Raghu

I have no subject matter expertise on “ Married Life ”, but when a close friend with considerable amount of married life experience, puts a mail in response to chain that was going around, it did have a good effect. I do not know how will my blog help his cause but surely this needs a mention. Thank you “Juice Baron”…..Below is the mail: I have few things to say to all innocent wives out there who are so tired managing and training their respective husbands: 1. Don't treat us like a project and try to fix us. You girls knew what you were getting into. 2. In an argument we use logic and you use emotions as weapon. You girls start crying or get emotional (ex: I left my family for U) the moment you know you are reaching nowhere. If we try to put forward our point we are bullies and if we lose we are weak. 3. Kindly do not ask us what we are thinking, the answer would be nothing and believe us “it’s true". We can spend the whole day doing nothing like how you wives can spend...

Yes it happened!!! No I am not talking about my Love life here. It is just a feel good factor that all my friends replied to my crazy mail after a really long time. And that feel was a short lived one... as my main aim and agenda was completely lost after the 3rd or 4th mail and then on the subject matter went on to surprise few of them, troubled some, excited few of them. And ONE in particular had a joy ride of sorts. Husband, Wife & Married life ; precisely that was the matter going around in mails, currently the minority in the group "Bachelors" enjoyed it well while the majority "Married" ones were exchanging their experiences so far. The ONE lady who is "on the cusp" of entering the world of marital bliss, was the one who was having the joy ride. Initially it started out as a "KT" for this lady and she was welcomed and inducted into the world of Marriage and she mentally prepared herself by saying "I am prepared for the disaster n...

In a car, where four people can fit in comfortably and when only three people are travelling there will be an empty seat; that is common sense. When that very empty seat is a subject of discussion then it is nonsense. The three people in the car are me and my parents and the discussion is about my parents going to be daughter in law. Usually I do not like my dad sitting in the front seat because he gets a little tensed with the way I drive. Personally, I believe that when you have a person who knows how to drive in the car, they just cannot handle the way the driver is handling the car. Be it me driving or my dad, it is like, the way I do it is the best way, until unless something goes wrong. So the above being the situation, I at times ask him to sit back royally in the back seat and enjoy the ride. Now they (Mom & Dad) take up this situation to the best use and have their little fun of their own. Now as they know that I already have a “ Daughter ”, they start of saying “how m...

Long back, one of my friends asked me WHY I write. Immediately I gave him an answer through one more blog . Now someone asked HOW do I write? Felt that was a valid enough question; need to answer that for myself first, because I am not known to talk in English (apart from official communication) so much nor am I a fluent orator in that language. So equipped with the elementary knowledge in English and with an outdated education base I have, how come I end up surprising people. After a good analysis, the only reason I could find out is that, my brain thinks in Telugu. As strange as it might sound, that is the process that happens with me. Whenever I set out to write something, initially I narrate it to myself in Telugu and then sit down and collect words in English for it. This might sound like a tedious process but I am working on more effective methods to write. My basic idea of fun starts with Telugu, a language that I am more used to and also being a language that is more captiva...

The feel of claiming a victim with a small gesture you make is awesome. I do not go around killing people but just last week while walking in the mall I made a fellow shopper completely freeze in his tracks and look at me in disbelief. I didn’t do anything fanatical. I just smiled at him. An early morning shopper, in his pajamas and holding energy drink his hand, with a disgusted look on his face. We meet face to face and I Just give him a smile, he must have concluded I was an ET with extra face muscles enabling me to exert a smile. What followed was more intriguing to me, the moment I smiled and he gave those strange look, the man immediately looked down. Now do not ask where but I was Laughing Out Loud (in silent mode). May be I should have told him, Sir there is some more shopping left for you this morning. Surely a smile can bring the best and worst out of a person. Some will be dead shocked and some give quizzed looks and few do smile back. It is more like we approach one an...

