THE VOICE OF HONESTY

"I DID NOT DO IT!!" he said, loudly, his voice defiant and vehiment.

 

An honest government official, accused of taking a bribe.

 

As the entire office looks on. A few shocked faces. A few sad. A few perturbed and not knowing what to do. A few knowing smiles.

 

An enquiry. All evidence perfectly set up.

 

"I did not do it." He strongly stated.

 

As he sat waiting, A man walks in. An offer. "Accept our terms and stay. Defy us and be prosecuted."

 

"I did not do it." he said, angry and offended.

 

A phone call. A senior official, in service for more than 30 years.

 

"I dont know how many times I have to tell you this. I am telling you this out of my experience. Both the government and the people need more officals like you. But you can do more good being on the job than being suspended and put on perennial enquiry. Be smart and patient. With a higher post comes more authority. I am sending your transfer order. Its upto you to render yourself useless or make a difference long term."

 

"I did not do it." he whispered and sobbed. "I know"..said his wife as she packed for their third move this year.

 

 

This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda

THE SLUDGE : A NANO BLUNDER part 2

To read part 1check out : http://abitofthisandtat.blogspot.it/2013/10/a-nano-blunder.html?m=1

The waves splash on the hull of the ships as they move slowly alongside the sludge. Splash....swish..splssh.

Within the ship....everyone sat in silence. They had been there for almost 12 hours now. They were watching videos made of the sludge...click click...the remote went in the hands of Tara Craft, historian and explorer. 

She looked around at the others in the room. Captain Kirk of the army was going tap tap tap on the table impatiently with his pen. Drag pitt, youngest in the room, PhD in astro physics. .was Slurrp..drinking coffee. Jack Clover, FBI; Sigmund Droid, psychologist;  Fleur de la mour, oceanographer; Arya bhattacharya, mathematician and astronomer; who was currently pouring over lots of printouts...

And finally....whats his name..  hmmm...never mentioned...a swami...hmmmm.....who sits and keeps praying.  God knows why the government brought him here.

The other ship had another set of scientists. They had not met them yet.

They sit and watch the videos together in silence.  click...

Video 1 : the sludge moves slowly on the surface of the water. 

Evidently weightless

Click...next video: a school of fish get curious. Glop...glop..the fish disintegrate. 

It obviously destroys any living creature it touches. But the size of the sludge remains the same.

Click...next video...an underwater camera is sent to check under the sludge. The camera shows a black mass and then...crack...pop...fizzle...camera destroyed.

It destroys anything in its path. 

Click..next ...a soldier trying to get a sample of the sludge from a helicopter. They get close enough and use a cast iron vessel to get a sample.  crack...fizzle and the vessel is gone. In the process few specs of the sludge fall on the soldiers hand. He lets out a blood curdling scream as the sludge slowly eats him alive. He falls into the sludge....glop.. ..glop.. .and not a trace of the soldier is left.

There is a shocked silence in the room.

"I lost a man"..yelled captain Kirk.

"I still say the only way to destroy it is to bomb it!!! Can't you people understand. It can reach the shores of any  country. It can destroy the world."

Whirrr....more printouts...

" Fair enough...but if you bomb it and it scatters, it just spreads out more. We have to contain it. Question is how do you contain something that destroys everything", said Tara.

Slurrp..." A stronger metal...how about tungsten. .?" Drag pitt finally looked up from his coffee and spoke.

Hummmm....the swami continued to pray.

As everyone got involved in a heated discussion, Kirk picks up the radio gives some orders.

Suddenly they all hear a Whooosh of a plane above them and then BOOM!!! Whoooosh...Splaasssh!!!

They watched in shock as the sludge scattered on the ship closer to it...it slowly begins to disintegrate. 

The other one moves to a safe distance before it can offer any help.

Scream.... crack... splash...Woooo.. wooo..the alarm sounds..ABANDON SHIP!!!!

To be continued....
 

This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda

M*A*S*H - mobile army surgical hospital

KABAAALM...BLAST!!!! Exploded the shells...

As the doctors sat in the mess temt they hear the PA system come to life. Crackle...crackle...incoming wounded...report to OR...I repeat...report to OR STAT!!!!

They all rush out... Vroooom...Screech.. The ambulances sped in and braked.

The OR was in full swing. Two  doctors worked on triage, outside prioritising who goes for surgery first based on how bad they are wounded.

Aaaah....owww...groaned the wounded. Nurses and orderlies ran around helping them give first aid and moving the wounded.

Clank clink clank...went the surgical instruments. Pitter patter of feet as wounded were moved in and out of the OR. There were 4 tables side by side in one tent that was the OR.

Shuffle. ..push. ..swish...as the nurses and orderlies replaced and changed sheets, bandages, gloves, instruments...as more and more fresh wounded were brought in.

