Can I ask you a question?

I was waiting to board a train when this guy, evidently a train operator as he had this yellow jacket on, walked up to me and said,

"Excuse me lady, can I ask you a question?”

Even before I could react, the question was on its way.

“I noticed that you are carrying a sweater with you. Are you really that cold?"

Well, I wasn't surprised that he asked me that question because it was in the 80's that day!!

"I am carrying it with me 'cos it gets cold on the train sometimes.”

"Yes, you are right. I completely forgot about that. Some cars are colder than the others; it totally depends on which one you are in. I used to wonder initially why train operators wore those big jackets even in summer; later realized that it was because of the cold."

I gave him one of those standard smiles of mine that I give when I don’t know what to say.

"Can I tell you something Ma’am? You have very beautiful dark skin.”

I was surely taken aback by that sudden compliment thrown at me. I don’t remember if I blushed or not, but well, as one of my friends once said, you can’t tell if dark people blush. :P

“Have you always been dark or did you get dark in summer?”

“I was always dark.”

“Oh, I see. But, I gotta tell ya that that’s some beautiful skin you’ve got there. Have you heard of Mississippi Masala?”

I couldn’t quite recollect at that point what he was talking about.

“It is a movie starring Denzel Washington. Do you know Denzel Washington? He is an actor.”

“Of course... I like him!” And this time, I swear I blushed. :D

“So, in that movie, Denzel Washington falls for this Indian woman, who has a very strict, conservative father. Denzel and this girl initially fight over a car accident… that is how they meet in the first place. But slowly, they get to know each other and begin to fall in love. It is actually very beautiful, you know.”

Beautiful indeed is the process of falling in love. If only there wasn’t any post-processing involved! He continued talking while I was fervently looking behind me to check every approaching train to make sure I didn’t miss mine, getting caught in the web of love stories.

“I once met this Indian woman on the train. I used to operate the train to Skokje and this woman used to take that train. We slowly started talking... she told me that she never had a boyfriend before; she has never been kissed before… We grew to like each other and starting dating too. But her father was just like the Indian girl’s father in Mississippi Masala, very conservative."

"She had this cousin who was interviewing girls in the family to pick a wife. Yeah, you know, in their family, cousins marry each other...”

I gave him a very understanding nod.

“This cousin interviewed this girl as well. For some reason, he liked her a lot and preferred her over his other cousins. The girl did tell him everything, but he still wanted to marry her. The girl’s father…”

I had stopped paying attention as my train had arrived.

“You have been waiting for this train? Well then, here is a flyer for the show that I did last month... and that’s my band. You can visit this website to know more.”

There was his photograph indeed, with the rest of the band. I took the flyer from him and stared at it not knowing what to say.

“It was very nice talking to you.”

I smiled. “It was very nice talking to you too." I waved my hand and made a dash for the train.

He shouted across the platform, “What is your name?”

I answered his question, but not loud enough for him to hear. He repeated his question. The train chugged along, with him looking in its direction for an answer.

Rhymes and Reasons

“Rain rain go away,
Come again another day,
Little Johnny wants to play,
Rain rain go away."

I learnt this rhyme when I was in my first standard in school. I loved reciting it in chorus with the rest of the class. I would go home and sing it to my mom. Yes, at some point, I had started singing it instead of reciting it. The intonations were such that the rhyme sounded more like a song; I still remember the tune! I don't remember though, if it was Little Johnny or Little Arthur. Doesn’t matter…

This post is not about the rhyme. It isn’t about reason either. :P It is about the rain! A few days ago, I was talking to a friend of mine who was cribbing about it pouring cats and dogs in his city that day.

I immediately exclaimed, "How can you not like the rain?!”
He replied, “I hate getting wet in the rain. I need my warmth and sunlight, any day.”
“You cannot be from India and not like the rain!"
"You haven't lived in Bombay!"

True. I haven't lived in Bombay. But, I have experienced floods, and they have never deterred me from liking the rains. I can spend hours sitting at the windowsill watching the raindrops hit the ground and window panes, just as tirelessly as the raindrops themselves. I like to take an umbrella and take long walks in the rain enjoying the sound (music, rather!) of raindrops falling on my umbrella. I find rainwater washing along the sidewalks to be beautiful! Back in hostel, I used to sit by my window, make little paper-boats and drop them onto the muddy stream of rainwater that flowed along the walls of the hostel building! Not to forget how romantic rains are!! ;)

The other day, it was pouring heavily, and everybody wanted to leave for home before the thunderstorm hit. People were taking shortcuts through the buildings in order to minimize outdoor-walking. I surprised everybody by opening my umbrella and stepping out for a walk! It was a nice 20 min walk. I was smiling throughout, getting strange looks from passers-by. Who cares?! I even decided to get my hair cut that day, much to the surprise of the employees of the empty salon. After tipping the beautician generously, I walked back home, slightly disappointed by the fact that it had stopped raining.

