A Case of Pollution Inside

It is a common misconception that there is pollution outside, and we live in a safe place inside, right inside our homes. But sooner or later, the same is proven to be wrong. The truth is that we are never really far away from pollution, which always finds a way. But we rarely find people taking the necessary steps to minimize the effects of indoor pollution. It is more because of the lack of awareness rather than anything else. Living in apartments and houses or villas with so much less space around, we are restricted to a concrete jungle unlike the world the older generation was familiar with.

All these dust particles which accumulate, are the first among them. There is the presence of a lot of dust, right on the keyboard and screen of our laptops, and we see some of them even on our mobile screens. So, it is essential for us to keep them clean all the time. One can be pretty sure that these trouble a good amount of people among the population of India. With the use of air conditioners not that common, such dust getting inside won’t be that difficult. It is common for people to feel that a little bit of dust is no problem, but in the longer the run, there will be trouble on the way.

The walls which are freshly painted can also bring some terrible air, which is one of the reasons why people stay away when the house is being painted. The smell of paint can be irritating for most people, and the intensity decides how bad the same is. The same can happen after some cleaning agent is used in a room. The place has to be kept open for air circulation, or otherwise, it will prove to be very unhealthy. There are people who are rather too lazy that they can’t resist the temptation to close the doors and windows early as usual, but ventilating the place well enough is a necessity.

Then there is smoke, and a cigarette is the biggest troublemaker in many houses. The smoke left by the same will remain in the air for quite some time, as we might have come across them at some point of our life, even if us, or the people close to us don’t really smoke. Passive smoking or second-hand smoke is also terrible enough for people, and have lead to the ban for smoking in so public places. There might be not many things more severe than having someone smoke inside your house, and appropriate measures are not taken to get rid of the smoke. It is more like a terrible curse to the air quality.

From cancer and heart diseases to lung problems and mental health related troubles, passive smoking is not that far away from causing the same ill-effects that active smoking do. It is even worse in the case of children. We can be sure that these won’t be the end either. Even the smoke from candles and incense sticks might be able to cause trouble for some people – well, gods and powercuts require these two even now, and so it will be even more difficult to get rid of them. But we have the alternatives in electronics with candles working with battery and a bulb inside, and those emergency lights are always useful.

The air pollution can also be from your own kitchen, which uses the gas stoves without proper ventilation. It is often considered to be a rather ineffective or weak kind of air pollutant, but the same can rise further above what one expects about it. When you look at them, most of the heating equipment can be responsible for the same. We are often caught in the end results of the same, which would feel so good, that we miss out on what comes before the final destination. The key to keeping the air pollution low, is once again having a proper ventilation, which helps.

These are just some of those few things about air pollution inside, which goes stronger than the same outside on many occasions. People need to be aware about this, sooner or later. It is here that Royal Atmos comes into the picture, as the paint that successfully reduces the harmful air pollutants by a margin and keeps the air cleaner. It is also known to absorb different types of foul smells and make the air fresher to breathe inside the house. You will find that the paint not only appears good, but also makes one feel better with the air quality inside.

Visit this link for more details: https://www.asianpaints.com/atmos

TeNy

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Enlightenment: Myntra Model

Count Dracula was preparing for the first All-Nation Conference at the United Races Imperial Organization Centre which is within the High Elf lands. He represented the New Vampire World on this first ever peace conclave which was attended by the representatives of all nations of the realm including the shadows. He was searching all around the room for one special thing, but it was clear that he never found the same.

Uncle Dracula: This is impossible. I can’t go for this meeting. We are supposed to have some variety here. I am unable to choose a style which is different or even something which suits the vampire model.

Vampire Owl: You have your vampire cloak which you have been wearing for centuries. It is your usual model, and you always wear the black with a very small touch of red or white with which people identify you.

Uncle Dracula: No, it is too common. It is like what everyone have seen me in, and they will think that I never have a shower or change my clothes. I am a supposed to be a world leader. I need to look stylish. All the garment shops in our nation have the same kind of clothes only, and the vampire fashion is always the same. What am I to do?

Vampire Bat: Why don’t you go and visit an online shopping website?

Uncle Dracula: Yes, I have some of the links to the websites saved on my laptop and I did search, but couldn’t find the right clothing there either.

Vampire Bat: There lies the problem. The best online shopping website for fashion is no longer available on the internet in your laptop. It has gone app only. You need to use it on Android, iOS or may be get your first mobile with the Windows Phone.

Uncle Dracula: They are app only? Why?

Vampire Bat: Well, fashion is unique for everyone, and for this personal experience, mobile phone is the best option. You wanted to be different and special for the conclave, and this is the best option in that case. The App Party with fifty to seventy percent offer was till yesterday, but you can still find some nice options now.

Vampire Owl: In the men’s section, among the coats and jackets, get the John Players Men Beige Wool Blend Slim Fit Blazer. These Navy Blue Aviator Sunglasses which I am wearing were bought from Myntra too.

Vampire Bat: You need to buy some jewellery for the vampire brides too. Otherwise, they are going to be bloody unhappy.

Uncle Dracula: It is indeed interesting. I always peferred to have it on the mobile phone. Otherwise, Mavis always tampers with the laptop. She has become such a big IT pain on my fangs. Things will be easier with the app – after all, this is my personal device as of now, and it is time to stop downloading only those endless running games.

Vampire Owl: There has already been about ten million downloads, and so you are too late – just get into it.

Vampire Bat: No, Uncle Dracula is never late. As this is a personal thing, another world of style begins with the uncle going through the same. You personal space will bring a new level of awesomeness to the world.

Uncle Dracula: It will always be with me, and shall be so easy to use. So I don’t see a reason why I am to choose against it.

Vampire Owl: Ex-act-alley!

Vampire Bat: What was that? Did you just say the word “exactly” like an undead zombie pirate who died while trying to raid the New Vampire Harbour?

Vampire Owl: Just trying another personal style, this time with words. No dead or undead pirate model here. No undead was harmed related to this.

Uncle Dracula: Yours is no style anymore! Get ready for my unique style from the Myntra android App of mine! Go and come back tomorrow. You shall see something special. And don’t tell Mavis.

You might have read about it before – Myntra went app only on the Fifteenth of May. You can download it from Google Play Store, Apple or Windows Store according to your platform, and it is going to be exclusive for only one kind of device, the mobile phone which is in your hands. Yes, Myntra goes more personal, and it will now be with you only as the app that joins your team of mobile applications.

***The images used in this blog post are from the Official Facebook Page of Myntra, and is supposed to support this write-up.

