ABCD

For people who have read my Title and are running away worried that I have lost it, I would like to assure you I am still quite sane. I have not regressed back to elementary school though the thought of it appeals to me.

I am here to discuss the expansion of the term ABCD. ABCD stands for American Born Confused Desi, as educated by my Aunt.  It is only recently that I understood how this term applied to me after recieving it as a comment on my photo. As the obvious states I am no American born and so we shall forget about the AB part but CD, about me being a Confused Desi does probably apply. 

Yes, I am going through an identity crisis. The more I belong, the less I belong.The problem being, I was made my move to the Western world when India was slowly and gradually undergoing modernizing. I was not given the space and time to change but was trust at full force and I doubt I did a good job coping. Even so I have learnt to adjust and comply with the Western world. I am more liberal in my thoughts and actions and a lot more accepting and carefree with my attitude towards my friends but I cannot break the constrain and apply the same rules to self. I enjoy and applaud people with a view and can dare speak their mind without worries of being politically incorrect but can never bring myself to do so. I hold opinions and if I do pen then, they are edit out the next minute. I can talk all about gender equality but I do enjoy a nice chivalrious gesture from my fellow males. Yes, I am confused, not a hypocrit.

I cannot let go and cling hard to orthodox rules.  I have not coped to change as well as my fellow brothers and sisters of India and so have lost my place and my sense of belonging.  I sometimes feel I am more Indian than a Indian in India and am more Tamil than a Tamil in Chennai. I pride myself in being the true last saviour of my ancestral traditions. I think I will hold on to what I believe until I last. 

A Late New Years Start

Its almost the end of the 1st month of 2012 and I have not made a blog post yet. The delay is mostly due to a lot of self-involvement. Lets hope to keep the number of blog posts running and hail The World Inside My Head. Resolutions are to be renewed each year, so let this not be my resolution but an hope.

Wishing you all a Happy Happy New Year!

Love
Maya

Ponniyin Selvan

Holidays and what better thing to do than romance with a book. I am completely hooked onto Ponniyin Selvan and am at the peak of my curiosity. The last few volumes are not available. What torture!!! Having started the series I cannot rest in peace without knowing how it will end. I have heard a lot about this book being the classic of classics and had it is on my bucket list.  The book was meant to be read in its intended language, Tamil but ahhh...but why learn Tamil when there is an english translation of the book floating around. So, I got my pretty little hands on the first two volumes of the five volume story (fifth part has been split into two) with the hopes of finding the rest as time went by. At first, I was apprehensive, as I did not believe a translation could match the original flavour of the book but as I read and read and oh my god! The book is too good to left alone even for a trip to snoozyland. It just makes me wonder how well written the original must be if the translation itself is so catchy. And yes Mr. Kalki Krishnamurthy, you have found yourself a new fan. So I have been on a frantic hunt for the complete set and found it here: http://www.indiaplaza.com/books/ISBN-PONSELCOLL.htm for Rs.950 but as Murphy law would have it, it is currently out of stock. So, for the time being, I am left with a microscopic brain and a ton of creativity to imagine the wonderful end rewritten by Maya.

So a brief account of the story so far or more like my thoughts. May contain spoilers. So the story is about the Cholas (The Chola dynasty ruled the region in and around Tamil Nadu from the 3rd century BC to the 13th century AD, for more info check out the wiki page: chola dynasty) and in particular about Raja Raja Chola, the greatest of the Chola Kings. (For people who do not know, I have been a bit of a history buff and love most history that is not Ghandhi's salt march (Dhandi March 12th March, 1930) or satyagraha and all I got while studying history in India was this. A very rare history session at school contained the South Indian history before the times of the English rule, and I was introduced to the Cholas, Cheras, Pandiyas and Pallavas. Till date I remember that class as I had enjoyed it thoroughly, the stories were interesting, the conspiracies were cool, the names were easy (most of the names were Karikala, Soundara Chola, Raja Raja, Verra Pandi and so on and so forth...very easy to remember as they were all similar to the names of my second cousins *jokes*) and the places ruled were relatable to neighbouring cities and states of the present day. Their rule did not last for long, as invasion from the north took over soon but of their short rule, Raja Raja was the most prominent and noteworthy king.) The story is a short long fictionist account of Raja Raja's rise to power despite many odds, I think (cannot confirm as I have not read the end of it). The story follows the adventures of a messenger named Vallavarayan Vandiya Devan who in my eyes is more the hero than the owner of the book’s title Ponniyan Selvan aka Raja Raja Chola. The king himself does not make an appearance till the second half of the second book and all the male leads are meant to be dashing young hot blooded Tamil men :) The coolest thing for me in the book is that the villain is a female :) and the book is definitely gripping. I have gained a whole new appreciation for Tamil literature...only if Mr.Kalki was English, he would be a global sensation.

