@ First…

Ever got kissed by a mere conversation?

Umm…atleast in my purview if the article that begins with a line as delicate as above and plays a tic tac toe in mind, there you have it! You have the impression rather the First Impression that it takes to keep moving! This topic on first impressions indeed was twirling in my head for sometime now. Everytime I thought of it, my creative nerves kinda used to mettle for a big time tango! Must admit that I am hell excited to pen this down more than anything else so far in my blog!

Did you know that the neatness of a guy’s shoes does a slight march on his character? And the gals who know this do use it as a tool to form that first impression? Well this might be tacky and unrealistic but after all it’s a jinxed up world and this practice does exist!

In any case, we are all familiar with the classic approach that- the genuine smile can go long long way in forming that first impression!

And the email etiquettes form a great deal of first impression too! It doesn’t matter if you are a drop dead techie and don’t know to program English but, unfortunately you have no escape mechanism in there.

Sometimes there is a cue to judge the first impression that’s been formed on you. For eg: if you go for an interview and the interviewer after sometime starts adjusting his tie or coat or arranges papers on his table, then boy…his first impression on you is kind of screwed up and its time to repair the damage!

First impressions which come by experience are stronger. Like in my case, one should never buy deo’s which are on discounted price. Those smell nothing less like petrol! There I make a snap judgment the moment I see the word ‘off’ on them!

But, it’s also hard to agree on the say that first impression is the last impression coz the ‘time’ and the ‘chance’ take a big ride out there. Given a time, nothing can be beyond repair. But most of the times without our knowledge, the first impressions pave the way for further movement or a transition. Ignoring that would be like- ‘good the drink is, it will end in thirst!

Apparently first impressions can be formed in various ways. We all have our own tactics depending on our targets, purposes and the audiences. It could be the dressing sense, skills, body language, verbal gestures, accessories, appearance of a store, brand names, hoardings, and colors which indeed makes the deadly impressions and ofcourse in the conversation nothing other than the - ability to listen!

However, of all the factors mentioned above, I strongly feel that there is one denominator which can help make that required impression intact. Nothing can beat that innate or a natural charisma! If one possesses that factor there is no need of anything flashy or any extra bit of those efforts to be made for sure! It will be there at ya…all the time and implying the best in you!

Yup, you must have guessed that I am talking about the pricy jewel- the Attitude and quite obviously the right attitude! It makes you! It presents you so grand to the limelight that no other charm you could ever count on to have more. It’s such a natural way to strike that D impression without much of juggles and hassles and all at the cost of being oneself. It can win you over an interview in casuals, it can make the top shot carry on foul language gracefully, it can make the highway cafe to sell the blue muffin that tastes like a chalk piece and for that matter, guys may not need to polish their shoes at all!

Finally to conclude, there is a saying- ‘a last ship, a best ship’! And with this topnotch attitude, it’s certain that the first impression created will no doubt nudge you to that lasting impression ever!

PS: for those my friends who expect the topic on conversation, I will try to come back with it after sometime and after couple of my other blog posts. Now you don’t want to miss that…not under certain need of a shower;) Read on…

Signing off for now,

Achu

A hype factory?

Gone are those days where you wait for that half an hour news on DD and sometimes even for the afternoon news in sign language! Now we have access like 24/7 yet find it difficult to get that half an hour of quality information. These days, It’s all about sporting the trend of all our fancy news reporters going bonkers over varied fashionable statements of our country. Sometimes can’t make out if it’s an information channel or F-TV!(Metaphor intended)

However, I enjoy the drama! I like Rajdeep’s oozing out eyes wanting to plunge out of the TV screen to convince you! Infact, HT beats them all I guess. They have made it so obvious that whole nation can see the onscreen chemistry of their enmity with our own Indian cricket captain. Same goes with our RJ’s these days. Sometimes it feels like those jockey’s jump into my car, squeeze my neck and shout in my ears-“be happy, be happy!!” which indeed automatically happens with Vividhbharathi just by keeping themselves original!

And what about newspapers turning into GQ magazines? And especially their way of fighting competition. Deccan Chronicle had come up with promotional activity showcasing bikini models on hoardings having news all over them. Hmmm now who can explain that? Nothing else implicated to me except for making me guess that its an exclusive paper for men! Indeed recently, my journalist friend who writes for Financial Express wanted me to read one of the interesting articles that he had written. Boy…that paper felt heavy!