TeNy

All the Stress in the World

The idea of a #StressFreeMom – is it even close to being possible? You have to wonder. Yes, even though she doesn’t show it on her face, stress is a big villain who is always trying to bring the superhero mom down. This qualifier and contender for the super-villain title never really backs away from creating more and trouble with the help of fate. So, the superhero mom needs a side-kick, like Robin is to Batman and Kato is to Green Hornet. Even Iron Man got War Machine, so the need is always there. See the worry list here.

Reason #1: She is worried that I am worried. She is stressed that I am not stress-free and there is so much stress which I go through. She feels that I am not happy and I am so sad that I will make God himself so unhappy and will bring His wrath right down upon the Earth. She has been worried that I don’t smile that much, and it is a worry. But she is slightly relieved that I wasn’t a smiling child when I was born. Still, she hopes to bring the smile back so that she can be confident that I am not really stressed or worried that she can be stress-free. She is praying and waiting for the moment when I get a job, even a small one.

Reason #2: There is also the worry about health. It has always been there, and this undisputed presence has worried not only her, but also me. Yes, she thinks that I am not having the right food, and also not at the right time. She keeps thinking about those proteins and vitamins which I might be missing, and how my current food habits are going to hurt me during a later stage of life. She feels that I could be more responsible to my own body, and tries to give me early food so that I can have the next one much earlier. But has rarely been a thing of interest for me, and that provides stress!

Reason #3: I do spend too much time reading from the laptop as well as those printed books. Here, the concern is more about my eye. She thinks that I should calm down a bit, think, read and write only after resting enough. It is kind of right though; may be I shouldn’t be the most sleepless one around. The need for rest is there, and I have avoided it too much to have the stress and pass it on to mother. There was even that poem about “rest” which we had to study during the colleg edays. Well, I am planning a long rest for later, and so it will be solved on another day.

Reason #4: I also stay late and wake up early, and she feels that I don’t sleep at all. She feels that I am skipping the sleep to overdo the studies and it is affecting my health. She is stressed about the same that she keeps asking. May be I should have more rest, but I don’t have enough time in a day – twenty four hours is not enough for me. I have things to do, and there is no time, and I own no time machine. Even if I sleep, it shall provide me no actual rest, and may be there will be no sleep at all. Well, life is full of worries, and when we them, mom also gets them.

Reason #5: The extra stress is there, provided by those people who are not me. Yes, there are those continuous stress providers who are wandering around at all places where they can find the range. Yes, the mother is not immune to them either, as the relative trouble keeps hovering around. But they have been the least of her concern, but still they make that terrible attempt to make an impact. It is the unwanted stress that we are forced to have, and it just keeps following us – not just her, but also most of us.

It has been a long time of worrying, from the school days to college days, and now beyond all that. She really needs to stop being stressed. She would need a Parachute Advansed Aromatherapy oil massage have some rest as she takes it as her side-kick, instead of worrying and doing too much work. Yes, these days she do worry less than I do, and sometimes I feel that it is me who needs the massage. But as it is my time to worry and her time to rest after the grand retirement, she should do exacty that and leave the rest to me 🙂

I’m blogging about why my mother needs to de-stress with a Parachute Advansed Aromatherapy Oil massage for the #StressFreeMom activity at BlogAdda.

TeNy

The Memory Collection

When I was a child, more problems were solved by my mother, even more than even those which were actually problems. She has always been there for me to find the grand solutions, no matter what kind of troubles were there. She has been the one superhero who has continued to save the day. She has worked the magic with all its strength, and became the one person who could make the day better. It happened very often, but there are occasions which can be remembered with ease.

1. The Friend Problem: The most significant problem that I faced was the friend problem. I never really had many friends, and even among the friends, I had been very choosy. It is something that was not easy in my case, but I made the choice from a small list. Even then, I rarely managed to get along with most of them. Then the major adviser was mom herself who was not just the first friend, but also the first advisor on friends. She knew the right person to be friends with, and the best friend was the good friend – and not those who pretend; I managed to learn it further with life experience.

2. The Teacher Problem: There was always the problem of finding the cane with teachers of the time. So, the mother would be a part-time teacher and work with the subjects to help and save the son from the big battle at the class. She had the time to be the part-time spell-checker as well as the Mathematics helper of that time. She made sure that I performed better at school even though it meant that she had not much time to spare after that. Well, the idea of rest was quite unknown, but she managed her part with the studies nicely, not only with me, but also with my sister.

3. The Dog Problem: It was a rather significant problem as it was rather a never ending factor as I had to travel around the Kerala State Transport Corporation Bus Stand rather than take the much easier shortcut. It was like a castle of evil for me (that was before reading Dracula), and there was this dog which I considered devilish, and always tried to block my way. It wanted to chase me, but I was good at running, and it only ran up-to a certain point of its territory. Yes, I told mom and she solved it – the dog remained inside the gate of the house from that day, I was glad to call it a bad dog from outside.

4. The Food Problem: This has been continuously solved the mother. Actually, there was no other person who came close, even though some of the aunties did contribute well in the later stages. There was nothing like having the food made by mother. Yes, it was quite popular in the class too, and as only one curry was there, I also developed the habit of using less curry with the rice – it has helped me with controlling food too; she had so much work, and she still managed to cook and not let us have food from the outside – that habit came much later when I was in college; otherwise, it was all about mom’s cooking.

5. The Relative Problem: This one has managed to be a difficult problem to solve, and it continues to run strong, and only mom has managed to keep its level down. Some of the relatives have been unbearable with their free advice. They are the kind of people who can do no good, but only bring trouble. The specialty of their advice is consistent comparisons with their children who are supposed to be better and more successful. The advice from mother has helped in avoiding them up-to an extent and not to care much about all the nonsense that they come up with.

The Problems of Problems: Mother has been expert in solving even the problems which the problems have, and she continues to be the best in doing the same. She was always there for us and remains the best, and has also been solving the problems of the father as well as a number of her siblings, along with working at the office, thus becoming the skilled multi-tasker. While celebrating mothers, let’s also spare some time to celebrate the most widely trusted expert when it is about hair colour, which is Godrej. For more details, do check this link: http://godrejexpert.com/single_used_pack.php

***The images used in this blog post are from the Facebook Page of Godrej Expert.

TeNy

For the Last Phase

Here is my last list of choices from the commercials made by users for the #CrashThePepsiIPL activity. As the voting process for selecting the commercial from the common audience starts from 7th May and is supposed to go on till the 14th of May, let’s cast our votes to what we like the most, and make sure that the most deserving ones win this activity. As this is the last choice which I make, I have chosen six of them instead of five which has been my usual choice of number.

