The Aamir effect

Ok..I had been memorizing for over a week that 6th May is a Sunday and it meant "Satyamev Jayate" would be aired on the TV and wouldn't miss it ! Even though the timing was a bit odd - 11 am in the morning and this time on a Sunday is for tea and newspaper, while telling my maid how to clean the nooks and corners which otherwise are left unnoticed through out the rest of the week. But still I thought this Sunday would be an exception.
So Sunday, that is May 6th came with its full glory and warmth - with the Sun especially shining bright. I remembered that it was "big moon" day or whatever we call it. But, somehow my memory tricked me in forgetting that Aamir's much awaited show would be telecasted on not just one but 2 channels( or was it more)!!! In fact I read somewhere that first time a reality show was being aired on DD and a pvt channel simultaneously - such is the charisma or Aamir.
The clock struck 11 - my TV remain muted. No activity - no Aamir and no Satyamev Jayate. I had totally forgotten my childhood hero and his show. Now my fondness for Aamir traces back to my school days when QSQT was released - I had watched that movie 3 times on the VCR on a single day! And yes, how cute he looked - he had become our heartthrob within a few days of the movie hitting the theaters - not that it is unusual, I think half the nation would have fallen in love with him.
Next day, that is on Monday, the reviews of the show were everywhere - on the radio and also in print. Appreciations galore -  by the way when was the last time somebody criticized him :)
Anyway, the point is that I missed his show - my husband said I should have gone for Tata Sky plus - in fact Aamir also has been advertising it !
So what next - I have to rely on "you-tube" now - my savior whenever I miss any show on TV which I would have liked to watch. Though it might be relayed again - but who wants to see all the ads - I can watch him uninterrupted on you-tube - just hoping that somebody would have uploaded it! :)

Just being thoughtful

"Think before you leap" -- but if I think I wont really leap :-) Thoughtfulness -- is it an overrated trait? Does it mar spontaneity? Is it an indication of inactivity? When you are a kid, your moral science teacher leaves no stone unturned in making you feel -- "Gods want you to be thoughtful - in your actions, deeds and thoughts" :) So, we grew up thinking what to say next , how to act best. Till we reach the big bad world - where no body waits for your thoughts. And then you are introduced to "Actions speak louder than words! (or should it be thoughts?)" .
Am I what I think? or Am I what I do? I may not always do what I think after all :-) And can others really know what one thinks? Or they can only see what one does? So are thoughts whats inside you while most of actions are what you really want to be? Is that what thoughtfulness means - to do what you think...as against what we think - that is to think before you do!! 

Why?

So many "whys" from Myra sometimes make me feel ashamed - because of 2 reasons - one: how less curious I am ! two: I cant answer all her "whys" ! So, my googling has certainly increased, blame it on my lack of knowledge or awareness or my increased forgetfulness! But, yes its a good experience learning new things...otherwise our lives are generally confined to work place knowledge or current affairs if and when get time.
Like last evening - while she saw a sprout coming out of one of the seeds she had put for germination, she asked: "Why does a plant come out of a seed only?" or "Why cant doesn't a bumble bee bite and a honey bee bites?" or "Why cant we buy an ATM, so that I dont need to go to office?" :-) 

For better or worse!

What is thinking positive? Is it thinking that whatever we do will yield good results or is it just a wishful thinking that in future, times will certainly be better.

Is positive thinking a way to escape from the details that actually might indicate a different and much worse outcome altogether? And in case if our minds actually processes some historical data and based on that come with a probability of success or failure - is it a hindrance in taking risks? Is it better to assume rather than assess.

"Things will be better" -- ofcourse in reality it doesnt always happen. But in believing this do we escape the best things that might be happening today. Do we tend to believe that today is not that good and tomorrow will certainly bring good times?

So, how do we know today is "the best" that could ever happen to us or the "better than the best" will only arrive in future...Or may be we should just believe in "good" -- better, best, worse, worst are all hypothetical superlatives that distort the good!!

Shop till you drop!!!

Shopping is a good purgative - when you are feeling low or may not be so low. It's a welcome change, that leaves you with only change in your pocket. And mind you, its not just a woman thing - everybody enjoys it equally! What with so many kids shops blooming across the town like the mayflower trees. Anyway, consumerism has been given a new definition - I would say it certainly matches the high definition experience! You can shop anywhere - in the malls, superstores, the small corner shops, the sales people coming at your doorstep and not to forget the e-retail that is catching up in India.

Last week only we had the "aamwaala" at our apartment door step - and those mangoes were not ordinary ones, they were direct from the farmers! That was the USP and gave people the feeling as if they are plucking mangoes directly from the tree and putting into their mouths! And as if that was not enough, he even promised to deliver it to your homes in the apartment and collect the booty. Heights of home delivery - people didn't want to carry the kilos back to their house. Nowadays we prefer lifting the weights in the gym rather than the weight of groceries. It's all about giving oneself a sense of pseudo-achievement - the end result might just be the same though ! :-) Anyway the promised shopping experience has hit the nerve of the consumers and has left no stone unturned in making them believe as they are the king or to be more sensitive to all the genders - "rulers"!

The second shopping experience - which I feel is also a very time consuming experience so much so that sometimes I am left with the feeling after shopping that if I could just buy time in a mall!  So how does one start ones journey to one of these magnificent larger than life malls?

1) Take your car out of the basement parking of your skyscraper and then reach your apartment gate 

2) Wait at the apartment gate for the traffic to move - specially if it is Saturday evening.

3) Let your car crawl till the next signal - while you are wondering that two clocks were ticking - one your time clock which never stops and just starts ticking faster when you are in a hurry and second your petrol tank clock as your car moves at the lowest gear.

4) Anyway once you cross all the signals on the way to your mall, you see the parking at the mall has a huge  queue of cars to be parked

5) By this time you are in two minds whether you should really go ahead with the plans, whether this wave of consumerism and crowd of malls is for your benefit, whether the corner shops with all the items stacked and hidden was a better shopping experience!

6) Anyway once you reach the mall, just the smell of the atmosphere inside make you leave all your worries in the car parked in the 10th level of the mall - you memorize the parking spot number lest you are unable to find where your car is parked on the way back!

7) You and your family are so elated that you try not to mind bumping into the sea of humans - all amazed by the colorful items the shops hold, the floor of the mall shining making you feel a resident of a Dubai like city . And while you are appreciating the concrete beauty around, you end up spending from the credit card - stretching your budget bit by bit or shop by shop. Why not if it could give that happiness which had been elusive for so long with the increasing inflation and stagnant salaries! 

8) Spending at least a quarter of your day and your monthly budget in the mall, you finally head back after much protest from your companions. Journey back is mostly about pondering what the credit card bill may be next month and promising to oneself that these visits to the malls should really be curtailed!

So are we stuck with nothing better to do? Is shopping more of a addictive pass time leaving you short of time rather than a matter of need? But, there is a solution to everything and here it is - e-retail and teleshopping. You can buy anything from groceries to baby products to cold storage food products! You click and pay(nothing is like a free lunch or free shopping coupon!) and its at your door step! Though it cant give you the experience but the time is not far away when some mobile app will be developed that can simulate that too. Imagine if there could be a mobile game on your android phone which gave you the feeling of being in a mall! So even though you might win all the time but will end up losing your hard earned money! And I am certain it would end up blowing up your credit card - but not to worry as there would be a solution for that too -- virtual money will be a big thing soon!!!! So "Consumer" is certainly the ruler - it pays for buying the products and also pays for spending!!!