I will be dishonest if I say that I don’t enjoy the hype and mix up that our media is creating. Afterall they are entertaining us and who doesn’t like to be entertained eh? And also they put in so much pressure on the politicians or any other responsible authorities that things are getting done faster than expected!! In that way, it’s appreciated that their research is getting extensive and much bolder. Some deserving are getting hit hard now! It’s certainly not that easy to penetrate and target big shots. That means somewhere the hype factory is helping!

But it does hurt sometimes when our own media deny belonging to our country. For eg: When something goes wrong with sports and especially our religion equi cricket. Anand was yet again world chess champion but then that was 20% coverage in news but Indian cricket losing at the same time was 80%. That’s the attitude of our media! Why do they have this notion that we enjoy devastation the most! Ironically in gulf countries, believe any such negative implicated news will be in the third or fourth page but headlines will always be something positive. Now is that not a message in itself?

Again, I have no right to complain on democratic pleasures that each one is exhibiting. Now if I don’t like them, I always have a choice and nothing to brag about! But I must admit that it was extremely unpleasant to see the whole of CWG campaigning done by our media friends. Some even said- why did we need this? How sad a spirit is that? I felt that they don’t want to understand ‘us’ in the first place. Many things went wrong, but they coaxed at each and everything as though they have no responsibility in it. It’s a huge project and something’s bound to go wrong which shouldn’t have considering the time span. But, they should have projected it positively that can create healthy pressure on the culprits but please for god sake do not let our Nation down!!

Should we one day fight media-vs-Nation and wait for the verdict to happen for decades? Or should our media friends be paid bonus to have some integrity and pride? Or should they be given increment just to behave like Pranab Roy? Anyway, for a change, just day before yesterday I saw Rajdeep talking something positive about CWG with his sober eyes. Many foreign athletes were happy about arrangements and facilities at the end of it all! It made me so elated and proud about how its all set so grand and perfect despite such hurdles and unforgivable crimes! It’s not easy to make such things happen when every second person is dishonest and yet, here we are making it to the glory this evening being the grand inauguration of CWG!! Bravo!

As our Indian squash player very positively said “Its India and we like to do things differently”

Indeed we do! And I wish the best for the mega success of CWG! Way to go!!

Signing off for now,

Achu

The GPS technique!

Ouch! Am I talking about GPS as in Global Positioning System? Well Indeed…! And people who know me well will be quite under shock thinking on my triggering technical instincts!! Um…I can even imagine some of their facial expressions ;)

We had hired one of the Nissans to travel around in the outskirts in UK. And as we miss the Indian luxury of asking for directions there, we managed to borrow GPS from one of our friends. My cousins conveniently had named it Miss.Tom relating to its company name and set it to the female voice. Now, she is one self sufficient woman with tremendous patience who can lead you to desired destiny provided you feed her with right postal code of the destination area. She had the perfect voice, perfect tone and extremely tolerating when you don’t listen to her which made her slightly boring and ofcourse an unrealistic woman;) And I couldn’t get over the way she pronounced the word- ‘then’ in that beautiful voice. I dint find UK accent that unfermented any time before! Each time she pronounced that word, it was kind of a musical note that lingered on my mind which made me wanting to hear more of that. She would instruct directions very politely which goes something like this- “go straight-and in the round about –take the first exit and then...” trust me...it was nice!

Recently, one of my friends had some problem. It was a pretty simple one but she was thoroughly confused. We discussed and I was glad that there was some convincing solution to her problem. But later on when I came back home, I was thinking about an easier way to clear out such petty confusions and that’s where the GPS technique entered my mind. Now I must warn that this technique may not resolve the comprehensive heart muscle problems…if you know what I mean! But this can drive you to solutions otherwise given a dedicated time for the journey.

Here is the example for the simple problem:- One day I come back to my room in the evening and find it totally clean. As happy as I can get, I don’t see the bunch of important papers that I had kept on my bed. Now, should I call the maid? Nope, that would be like an accident considering my repeated instructions. So, step on to the GPS mode! Become self sufficient having patience that it requires. If I were my maid, where would I have kept it? So I go to the study and it had become so sparkling that it looked like it’s never been used. The shelf above had music and on top of that the books which clearly had no room for papers. And the shelf next to that had some electronic gadgets that I can’t even identify. So now, getting desperate and with hopeless hope checked the dressing too. Hmm now is it the time for an accident? No not yet, I am just in the tolerating mode! So I take a quick turn around and take the exit of the room and then turn right and get into the sister’s room which has occasional occupancy and bam…there you find your papers in her book shelf:)

Well, I mean to say it’s all about chalking out a clearer plan and sometimes writing it on the paper to be more effective. My friend had once told me about desktop method but I find my technique more interesting with usage of word-‘then’! So first, when you know your destination with your firm decision, draw a map to it even when it seems boring to do and sounds unrealistic! And I promise that you will take the first exit to the solution from any damn problem!