So what troubles me is... the age old movie of Raja Raja Chola screened in 1973, starring Nadigar Thilagam Shivaji Ganeshan as our dashing young hero, in the fading colour print of those times. Being a young lady, I tend to have a wild active imagination and love to draw up my own picturistic images of the male and female characters that appear in the stories I read. Since I have known the existence of the movie and may have possibly watched in my incomprehensible younger days, I face a road block, a corrupt image of Shivaji Ganeshan never fails to pop up on the mention of Raja Raja Cholas name. I find it hard to get past this imagery and am not satisfied with him playing the role in my head. This difficulty has been faced by my poor mind on numerous occasions such as the creation of the Harry Potter movies before the completion of the Harry Potter book series and so on, where Daniel Radicliff ugly visage popped up at the sound of Harry Potter (though I will have to give it to him, he looked cute in his first movie and then become like a gwaky teenager undergoing puberty). The only character that has been deemed acceptable and I find quite pleasurable imaging when re-reading Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice is Darcy acted by Colin Firth.

Now on to my plea to the Indian education board...I completely and truly understand the importance of the Indian freedom struggle and our fight for independence but we have much more interesting history which will be easily forgotten if not taught in more detail and with greater passion in our schools. So a little less freedom struggle and a bit more Cheras, Cholas, Pandiyas and Pallavas in a similar captivating style as Kalki's Ponniyin Selvan will be perfect. Or maybe even a slight taste of global history such as the World Wars, German history describing the life and times a charismatic but mentally retarded leader, Adolf Hitler.

Stills from the movie Raja Raja Chola, 1973 starring Nadigar Thilagam Shivaji Ganeshan:

Update

Phew!!! What an extremely long year it has been. So yes, at last I have completed an enormously large 100 page thesis. I began this project with the hopes of trying to cure sheep of a disease but somehow ended up curing mice of the same disease. If you are confused so am I but ah well I am done and that calls for celebration.

Went to Contagion movie following our dramatic rush to the submission box (don’t ask how we scientists can watch a movie on viruses and epidemics soon after handed a boring thesis on a similar subject). The movie was do-able but seemed like a documentary. And then came the time for fireworks (had a late diwali). We bursted till every single cracker were shred to pieces and that ends my story of my graduation. Now I am officially a bum with absolutely nothing to do. Being presented with a one way ticket by parents to go figure out my life and not return back home till I have.

It been about a month and a half since I have last posted and I haven’t written the end of the story of the RWC post. So without further adieu, NZ won the world cup. The finals was an exciting match to watch, France vs. NZ. The French team had performed poorly throughout the series and no one was expecting them to put on the show they did on the finals night. It was quite the match, the final score being 7 vs 8. So we won by a single point. Celebrations were long (the problem of being, NZ never quite get over things as easily as Indians do). The whole nation was painted black (being the colour of our rugby team) and everyone was out on the roads to soak in the mood. The All Blacks paraded their Webb Ellis Cup and it took us sometime for normality to set back in. I have definitely enjoyed the Rugby season and can now do more of it (I am worried to say even more than cricket). So will leave you all with a shot of the triumphant

So now that I am officially jobless, I have decided to take on a 30 day letter challenge. I have always wanted to do this after reading other blogs but I feel like I have lost my mojo for writing ever since handing in my dissertation. I am hoping to find it again and write some entertaining letters. Most of the topics are to people who I have always wanted to write but others are from what I found interesting in other blogs.

Professions

Watching reality TV, a dance program to be more specific, I sat back in the couch looking at the performer and pondering...I will never marry a dancer and that’s how this post has originated. So, here is a list of professions and my reaction to them. So let's start with the obvious.



Dancer: No, as I am prejudiced.

Doctor: Yes, money.

Engineer: Yes, smarts.

Actor: No, too much trouble.

Johnny's boys: Yes, worth the trouble.

Author: Definitely yes, this is as romantic as it can get.

Poet: No, as most poems sound like riddles to me and I dont enjoy it. But most authors are also poets, so that’s a problem.

Accountant: Yes, a man who enjoys numbers is fun.

Businessman: No, you never know when he will lose it all. A man in a stable job is more attractive.

Biologist: No.

Physicist: Hard one. Smart yes...but he will be crazy too right?

Singer: Yes, also part of my romantic idea.

Teacher: No, somehow not attractive.

Sport’s star: Yes.

Comedian: Hmmm possibly a no. Every man needs to be humourous but not necessarily a comedian.

Politician: Definitely not.

Policemen: No

Fire-fighter: No

Pilot: Yes, though I did reject the above two professions with uniforms, but I had be a fool to reject this one.

Mangaka/Cartoonist: Yes, I can get him to draw me BL cartoons.

Journalist: Another hard one.

I know there are many other professions out there like zookeeper and so on but I think I have addressed enough of them for my overworked brain.

RWC

ok Pigs' this one is for you as you will not believe what I am going to write about or what awaits you as scroll further down. As you know, somehow, anything address to you loses meaning somewhere and always ends up as silly little notes and am afraid this one is also going to follow the same trend.

