2012 the bear

MIL#2 extreme pain - started with cancer of the brain now throughout her whole body
niece - stage 4 cervicalcancer
daughter - broken foot - 2 bones & one dislocated to the wrong side of the foot.
daughter - midbrain scatter

what else is there?

Years Come Years Go - Let Time Be

Years come, years go, and this year 2012 is not going to come again. Each day presented an opportunity for us to become a new "me", a new "you", a new "us", to make it the life of our dreams.

The clock ticked; the seconds became minutes, the minutes became hours, the hours became days, the days became weeks and months, the months became a year, and by then 2012 was going to cease to exist. By the time year 2012 became a year, it was done and could not be something more even if it wished to; 2013 waited in the wings.

Years come, years go. Time stays on; constantly churning, egging us on, beating us to the punch, waiting for us to catch up. Time never stands still. We wish it did. Pause. Stop. Smell the flowers. Take in a sunset. Put your feet up on the hammock. Stand on the sea shore and stare at the azure beyond. Dream.

Time is a lie. Life does not happen on the clock. The first time a baby talks, the first time a baby crawls, the first few steps on unsteady feet, nothing happens on an calendar appointment. The first lie, the first fight, the first best friends, nothing seeks your nod to happen on the clock. The first kiss, the first crush, the first love, you'd be a fool to look at the clock to make it happen.

Jump, Fly, Soar. Love, Share, Give. Dream, Do, Achieve. Let Time Go. Live Your Life.

Time . .

Wake up at 5:30/
Call mom/
/Speak to lead/
/Perform Analysis/
/Draft Email/
/Read news paper/
/Study for CAT/
/Read Novel/
/Call XYZ/
/Etc/
/Get CFL/
/Leave on Time/

We can have enough of money, so that we don't have to think about it before spending/wasting it, but can we have enough of time? so that we can spend it lavishly, finish the tasks enjoying each moment without any tension of meeting some deadlines set by self or others?

A delay of half an hour in getting up disrupts the entire day schedule i will go office late, come back home late, skip the morning 30 mins of newspaper, skip breakfast or have an express one (which is usually 400 Gm of Curd or a Subway sandwich), dress up in a hurry etc.
There is not a single moment during the day when i am not keeping a check on the amount of time i am spending in doing an activity, be it preparing a deliverable, writing a mail or attending nature call.
Their is so much tension in mind so difficult to try and remember all the things that i have to do in a day. A diary or notepad, seems indispensable for a day to end properly, and its so much of a joy if i am back home in time and all the items for today are crossed. I was never so meticulous but their is no other fucking way to remember all the things. In office, sometimes, simply trying to remember what all i planned to do in the morning a few hours ago, even that gives a bloody headache.

IT all feels so suffocating, not being able to do things at an easy pace.

Our for fathers never used to worry about all these things, no emails, no mobiles, no cars everything used to happen at the speed at which humans can work, now we are bloody forced to match the speed of fudging machines. And we also have soft-wares that tell us when we are going slow.

Forget it cuz' you can't fix it

There are times when you're putting your baby to sleep, and simultaneously taking a journey down the memory lane. Nothing related to your childhood, or your Mommy's lullabies; just pondering about what you could undo and what you could have done better. You crave to fix a couple of things and torture your mind by thinking about ways to fix what you can never fix. And you want to do all this by making sure that you don't end up with a different present, because the present that you have is perfect - a loving husband and a beautiful daughter. So you quit thinking about changing the past, not because it is unchangeable, but because you are afraid of ruining your present.

I feel that I should have spent more time with parents, been less selfish, and saved more money. I can always do this now, so that five years down the line, I'm not busy thinking about undoing the past while I'm singing a lullaby for my kids.

I should have been sleeping now...

Panchi Ho Jaavaan (I wish that I could be a bird)

Panchi ho Jaavaan

Jee chaahe panchi ho jaavaan,
Ud daa jaavaan, gaunda jaavaan,
Anchuhe sikharaan nu Choo paavaan,
Is duniya deeyaan raahvaan bhul ke
Pher kade na vaapas aavaan.

