Bleed Blue

This post is part of the Chennai Bloggers Club's CBC VIBGYOR BLOG TAG 2 where some of us will write a post on the colours of VIBGYOR each day starting 1st of May to the 7th of May, 2020.


The colour theme for today's post is Blue. 

Bleed Blue is a popular tagline of cricket fans in India when the team is playing and sometimes this tagline applies for the local IPL matches too when the team Mumbai plays against any other team. I wonder who came up with that tagline because bleeding for me is mostly associated with the menstrual cycle or washing clothes with colours that bleed. Well, the tagline always gives me images of the colour blue just washing off and the players wearing blue get drenched in blue fluids and the ground is slowly turning blue because the players are bleeding blue and finally when it is done, the players' clothes are white because the blue has been washed off and the ground is soggy. The match has been cancelled. So much for 'Bleed Blue.'

But the vivid image that I associate with Blue is the musical blues, which originates in the African-American belts of the US in the 19th century. The music tradition is a lively one and the name means melancholy or sadness. The intensity of slavery and the condition of the blacks in America was depicted in these songs and often these songs became the anthem of Black slavery also falling in the category of 'protest music.' Perhaps that's why we often exclaim, 'I'm feeling blue,' 'Oh if I could drive the blues away!' and connecting the idea of moods and blues, I would often exclaim, "Ah! This time of the month gives me the blues" - a blend of the red flow and blue moods. And the fine result of blending these colours give another vibrant colour - Magenta, which luckily isn't part of Vibgyor!

Blue is also the favourite colour of gender-benders who work for discouraging gender related colours where blue is almost always preferred to signify boys and pink for girls. But I must admit that men look good in blue, be it shirts or denims and sometimes that factor reduces their ilk to blue which further transforms into a stereotype which demands to be followed. 

Well, so much so for the colour Blue. But I won't let you go without a favourite Blues song by B. B. King. 

Please do visit the blogs of Kaushik, Clement, Kumutha and Pratip who are also
participants of the #CBCVIBGYORBLOGTAG2.

The process of writing never stops . . .

These days I find myself ghost-writing in my thoughts over and over whenever I find something interesting and worth jotting down. There was a time when I had the patience, luxury and adrenaline rush to capture my thoughts in my blog but then, like everything beautiful comes to a momentary halt (with promises of renewal), I sparsely felt the need to post. I discovered that inspite of not giving a form to my thoughts in the form of posts, I mentally write within my mind. Yes, that's why I say that the process of writing never stops. It continues albeit without a palpable medium.

I realised this quite late because I was perpetually in a state of guilt and anger in equal measure when I saw that my blog is lying in a state of neglect almost like the memories of an old lover who remains within but rarely demands any attention. I knew that my blog is there, safe, still read by some (the growing statistics tell me that) and bookmarked by some others to be read in leisure. But the ache of seeing the last entry dated a month ago does not bring any consolation to my otherwise active mind. In the interim, I have been closely observing my mind! Strange as it may sound, I have stumbled upon some interesting thought processes that marginally cut down my guilt quotient. I am always writing posts within my head - not the scribbling in a worn out journal but paragraphs neatly organised with a propah introduction, middle and conclusion, like I always say to my class!

I wonder whether this happens to everyone and if so, how long do these entries stay. For me, they stay a while until the next interesting subject comes along. I am afraid my mind has not served as a container so far, only a medium - that too a virtual one. I wonder if there is a procedure to tap one exact nerve and extricate all the posts and translate them to coherent words that would show up on my blog as posts. If wishes were horses, nay blog posts, I would be one content soul happily basking in the glory of my thoughts which I know would eventually get fed on my blog!

Until the technology makes my wish happen, I will hopefully continue the process of writing, sorry ghost-writing in my mind and maybe sometimes, I would stop by my wee blog and strive to record these precious nuggets of memory.

Dear reader, what have you been doing with your thoughts, if I may probe.

Chennai - A concoction of the traditional and the modern

This post is part of the blog tag titled, The CBC Tablog - 3, where CBC stands for Chennai Bloggers Club, a group where bloggers (young, old, new, jaded, bored) from Chennai gather and discuss everything under the sky including blogging and blogs. About 20 bloggers from Chennai are participating in this blog tag where  we will write about our favourite city Chennai and how it stands as a testament to the blend of the traditional and the modern. So here's my post for the CBC tablog - 3 titled, Chennai - A concoction of the traditional and the modern.'