Bike ride on a weekend made me realize that, when driving a car, the shouting and cursing I do on bike riders are very much applicable to me also. Came to realize that the speed at which I travel, has got nothing to do with the rules I follow (Speed in my case because after two near fatal accidents, I have slowed down a lot). I know this is not a new discovery to most of us but what amazes me is we still have a dynamic approach to traffic. This must partly explain the traffic conditions around you. We keep making new rules as we go along and dynamically develop a new approach to traffic. I will be a true believer if you happen to say that there will be people who will break rules even if they are in place for their own good. Now I will give a modest try to do a little reverse engineering gimmick and put forward few rules for the “drivers” in general. 1 . First of all, please undermine the white lines on the road those are Just meant to be Modern Art. 2 . If you happen to see “ STO...

That was title of a book I was checking as a part of my work recently, "SIMPLE PAIN RELIEVERS". It was all about the pain relieving technique’s to the day to day problems you might have. What interested me more were the chapter headings? Now in an attempt to make my usual work day bit more interesting I just added few more comments to those chapter heading and had a little fun of my own. Keeping, all those lovely woman in mind, below are the chapter headings and some comments in brackets...enjoy!!! 1. WOMEN AND PAIN ( are Similar ) 2. PAIN IN THE HEAD (is the Early Indicator ) 3. BACK PAIN, SPINE PAIN AND HIP PAIN (will follow one after the other ) 4. MANAGING PAIN WITH FOOD, DRINK, HERBS AND SUPPLEMENTS ( please think again ) 5. MANAGING PAIN NATURALLY ( is not an option ) 6. HAND PAIN, SHOULDER PAIN AND ELBOW PAIN (these will be the after effects ) Wait…this was not all, few days later I got another book to be reviewed and that title of the book was “All Time Best ...

For me, now it is that time of the year when I say Allergies and Flu is in the air! It is time for those nasty allergies and unpleasant flu. You probably might have called in sick one time or the other, But did not know what exactly to do with the time you have got at hand. The usual sick day would be like retired to bed with aching body, lots of coughing, sneezing, headache’s and if you are lucky add high fever to that. All this should not mean that you cannot turn this into little bit fun for yourself. Here you go!!! Below are few things you can try to spice up your sick day: 1. Try singing your favorite songs with that sore throat. 2. Try impersonating your favorite actors and politicians….this should be fun 3. Just recently while in office, there was a case where 7-8 people on the floor went a sneezing spree, so just in case there if ever such event, practice for Synchronized Sneezing or Coughing 4. Try how long you can stay without wiping your nose…..call it the running no...

Did this happen to you any time, when you are giving a ride to a friend and trying to list down the features in the car and the friend asks, “What does this button do?” Did you ever notice these fake buttons in cars? They are not really buttons but just plastic placeholders indicating that, in higher-end models, there might actually be a real button with a real function. Do you know why manufacturers put these fake buttons? Just you remind you that you have been a cheap fellow when the time came to write that amount on the cheque. And they do it just out of grudge that you have acted smart enough not to buy the higher-end model with unreasonable pricing. Just recently I and a friend were going in my car and he happened to ask the same question, “What does this button do?” Me: Nothing. It’s just a piece of plastic Friend: But it looks like a button Me: (OMG, How did you figure that out) Ya, but it does nothing Friend: How come? Here you have two choices. You could tell the fr...

One year from now supposedly there should be some catastrophic events taking place that will change EARTH. According to some, massive solar storms, magnetic pole reversal, earthquakes, super volcanoes, and other drastic natural events may occur by this date next year. Some even claim alien invasions are going to take place. You can go online and get a list of dates predicted for apocalyptic events and for known reasons the one nearest and well known will be Dec 21st 2012. Personally I feel the changes have already begun, take a note of all that is happening around the world. Right from what happened in Libya, Japan, USA, Thailand, London and never the less India; also score of other minor to major incidents that have taken place all around the world. I do not feel it will be end of the Earth but there will be changes around the world that will change the way we operate over here. Right form how we treat each other and how we cross over from the great wall of divides we have built. Th...

