A new year

A new year approaches...
Memories from this one shall remain
Old pain will be carried over again
In wait of happiness.

A prayer...
That it may be well
That wisdom and joy dwell
All of this year.

****
A change of date is upon us all once again.

Happy New Year one and all.

Last minute Christmas gift

Christmas is almost here. If you are like me you are expecting to get gifts from your parents but you have none to give them.
Typical of us, right?

Well what are you going to do?
Here are some things I am considering for tomorrow. Choose whichever suits you best. But make sure your parents are not around as you read this.

Here goes...
1. Help out with the dishes
Big Christmas party at home? Enjoy the Christmas dinner and eat a little extra pudding and gather those guts to say out loud, “I’ll help with the dishes mom.” When you see that smile, consider mission accomplished. If this is too troublesome consider option 2.

2. Play the perfect host
Feel the same way about guests as I do? Guests can be demanding..they want the 50th tissue, another glass of something, oh they’ve spilled something here and there. If you fume everytime you see them then this one time gulp that anger and play the perfect host. This will definitely take some pressure off your folks. And if this is your first time around in the quarters of hospitality it is sure to be noticed and appreciated.

3. Melodious sounds
This one is quite easy. Gather everyone around the tree and let them know that you have something to say...ahem sing. Then sing a family favourite Christmas Carol and once done add a line or two about how happy you are to spend time with the family because this is the time to be with loved ones. Yeah this is also the time of giving and receiving but let’s not forget you’re only receiving. So be careful not to say that!

4. Be a little generous
This one might pinch a bit but hey emptying your closet only means that you’re making room for a batch of new things. Let go of some of those things you’ve kept all along but don’t really need. This should earn you lots of points with your folks as you celebrate this season of ‘sharing’.

Right then...these may not be the best ideas but hey I hope I have got you thinking about what you can do this Christmas for spreading a little happiness.

Well then Merry Christmas everyone!
And God Bless...

In me

In my reality I am The Princess
In my reality there are no other voices
In my reality triumph has always been mine
In my reality dissent is a big crime

In my world music lifts the soul
In my world my voices reach all
In my world I will stand as I stand, like I stood
In my world no one else can, no one else really could

In my head there are no drugs or junkies
In my head no one messes life for a little ecstasy
In my head I play the tune and others dance
In my head love and hate find a balance

In me every battle ends in victory
And each day becomes My Story
******
Does this sound familiar to anyone?

On a break

I'm finally home!! Yipee!

Still getting accustomed to the pampering and catching up on food and sleep.

The only project for today was to decorate the Christmas tree. That's pretty much done and I can feel Christmas approaching.

Tomorrow starts again with the late morning and the usual...eating, tv and sleeping.

Once I'm over this euphoria I will get back to blogging.

Happy holidays for now...

I make a resolution...

The semester is almost over and its time for a break. Just thinking about it makes me lose focus.

Yet the work never seems to come to an end.

Balancing (travelling plans with) submissions is a typical year end phenomenon. We've all been there, havent't we?

But this time around I am already making resolutions before the new year hits. Of working on time, that is.

No more last minute slogging and staying up late to finish work.

Wwwait! Isn't all just part of being a student?

Everytime we just about manage to make it to the deadline we make a promise never to procrastinate again.

But some promises are not meant to be kept, right?

I have work to complete over my vacation. Heavens know how that will be completed.

"Its fun to work under pressure", said my teacher yesterday. I agree because no pressure, no work. Literally!

So I reason out that there will always be work and then some more. But there are only so many vacations.

And so I make a resolution...I will work...only under pressure!

My dilemma is finally resolved. :)

My day today

There are bad days and then there are worse days. Have you ever felt that? Dont know which one I had today.

From peals of laughter to moments when frustration comes out only as very deep long breaths, I was swinging with life.

In this already tumultous time the philosophical portion of the brain decided to attack me as well.

'Why dont I get what I want? I get lots but not what I want. What do I want? Why doesnt anyone understand me?'

(And then there are other thougths as well but those I'll leave out for some other post.)

Yeah it's happened to all of us. I wish time could just stop in those moments and I could take another deep breath...of relief this time.

But none of us have those luxuries. What we have however is the luxury of telling the whole world that this was my bad day. No wait...my BAD day!

What will tomorrow be like...oh I can't be bothered. I survived this and still have my sanity.

Guess that's good enough reason to move on. Tomorrow awaits...

Am I? Am I not?

