worried about me. I wanna be my own usual self hogging away like crazy (I swear I eat more than half the males around).

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh

Oh that feels good to have let it all out :)

AND YES I KNOW YOU GUYS ARE ALL GOING TO SAY "WHO LIKES BEING ILL?"

Hypochondriacs like being ill.

Yes that is me just babbling away like I tend to do sometimes :P

This is one issue I feel very strongly about.I don't understand why parents think such an important issue should be hidden from the child. Why is it bad? Its not a wrong or a shameful thing at all. It is very essential fo the child to be taught the difference betwee a 'good' touch and a 'bad' touch from a very young age. If someone touches a child in a manner which makes the child uncomfortable, the child should be allowed to speak up and not told to shut up. It could and it has caused untold damage and distresss to the same children when they grow up. Usually, it is the servant, the driver, some bhaiya in the colony, the watchman or even some trusted uncle - who lures the child with chocolates to play a game. Ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, lock these people away and blast them off to space. They do not deserve to be on earth.

That is me at my pouty best - no not mopey best but my pouty best :)

OOOPS I'm still new to this -= so it got published before I could complete it.

Part II:

• To get rid of all the assholes in the world who don't know how to drive, who drink and drive and then run over people and then think they can get out of the mess by paying off various persons;
• To make all these idiots resposnible for the families of persons whom they ran over for the rest of their f**** lives;
• To make those idiots so proud of their Daddyji's bags of gold that they are nothing in front of me, cuz I earn my own money and then spend it;
• To make such idiots earn their own money and realise the value of money and hard work;
• To sleep all day;
• To be pampered in the parlour for an entire day;
• To have two sundays a week;
• To ensure a smile on everyone's faces;
• To make all those self-appointed guardians of religion and society sit for a three hour 200 mark writtene xam and see how much they actually know about their religion and only if you get more tahn 90% will they be allowed to continue as certified self-appointed guardians;
• To have a genie who will fulfil all my wishes;

This reminds me of that song from Yes Boss -

" Chande taare tod laooo

Saari duniya par main chaooo

MAIN ZYAADA NAHI MAANGTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA"

I Want -

• To be able to sing like a nightingale (Ok maybe that's wanting a little too much);
• To be able to to dance without a care in the world;
• To play my guitar again;
• To be a geniuis;
• To win a Nobel Prize;
• To win the Oscar;
• To win a Grammy award;
• To be a star;
• To own a bright red Mercedes with black leather bucket seats (ya I'l probable swelter in the Delhi heat);
• To argue a case and create a landmark judgment which studets down the ages will have to have have to study (like Keshavanada Bharti and the Mardia judgments);
• To do my Doctorate and have a Doctor before my name;
• To end all the tears in the worl;
• To win a Booker Prize;
• To tell Matthew Perry "Dude you were sooooo cute in the first couple of seasons - what happned to you after that?"
• To make sure all the *&^%$#@#$ b**** get all their bitchiness returned to them with interest;
• To make up with some friends whom I lost out on vuz of my own stupidness and ego;
• To find some of my old friends;
• To read the latest Harry Potter soon to be released NOW;
• To write my own book (for which I get the Book prize and it also be a huge commercial success and I get oodles of money in royalty);
• To have a flat tummy;
• To not worry about putting on in the worng places;
• To be able to be confident and look peolpe in their eyes and say "You know shit";
• To get rid of all those

Hello People :)

Hello People....i'v climbed on to the blog bandwagon too like everyone else around me.

I'v been thinking of maintaining a blog for quite a while now - but till now it was only planning, no implementation.But today, I managed to execute and implement the plan.

I feel different now - lotsa changes have taken place in my life over the past couple of months.I'm learning to adjust and give in at tmes and sometimes just not give in and stick to being an adamant stubborn bitch. Well, yes that's what I am - sometimes.

I am funny, smart, intelligent,beautiful,loving,caring,love to read and and sleep and I am a firm believer and militant advocate of having my own space and giving others their own space as well. I try not intrude on others space, but sometimes when I do end up intruding and trespassing, people your free to tell me off (your allowed to be slightly rude - though not very rude too or I will retreat into my shell). I am very possessive about my books and my momos as well :P (yes your allowed to laugh but it is a fact). I am also possessive about my pillow. I hurt easy, but I have learnt to hide my tears behind the smile on my face - a mask through which very very few persons can look beyond and see the tears on my face. Oh and yes I do love learning new things - be it cooking or the procedure int he various tribunals or be it making soft toys or how to play the guitar

Okay I guess, for my first blog post - not bad at all. Arjun, Runna, MMDD, Johnnie - I'm getting there.i'm not verterans like you guys at maintaining a blog and neither am I very blog savvy - but I SHALL LEARN