Right from my early 20’s, I have been very much fascinated by this thing called "Saree" and I used to enjoy watching women in Sarees. For me it is the sexiest garment that India has given to the world of Fashion. In India every region has their own unique way with it and the way it is presented is very pleasing for the eye. Based on what I have seen so far, will try to categorize them as below mentioned. 1. 10/10's : The Saree looks so perfect on them, you feel as if the weaver had this woman in mind when he was weaving the Saree. Each fold of the Saree enhances their beauty and feels as if the Saree is so proud and happy to hug these women. Recently seen a picture of Sushmita Sen, while she was attending a Durga Puja somewhere in Mumbai (it was this picture that gave me the idea to write on this topic), what I felt was, A simple Saree that was carried off very well and she surely has elegance. 2. Rappers : Just a fancy name for "Wrapping". Here it is more a...

There are many times I have been put on the spot in a conversation? Someone at a gathering makes an insulting or an uneasy comment or your boss speaks down to you? In response, you either say the wrong thing, triggering an argument... or you say nothing at all and dwell on it the rest of the day. Then suddenly it comes to you -- I should have said... But of course, it’s too late to utter that perfect response that you think of now. I’ve had many a situations like these and did my bit of innovation. Still I feel that I am not that well equipped with tools (so to say) for an effective comeback. What I want to have is a collection of comeback techniques that allows me to better handle a confrontation, take control of how people treat me in relationship or at work. When a conversation grows tense or takes an unwanted turn, I often get overwhelmed by feelings and tend to fall into poor communication habits. I typically get defensive or lash out; this is most common reaction I find most ...

These are few habits that I have acquired after a few years in corporate world. For sure I do not know if they are good or bad but for the time being will tag it as bad habits. Filtered / Mineral Water : Basic necessity, but never was I used to bottled water or filtered water not even at home. But these days we go out for a dinner to a new place, it will be only bottled water (or so called mineral water). Lately this has become a default behavior; even a well known waiter at a regular restaurant does not ask for type of water we prefer but just brings two bottles along with the order. Liquid Hand Wash : In marketing terms this should be one product that has been put into our heads very well. And I am getting so used to it that if I do not see it at the wash basin I feel something is missing. Toilet Paper : At home, on a Sunday morning, I wake up and go to the wash basin, brush my teeth, just to get that fresh feel I pour some water on my face. Till here it is fine, after that I...

Contd... No, there was no Non-Vegetarian food but I never thought a real mix of all vegetarian food can trouble you a lot. Ever felt you could see vegetarian food from most parts of India on your plate, let me guide you through with my words. The man serving comes towards me and serves a “tandoori roti” and I put up a face like “what the ____”, I felt like saying “Sir this is what I have daily, I was expecting some authentic south Indian food here”, few seconds later come the “paneer butter masala” and I give the same expression. Now, one more person passes by and serves some kind of vegetarian salad (usually taken before you start main course), then one more passes by and throws in few pieces of carrot. By this time I was making up my mind to have the usual north Indian dinner…and just then….comes “Bhindi Fry”, “White Rice” and “Ghee”. Now like a good old veggie boy I start with Bhindi fry, white rice and just at the same time comes a Kannada dish “Bisibelabath” (hope you read it rig...

Recently I was persuaded by my family to visit a reception of known relative’s son who got married to a Mallu girl. Nice looking pair and GOD bless them with more love and happiness. They happen to be far off relatives (to me) of my dad and best part is that most of them were well known to our family. A little slow in grasping those relations but with great long explanations from many people again and again, got to know most of the people and how they are related to us; it is like from every nook and corner somehow and from somewhere most of us were related and it is very difficult to remember them. Most of the faces looked familiar but getting them by relation is a tough task for me. Ok now with the very confidence of having an early dinner I did not have anything that evening and started for the reception hall, owing to huge traffic, we got delayed by an hour and reached there by 7.30 PM. By then the hall was already crowded and buzzing aloud. The married couple did not arrive yet ...

