A few things to unlearn

Since the beginning of time, that I have been able to understand things and people, and perhaps the world, I have started to think that all the good things that we were taught in school, really have no meaning.

1. Wash your hands before your meals?
Almost everyone uses spoons, forks and knives. That small tip might need to be removed from our coursebooks. And even if we used our hands, the food, themselves have so much filth in them these days, that they would need more cleaning and disinfecting than our hands.

2. Honesty is the best policy?
Haha. That one surely needs some immediate attention. Well, maybe, not such a drastic change. "Find and replace" all occurrences of "Honesty" with "Dis-Honesty".

3. Justice is same for all?
Really!! Ahem... Do you even need examples?

4. Look left, then right, and then left again before crossing the road.
In today's world, you can't follow that. Vehicles have taken to the footpaths. You should pray to God before stepping out of your houses.

5. Sources of water?
No. Not wells, freshwater lakes, ponds or rivers. You get water from the tankers that visit your building premises every morning.

6. Constitution. It clearly specifies the limits on the powers of a Government.
I almost had forgotten that one. But, that too, needs to be amended now. Umm. Maybe, it's not needed anyway. The Government is all-powerful, and it can and will override the constitution as and when it feels it needs to.

Thank God, that the laws of physics haven't changed. And the maths that we learnt still works. 

Coding Exercise: Am I engaged?

isSearchComplete = false;
while (!isSearchComplete) {
        if (isBeautiful(girlAtHand)) {
                isSearchComplete = true;
                exchangeRings();
                break;
        } else {
                girlAtHand = getNextGirl();
        }
}
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more_beautiful_girl_1
more_beautiful_girl_2
and intelligent too!!!
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.
exchangeRings();
isSearchComplete = false;

Hope, I don't get killed after this.... :D :D :D :D 

Exams, Results and Dreams

Exams, well, obviously, they are not the stuff that people love. Results; even more hated. And the wait for the results can be sometimes, never ending. How long can you really wait!!! And especially, when you are just hoping that everything turns out good. But, it almost never happens.

Before exams, I have had weird dreams. Really really weird...

"I am writing my exams, and I then realize that I am completely naked. With that realization, I rush out of the exam hall, out into the street, no where to hide. I keep running towards home, and then I wake up."

One of them actually turned into reality. During the class 10 board exams, I was preparing for History. That was the most dreaded subject I have ever had. The next day, when I started walking toward the exam hall, one of my friends asked me if I have got color pencils and threads. I was terrified. I was laughing at the same time, on my friend, imagining how he would react on getting the History question paper, when he was expecting a Geography paper. Soon, I realized that it was me. I would have sweated out the most that day. I flashed towards the stationary shop, collected all that was required for the Geography paper and ran back to the hall, 10 minutes late. I was allowed to enter. And finally, I was able to score 78 in that paper.

At times, I have dreamed about being caught cheating.

By the way, I never cheated during the exams. Ummmm.. there might have been one instance as far as I can remember. I don't exactly remember which exam it was. I think it was in class 8. I had finished my paper, and was looking around. There was a classmate, a girl, and she happened to look at me. I was nervous. I had to do something. She looked beautiful that day. I had to do something. I had to strike a conversation. And then, I put up my hand, and gestured her to tell me the answer to one of the questions. She was happy to help. She murmured the answer. The distance was far, and I was very bad at lip reading. She must have tried 4-5 times, but failed. And then, she explained the answer with gestures. By the way, I already knew the answer. :)

I once tried to take bits of paper to the exam hall, but gave up the idea at the last moment. I guess, I never learnt that art, although in college, we were exposed to all the tips and tricks of the business.

And now, again, I am writing my exams. Things have changed though. One of the exams that carries the maximum weight-age is an open book exam. But still, when it's time for the results, I can feel my heart beating fast and loud.

A girl and a boy talk

She: Hey, why didn't you go to the gym today?
He: Ah!! I tried very hard to wake up in the morning, but my eyes refused to co-operate.

She: This is not done. You know, I wish that my boy friend has a good body and looks muscular.
He: I try my best..and .. ..