Crash the Pepsi IPL – The Robber
Uploaded by Ashutosh Joshi

Here is another commercial which I have been talking about. This is one advertisement which I liked from the first look itself. I checked this one again and didn’t like it any less. This is exactly the passion which is required with Pepsi and IPL in its raw state. Even with those rather quick moves to the top, this is how one can actually crash IPL when the match is going on. Just get to the top of a building with your favourite drink and see the action from there – yes, the scores can be checked from the mobile phone and all will be well at the top as long as it is peaceful. This is the first commercial for which I liked from the list, which is why a vote will be right there for “The Robber”.

Crash the Pepsi IPL – Ek Saathi
Uploaded by Sukrut Teni

I feel that this one has a certain amount of extra quality added to it, and the feeling that the protagonist seems to share is kind of like what I share with tea. The commercial does show how a little something can become more than just one thing. The shots are very nice, and there are points in the video when we can relate with more than one thing in our life. It looks very neat and seems to have been made with a lot of professional touch. There is a fine feeling that this commercial provides, and this becomes another advertisement for which the need for a vote has arisen.

Crash the Pepsi IPL – The fault in our Suhagraat
Uploaded by Anshul Agrawal

When I mention advertisements which begin with the first night, it might give the feeling that it is time to get me married. But the point still remains that this is a cute advertisement, and I have surely told that before. Everyone has the right to be disappointed in the absence of something, and here it is Pepsi, and the idea about the same has been nicely added to this video which makes this one have a certain advantage above most of the other commercials, but this is still not a finalist – let’s make this one get those public votes and be the People’s Choice Pepsi IPL Ad instead – after all, voting is in our power now.

Crash the Pepsi IPL – Hawww Pepsi!
Uploaded by Jai Sughand

As I have mentioned earlier, sometimes people do anything for a soft drink in an advertisement, and this is no different case. Still, this is nicely done and tells us that you need to keep an eye on your drink, especially when you are at college – well, you can’t really disagree with that, because it can happen to anyone anytime. In case of a doubt, sit with a Pepsi at a college canteen. This one also has a beautiful cast and they can surely act too. I would say that this is made better than how it would have been made by those professionals who come up with the commercials for soft drinks these days, and that deserves a vote.

Crash The Pepsi IPL – Pepsi Fangirl Letter
Uploaded by Abhay Raha

Well, almost everyone got fans these days, and in the case of some people, even their closest friends and relatives might be wondering why this person has fans. So, if the people who have become a curse to the lands can have fans, why not Pepsi? After all, Pepsi is not wandering around irritating people and spreading hatred. If Pepsi doesn’t deserve a good-looking fangirl who got nice letters to spread love, who does? Well, Pepsi surely gets luckier here, and lets add a vote for this nice effort too.

Crash the Pepsi IPL – Jahan Masti, Wahan Pepsi
Uploaded by S Bhavini

Here is the direct advertisement which I have been talking about, as it tells us that Pepsi doesn’t really need a commercial at all – you have to love the way the girl talks about the same. She smiles, takes the Pepsi out her bag, drinks it and becomes the commercial without anything artificial in it. This does seem quite natural, and it is a fact that Pepsi can work easily without a commercial. But as it is like a tradition to have an advertisement, may be this one would work nicely as the commercial which doesn’t go and do an overdose. I am surely in support for a vote for this one for the commercial of our choice!

I’m voting for the best ads in the#CrashThePepsiIPL activity in association with BlogAdda from 7th May to 14th May. Are you?

TeNy

Making Further Choices

I hereby go back to the #CrashThePepsiIPL activity and choose a few favourite commercials for which I wish to vote for. As the voting process starts from 7th May and is to go on till the 14th of May, I hope that one of these advertisements which I list below gets to win. I have felt that they are quite close to making it to the top, as they are very interesting and innovative. You might need to have a look at these.

Crash the Pepsi IPL – The ‘Un’commercial
Uploaded by Prashanth Ramachandran

The Uncommercial as they call it here, is very good innovation, and you have to love some Pepsi advertisements without all those extra features that you see all around. This time, Pepsi has things simple and it will be nice to see this one the television. Yes, it is a commercial, but still not like those other ones, and we only need to know that it is Pepsi, as it you don’t need to keep saying that Pepsi is this or that, because someone is going to drink it when there is the need, and the need for a commercial is actually not there expect for having a certain need for an existence. Yes, the girl has done a very nice job too. I am thinking simple right now, and I see the need to vote for this one.

Crash the Pepsi IPL – Ahead of Time
Uploaded by Paul Joji Kokkat

I have talked about this before and would do the same again, because this is an excellent innovation of the basic idea which has always been there with fighting for the drink, especially Pepsi. Here they have made the same thing better, and there is no possibility of finding fault with any of the details. They have made the right shots and have managed to cut right where it should have been cut. You will see the details, and it is impossible not to think that this was not professionally made. Who needs Jacques Kallis and Virat Kohli playing in a packed stadium when we can have innovation with common people? This one is like made for the common man, and I would surely want to vote for this commercial too.

Crash the Pepsi IPL – #ThePerfectPartnership
Uploaded by Saachi Agrawal

I somehow missed this one at the first look at the video collection as there were many of them, but not with the smaller list of finalists – this one is sure to catch one’s attention at the first watch itself. In this video from Saachi Agrawal, you have to love how things come together in the end, and you know how the strangest things will begin to have a meaning. The pieces of the small puzzle come together in the end, as there is something awesome which comes out of what seems to be an annoying or ridiculous thing. Yes, there is more than what meets the eye with one’s life, and this is another commercial for which I will vote because of the innovation – nice collection of drawings used too.

Crash the Pepsi IPL – Living It
Uploaded by Kaushal shah

This one has surely made the point by bringing to almost all parts of life. Yes, we see the bottles and cans of Pepsi all around the bakeries, restaurants and even smaller shops, but not really used in the way as it is shown in this advertisement. Here, we see it as part of our lives, and it is surely a big boost to the brand. Well, it might be exaggerated, but not by that much, and we will surely admire it by the way in which it is presented. You can use the cans for the last two occasions for sure, and it is just unfortunate that I don’t play the games any more. I wish to give this one a vote too, because it has made the point so well and it has given an extension for the existing ideas.

Crash The Pepsi IPL – #We Unite Nations
Uploaded by Santhosh Naga Rajan

This commercial is nicely created with colours, and seems to make a fine point with the idea of IPL, even as the game is not what it used to be. IPL might not be that awesome as it used to be, but this advertisement surely has the core at the right place. The ultimate aim of the game here should be to unite people, not through the states of India, but from all around the world. By using these colours and the cricketing imagery, this one surely lets us know what IPL can do as long as all the scandals and the thoughts of hatred are kept away from the sport – this could surely use a vote.

