Friday, June 26, 2009

Final Inspection




For those of you with a Soldierly streak in them -- I stumbled across this recently.

THE FINAL INSPECTION

*The soldier stood and faced God,* *
Which must always come to pass.
He hoped his shoes were shining,
Just as brightly as his brass.

'Step forward now, you soldier,
How shall I deal with you ?
Have you always turned the other cheek ?
To My Church have you been true?'

The soldier squared his shoulders and said,
'No, Lord, I guess I ain't.
Because those of us who carry guns,
Can't always be a saint.

I've had to work most Sundays,
And at times my talk was tough.
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.

But, I never took a penny,
That wasn't mine to keep...
Though I worked a lot of overtime,
When the bills got just too steep.

And I never passed a cry for help,
Though at times I shook with fear..
And sometimes, God, forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.

I know I don't deserve a place,
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around,
Except to calm their fears.

If you've a place for me here, Lord,
It needn't be so grand.
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand.

There was a silence all around the throne,
Where the saints had often trod.
As the soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.

'Step forward now, you soldier,
You've borne your burdens well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell.'
*
Author Unknown~

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Fence Repair



This Sunday afternoon, with Anita and Aayush being away , Ant and me decided to fix up a broken fence in our backyard.



This is how it looked after we were done. The gaping hole you see is the one we are going to tackle next

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Celebration of Life


Yesterday I attended an event the likes of which I have never attended before. A friend's father passed away. They had the funeral and follwed that up a few days later with a afternoon event called " Celebration of Life" for the person who was no more. Instead of the natural greiving and sorrow that usually symbolozes death, this event was focused on bringing out the good life that my friends father had lead. There was a slide show playing and members of the family mingled among the guests sharing the times they had cherished with the person. Somewhere midway during the afternoon my friends mother read a letter she wrote to her husband. It was very emotional and it added the solemn touch to the evening. It was so refreshing to look at the passing away of a family member as unquestionably an unredeamable loss but also as an opportunity to celebrate the fullfilling and joyous life that had now come to an end. I had taken a ride to the event with a colleague and as I was driven back I sat in silence. Was the silence due to the refreshingly new outlook to a life that had just ended and had me dumbstruck or was it because in my own way I needed to stay the course in respectful silence?

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Archirectural Models- Aquatic Center



Every few days Antrix goes "underground" culminating in a week at Cambridge and eventually surfaces with a model. The last one he completed yesterday of an aquatic center is shown here ..



and finally the final model which got a bit "unsettled" in transportation

Monday, June 8, 2009

Fauji Kids

I got this in an email .. seemed very appropriate.

YOU KNOW YOU ARE A PURE BREED FAUJI KID IF:

1. You were born in a Military Hospital
2. Half your toddler years were spent being looked after by Bhaiyas ( no
explanation here)
3. You went to school either on Bhaiya's cycle or in a Shaktiman
4 .You know what a shaktiman is. ( No! it isnt the TV serialabout half man
and half machine starring AB lookalike)
5. Jeeps & Jongas dont excite you - they were your regular mode of
transport!
6 .The only alternative to the Central School was the Army School.
7. You always called Kendriya Vidyalaya Central School. Gosh even today
that sounds better!
8. Your entire family could survive in one room temporary quarters with
25 trunks, wooden crates, the dog, the bedroll and two bhaiyas flitting
around.
9. The smell of Brasso & shoe polish was regular staple.
10 .Mess was not what you created in your room, it was where you went
every Friday for the free "english" movie.
11 .The "English Movie" was very often a western and you couldnt follow a
word! Sometimes you just went for the samosas and the local
drink that they insisted was Cola.
12. At the end of the month your dad had to pay for many pink slips
showing how many samosas and local drinks that they insisted was
Cola you had consumed. They never missed any!!!
13. You attended many May Queen Balls before you knew what Miss India was.
14 .Your mother regularly got dressed, perfumed and dissappeared for the
Ladies Club.
15 .You knew towns like Mhow, Wellington, Deolali and Bhuj
16 You werent a millionaire but hey you had Swimming, Horse Riding,
Squash, Tennis and Golf!!
14. You thought the main reason to have a Golf Course was to have a Holi
Bash.
15. You can still take one quick look at the epaulets and figure out the
rank.
16. You discussed wednesday's Chitrahaar in the Shaktiman.
17 .You can still recall the special & particular smell of the CSD canteen!
A special prize for the correct concoction - mine is - it was a mix of
Hamam Soap, Ponds Dreamflower Talc & Surf i think. In some corners it had
overtures of Brooke Bond red Label as well.
18. Your vacations were a package deal consisting of D-forms, Sharma Uncle
Ka jonga and Army Mess ka kamra.

Sunday, June 7, 2009

Aayush made it for kayaking today



As usual Aayush is photo shy but I managed this pic




While Aay went out to the lake I paddled lazily up the Credit river and snapped up some dream properties on the riverline



and while I clicked away I was surprised at how easily this rower powered through the water with such ease..




..another property that I liked but my batteries ran out before I could get the pic I wanted. You can see the blue tip of my kayak in the picture.

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Sunshine + blue skies + right temp = Kayaking



With Anita at work, Ant & Aay not able to make it, I headed out to the lake. The water was a bit muddy but the water front activity was in full swing. It is the first week of Jun so it was not surprising at all. Rowers, kayakers, anglers and just a lot of people on the water front confirms the summer is in and everyone is making the most of every minute of sunshine.

... but on the other side of the world.. its a different story. My mother called this morning and told us how hot it was in Lucknow. This planet is so small when viewed from outer space but on this planet the climate varies so much that life styles have given rise to cultures that make this world so different. View this from a point on this earth and it is not difficult to imagine but if you were an astronaut on board the space shuttle -- it gives you a different perspective.

Friday, June 5, 2009

... and it crashed once again..

What is Dell producing now a days ????