She: Nothing doing. Do you feel that going to the gym is a burden for you everyday?
He: Sometimes. You know, working out alternate days is recommended by many people.
She: Look, I need my boy-friend to be fit and have a few muscles which he could use to scare away at-least 5 people.

He: Umm... Well, I also want my girl friend to be fitter, slimmer and healthier.

She: Ain't I? I am already so lean and thin.

He: Haha, you need to cut off a few pounds here and there.

She: My work timings are so hectic. Ok. If you want, I can come with you to the gym in the mornings. Earlier the better.
He: Are you sure?
She: Of course. You want your girl to lose some weight, right?
He: Yeah, but..

She: Let's go in the mornings. What time does the gym open?
He: 5 am

After a long pause...

She: We will discuss about this some other time. Got to sleep now. Good night. :)

Disclaimer: All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Random something

What is a "Problem"? Who has defined what should a "Problem" look like, sound like or feel like. Why  do people run away from a "Problem"?

Whats the definition of a problem? How are we supposed to react and handle the situation. Is there a universal solution to a specific problem? Or, there is an array of solutions? If yes, and if you know it already, how does one decide which is the best solution among so many?

When people find themselves in a problem, they would seek advice, ponder over it, think about it again and again, and finally try to address it. And everyone of us do it all the time. And still, some solutions that we arrive at, don't seem to be a perfect solution, and thus our mind becomes restless. Restless to the extent that we don't seem to get away from the already lost opportunity. Well, of course we missed a chance, which might or might not affect soon. But then, didn't we do our best?

A second lives only for a second. I wonder why they named it as "second"!!! Why not "first" or "third"? Perhaps, because it just sounds right. Wonder how milli-first or micro-firsts would have sounded.

The problem of the "Problem" is the word itself, according to me. It's like a ghost. The ghost is fictional, almost everywhere in the world. But, still, people freak out at the mere mention of that word. Taking a more real world example, it's like "a scorpion or a big spider on your chair". It's the name and the image of the objects that scare us.

Think of a situation where a person encounters a King Cobra. Both, actually are facing the problem in their face. Both of them want to save their lives. Both of them think that it's a life and death situation. Well, 50% of the times, it might just turn out to be a fatal duel, where one survives depending on his, as well as his opponents thoughts and actions. But, for the other 50% of the time, there is a possibility of both handling the situation a little differently. And in the end, saving each others' and their own lives.

I often think that whatever we do, in the spur of the moment or even after contemplating our probable actions, we could never have done better. That was the best we did and we should forget about it even if it didn't turn out in our favour. Forget the previous problem and face the next one. Don't waste those seconds and minutes for the ticks that are already gone silent. There will be countless more ticks for you, and hope that those are more musical than the bygones.

Happy New Year to everyone :)

Let's start with a blast.... And make this year the best, better than the previous years. For the next, let's plan after a year. :)

A small story might go well with this:

"One fine day, a bus driver went to the bus garage, started his bus, and drove off along the route. No problems for the first few stops - a few people got on, a few got off, and things went generally well.

At the next stop, however, a big hulk of a Pathan got on. Six feet four, built like a wrestler, arms hanging down to the ground. He glared at the conductor and said, "Pathan doesn't pay!" and sat down at the back.

Conductor didn't argue with Pathan, but he wasn't happy about it. The next day the same thing happened. Pathan got on again, made a show of refusing to pay, and sat down. And the next day, and the next.

This grated on the bus driver, who started losing sleep over the way Pathan was taking advantage of poor conductor. Finally he could stand it no longer. He signed up for body building courses, karate, judo, and all that good stuff.

By the end of the summer, he had become quite strong; what's more, he felt really good about himself. So, on the next Monday, when Pathan once again got on the bus and said, "Pathan doesn't pay!", the driver stood up, glared back at Pathan, and screamed, "And why not?"

With a surprised look on his face, Pathan replied, "Pathan has a bus pass."

Management Lesson: Be sure there is a problem in the first place before working hard to solve one."