I have made all these choices from the #CrashThePepsiIPL activity finalists list, and I hope to add a few more to this with a possible second part to this post. I do hope that the best ones win the most public votes and go on to become the People’s Choice Pepsi IPL Ad. Let’s use our right to vote here too, and being in the world’s biggest democracy, we have to put it to the best use as we make the choices which we think are the best.

I’m voting for the best ads in the #CrashThePepsiIPL activity in association with BlogAdda from 7th May to 14th May. Are you?

TeNy

Hypocrites at Home

When someone say #ShareTheLoad, there will always be people who try to make use of the situation just to claim to have done so and show themselves to the others as bloody righteous people, but in reality, they are not doing any favours at home and are only making things worse. So never judge a family and its members by the cover, because sharing is something which should come from the heart and not for showing off.

Our nation has its own share of hypocrites who have that kind of attitude towards their wife and children, and let me assure you that I have known too many of them. They are too much worried about what the society thinks about them and keeps on pretending that they are great family men, always helping the lady when someone else has come to the house. The interest in cooking and washing just reaches a new high when someone else is at home.

#ShareTheLoad – it comes to them when someone from outside the family is looking. They also make great speeches about how women should be treated so well and why one needs to be part of the household work. It will be that kind of a speech which makes the guest feel that the lady is lucky to have this special gentleman as a husband. But no, it is just about words, and it is available without much work, and acting comes naturally to some people who deserve the Oscars of life.

Ariel hopes for you to share the load, as you can see 🙂

There are men who don’t help their wives at all with absolutely no share, some others who do help, and the last category is the most disgusting of them all – the hypocrites who wants to make everyone believe that they do, and makes an impression of a Holy Family which lives in that house. They might continue to do so as they can, but the truth is that they can’t fool everyone all the time, and sooner or later karma is going to get to them and deliver the much needed poetic justice.

One has to wonder why some people have to pretend to be what they are not. It is clear that they have no respect or care for the other family members. Well, they can continue to say that it is not their department, and still claim to do so in front of others. It is their department; actually it is the department of everyone in the house and there comes a responsibility towards making a home and it is not done by one person who do so much work when another person spends all the time in leisure.

It is not enough that they are completely useless at home and wanders around being unworthy of running a family, that they return to trouble those who do the work correctly. They even claim that the work is not done properly, but in their mind, knows that they can’t do it even in a half-good manner. Yes, they say that it is not their department, but they should try to claim some place in that department too, because home should be where the heart should be! The house is the department of everyone, even the pet cats thinks so!

Those who can’t do that will be better people if not married. They become terrible examples to people around them as well as the new generation. It is simple – if they can’t do the family any good, they shouldn’t be married. This is also applicable to those who only listens to their brothers and sisters. Better be a selfish loner or a hypocrite who lives alone rather than become someone who is a curse to the home. One won’t have claims for making a better home if all that the person can do is to bring troubles and think only about one’s own life! Don’t be a hypocrite or selfish brute, just #ShareTheLoad

I am writing for the #ShareTheLoad activity at BlogAdda.com in association with Ariel.

TeNy

Sharing the Big Load

We have heard a lot that sharing is caring. But to what extent do we do that or rather put a limit on the same? The one place where we seem to think about that more than anything else is at those torrent sites! Then there is the kind of food which can’t be finished alone and we call for help. It is where the world of sharing has thrived better than most of the other occasions, but in this world where sharing first brings Facebook to the mind, there is the need to share further, far away from the world of modernity.

Sharing the load never naturally comes, because it needs some effort especially when someone is spending some random leisure time – men have that tendency to think it not as their job. As far as marriage is concerned, the biggest thing that it has achieved is to inspire Havells advertisements which comes up with fake advertisements talking about respect, but nothing really about sharing or having concern for the other half. People just want it easy, and not share the loads – it is just selfish nature.

There is too much inequality in houses when it is about the housework, and men and women need to #ShareTheLoad especially when both are working. It is not something like Interstellar which talks about something and people have smoke coming out of brains. This is just simple and should come right out of basic love and care for the other half. It is an act of love and concern and not something which can be taught.

Check out this initiative; you can feel it from their Ad photo! 🙂

Well, marriage is supposed to be halves becoming one, but how can that happen if there are no two equal halves? A half and a quarter in not one, and so in simple terms, it is not a good reflection of married life. It is the twenty-first century and the only way to equality seems to be reservation for some people. Then some people need reminders, and this need to be reminded of equality is another ridiculous situation.

If someone has to do the whole thing alone, it is a lot of work, but sharing can be fun. When not married, help the mother or sister. The mother will need it a lot as she is getting older and the father might still belong to a generation where women were not working and they were used to doing work at home only. He might find it difficult to follow, but not us who are beyond the same. It is up-to us to show a good example to our children also.

What we need to look out for is the future, and nowadays when both the man and the wife are working, there needs to be a lot of sharing, depending on the timings of their work – sometimes it might be the male who works more and at other times, it could be the female, and they need to share according to the demands of the time as there will be days when one of them will have some extra time and can make a better use of the same in this busy world. If one of them won’t have work for a period of time, it is easier for just one – otherwise no.

I would say that a certain amount of work at home can be some fun as long as the dose is kept in the right quantity, and for that, one has to be ready to #ShareTheLoad. Otherwise there would be the delay which can spoil the day for not just one person, but for the whole family. When we get the work get done faster, there will be time left to spend with each other, and the relationship only gets better – it is the success of the family as a unit! Now, lets just ask more people to #ShareTheLoad.

I am writing for the #ShareTheLoad activity at BlogAdda.com in association with Ariel.

TeNy

In the Name of Modernity

Check out the interesting video from Studio NH 47 🙂

Vampire Owl: No, it is clear that he is not a satyr, highlander, nomad…or a even known tree. I have never slept on something like this.

Vampire Bat: I think he is an Ent, a higher class citizen of the Wood Elf Lands.

Ent: Why does it matter who I am? What matters more is on all which has been done – all those atrocities which were committed in the name of advancement in science and the need for development.

Vampire Owl: He is like a war survivor, you know.

Vampire Bat: The conquests of the Dark Elves and the frequent attacks of Nomads have made such a bad influence on our forests. It is really a shame.

Ent: Are you completely out of your vampire minds? Do my injuries look like the result of a war or due to the spells from Dark Elves? Do you think Nomads will attack the nodes of life that feeds them?