Ja ishnaan karaan vich jam-jam
La Deekaan peeyaan daan da paani.
Maan-sarovar de beh kande
Tutta jiha ik geet maen gaavaan.
Ja baethaan vich khireeyaan royeean
Phakaar pauna itar-sajoeeyaan.
Him-Teesiyaan moiyaan moiyaan
Yugaan yugaan taun kakkar hoiyaan
Ghut kaleje maen garmaavaan.
Jee chaahe panchi ho jaavaan.

Hoe aahlana vich shatootaan,
Jaan vich jand, kareer, sarootaan,
Aaun poorere de seet faraate,
Lachkaare iyun laen Daaliyaan
JyuN koi Doli kheDe jaReeyaan
Vaal khalaari lae lae jhootaan.
Ik din aisa jhakkarh jhulle
Ud pud jaavan sab hi teelee
Be-ghar be-dar main ho jaavaan.
Saari umar peeyaan ras gham da
Aise nashe vich jind handaavaan,
Jee chaahe panchi ho jaavaan.

English Translation.
___________________________

"I wish that I could be a bird
That I could fly, that I could sing,
That I could touch untouchable peaks,
That I could forget the roads of the world,
And never return.

I would bath luxuriously
Drinking long sips of water.
By the shore of a great lake,
I would sing a halting song.
I would go into a flowering wilderness
Gulp the perfume laden winds.
I would warm in a tight embrace,
The peaks of mountains,
Deadened by centuries of freezing cold.
I wish that I could be a bird.

My nest would be among the mulberry trees,
On in the caper, the mesquite or the cypress.
When the cold east wind blew
The jewelled branches would bend
As if playing, swaying
With their hair flying in the wind.
One day there would be a storm
And all the twigs would all scatter.
Nestless, homeless, I would become,
For the rest of my life I would drink the nectar of sorrow
And live my life in its intoxication.
I wish that I could be a bird."

The Shopping Experience in India Today.

The word "Shopping" lights up a glint in one's eyes immediately. In urban India today, thanks to the rampant rise of the shopping mall, one's options in buying have increased manifold. Gone are the days when we would have only one neighbourhood grocer or local market with their patent "General Stores" label, and their limited variety on offer. Today, shopping has reinvented itself, for one can not only shop, but also spend leisure time in a space with ample security and good environment. Shopping malls have doubled up as meeting points for friends, colleagues, and families. Yesterday, such a facility existed only in a club, which demanded exclusivity and membership. Today, access to a Mall is so much more convenient, user friendly, economical and offers the feel-good factor, away from the noise and din of the open roads.
Malls today offer something for everybody. It serves as an ideal family outing spot,and especially takes care of those moments when you don't know exactly what to do, but need to fill in that extra space in your day. Food courts, the very convenient, trendy looking, fast food stalls all stacked together, offer a variety of food at economical rates. Be it Mexican, Italian, Indian (North and South),Continental or American fast food: there is food to satisfy any and every type of palate. Alongside the eating and shopping experience, there are safe children's play areas, which take care of channelizing the young ones' energy. In today's fast paced world, where calling on relatives and friends at their homes has become passe`, the shopping mall provides a great outlet for every individual. Critics of shopping malls may be in plenty, but I doubt if there is even one among them who do not admire the pleasures that a mall offers.
Modern retail outlets provide the latest and best of fashion, food and entertainment. Forget asking your NRI Aunt or cousin for a favour anymore:your favourite international brand perfume or jeans is now just a short drive away! Can life get anymore convenient? Plus, there are always those great offers, seasonal sales and discounts which make the experience even more worthwhile. It actually makes sense to shop for groceries from the supermarkets at malls these days, rather than buying stuff at the MRP (maximum retail price) rates of the local corner store.Shopping in India has certainly been revolutionized; and the credit wholly and solely goes to the modern shopping malls!

