The A to Z of my life.

A can only be for Art. My first love.

B is for all three of my babies. Three original works of art!

C is for a precious, cherished, safe, warm and very loving childhood.

D is for derrieres. Nothing is the world is as beautiful as a lovely butt on a woman.

E is for English. A language without which I couldn’t have taken countless journeys through books.

F is for fashion. Everyone must look good. It will make for a delightful world.

G is for groove! Music, my teacher, mentor, mistress, therapist and time travel capsule. I wouldn’t be me without it.

H is for history. For the holocaust. For all that is past that is defining our future. History in all forms, books, architecture, art that takes you to a mystical, magical place.

I is for all kinds of ink. Ink in calligraphy pens, ink on skin, things inked in the heart.

J is for Jim.

K is for kodaikanal and the madness of youth. Dirt bikes, long treks, magic mushrooms, marijuana and heartbreaks.

L is for falling in love. That hopeless feeling that in contrast is only full of hope. That which you think you will never ever have when you go through a heartbreak but which walks in through your door silently and gives you a warm hug that’s all tingly too.

M is the greatest woman in the world. My mother. Warm hugs, warm cooking, warm smiles, warm tuck in’s, warm soups when you are sick.

N is for nights lit with candles. Nights of silent tears. Nights of hands brushed against skin that is full of promise. Nights that are epic, legendary and is a huge part of my history if I ever write down my memoirs.

O is a blank now. Something to be filled in the future then?

P is for princess! My greatest joy!

Q is for quaint. For quaint old houses. Furniture. Florence. Flowerpots. Birdhouses. Picket fences. Door knockers. And the eternal romance it brings.

R is for the distant rumble of thunder that is anticipation of a brewing storm.

S is for all the women with names starting with ‘S’ that have walked in to my life and left a mark. Starting with my mother.

T is travel. All those journeys taken and yet to be taken.

U is for unwinding. For lazing around on the couch, cuddling and watching movies and just dozing off and for making lazy love.

V is for Valejo and his erotic art.

W is for water. It is me. It is the sea. It is the storm. It is the drink. It is the lakes and the rivers. It is a waterfall. It is tears.

X is a kiss. Little ones. Long drawn out ones. Wet ones. Hard ones. Tender ones.

Y is for yesterdays and all the memories.

And Z can only be a blessedly good snug sleep.

Water

I stare at her.

Water.

She languishes there.

Sensuous, curvy,

mysterious, dark.

Inviting me to touch

drink, lick.

Dive in, she says,

drown in me,

get in me.

She shifts shape.

Just a little.

I gasp.

Breathless.

‘Do you like it?

I thought you would

like to see

a little bit more.’

‘Come

let me taste

your tongue,

your lips.’

I open my lips

and she flows in

over my raw skin

cascading over my tongue

flooding my mouth

exploding in my brain

and blowing out

through my eyeballs.

Water.

Who was still

all this time

is my new heroin.

August 27^th, 2012

Arun kumar r

Sandra

In your memory grim prophet of love :)

16th august.

Love is a dog from hell-

Charles Bukowski

Sandra

is the slim tall

ear-ringed

bedroom damsel

dressed in a long

gown

she's always high

in heels

spirit

pills

booze

Sandra leans out of

her chair

leans toward

Glendale

I wait for her head

to hit the closet

doorknob

as she attempts to

light

a new cigarette on an

almost burnt-out

one

at 32 she likes

young neat

unscratched boys

with faces like the bottoms

of new saucers

she has proclaimed as much

to me

has brought her prizes

over for me to view:

silent blonde zeros of young

flesh

who

a) sit

b) stand

c) talk

at her command

sometimes she brings one

sometimes two

sometimes three

for me to

view

Sandra looks very good in

long gowns

Sandra could probably break

a man's heart

I hope she finds

one.

Courting Chaos

A cognac furnace

Simmering, warm and wet

A summer night

Wrapped in woolen knit

Coveting

And courting chaos

Stunted myelin

Sputter and spark

A darkened blind

Carelessly brushed

A glimpse of warmth

For the vagabond

No craving for the hearth

The warmth glimpsed enough

With frost licking the skin

Warmer than fires of passion

Convince or convinced

Sell or already sold

like deception

The lie is the truth

Advertising and the emotional connection.

Oft I hear these words at meetings when I am presenting scripts.

‘It has to have an emotional appeal.’

This from the clients point of view mean two things. Happy or sad.