Vampire Owl: I am confused. What is it about then?

Ent: It is a reflection of what has happened in the other world. I can feel the pain of fallen trees through the portals.

Vampire Bat: The Dwarves have always been like that. They and their new inventions in the underworld.

Ent: I am talking about the humans! Why are the clues so difficult for you? Stop acting like zombies! Don’t you go to that world through the portals to watch movies?

Vampire Bat: Yes, but we don’t see why it is so hard for you with situation there.

I ask humans to do one thing that is to save nature, and they can’t even come close 😀

Ent: I can feel it in me as they fall every tree there and never really think about replacing the same with another one. They run through trees with such an ease, but finds it difficult to demolish concrete buildings. They have problems when the path goes through their places of worship, but what they don’t realize is that nature is something to be worshipped too. I am a high priest and the eternal spirit of nature – I feel the pain each and every second. Why are we always the ones to suffer? Will they like us better if we were made from India Cements?

Vampire Bat: Chennai Super Kings fans are not going like that last question.

Vampire Owl: Is that a beard? I mean, I haven’t seen trees with beards. Satyrs have it, but…

Vampire Bat: He is a very old spirit. It was the coolest fashion at that time! Why don’t you go to Kerala then? There is so much of greenery there and the presence of nature tourism has been at full power. Have you seen the Kerala Tourism advertisement? I am sure that you haven’t seen something like that in your eternity.

Ent: I am not disagreeing with the same. Yes, there is so much greenery, but there is still too much modernity coming up. There are huge flats coming up and there are too many illegal constructions which affect the balance.

Vampire Owl: But there is more interest in the greener side.

Vampire Bat: On the vegetables than anything else. One actress is shown cultivating vegetables successfully and everybody is after the vegetables. Some of them don’t even touch the plant. It is not love for nature. It is just a bloody show-off.

Ent: Yes, they all wants to be part of the vegetable empowerment program. Some people just have too much money. But do they love nature? I don’t think so. A few people think that they will grow on their own, and the others have enough money to hire others to do the work. Then they call themselves “farmers” – seriously?

Even one leaf from nature is a gift of interest. Humans feel less about the same.

Vampire Bat: But there is the eco-tourism which has been nicely implemented in some places. It has worked very well in most cases. There is still better work that expected and it will only improve – even though there will always be some people who try to reverse the situation. There will be people who want to replace all the trees with concrete buildings when it comes to money. But things change, and people are understanding the situation better.

Vampire Owl: They don’t have the Enchanted Woods like we do, and so it is more difficult for them. Humans will learn, but it will take time. If they don’t we will unleash something through the portals.

Ent: I shall rest here until then. I have been accepted as a refugee in the New Vampire World and hope to have a better reflection from the other dimension so that I can go and be part of the Enchanted Woods again. Otherwise, I am just ruining the hallowed grounds which is more respected by the Wood Elves than anything else.

Vampire Bat: You can join us anytime. Bring a few tree minions if you need to.

Vampire Owl: A special tree for just owls alone will be a nice idea.

The Earth Day is just around the corner! Lets try to contribute to a better green world in our own way! It is up-to us to make a difference within our smaller universe and contribute to the society! Support Green Yatra on the same: http://greenyatra.org/

***The photos used in this blog post were taken by me on my Asus Zenfone 5.

TeNy

Crashing the IPL Again

Coming back to those videos which were made as part of Crash the IPl programme, there were a few which could have been made better with a few changes. There is innovation hidden right there which haven’t really come out as expected. But a few changes are sure to bring enough power to to these advertisements and they can be used by the Pepsi a lot better than their winners and finalists or their own Ads!

Crash the Pepsi IPL – “Craze for Pepsi”
Uploaded by Nikita Pagare

It is always better to go back to old model of gaining things – that is to scare people, especially when there is no scope for a civil war in the house. This is something that can work wonders. But this could have been better working with more than just the hair. The Grudge model is not that effective for everyone, and if Anniyan was intended, this is the wrong hair. A little bit more make-up would have been done a lot of favour to this advertisement. There is nothing about jumping from the top of a cliff or building – this is a simple thing to do.

Crash The Pepsi IPL – “Do it Abhi!”
Uploaded by Mikhail Shah

I thought that this was well shot and worked with the basic idea of getting one’s love very well even though this works on a luck based situation rather than anything else. Still, there is nothing special about it – may be they could have used the first and the last few seconds to generate the same. You have to applaud the quality of this one though, and the cast is also very good and suitable. It is just the punch which was needed, and may be if this had a very much longer version, things could have worked in a more special way.

Crash The Pepsi IPL – “Jeeto par pyar se”
Uploaded by Ayush Sapra

There is the idea of winning and then being magnanimous. It is only fair to be good after being victorious – not being like those bloody conquerors of the past. May be this one could have had more focus on the same and finally coming up with the Pepsi. More detail could have done the advertisement a lot more good, as this is more like something we have been knowing and watching other forms for quite a long time. Still, there seems to be an attempt to make it much better with this one.

Crash The Pepsi IPL – “#LiveItAbhi”
Uploaded by Sanghamitra Dasgupta

I think that it is time that Pepsi uses some animation for their advertisements. This is more like an advertisement which could have gone out of being this simple because this idea of things getting better with a drink has been used so much everywhere. But it is still good to watch as an animated alternative. May be there could have bigger twists in the desert, and Pepsi can always come up better animation if they use this. Seeing some of those advertisements which not much acting and the others with random celebrities who do more bad than good, may be this is the need for the day.

Crash The Pepsi IPL – “Meri Pepsi”
Uploaded by Sachin Barthwal

I feel that this advertisement do have the potential to be a lot better with the fight over Pepsi. A number of sequences showing the battle over Pepsi could have made this a nice treat, and a good amount of scenes could be added over there, with them ending quick enough but making the desired impact. We have seen funny fight scenes nicely done to good impact, like in the movie Angry Babies, and this needs to shift its focus to making such interesting fun with Pepsi being at the centre of all action. No, don’t go too much further, but keep it funny enough.

***This blog post is related only to those advertisements which I thought could be better, and would have worked nicely as the Pepsi Ads with changes being made. It is only about those which I have personally thought to have potential and has no relation to the best that could be. It is just an opinion and not a judgment, and so you needn’t bother about why another advertisement was not selected over one of these.

Check out the #CrashThePepsiIPL videos & participate in the activity at BlogAdda

TeNy

Favourites of the List

I have chosen five advertisements from the Pepsi Crash the IPL videos which were made by the fans. I have taken special care not to choose any of the finalists or winners because that would surely be not fair. I had to choose the videos according to my opinion alone, and for the same, I have chosen five of them which I have shared below with the video links and small descriptions for each.

