Vella Kuuraan

It was at a very young age that I had first witnessed what an after death ceremony looks like. My grand mother had passed away while she was washing her face. She fell on my mother and ma tried desperately tried to wake here up. Dad was working in Dubai and had started from there along with his brothers when he heard the news. I still remember the blood shot eyes that my Dad had when he came in the big room where grand ma laid. He did not cry aloud like all the women did but the eyes told a lot.

The second time was when Dad's brother, Unni Krishnan Kunjachan, died. He had high blood pressure and tensions of his own when he passed away. I dont actually remember where I was when he passed away. The one thing I remember clearly was Prasanth walking around with the 'sheesham' tied around his waist. Dad was there taking over all the after death rituals and their setups.

The third time was shocking. It was my own Uncle's death. He was one of the best guys I had seen so strong with the english language. He had the capability of doing stuff of on his own. He would help you no matter what and you could trust your life with him. His life was full of desperation and loneliness. This might be the reason why he thought to go to God on his own. My youngest uncle had taken the phone and started crying on hearing this. Mom could you keep it to herself and started crying aloud. Everyone but me when to Chalakudy where the body was supposed to come. Dad had gone to take the hanging body from the hotel as the hotel authorities did not want to touch the body. I remember Murali Uncle, pretty drunk at that point of time, telling me that after seeing the half degraded body that he had to get drunk as he could he forget the scene.

This week witnessed yet another loss in the form of the loving Ganga uncle, Dad's 2nd brother. He was the silent type, who will not complain even if you hit him with a pole. The calm and down to earth person who would help even if he were sick. Dad had just undergone a minor operation and we needed to go to the hospital. As we did not have a vehicle, we called Uncle. He still came even though he had fever. It was by evening that we understood this and by night he had to be admitted in the hospital. It was by 5:30 the next morning that he passed away due to a heart failure. He was analyzed with pneumonia and it had spread very bad to his lungs and heart. I remember every time I used to visit him that he would come down the stairs and say hi and then say nothing at all unless I spoke to him. He used to stay with us when we were in Dubai and he used to make fun of this north Indian friend of mine who was very fair. HE used to call him 'VELLA KUURAAN'.