Actually strike out sad. It is happy and/or inspiring.

Is that all consumers are capable of? Is that all brands can promise? A hint of a smile or a determined grunt. Nothing deeper. Don’t get visceral with the consumer.

Are these true emotions?

Why can’t we try to find that emotional g spot instead of leaving it at a chaste kiss?

Imagine if everything around us was designed to be a high strung experience across all spectrums of emotions that we are capable of?

It exists in product design. It exists in fashion. It exists in architecture. It exists in automobile design.

Paintings do it. Music does it. Films do it.

But very rarely in commercials. And closer to home, India, you could stand to loose your job if your ads made your consumer burst in to tears, violently disturbed him/her, made one feel erotic or got visceral in any manner.

And so the advertising people are churning out safe, happy, shiny ads and getting an affectionate ruffling on the head by the client. ( Yes. Me too. )

But I was happy to note that there are brands and creative people out there that are doing precisely this. Below I have compiled some work that does this.

Chocolate ice cream. Ever feel a tad erotic, sensual and a wee bit more alive when you eat a delicious one??

Check out this ad for magnum. That sinful and very sensual feeling that eating a chocolate icecream gives you.

You are in an elevator, or a club or on the streets and a beautiful man or woman passes you by and you get a whiff of his/her perfume and your olfactory senses burn with synapses going wild sending signals to your brain and the synapses are given a no red signal clearance all the way to where the unreasonable sensual reactor resides.

This one for Pacorabane XS. Caution - nudity

What a wonderful way to tell us that this planet is a living breathing thing.

Greenpeace.

Brandalism, an ongoing movement in London during the Olympics does this. Though they are thumbing their nose at big brand advertising, it does so by getting under your skin and making that point. In a way a brilliant example of compelling communication in print.

It might be too exhaustive to take up print work done with this philosophy and possibly will require some extensive research so I will leave you with a few ads from a brand that you all probably know. Hans brinker budget hotels done by my favourite creative house, kessels Kramer, which I was fortunate to spend a day at. Brutally frank, truthful and real. 

Like ads should be.

Me and Irene.

25th August 2011. Somewhere over New York City.

‘We can not land as there is an earthquake in progress’, announced the captain as my flight circled endlessly over JFK International airport.

Could this be it. The apocalypse that I have watched on endless apocalyptic films about New York. Always New york. The city has been ravaged and plundered by giant prehistoric predators, hundred foot waves, volcanoes, aliens, zombies, viruses, bad musicals, jay z…

Anyway, back to, could this be it? The apocalyptic destruction of the united states. As the city below me goes up in flames and cavernous splitting up of the earth my aircraft careens down with its 300 odd screaming passengers, I become the lone survivor?

‘We have been cleared for landing ladies and gentlemen’, crackles the speakers.

So no.

I clear the customs, which was a total let down. No immigration official on the other side with piercing blue eyes and a scowl. No interrogatory questions. No ‘ please step this way sir.’

Adventure and apocalyptic broodings were still in the air. Oh just you wait!

‘Irene?’

‘Irene.’

‘Hurricane?’

‘Hurricane Irene, yup.’

A hurricane in New york! This city was really spreading out its apocalyptic red carpet for me.

25^th of august 2011. A sunny day in New york. Evening traffic inching its way to and from Manhattan. The newscaster on the radio shuffling between news about the earthquake that could have destroyed the city to the hurricane that was rushing towards the city to destroy it. And the emotion that I felt was glee. An unabashed excitement knowing that I was somehow a part of newscasts flashing across the world.

Chaos and confusion reigned with my cast and crew. We did venture out scouting locations in the intermittent drizzle always with the radio on. Parts of New york was evacuated treating me to a visual improbability. An almost deserted Manhattan.

We hoarded food and barricaded ourselves in our hotel rooms glued to TV sets and juiced on Jack.

Irene did come. Leaving us all a little wet and breathless. But she was reasonably gentle.

The shoot did get postponed. There was some tense moments in the shuffling of schedules of the entire cast and crew. But Irene gifted us two glorious days of magical sunlight to shoot with.

New York. Where nothing is as you expect.

A letter to my daughter.

Hey everyone!

Yeah its been too long since the last post. Too many things to catch up on. And having a daughter on the cusp of the dreaded teenage years isn't helping. I am sure a lot of you out there will understand. Its darn difficult. This parenting thing. Especially since you have no practice at all!