Crash the Pepsi IPL – “The Robber”
Uploaded by Ashutosh Joshi

If you use the phrase “crash the IPL” exactly as it is, I would consider this advertisement the right one to use. Whenever there is a cricket match, we see people crashing into the action from a distance like this. Yes, the climbing is a little overdone, but after seeing the advertisements for Thums Up and Mountain Dew, this is nothing – I expect people to be a lot better than I am, as far as such dangerous stunts are concerned; consider it as a result of looking at the roads all the time.

Crash the Pepsi IPL – “The fault in our Suhagraat”
Uploaded by Anshul Agrawal

This was a cute advertisement, with the need for Pepsi arising during the first night – well, we all have ur preferences, don’t we? I would be highly disappointed in the absence of tea at any moment. Well, they want it and they are going for it without jumping in front of all the available vehicles of the city (sorry, Thums Up and Mountain Dew). The cast is also a nice one, and I thought that this one did treat the idea in a clean manner rather than adding anything unnecessary and without overdoing it – there is some maturity in the treatment here.

Crash the Pepsi IPL – “Jahan Masti, Wahan Pepsi!”
Uploaded by S Bhavini

This is a simple one, but the truth has been spoken. The real truth is that Pepsi doesn’t need an advertisement at all. If advertisements decided which soft drinks we bought, the list would have gone differently – we have never had Pepsi for their advertisements. If we were to choose from them, we would all have been drinking a lot of other things. Drinking Pepsi is something which comes quite naturally related to the mall culture. A bottle of Pepsi comes quite naturally to the new generation.

Crash the Pepsi IPL – “Ahead of time”
Uploaded by Paul Joji Kokkat

I felt this was nicely directed and brought to us, from an idea which has always been there – there are some good changes in the detail made, with two girls’ teams Virat’s XI and Ranbir’s XI playing each other. Well, this is always better to watch rather than having Virat Kohli and Jacques Kallis playing at the stadium – Pepsi should try more of common people than celebrities with the same idea, because it is not the celebrities who make any man drink Pepsi; otherwise why do many other drinks also do good?

Crash the Pepsi IPL – “Hawww Pepsi!”
Uploaded by Jai Sughand

This is another video which follows the usual tactics, and the idea that one will do anything for a soft drink continues. Yes, drinking others’ Pepsi when not looking should come quite naturally, but this surely has a better premise, and this is more possible at college than anywhere else. You can’t leave anything on the table when some people are around, out of the fear for the devourers of all food. The cast is good, and they have timed this one very well. This one works quite nicely in the end.

I haven’t really liked most of the advertisements in the Crash the IPL list, but these five can surely replace those Pepsi advertisements because they have something from the makers who seems to be people with ideas rather than those who keep doing the same thing again and again without any real variety. We need good advertisements, and may be making the common man make them and putting them for vote might be a better solution for the companies considering the current situation of television commercials.

Check out the #CrashThePepsiIPL videos & participate in the activity at BlogAdda

TeNy

We Have Our Favourites

It is always easy to find your least favourite advertisements, because there are more terrible or at least bad ones on the television than the good ones. It is like we don’t really have the right to watch a good advertisement and be happy enough to buy the product. No, the advertisement satisfaction is rarely there for the audience, but I am still going to share five of them which I now remember as the interesting advertisements which had caught my attention in the past.

There is no claim that these are the best ever in the long history of television, but there is the certainty that these are interesting, funny and making us more inclined towards the product which we would check on a day. When given a choice along with the competitors, I am sure to think about choosing one of these. I would leave the emotional ones out of this list, and do leave your love for controversies out of this post, as you are expected to be seeing these for the funny ones which they are.

5. Naukri.com – The Name Ad:

This one has our attention in the right way and also makes the point without pretensions. This was actually the first time I heard about Naukri.com, and this surely had me interested. There was a certain controversy that the name shouldn’t be used, but then, can we find a name which has no such problems? Well, as it is us who always have such problems, I am going to suggest two names which will be safe: Quetzalcoatl and Teotihuacan. I am sure that the people having problems over names can use these in their own advertisements after pronouncing them with ease. Some people will always find problems with good advertisements, and they deserve only those terrible ones.

4. Micromax – Superfone Ninja Ad:

I liked this one because it had a twist and it strikes us with just those few seconds of awesome turn which makes the advertisement something else. In the beginnings few seconds, I was wondering where this advertisement is heading to and was hoping to hate another ridiculous one which leads to some perfume or condom nonsense, but then there was the twist. At 0:37, the lady says that she is programmed for that, and then we know. I have never been interested in a Micromax mobile, but this one still had my attention. This proved that Indian mobile set companies do have better ideas than the foreign ones and could understand how to get the attention of the viewers. Then there is Gabriella Demetriades as Aisha.

3. Fevikwik – Todo Nahi Jodo Ad:

Fevikwik has had some nice advertisement campaigns and this one is sure to have a prominent place in the list. Just don’t go into the minor details, but lets understand the point, as they have used the symbol of Indo-Pak relationship which is broken and hopes that it gets mended just like it deals with the Fevikwik mends the broken things. There should be no broken things as well as broken relationships between neighbours. Spread love and not hatred, and this advertisement is right there in speaking to its viewers about the same. Well done, Fevikwik. Once again this product has our attention, and I am sure to ask for Fevikwik and not anything else when at a supermarket.

2. Motorola – MotoRokr Ad:

I remember this as a really funny advertisement at its time and this was like the first advertisement with a Youtube video downloaded by me. Forget the Idea advertisements which had the same man and had all the attention for the wrong reasons, because this is Abhishek Bachan’s best ever – at least that is how I feel. The advertisement transformed the name of this Motorola phone into something which was not to be forgotten, and I even bought a Motorola phone at that time just because of this one. The best parts of it are the Mughals and police station portions. It also ends very nicely with another Motorokr moment to go on with the fine beginning.

1. Alpenliebe Pop – Babur Ad:

When you are frustrated with learning too much history, and then Babur from the book is standing in front of you! His son Humayun and grandson Akbar are also there and they gives the girl Alpenliebe Pop to get rid of her boredom while studying as history cannot be changed, but we can make it anti-boring. In the end she even asks them if they are in Facebook, and they replies that they are only in the text book. Then you have to love Shweta Tripathi in this one, she is so good with her expressions, and this is the advertisement which has actually caught my attention for being creative. I would be interested in having this Alpenliebe while reading History!

I am joining in on all the Pepsi IPL action in my own style with the #CrashThePepsiIPL activity at BlogAdda.

