Hiatus

Taking a break often clears our mind and we are able to think afresh.
Some psychologists not so long ago had clearly defined the several stages of problem solving strategy. Incubation and Isolation were two that clearly have stuck in my mind.
In simple words, staying in close proximity of the problem and going away from the problem can actually shed light on (often overlooked) solutions.
I was taking a break from blogging recently because for some reason I didn't have any useful or creative stuff to put out there in the world. Was kind of wierd this stagnant thought stage. It was like my creativity was snubbed in the face and it's livelihood strangled by the growing pressure of quality writing that I wanted myself to do.
What i was aiming at was hibernation but prolonged hibernation suddenly started to seem like hiatus. Hiatus from what? From expression? From thinking? But most importantly from being aware and from being awake. Sometimes if I stretched it enough i could even say it was a hiatus from life.
Well so although I do not have much to say, what i wish to convey through these paragraphs of wisdom is what I think is our most common mistake. Although we feel we are not creative or we are not effective enough sometimes, i wonder if it is important to just keep the energies flowing. Some neutral energy won't hurt anyone right? It keeps the practice up and also doesn't let your brain rust. It kind of keeps the engines running. Otherwise in these sub zero temperatures of society, it is very easy to let them rust or freeze ............................

The Traffic Light

The traffic light stands still
the moonlight yet so dull
night spreads it's wings
the dust settles down
droplets of rain rustle on the window
cars screeching
brakes.

fingers tender drumming on the wheel
running one hand through silken tresses
caressing eyes on the rear view mirror
flooded bright lights

speed up
push the pedal
giving gas, engine thrusts power
buzzing by like the wind, wheezes away the wagen
along wet lanes, alone the stars shine far above

Alas, a color determined it all...........

a comment

I say: Ice melts in it's own water and that is it's destiny but it doesn't know it yet!

He says: Water is clearer than ice, atleast to the eye. water flows. water can be as cold as ice and yet way warmer. water does not break, it forks. ice preserves death, water breeds life. ice grows up to become water. but it doesn't know it. (s.a.)

thought it was interesting.......

Cruelty comes in white and blue.........

It's - 22 degrees celsius and dropping.................. It's inhumane, torturous and unfair.......
But eh....who cares?

A thought

Ice melts in it's own water and that is it's destiny but it doesn't know it yet!

Oh what a soot!

Walk into a coal mine. say nothing but dream soars,

Dish out all the diamonds , say they all are yours,

and then when the coal mine is all black and void

leave with a beaming face ....say oh what a waste

the darn coal mine grew boring after time,

no more diamonds to my mercy ,

little cherished but oh so fine.

It's all the coal mine's fault that it could bear no more.

Nothing more to give , an empty hollow

But the coal that burned and burned till it could burn no more ,

could give more warmth to the heart than the sparkle of the diamond galore' !

Checkmate

Ever wondered if there is someone up there in the heavens trying to frame and shape our destiny, our future according to his / her plan. I believe in being gender neutral in this aspect though I would rather characterize the Creator as a he. It makes it easier to believe when you see horrible things happening. Ruthless decisions being made about soemone’s life unlike the caring, loving image that ‘womanly’decisions are usually expected to paint.
The chess board is set. The pawns are in place. The king, the queen and the rookie. All in place. Waiting anxiously to play their part. None of them knows which one is going to win the game, which one is going to fall down, succumb to wishes of some hand that rules every move it makes and none of them have a clue why they are doing what they are and how it is affecting someone else after they themseleves are ousted or thrown out of the picture.
And yet each time, yes every single time that someone up there says checkmate we blame ourselves, we are shocked, surprised, angry or just simply helpless since we could not anticipate it.........Wonderfully amusing isn’t it?

Sealed lips

A not so while ago one of my friends and I were talking about TALKING and my friend had said to me, well I really don't like to talk on the phone with people. I would get irritated and wouldn't want to believe people like my friend and many others of that type who wouldn't want to communicate using Bell's invention.Or infact I would find it darn annonying and unbelievably haughty behavior when given this excuse that I do not like talking on the phone. Yes quite irrational as this is, it's true. Expectation that the world is just like you are, is a myth and the sooner it breaks the better would be your livelihood.

Recently though, I began to think whether we all are slowly but surely getting addicted to this useful but time consuming instrument called the phone.However soon the tides of change have brought in a new perspective to the act of communication. Well so my friend if you are reading this, I know now what pleasure therein lies when one resorts to a phone free quiet life.

Dialogues within one's brain , solitude and sealed lips that give you freedom from social norms. Freedom from fake ettiquettes and small talk. Freedom from masking and freedom from being lonely in a crowd. Freedom from being misunderstood, Freedom from being misquoted. Freedom from all things untrue and freedom from being laughed at and ridiculed. Freedom from being overestimated and freedom from being bound by anything unintelligible, least of all freedom from being blamed and freedom from being pitied.
I no longer feel the need to be connected. The need to express verbally. The need to talk......