Writing about a place that nestled me for many years of my life from a distance seems a bit excruciating. A post on the blend of the traditional and modern nonetheless. It seems almost an impossible task for me to gather the different parts  picked from memory and desire and knead them into a post. Well, I do hope that as I chug along, I am able to relive myself in the memories that I nit pick and weave them into a worthy concoction.

First, Chennai - though the name is fairly recent but ancient does not capture the essence of the place that is so dear to me. And like the name Chennai, which is at once ancient and recent, the place also displays similar hues - housing traditional tastes, smells, customs albeit packaged in brightly coloured modern wrappers which shock you at first but later settles in familiar smiles. I think every city undergoes a change, rather it evolves with every passing year - changing governments, citizens from neighbouring states, business houses that set up shop - everything contributes to the process in different degrees.

If French style Bistros, 10 Downing Street, Thai eateries and Tibetan momos do not come as a shock, then it is because the same crowd finds solace in familiar idli-sambar-chutney-podi at Saravana Bhavan or in the comfort of their homes. The easy and effortless slipping of beer to filter coffee to Coke, stands example to the shifts in the mind sets of the people as well as the city which houses these people.

Now this traditional and modern is quite natural in some quarters whereas a bit gaudy and uncomfortable in some but both these quarters seem to contribute the wholeness of Chennai. For me getting used to the vernacular name Chennai rather than the anglicised Madras itself was a psychological effort that needed coercing and acceptance and sitting in Goa, I see the city also in a similar way - A city that is named Chennai but has embraced modernity that is more often synonymous with aspects of the Western world without much ado. Of course, the change has not come overnight and without any bumps - We have had our fair of teething problems but we have learnt to accommodate and assimilate.

 

I pass the baton to Deepak Raghuraman, a vibrant and enthusiastic blogger who adores his Chennai and supplies readers with a mine of information on Chennai in his blog titled Namma Area. If you require any specific information about the city, then you know where to head to - Namma Area (translated as Our Area). Please do visit his blog and show some love, dear reader.

When two friends from those times came visiting

The past two days have filled me with a special flavour of joy. One doesn't use flavour in the context of joys, isn't it. But joy does have a flavour - nostalgic flavour, romantic flavour, happy flavour and so on. Well, the flavour of joy that filled me was the nostalgic types. Yes, in the span of two days, two bloggers/friends who had not paid a visit to my blog for a long time stopped by to say hello and record their thoughts.

The connection between Asif and me goes to 2009 when he used to frequent my blog and I his. We shared similar thoughts and a love for fine words. His comments were long, succinct and warm. His words filled me with joy and I would wait for his knock on my blog.

Then
          all
              of
a
   sudden

Asif stopped his visits. We did correspond over mails but even they stopped in 2011. Then wonders of wonders, I find his comment on my last post. he brought back memories of those days when traffic to my blog was heavy and comments came pouring in.

It was a joy to see Asif stop by and record his thoughts like old times.

Thanks Asif.

The second visitor is a long-distance runner whom I met over words and thoughts - Myriam Loor. We chanced upon each other's blogs and were quite regulars at each other's space. Running took her away from blogging and though she is a fantastic runner, I miss reading her blog posts which were practical, everyday instances which I could relate to. We are Facebook friends and pass by each other quite often but the intimacy we shared over our blog space was special.

Thanks Myriam for the comment. It was indeed a joy to see your name in my inbox - a reminder of earlier times.

Blogging is indeed special and it always will be!

And thus was born a Grammar Nazi . . .

Believe me, I was never someone who took exceptional care of grammar esp the apostrophe when I was jotting down in my wee journal or writing in my blog earlier. My its and yours followed their own mind and often my number and tense was havoc! I wonder how those changed. Did I become conscious after reading a few writing blogs or did Facebook's self-proclaimed grammar nazis trigger the urge to check and recheck my its and it's. No, no, it wasn't Facebook. I now remember. It was my Supervisor who drilled and coerced me in turns to refine my crude ways of writing. The rest was done by the writing blogs that I had (wisely) subscribed to while gallivanting the world of blogs and bloggers. But even then, I wasn't a grammar nazi. I was a learner who was relearning and unlearning few tricks of the trade. 

In case, I forget, I was also teaching. And while one imparts knowledge, one should be sure and right of certain things atleast, I reckon. I might not be the teacher who gets everything right but my students had to learn some fundamentals of the English language and there it became imperative that I train them in certain rules of the language and writing was one of them. I consciously started spelling out your and you're; its and it's, in my mind and double-checked whenever I wrote something on the board. Of course, writing in English is more than their and there but still these were some items which were always confusing and largely misspelt. Gradually, my writing started improving. When one's Supervisor drills plus one teaches plus one reads fantastic writing blogs plus one writes often, the end result is something good. Ah, how I did I forget to add voracious reading to the list. That too helped a lot.  And all the while, I was STILL not a grammar nazi.

