Kiss the World Quick
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But while juggling my life it seems easier to incense
Than to gloss over and find chances,
See them go astray and cast fleeting glances,
My time is my own and so are my mistakes,
There is uni direction and there are no re-takes,
A weekend awaits and needs me more than I need it,
After all, with life, its only been a bit of a gift,
Take my word, find peace before you end up in pieces and apart,
Find truth before you even start,
Act now, Aware, Reason and you will Thwart
Sermons when I swim - II
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It turns out that not everything I have ever done is the way that it has been interpreted, nor has it been what was intended. There has been a massive gap between the action, the interpretation and the intention. Sometimes, these things are in our control, on most others they are read only cells in an excel worksheet. I have been a firm believer in belief, in faith as a concept, of trusting something greater than yourself. I have always been fiercely competitive and extremely aggressive with regard to my intent and actions. This hasnt really won me too many friends, nor should it really.
My outlook towards my job was something of a misnomer, I wanted quality work-ex when I joined. Something concrete to put on my CV and a brilliant experience in itself. As I walked along the path to a job, I realized that I have been closeted, I have been slow to identify my mistakes and even slower to rectify them. I have looked to others for guidance and then looked at others when things went wrong. Not a very smart thing to do. My life has been a series of disconnected incidents with only the protagonist remaining as the common focal point. My need to chase something or the other has not only left enormous gaps that no man can ever plug in a lifetime, it has also left a fairly treacherous path to cover the rest of my journey in.
As I near close to a year in my job, making mistakes, learning from them (yes, finally, rectifying and not rejecting). It leads me to a very simple analysis of what I did wrong and what I did right. Every human being is configured a certain way, own set of strengths, own set of weaknesses, like a product on the market, very few are built to last while being cheap. Every product has a strength, some allied points that make it a good buy and some weaknesses. My own experiences with life has been an experiment, an experiment in trying to distill the doubts from the critiques, the inputs from the constants. I will usually be the last person in the world to scream out that "Its not fair". But, on many occasions this calendar year I found myself doing that, wondering aloud if I am in a rut or not and having arguments with myself that had no end result.
I am sure there are plenty others who deal with the same problems, same doubts and are faced with the same fears and choices. I know I was. And I am still choosing, still having doubts and still walking tall. All that I have known is that life goes on and we are the choices that we make. And that more depends on us than we actually give credit for. Its not an easy life but it is a short one. Live it, love it, and remember, it was never meant to be fair. :)
Sessions with a Swim - Part I
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So, what exactly changes as you grow old, or older. Is it the Biological answer of getting your metabolism in order? Or is it the logical answer of becoming more mature? My own views are somewhat decrepit on this subject and truth be told, I never would have even given it a thought in the course of a normal day. But well, a clear head when you swim and a lighter conscience plays tricks that you should never should have been party to.
So, my query to myself got answered in the most rhetorical way, cynicism. We believe that we can believe. And if we believe long and hard, we are actually not going to screw up. Its this belief which becomes shoddy as you grow up. The world outside exposes you to situations where you realize that 20% of everything is in your control, the rest is just out there, taking care of itself. This lack of control causes a stir and a commotion that slowly but surely starts to whither away your beliefs, your desires and molds you into someone who is expected to be rational and practical. This rationality is in direct contrast to what we were when we were kids and the only limit was the distance up to which the sky could be seen. This maturity makes us worldly wise, it also makes us better equipped to deal with even more worldly situations. But it also kills the child within. It sucks the joy out of making an honest mistake. It pummels the part of you that always wants to do something new. It raises hell on that part of your soul which has enthusiasm to last a decade. It highlights failures whereas in your childhood, a failure is just another experience that you learn from.
