Memorial Day travel-II

"How small is the earth and confined, watched and followed by the persistent horizons. 
The light like a cage has shut out the dark eternity and the hours hop and cry within its barrier"  -Tagore

'the tyranny of light'
'the freedom of darkness'
These metaphors sound contrary to popular poetic sensibilities, our literature abounds with references where light symbolizes all that is positive(freedom) and darkness is the connotation for everything that is negative(shackles).
But is light really the freedom that we seek or is it the oppressor that we are yet to fathom?

"The division of days and nights is not for me, not that of months and years. For me, the stream of time has stopped, on whose waves dances the world- like straws and twigs. In this dark cave, I am alone, merged in myself, and the eternal light is still, like a mountain lake afraid of its own depth. Water oozes and drips from the cracks, and in the pools float the ancient frogs. I sit chanting the incantation of nothingness. The worlds limits recede, line after line. the stars like sparks of fire flown from the anvil of time are extinct. I took shelter in the darkness, the castle of the infinite and fought the deceitful light,day after day, till it lost all its weapons and lay powerless at my feet."- Tagore

It is a joy to experience someone else's imagination when you are 250 feet below the earth's surface in the longest cave system in the world.
It is a joy to give in and experience a moment of complete cool darkness after fighting it at every step..
It is a joy to may be partially understand what someone meant behind a bunch of beautiful lines..

This stream of consciousness was inspired by a trip to the Mammoth Caves National Park in KY.  It was my first cave experience and between all the factual details about geography, geology, history, zoology and chemistry I had Tagore's poetry giving me company!

Source: National Geographic

A shout-out to Nashville, it has the best music scene I have experienced and I am sure no other city can come anywhere close.The evening started with a live piano rendition of 'American Pie'-Don McLean followed by 'Brown-eyed girl' Van Morrison, 'Wanted Dead or Alive'-Bon Jovi, 'Leaving on the jet plane'-John Denver, rich dose of country- Country girl(shake it for me)/ Walking in Memphis.. and the list goes on.. Actually I was sold with the first song itself :)

Also this was my second road trip and I again relived the green routes and the freedom of speed..

I wonder if Tagore ever pondered on this aspect of freedom..!!

Yellow post-it

Yellow post it notes.

Will u take away all my chores once I confess to thee?

Perhaps not!

Before I begin to write the long list of things that need to done,

I paused for a moment deciding which one to put on the top as the ‘the most important’

It’s a funny realization when you can’t quite make up your mind about that..

Anyways in the rush of writing, I scribbled 10 things without taking a break 

It’s a funny realization when you walk away from your desk only to rush back again

The ‘most important’ just missed the list somehow

I have never gambled in life

I have played a game of poker just once, and lost everything but $2
And traded the $2 for a cold bottle of water at an overpriced vending machine

I drink the water and think of the one lottery that is about to change my life..

Only if I had learnt to gamble in life!

Gambling everything and then taking the outcome in your own stride..
Its a tough lesson!
It's a funny realization that perhaps this is ‘the most important’thing
Here it goes on top of my list in the yellow post-it..

New Orleans-trip diary

A decadent red brick wall of an old decadent house with rusted brown sloping roof, wild climbers and flowers spread across the wall like an unintended mosaic, replicas of green crabs, green turtles, green reptiles-alligators & lizards with curled up tails climbing up the wall. ‘Photography not allowed’
A whimsical art display using the space between the back of a souvenir shop and an old house as an art gallery, one of the many New Orleans inspired art works.

A river on one side, a lake on the other, for the marshes it is their natural home and then the Gulf of Mexico finally emptying itself in the Atlantic Ocean. A city with a water body is always special; this one just became extra special. For the tourists this translates into different tours and cruises along the different water bodies. I would add that it’s a gastronomical tour as well, but I can provide no first-hand account here.

Historically New Orleans is a cultural cauldron (French, Spanish, African, and Native American Indians) and remnants of it are clearly visible in its architecture and lifestyle.
Upper floor verandahs with ornate cast iron railings and hanging potted green plants, beautifully colored paneled doors and windows, elegant patio furniture-wooden or cast iron, gas/electric street lamps outside the houses at night and narrow lanes with horse drawn carriages and red street cars –reminder of old world European charm.

The natural landscape-flora/fauna/the waters, the architecture, the music, the food, the arts, the history, the debauchery of Bourbon Street all create the New Orleans experience and for me it was the drive as well. My first highway driving experience..yayyy!