I was getting quite sick of the repeated 'have you done your home work?', 'have you done your revisions?', 'how is that project coming along?', 'what!!!????? you have to submit a project tomorrow?? It's 10 pm!!'.

So i wrote her a letter. This is it. Maybe it might be of help to you my clueless fellow parents. :)

My darling princess,

I realize that you are going through one of the most bewildering times in your life. Trying to understand a whole new world opening up to you as you go from being a little girl to a young beautiful lady.

I will not say I know and understand what you are going through. Because you see this is the first time I am going through this as a papa too. The first time I am living through what you are also living through. To top it all you are a girl and I am not.

So in a sense I am also learning with you.

I am sure you have had a difficult time growing up knowing your parents are separated. You see, things in the adult world are really very complicated. As I am sure it is in your world of being 11. And it is complicated to explain what went wrong. Just like I am sure it is sometimes difficult for you to explain to me about something in your life. But I think we must both try. Because we are family. Because you are very important to me.

I think the world changed a lot from when me and your mother was young to now. I think we changed as well. And what mattered to us, how we viewed the word was different to each of us as we grew up.

But we truly loved one another at one time. And I still care a lot for your mother and that is why we are both working really hard to make sure both you and jd have things as easy and as smooth as we can make it. We will always be there for you both. Always and unconditionally.

Because you see we are blessed to have you and jd as a daughter and son. Because the joy I feel when I see you and jd growing up is probably as happy as I ever will be.

But I am truly sorry for all the confusion and pain you must have gone through.

When I was your age I lied too. I also lost my books. I also hid my homework. I also had secrets. And I also upset appapa and ammama no end. My grades slipped from the time I was in my 8^th and ended up with me scoring badly in my 10^th grade board exams. Well actually it wasn’t the low score that shocked me but the fact that I scored 59.9 after studying only ten days. A .1 more mark could have given me a first class. And some respect.

And so I promised myself I would mend my ways if only I got in to a proper college or a +2 school. Fortunately I did get in to a +2 school. Not that I stopped having fun or being mischievous. But I started taking responsibility for my own studies. I realized the trick was in working as hard as I would at doing something mischievous.

And so years later in law college I reversed the table by becoming known as the “dude” but scoring over 70 percent in my final exams shocking my fellow classmates.

And then quit practicing law to follow my heart. And worked tireless hours, day and night, different cities, sometimes without salary or food or even a proper place to sleep to learn the one subject that was not taught to me in all my 16 years of studies. Art. But you know what? I had so much fun doing it.

And so now I am head of creative in a company that is famous worldwide. And I am not done yet.

But I often think what if I had done better in school? What if my grades had got me to a college that taught art, design and technology? Would I then have made a movie like avatar or a wonderful animated film watched by billions?

And so I want to share a few things that I learned along the way. Hopefully you will learn from the mistakes I made so you do not need to repeat them again. Of course you will need to make your own mistakes and learn from them, but here is a little help J

Stand up for what is right even if it makes you unpopular.

Be a good friend. And I promise you it will reward you one day in a way you never imagined.

Try not to lie. Because for some reason it always comes back and bites you in the ass. Trust me, I know.

Never steal or destroy another person’s things. Think of your favourite thing and how it would feel if someone took it away or destroyed it.

A day wasted today is a day wasted forever.

Everything you learn today will one day come to your rescue.

Respect others and this will make other people respect you. Respect like love can not be bought.

A broken heart will one day be a stronger heart.

Send a prayer out to the universe everyday. And each day you will realize what is really important to you.

Dress well and look good. If you don’t you are helping make this world an ugly place.

You and only you are responsible for your happiness. So if something makes you sad or unhappy or hurts you, remember you have the power to change it.

Read everything you can get your hands on. There is nothing called enough knowledge.

Draw and paint. It’s your hearts way of expressing what words cannot.

Every person you meet can teach you something new.

And most importantly don’t forget to have a whole lot of fun!

I know I am not a perfect papa and I know I have a bad temper. But with your love and help I think I can be a better papa to you.

I fell in love with you when I first saw your pink wrinkly face. I love you each day even though some days are not the greatest. And I will always love you even if you are too busy to return my calls someday.

Your papa.

March 16, 2012

2010- A new year resolution in 1200 dpi

Sane no more
Pain no more
Pretend no more
Patient no more
Ignore no more
Worry no more
Blind no more
Try no more
Cry no more
Bury no more
Hurry no more
Stationary no more
Cautionary no more
Vagabond no more
Euthanasia no more
Satiable no more
Excess no more
Taunt no more
More of the plastic fantastic life
I want no more

The Font War: Ikea Fans Fume over Verdana

The Font War: Ikea Fans Fume over Verdana

Eleven months.