Then Facebook started popping up these pictures and memes and all of a sudden, there was a gross turnover of self-proclaimed grammar nazis. Sadly, even I joined the tribe, I reckon. A was correcting status messages, S was lamenting the fact that poorly-written blogs are getting popular, D was posting grammar memes on her wall and finally here we are - A group of grammar nazis screaming loud and ranting out the fact that grammar is dying a slow but sure death. And there were few who even challenged the fact by replying 'k' and 'u' and other funny answers in response to the grammar nazi's frustrated pleas.

Facebook and blogging, along with showcasing our penchant for imagination and narrating events, also brings to light the habitual grammatical skirmishes which are often unknown to the writer him/herself thus giving a field day to the grammar nazis. And why is it that the grammar nazi is only passionate about its and it's and your and you're. Is that all that is there to grammar? Grammar is much more than misspelt words! No memes point out to awkward phrasing of words, tautological errors, long sentences, non sequitur lines and so on. There is much more than what meets the eye. But grammar nazis don't venture beyond a point. Why? Simple. No one understands the errors and thus begins the great argument - English is not my mother-tongue. If English is not your mother-tongue then why do you attempt to write in an alien language! Well, I can go on and on with this but I shall pause.

So, the conclusion: Without poor writers, a grammar nazi cannot exist. I still feel that I am not as competent a weaver of words as certain others are but I certainly take care of my you're and your when I write. This ensures that I am safe from the grammar nazi within and outside of me!

So, what say reader? Are you one of us or them?

Image 1: Internet
Image 2: Internet

An update: It takes one to spot one and one of my favourite reader/commenter Govind pointed out a glaring error in the post. I thank him for being a discerning and sharp reader. Salute boss!

Seven: Day 4 - Seven glowing stories that Blogging has given me

Every journey has a story or maybe sometimes stories and blogging is no different. The journey began in 2008 and since then there have been many wonderful stories that have made my blogging journey a treasure to cherish. I'm sure that all of you fellow bloggers also would have similar stories to share. Here are my favourite Seven.

1. Two bloggers who reached out from the virtual into the personal realm and have shared my agonies and accolades. I am yet to meet them but I already feel that I have known them forever. Aswathi and Corinne, thanks for being there.

2. They could have just gone without meeting me but they made it a point to call me and arrange a meeting even if it was for a brief time. I was happy to see the faces behind the names, comments and words. Janaki, Rachna and Sameera - words cannot express how wonderful it was meeting you for the first time. Talking of meeting bloggers, I was following the blog of a blogger based in Belfast and I did meet him when we went to Belfast, N. Ireland and before I left, he presented two beautiful books to me out of which one is about Seamus Heaney, the poet who recently passed on.

3. Some comment just to show that they were there in the blog, some comments say a hello but some are succinct and a blog post by themselves. Steveroni, Zuzana, Nevine and Dawn Sievers - how fortunate I am to read your words in my blog. Maybe you aren't as regular as you used to be but I fondly cherish those beautiful comments.

4. You followed my posts, fell in love with them and simultaneously fell in love with me as well. I cannot mention your name here but I did value your comments and ideas.

5. We started with blogs and carried on with hand-written letters. I treasure your words on the blog as well as on the lovely letters. Karishma, Aswathi, Brian, Prashanth, Sowmya, Aarti, Gitanjali, Bragadeesh, Sruti -- what beautiful stories you have sent me to be preserved. Thanks.
 

6. Once I was working on an academic paper, this was in 2009 when I was few months into blogging. I was working on some translated poems and the translation was done by a poet named Nirupama Dutt. Shortly after, I see a comment on my blog, from none other than Nirupama Dutt. After that comment, we corresponded through emails. Since it was my early days in the blog world, this incident excited me.

7. Once someone from a distant land wrote to me about the uncanny similarities between that individual's life and my posts. That note sent shivers through my spine because I couldn't imagine someone's life bearing similarities to my posts. That person wrote to me on the first day of the brand new year of 2013. Stories such as this one warm me but at the same time amuse and surprise me.


What are some of your blogging stories. Care to share?

I am participating in Write Tribe's Festival of Words from 1st to 7th September where nearly 82 bloggers are writing on the theme of Seven for Seven days - a post a day! Today is Day 4.

