The Last Post- A custom!

A number of bloggers have been posting something or the other as their last blog post for the year 2011. Since I am new to blogging, I assume, this is a tradition that has to be followed. So here I am writing my last blog post for 2011. But frankly, I am too pre-occupied to write one. And I won’t be dishonest to you at least during the last hours of this year. What you are about to read here in this post might turn you against my Candid Convictions forever (in case anybody likes it!). And that’s precisely because I don’t have any idea regarding the topic.

I have been brainstorming ceaselessly for a topic and couldn’t come up with anything. I thought about scribbling about the important events of the world, good and bad, of 2011. But I really do not have the time to sum that up. My mommy washed all my clothes this morning and they haven’t dried up yet. So, the need of the hour (for me) is to come up with a suitable attire for the party that I am about to attend in a couple of hours instead of reflecting upon the bygone affairs! (I hope you agree).

I also wished to share with my readers the events that happened in my life. But soon, reality dawned upon me and I realised that that’s just my wish. Who would be interested to know about my life? I do not have even 25 followers on twitter, nobody retweets my tweets or begs me to retweet his tweets! However, without mortifying myself further, I’d like to share with you all, the biggest lesson that I learnt in 2011: Friendship is an investment of time and emotions where returns matter. Love is an investment of time and emotions where returns do not matter. I laugh out loud when I see the young ones of human beings (who barely wash their own UGs) updating their facebook status or liking a page that goes like this:

 My friends are my life (seriously man, go get a life!)

I can die for my friends (you must die for thinking that way!)

My friends are the most important part of my life (Oh! I am sorry that your parents died.)

Well, sooner than later, they shall receive enlightenment. But if any such creature is reading this, beware!

A post about New Year resolutions wouldn’t be bad either. But every one of us knows the inside story of resolutions. They are barely kept. Still bragging about them and coming up with a really good one is commendable (at least for a little while). Alright I have a good one too. My resolution would be to stick to all the commitments that I make in 2012. How’s that? ;-)

Another popular topic is to put in writing the things that I may expect to happen in 2012. Well, as I mentioned earlier, I would rather focus on the present moment (my dress) instead of pondering over the future. And because of the same reason, it’s time for me to doll up and leave for the party. So, enjoy the last night everyone and party hard. Luckily, it’s Sunday tomorrow and you all can sleep tight. But since it’s going to be the very first day of 2012, I’d rather suggest you to start it right. So, Adieu! See ya all on the other side.

Happy New Year 2012 :-)

P.S. 1. In the quest of a suitable topic, I was able to write approximately 600 words.

P.S. 2. I would really loooooove to get a feedback on this article. Let me know the extent to which you got bugged (in case you read the article completely!)

A day without internet

Like zillions other on this planet, I have a smart phone and I make sure that I utilize as much of it as I can. I have been staying at home since 5^th of Dec and by this time, my cell phone is certainly out of balance. About three days back my internet voucher expired. It was like a mini heart-attack for me! But I survived that because my mother’s phone had about 60MB of free internet usage (camouflaged angel!). Things have been pretty usual since then until this morning. I woke up in the morning and lying right where I had been the whole night, reached for my mommy’s mobile phone. Drowsily, I clicked on FACEBOOK and waited for the airtel network to make a connection via Mobile Office. Suddenly, I heard two consecutive beeps with the following two messages:

Packet data: Invalid packet data access point

Web: Unable to perform operation

It was horrifying!!

“All is well. All is well.” I consoled myself and went on with the day.

I pat myself for managing without internet for over 19 hours. But the moment I was idle, anxiety dawned upon me. It was 9.15 pm and I could not go out myself to get the recharge done on my number. I called Ravi (the shopkeeper at my hometown) but he didn’t have Vodafone vouchers. I called up a friend to get the recharge done for me (how desperate!) but it’s Tuesday and the market there is closed! Serendipity!

Ultimately, I sat down with my lappi on my lap and began writing this blog. I wondered if I received the e-mail that I have been waiting for since a few weeks or whether the semester results were out on www.du.ac.in. I longed to check out www.dublog.in for any updates and remove as well as block a person from my friend-list on Facebook urgently. I was even hopeful that Farhan Akhtar would reply to my tweets. And now when I am about to finish this entry, I long to post it on www.somya-singh.blogspot.com.

When I discovered the malfunctioning of the internet connection this morning, I thought, “A day without internet; well, how bad can that be?” Oh it’s worse than I imagined. Not all the time though. Save for the times I suffer from a fit of immense greed (not literally!). Long story short, for an addict like me it’s like gasping for air!

P.S. I finally got an internet connection after approximately 41 hours of wheezing and posted this entry about 3 hours later. 

Noble Inheritance ONLY, please!

