Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high.....

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/14/world/asia/14kandahar.html?_r=1&hp

the taliban may try to suppress education but these girls are putting up a fight for their life..

Women were confined to the household, not even allowed to go to the markets under the taliban, who also disallowed education in any form except learning teh koran. only a select few men were allowed to study properly. Since 2001, when the war against teh Taliban broke out, people, specially women of the battered country are setting out to learn and create a nation.

hukkas and memories...

i had an amazing day yesterday.. had to go look at hukka bars in the city for a story thats now been shot down.. but i got my day of smoke n memories.. sap got back to delhi yesterday so i convinced him to meet me at the station n hang out with me before goin home... its freaaaky how thin he's gotten.. but then when the choice is between hostel food n your own cooking.. i guess anyone would lose some weight.. anyway... i met him at teh station after a horribly delayed train and frantic calls to confirm that he had arrived/not gone home with out telling me/ not had an accident somewhere... coz the damned train was almost 3 hours late coz of teh foggy weather n sap being teh damned idiot that he is had run through all his balance so he couldnt call n tell me when he's arriving.. n god..... teh train enquiries service ppl are such idiots! they told me taht teh train had already arrived..!!!! n i was FREAKIN OUT coz i couldnt get through and there was no communique from sap..

anyway.. after mutual exclammations of "tu kitna patla ho gaya hai", we went to khan mkt to this hukka place called market cafe.. after an auto ride taht turned into a nostalgia and giggles fest.. and sap refused to wear anything warm...! he spent most of teh day in a half sleeved tshirt except a brioef 30 second interlude when he wore my overcoat.. then got embarrasesed n proceeded to carry it around n use it as blanket in teh auto..

anyway... on our way to khan mkt we saw this reeeeaaallly pretty convertible on teh road with an old sardarji driving it.. neither of us knows what car it is so if any kind soul can provide enlightenment it would be highly welcome...

so.. we got to khan.. went up the spiral staircase at market cafe.. n saw teh menu... read teh menu.. n walked out after seeing the prices.. :)

and proceeded to eat the kabab rolls at khan chacha's..

hung out at the barista outlet for about an hour eating chocolate excess and drinking frappe... i'd forgotten how good it was to sit with someone n be silent for a while... n then talk bout silly things n things taht matter.. and dare each other to aim things at bald men's heads only to pull back teh dare yourself.. :)

then we went to def col market where i also called noor to join us.. went to mocha to wait for her to arrive.. damn pretty place that.. too bad teh smoking section was too full so we had to leave.. sat at mocha for a few minutes and generally chatted bout life.. n then we went to this place called cafe brown sugar.. its in def col mkt itself.. with noor, and had a mint flavored hooka.. sheesha as its called.. took me quite a while to figure out how to pull so taht i could take in the smoke instead of gagging on it..
but.. i finally managed.. sap meanwhile tried to copy this waiter there who was blowing smoke rings..

and ended up looking like a smoke geyser.... ;)

anyway.. after a dreamy hour or so of sheesha and conversation.. we headed out again.. noor had to go home.. n we decided to hit CP... the auto ride till cp was chilllllyyyyy... so we were sitting cuddled up in my coat.. n discussing career and college and school.. and then we were singing.. honestly.. with or without you is SO not the same unless its a duet... :)... sigh.... memories...

at CP.. we sat at a Barista outlet again.. n right on the next table was this couple where this guy was SO trying to show off his guitar n vocal skills to his girlfriend.. we watched tehm 4 a while.. got all nostalgic bout school n teh band.. n borrowed the guitar.. and proceeded to sing away to glory for teh next hour or so.. including silly hindi songs like "tu mile dil khile.." hehehe

oh n there was this absolutely ADORABLE little kid there.. who was staring at us a while.. n then came up n asked to play teh guitar.. n teh guitar was too big for him.. so sap n i decided to give teh kid lessons...he's in prep class.. n went away determined to buy a small guitar and learn.. specially since we were trying to teach him the D chord.. but his hands were too tiny even for that... his mum was almost embarrassed.. but the way sap got all excited at teh idea of teaching taht kid how to hold a guitar.. we were both (The mum n me) just standing there watching teh two kids.. hehehe.

we finally left fromj there at 7.. once sap got a frantic call from his roommate in bangalore warning him taht his mum had been calling to find out where he was.. n since he hadnt told his parents he was comin to delhi.. he ran home to surprise tehm...

all in all.. a lovely day with an old friend.. something i hadnt even known that i was really yearning for.. the comfort of intimacy.. of knowing someone who knows you and accepts you.. things got a bit teary a few times.. and we got pretty nostalgic a few times... but teh comfort was always there..

of an old trusted friend u can get high with and sing lullabys in autos...

