'How happy is the blameless vestal's lot!

The world forgetting, by the world forgot.

Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind!

Each pray'r accepted, and each wish resign'd;

Labour and rest, that equal periods keep;

"Obedient slumbers that can wake and weep;"

Desires compos'd, affections ever ev'n,

Tears that delight, and sighs that waft to Heav'n.'

-Alexander Pope

I'm feeling lucky!

It happened in January this year. I was going back to Delhi. I had decided on taking the seven o' clock bus, but my mother somehow persuaded me to take the eight o' clock one instead. Getting up so early would be inconvenient, she claimed. Whatever,I thought. So,at eight thirty, I was sitting comfortably in the bus, looking out the window in the outskirts of Agra, when I saw the seven o' clock bus lying overturned on the highway. It had met with an accident and the windows were all shattered.
 
I could only thank my stars as I sat there contemplating the consequences had I gone forward with my earlier decision. 'Luck' was on my side.
 
Or was it?
Was it simply a case of cause-effect? A cosmic game of probabilities and alternate universes? I mean,it was all in my hands,wasn't it? I could have taken the bus and it could have not met with any accident or the bus I was on could have been the one lying overturned: who knows? who can predict the occurrence of events?
What is luck, then?

What is it that makes people change their names: spelling them with a twist to obtain that magical numeral, wear bracelets/rings or adorn themselves with only a select range of colors? And they claim it to work! Our very own MSD is obsessed with 'lucky' number seven- and hasn't he guided us to the number one spot in world cricket? But you'd say that it was because our squad was genuinely talented and that the most formidable men down under had decided to retire. But,would that be a matter of luck too?

As I see it, luck is basically the child of probability, a series of events occur or don't occur and things are in your favor. But then, can you 'invoke' luck? I assume not. It's only a matter of belief I guess. Present day philosophers would tell you that if you 'believe' and wish for something in the right way, the universe will conspire for it to happen. Hm. Your subconscious is a magnet, they claim. Methinks it may be correct after all, 'cause I've experienced it. If you think about something with all your might and program your subconscious for it, I'm sure unconsciously you'd start taking the steps for your wish to materialize..
('be careful what you wish for,'cuz you just might get it all' )

In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, we read about a potion called 'liquid luck'. It was claimed that anybody drinking that potion would succeed in whatever he attempted. Harry gives the vial to Ron who has his first quidditch match that day and surely enough, they're victorious.
After the match, Hermione confronts Harry for having used unfair means. Which, it turns out, he had not! He'd replaced the contents of the vial with something trivial! The only thing Ron lacked was self-confidence, and the 'potion' gave him just that.

Fortune favors the brave,doesn't it?

The Hangover

Yeah, that right, I'm hungover. But no wine or vodka..I'm hungover a
book, books, to be precise.
The series in question is the Millenium Trilogy by Steig Larrson. I
know I've been going on and on about it for quite some time now, but
that's the way it is. I was glued
to it since the last three weeks or so and have been thinking about it
ever since I managed to finish it. Yes, it was the subject matter, yes, it
was the writing style
too..but more than anything, it was that girl.

The trilogy revolves around crime against women in Sweden(pretty drab
you'd think).
In the first book, The Girl with the dragon tattoo, the author
introduces us to a murder mystery. A young girl, Harriet
Vanger, belonging to a very rich family, goes missing
under extraordinary circumstances and no trace of her is ever found.In
comes Michael Blomkvist, journalist, owner of the independent magazine
Millenium, to investigate
the long forgotten case. Why would he give a shit? Because he's been
bribed by Harriet's uncle to give one last try to find the truth about
his beloved niece. In
return, he'd get damaging evidence against his
arch-enemy, Wennerstrom. The stage is set for a crime thriller, except
for that girl.
Lisbeth Salander is a skinny punkster with numerous tattoos and
piercings. She works for Milton Security. She doesn't speak
much, borders on unsocial. But her brains!
She'll shock you with her abilities. She had been locked up in an
asylum for years though. Predictably enough, she joins forces with Blomkvist and together they
uncover the crime(s). But what they discover will knock you out. This is
one of those books you'll
have trouble keeping away.
In the second book, The girl who played with fire, you discover Lisbeth
Salander: the girl, the woman. This is where her story begins, and it's
not an enviable one.
But she is one of those who answers fire with fire:no evil ever goes
unpunished. It will be hard to fathom how this tiny stick-thin girl
fights with bulky men, even
brutally injures them. But as they say, all fights are fought in the
mind. But in the middle of the book comes the shocker: Lisbeth Salander
is wanted as a suspect in
three murders.
As the drama unfolds, you get a glimpse of Lisbeth's grim childhood, or
rather the lack of it. However, this woman does not need no pity, she's
already calculated revenge.

The third book, The girl who kicked the hornet's nest starts where the
second one left us. The battle for Lisbeth Salander starts.Micheal
Blomkvist gets together with
her miniscule, but loyal group of friends and establishes 'Knights of
the Idiotic Table' to get Salander out of the mess she's gotten
into. In order to prove Salander's
innocence, one of Sweden's best-kept secret has to be revealed and the
'Knights' face resistance from all corners. But in a brilliantly
thought out way, justice is
finally achieved. The legal battle is one of the best I've ever
read: sharp and effective.

Larrson's style of writing is commendable. It is a book for our
generation:the protagonists sport macbooks and hackers play an
important role. The relationships
described are not your usual 'happily-ever-after' types, but are very
real and presnt-day. None of the characters in his books is perfect, but
they all have the will and
the courage to confront injustice. Especially, that girl.
A must read for fans of good, intelligent literature.