I tried so hard

And got so far

But in the end

It doesn't even matter

I had to fall

To lose it all

But in the end

It doesn't even matter

----Linkin Park

life's like an elliptical machine

Life is indeed like an elliptical machine.
When you are almost worn out, burning deep inside and cannot take a single stride
You are getting the most out of what you are doing...................

Upwardbound

Wings

unleash

Depth

fathom

Faith

spread

Freedom

embrace

Dreams

untold

Hope

unwound

Joy

unbound

Tears

indeed

Laughter

much

Love

more

Live

most.

De Rabeet Sawng

Hippoty hop Hippoty hop goes the rabbit a plop
Trudging along, singing a song, meddling long

Alice from wonderland, stops by and says her Hi
The rabbit is least aware, million things running her little rabbit land
Bags on shoulder a ton heavy and how they wonder
Buses and trains missed a number

Hippoty hop Hippoty hop goes the rabbit a plop
Trudging along, singing a song, meddling long so long

Well read and polished and so darn learned.
Everyone succumbs to stupidity but rabbit discerns
Cleverly gnawing her way through
The rabbit shows how 4 is nothing but a simple 2 + 2

Hippoty hop Hippoty hop goes the rabbit a plop
Trudging along, singing a song, meddling long so long

Rabbit falls in love one fine day and
The winds of change seem certain
Rabbit however sticks by the old and let’s in the new
So hard to find this quality to come by

Hippoty hop Hippoty hop goes the rabbit a plop
Trudging along, singing a song, meddling long so long

Dearest rabbit, a sweetheart, a friend to live for or die
Let the smile stay so long as the stars shine upon this earth
How your eyes twinkle and shine and tensed is every nerve
May thy true love bring you what you deserve

Truth of Life

Life often doesn't give you too many choices and
when it does give you choices....it takes away the right to choose.

Oft heard

When you hear something over and over again, either you learn it without understanding it's meaning(Rote learning) or you simply ignore it (noise) however some statements that we hear often just put a smile on your face.......yes a smile that means something yet nothing. A smile that aknowledges a lie and reminds of your own true self. A smile that tells you how far can your patience let this last. So here are those few smile evoking responses...excuses/advices/ just lame ideas..............

• I am so sorry , I have been a bad friend. But I have just been so busy you know. Life is just crazy right now.
• So what is wrong with you?
• See it's the same with everyone. Nobody is happy. Everyone doesn't know what to do in their future.
• Oh did you need to shower early? I totally forgot............
• Oh were you sleeping? Did I wake you up with my noise ?
• So do you miss home?
• You have no clue how hard it is to live alone.
• So what's the big deal? It is just $ 40.00
• Don't think so much .You think too much.
• So when are you graduating? What are your plans after graduation? Are there any job prospects?
• You should get married ! You should find someone !
• Arre you are like my buddy...........
• What? you haven't done that X thing yet? When are you going to finish it? I don't think you are ever going to finish it.
• So you are studying Cognitive Psychology? I don't understand a thing about that! So do you deal with mental patients and stuff ? I mean what is that called Schizophrenics....
• It's so cold here...it's like close to 50 degrees (fahrenheit of course)...typically people from Texas / California / Florida
• What are you doing for dinner tonight? Are you cooking something? Cook something! You never cook these days!
• Oh we are just going to hang out today....Have some beers and chill........What movie / play and all........forget it re..you all just come by my apartment and all of us can just relax.......
• Indian systems are really a mess. But nobody can do anything about it. I mean it's just useless to even try with such a huge population and so much poverty.......
• Hinduism is the best religion.
• God knows what all you write in your blog/ why you wrote that particular post. Where do you think of all that stuff from? You think too much!

TNETNOCSID

Potential of a blank canvas is so hard to fathom
Painting a perfect picture there on requires immeasurable skill
And When the picture is finally done someone's remark "it couldn't have been better !"

ACHIEVEMENT !

But the heart yearns for more as always..........................

celebrations...........

AND finally the first birthday

hopefully many more to come.........To the readers of goblin times.....A big big thank you...it's been awesome to have completed one year in this blogger world.....

The heart hardly has words to express this joy ..........

Two to tango or two to Waltz?

Does it take two people to maintain a harmonious relationship?
Is it so hard to maintain a balance when one is putting in more effort than the other. Is it fair or not is a different question altogether but what pertains is ....Is this strained relationship actually a relationship or is it a forceful communion of two people who do not have the same goals anymore or perhaps developed differences that they had not envisaged ever before.

So like things fall into place when both take equal measures to maintain equilibrium, similarly both are equally responsible for whatever ruins the equilibrium.

If one has been aggressive then probably the other was so non responsive that they wouldn't go on with the same waltzing life that they initially were so comfortable with.