This guilt trip that you put me on won't mess me up I've done no wrong
Any thoughts of you and me have gone away
Better off that way
I'm better off alone anyway


its funny how many avril lavigne lyrics have defined my life at various points in time... n to think the guys laughed when i wanted to sing her songs....

old n new...

ive been meeting lots and lots of ppl lately... old school friends who i havent seen in years, new friends of friends who turn out to be more fun than i thought they would... spending a lot of time gallivanting around town... like.. i went to this party on new year's eve where EVERYONE was a total stranger except N.. thanks a ton by the way.. i wouldve had a miserably boring new year's eve if u hadnt dragged me out...
n met school frenz on teh reunion on 21st.. AND i met rohan yesterday.. AND sap's comin in 2 days... i'm gradually getting back in touch with my life beyond college, life beyond CL.. infact ive realised just how much i did not partake of coz all my time was spent closed in a world that consisted of one person..

ive really figured out that i CAN easdily live happily without focusing all my energies on ONE person... and how much there really is going on in the world if u just open your eyes and look..

went to CP yesterday to meet rohan... sat around talkin over coffee and alcohol.. walked around teh place.. saw this army band playing in the middle of CP for some reason..

Bihar, 5th regiment.. it was quite funnny really.. this bunch of ppl just playing away in the middle of an afternoon...

the day was so beautifully misty... we were sitting at central park and it seemed taht teh buildings al around were covered in clouds... it was chilly as the arctic but seemed really amazing to hang out in.. ofcourse after two vodkas EVERYTHING feels nice... :)

anyway.. it seemed that rohan was quite happy to see me after two whole years.. (sorry bro but i HAD to put this pic up...)

and thn i was relaxing at home and sleeeeeeeeping late..

AND i finally started studying for that damned law exam in march.. still have to find out teh date of the paper though...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! may this year bring to you new beginnings and new hopes and dreams!!!

life in a bubble..

I'm six years old.. at India Gate.. on a picnic with my family.. the guy blowing bubbles comes along.. preceded by a whole lot of shimmering spheres that refract the stark yellow lighting into a million rainbows...
i run into them.. dancing amidst the bubbles.. ecstatic to be surrounded by their fragile beauty..
trying to catch those transient carriers of rainbows and fairies.. wishing i could keep a few.. just a little while... keep a rainbow in my hand.. Hold those shimmering ethereal things with me forever..

but they burst as soon as i touch them..

I cant have what i yearn for...
but i keep jumping anyway.. trying to catch hold of tehm.. please god.. just one little bubble to keep with me..

why do we keep trying to hold on to things that are so fragile and unkeepable?? why do i despair for what i cannot have??

"Rainbows and fairies dont really come and sit on your hands baby..."
why cant i remember this as an adult??

midnight mass... and 2 am walks...

i attended the midnight mass on christmas eve at the St. James Church!

okay... so i've told EVERYONE i went to St. james.... BUT the night did NOT end there... coz after singing silent night and oh holy night in a high falsetto..(and i thank god that my voice hasnt gotten totally ruined) we decided to go enjoy the beautiful night outside...

St. James's Church....



oh come all ye faithful.....





H, me n S, two colleagues of mine.. had gone to the church to cover the mass for teh christmas story... all of us live in the general north campus area so we thought it would be fun.. but then H said she had to go south for a christmas party... so that left me n S.. he's the photographer btw.. n me in my carol induced high suggested that we walk back... from St. James to college.. at 1:30 am...

and we did... walked from St. james up mall road to college.. clicking pictures on the way.. coz i had my little digicam as welll.. n he had his SLR ofcourse.. n we were having a rather animated discussion about photography and what a picture can truly capture the mood... these are the pix I took...


lampposts and trees.... mist on the mall road..


got home at 3 am after the 4.5 km walk that left me frozen.. took a break on the way for chai n cigarettes at the kashmere gate bus adda.. a hot glass of tea at 2 am on a freezing december night is a heavenly thing.... and then walked up the mall road amidst the mist and mystery of the night.. hoping to god that none of the speeding trucks would crush us.. and wondering if it was a good idea to throw a lit cigarette on a CNG container at the petrol pump...
oh n the last 500 mt stretch on university road where half the streetlights were broken and the ridge formed a scray jungle on one side. no thanks to u S.. for scaring the bejeezus out of me.. H would have probably screamed louder than me though...

to S.. here's hoping that we have many more such random walks and photo sessions..
hopefully we shall not freeze our asses off next time..