Happy Children's Day!!

And Happy B'day Chacha Nehru :-)

A cat crosses my path every day.

(Just remembered a stupid joke I received the other day – what does it mean when a cat crosses your path when you are going somewhere?....

… It means the cat is also going somewhere.

Tee hee hee. Very funny. Thanks for nothing, Ameya.)

Well, I’m not superstitious really. But you know how it is. Such things tend to stay with you and you think of them even if you actually don’t believe in them. Which is why each time I see a cat that crosses my path, my heart gives a lurch. And I ponder for a second, will it be me who crosses that crossed line first? Shall I wait till somebody else passes?

Of course, now that it happens daily without fail, and obviously something bad does not happen to me every single day (now that would be so horrendous and unfair!), I hardly spare a thought. Yet, it’s irritating. Say, a guy crashed his bike on a pillar last week as I was riding to work. Maybe the cat DIDN’T cross his path…

There are these other superstitions. Like when you leave the house, don’t utter the word “chappal” or “water”. Or when you sneeze, don’ leave the house immediately. Or if you see an empty bucket/pail while going somewhere, it means your purpose is futile. Really psyches me out. Wish I didn’t know these things at all, coz now that I am aware of them, I can’t help but recognize them and say an extra prayer. Just in case.

Anyways, I ain’t writing this post to discuss superstitions and silly traditions. I was just thinking, how time has flown! It seems like a few months that 2009 began, and lo! It’s almost over. It is as if someone’s put the clock on fast forward. And boy, whatever was happening in the city over the past week? It was pouring like crazy and it was so windy I was afraid I'd get blown away with my Scooty! Courtesy a cyclone (Phyan) alert in the Arabian Sea and adjoining areas i.e. Mumbai, Pune, and other places. Even otherwse, Pune's getting quite chilly, and it as pleasant. But, I hate it when people all around me (including myself) keep falling sick due to the weather.

It’s been three and a half months since I joined Yellow Box. At the moment, I am doing three different levels, one for absolute beginners, one for intermediate and the other for advanced. Know which one I’m enjoying the most? The first one, where there are 4 students, all in the age group of 20-25 years, and they didn’t even know how to write A-Z correctly! After teaching them the alphabet, I did some vocabulary with them, and boy, I’ve realized I can be TREMENDOUSLY patient when I want!! Yet, this resolve fails when I see insincere or casual attitude. Two smart Alecs who really test my tolerance end up being verbally bashed by me almost every single day. I ain’t perfect! But I try when I see the other person trying… Taali do haath se bajti hai mere dost!

Been going crazy these last few days trying to locate someone with a Mastercard or American Express. The University of Texas at Austin accepts only these two cards for fee payment, and everyone I know has a Visa. Only recently managed to get the payment done. Didn't get an accept from Cambridge UK :-( Now anxiously awaiting a buzz from the other univs where I have applied. Touch wood!

Watched Jail last evening with the family. I'm amazed to say that the film was not as violent or bad as I'd imagined. Looks like my keeping my expectations down has really helped me enjoy my movie experience! Neil Nitin Mukesh, unfortunately, has proved yet again that he can't act; his dialogue delivery is especially horrendous. But, his expressions are pretty heartrending. Mugdha Godse looks pretty but has very little to do. Ditto the marvelous Atul Kulkarni and the fantastic Manoj Bajpayi. The movie, like other Madhur Bhandarkar creations is very real and conceiveable. Especially when you see the unfair, inhumane and hopeless legal system in India as well as the poor conditions of our jails and prisons.

I had read about this in Shantaram, so it was a deja-vu for me. However, I still shed a few tears like when Neil finally gets released, and a few times before that, when he gets frustrated and suffers for it. Indeed, the human heart hardens when dealing regularly with corpses and criminals, innocence dies and the animal in us comes to life. Happy ending in the movie (that too, after 2+ years of undeserved punishment). Happy endings in real life? Doubtful. Movie very watchable. Go for it.

Re-reading Bridget Jones Diary and That Thing Called Love simultaneously to kill time before I sleep. Need to go book shopping sooooooooon...

Ciao.
Princess