Building Infrastructure for Pedestrians in India

With its huge population and increasing demand for urban infrastructure, India has the potential to be a world leader in providing adequate infrastructure for pedestrians. It is an opportunity for development of not only corporations in the construction space but also for companies and individuals providing facility management services. There is a need to think beyond traditional road development approaches, that are vehicle friendly, to deliver world class
amenities for pedestrians and possibly for cyclists and other eco friendly
means of transport.

This area is not without development and there are some good examples, already. Some of them are -
1. Development of footpaths and elevated footpaths in metros and major cities.
2. Foot over bridges and subways at prominent locations ( at present though, these are built to streamline traffic movement in congested area with customer comfort being an after thought).
3. Integrated development of amenities for pedestrians at places of tourist interest. ( some tenders specify development of conveyor facilities, mini trams, etc. that do not require manned operations)

Currently, there is a need driven approach to development based on feedback and input to town and city planning authorities and urban development bodies. To go from here to a world
leading position, we need a services and marketing push by facility management
and construction firms to local bodies and urban development authorities. There
is a need to create infrastructure for pedestrians in a way that it can recoup its investment and return an income as well. Let us see how this is possible.

In order to transform infrastructure for pedestrians into an earning asset, it needs to provide a billable service. This could be of these major types -
1. Rentals from mobile vendors and service providers
2. Advertising revenue from road facing and curb facing signage
3. Rentals from shops and markets created as part of the infrastructure for pedestrians
4. Fines collected for encroachment, littering and other offenses
5. Rentals from other infrastructure providers using pedestrian spaces, like broadband, cable, telecom, water, sewerage, etc.
6. Revenues from value added services like conveyor belts, mini trams, all weather shelters, etc.
7. Revenues from basic services like toilets, water dispensers, etc.

This list is not exhaustive and shows that there are multiple options for earning revenues from such spaces. Creating an all weather infrastructure can push up costs, but can multiply the earning potential as well. It could be further integrated with mass transit systems to increase the
area, and hence the earning potential.

The financing of such infrastructure can be obtained from central
schemes like JNNURM, MPLAD, and from funds earmarked for local bodies, among
others. There is also scope for public-private partnerships, especially with
builders constructing new housing and commercial development. Besides these,
shops and commercial establishments in the vicinity could contribute as
partners in the overall development of their areas.

The maintenance and operation of such infrastructure could be a
daunting proposition for local bodies facing fund paucity, and hence revenue
generation is of utmost priority. However, it is also an area with tremendous
scope for employment of the under-developed sections of urban society. These
are some of the jobs that could get created -
1. Cleaning staff
2. Service and maintenance staff
3. Gardeners
4. Location based service providers and enablers (like tourist
guides, etc)
5. Security staff

If some of those services are offered as paid services, the posts could be auctioned off locality wise to generate additional income. They could alternatively be covered by urban employment schemes on the lines of NREGA.

Overall, thanks to increasing urbanization, infrastructure development for pedestrians deserves increased focus and could emerge into a sector that can propel the economy forward.

Who polices these rotten Legal Eagles!

Here are the many instances they have taken the law into their hands - Search Link

Drifter

My mind drifts endlessly like a piece of paper

Blown here and there by the errant weather

Sometimes it lands on the bright orange flowers nodding merrily at me

and sometimes on children playing, careless and free.

Sometimes it settles on the frail old lady staring vacantly,

Wonder what she is thinking or is it a silent plea?

Sometimes it goes down the memory lane

And settles on yesterdays' fun in the rain,

Where life was all about meeting friends;

And mooning about future career and trends.

Where one moment of fun was not about being someone,

But being there for someone was rather more fun

My mind drifts aimlessly here and there

Finally it's forced to settle on the silly machine that I stare

And gives me a reality check, so there.

Cant wait to be that piece of paper again;

Where I can wander aimlessly now and then!

~Piyali~