I’m not good because I did what I was told

I’m not bad because sometimes I can be cold

I’m not alive because time passes by

I’m not dead because I can still laugh and cry

I’m not pretty because mirrors come close to the truth

I’m not ugly because all truth is not absolute

I’m not a winner because I won a race

I’m not a loser because I did it all with faith

I’m not any of these
Yet what else could I possibly be?



I think alot and have many questions...

Pakistan politics

There is so much going on in Pakistan right now. Already out of the commonwealth nations, it is trying to get into the club of democratic countries.

Elections are likely to be held in January next year.

Benazir Bhutto, a strong contender for the post of PM is back to save her country in the name of democracy. The corruption charges hounding her for years may have been dropped but not erased form the minds of the people.

Then there is Musharraf, the army dictator in love with his uniform. It takes the whole world to get him to let go of it. Will he let it go? The world will be watching...

The third party, Nawaz Sharif ,whose entry into Pakistan from exile has been somewhat a mockery. On his first attempt he was deported back to Saudi Arabia as soon as he landed.

Second time lucky, he may fight the elections. He has a history of controversies, but who doesnt. Musharraf seized power from him in a military coup in 1999. Is this his time for a comeback?

These are the choices in front of the people come next year. Who out of them can bring democracy?

Is this a clear case of voting for the 'lesser evil'?

Is Pakistan really heading towards better times?

When

When
There was an internal strife
I needed to get a life

life
Was I being punished for obeying?
For which horror was I paying?

couldn’t
There must be a goal, I had none
There was no battle I won

suck
No hope, no sunshine, and no words I could rhyme
How could I fight the tears I hadn’t cried?

anymore, it did!
My brain was playing tricks
I could throw up, I was so sick

But then... I had a moment
From moments of desperation
Came some bit of inspiration

My feet were firm on the ground again
If I tried, maybe I could make life sane

Now I believe in me once more...

A toast to new ramblings

When the world around you becomes quiet, suddenly there is more noise in your head than usual. This is happening to me.

I have shifted to a place where I should have been long back but that's just not how things turned out. Last night was disturbed as I had distorted dreams of times that cannot be replaced. I was disturbed by voices from outside that I couldn't stop.
Being in my own company I have tasted something of a jailed independence and reaffirmed my belief that family is the most important thing in the world.

With curtains and doors I have locked out the world and opened my mind to take me wherever it may choose. My head has too many voices trying to pull me in different directions and I'm trying to keep up.

I have revisited moments from the past which despite what I believe are at best,history. But hopes and aspirations are showing up from beneath the surface and dreams and regrets refuse go away.

This is a new beginning, one among I dont know how many.

This time around maybe I'll let my head do the talking.

Drink away

A surprising news story caught my attention this morning. Latest research at the Oxford University study published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health says expecting mothers who binge drink occassionally would cause minimal harm to their baby. However more research needs to be carried out to to ascertain these results.

The obvious question that comes to mind is are we trying to prevent people from going on a binge drink or we are promoting this culture? Such a news story will only encourage people to drink more instead of the opposite effect. And it will put the lives of many babies at risk.

I am confused why research every few years brings out contradictory results.

A time to question

Its bird flu again. This christmas there might be no turkey on the table.

Every morning as I read the paper I get my daily dose of crap. One after the other the news keeps getting worse. It's the perfect way to mar a day right at the beginning.

But as the day goes on I forget all this turmoil in the world and get busy with my work. This is typically what happens to most people I think. This is probably what is happening in the world. We ignore the problems around us and move on. There are endless talks and treaties at the national and international level but are they really making a difference?

The environment keeps getting worse, the younger generation has made shooting a school project, paedophiles are on the move...when will we do something about this?

Blaze

Today the Olympic site in London was engulfed in a fire near Stratford, East London. For me initially it was only a call by a well wisher to "stay at home". Fire, I thought, it couldn't be too big a deal. Thankfully there were no casualities.

A few minutes later as the news sank in, my mind did race back to all the unpleasant images I had seen on television of London under terrorist attack. In this case there has been no mention of a link to terrorism.

But beyond all the new reports and the faith in the police, how safe are we really?

Work in progress...

Working on an assignment on Official Secrets Act. Hoping to do a good job at it. Rest is for the teacher to decide.

Have a line of thought for a poem, must develop it. What is it about? Now that's a secret! ;)

Will be back soon.

For now

The shifting plan got shifted
and laziness still hasn't drifted

News stories were written in a hurry
I saw my marks and felt sorry

Bank procedures sometimes suck
I had to leave couldnt stay stuck

Shopping is a guilty trip
but sometimes my guards can slip

I went for a movie but saw two
one was freaky the other fresh like dew

Another week has just begun
assignments seem to suck the fun

Travelling too much aint easy
some strangers are just too creepy

The blog had been forgotten
but now its back in action!