A day in the life of a comment-hungry lazy blogger

Well, this post has been on my mind for some time but the urgency to post something like this was egged on by a visit to a recent blog which I came across in a recent blogger friend's blogroll. So here, goes the post.

Let's call the comment-hungry lazy blogger Narnia.

Narnia logs in after coming to her work-spot and the first thing that she does is open the dashboard of her blog simultaneously thinking, So many blogposts and so less time. Let me shoot!

The first blog she opens is a poetry blog. Narnia thinks to herself, "Ah, everyone is a poet these days and I can't imagine reading through this poem no matter how short it is." She hits the comment icon and writes, 'Good poem.' and moves on to the next blog.

The next blog is a photo-blog. Narnia with a sly smile, does not bother to appreciate the picture but hits the comment icon and keys in, 'Nice photo.' Narnia sits smug thinking that the owner of the photo-blog will return to her blog following her link and reward her with a comment. Some back-scratching for my popularity won't hurt anyone ;)

A prose writer's blog is the next one that Narnia stops by. Here she has one look at the long prose rendition and thinks, "Let me read the comments and then write a comment. That will save me some time from reading that loooong post. I wonder why people write such long posts and think that they should receive comments." She reads just three comments from the twenty and types her comment, 'Good read (and a summary from the three comments)."

The next blog is also a prose one which has reflections as part of the title and Narnia wonders, "Reflections, Musings, Thoughts, Pondering . . . I think all these literature students can just not get wacky titles and end up saying heavy stereotypical words like reflections. Well, . . .." This time Narnia adopts another strategy while commenting -- She reads the first paragraph and the last one and keys in her comment.

Narnia is happy that she has managed to satisfy and ego-boost the bloggers whose blogs she follows and finally sets to write her own post. After completing her post and giving it appropriate labels, she hits the publish button and starts her regular office-work. But every two minutes, she checks and rechecks her blog for comments and is pretty restless when the comments don't come. Finally, after checking the post for the seventh time, she finds the message, "New comment on  . . ." Narnia happily clicks on the comment that is waiting to be moderated. She finds the comment and it says, 'Good post.' Narnia is angry, and on the verge of spewing expletives. She mutters to herself, "Why do people write comments as these. I wish people like this never stop by my blog. Then, on a whim, she adds, at least people are reading what I write." Narnia waits for the comments to come one-by-one.

This post is sure a funny one and to be honest, I have not come across any reader like this. They may or may not exist but I am sure that sometimes time and passion don't always fuse to give a wonderful blogging experience.

What say, dear readers?

Image: Internet

Meanderings . . .

Given the large number of followers on my blog, I find it quite mind-boggling to keep track of every single subscriber. Hence, I decided to tweak some of my widgets and now I can actually see the number of subscribers to the Meanderings. This also means that I will receive notification of those who unsubscribe. Last week, I received a notification of a blogger unsubscribing from the Meanderings. I felt a tug. I wondered how could anyone unsubscribe from my blog!?! I utterly discarded the notion that the content of my blog could become monotonous, mundane and a shadow of my former posts. As a blogger, one gets quite visceral with the blog. I failed to stand outside of the blog's space and assess the content that is being hashed out at regular intervals. I wonder if this happens to everyone else.

Given the personal tag of this blog, it becomes imperative to the point of blindness that one does not feel the need to stop and examine what is being written. Sometimes, the label, 'personal,' gives the blogger freedom to express her thoughts, comments, observations and criticisms without stopping to wonder and ponder. At the threshold of entering my fourth year of blogging, I decided that I should stop and ask my readers to honestly assess and offer criticisms about this blog and its content. I mention, 'honest' because I know that many of you will be very sweet to me and sugar-coat your thoughts. You can be quite brutal in your comments about the content. I seem to ask for an outsider's perspective as I am quite partial and emotional in judging my blog and its content.

So, please go on and state what strikes you.

Image: Internet

When the favourite commenter goes missing

An invisible bond is forged between a blogger and her/his commenter. When a commenter consistently comments on successive posts and is passionalte about writing what she/he feels after reading a post, there is an organic thread that unites thoughts and observations of the blogger and commenter. From the time I began my journey as a blogger, there have been many such commenters who have forged a strong connectivity with me through my posts.

But the fact is that every commenter has his/her own time in a blog. Some are there for a year, some for six months, some on and off and some only for a month or so. Whatever the duration, after commenting regularly for about a month or so, I unconsciously start looking forward to that regular commenter. It somehow seems my post is incomplete without that commenter's comment on my post. During the initial years of my blogging, I tended to crave . . . literally crave for the regular commenter's comments. I would even get a bit restless if I found that the regular commenter hasn't commented. I wait patiently till the commenter comes along and only after that I would proceed to do another post. I am still like that but have toned down immsensely.