There comes a chapter in everybody’s book or more precisely every girl’s life, where she learns to cook. While some people learn to cook willingly, others owe their skills to circumstances. In my opinion however, being able to cook is a part of being independent and hence, important. Do not worry my dear readers. I am not going to kill you by giving a lecture on “benefits of cooking”. I am jusssssssst coming to my point. Read on…

My neighbors have been trying to teach cooking to their 13 year old daughter. After a lot of efforts, she’s finally able to make tea now. She can make maggi too but well, that’s way below the standard of being able to cook (unless it involves some innovation!) My neighbors have a tendency of taking a little more sugar and salt in their food than the normal amount. Now when their daughter presented her fist cup of tea in front of me and I took the first sip, I thought: Legacy!  But my thoughts did not cease there. I continued to think and think beyond that teeny tiny sugary issue. And I deduced that it is very important to ensure a healthy influence on kids for what they see is what they learn, apart from what they are taught. If a father praises Anna Hazare on one hand and on the other, commissions a pandit for an early visit at a temple, the child finds himself in a fix. If a daughter finds her mother disrespecting her elders, she probably will tread on the same path. In other words, when you cannot respect your parents, how can you expect your child to pay reverence to you? A close associate of mine is afraid of getting married because the marital life of his parents is so full of clashes. Thus, it is also important to have a similarity between what children are taught and they see, especially till the age they gain the power to think rationally because by the time they learn to object, their mind turns into curd (Deemag ka dahi ho jata hai!!)

I repeat, it all begins with what children see and what they are taught or the distinction between the two. No doubt there will exist what we call disagreement and resentment. But once you are able to view the big picture, these micro mini arguments seem worth it. I’d like to share a few instances from my own life here. My mother got me into cooking when I was barely eight years old. My dad literally freaks out when the food gets even slightly salty and this fact makes me remain cautious, always. At about the same age or a little earlier, I was given a room of my own that comprised of a study table, chair, a bed, a cupboard and loads of lights! Unlike other girls of my age, I have been sleeping alone since then and without turning the lights on. When I stepped out of my house four years back, I met a few girls in the hostel who were afraid to sleep with the lights off because they were totally unused to seeping alone. I don’t say that there is something weird about sleeping with your parents. I do cling to my Mommy and sleep whenever I visit home but I am not dependent. My parents made me eat all sorts of vegetables. My Dad wouldn’t move until I swallowed the last bite of tomatoes or bitter gourd in my plate (I literally swallowed them with water!). I hated them for the way they tortured me. That’s how I saw it then. But when I went to hostel, I found myself way more comfortable than others who threw tantrums regarding the menu. Although I still wouldn’t choose to eat such things on my own but at least I have become smart enough to pick a couple of tomato slices from the salad section (that I hated once). When I think of those days today, I don’t think that they tortured me. They must have tried to coax me affectionately first. But when it didn’t work, they simply bent their finger to fetch the ghee! ;-)

I feel parents and children should have a friendly relation but only to an extent. If a parent starts being a friend in all respects, he should make sure that he is still able to command respect from his child. For a person, there may be many friends but there is only one mother and only one father. And I would not want to lose that. But at the same time, it is very important to listen to a child’s opinions. But remember, he may not always be right and so can’t you. Forget your ego and choose a couple of paths that are right and enjoyable at the same time as well as lead to a common goal: your child’s betterment. In my neighbor’s case mentioned at the beginning, the idea could be to tell the girl to keep the amount of sugar and salt controlled. It’s never too late for them to change but if they are so unwilling to do so, at least they can bring about a change in their kid’s lifestyle to secure her future. If you are planning to give a present to your child or your younger sibling this Christmas, in addition to giving him what he wants (candies, toys, gadgets etc), give him what he would never ask for but needs desperately- a positive influence. And let that be so optimistic that your sweetheart will always be able to what out of darkness into sunshine in every phase and every sphere of his life. Play that silent role and sooner or later, it will be recognized. :-)

Merry Christmas!!

Catching up...

The past few weeks have been the time for catching up with my life for me. This implies that I have been lagging behind in many aspects! Where in some cases I had been relatively behind schedule, in few others, the delay was absolute. It all began with covering my syllabus in the mid November for the internal exams. Now I am not a kind of person who can indulge in multiple tasks at one time. So, basically, on thing led to the other and in just a few days I found myself lagging behind in other things too. For instance, I still haven’t watched Breaking Dawn and unfortunately, because I am so damn late, I do not have a partner for the movie!

About two months back when I was checking out a few books at Jabalpur Railway Station, a girl came up to me and asked me whether my name was Somya. I nodded affirmatively and turned around to find one of my classmates from Std VI. I recognized her immediately and I was glad that she could identify me too. We hardly talked then but meeting after almost a decade felt so great. Moreover, when I reflect on how friendship used to be when we were kids, I just smile and that’s the only feeling that stays in my heart; no hatred, no jealousy, no disgust. Our hearts were so pure then. And now, in some random corner of my corrupted heart, their lies a teeny tiny place that holds those unadulterated memories of childhood just as they were, unguided by reasons.

I had a chance of meeting another very old friend yesterday. Although we first met when we were in fourth grade, our friendship doesn’t date that long. There might be several drawbacks of social networking sites like facebook but one cannot decry the angelic role it plays in bringing old buddies together. And the camouflaged seraph did help me in connecting with many old chums of mine too. It was simply wonderful catching up and laughing out loud with a friend I hardly conversed with as a toddler. No wonder, old is gold. :-)

Sometimes, lagging behind isn’t that bad. Staying in touch with something/someone and getting back together with something/someone after a span of time, both provide a uniquely special feeling in their own special way. Now that I have undertaken the task of pulling alongside all my pending works, I guess, writing a blog entry on this topic would not be so bad to start with. So, here I am, catching up with my blog too ;-)