The day of Christmas!

On a lovely day of Christmas
Amidst carols and the mass
Stood I, waiting for Mr. Claus

Presents , gifts and cards
Filled the stores and carts
In search of one, was my heart

My feet -
walked the snow covered street
Feeling the showering sleet.

Far I had traveled
On spotting the reindeer, almost stumbled
And Santa's "Ho ho ho" got me dazzled

Wrapped gift in his hand
Gentle smile on his face
And the warmth he brought along

I opened the gift-box
A set of puzzle blocks
In time all the words unlocked

"Share and Care" was in Bold
My hand hold -
A warm message in Gold

Eyes opened
And I questioned
Dream? all this while?

Mirrored Me!!

After having read the article in "The Times of India", a vague thought runs in my head.It may sound really wierd but how I wish it was true. The article talked about a new planet discovered in another orbit which revolves around a star in a different solar system altogether.

"A rocky planet, same size as the Earth has been discovered orbiting a star like our sun." That sounds a bit of fun.

"Although the planet, Kepler-20f could have a thick water-vapour atmosphere, its
surface is believed to be too hot for life. "

As I read through these lines my witty brain was thinking beyond physics and astronomy. A set of "what ifs?" questions popping up, I was lost in an imaginary world - yeah of course, I had landed on Kepler-20f :0

I was standing in the centre of an island which was densely covered with coconut trees.Mild tropical climate and the wonderful shore. It was perfect to the ultimatum. The roaring waves and me walking on the sand , was an euphoric experience.

Far in the distance I saw a person like object moving closer to me. I was shocked to see myself in another person as she walked and stood right in front of me. What nonsense am I talking.. No I am serious , it was my twin on Kepler-20f. She was making sounds and reciprocated the same way I did. Screamed with joy, jumped with emotions, hugged each other and as we do that I noticed one huge wave wich was rising high and it rose higher within seconds ... and I opened my eyes.My candid thought process was broken and I was on planet earth, in my sweet home. Gosh! that was scary indeed but quite a nice experience. How I wish I'd spent a little more time with the other me from Kepler-20f.

That noon I shared this with my sis and she went more crazy with her version of the twin story. "What if every one had a twin there ? what language do they talk in? How do we communicate?" Oh Lord save us from these hilarious talks!

"I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope. Which is what I do, and that enables you to laugh at life's realities. ~ Dr. Seuss "

Office chitter chatters - Incident 1

On a casual thursday afternoon,

Friend 1 : The roads were crowded today. So I logged in late.
Me : Hey today it is Hanuman Jayanti.. That might be the cause.
Friend 1 : Oh Yeah in Orissa its Guruvaar(Thursday).

My expression :/ and I blurped out : Oh madamji its Guruvaar throughout not just Orissa ...

Well she meant it was the Lakshmi pooja that they perform on all the Guruvaars/ Thursdays in this particular month. And that day being the last one of the month is supposed to be auspicious and celebrated with zest and fervor. A good piece of information it was, received in a hilarious way.

On searching the net for more, here's what I extracted.

The whole month of Margashira is spent in worshipping the Goddess Lakshmi in Orissa.The festival is known as "Manabasa Gurubara" or "Lakshmi Puja" which is performed by the housewives.

This festivities include the houses getting cleaned and purified with the plastering done using cow dung, a jhoti[rangoli design] drawn using the rice powder mixed with water, footmarks are painted from the door to theplace of worship to welcome the Goddess lakshmi. The flower garlands decorate the roofs.

Early morning after a purificatory bath the howsewives worship Goddess lakshmi in the form of paddy measures. Varities of rice is prepared with lot of shraddha and offered to the diety which is later shared to all.

In the evening the Laxmi Purana is recited which teaches all to pay extreme regard to goddess Lakshmi. It is believed that the one who disreards her will face some evil days.



Small talks can help share different cultural and traditional values.

"Unveil my creations - Bhuta Kola"

Coastal karnataka is famous for two traditional art forms - Yakshagana and Bhuta kola. Here is my version of the bhuta kola. To read more hit wiki.

Edit: 2022's biggest hit movie #kantaara shows this divine Lord in a fantastic way.
 

Nostalgia

Today's travel to office was different than usual. No, I am not talking about the weather. It was still the same bright and sunny day here in Bangalore, though we've already hit December. The time I commute these days have been shifted from wee hours (according to this generation - 7 am) to sunny afternoons (12:30 pm), an arrangement made as per my work requirement.

What made this day's commute special by the way?

Good news!! for new work time I get a company transport:). wohoooh!! I am the first one to be picked up which means the last one to be dropped as well :( However my cab driver, "Babu" who is a localite talks about various essence of life and keeps the momentum going (actually from his perspective). I try to provide my opinions and views whenever possible. This way we learn, share ideas and increase our knowledge. Topics range from Current affairs to an affair between two film stars:) ha ha ha!