Eleven months.
From moments that was reminiscent of the “pieta” to how I probably must get used to walking when I am 90! I was carried like a baby, I was dropped, I fell, I suffered pain, paranoia, scraped the bottom of that barrel called hope, gave up privacy, relearned intimacy and in the process discovered the joy of “time” spent worthwhile.
I no longer need help to turn around in bed. I no longer need help to sit up. I no longer need help in tearing up the chapatti to small pieces. I do need help in standing up. Though it becomes lesser and lesser as the weeks go by. I still need someone to keep a watchful eye and a hand on me when I totter along with a knee brace and my trusted walking stick.
It has not been easy hanging on to hope. With no medical practitioner giving a time frame nor to what extent I can expect recovery I have had to turn to groups on the net of people afflicted in the same way and draw a pattern and strength from them. It all boils down to faith and conviction and support. Of seeing an image of you dancing on a beach as the sun sets in liquid flames and clawing your way to that image.
Support. It has come from quarters I never expected. It has thrown up friends I never thought I could lean on. It has also shown chinks in the armour of friends I wrapped myself with. But then it is not easy to deal with something like this when it happens to a close pal. Like you don’t know how to deal with death.
The person changes. He can’t hit the pubs anymore, he can’t go chasing tail, he can’t smoke up his way to oblivion, he can’t go out with you to a movie or shopping or clubbing. It has not been easy at all for me to understand and come to terms with these changes. Life as I knew it all this while is gone.
I still dream about dancing intimately with my girl. To be able to run with my kids and kick a ball. And I know these visions is what will get me back there.
A friend once told me, “man! You were travelling tooooo fast!!! Life just put on the brakes for you. Just sit back and relax!”
I couldn’t agree more. I have spend time doing things I may never have. I have had the joy of watching my kids. An endless riot!!! Of watching a movie with them, of painting with them, of singing with them, of answering their questions, of reading bedtime stories to them. Things I did way too less and way too far in between.
There are still things I must do. But at least I have had time to think of what those things are. And what is important.
I am awed by the love I receive. You see I still have my temper!!! 
I have a lot to return to sanne and my kids. My mom for being strong cause I know how must this must have shattered her.
And so this is the update! I see the shack in the horizon, I hear music faint and wafting in the air. I am on my way me hearties! I’ll see ya all there in a while!
Oh! All of ya all on facebook check out my t shirts in the group “myfuckin’tshirt”. For the rest I will put them up on flickr.

HUMAN SKIN - ANIMAL SKIN IS JUST AS INHUMAN

Three ads i did for people for animals- bangalore against the slaughter of animals for leather. Do leave comments. and when u do please leave your names as well. :)

human skin - shoe

human skin - gloves


human skin - bag

Credits- Minakshi achan, Arun kumar R

Photographer- Steve Koh

Agency- Rediffusion Y&R

India shining - a collection of fictional stories from 08

2009. Didn't they make a movie called 2010? With flying cars and cyborgs in aamchi Mumbai? Sometimes film makers have been claimed as visionaries. I guess in this case it was myopic. Mumbai is missing a few bricks after terror attacks. ( the movie of course was gunned down at the box office, which maybe should have been taken as a sign of things to come ). It's not just our film makers that lack foresightedness but our politicians, our intelligence dept and also our average Indian "raja beta".

I think it's the glare. It's the blinding glare that has taken away our power to see in to the future. The bright white stunning glare emanating from "India shining". It's so stunningly bright that in the coming year there will be a surge in the sale of sun glasses and the recession be damned.

Dawood. That man has glasses. Nice burgundy tinted ones. He can see clearly in to the future. He too saw flying cars in Mumbai. The kind where you strap on a kilo of c4 next to the engine and when you turn on the ignition, ka-boom! You're flying!!!
He can see through the posturing politicians, he can see through the posturing vociferous film maker ( he also funds their films ), he can even see through the stock market!! You don't see him handing out pink slips to his people do you?

The Indian intelligence knows where the terrorist training camps are in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (pok) but will not blow them up.The global intelligence knows the house and street address of the heads of terror outfits but simply can not arrest them.Benasir Bhutto was blown up a day after she came home, but Pakistan says it's a friendly neighbour.( And they still do not have a suspect.)Mayawati has just put the collective rural population of rai bareli back in the dark ages by derailing the rail factory project but is still in power.