Lists

50 Lists to Write to Lift Your Spirits from http://demandingjoy.com/?p=1027


1. People who have influenced or inspired you
Dad, Mom, Sis, Ravindra Sir, Sony

2. Things you are grateful for
Health, All the things that my parents gave me including education, love and life.

3. Places you have been
Dubai, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jammu, Kerala, Bangalore, Trichy.

4. Places you want to go
Europe, Leh-Ladakh

5. Books you’ve read
Just the one I remember clearly is Dirty Harry

6. Your favorite things – what brings you joy?
Spending time with friends and having a good time.

7. Good things that happened this week
NONE

8. The best things that happened in the last year
I loved.

9. The best days of your life.
June 21 2006 - Sept 4 2009

10. The songs for the soundtrack of your life
take it easy - eagles.

11. Acts of kindness you’ve committed
Helped Sony and Teddy.

12. Things you want your children to know about you
That I love them very much.

13. Reasons why you love your significant other
Unknown

14. The high points for your autobiography
I tried to become what people want but failed miserably.

15. People who love you
Dad and Mom

16. The cutest things your kids ever said
Waiting

17. Everything you would do if money were no object
I would travel.

18. Favorite gifts you’ve ever received
A coffee Mug from Gitesh and Srinath.

19. Favorite gifts you’ve ever given
A perfume to Shilpi

20. Occupations that you have ever wanted to have (including when you were a child)
Being a pilot

21. The best advice you’ve gotten.
Learn to say 'No' from Srinivas

22. The worst advice you’ve gotten.
Try to do this another way from many people.

23. Things you’re procrastinating
Getting the bike to my name.

24. Ways you calm yourself down when you’re angry.
Think of something else.

25. The best ideas you’ve ever had
Take a short movie

26. The best projects or organizations you’ve ever been involved with
Globallogic.

27. The ways you have grown since your early 20’s
Intellectually, physically.

28. The most beautiful things you’ve ever seen
Snow @ Patni Top

29. The greatest lessons you have learned
You cant change who you are but you could adjust to other people.

30. Life’s lessons that you learned the hard way
People are not what they seem to be.

31. Things that have mad you laugh until you cried.
None

32. Qualities you most admire in others
Patience, openness.

33. Qualities others most admire in you
None

34. The elements of an ideal year
No mental tortures, no allegations and no health problems

35. All the compliments you’ve ever gotten
None

36. Foods that you have eaten that are so good that others could hear you enjoying them
None

37. The times you have asserted yourself
Many.

38. Things that inspire and energize you
Work, games and short talks.

39. The places where you feel completely comfortable to be yourself
Home.

40. The most important turning points in your life
Getting admitted to NITC

41. Times when you looked and felt your absolute best
None.

42. The things you’re good at
None

43. What you would do with the power of invisibility
Cant say.

44. Things you want to teach your children
To be independent and learn stuff the hard way.

45. Things you still want to do in life
Travel.

46. Bits of trivia that most people don’t know about you
I love to walk.

47. The things you love about your body
I could exert myself.

48. Accomplishments you are most proud of
Performance award from GL.

49. The things you love about your home
Dad and Mom's there.

50. Who (living or dead) you would invite to your dream dinner party
Everyone who understands me.

Something that I stumbled Upon

I've Learned. . .
Author Unknown

I've learned. . . that we don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change.
I've learned. . . that no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt you every once in a while and you must forgive them for that.
I've learned. . . that true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance. Same goes for true love.
I've learned. . . that you can do something in an instant that will give you heartache for life.
I've learned. . . that it's taking me a long time to become the person I want to be.
I've learned. . . that you should always leave loved ones with loving words. It may be the last time you see them.
I've learned. . . that you can keep going long after you can't.
I've learned. . . that we are responsible for what we do, no matter how we feel.
I've learned. . . that either you control your attitude or it controls you.
I've learned. . . that regardless of how hot and steamy a relationship is at first, the passion fades and there had better be something else to take its place.

Dark Side and the Bright Side - Goa

This was my first time in Goa. Expectations were high. We expected it to be hot and humid. We expected lots of tourists and desis. What we saw met our expectations. We had lots of fun and a genuinely great time. I dont want to talk about the great stuff that you see in Goa. Everybody talks about those stuff. Im going to talk about the stuff that I thought to be BAD.

Goa is projected as a tourist destination. These tourists come and lay on the beach reading or just getting a tan. Theres bound to be some sort of extortion. It was holi there and I saw a bunch of kids, may be 5 or 6 years old, smearing a foreigner with the traditional colors and then asking him for money. The amount that they ask starts from a hundred. They ask him five hundred. The foreigner is not let to go unless he pays and he succumbs and gives the kid a hundred rupees. I never saw any kid asking an Indian that amount of money. They dont ask coz they know they wont get it. It would be a waste of their time and the money they spent on the color.

Normally the bike that we get for rent in Goa costs about 200 rupees. They hike the prices to a thousand we they see that there is demand. We reached late on a saturday and a person asked for 800 rupees under the condition that the bike had to be returned @ 9 pm that same day.

They also provide roof less Maruti Gypsies for people. These Gypsies are not allowed in Goa. They dont tell this tiny detail. The police wait for these Gypsies and once they get one extort money from the tourists. The tourists are made to pay the whole amount upfront and complaining on return of the vehicle doesnt matter.

We got into a bus when we started from Baga to Calagute. We were told by the owner of the place we stayed that the fare was 5 rupees. The conductor of the bus asked us for 10 rupees. He doubled the price. We told him that we knew the fare was 5 and that he was trying to trick us. He argued for a while but took the 5 per person after we said we would complain.

We got down at Margao to go to the railway station to catch the train. A bus was parked in a petrol pump and the conductor told us to get in after asking us the destination. We got in and sat. Just then another guy came from the bus stand and told us that the bus wont go. We didnt get out then. The conductor then came in and asked for the fare and we gave him a hundred. He went upfront after taking the money. Then the bus started and went inside the bus stand and stood there for more than 10 minutes. When asked why he didnt tell us that the bus wont go now, the conductor said that the bus would go in some time !

Dont ever go on the beach without foot wear. You would only get you foot split by broken glass. Get sun tan lotion or you will burn to death. You will have to buy water. No one, not even when you dine in a small shack, will you get some drinking water. The most time wasted will be for food as the shacks there take 3 hours to serve a single meal. Take some light food along if you intend to roam about in Goa.

JS Snippets


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