This children's day, look inside, there isnt much of a point in being worldly wise if this world is going to kill what made you wise :)
The 1 who cried
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The doubts vanish and leave you alone for the ride,
When the dust settles, the vision blurs the line of sight,
We are obscured during the day than we are at night,
A virtue of the lawless and the triumphant,
A cycle broken and unabashedly jubilant,
When the wrong inside percolates and says things that
you wish would stay inside,
When the Truth hides and the point is all but beside,
Our wrongs are not a given nor are they expected,
But they are everything that we made,
They are hitchhikers that we allow to guide us by,
And they make us laugh when we are meant to cry,
They mar our judgment and make us believe,
That in all that was done, it was meant to relieve,
Its easy to fall to vices,
Even easier to justify them with flavors of spices,
Its easy to break when you start to bend,
Its impossible to break and then go off to mend,
For your decisions make you who you are,
And they are responsible for taking you that far,
The real travel begins along the way to redemption,
To own up and ask for a second chance when perdition awaits,
To risk yourself along those straits,
Where few have ever returned, and fewer still have tried,
For its better to own up than to be the one who silently cried....
In moderation
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This mean requires optimization and balance. A little work and a little hope. Some principles and discipline. Sadly, I can never find this middle ground anywhere. I have always tried to maximize rather than optimize. In hindsight, this isn't very difficult to explain. We never want to stay within limits, we never want boundaries, least of all ones drawn in chalk by us. This limit is what we refuse to see and acknowledge until its too late. My own experiences haven't been terribly fulfilling with respect to optimization. They have been skewed and complete qualified failures.
Travelogue - Andaman Isles
Labels:
Andaman,
Travelogue
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Andaman is a beautiful place and all the factual details are worth a click.
Now lets get the dope on this place.
Usually the peak season starts with the "Pujo" season of the Bengalis i.e October onwards. From October to January its pretty difficult to get a foothold in the isles with the number of Indian travelers almost equal to the number of foreign souls that come visiting. Since my free time was in July, peak monsoon, I found the half empty Air India Flight quite a pleasant experience. The flights in and out of Andaman are mostly Jetlite and Air India and the journey is about 2 hours. Costs something close to 5 grand for a one way ticket.The accommodations were not really a problem with me as I took to the Army facilities quite well. However, since Tourism is the largest industry on these isles, accommodation is available aplenty with plenty of options with regard to pricing but a decent one is going to cost you about 1 grand a night. The places to visit are numerous but make sure that you have done your homework before setting out.Also, Veer Savarkar airport, the International Airport at Port Blair is 1 of the few airports which allow photography on the runway. This runway is shared by the Army/Naval forces so please be careful of where you point your lens.
The most notable place for Shopping is the Sagarika Emporium which is run by the Government. Fabulous collection and watch out for huge shells that cost upwards of 250 bucks.
The Havelock islands are the crown jewels of Andaman. This island has the Delightful Radhanagar beach...amongst the longest beaches in Asia. It is also a nesting site for Olive Ridley Turtles. The snorkeling opportunities here at the Elephanta beach are not to be missed either. The Steamers leave every morning at 6.30 and tickets get sold out 2 days in advance so make sure you have your travel agent pulling the right strings. The return trips are at 2 and 4 pm respectively. It takes about 3 hours to travel one way and the seas are patchy along the way with huge waves dashing about just for fun.
The triple tour of the Ross/North Bay/Viper Islands are worth a go. Ross Island was the seat of power of the British and the place is a throwback to the days of the rule offering glimpses into their settlement. North Bay is famous for snorkeling and its corals. Viper Islands used to serve as a penal settlement and isn't much of a look around. The steamer leaves at a decent time of around 9.30 and brings you back by 5. These isles also require a permission letter to be issued for the visits.
The limestone caves and the mud volcano will entail a 4 hour trip from Port Blair and also a sneak peek into the Jarawa people...people indigenous to the isles of Andaman. This trip requires a permit and a special permission for return if you are thinking of heading back the same day.
The museums are also quite a look about especially the aquatic repository.
The costs are pretty astronomical in terms of travel. The rent-a-car thing charges about 900/- a day for intra City, i.e. Port Blair travel. The one way steamer charge for Havelock is about 300/- a pop. The vehicle to take you to Radhanagar Beach and then snorkeling has to be hired separately with both costing 1000/- combined. The triplet tour of Ross/Viper/North Bay is also about 400/- one way.
And a Man went there...... :)
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