Mamata bannerji threw her spanner at mr.Tata. He wrapped up his works in bengal and moved out with his nano. The villager for whom she did this good deed is left scratching his head and his balls and wondering where his next meal will come. Ms Banerji is well and doing good.The Tamil tigers blew PM Rajiv Gandhi to pieces but we have Tamil political supremos interfering on behalf of the Tamil tigers safety in Sri Lanka.

India is shining but the average " raja beta" does not have a place to sleep, food to eat, basic medical help or justice.

The economic pundits didn't see the crash coming, America was gobbling up world reserves along with their big macs. Jobs galore. IT companies were the place to be. Financial companies a close second. The world was shining out of it's asshole.

And then it got diaohrea.

The shit spewed out and hit the ac vent. All the way from New York to Hosur.

So why are admissions in management schools still coveted? Why do we listen to finance gurus? Why do we still have CEOs heading companies in gucci underwears? None of them saw the future. None of them can even see the present clearly.

We do not need jargon. We do not need abbreivated words. We don't need "paradigm shifts" , "restructuring" or "new skill sets". We do not need posturing politicians who can not wage a righteous war but will promte internal strife. We need to stop listening to speeches of false sense of pride. We need to stop patting our collective backs. We need to get those shades off and see that nothing, nothing at all is "shining".

Half the world is at war. Your boss will sack you even if it was he/ she who got the bottom line calculations wrong. There will be more terror attacks and this time you may loose soneone but the country will do nothing.

This ship is sinking and it's every man for himself.

Happy new year!!!

Update

Behalve de kittens gebeurt er natuurlijk van alles. Ik neem aan dat iedereen inmiddels wel begrepen heeft dat Arun (tijdelijk) in een rolstoel zit. Hoe lang het nog gaat duren is niet bekend, we hopen maximaal 2 maanden. En ja, dat is net op tijd voor de bruiloft.

Over de bruiloft gesproken: op 15 oktober zijn we in ondertrouw gegaan. In december ga ik naar Nederland om een nieuw visum aan te vragen en als we officieel getrouwd zijn dan kan ik een visum voor een jaar of zelfs 15 jaar krijgen. In India wordt weinig tot geen waarde gehecht aan het geregistreerde huwelijk, ik had al op verschillende fora gelezen dat er niets romantisch aan is. En dat was het ook niet. Ik was er zelf heengegaan om te vragen welke papieren er allemaal nodig waren en om hun papieren te krijgen. Dat ging relatief goed; we hadden alleen een verklaring nodig waarin stond dat we ongehuwd danwel gescheiden waren en een bewijs van leeftijd, dus een geboortecertificaat. En een bewijs dat we in Cox town (de buurt) wonen. Elk district heeft een eigen registratiekantoor waar je heen moet. Woon je in een andere buurt dan moet je ook naar een ander kantoor.

Nadat ik alle papieren verzameld had ben ik in totaal nog 3x terug geweest, de 3e keer met de verpleger van Arun als tolk. Kreeg nogal het idee dat ze moeilijk deden om het moeilijk doen, zo vonden ze de huurovereenkomst niet voldoende bewijs dat we in Cox town wonen. In Indiase paspoorten staat ook het adres waar je ingeschreven staat ten tijde van het aanvragen van het paspoort en in de Nederlandse niet. Dus kreeg ik eerst de vraag waarom dat niet in de mijne vermeld stond. Euh... omdat mijn land dat niet doet?! Dat maakte het wel lastig vertelde de dame van de registratie want nu konden ze niet controleren waar ik woonde. Tja... ik kan natuurlijk een brief aan de regering schrijven (heb immers Balkenende, Koningin Beatrix, Prins Willem-Alexander en Prinses Máxima allemaal persoonlijk ontmoet inmiddels) om dit te veranderen, maar die kans leek me klein. En bovendien hoefde maar 1 partij te bewijzen dat hij of zij in de juiste buurt woont. Dus vroeg ik of het dan niet op Aruns naam kon.