BAAAM!! Another one...this one seemed closer. The tent shook and then stood still. Everyone looked up for a second while they covered up the patients on the table to prevent debris from falling on them, then back to work.

After almost 12 hours of surgery they all sat at the mess tent, exhausted.  The company clerk was filling out details of the wounded with the help of the chief surgeon.

Over 250 wounded, 10 casualties,  2 amputations, one spinal injury, 1 had shrapnel in his eyes,  2 lost their hearing in the blast, one lost his sanity. 

The injured, once better were sent back to the front.

The remaining,  obviously unfit to fight, were discharged from the army with a medal to remember. 

Thump..thump..thump...the surgeon banged his fist on the table. Each one of the wounded are brothers, husbands, fathers and sons. 

Casualties include not only soldiers but civilians too....there is absolutely no regard for human life.The pain. The suffering. 

The futility of war.

The Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH) refers to a United States Army medical unit serving as a fully functional hospital in a combat area of operations. The units were first established in August 1945, and were deployed during the Korean War and later conflicts.

It was an alternative to the system of portable surgical hospitals, field hospitals, and general hospitals used during World War II. It was designed to get experienced personnel closer to the front, so that the wounded could be treated sooner and with greater success.Casualties were first

treated at the point of injury through buddy aid, then routed through Battalion Aid Stations for emergency stabilizing surgery, and finally routed to the MASH for the most extensive treatment. This proved to be highly successful; during the Korean War, a seriously wounded soldier who made it to a MASH unit alive had a greater than 97% chance of survival. 

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_Army_Surgical_Hospital

This post is a part of Write Over the Weekendhttp://blog.blogadda.com/2013/10/11/wow-sound-expressions-love-of-writing, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda

THE 'T' FACTOR

She said "Sani", he mistook it to be "money"..a few years back...

His name was called. My friend and I walked in. The smell of inscence sticks and 'malli poo'(jasmine flowers) filled the air. Traditional straw mats covered the floor. One wall was filled with pictures of various gods and goddesses, each one adorned jasmine garlands. On either side hung traditional lamps lit in ghee. The cool breeze from the air conditioning hit us before turning away again.

In the center of the room sat the person we came to meet. We had to wait almost a month to get her appointment. Her clientile included VIP's from various fields be it politics or cinema. She sat cross legged on a mat on the floor in front of all the pictures. I whispered to my friend. "Why is she sitting with her back facing all the pictures?". He replied in hushed tones, "She has to face the east and so does all the pictures of the gods, now shut up and sit".

She sat with her eyes closed. Her assistant who sat on her left  signalled us to be patient. In front of her lay his horoscope. I sat thinking..why was he here? Aaah...bad times, to determine the 'T'(time) factor in his life. His career was at an all time low. A home loan(2 including a vacant land), A car loan, Jewellery loan, Credit card payments, insurance payments, a strained marriage, education of two kids, old parents who need medical attention ....sound's like everybody's problem? well, he thinks his problems are the worst!!! He had to take a loan just to pay for her appointment!!

He was told not to ask any questions and quietly listen to what she says. She will say it only once. She suddenly opened her eyes and looked at him..and said "My son, I can understand your concerns"

"Sani(saturn) is in the 4th house for sometime"

"The house of the mother and comfort,
Problems with friends, in sale of land,
In job, seperation from family, in health of parents,
In moving abroad and money is in demand."

"In a year's time, Guru(Jupiter) graces you,
The house of job, career and work,
On the 10th house, he casts his looks,
At times of trouble, an additional perk."

She paused, and then continued :

"You need to appease the gods,
Pray and light a lamp of black seseme seeds,
Every saturday at the temple,
In front of lord shani, your troubles till he heeds."

"Feed crows, the vehicle of his,"

The damn phone rang...RRRIIIING!!!

"Help the handicapped, donate money,"

He fumbled to find his phone...

"He will surely grace you,"

WHERE IS THAT BUTTON!!!

"Such is the greatness of lord Sani."

He looked up.

She was done. We were asked to leave. He was almost in tears. "Can you believe it!!, i forgot to put my phone on vibrate mode!!...I did not hear the last few lines...did you?" before I could answer he went on..."Atleast she said in the end, lots of money". I wanted to say, she said Lord sani and not lots money. But something told me not to.


He came out of the building a much more confident and happy man. Saturday after saturday he went to the temple with his family, fed the crows and helped people. Stayed patient in his current job. Patched up things with his wife. Spent time with his children. He deligently applied for several jobs. A few months passed...he applied to a company based at Singapore was looking for profiles similar his. The process took a few months but he got the job. At the end of the year he moved to singapore, alone.