This year has been an interesting one. I had a lot of first experiences and if you have not guessed what the topic today is going to be by the cryptic title (an abbreviation rather), I will break my silence now. “My Rugby World Cup Experience”, which is on-going and addictive. New Zealand is hosting the RWC this year and the Friday of the opening ceremony (09/09/11) was a day of partying. I finished work around 2 O'clock that day and headed to Party Central (City Centre) to join in the celebration, I think (I had no expectations and just headed that way out of plain curiosity as to what the whole hype was about). A could sense a mad rush about 300m away from my intended destination. I have never in my life seen such a mad rush of people in NZ. Never knew so many people existed here in the first place. It was crazy, vibrant jammed and made me feel like home. Everywhere was packed with people screaming for NZ or TONGA, as that was the starting match of the series and the one happening that night. I stood around enjoying the thrill and excitement of the mood till late that night and later headed home after. And guess what, that night I saw my first rugby match ever NZ vs TONGA. The mood on screen was also electric. The games commenced after the initial shower of fireworks and some performances. And then it was business time with the TONGAN team performing their HAKA followed by the NZ's HAKA (my first ever time watching the most popular HAKA too). Then the players dispersed and took on their respective spots on the field. The game is played for 80 minutes and each half is forty minutes. The first half seemed like an easy victory for NZ, they were just cruising through the TONGAN's and of course it had a lot of scrumming, crounching, touching, horse engaging, tackling, shoving, blocking and pouncing, but the dislike I had to the game when I had initially moved the country was no more there. The second half, the TONGAN's seemed more in game and was absolute joy to watch (never in a million years thought I would utter such words, but there goes). And the highlight of the game in the eyes of any young female would have been the ripping off of the shirt of Sonny Bill William's as they all got a glimpse of his 6pack...but me as strange as I am didn’t know what to enjoy of the moment. (I think I prefer soccer players as they are more normally built unlike the huge built rugby player...but then again I am strange). My feeling at the end of the game was "I can get used to this”, and that exactly what I did...Saw NZ vs JAPAN last night for more obvious reasons...once again an easy win for NZ...Go ALL BLACKS or as mum would say Go AB! (lol) NZ, never having hosted any event so big, I did not know what to expect but I think they have coped with a few mishaps.
I will end this post with a video of the ALL BLACK performing the HAKA or WAR DANCE challenging or accepting a challenge...and err yes NZers dance before they play a match

Note:- the man in black at 1:11 minute is the captain of the NZ Rugby team Richie McCaw and the guy at 1:34 is Dan Carter...he is like David Beckham of NZ and advertises for Jockey ;)

Bucket List

21 things I want to do before I die.



1) Find satisfactory answers to the ultimate questions like "What is the purpose of life?", "Does God really exist?" and so many more.

2) Commercialize my research idea...*I can sense skeptical glances* But I do have one and for now it will be labelled with a 'top secret' stamp, as I cannot risk the idea being stolen.

3) Go on a one year cruise around the world and spend another year travelling around India, with family, of course.

4) Be able to read a book in Tamil, like Ponniyin Selvan...yes call me ambitious, as I struggle to pass the first few lessons in First standard Tamil book.

5) Own a minimum of ten houses in Chettinad. You will have to visit to know how gorgeous each house is.

6) Make at least an instant of An Ardent Admirer story true.

7) Win Lotto and become rich. I hate the idea of having to work hard to become rich.

8) Invest in the stock market. I am clueless on what the stock market is or how it works but it has always sounded cool.

9) Attend a KATTUN concert. Ok! This is not a priority for the current me but would have been if I was making this list when I was 15-16 years and so I feel responsible to satisfy her wishes as well.

10) If I do get married, play a prank on that day, something along the lines of the bride has runaway.

11) Drink to experience the euphoria and high described by every drunkard at least once in my lifetime. If I seemed innocent till now, I am sure I have succeed in breaking that image now.

12) Read the end of SB! and LC. I would expand on my abbreviations but no I will not.

13) Own an automated car, like the ones that drive themselves as "I am too evolved for driving" borrowed from Sheldon Cooper, The Big Bang Theory. I know these cars exist, so I not making anything up. They are currently being tested for safety and so it is not an impossible dream if they manage to compete the testing in my lifetime.

14) Attend every one of my besties weddings. That will be nine weddings in all.

15) Understand Physics. It is the master of all sciences and so if I were smarter, I will definitely not be a biologist but a physicist. I can write a whole new post about Physics but I know that you all are not interested, so I will let it rest here.

16) Win a cash prize for one of my short stories.

17) Be able to fit my current jeans when I am 30, 40, 50 and 60. I just might save some shopping money.

18) Read every last word R.K.Narayan has written. I might be quarter of the way through this task :)

19) Want to teleport and time travel. You know I am running out of things to write.

20) Develop a unique and special skill like being able to sing the ABCDs backwards as comfortably as singing it forwards.

21) Fund a research of my choice. Yes, I am not as selfish as I might seem.

This was much harder than I thought it would be but still enjoyed it :D