Huurovereenkomst is in zijn naam en een huurovereenkomst is rechtsgeldig. Maar nee, dat kon ook niet want in Aruns paspoort stond een oud adres in R.T. Nagar, een ander district. Dus, vertelde ze me terwijl ze me alle papieren teruggaf, ga maar naar R.T. Nagar. Toen ik aangaf dat dat natuurlijk niet kon omdat we daar niet wonen begon ze diep te zuchten. Het was allemaal erg lastig, lastig. Zij haar baas opgebeld en als we een brief van een notaris kregen waarin stond dat Arun ten tijde van de paspoort aanvraag in R.T. Nagar woonde, maar nu in Cox town dan was het goed. Ik pissig want zo'n brief is helemaal niet nodig. Een huurovereenkomst is genoeg, je kunt me niet wijsmaken dat er NIEMAND verhuist na een paspoort aanvraag (dat zei ze, dat normaal de adressen altijd overeen komen). De keuzes die we hadden volgens haar waren: brief van de notaris, nieuw paspoort aanvragen of een rijbewijs halen met het juiste adres.

De verpleger en ik naar huis en dit alles uitgelegd aan Arun. Die erg pissig werd en een beter plan had: hij zou er zelf wel even heengaan. Dus taxi gebeld, rolstoel op het dak, Arun ingeladen en op naar het kantoor. Daar aangekomen stond iedereen ons aan te gapen. Voor de duidelijkheid: het is een klein kantoor van de regering waar iedereen komt die iets moet registeren. Dat kan een huwelijk zijn, maar ook een stuk land, een huis of een motorfiets. Dus het is er altijd druk. Arun in de rolstoel naar binnen en naar diezelfde vrouw. Ging ze weer door alle papieren heen en opeens viel haar oog op Arun's scheidingspapieren waarin stond dat ten tijde van zijn huwelijk, hij een advocaat was in de rechtbank van Kochi, Kerala. En dat veranderde opeens alles. Alle papieren waren prima in orde, madam (ik dus) had het vast allemaal verkeerd begrepen. De troela!

We mochten door naar een andere kamer met 2 computers. Daar moesten we onze namen, namen van ouders, geboortedatum en adres opgeven. De vrouw achter de computer kon absoluut niet met een computer omgaan en ook niet typen dus dat ging echt superlangzaam. Ze moest een aantal velden invullen zoals: voornaam, achternaam, geboortedatum, maar dat was allemaal erg verwarrend voor haar. Duurde dus nogal lang. Toen dat eindelijk klaar was en ze een aantal printjes had gemaakt van alle gegevens mochten we naar een derde persoon die onze foto's op het document plakte en erop toezag dat we overal een handtekening onder zetten. 1 exemplaar wordt gedurende 30 dagen op het prikbord gehangen en mensen die bezwaar hebben tegen het huwelijk hebben deze periode hun kans.

Hierna mochten we naar persoon # 4 om te betalen. Ja, trouwen is hier niet gratis. Maarliefst 33 rupees (50 eurocent) stond er op het papier. "Dat is dan 100 rupees" zei de man achter de balie. Euh... volgens mij staat er toch echt 33 hier. Arun was inmiddels buiten, maar kon door het raam alles volgen. Ik vertikte het om te betalen en die man werd kwaad. En begon tegen Arun te schreeuwen en Arun terugschreeuwen (er is echt NIETS romantisch aan trouwen hier!). Hij vond dat ik maar moeilijk deed en iedereen betaalde altijd 100 rupees. En Arun en ik vonden dat hij ons niet moest afzetten. Uiteindelijk bemoeide een andere man van het kantoor zich ermee en hoefde ik inderdaad alleen maar de 33 rupees te betalen. Arun had gedreigd om ervoor te zorgen dat dit hele verhaal in de krant kwam en de verpleger was druk bezig om foto's te maken van de man die ons probeerde af te zetten met zijn telefoon. Die werd alleen maar nog kwader (uiteraard) en keek alleen maar naar beneden. Verpleger gaf de telefoon aan mij en liep naar buiten om Arun te helpen. Kwade man keek op want dacht dat het gevaar geweken was, zag mij met telefoon in de aanslag en probeerde de telefoon uit mijn handen te slaan. Net op dat moment klikte ik dus was een erg mooie foto. En zo zijn we in ondertrouw gegaan :).

Na 30 dagen mogen we terugkomen voor ons certificaat, op 15 november dus. Hoop dat het dan allemaal iets leuker gaat!

We zijn ook een stapje verder in het vinden van onze locatie. Zoals het er nu uitziet gaat het gebeuren in Chattai, in Agonda (Goa). Zie deze link: http://www.chattai.co.in/accomodationa.htm

Zelf heeft Chattai maar een aantal hutten, maar ze verwacht dat ze al onze gasten kan onderbrengen in andere resorts of guesthouses in de buurt.