This Pepsi IPL, it’s not just about cricket. It’s time to crash with your own created ad! Make your own Pepsi ad & if it’s chosen, it could play on TV during Pepsi IPL! And hey, it doesn’t end here… Even if you’re chosen as a finalist, you stand a chance of winning a prize amount of Rs.1 lakh! So what are you waiting for guys?

TeNy

On that Digital India

Earlier this year, I stumbled across some news. It was about Kerala becoming the first one hundred percent digital state, and the first of that kind in India by April 2015. All government offices were to be connected by the internet, and the programme has been going forward at a very good pace. Kerala Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy had already talked about the same in 2012.

It is not just about Kerala, as Digital India is a fine initiative from Government of India which makes sure that things get a lot easier with the various departments. There will be easier access for the common man and the paper usage will be reduced a lot. It has never been known to be easy with government offices, but this is surely going to change that. With complete digitalization, the procedures will get a lot less difficult.

Do you remember those days when you had to stand in a long queue at the government offices or had to come back now and then to get things done? That might not be the case some time later. The corruption itself can be reduced up-to an extent along with safety being increased – but that is rather a subjective thing based on a few other factors; as they say, evil always finds a way.

We have already seen the good signs with the options to pay fees for many exams including UGC NET; there have also been the chance to pay the BSNL bills and even payment for electricity and water have been going online. We no longer have to wander around the towns and cities looking for the place to make the payment; we can do it from home itself with so much ease – and they are just a few of the smaller things.

The world has changed indeed. It is up-to us to make our own changes, and this is just one of them. From here, may be more can be achieved. This is the age of the internet – anybody who has been part of a social networking website will find it very difficult to disagree. The best and worst things go through the internet, and we can’t really avoid it because the web has become part of our lives with or without us knowing.

When we hear about Intel being part of that initiative, it is clear that things are supposed to get a lot better. Well, Intel was almost used instead of computer at a time. The Intel Pentium Processor was the one memory that we can’t live without. Each and everyone used to ask if the processor is Pentium or Pentium II, and then there was the talk about Pentium III arriving in the market. Intel was to computers like Maruti was to the cars, and it is a compliment.

Intel is sure to bring something positive for all these, and with their experience and efficiency in the same, they can bring wonders to this Digital India initiative. There was a time when we had trusted Intel more than anything else, and that change continues as the processor of my laptop is from the same company, and so is the case of the former laptop. It feels good when Intel is involved with the same, and I thank them for the same and hope for the best from #DigitalIndia.

***The images used in this blog post are from the Intel website as well as from the contest page. Cheers to #DigitalIndia. Do check the Intel website for more details: http://www.intel.in/

TeNy

There is Always a First

Just like many other things in my life, there was a first for my mobile phone too; even as my first mobile phone was Nokia 1100, the first smartphone was a Nokia 6600. It actually had a short stay and was replaced by another phone which made way for a Nokia N95. But this Nokia 6600 had a special part in my life. It was the first one to let me store and play videos, and also the first to transform into my favourite music player.

I was among one of the first to get a smartphone in my class and remained the only person to have a Nokia smartphone for some time. I still remember that the volume of the phone used to reach such a high level that it could overtake all other mobiles at full volume, especially with some songs. It was big and had a special shape, good enough to catch the attention of almost everyone.

But then, one has to have the luck to start with Moto E. It wasn’t really the season of the smartphone when I got the first of them. It took me some time to get used to it, and there were not many people whom I could ask for help. When there is the option to start with Moto E these days, things have changed. Almost everyone knows so much about the phones, and there have been so many positive opinions on Moto E.

This is the season of more power, and Moto E provides just the same. My first smartphone was a drag, and I wished for more power. Symbian had its own problems here and there, and I wished for a better Operating System too. 6600 had made me wait a lot after clicking here and there, but I have been a patient owner, or it is rather like I had no other option. There was the need for regular restart too – it was a machine of that generation, and not a Moto E.

I also remember how bulky that phone used to be. It was like it could be used more to throw it to get mangoes from a tree. It weighed a lot and had too much of a size to fit into the shirt’s pocket. These could have been solved if my first smartphone was Moto E. I have gone through the photos of the phone in Flipkart, and it is very thin, and the right phone if you wish to keep it in the shirt pocket.

The battery is also going to last longer with a Moto E, making sure that I don’t have to keep recharging the phone. It was another problem of that age, but now, we are into advanced times with Moto E. Then there is the new Android, and such an Operating System was also the need of that age. With the 5MP primary camera and the presence of the secondary one, I could have done better than all who didn’t like my phone’s camera at that time.

The storage problems also get solved with Moto E. The speaker is so good and the same is with the design. Yes, the touch screen option can’t be forgotten, as the screen looks so clear, and it is smooth to operate. During those days of the past, I actually struggled to work with that big phone. The 6600 could make an impression with the high volume of sound, but I expect Moto E to make things better with more clarity of sound – achieving fine quality.

***The images used in this blog post are from Moto E’s contest page for which this one is written. I would #ChooseToStart with the new Moto E! That would require a time machine right now, but there can also be another beginning, because there is no limit to the possibilities: http://www.startwithmotoe.com/

TeNy

The Conclave Saga: Part II

#Conclave15 on the first day had its best moments with Sachin Tendulkar and Katrina Kaif, while Day 2 started with talks from Ambassadors of seven countries. The talk had a good number of points to note down, especially with the man from the United Kingdom. Still, it wasn’t really an interesting thing for me in totality. The conversation with Mehbooba Mufti brought a few things about Kashmir into focus, and it was another thing which was rather new to me – I shall stick to not writing about what is unknown territory for me.

The talk about “Make in India” had some charm, but was repetitive at times for me. Actually, I did find the talk about dissenters rather interesting despite having not much love for politics. And then there were Moni Mohsin and Shobhaa De with “Float Like a Butterfly, Sting Like a Bee” – this is a very good segment which you need to watch to enjoy the real splendour as it won’t do justice when brought about in third person. There is a clue, and it is once again the Malayalam movie Picket 43 which provides that.

This is from where the tweets, FB updates and even blog specials make it to internet.

Meanwhile, Viswanathan Anand managed to keep us interested with some memories about his games and a few nice Chess moves. It was once again and honour to see him and watch him play, even though I stopped playing Chess long ago – it was him who inspired me to try it for the first time. The talk about the Chess moves were getting a little bit too much for me, but with him around, things were to remain interesting.

