Dr Eva Peter's Tea cosy

The name has been changed for anonymity.

Years of pragmatic approach towards understanding human nature had been useless to understand this particular and wonderful human being who I am proud to say is my manager.

She has a perfect sense of humour while entertaining a group of audience. She has the greatest virtue of patience when teaching her beloved colleague how to use Oracle for the umpteenth time and above all she has been in the same role for 18 years. Her famous drawback as explained was that she lacks personal skills and does not have enough managerial experience (which I know are lame).

This woman can do wonders on Access and can create most complex databases using her years of wisdom. She can make reports fly from a click of mouse from the extensive data dating ten years back. Above all she strives every minute of her life to make others happy. Working with her for two months had taught me not to work for a pay check but for self satisfaction.

Coming to the story of the Tea cosy, we recently moved offices and now we have our own little room for Team DQV (Data quality validation) with Eva as our lead and two other colleagues along with moi. It was the greatest achievement of Eva to have an office of our own. We decided to have our own social area rather than going to the pantry every now and then. So we designed our little tea corner with a Kettle, a bag of tea and a tea pot. It only made sense to have a Tea cosy as Neville our only male team member expressed his concern.

The next day there appeared a tea cosy with the team logo (Garfield) on it. It is a shame that we did not know about her accomplishments as a Bag maker, Embroidery master, Great Chef (we have tasted some of her great fresh breads) and above all a Writer. She is a master criminal mind who writes Murder mysteries and makes people enact them at a buffet dinner party at her chalet bungalow during summer.

One cannot help but notice her workmanship and attention to detail with this master piece. Kudos to an eminent personality and great individual!!!

Bhogi manta, Gaali patam, Haridasu, Basavanna

It is great that I remembered Pongal this year, thanks to the Telugu calendar I have downloaded from the Internet which keeps reminding me of the day and star of the current year. It is quite amazing to think about the wonderful childhood days when we use to look forward to the numerous festivals in a year. They always come with an added bonus of school holidays and mouth watering delicacies not to mention the gathering of my favourite cousins from Samalkot and Rajahmundry.

My favourite was always Pongal as the school holidays for this festival combined with those of Christmas and we had a full month of merry making. Nevertheless it is not for the school off I remember this but for the great Rangolis and the early morning bonfires. We celebrate this festival for 4 days and the fourth one being the day you remember your ancestors and seek their blessings.

Bhogi, the first day starts with rising usual than early as the bonfire should be lit before the sunrise and one is never allowed to light it without having their festive bath with a proper oil massage. There is always commotion on who can sit closer to the fire as January is till one of the colder months. I cannot quite gather the significance even though it signifies the burning of all the bhogas from life and a fresh start to a simpler life. Makara Sankranthi, the second day is more significant to the Sun god as it is this day the sun starts his eastward revolution and enters the Makara zodiac sign. Kanuma, the third day is more significant in worship of Lord Shani with oil wicks.

In my younger years I remember the frequent visits of Haridasus and also my own favourite “Bommala Koluvu”. It was quite a ritual to start the preparation of aligning all the dolls I owned and also trying to compete with the neighbours in having the best display. It was quite a task arranging mud from the back yard into the drawing room and sowing different seeds in it so that you have green saplings growing out of it by the day of display. All the hustle is to have a corner for Zoo and forest where the saplings related to the dense forest and enhanced the zoo.

It was never about the preparation or the show off but it was all about the spirit and enthusiasm of Mom and us kids. It was the best time of the year as each of us could get lots of new clothes and there were always visitors at home. I do not know what happened to all of that spirit now, the only explanation I get is that we may have evolved from that time period and moved on for good. I salute those people who strive to cling to their culture in spite of living away from it. Just yesterday I came to know about a distant cousin who is having the traditional doll display for her 2 year old daughter in California - you can enjoy the spirit wherever you live - lesson learnt ...

Long live Culture!!!

Self Indulgence

Yup I know I have been lazy and incompetent in maintaining this blog, but I am human and I am prone to make mistakes, so I would try to be more competent and release the untamed beast from within....

It has been quite a few months, I had thoughts, memories and ideas about life in the new year although none were put into action. Unlike last year I do not have any resolutions, just for the sheer alarm of not being able to keep up with them. I am sure most of my friends acted unlike me. I have done nothing productive in the last few months except working for my wages which I guess was good enough.