Recently was reading a magazine and came to know about a Scottish biologist Alexander Fleming, yes the one who discovered Penicillin. He discovered penicillin, when samples he had carelessly left exposed in his mess of an office were contaminated while he was on vacation. For some people, a certain amount of messiness can be beneficial. So is being messy really so bad? In general society isn’t kind to messy people. Parents punish children who won’t clean their rooms, and your boss might question your competence if you have a messy desk, until his desk is like that. Most messy people can locate what they need fairly quickly they just look where they last had put the item and go on from there. When a mess has been cleaned, it often takes much longer to remember where the item has been stored or much worse you even forget where you have put that thing. This thing happens with me a lot, at times I do some maintenance work in my room and I put all things in order but when my mom comes and...

On a Sunday evening I and my friend were taking a small walk around, as we were waiting for another one to turn up in 15 minutes, on the way my friends neighbor, elderly lady asks him “ela unnav amma ‘X’” for which my friend gives her the most common lie or let’s say obligatory answer “nenu bagunnanu aunty” and we move from there. On our small walk we discuss it further but he quietly dismisses the argument saying she was just an elderly woman and should not matter much. Then the usual fun, jokes and weekly updates went on. Today again while starting for office the same question continued “How are you?” I started, counting the number of times today people ask me "How are you?” or "How ya' doin'?" (A little posh version), there were quite a big number of people who asked me the question and it has really started to disturb me a little. I don't mean to be unfriendly here, but "How are you?" is not really used as a question but rather a long way to s...

Some day when I am dreaming, deep in love and not a lot to do, that day I will remember the few below things that I am slowly losing touch with. Writing : Yes, I used to love writing letters with my own hands rather than typing them. I had a liking for ink pens and just writing with that pen made me feel good. Apart from letters I used to indulge with the little bit poet in me and flirt a little (with words). It is used to be fun; right now I only send email and blog at times. In the current times I am only remembered by email address, may be in days to come, people will think that Raghu’s mails in Calibri font with text size 11 used to be so much fun. For me, when I can see some one’s hand writing on the envelope and remember them, then read the letter and recollect the memories, is such a good feel. Yes, the good old snail mail methods and yes that might categorize me as a person from Stone Age but there is still some romance left in it for me. Need to get back to this habit. Ga...

I never thought a simple Backpack can become a talking point for me. Recently I have been hearing a lot of comments about me still using a backpack. Though I never respond back with any comments, I just laugh it away but in the recent past taking a lot of heat. Basically it does serve me in lot of ways, right from carrying Tiffin box, snack box, head phones, ear phones, i-pod, license, money, books and many more things that are not worth a mention. I tried answering the question as to why I still use it, below is what I found: 1. May be… I am over compensating for all the days that I did not go to college with a back pack. 2. May be… It’s the revenge of the sling bag that I stopped using as it was not so convenient for me. 3. May be… It is people’s way to complain that I am not carrying enough snack and Tiffin for all of them. 4. May be… It is the cry of the laptop that I deny to carry. 5. May be… Carrying it around still makes me feel like an unruly college going youth in comp...

Today morning I was taking a walk around the house, while brushing teeth and overheard my immediate neighbors talking about teenagers. Their conversation was going in Telugu and one of them happened to say “eee kalam pillalu bothigaa chaduvu sandhya lekunnda pothunnnaru andi”, the very mention of these words made me smile as I also got to hear these lines a lot from my parents. Few seconds later I enter the scene and I with my frothy white mouth with the tooth brush still inside, bend my head forward, try giving them a smile and move out from that place. Now what is there in the line that made me smile is, the way I see the very lines at two different stages of my life. Even before I tell you the difference in my view point “ Then & Now ” I will try to get you a brief understanding of those lines in English. Basically what they are trying to convey here is teenagers these days are having no proper sense of education and time. The two words here “ Chaduvu ” & “ Sandhya ”, the fi...