Post-rain is beautiful too. The smell of the earth (ah!), the puddles, the water droplets falling from the leaves, the colour of the atmosphere… Colour of the atmosphere??? No, I am not crazy! The air looks cleaner after the rain and it has a unique hue to it, so unique that I don't know what to call it. Any help will be greatly appreciated and duly acknowledged. :)

Thinking back about the walk, I was wondering if I would have done that without an umbrella. Probably not, and I don’t have a reason for that (nor do I have a rhyme. I told you that this post is not about either!). Actually, I don’t even know if I like it or not, I just haven’t done it ever. When I was a kid, my parents were very particular about me not getting wet in the rain. The slightest drizzle and an umbrella would be right over my head. If I did end up getting wet, I would receive royal treatment at home that day (sounds better when said in Tamil – Rajamariyadhai), but it came after all the scoldings. Hot coffee and warm water at my disposal, my mom desperately trying to dry my hair with a towel and me trying hard not to let that one little sneeze escape my nose - Sigh! Those days!

Anyways, back to where we started – The Rhyme. I still wonder why the rain was asked to go away, and why kids were made to recite that over and over again. I guess I only learnt that rhyme by rote and enjoyed singing it, but never let the meaning get to my head. That’s why, I think, I still love the rain! I pity all those poor souls, like my friend, who actually took the rhyme seriously (:P) and are, hence, missing out on one of nature’s most marvelous phenomena!

If I were to edit the rhyme, this is how it would read:

“Rain rain you are here to stay,
Come again every other day,*
Little Bryan** wants to play,
Rain rain you are here to stay!”

* I thought I will be a little nice to my friend. Sunny days can alternate, but he has to write his own rhyme for that though.

** Bryan doesn't seem to mind; Johnny and Arthur are still fighting. :P

The Gift of the Maggi!!

A frustrating day in lab. Everything that can possibly go wrong has gone wrong. No time to even have lunch. It has already been 11 hours since I got to lab. I don't give a damn about this experiment. Man, I am ditching it and going home. Hunger is gnawing at my stomach and I can't even think clearly. Let me go home and eat something real quick. But, wait! There is no cooked food at home! There might be some frozen, ready to eat stuff. Let me check the freezer. Oh no! No frozen food! :( No bread, milk, cereal or eggs. What am I going to do now? No energy to do anything. I am going to faint now. Maybe I have some cookies from long ago. Yes, cookies... But, what is this yellow packet peeking out from the corner of that shelf? Let me pull it out.. MAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!! Life-saver! I didn't know you existed! Silent saviour!! May you live long!!! (Well, you are going into my tummy soon, but may your kind live long!! Atleast as long as it takes for me to finish my PhD!! :D)

P.S.Title courtesy Borna, with due apologies to O. Henry. :D

Who "are" Ramόn y Cajal??

Yesterday, as I was leaving home, I heard a girl talking to her friend in the elevator:

"Beat this... After like (Oh yes! The 'likes'... Can never get over them!) years and years of Neuroscience, only yesterday I came to know that Ramόn y Cajal was one person." Oh my!! The two laughed. I tried hard not to laugh in front of them. Later, I wondered how interesting the situation would have been had a Neuroscience Prof. been in that elevator then! Heee heee.. :D

Listening to that little talk made me feel much better about my occasional (but not so infrequent :P) misconceptions in Science.

Passions in Life

I chanced on this piece of writing today. This is exactly my state of mind today. As I sit alone in my room, exhausted after a day of cleaning and organizing stuff, a multitude of thoughts linger around in my head. Questions about life pop up once in a while, leaving me helpless as I struggle to find an answer. A satisfaction of having discovered something has engulfed me after reading this. :)


"Three passions have governed my life:
The longings for love, the search for knowledge,
And unbearable pity for the suffering of [humankind].

Love brings ecstasy and relieves loneliness.
In the union of love I have seen
In a mystic miniature the prefiguring vision
Of the heavens that saints and poets have imagined.

With equal passion I have sought knowledge.
I have wished to understand the hearts of [people].
I have wished to know why the stars shine.

Love and knowledge led upwards to the heavens,
But always pity brought me back to earth;
Cries of pain reverberated in my heart
Of children in famine, of victims tortured
And of old people left helpless.
I long to alleviate the evil, but I cannot,
And I too suffer.

This has been my life; I found it worth living."

- Bertrand Russell