En dat was het wel :)

Liefs,

Sanne

De kittens na 2 weken

De kittens groeien goed, de oogjes zijn open:

Ze drinken veel:

Ze beginnen een beetje te spelen:

Hier wonen ze:

Calvin en Susie, moeilijk voor te stellen dat ze zelf ook zo klein waren:

Susie toen ze klein was:

Calvin toen hij klein was:

Susie's kittens

Een paar foto's van Susie en haar kittens:
Zaterdagochtend werden 2 kittens geboren:

De trotse familie:

Susie vond de doos toch maar niks dus verhuisde ze:

En zondagochtend (24 uur later ja!) waren het er opeens 3:



Susie is druk met voeden en zo, maar het drukst is ze nog steeds met verhuizen van de ene plek naar de andere:

A second life

hello people
A happy vijaya dashami, a kick on mamata bannerji's ass, a standing ovation to ratan tata and a belly busting fit of laughter at the supersized american.
Life as usual has been rolling out its fantastic unpredictability in my face. Sometimes i think life, if it could be given a gender has to be a woman! what drama!!!
I am in a wheelchair now. Partially paralysed. Ha! you all didnt expect that did ya????
Yeah i am. And welcome to the world of Guillain barre syndrome and myeloradiculopathy.
Allow me to extempore. And i do hope this helps people who are afflicted by this "rock star" disease as i like to call it. Click on the link for a concise idea of what this is. Basically a virus from something as simple as a fever, cold or a tummy upset attacks your body. the body produces anti bodies to counter it, gets rid of it, but then turns around and attacks your nervous system. It usually does so in an ascending manner. Legs, torso, arms, respiratory system, throat, tongue, facial muscles.
I was back on the 12th of september after a photoshoot on steroids for a new beer brand called Kingfisher Blue in malaysia. 15th morning, was predicted to be a normal day by the weatherman. Not for me. I woke up with my left leg behaving like rubberband girl. It felt like it had gone to sleep, the way it does when you have slept in an awkward position in the night. There was no control at all, but i could still feel touch. By evening it had not abated and the feeling was spreading to my right leg. In the evening when sanne was back i collapsed on the floor trying to get from the bedroom to the living room. Unfortunately a trip to the chief ortho in manipal hospital did not bring about a proper diagnosis and i was send back. 16th morning had both my legs paralysed. To make a long story short, colleagues from office (bless their wonderful hearts) rushed over and carried me to the hospital and two more friends/doctors made a few phone calls to facilitate my admission to the hospital. After a delay of another 24 hours during which time it spread to my torso and both my arms i was diagnosed with borderline gbs brought on by post infectious myeloradiculopathy. MRI, CT scans, electro, spinal/blood extracts thankfully showed no further complications. I was admitted to manipal and administered steroids to contain the spread.
7 days later i was send back home. In a wheelchair. i am continuing my medication and i have a red cross male nurse who helps me with everything. From carrying me from the bed to the pot to dressing me up. Sanne has been the most wonderful girlfriend in the days when i could not find a nurse, doing all this by herself, and still gets continually bothered by me in the nights when i have to turn in bed or take a pee. :) god bless you my darling. i promise you i will make up for all the lack of sex and the lack of sleep. hehehhehe....
And so now i continue my days with intense physiotherapy and electrotherapy everyday. Though neither the docs or the physio is willing to tell me how long it will take for a complete recovery. a few months to............
i will be happy the day i can atleast freely move my legs and stand up with the help of walking sticks. Its terrible for a fiercely independant person to have someone help you with putting on your underwear.
But i will beat this bitch. Patience in getting your nerves working again and mentally staying positive is the key.
All in all it has been a humbling experience. the body that one takes for granted. the wiggling of your toe that u do not even think about, the knee that holds you up, the hand that makes your career..... the fact that you stand upright without even thinking about it.
The foolishly fallible creature that is the human being, running behind money, politics, manipulations, bigger house, fatter pay cheqes, kissing ass for more power, control. what a fucking joke. You are not even in control of your own fucking body. You do not understand the divine mystery that it is. i think everytime i will now see a power struggle, an act of dominance through manipulation, an extempore at being superior i will be laughing my ass off inside my head. :)
I leave you with an artice i read by jag suraiya which vividly demostrates the fat cat attitude and how ignorant we are.
"Long before Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae became the stuff of urban nightmares, America had been super-stuffing itself. Morgan Spurlock’s 2004 documentary film, ‘Super Size Me’, is an allegory of the economics — and the consequences — of gluttony. The title of the film refers to the American practice of ‘supersizing’ fast-food items by adopting a pricing policy which induces customers to opt for larger portions. For a 30-day period the 32-year-old film-maker subsisted on a diet of three McDonald’s meals a day, ‘supersized’ only at the initiative of the vendors. The result: in a month, Spurlock had put on 11.1 kg, developed high blood pressure, psychological disorders and liver problems. It took him 14 months of rigorous detoxification to come back to normal. Spurlock’s cautionary tale is a parable about America’s chronic, insatiable appetite for not just fast food, but for everything, from gas-guzzling cars to climate-controlled condominiums. The statistics have become an environmentalist’s litany: with 5 per cent of the world’s population, the US consumes 24 per cent of the world’s energy; an average American consumes as much energy as 13 Chinese, or 31 Indians, or 128 Bangladeshis, or 370 Ethiopians. America’s total calorie intake is 815 billion calories a day, which nutritionists say is some 200 billion in excess of requirement, sufficient to feed 80 million people. Moreover, each day, Americans throw away 2,00,000 tons of edible food. If developing countries wanted to live like this, four new Earth-sized planets would have to be created to provide the necessary resources. And the best part is that it’s not America which has been picking up the tab for its prodigal, supersized lifestyle, but the rest of the world. On the tried-and-tested principle that if you owe your bank a hundred bucks you’re a defaulter, but if you owe it a couple of million you’re its most valued customer, the US has been blithely living on credit for years, funded by trade deficits and foreign investments. In 2007, the total US trade deficit (i.e. the amount by which imports exceeded exports) was a little over 700 billion dollars (does that figure have a topical ring to it?). Of the 4.4 trillion dollars worth of US treasury bonds (basically IOUs issued by America’s Federal Reserve Bank) more than 25 per cent are held by foreign countries, China alone accounting for 414 billion dollars. If all these IOUs were to be called in, not just the US but the whole global economy would implode. At the risk of its own bankruptcy, the world can’t afford to let America go bust. Like a supersized Humpty Dumpty, America has fallen off the wall, or rather, off Wall Street. Will all the world’s resources and all the world’s banks be able to put Humpty Dumpty together again? That’s the 4.4-trillion-dollar question for all of us, and not just for the US. "