Getting back to my ideas I sure do have a huge list to start with but am unsure where to start -

Using the Oil paints I have got for Christmas (not even unwarapped my Easel yet)
Keeping up with the blog(which I have finally done today )
Reading the two new books I have found while on the bus
Sowing the coriander seeds for my Kitchen garden
Join weight watchers online (who am I kidding!!!!!)
Find the best holiday destination for the year
Buy all the presents in advance for the trip to India
Learn new low cal recipes
Learn Sudoku
Beat my sweetheart at Chess et al

Mind you its not the end of the list I just did not have any more time to type 'em all. Anywayz will update once I have started on my favourite. Until then Ta

Dark

Pondering through dark alleys
waiting for the unseen tears

a lump stuck in the throat
deep down from the bottom of the heart

weaving their way into the unlit sky
a gush of wind and a tear of joy

in vain and pain......
unknown unseen forgiven and forgotten......

Bliss

It was the end of a warm July day in the English countryside, with shrubs in full bloom and trees heavy with foliage with an occasional flight of a golden finch. Two Magpies’ were having a row about a juicy earthworm on the branch of an apple tree. The ground was never fertile and the trees never so full of life, unlike other times of the year.

It was around half eight and the day was not at all looking tired. Strolling leisurely on the country road, the view was ecstatic and the bend cuts across the beautiful lake with swans and ducklings. Being the right season for breeding there were huge families floating around and once in a while a swan carrying its young on its back. If I were a poet I could have written something spectacular about the moment, nevertheless I can narrate the situation formidably.

These moments are truly cherished, as I can now understand what prompted John Denver to write his ‘Take me home, Country roads’ in early 70’s. The meadows were lush with an abundance of lavender bushes and a variety of roses. I can feel the blissful concoction of the foliage while lying in the meadow and gazing at the skies.

It is a wonder that they have thatch roof houses standing from two centuries and as the sun’s rays touch the roof it is quite a spectacle. Walking in the way of fading sun, trying to count the number of daisies drooping for the night, finally its time to go home, as the dark would loom in soon. Country walks in Great Britain are quite a favourite in summer as you can explore the real countryside. Please don’t forget to watch out for the birds as they are quite civilised in this part of the world.

Why

Why is it that you love someone with your heart, when you are not sure if they love you as much as you did?

Why is it that you bring up the children with more than you can, when you are not sure if they would be at you beck and call in your old age?

Why is it that you think about good deeds and salvation, when you are not sure what happens after death?

Why is it that you value someone’s opinion, when you are not sure they are worth it?

Why is it that you adjust in every relationship, when you are unsure others involved would reciprocate?

Why is it that you settle down for something superficial, when you are not sure if it is permanent?

Why is it that you pray, when you are not sure whom you are praying to and if your prayer would be answered?

Why is it that you always think of future when there is a lot to live at present?

Why do you waste time thinking of meaningless emotions?

Why cannot you be selfish?

Why?

Filipino

I thank my previous organisation for having their business branch opened in Philippines and giving me a chance to go there. I never knew the archipelago to be a tourist spot and also favourite among the westerners. The whole country is made up of 7,107 islands and the scenic beauty is impeccable.

I stayed in Metro Manila for 5 months and I never regret my stay even though it is a long time away from family. I visited all the beaches around Manila and each beach had its own specialty. The beaches were named after the colour of their sand banks – white sand beach, gold sand beach etc. The shells you get on these beaches are unimpeachable. Also worth mentioning are the gem stones of this region, which are second to none. Turquoise blue, Jade, Corals and not least fresh water pearls in pink, black and white.

All the beaches have shallow banks and most of them allow banana boat rides and snorkelling to see the great coral wonders on the banks. You could see dolphins in the middle of the South China Sea if you decide to take a boat ride on one of the locally made rides. Puertogalera is one of the hottest destinations if you would like to spend a night or so on the beach.

The active volcano of Tagaytai is a feast for eyes if you are game to go on a horseback for about 10 miles to climb the length of the volcano. The feeling of standing and looking into the crate with the sulphur fumes in the air, gives an eerie churn in your gut. The horses are trained to climb the mountain and leave you at a specific spot – so you need not worry if you are not an experienced horse rider.

The water falls of Paksanjan are quite a sight. It takes a whole day to reach there as the path towards them goes winding around mountains and jungle and the only way to reach there is on hand rowed boats. The pathway is so narrow and full of rapids, so there is no question of motor engines. It is worth a ride if you wish to see the Winding River and jungle surrounding it.

The Filipinos are second to none in hospitality as well. They are heart warming people, quite jovial, full of culture and quite different from India. More than half of the population is women and hence it surely has a lot of influence on the sexuality of men.

I would really like to go to Philippines again on a holiday….