As he left, he said..in a voice that showed absolute reverance, "what she said is coming true. At the end of one year, my career improved, I am seperated from my family, and I am going to make lots of money..can you believe it?"

I did not say a word.

He is now settled in Singapore. His family has shifted with him. His parents live in chennai. He is 'almost' financially sound. To him, All is well.

I sit down and wonder. I am amazed at the power of faith and suggestion. What was the reason for the change in his life? faith?  charity? rituals to god? his own hard work? The power and strength of the human mind to make or break a life is something we see in many people's lives. With growing problems and stress, most people are looking for something to go by, cling on to...mostly something that can give them hope..herein...THE 'T' FACTOR!!

This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda

A NANO BLUNDER

She said "Doom". He mistook it to be "Boom"...few minutes earlier....

Dr. Doom sat on her massive iron throne molded in the shape of skulls and bones. As her enormous submarine rose slowly to the surface, she said aloud to her audience..."my loyal subjects..today we shall achieve what we have worked for the past many years. Our nano war heads are finally ready and we shall release them detonate it upon humans, releasing the nanomites that will turn them into dust in seconds. HA HA HA...We shall then take over planet earth and rename it to PLANET DOOM!!!"

As the audience applauded and cheered, a huge vibration shook the submarine.

"NOOOO...IT CAN'T BE!!! YOU IDIOT! The missiles have not been released yet!! THE CODE FOR DETONATION WAS "BOOM" NOT "DOOM".

Dr.Doom, her subjects and her submarine floated harmlessly on the pacific ocean.

News flash: "NASA satellite sends in new pictures of the pacific ocean. A huge floating mass of sludge, that appears to be moving slowly, discovered in the early hours this morning. Government sends in 2 ships with scientists to investigate. More news updates to follow."

To be continued....

This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda

A MOMENT'S MADNESS

5.4.3.2.1....And I jumped. I was not prepared for what happened next. I screamed and screamed. As the wind hit me, the speed at which I was falling startled me. My heart raced as things around me started to blur. I started to tremble in fear and my limbs started lose feeling. Why did I do this? A moment's madness!! I stopped thinking. About my life. My work. My problems. My commitments. My family.

As I braced myself and waited for it to end, I almost lost consciousness. I closed my eyes as I felt sudden jerks and then weightlessness. Everything stopped. Time. Sound. I was blank.

I heard voices. I opened my eyes. My friends and onlookers cheered. My head spun and I felt weak in my legs as I felt relieved that it was over. BUNGEE JUMPING is definitely not for me!!

This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda

THAT WONDERFUL FEELING OF BEING ACKNOWLEDGED!

Being acknowledged by peers is one great feeling. Thank you so much Proactive Indian...for nominating me for the Liebster award. And to Meera, "A rat", for the creative blogger award :)

 

Liebster Award is given to up and coming bloggers who have less than 200 followers. It’s appreciation from fellow bloggers and your chance to introduce yourself to other awesome bloggers.

 

If you receive either of these awards, you are expected to:
1. Post 11 facts about yourself
2. Answer the 11 questions the tagger has given you
3. Tag 11 more Bloggers (with no more than 200 followers; no tagging back) and make 11 questions for them
4. Tell the people you tagged that you did.

 

But then, the choice is yours... :)

 

ELEVEN FACTS ABOUT MYSELF
1. Born and brought up in Chennai, I love the city and would rather not stay anywhere else.
2. Never shared my entire educational qualification with anyone, but I guess I owe it to the people who have accepted and acknowledged me within months of blogging.B.Com, MBA, CWA(Grad), MA(Psychology), M.Phil(Management), the last 2 through the medium of distance education.
3.My hobbies include a bit of drawing and painting, artificial flower making, patch work and quilting, dress designing and tailoring, reading, movies and now, I dont have time for any of these, my new love...blogging!!
4. I am a happy, loyal, hard working individual who takes people at face value, finds it very difficult to say "no", loves to help, does not hesitate to apologise.
5. Have a bad temper, dont forgive easily, am scatterbrained, messy and procrastinate a bit.
6.Love to cook but not to eat
7.Total movie buff...but no time now :(
8.Was a free lance soft skills trainer for 2 years. Love teaching :) and my students and my teachers
9. I would not consider myself an "animal lover" per se, but I am a member of the blue cross, I have and will help animals.
10. Mathematics is my most favourite subject and calculus my favourite chapter.
11.love to have a good discussion (that is a nice way of saying, i love to talk and yak and chatter)

 

ELEVEN QUESTIONS THAT HAVE BEEN ASKED TO ME :
1. Who’s the one person that can always make you smile?
Normally, I dont need anyone to make me smile. I have been a very "smiley" person all my life. you can see that in my comments and responses...too many smileys. Recently though, my daughter is one

person who can make me smile in any situation.