I guess the regular commenter is not the one who just passes by leaving a mundane, 'good post' comment. The regular commenters who I wait for are the ones who comment with their soul. They are passionate about what they feel and their comments reverbrate that intensity. Such commenters also make me raise my standards of commenting. I should say that a comment is definitely something that lights one up and gives a purpose for blogging.

All seems fine until  the day the regular commenter stops commenting. I just cannot imagine why the commenter stops visiting. The reasons for the commenter to leave are many. This is the time when I say to myself: Don't get emotional over commenters. But why shouldn't I? I am emotionally connected to my blog and why not to the readers/commenters? But experience tells me that commenters come and go and I should not get touchy with the commenting part of blogging. The bond that I develop with the regular and intelligent commenter sometimes even goes beyond the space of blogging. I have exchanged emails, chats and stories with those commenters.

Now, this post is a tribute to all those regular commenters who were an active part of my blog in the timeline of my blogging. I miss them and continue to think of them when I write my soulful posts and also when I write soulfully. In the present time, I raise a toast to my present bunch of regular commenters . . . I shall enjoy your presence and comments till it lasts.

Image: Internet

Why do you blog about trivial things?

The title of this post is a question that is posed many times to me and I've come to a stage where I no longer choose to answer in words . . .  I smile and leave. Many friends and even my husband have posed this question to me about my blog: Why on earth do you write about trivial things? Why don't you write about academic and social issues. Blah. Why should I write about 'serious' stuff, I sometimes shoot back? Why not trivial stuff? I agree that I am a poor analyser of the political scenario in order to write a commentary on that. Poems??? I am not a poet. There are many many people who can write on one single topic in all their blog posts. I know many friends who do so but I cannot string words into verse. I love words but I cannot bring myself to compose a verse. I have tried doing so and I feel that I am not for it. Of course, I have attempted short fiction. Two posts only, titled Inside-out and Dream-stealer but that's all about it. No more.

My friend says, "You can write academic posts!" But for whom do I write "academic" posts? All my readers are not academicians. Well, if I do want to write an "academic" post, I would write the same in a peer-reviewed journal. Why do I need a blog space for that? How about Indo-Pakistan political issues, asks another dear friend. Well, well, who am I to sound off on that? I am aware of some of the issues that involve India and Pakistan but I guess those issues are familiar to any average paper-reading person. And, why should everyone be interested in Indo-Pak issues. I avoid blog posts which dissect politics, stock-markets and cricket.

My penchant lies in talking about everyday stuff that normally goes unnoticed and unspoken. My audience is not limited to any one set of people, I think. Academicians, passionate cricket junkies and even a twelfth grader can relate to the things I say. Does that mean I write for an audience. Let me be honest. When I started, I had no clue about audience or traffic but now I am aware. I know that if I post this, x and y will respond. I write what I like but at the back of my mind, I also know that these kind of people will relate to what I am saying. Take for example the post on fart. It has no divide based on caste, colour, gender, language and race. Everyone farts. Some do it silently, some loud. Some accept it as normal and some cringe at the thought of doing it in public. No matter what, everyone farts. Right? Trivial things make everyday life. Political issues don't make life. They may be for some souls but not me.

So I write to glorify the trivial in my everyday life and the topics I write about are common to everyone. Period.

Well, has anyone questioned the subject of your blog/s? How do you defend your writing? And, finally, what thoughts do you have on the contents in my blog space.

Image 1: Internet
Image 2: Internet

Gender appeal and blogging

I have often wondered whether the gender matters while one chooses to follow/read a blog. For me, it has not been so but sometimes I do think that seeing a pretty/handsome face in the wee About me space makes the blog content more appealing. I certainly think that for some individuals, gender appeal certainly exists while blog-surfing. I can even say that following a particular girl's/guy's blog is the new form of virtual flirting.

Now what makes me think so, you wonder. I have seen many of my cousins' blogs where the content is not something which I can write home about but the followers . . . uhmmm. I could see all the guys who were flirting with her follow her blog. And my cousin is in her early 20s. Well, I thought it was only young people who were so but I have also seen many young men/women who flock to the blogs where there are cute profile pictures. Whether the pictures are fake or not, I don't know.