Tall, dense and spring green trees flanked the interstate on both sides, and when darkness finally descended, it seemed like the whole of existence was just the road ahead, the tall trees on both sides and the strip of dark sky above sliced perfectly by the trees to mirror the road below.
Life can be really simple sometimes- just a straight line drive at 80mph..

Country roads are a new experience for someone driving a Honda Civic sedan, perhaps for the first time you begin to notice a world where everyone else drives a Ford, Dodge or Chevy pickup trucks or SUV and you are the only one driving a Honda Civic. It is a rare experience!
Also there is the thrill of driving by and occasionally spotting agricultural aircrafts aerial topdressing farms. Did I hear you say that is just the perk you need to change professions and become a farmer..

I made this trip to the city after almost two years of wanting to go there and the city didn’t disappoint me. We covered a lot in one day, but then one day is never really enough. These are just some of the sights that I will fondly remember about New Orleans, and for someone planning a trip to ‘The Big Easy’, sign me up for a second trip!

Optimist about it..

I drove along as Bastille-Pompei song played along. Its not a very remarkable song but catchy in its own way. Some songs have this quality that a single line or the chorus just stays with you through the day and even for days for no apparent reason.. how many times we just exclaim that 'this song is stuck in my head', well it happens with me quite often.

So I found myself suddenly humming these two lines from the song to myself almost unconsciously..
'I'm gonna be an optimist about this../I'm gonna be an optimist about this...'
The correct lines happen to be:
How am I gonna be an optimist about this? How am I gonna be an optimist about this?
Well you hear what you to want to hear!

I was running around my usual route and then I saw this tree in complete purple-pink blossoms. I thought of the tree just outside my window, I have been noticing small shoots, sprouts, buds for few days but I am still awaiting the dreary winter cloak to disappear completely. Its getting there...I'm just gonna be an optimist about it.. I caught myself singing the 'improvised' lyrics..

 When you go swimming, somehow the person on the adjacent lane seems to be faster than you, more graceful that you, stronger than you.. when you are catching your breath he/she is completing laps effortlessly. Again it could only be my experience and not hold true for good swimmers out there in the pool, but I like to think that I am getting closer to being faster than some adjacent folks..I'm just gonna be an optimist about it.. 

The dreariness of winter is a real thing, Self doubt is a real thing, but a dose of unreal optimism sometimes helps..'So I'm gonna be an optimist about this../so I'm gonna be an optimist about this...'

Roads

"Some roads are so beautiful that you cannot know whether you travel on the road or the road travels in you"-Mehmet Murat ildan

I read this quote early morning and I was stuck by the beauty and the truth of the statement. All through the day at a subconscious level I was taking a stroll down all the beautiful roads that still travel in me. 

A vacant stretch of road so quiet, so peaceful that it immediately feels personal. In that moment I am not sharing the road with anyone and if I want to walk in reverse that’s what I do! My eyes fixed on the morning sun falling on the snowcapped hills and my back to everything I can ignore for the moment, including where I am going…
A Street bustling with faces, sounds, smells, colors. There is food, drinks, singing. You are either the busy bee bustling around searching for something or the leisurely soul just taking in everything, either ways you are not alone. This road is a shared experience and in the end all the individual faces, sounds, smells, colors beautifully blend into a postcard memory that stays with you.
Then there are the roads that are privy to all your hearts secrets, recall all the long walks with friends walking up and down the same stretch of road until it gets really dark and cold. There are roads that have seen you do the happy dance in the falling rain. There are roads that tricked you, challenged and sometimes got the better of you. There are roads that have seen you persevere as you took to cycling or driving for the first time. 

Sifting through all these images, I came across two kinds of roads: the ones that crossed paths with me just once and the ones that were a good part of my life. Digging deeper, on one hand were the roads that I went seeking for and on the other were the roads that always brought me back home. For one the beauty lay in the unfamiliarity, in the peaceful desolation, an instantaneous connection like a strong physical attraction. For the other set it was the routine familiarity, the conversations, the companionship..

Both these roads are beautiful in their own right.. and I can honestly say that they travel long and deep in my memories..

Being human

You are very scared of some things and not scared of somethings at all..
Does that make you a coward or does that make you brave.. ?
Conclusively you are neither.. you are just human...