 

2. If you could eat only two things for a week, what would they be?
No second thoughts on this question : chips and chocolate

 

3. How do you want people to remember you when you’re gone?
happy and helpful

 

4. What would you do with 1 crore rupees, if you were given 30 days to spend it?

First, I would have to ask for the source. If it was given to me in cash, I will immediately return it. A cheque or a DD, I would deposit in my account and pay taxes, whatever applicable. phew!! feeling much better already. Typically, I would have put the money in a trust fund and put it to good use. Since I have to spend it in 30 days...and it would be impossible to process the registration of a trust and getting eligibility for an 80G exemption from the IT department within a month(trust me..i know..we've tried).

So, I would simply use the money to start a home : for infants, children, young, old, rejected, deprived, people who want to reform, victims of violence, harassment...(i guess its impossible to make an exhausitive list), Irespective of caste, culture and sexuality.

 

5. If you could have one supernatural power, what would it be?
I really can't be humourous or really imaginative. So let me tell you I believe that every person already has his/her own supernatural power that they only need to discover. These days love, friendship, empathy, loyalty, patriotism and many more such feelings are supernatural powers that each and every individual has to harness.

At the risk of sounding a bit arrogant, I'd say my supernatural power is "empathy"

 

6. Which living Indian politician do you admire and respect the most?
he he...I'd rather not answer this one question. kindly excuse :)

 

7. What do you want to accomplish in your life?
A personal accomplishment would be that at some point I would like to do my P.Hd.
A social accomplishment would be what I have explained as an answer to question 4., If not at that scale, will surely do my bit.

 

8. Which was the best moment in your life?
The day my daughter said her first word "Amma" :)

 

9. What was your most embarrassing moment?
Geez...shared with very few people. After I got my licence, a long time back, may I add, I have never taken it out of my wallet at the request of a policeman. At 33 years of age, when I was driving with my mother in law, I was stopped by a policeman. Not for speeding. Not for breaking a rule. He thought I was underage!!! I am small made and he probably could not see me above the steering wheel!! I was livid. That was the first time I took out my licence to show a now sheepish looking policeman. Ofcourse he let me go...my husband had a good laugh!! :(

 

10. If you could spend a day with 1 person, living or dead, who would it be and why?

If I may be a little liberal...I would like to spend the day with 4 people, my parents and my grandparents. I would like to give them a day of rest, enjoying with my daughter, while I took care of every single thing they had to do during the day!!

Reason? I dont think I can ever match what they have done for me in my life. What I can give them is a day of rest and happiness of spending time with a 2 year old, who is the culimnation of energy, love and happiness.

 

11. What is the best gift you were ever given?
This year I got a hand drawn birthday gift from my sister in law's daughter that read "Happy birthday to my dearest ammayi(mom's brother's wife in malayalam) and my best friend! ". Beats anything else :)

 

I SHARE MY LIEBSTER WITH THE FOLLOWING BLOGGERS

 

 

http://crispingcanary.blogspot.in/

http://ilakshee.blogspot.in/
http://jahidakhtar.blogspot.in/
http://titask9.blogspot.in/
http://beingmommee.blogspot.in/
http://vanishgirl.blogspot.in/
http://radhavram.blogspot.in/
http://anitaexplorer.blogspot.in/
http://siddharthghoshal.blogspot.in/
http://www.ankuanand.com/
http://munniofalltrades.blogspot.in/

I SHARE MY CREATIVE BLOGGER AWARD WITH THE FOLLOWING BLOGGERS :

 

 

 

http://ideasolsi65.blogspot.in/
http://meowwsmusings.blogspot.in/
http://inspire99.com/
http://www.gonetrendy.com/
http://ishithaa.com/
http://anitaexplorer.blogspot.in/
http://isharethese.blogspot.in/
http://proactiveindian.com/

 

I would like to present one more award to the following blogger : "the very inspiring blogger award",

 

 

for her amazing work, both in the blogosphere and in real life...http://innerdialect.wordpress.com/

 

MY QUESTIONS TO THE AWARDEES:
1. Why blog?
2. How has blogging changed your life?
3. Name One person who has truly inspired you, and has hence led

you to change something about yourself.
4. If there is something you would like to change about yourself,

what would that be?
5. What is your most priced possession in your room?
6. Do you think blogging can help anything in any way?
7. What is the one festival in India you love to celebrate and do

you think we still celebrate them in the same spirit as we used to

decades back?
8. If there is one thing you could do for your country(let's say

there are no restraints and what you could do is magical), what

would it be?
9. 3 words that would describe you.
10.Which is the best vacation you have had...and with whom?
11.What do you think the future has in store for you?

A request to you all. Please leave a link to your Award post in the comments section below so all of us can read your answers. Looking forward to your replies :)