Blogs also pave way for getting to know a prospective partner, maybe. By becoming a follower, one can assess the content of the blog and hence the personality of the writer. One should know that these people who follow blogs using the gender appeal mode seldom read the entire posts; they are quite happy reading the titles and hence assuming what the content would be and also the writer.

For those who thought blogging was something for the closet writer to find a page, well, you have to look around. Blogging and following has many strings attached. I hope one does not get tangled.

On that note, if you have a funny bone, check out the website genderanalyzer.com to find out if a blog is written by a man or a woman.

Gender appeal, anyone?

Image: Internet

A worthwhile journey this far

It has been quite a journey and how! This day, the 12th of October, 2008, my first post titled Coversations while traversing on a rainy day in an auto was written. That day I just knew that I had to write down my experience of that travel and the platform provided by Blogger seemed ideal. I didn't even know about comments, followers, templates and other things. I just chose a name for this corner and typed in my first post and hit the 'Publish' button. The thought that people would read a post by me did not enter my mind. I imagined that this wee place would be the one where I would record my insignificant observations and personal reflections.

After I wrote the first post, I didn't even check my blog. I had forgotten all about it until November, when something painful happened. I wanted to escape the pain. I wanted to divert myself. I wrote . . . and wrote. I never looked back. Blogging has come to mean many many things now than the first time I wrote that post on a rainy day. That post was published in the morning at 07. 09 am. I wonder how I got to writing something that early in the day. And that post received only two comments :)

The journey has been wonderful this far. To all my followers, commenters, blogger-friends and anonymous readers: THANKS. You have been the best part of this endeavour.

Image 1: Internet

SLR clicks, stale jokes, a big TATA Grande and lots of bloggers

For the second time, I bravely attended a bloggers meet alone. The last time, I attended one organised by Indibloggers, I met some good bloggers with whom I am still connected via blogs. This time the meet was at The Hyatt Regency and Tata Grande sponsored the event.

Though less apprehensive than the last time, I put up a bold front as I was a 'veteran' blogger and one blogger meet old. I slowly walked in and registered myself and got a stamp on my wrist which confirmed my registration. Picking up a tall glass of juice, I scanned the room for familiar faces. I was disappointed as I could not spot any (either no one from the last meet had come or I had forgotten faces). I settled beside an animated group and after few awkward moments of silence, I barged in: "Can I also join you guys?" I was warmly added to the group and then on I began non-stop . . .

All the while we were in that ball room of Hyatt, someone or the other was clicking pictures, either in posh SLRs, or digical camera or through mobile phone cameras. For once, I did not mind the flashes though making myself unconsiously ready for the angles.

Some bloggers were given 49 seconds of fame which allowed individuals to talk of ther blogs and other things. The Tata Grande people were also there to promote and sell their 'grand' SUV. Well, people were given test rides and so on before the actual meet took place.

After some time, I did spot few familiar faces and I was genuinely glad. It was wonderful reconnecting with Websnacker, Srivalli and others. In both the meets, I met a blogger who maintained 49 blogs!!! Can you beat that? I was astonished at his ability to prioritise time for all his blogs.

The food was sumptuous comprising of blueberry tart, chicken roll, potato croquette, chocolate . . . (I don't remember what it was. Maybe a pudding or a cake!) and tea/coffee. I met some more bloggers over food and chatted about their blogs and interests.

The clicking and flashing of SLRs were still going on. I bet I am there in many photographer's pictures (I hope that people do trace me and send the photographs).

Like last year, we were all given free T shirts. This time it was a grey one unlike the last time which was black. And, again like last time, I walked out with a lone kid who was working at Amazon in the books section.

I came alone and went home alone, just like last time. I guess this would be the norm for me.

Squeezing the creative juices but forgetting the filter

Writing blog posts has somehow become quite addictive. I see it as a means to squeeze my mind and force the thoughts to spill over as posts. But I come to realize that this exercise sometimes takes a toll on me. I find myself questioning the minutest things so that I come up with a curious post. There are days when the post presents itself to me that I cannot but sit and have to record them down. But sometimes these posts don’t arrive and knock at my door. On days when the posts don’t arrive, I am left with an urge to write but cannot do so as I find nothing interesting to me. On days like that, I am left staring at almost every plausible thing and wondering if ‘this’ could be the victim for my post.

Many writing gurus always remark, “Write something every day.” But what does one do when one cannot write anything. It is during those dry spells that I try to squeeze and extract the remains from something which has already been squeezed dry. Since there is nothing much to squeeze, the filter is discarded. As a result of the discarded filter, the posts don’t seem satisfying. 