Whatever the reason may be if one withdraws then may be the other should wait and watch. May be the other should not step forward or backward. For if that one move is made then judgements will be made of whether the forward was pursuit or the backward was withdrawal !!!

Thus hang on....patience is a virtue and so hard to come by. May be the best way to go about things is to wait and watch. Time will tell everything.. .Yes it will ................hopefully !

The King of hearts

Today as I did my usual routine in the cardio room at the University recreational center, the treadmill right next to me was getting squeakier by the minute and I was absolutely disgusted at the way the girl running on it wouldn't step down and run on another one.
Three minutes later a couple walked in. Well I am sure it was exactly three minutes since I was running and there when you are breathless, every minute is like eternity.
So the couple walked in side by side. Old , weary and tired. The man, an octogenerian; walked a couple of steps ahead. He was wearing a full sleeves shirt and his jacket drooped over his bent shoulders. Rugged shoes, laces barely tied and the woman probably in her late seventies or so. White well kept hair, Thick glasses, a flowery blue t-shirt and a beautiful smile on her face.
She was unsure where in the world they were or perhaps unwilling to come to this place.
Everyone in the room gave them a quick glance and stared back into void as if this much acknowledgement was fair enough.
The woman's smile had vanished and deliberation showed on her face. The man snorted, jittery joints yet calm as he was, he clasped the hand of the woman and squeezed it tightly. Eyes twinkled and they walked in further.The smile returned to her face.In just this small gesture he promised the world to be safe for his lady...........
Perhaps all this might not mean much to the world but when I observed the moment all I thought was kudos to this old man. Quite rightfully I can call him the King of hearts !!!!!
A priceless moment and a indefinable emotion.

Times of Sun en Shade

Time never seems to stand still and I wonder how it yet seems so constant.
Been a long time, precisely a year. Last year around this time something incredibly beautiful happened. I found an old friend of mine through www.orkut.com. Probably one of those social networks many people are addicted / aversive to but for me orkut was great. Got in touch with long lost friends.
It was purely coincidental that we happened to be in the same country and were able to talk.
Unexpected and absolutely different.
When you haven't met someone in a long long time it is sometimes just hard to converse. There are often more silences than words, but on the contrary with my friend it was so easy.It was like picking up the ropes from where we left off like about 9 years ago.......
We talked about anything and everything and yet nothing.
The picture I have up here is of a natural bridge. Time and erosion have caused the rock to wear away but at the same time the bond remains. The bridge is formed and it serves a purpose unknown.
Times of sadness and times of pure bliss,
Moments with humor and moods when one of us is pissed...
But nevertheless a wonderful friendship I think we will treasure...
So here's to your my dear friend........and here's to many more good times to come!


I know my friend doesn't read this blog but surely all you people out there ,who are indeed reading this post....... reach out to your old friends sometimes what seems to have been lost over time could be gained by just a moment or two.
Keep the faith!

A hand shake alright! A hug -- Taboo ??

Often times cultures clash and then you wonder why we behave the way we do. Some people stop and think if the practices they follow hold any rationale . Others do not.
According to me no practices ingrained in us (as children/ adults) by a culture are good or bad without a sound reasoning to them.

In the western world the personal space bubble is much smaller or rather narrower than in the eastern worlds.Yes population is one of the main reasons why in the eastern world people like to have more personal space. It other words they try to have more distance from others. Especially people of opposite sex. Sociological studies have indicated that in Japan and China people prefer to stop and talk based on a sound that they make when the pass by.

As a teenager I travelled to Europe and witnessed this much talked about public display of affection. Used to feel disgusted sometimes since I have been brought up in a very very traditional Indian cultural background. Girls are restricted with hundreds of dos and don'ts and guys have to stay within their limits (often the notions of limits is undefined). If you see a guy and a girl walking across the street hugging, walking hand in hand.....or anything more ....Be assured with in a week they would be getting engaged in the eyes of the public.

Who makes the society? Who creates norms ?.....We do.
So what stops us from reframing the norms or changing obselete ideals when they need to be changed?
Why do we measure love so much. We think, analyze and then act.
If we feel like hugging someone and if the person is of the opposite sex why is it such a big deal?
Why do tongues have to wag and thoughts have to race so much .That too of people unconcerned and unaffected ..................The gossipmongers

Yes and I do expect a lot of comments on this blog saying well it's not like that anymore in India most parts of the western world and so on, but believe me having travelled quite a bit and having lived in America for long enough I still sometimes get stuck in this rut of should I or should I not hug someone. And there are hundreds of people like me out there.

All I would say is follow your heart. You feel a friend needs a hug, go ahead . Give the friend a big big hug...........Nothing is more important than being honest to yourself and being true to your emotions. Least important are the chains of a society that burden you with unwanted rituals and traditions which more or less have become hurdles in human expression of emotions.

So go on .................... Live , Love , Follow your heart!