Movers and shakers

There comes a time to move away from the protected shell to the big bad world out there. Its my time to do that.

Time to move from the warmth of the house to the unfamiliarity of independent living. Oh yeah I am entering a new phase in my life. It will be quite memorable I've heard but I have to see that for myself. I did manage to get some tips from a friend to help me through this smoothly.

Suddenly the things occupying my mind are how long does this daal take to cook, do I need more loo paper, this bedsheet is way too expensive....when did I become this? Is there no turning back from here? There was a time when real stuff occupied my mind, for instance how will I use this new word in my next conversation, my sense of humour totally rocks, gosh this dress is wow...

Well I cant crib because moving on is better than sitting on one comfortable spot. Even if there is no coming back I believe it's beacuse there is good stuff up ahead. Tasty dishes and inexpensive linen might just be a part of it but that will not be all.

For now I promise myself that this will be Happy Shifting.

Of movies and boxing

Rocky Balboa, does the name strike any connection in the brain?

You bet it does! The movie has been a family favourite for as long as I can recall. The background music is unforgettable, the adrenalin rush is tangible, the rawness in Sylvester Stallone's character is lovable.

The movie is also a good example to prove the media violence theories that say watching violence helps you to come to terms whith whatever bit of it you have inside. Yeah so when i have a bad day i can fight back with every punch that Rocky delivers. And Balboa's "go the distance" dialogue will definitely ring in my mind the next time I'm on the egde.

The portrayal of undeniable power of the human spirit,that's what I love about Rocky. I confess I have not watched all the parts of the movie but here I come. Rock on Rocky!

Absence

Where have i been all along? Well been lazy first of all. Then began the weekend by going to the local market, watching the rugby match and getting home quite late at night. Sunday was a trip around the city to see the Buckhigham Palace, Big Ben and drinking pomegranade juice from an ice glass in a freezing bar.

Blogging has been put on a hold therefore but not for too long...

Feeling familiar

In the first post I mentioned there are many thoughts waiting to be released through this blog. Now I sit here wondering what I should write about. The recent trip to Belgium or the nostalgia thats making me homesick or maybe some poetry written in a hurry, or the tube...ah maybe that should be it.

New in London, actually I'm well over a month old here.The tube... I had heard so much about it. My only regret was that it was underground which meant I would miss out on some pretty sights.

Well first came the technological set up at the station. Strange machines that gave you tickets in return for your money. This was the sight of a world when the humans had finally lost out to the the superiority of the machines. Okay that went a bit far. So back to the station..

Having passed the gates, I was relieved to have somehow managed not to make a fool of myself. Once in the train, I saw people I call ipod junkies. Most were either sleeping or listening to their ipod while reading. I, however, tried to understand the tube map infront of me. My lack of understanding of the north and south west and the like mocked me. I will never learn all this, I thought. Another fear was that I would end up on the wrong station and since there's no mobile signal underground no one would be able to trace me.

Forward to the present...I travel over two hours everyday between home and classes. I am no longer the stranger staring into space. I do balance myself on the (sometimes)jerky overcrowded trains with one hand while the other holds a newspaper.

There is however no awe anymore of 'the tube'. And I occasionally crib that the trains move slow or are late. My point? Knowledge corrupts. ;)

What's in a name?

It was a bright sunny day on this side of the globe today. Quite a welcome change from the gloom we have been surrounded by for a while. Sunshine can change my outlook and make life more bearable.

But the truth is sun or no sun, life sometimes seems very mechanical.
There are rules to be followed or not, goals, poems, meetings, arguments...do do do...

Thats one of the reasons for the choice of name for this blog.

Isn't it all about 'do'? Everyone must be 'doing'. Till you can call your boss and say 'done'.

For me it goes something like this:
do start a blog.
doing an update.
done!

God Bless :)

One

The blogosphere goes up by one! This starts out as an experiment and the sincere hope is it does not blow up as one.

Blogging is a phenomenon that came up in my day and age and therefore I am no alien to it. But I have been on the other side of it all along.

Now, however, the bug has caught up with me. Lots of thoughts are waiting to be released into the vast space of the virtual world, of course, with much hesitation.

Blogging is the way to go these days and has created quite a buzz; much like emails and online chatting did some years back. It did seem intimidating at first. Then came the questions, 5Ws and 1H... literally. But curiosity gets the better of most of us. I gave in to it.

What is its future, is it propaganda, is it liberating…..all this remains unanswered. But for now it is here and I am a part of it.

One more voice. One more blog. What is the power of 'one'?