PS: For people who wondered in the beginning on my technical strength building, I like to reconfirm that I am still me:)

Signing off for now,

Achu

Back in Time!

Well I am just back in after a long holiday with my family! Infact my last blog article was also posted while being on a holiday reading which, one of my friends left a message on fb saying- she is expecting another blog post about my holiday and, here I am with it and kind of want to dedicate this one to her!

Now, what shall I write about this extravagant holiday that I had!! If it was my dad, he would have definitely chosen to write about the engineering and the bridges that he went gaga over. And if it was my mom, then certainly about the gorgeous summer flowers or her wedding anniversary celebrated in her favorite legendary singer’s restaurant or the stunning Lord Venkateshwara’s temple in Birmingham or just about how fascinated she was to talk to my niece anytime she wanted over the net.

But now it’s me who is writing…having lots of more choices! Should I write about all of those art galleries I visited or my beautiful countryside journey to Milton Keynes or about the tempting beach huts in Colchester or about that amazing walks in Piccadilly circus or the rollicking self informative trains which led me to be on own there or about the awing Shakespeare’s birth house at Stratford or just about the day sipping through a lemonade spritzer by Thames river!! Umm…tough…but in any case, I have chosen to write about something that has fascinated me the most from the beginning of the holiday! And, it’s always nice to write about something fascinating that has fascinated me in the first place!!

My obsession to that thing started as early as in a stop over at Dubai Airport where I clicked the first snap of it without knowing what was coming ahead. Once I reached London, the same thing took my breath away. It was there everywhere….I repeat ‘everywhere’!!In Greenwich, it had the entire history and some classic models wherein you place your hand on it only to get slid down realizing the smoothest thing you have ever felt. Ripley’s had it made out of walnuts for god sake…believe it or not;). When went to a Lords cricket ground tour saw a hep sporty one, infact the London eye looks to be a replica, the Buckingham palace had the one which was made in 18 th century with minute details considered and for that matter, the ‘Big Ben’ which is my D favorite with its big history had the most sophisticated one!!

Yes…I am referring to the lovely looking status levied Roman clocks all over there restored from back in time. It was there on all the possible buildings, stations, near castles, churches, monuments, junctions and literally everywhere!!But ironically one thing I realized during my big bus tour was about two things that got missed out in most famous Madame Tussaudes were the clock and Shakespeare’s wax statue! Hmmm…wonder if I have missed that…strange! Anyway talking about those sensational clocks, it was just not about the time, but- the beauty of the time, the importance of the time and the investment in time. It’s always interesting to see the combination of beauty and intellectual intelligence and that’s what those clocks have represented to me and that’s what drawn me the most to it! It’s a serious business without a doubt and I couldn’t stop admiring it and perhaps falling in love with it!!

I flaunt my red watch when I am informal and the silver one with sea green dialed otherwise. Now I know, the next time I select my watch, I am gonna wait until I can make an investment in ‘time.’ It’s a realization from the imperial past that with every tick or in every hour bell of the clock that….its no merriment and it’s certainly true that….Time is “Precious”!!

Signing off for now,

Achu

I might be Judged!!

Gone are the days where one lists the mediocre hobbies and interests in a job profile or in social networking profiles or wherever there is a slightest smidge of chance to express ones identity. Offlate people are varied and exploring and mostly live in an era of –‘just being themselves!’ Infact wish that, now I was into the recruitment job with a responsibility to screen extremely explicit sales profiles. God… it’s intriguing to know the hobbies of those tough aggressive personnels! I got this urge after watching one of the interesting video clips- Glengarry Glen shared by a friend. Hmmm only sturdy people can make it to sales I guess!

Speaking of unlikely hobbies, I came across one of the strange hobbies from three of the people I know of. One of them included my aunt who is a homemaker and would like to sit in the balcony with a cup of filter coffee just to observe different sorts of people- their behavior, their reactions or just watching people!! She says it rejuvenates her mind after seeing several super models of humans! Now this jinxed me up only when I started to hear from more than one person who said it’s kind of a hobby to them… Phew!! To me, when it comes to observing people, it’s a mere cursory glance or sometimes make a snap judgement which might be relevant or irrelevant and move on. But here to these people I know of, they enjoy it as a “hobby!” Well, I had a notion that only anthropologists would do this as their hobby or profession or whatever it is!!