Peace and love to all and a heartfelt thanks to Vikru, Sameera, pops and sumanth for "being there" at the right time.

"HEY HEY I (still) WANNA BE A ROCK STAR."

Ons nieuwe adres

Voor kaartjes en cadeautjes ;-)

Purvapark, D-608
Daffodils Block
No.53, MSO Colony, Cox Town
Bangalore – 560 005
India

Wedding bells...

De trouwdatum is bekend :-D.

6 februari 2009, tussen 11.20 en 11.45.

Zoals het er nu uitziet vindt de bruilfoft plaats in Goa, aan het strand. Maar dat is nog niet 100% zeker. Zodra we meer weten post ik het hier.

Purva Park

Een snelle update met wat foto's. We gaan verhuizen!

Naar een appartementencomplex, Purva Park:

De ingang van het complex:

Overicht van het complex vanaf het dak van ons gebouw. Er zijn 3 flats in totaal

Met lift

Ons gebouw

De woonkamer:

Tennisbaan & Zwembad

miles and miles to go....

Whew! ok it's been quite a journey since i last wrote..... and i literally mean that... it has been quite a journey. From my last post i have seen the fervour of football watching the euro 08 in europe, the grandeur of rome, the imposing poetry of the vatican to christianity, the sweet romance of florence, the choking smell of death and massacre in Aushwitz-birkenau, the lovely friendly people in krakow, poland, a grand show called sensation and the tears that flowed in the indian embassy. And i must not forget netherlands and it's people. a country i seem to have travelled extensively when i look back. That has been several hours on the road, several hours on the train and on the subway, camping site to camping site to hostel to hostel.

I have met some really nice people, made a friend or two. i have seen poignant instances of blatant racism and been touched by acts of help and kindness. i have been to places that till now resided only in my fantasies and dreams. i have a few more grey hairs. and hopefully a little wiser and knowing.

15th july 08. tomorrow we leave back to india. has one journey stopped and an other begun. ah.... the slow anticipation of life... :)

i need to collect my thoughts before i pen down the rest of journey from where i left off.

peace and love

arun