Always & Forever

Far away across these miles,

There is this beautiful place,

Where no voices make any sound,

And nothing haunts the dreams,

Where there are no nightmares,

And there is no Heartbreak,

Where nothing clouds the mind,

And nothing ails the heart.

Far away across these miles,

I want to take you with me,

Where there is no one around us,

Just you and me walking along,

Where there are no choices,

Just you and me for each other,

Where there are no time constraints,

Just you and me together forever.

Incomplete rhyme...

I think those were the best times,

When for me love existed only in rhymes,

Then a few years later,

I thought things started getting better,

You had just walked into my life,

My feelings for you were sharper than a knife,

Every moment spent with you,

Left me refreshed and feeling new,

Your smile pierced my heart,

And my pulse started to dart,

I felt that our bond was getting strong,

But I had never been more wrong,

You went your separate way,

And left me feeling like a castaway,  

Those were the worst of times,

Spent writing numerous lonely rhymes,

My soul was completely shattered,

Slowly the pieces I gathered,

Now I have put them together,

I don't feel the same altogether,

Even you wont recognize me now,

Because I am a new person now,

The old me got lost in the sands of time,

Echoing forever like an incomplete rhyme....

Loving a stone sculpture..

The day we broke up,

Was the day I was shattered,

Slowly as time went by,

A few pieces I gathered,

Putting them together one by one,

I somehow held it together,

And then you came back to me,

Making everything much better.

The wind whispered to me again,

Singing a song of its own,

Even the stars seemed happy,

A little brighter they shone,

And then the fights began again,

Leaving my dreams shattered.

The thirst for love tortured me,

The fury of my ego burned me,

The pain it caused was severe,

But the desire for you was stronger,

Sometimes you were so good,

Sometimes you were so harsh,

Your mood swings left me confused,

And I started getting disillusioned,

Finally I realized that all this while,

I had been loving a stone sculpture.

I wish I could forget you..

Every morning I wake up,

I wish I was beside you,

Every time I think of you

I feel like calling you,

Every mention of you name,

Makes me feel nostalgic,

Every item gifted by you,

Brings back a piece of memory,

Every time I eat Chinese,

I wish I was eating with you,

Every time I see you online,

I feel like pinging you

Every waking moment spent alone,

I spend it dreaming of you,

Every moment spent with people,

I spend it missing you,

Every night before I sleep,

I wish I could somehow forget you.

Caesar's Love

Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your beers;

I come to taste Caesar, not to eat it.

The taste of good food lives after it;

The food is often digested by the intestines;

So let it be with Caesar. The noble Bluto

has told you that this Caesar is the most delicious:

If it were not so, it was a grievous fault,

And grievously will the Caesar's Chef  answer for it.

Here, under leave of Bluto and the rest–

For Bluto is a hungry glutton;

So are they all, all gourmand men–

Come I to taste the Caesar’s flavour.

It is indeed tasty and delightful and not just to me:

But Bluto too. He says it is delicious;

And Bluto is a gourmand.

He has tasted many Caesar's across the world.

Whose bills his general managers filled:

Is this Caesar indeed The Most Delicious?

Whenever have the hungry craved, Caesar has delighted:

The Most Delicious should be made of tastier stuff:

Yet Bluto says this is The Most Delicious;

And Bluto is a gourmand.......

Fernweh...

"If you cage a bird for too long, it will forget how to fly."

To begin with I have a few confessions.

1)Confession 1:I am a food addict. Not just the type that hogs at a particular dish. I like to taste and try varieties. I even enjoy experimenting with my cooking style. Sometimes it is delicious but then sometimes it is .......Arrghhh! Don't have a word to describe it.

2) Confession 2: I love reading. Not the academic stuff or the scholarly literature. Any random book I feel like reading. Reading about different places, different people and different customs and beliefs fascinates me. Honestly there is so much to read and learn that one lifetime is not enough.

3) Confession 3: As a kid I wanted to learn many languages. Unfortunately I did not have enough passion for learning languages. In fact I can only manage passable Hindi and English. But I have picked up many words and phrases from different languages and I use them a lot in my daily life. Mostly it is Bengali, Kannada, Bhojpuri, Maithili, Telugu and Arabic. Some I learnt from books about those places some I picked up from my stay in those places. Certainly not enough, but sufficient to irritate others.

It naturally follows that I love travelling as it combines all the three things I just confessed my love for. Almost every other person will immediately respond "hell I love travelling too!"

Let me give you a reality check.

Signs that you really love travelling:

1) You just have to go out on a Weekend. A weekend spent at home is a weekend wasted

2) You have your dream destinations listed out. And you keep ticking them one by one.

3) If you are going out for a long trip, you find out all about that place. The major tourist attractions, the historical importance of the place, best local food joint and their specialty dish, the languages spoken there, the common greeting words, the local folk lore or any other interesting thing.

4) You would rather not sleep and waste money on lodging if it cuts into your budget for sightseeing. In fact all you need is a rucksack or a backpack and enjoy all attractions. Even a night time stroll.

5) You will take pictures of sights that mesmerize you. It is not absolutely necessary for you to be in the snap yo make it memorable.

6) You will interact with the local people and find out more about each place you visit.

7) When you are travelling food may not be the most important thing at some places. You will skip a meal in order to try out the one local dish that was a bit expensive.

8) You don't always need company to visit a place. Sometimes alone trips turn out to be more fun.

9) Budget is hardly ever an issue.

10) Spontaneous trips are something you love

Signs that travelling is not your thing

1) You like to relax at home on weekends and only go out for a movie or food.

2) You travel with a heavy baggage of your best clothes and accessories to ensure that you look good in all pictures.

3) Any picture taken of anything must have your face somewhere in the frame.

4) You decide your budget beforehand and more than half of it is for lodging.

5) Nothing can interfere with your meal timings even if you are on a trip.

6) You must have good company before you even plan a trip.

7) "Folk lore, history? Not my thing. Is it beautiful?"

8) " What will I do by learning even a word of local language? I have to stay there for like one day. I'll manage."

9) The moment you get back from a trip you just have to share pictures immediately. "Why else did I take all those selfies for?"

10) Alone trips are a strict no no. After all we plan trips with friends so we can relax and gossip.

This is it. I am done with my stereotyping. Most people are going to say "What is this rubbish? This guy is a self proclaimed know-it-all. I love travelling and I am still going to write travelling as my hobby in my resume." Well thank you for the name-calling. You are entitled to live in your fantasy world. I am entitled to my opinion.

PS: This bird had been trapped too long in a cage. Tomorrow it will be released. A few days to strengthen its wings and then time for a reality check. Does it still remember to fly?

Transition.....

Once upon a time I was cool,

Back then I was at school.

My parents called me lazy,

My teachers called me crazy,

Everyone tried to lecture me,

But that did not bother me.

Because back then I was cool!

Moving a little forward in time,

I had my best days in college time,

So many lectures to bunk,

So many subjects to flunk,

Days were spent in hangover,

Before I sobered up college was over,

I had managed to stay cool!

Now I have a salaried job,

And a boss who is a snob,

I work hard round the clock,

Causing serious mental block,

My friends tell me to take it light,

And I think they might be right

Because I no longer feel cool!!