According to me, hobby is a subsidiary activity that you do to get revamped. And imagine having been able to develop this kind of a hobby! It’s going to be such a power recreation and comes in so handy and is fun too and ofcourse, its fun as long as it’s harmless or non-offensive to others. This could have been old news to many, but the fact that it’s getting developed as a “hobby” captured my mind recently. Now on, one might get judged anywhere by this quality of people.

Btw, who knows right now where I am sitting and penning down this article, some one might be totally judging me! Oops something fell off…….oh-my-word!!

Signing off for now,

Achu

It’s what it is!!

Not until I read ‘Anne Frank’s diary’ I was able to understand one of the most significant terms in every human life!! It’s the world famous diary apparently written by the young Dutch girl who started writing when she was thirteen, that promptly explained her life in hiding for two years in small office building during World War II. She however could not survive out of concentration camp beyond fifteen years of her age! Her quality of writing and expressions are so intense that does not lower the hangover of the feelings expressed easily. I was so much into that book that, one morning I got up with a terrible fear feeling as though as I was in hiding!!! And there my friends, was my realization on the significant term –‘Freedom!!’

It’s the free spirit that maketh a life. The fight going on for the same in Bangalore prison is one of the examples. Although the prisoner’s demands are outrageous to the government, one can sense the desperation for freedom in them. The life in prison is the least one may want. Infact, one of the classy movies – ‘Shawshank redemption’ explains it all and how the genius makes his way through to his freedom. It’s indeed a blessing to be in a country that not only is a free country but also is democratic. However, in a weird way, democracy is becoming more of a boon to politicians these days in India!!

Anyway although I am a patriotic soul who used to get goose bumps when I hear National Anthem or just by the look of National Flag and also, attended parades and other programs sometimes just as a fest on Independence Day, after such realizations- I do get that same impressions for right transformed reasons for sure!

Freedom indeed is what it is and nothing can be compensated for it!!

So, with the respect of highest order to all those freedom fighters, to all those men and women at the borders and especially to the freedom to be…. “Happy Independence Day to all”

Signing off for now,

Achu

+’ve Inspiration from the opposite sex!

Recently I attended my high-school reunion wherein I was able to get hold of one of my close friend’s contact. We had a recap of almost everything as we spoke. Of the many things that we recollected, we remembered how our male Hindi teacher inspired us to do well in our third language though we both majored in Kannada. He basically used to teach students who had opted Hindi as their first language! Although he dint teach us, it was strange that we somehow wanted to do well in Hindi…. pretty unusual huh!!!

This was a distant inspiration from a good looking North Indian who had just started his career as a teacher and possessed a dynamic behaviour. Back then in South India and that too school filled with girls, he was equivalent to melodramatic khans of the bollywood. Now that I think of it, I could relate the obsession to do well in Hindi to- ‘emotion of opp sex’ about which I had read sometime ago although the reference terminology might vary from source to source. This indeed is the topic that’s not easy to comprehend and therefore, there is a possibility that majority of people would consider the vibes of emotions towards opp sex biased to be related to physical too at first. Anyway that’s just human or mostly human;) (Pun intended!!)

Well coming to the ‘inspirations’ that rise from the ‘emotions of opp sex’ which essentially has its own weird powers! It fills in so much of energy and drive that gets you right into the action that requires to complete the task. For instance, the task could be to as simple as to get through a book that is as boring as 'Men are from Mars and Women are from venus'!!The zest out of emotional inspiration is unbound. It’s proven that, it indeed is one of the powerful factors which not only encourages towards the accomplishment of the task but also makes one conquer beyond their abilities. Well ofcourse, there could be other inspiring factors too which can lead to similar strive like- one’s own burning desire to achieve or inspiration from the family or some other significant event in life! Amongst all such inspirations, emotional inspiration from the opp sex can be counted as one of the potent means which can do wonders!!!

As per my understanding on the topic, the interesting part is, the vibes for such emotions does not restrict on age bar and can start as early as eight! When I was in my fourth grade and as much as I wanted to study well and make my parents feel proud of me, I also wanted to excel badly because a boy in my class was leading. And thereafter, I reckoned to make it to the college dance team thinking that the science nerd across the building might notice one day. And sometimes, it’s the friend’s cousin whom you meet once in a blue moon or sometimes, it’s the show off intellectual colleague from the other wing at office!! Such minor inspirations ironically had led to worthy results. The influence of emotions creates such state of being that leads to stronger mind and keeps it motivated to the ecstasy!

However, there was a thought in my head that, when such teeny tiny +’ve inspirations can afford to put life to an extra mile, what about those exceptional people who have such inspirations from their “true love” or its synonym “friendship!”

Well, Just the thought of it seems like such a biggie and… ain’t that the jackpot of life??

Signing off for now,

Achu