Blogging saved me from a terrible patch in life (when I started out) and I’m glad that it is a worthwhile addiction but I also cannot disagree that everything has to be prioritized. Well, well, don’t get ideas that I’m taking a break or quitting blogging. This is a frank declaration of a passionate blogger.

Or perhaps, I forgot the filter when I wrote this post :)

What say?

Image: Internet

Sojourning in god's own country and other things

It has been a long time since I ventured here. Among the many things that I did during this long break, one was getting married. Getting married has landed me for the time being in a state in South India known as Kerala, which is called as "God's own country." The slogan that has been used by almost everyone to describe this state is not without reason. The whole state seems to be one grand village such that one cannot actually draw a boundary between the rural and the urban. Covered with coconut trees and rubber plantations, this place is a perfect getaway for the urban citizen. I am not here to describe the state of Kerala. Google can do that for you. I am here to describe my sojourn in the place.

Getting married also gives one a passport to many luncheons and dinners hosted by kind relatives. Since I am relatively new to the place, I am given many smiles accompanied by hugs and wet kisses. I'm not complaining. Getting married in India is after all marrying large families. A repetition of food items has now become my greatest nightmare.

The abundance of green cover and sweet water makes the place a sought after one by tourists. The houses are palatial with lovely wood furniture and door frames but they are empty of people. The houses have spaces but the sound of chatter is not there as the children and grand children are away in foreign shores. They come down once a year. Most of the houses we visited had only aged parents with children living ten thousand miles away.

A thousand thoughts mated and spawned a trillion blogposts in the crevices of my mind. I did not write them down as I believe that the thoughts which remain will be written as a post. Since the place was new, my mind was teeming with ideas and observations. I hope to share some of them here in the forthcoming days.

All said and done, I MISSED interacting with you. I should have written a note of absence but I did not. My apologies. I look forward to catching up with your recent posts and bang! commenting also shall begin. Hope you have been well and happy.

Joy always :)

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The unique language and world of bloggers

Listening me talk the other day, my non-blogger friend was just amazed with disbelief. What?!?!? Your blogger friend's birthday and to say that you haven't even met him/her. Well, all I could do was give my sweetest smile and say: "You won't understand, until you're blogging." Well, today there seems to be a divide between bloggers and non-bloggers. We bloggers have created a quasi-world where our language is filled with blogs, bloggers, posts, facebook groups, etc., which the non-blogging world views with part amusement and part disbelief. The world of bloggers and blogs can be comprehended only by those who either are bloggers or sympathetic towards blogging.

The steady growth of this blogging community is almost like the real community and despite the fact that most of us haven't met or even talked, the friendship quotient is mutual and agreeable. Sharing of joys, anger, frustrations, paranoia and other feelings comes without any iota of second thought. The comfort zone from the virtual to the real world is also something that a non-blogger cannot understand. When I told my friend that one of my blogger friends called me on my birthday and we ended up chatting for one hour (which is 1 a. m. in the morning), drew loaded stares.

Hearing my tales of blogging and bloggers who are my friends, my non-blogging friend has come to terms with the fact that this is indeed a fantastic relationship where without having seen and talked to, the comfort levels are quite relaxed and happy. Blogging also has the unique power to bring in people from various parts of the world and when they get into contact, it is not them alone but also their country, culture, family and unique tales.

Leaving out one or two untoward incidents, this world has enabled me to blossom in many hitherto unknown aspects of myself. I am indebted to all my blogger buddies. You rock my world!

Now this is a rather heartfelt post which I'm sure many will also share. Do you feel the same about blogging and having blogger friends?

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Why we follow whom we follow

The "follow" button in Blogger has become the most favoured as well as despised button of the blog authors and readers. When one begins to blog, the button is looked with yearning and getting followers one by one gives a sense of unique self-esteem which inflates the ego. One feels that there are people who like the writing style and content of the blog. Well, this is just the beginning. After a considerable number of followers decorate our blog, we gradually learn that following a blog is something like the art of flitting from one blog to another, reading the most recent post, and voila! pressing the Follow button. It becomes a formality.

Recently, while going through my blog's followers, I found that many individuals follow my blog while only few are regulars. I think they base their opinion of a blog by reading the most recent post and instantly hit the Follow button, little knowing that they never will venture in the same place again. Sad. Following blogs has become more like a return gift where if one follows, the other reciprocates by following. For a very long time, I meditated and mulled over before following any blog. I had to read atleast three to four posts of that blog before I could press "Follow." Even now I do that but have lost the verve of yore.