You can think clearly sometimes and be completely foolish at other..
Does that make you intelligent or does it make you dumb..?
Conclusively you are neither.. you are just human...

I can write paragraphs, posing the same question, using different adjectives. However that's not the point.
My point is that what is human is inherently flawed-its eccentric, idiosyncratic, contradictory, incongruous, unbalanced, even repulsive and yet brilliant in some way. Our flaws make us human, we are the sum total of our imperfections..

The degree of our flaws determines the monstrosity or humantrosity(not even a word) of our nature. How cognizant we are of our flaws, how we accept them, how we challenge them, makes us human.I believe accepting our flaws is slightly easier than accepting the flaws of the people around us and living with them. Perhaps that's why god sold us the idea of love so that we could forgive him for his flawed creation and peacefully live with each other. There has never been a marketeer bigger than God and we humans are the perennial consumers!
I am pretty sure it is the Valentine's day effect that is making me talk about love and consumerism in the same breath. All the exhibitionism of love, sincerity of love, consumerism of love, tenderness of love, depravity of love, cynicism for love just froths up to the surface on this one day..

Somehow I end up writing a post every Valentine's day, this time its some arcane commentary about flawed humans and their flawed ways!

Happy Birthday!

Some of us are fortunate to have at least one true SOS friend.
And when she turns 30, you are glad that finally she is reaching an age of some wisdom- may be now she'll tell you to do something other than punch guys on their stupid faces.
May be now she'll make better judgement calls when she is talking to your parents about you.
May be now she won't confuse your past-present-future crushes and embarrass you in their very presence.
May be now she'll not ridicule you for the gifts that you pick up for her(voluntarily & involuntarily)..

I would never bet my money or for that matter even my useless 2007 Sony Ericsson Walkman phone on any of the above actually coming true.. Its all a bunch of wishful thinking and nothing more.. She'll never change, least of all because of some bully called turning 30..

But I hear you when you talk about all the unknowns in life. The ideal version of life and how we are still so far away and still so clueless. I don't know why our mind plays this trick on us and we feel this sudden urge to be all wise and grown up one fine day, all I can offer you is:
1. Sing you your birthday song in the most ridiculous tone I can summon(check done!)
2. Dedicate a post to you complete with pictures of you in a silver crown from our golden days(check-done!)
3. Little gyan- If all of life is sorted out, then spice kahan se aayega!

Again Happy Birthday.. :)

Can you laugh?

Some people I know can really laugh! Everyone can smile(mostly) but not everyone can laugh free and loud. I would first like to establish that there is a difference between a smile and a laugh, before I begin to describe the different laugh faces.

A laugh is open-both literally(you open your mouth) and figuratively(you open your heart). A good laugh is loud and clear. A good laugh is honest but not necessarily polite. A good laugh changes your countenance in noticeable ways- red cheeks, a little breathlessness, watery eyes, some people just begin to roll on the ground and some have to go for a wee-wee break!

A laugh is more dramatic than a smile in every way yet it is less confusing than a polite smile. Did he smile at me because he likes me, or am I reading too much..? Did the interviewer smile because he was impressed or he was inwardly laughing at my misery and stupidity? Why did that person give me a smile, do I know him? A smile is a border-line affair on a curve, most of the times you are guessing which side you are, on the other hand a laugh simply implies that something is genuinely funny. Smile is just too multi-functional and multi-dimensional for easy comprehension. A laugh is multidimensional as well(as I would soon explain in the next paragraph) but it has a singularity of purpose and so less confusing.

Lets explore the dimensional differences between different laughing styles.  Now this person I know when he laughs you can barely see his eyes, its like his cheeks hide away the eyes..there is someone when he smiles, there is this vein in his forehead that just swells up like a little continuation of his nose. Someone else who tears up completely when she laughs-teardrops the size of fat rain drops. I know of someone who has to tightly hold her stomach and open her mouth to breathe in so that she doesn't choke herself. There is someone who laughs so loudly that a closed room vibrates, another guy who sounds like a high pitched female when he laughs real loud. There are others who add some more dimensions to a loud laugh- clapping their hands, banging a table, tapping their feet. Its a performance!

At this point I should clarify that I am a dismal laugh person, i have to make do with smiling most of the times and I am envious of people who can laugh heartily. 

And if you have read this far, you perhaps already know if you can really "Laugh" proudly in your own signature style with no care for the world or for people like me who'll go ahead and write a blog about you!