Spam to poetry

I got a poetry spam in my inbox yesterday(The first 2 verses). I liked the way it began and couldn't resist from adding by bit

The room was dark,
The room was drear,
And all I could feel
Was a rush of fear.

The shades were down,
And it was hard to see,
But I could hear her heart beat,
And it comforted me.

The wind was cold,
The wind was sere,
She asked me to sing,
As I searched for her ring.

Her eyes were blue,
Her brows were black,
I slipped the ring,
Without a sting.

She smiled and she smiled,
And fell on her knees,
To pick up her keys,
That she dropped with a sneeze.

She kissed me left,
She kissed me right,
While hugging me tight,
For I was her knight.

She gave me a pie,
And smiled me goodbye,
”You’re the best ring maker” said she
And it comforted me.

Hanging out

Falling from heights being my most prominent dream, today’s dream was an aberration I would welcome anytime. I dreamt of a girl. A girl with such enthralling beauty that it’s worth beginning my post with her mention. I have no idea who she was but all I know is that she was wearing a white top and a maroon dupatta and a denim that graced her long legs. Her shoulder length black hair neatly parted from the centre and hid her ears as she smiled and walked with her head inclined to one side. This simple dream was more than enough for me to replay her walk for an additional ninety minutes of sleep. Her beauty is ineffable partly due to the fact that it all seems hazy to me and partly because I am inept at describing her. It was the best way to begin my day today. And it is said, early morning dreams come true. I got my fingers crossed.

Soon I found myself chauffeuring a few friends to the other side of town. One friend had decided to spend her Sunday in our autumn company or rather wanted to show her folks how she audaciously puts up with us goons each and everyday at work or probably the inner machinations of her mind suggested we’d altruistically bring her some gifts which unfortunately or fortunately only one person realized and got a box of sweets which we promptly finished.

The colony was wow! I was immediately taken back to my childhood. The open space, the huge flats, the seclusion, the flora, the feral mongrels, the sprawling lawns, everything was like my ex-colony. Was it another dream? I don’t mind sleeping more.

After a heavy lunch we embarked on the task to watch Kabul Express-Bollywood’s attempt to encash on the Taliban story. I was expecting a lot from it as I had heard good reviews of it from reliable sources, I dare say. Also I love Afghans. Their faces have so much depth. The hardship, the agony, the pain, all so beautifully expressed in their scarred faces. Another reason for me to look forward to the flick.

It sucked donkey balls, OK. It was horrendous. And the weird oblique view I had on the screen filled me with more malaise. I should have changed me stupid seat. It was a bland movie without a single poignant scene; one that is expected from such a movie. The flick can be compared to Behind enemy lines TWO. Yea. I bet you haven’t heard of it let alone seen it. That good the flick was. Behind enemy lines 2 was better than Kabul Express because it got over even before it began. Kinda reminding me of Douglas Adam’s comment “I love deadlines. I love the wooosh sound they make when they go by”

Nevertheless, as long as you have good company along, even the dullest of moments can turn into gold. So after the crappy flick we headed down to explore the campus but soon realized there was nothing there other than a straight road leading to the exit. Finally, abiding by the traditions of colony kids after playing Frisbee and badminton and some friendly bantering we retired to our hovels.

How sycophantic are we

How sycophantic are we

Innate in me is a feeling of rancor towards sycophants. One of my quotidian goals is to spot people with no integrity of their own. One who will be your buddy in arms and forsake you the next. I have come across numerous such mongrels during the last ten years and I am still amazed at how selfish and inconsiderate can one be.

Worst, first you are treated as a pariah and then when by some quirk of fate, people realize you are good at something and then they all vie to be your “close” friends. I remember in school, after the exams we used to have a week or so of no teaching and we used to bring board games and other paraphernalia and kill time. Then chess was a rave. I wasn’t the most sought after person in class; as kids we tend to lick the behind of only the first ranker or the best batsmen. That was about to change. It was a few minutes before the lunch break where I got a chance to play a game of chess against the, let me say, prominent personality of class. Wow! No one cared a damn, other than me. I was petrified. The game was punctuated by the lunch bell and resumed at two in the afternoon. It was almost time to leave and the game wasn’t over yet. And I looked around to find a parliament of owls with curious eyes and some boisterous laughter on my queen being a half bitten eraser. Ten minutes after school was let off yours truly won. A few seconds after that I was the most popular guy. Any queries related to chess, any challenges, any moderation, any coaching, all through me. A few days later I realized human nature.

Another such encounter was in college. People usually think I am a dumb guy on first encounter and the opinion usually lasts for long. I don’t fret much over it as I believe in the cliché “it takes one to know one”. Only can a discerning artist relate to another. It was during our campus placements when the real sycophants came out into the open. An MNC known for its email had visited campus. Everyone wanted in. Other than me. I had already gotten into the company that is into the work I like and wasn’t keen on shifting. But just for kicks, I wanted to write the test and attend the interview to distend my knowledge. On the day of the test I walked into the audi unprepared and fell out of place seeing everyone doing last minute preparations. I was one of the twenty out of some big number to clear the written. Late in the evening I walk into the interview room like a ragamuffin. An hour or so later I was among the 4 short listed for the next round. I sure was ecstatic. I wasn’t prepared and getting to the last four was bliss. Of course, I didn’t make it as fortune favors the prepared. But the next day people who hadn’t uttered a word to me spoke to me like they knew me for years. One guy even began calling me! How low can one get.

What about the day in office where I was standing in line to get some popcorn behind the head of our BU who is a foreigner named David. People who passed by were staring in awe at him. They were smiling in a very sly way. The looks that they and the popcorn lady gave was like God himself had come down to get some popcorn. It was plain preposterous.

Its amazing how we always want to hang out with the coolest person, how we always want to be nice with the pretty girl or the handsome man, how we promptly offer our seat to pretty lass while letting the old man struggle to stand or how we always find time to help the foreigner.

Best describing our rotten nature, is as one described the relation between the sheep to their shepherd “They will stick to me as long as I can find them greener pastures”