Following has become more like a social obligation where one leaves a visiting card to everyone present. Social butterflies who are adept at hopping from parties to parties make good bloggers who follow any blog quickly but seldom take time leave comments or even visit the blogs they follow.

So, if I don't follow your blog after you have started following mine, it means that I am reading your posts and wondering whether I should Follow.

Well, these thoughts were an instant emptying of the meandering mind. Why do you follow whom you follow? Do you take time to follow a blog or you show your kindness by returning another blogger's favour and following.

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No turning back, no turning back

The title is inspired by a song sung in Sunday school which says that no matter what, I will follow Jesus and there will be no turning back. Well, many bloggers resort to the technique of "no turning back" when it comes to comments. If I make any comment on a specific site, I make it a point to visit and see if the post's author has responded to my comment. Some bloggers who receive many comments don't reply and that is perfectly understandable as their box is filled with many many comments. But as bloggers, do we actually go back and see if our comment has received any feedback or observation. Many a times, I have had wonderful insights on my comment. The author of the post would have clarified or explained something which I had inquired or asked in my comment.

Do you think that by commenting alone, we have proven that we have visited our favourite blog? Well, it does not end there. I see most comments leading to effective dialogues between two individuals. Sometimes it so happens that another commenter also adds to the conversation and thus the dialogue becomes vibrant and interactive.

To be honest, I just like reading replies to my comments and hence I make it a point to go back and check on the blogs that I have left a comment. While many of my friends have a deluge of comments and thus don't reply to individual comments, they show their appreciation and clarification by emailing me or sending a message through Facebook. How I value those mails and interaction!

Finally, by going back to the blogs we have commented, we also get to read other comments which support or negate the point we are trying to make and hence we can identify people with mindsets similar to us.

So, how do you look at the issue of "no turning back" Do you go back and check the responses to your comments or do you visit a site/blog only when you need to comment when a new post is published?

Wishing you a lovely remainder of the week.

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Imagining you . . .

This is a post I began months ago but did not return to it as I was not so inclined at that point of time. But now after much deliberation, I've decided to jot it down.

For many months now, I have been writing and receiving comments, which gives me joy and makes me reflect. As I read the comments, some make me smile, some think, some delight . . . I just can't stop thinking as to how my readers will respond as they read my posts. Now let me explain, I can imagine some of you sipping coffee and reading posts . . . gently placing the cup down and writing a comment . . . and again sipping the coffee. It gives me immense pleasure to imagine you sitting miles away (sometimes you might be closer to me in geography) and doing whatever you have been doing, and stopping to see your dashboard. Maybe your room is spacious and your computer beside a window. Or maybe your room is small and known as 'computer room.' I have thought of this over and over.

But there have also been times when I cannot savour the posts of my favourite bloggers due to lack of time. At those times, I try not to give in to temptation and  just race through the post for the sake of reading. If I cannot relish the post, I refrain from reading it as well. How we construct our own patterns and thoughts while performing a task, is always a wonder to me. Sometimes the tasks we do are very similar but by doing it in our own way, we lend it our signature.

A few months ago, imagining my readers was my favourite night-time activity, before sleep wrapped me up in her arms and gently led me away. Some of your faces I do not know but that does not stop my imagination. I know your names and so I think of a form and a blank face. The mind is simply amazing. It can contrive anything and colour it brilliantly. Now, I can go on and on about this strange meandering.

At the same time, I would like to know at what time do you like to post and read posts. What is the expression on your face while reading posts? Do you smile? Do you mumble and say, "Wow! That could have been me writing . . ." Do you imagine me as I imagine you?

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Have I told you lately . . .

You know we take a lot of things in life for granted. Take for example, saying 'Thank-You.' There are many times when we feel gratitude and warmth for something that happened to us but we seldom express it. Well, this is my 200th post. Not a very great milestone, nevertheless it makes me happy happy. I did not intend anything like this when I started this blog. Starting this blog was a very personal motive which I thought will enable me to rid my emotional baggage. But here it is, read and loved by all of you.

So, today I am expressing my gratitude to all my followers and my commenters. You have made me feel special and worthwhile. Exchanging thoughts and ideas across ether is something that I enjoy and look forward to every time I post.

And I should add that you have given me the opportunity to be part of your excellent blogs. Reading your posts, expressing my thoughts and waiting for your next post is something which is cherished and loved by me. We are all fellow travellers in this blogosphere and I must say that the journey is/will be quite eventful and nourishing with you for company.

So let's uncork the champagne and toast for US!!!

Joy always :)

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