Breaking News

Youth Against Apocalypse
18th July 2011,New Delhi

Predictions of Apocalypse in 2012 has caused great uproar among the youth of the nation. The youngsters in delhi,specifically students of Delhi University, are planning to go on a protest against it, for want of a better thing to do. Students from different parts of India, including Mumbai, Hyderabad, Patna and Bengaluru are also pledging their support to the protest in Delhi. In all,a total of around 2 lakh students are expected to show up in Delhi and around 2000 of them are expected to turn up at the candle light rally at India Gate. Invites have been sent out on social networking site Facebook (check your inbox).
Leading the agitation is 22yr old Shahrukh Roshan(name changed) from SRCC. 'My fight is against those astrologers,religious scholars and filmmakers who are spreading propaganda about the world ending in 2012. Why,I ask them,could they not have come up with their reports a few years earlier? I could've had a decent childhood. Do they even have any idea about the cut-offs at SRCC?' He's furious.
Farhan Qureshi(name changed), a first year student at St.Stephen's, though, has a completely different viewpoint 'I demand the Government of India to do something about this! We just can't let the world end! I mean I've tried so hard and got so far, don't tell me that in the end, it doesn't even matter! Where is NASA and all-powerful USA when you need them? Why aren't they doing something about it? Where is superman goddammit!! I protest! What happened to my right to life??'
News of the agitation has brought response in the form of a series of tweets from the bollywood community. Actor Imran Khan has lashed out at the system for 'playing a ridiculous game with the youth of the nation.'
Ram Gopal Verma is planning to make a movie on it. He tweets,'I want to capture the emotions of the youth who are fighting against apocalypse. This film will be a psychological study on student life.'
Scientists and Manmohan Singh are still maintaining that there's nothing to worry about and that the situation is 'under control'.
But Gayatri Devi (name changed again), alumni of St.Xavier's, Mumbai, exclaims,'How can we not worry?First the earthquakes and tsunamis in Japan, then the freak floods and fires..and even Rajnikanth got admitted to the hospital!the world is ending..'.

Anna To Join Protest
Anna Hazare has lashed out at the congress for intentionally delaying the drafting of the lokpal bill to january 2013. 'The congress is playing dirty games, they know that the world is coming to an end in 2012 and so they have postponed the date for the Lokpal Bill. I'm going on an anshan against this decision! They should either do something about the apocalypse or prepone the date. Citizens,get ready for another battle for Independence!',he was quoted as saying.
Swami Ramdev was, however, unavailable for comment. It seems he has left the country for a vacation on his island. How long this vacation is intended to last,nobody knows.

Timeline

07/2/08 (eleventh standard:hopes and fears)

Faith/Hope is a very strange thing. Till it's there, everything is possible, your imagination runs wild, you're happy, optimistic, secure.
But when the thread breaks, things go ugly. Fear suffocates. The demons inside resurface. Insecurity alienates you as you realize you still stand alone.
Somewhere in this state, your logic becomes harsher, the truth comes at you with all it's

brute force.

But mostly you begin to see the falser side of things..the areas where you've cheated
yourself and where the others have. You know you can't do much about it except cry, curse
and feel blue. But things have to go on. And so you drag it.

But I'd wonder how long I could take it. Piece by piece I'm giving it up..fading.
I know what all I am capable of having and I also know that I am capable of undoing it
all..and I look at both options indifferently.

16/04/10 (first year in college:can we be friends?)

'Oh simple thing:where have you gone?I'm getting older and need something to rely on'

Complications, everywhere. Never knew I'd have to think so much on every decision and
that every decision could have so many outcomes attached. All I wish for is
simplicity. Laugh when happy, cry when sad and say what's on my mind and just be me. I
don't wanna be another mask, another well camouflaged friend or love or enemy..
Reality is fleeting. Illusion is chaos, neverending.

Ah, but I'll think and speak of happier times,when words escaping my mouth weren't
judged and weighed and filtered, but accepted and stored somewhere, and added to my
image. When laughter came like flowing water and swept away all feeling, uniting everyone
adrift. Sometimes I think whether it was enough to know what all was and would be
possible, and soothe the restlessness with a promise. Sometimes the restlessness
overpowers, refusing to be tamed and there I am, futilely caged.

But I love myself and I would love to embrace the tears, let them flow and cleanse
me, leaving me empty and bereft of ache. Then when the silence is achieved and I am
myself and one, there I'd begin the quest again and look for those sparkling diamonds in
the coal, to keep them safely with me forever.

02/07/11(third year in college:what's next?)

Everyday I come across people..people who have it all/are hollow/with that zealous
dedication towards something, others laidback and pointing fingers..and I think, which
one of them is me?who am I supposed to be?
Would I be lost in the crowd?what do I need to do to stand out?
I don't remember what happened to that thing called ambition, it seems to have disappeared along the way, when I decided it wasn't worth it. And then, it was just about ideals..what is my highest ideal?and more importantly,am I enough for it?
But that I may be incomplete now doesn't matter, cuz there is more to see and learn. What matters is time.
Only time matters. Time is god isn't it?it runs out and bhaam..there goes destiny, ambitions, karma, everything. The day I realized that the clock
is ticking, I became mad. I don't keep clocks around me, I don't wear watches. I don't
like keeping time, don't like to hear it pass by. Instead I'm clutching at the moments, trying to
stretch them to infinite.

Life is the shit that happens to you when you're busy making plans for tomorrow.
Life is now.
I've always maintained that happiness and satisfaction lies in simplicity.
Let's face it:we spend our lives finding solutions, setting definitions and limits-simplifying things.

Take the plunge,life's too short for regrets.