Today, as we crossed one of the major traffic junctions, Babu turned on the radio. We heard ದಿ regular radio station lady talk about a listener's message. She was giggling all the way " ನಮ್ಮ ಶುಭ ಮೇಡಂ ಒಂದು ಸಂದೇಶ ಕಳ್ಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ - ಅವ್ರಿಗೆ ಈ ಹಾಡು ಕೇಳ್ದಾಗಲೆಲ್ಲ ಸ್ಕೂಲ್ ಡೇಸ್ ನೆನಪಿಗೆ ಬರುತ್ತಂತೆ. ಕುಂಟೆ ಬಿಲ್ಲೆ ಆಡ್ಕೊಂಡು, ಶುಂಟಿ ಪೇಪ್ಪೆರ್ಮಿಂಟ್ ತಿಂದಿದ್ದು .. .. , ಅಯ್ಯೋ, ಈಗ ನಿಮಗೆಲ್ಲ ಹಳೇ ನೆನಪು ಬರ್ತಾ ಇದ್ರೆ ದಯವಿಟ್ಟು ಮೆಸೇಜ್ ಕಳಿಸಿ" [Our lady Shubha, on listening to the previous song played has gone back in time. Memories of her school days, when she played Hopscotch,ate those tiny circled peppermint. In case somewonderful memories rushing down your brain, please message and send them across...] La la la la went on..

Aaahh! Those few words took me back to those wonderful days of being a carefree kid,
the days of joy. Riminiscing the sweet events of life we had a short conversation.

I - " Babu sir, do you remember those lemon golis we used to get for 5 paise each"
Babu - "Yes Madam, and also those orange slice shaped sweets."
I - "Yeah, shunti peppermint, haalkova[milk cake], huNsehannu lollypop [tamarind masala
sticks]. Today's kids might not even heard of these stuff I guess"
Babu - "Haan Madam, only burger, pizza and french fries is what they know"
I - "I remember those khulfi sticks, ajji kodalu or sonpapdi [the one brought by a vendor in
a gadi ringing a bell]
Babu - "Also games were so much a part of our lives, we used to play everyday on returning
from school"

I - "Yes, ice-spice, hopscotch, lagori, and me the naughty one used to leap from one building to another(No super-man powers dude.. but I was doing this then however I fear of it now), gilli-danda and the like. Today I see most of the kids involved in one hobby class or the other - dance class, swimming class, singing sessions, painting class. After this they attend tutions too. The lucky ones who need not go through this kind of torture are seen hooked to TV or computers." [I am not against those parents who send the kids to classes based on talent and interest, trying to talk of those who push their kids to every possible activity without knowing real interests]
Babu - " Very true madam. They have all the special priviledge today."

As were indulged in enjoyable recollection of past events the Radio jockey played next - an old kannada melody - " ಸದಾ ಕಣ್ಣಲಿ ಪ್ರಣಯದ ಕವಿತೆ ಹಾಡುವೆ .."

Perfect to those nostlagic memories. !!!

"Unveil my creations" - A happy Man

Budai in folklore is admired for his happiness, plenitude, and wisdom of contentment. One belief popular in folklore maintains that rubbing his belly brings wealth, good luck, and prosperity.

Budai is traditionally depicted as a fat bald man wearing a robe and wearing or otherwise carrying prayer beads. He carries his few possessions in a cloth sack, being poor but content. He is often depicted entertaining or being followed by adoring children. His figure appears throughout Chinese culture as a representation of contentment.His image graces many temples, restaurants, amulets, and businesses.

He is almost always shown smiling or laughing, hence his nickname in Chinese, the Laughing Buddha.


Here is my version of Budai:

December 2011 Calendar Shot

December.. Oh the closing month of yet another beautiful year is right here.

I was not able to decide which of the two clicks describe the mood of december best.
So here are both of them for you all. Merry Xmas! all of you.


[Clicked with a sony cyber-shot - The wrapped gifts remind me of the Santa game]



[Clicked @ Leavenworth , Christmas season 2009. Camera: D3000 Nikon DSLR]

Facts of December:

* Some people call it "the frosty month."
* The latter part of December has long been a holiday season. The Romans honored Saturn, the god of agriculture, with a festival called Saturnalia.
* A well known fact which needs no explanation - Christians celebrate birthday of Jesus Christ on the 25th of this month.
* December's flower is the narcissus or holly.
* December's birthstone is the blue turquoise or zircon.

What else??

Schoolhouse in the nature~ Fiction

 In a quaint rural village nestled amidst the lush greenery of Karnataka, there stood a small schoolhouse where Teacher Radha imparted knowl...