The talk about terrorism from survivors who escaped from captivity was engaging. It is still not something that I would like to keep talking about though. Then there was AIB who came up with ideas on free speech and comedy. I haven’t watched their episode which caused trouble, but it was quite funny with them on the stage, even as there were some jokes which I didn’t really follow. Well, I have had my lack of knowledge on Bollywood related entertainment and the Hindi television channels.

You know that you need to see and listen to another legend, Viswanathan Anand.

The food related program was not something of my interest, but I did realize that the speaker surely got some nice ideas. Then came the moment of the day, and surely one of the best of this Conclave – or a collection of moments which were provided by Ranveer Singh who made an amazing appearance. It did make me wonder what he was going to talk about, and then he started talking, and performing – from that point of time, I forgot to tweet and post Facebook updates.

He was dealing with coming of age in Bollywood. It is like going through the history of Bollywood in one of the best ways possible. I have been a Bollywood watcher for quite a long time, even though not that much of a fan now. I had recorded a lot of Hindi songs on tape and watched movies on the VCR during my childhood. I can say that some ultimate movies like Jaani Dushman: Ek Anokhi Kahani played very significant role in making me diverge away from Bollywood.

Ranveer Singh – such power and unlimited energy on the stage. This was too good.

Ranveer’s story was more like how he grew up with Bollywood throughout his life and how he came up triumphant in fulfilling his acting dreams, and he presented the same with such an energy that we don’t see often. Well, this has actually inspired me to write a post about how I grew up with Malayalam movies, even though I have always been watching movies in more than one language. You can expect another post related to this soon enough.

Finally, there was that debate which ended things. With Chief Ministers from a number of states (this is surely going to help me in my PSC exams), the final conclusion was made that all states have to work hard in collaboration with the centre to achieve progress, and it is not a lone journey. There were many points made in between, as I ended up knowing a few more ministers, and this was a good choice of leaders they had there, I have to admit.

I am not going to forget these CMs for any of my PSC exams, that is for sure 😀

I was blessed with a nice group of bloggers who gave me company at the Conclave. Shoma Abhyankar, Arvind Passey, Yogita Aggarwal and Shreya Das – I haven’t known them before the event, but I am glad to have had them with me for the Conclave. It was a pleasure to meet the four of them. I have never been to a blogger meet before, and may be this was one! Once again thanking BlogAdda! – http://www.blogadda.com for this wonderful experience, and thanks to Mayank and Sumit from India Today for the support. Now this journey of mine is also a certified Delhi trip 😀 I shall leave you with a link to the blog posts which we five had written on the topic “The World Remade”.

• Mine: https://theteacerebration.wordpress.com/2015/02/21/the-vision/
  Yogita: http://www.letuspublish.com/the-world-of-humanity/
  Shoma: https://shomabhagwat.wordpress.com/2015/02/25/a-world-remade/
  Shreya: https://shreyadas1.wordpress.com/2015/02/23/if-i-were-i-would/
  Arvind: http://passey.info/2015/02/yelling-doesnt-get-your-point-across/

TeNy

Exploring the Elements

This writing is part of the Explore The Elements Photo Contest which was announced by Thomas Cook. Here I explore and represent the four elements of nature with the help of the photos which I have taken using my Sony Cybershot DSC W-310. You can check here for more details about the contest: http://www.thomascook.com/blog/holiday-competitions-deals/explore-the-elements/ #ExploreTheElements

1. Earth: As it is said and known, “for dust thou art, and to dust shalt thou return” is what the following scene reminds us about claiming our place back under the Earth and hope for a better time at the other world. There is stubbornness in this idea of truth, and the certainty of this return to the dust and dirt is as clear as the presence of these things on the surface of the Earth. The problem with humanity is its consistent loss of memory about this, and their pursuit of Carpe Diem. The photo was taken at a church cemetery around the city of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England.

It is right into the insides of Earth that we have to return, for we are dust.

2. Water: You can see how well water could adapt and as much as it can become the life saver, it can be the destroyer. The unbelievable amount of suppleness can be attributed to this element which is a powerful force of nature which can make impact in its presence as well as the absence. The photo shows the brutal strength that the element of water came up with, during the monsoon rain of 2013 (there were worse situations during that period at the banks of the river Periyar) at the town of Aluva, near Cochin, Kerala, India.

Water as an element has its power to take over whenever it wishes to.

3. Fire: The element of fire always burns, either in the minds of the people or on the far away horizons, as the globe of fire reflects our motivation and desire, becoming the silent watcher of the human hatred for the other people of their kind. The energy of fire is something that we can take into our lives, without the negative sides, choosing not to burn the people around us with hatred based on religion, caste or race. There is the need for fire in our lives. The photo was taken at Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, India.

The beauty of fire on the sky can’t be ignored by the eyes or any camera.

4. Air: There is freedom associated with air, something which is not easy in this world. We, human beings are bound by strange things and weird laws being passed, some of them making just the religion more important than humanity, and a few other making a few animals more significant that human beings. We should have chosen to air in this life, so free and with all the wisdom that is gained by traveling over long distances. In the photo, you can see how the vegetation bows down in reverence to the strength and wisdom of the element of air – photo taken at Ilaveezhapoonjira, Kerala, India.

When the element of air travel around freely with wisdom, take a bow.

There is only the human nature which is as unpredictable as the elements of nature, with compassion on one side and the tendency to be devastating with a certain amount of inherent evil which comes up here and there. There is something about the use of the word “nature” at both places. I hope you found the four photos of the elements of nature interesting – they have all been cropped and adjusted to a standard size so that there wouldn’t be any confusion. They were all taken by me only on my camera, Sony Cybershot DSC-W310..

Here, I nominate five other bloggers to participate in this contest:
Anita (http://www.anitaexplorer.com)
Maniparna (http://maniparna5002.wordpress.com)
Namrata (http://namratakumari.blogspot.in)
Shibu (http://shibumathewn15.wordpress.com)
Tara (http://crimsonapril.wordpress.com)

TeNy

Making that One Decision

The memories go to those diabolical moments a few years back, and there I was caught in a giant web which had more than huge spider supplying dilemma creating a series of more and more complex webs. There was the need to make a choice, but I couldn’t go on with it. My decision making ability had hit some new lows right there, making me wonder if the correct decision could ever be made me with the presence of perpetual doubts which never seemed to end.

It was the time when I was turning into full-time cynic from a part-time doubter. I was caught within the web of BCA which I neither liked or was ever interested in. I never really studied and went to the college very rarely. Even during the classes, I spent too much time on the sleepy side, never really making an attempt to understand anything. It seemed to be an bottomless pit of nothingness where I was staying for almost no reason, and the number of webs were only growing, only to make things worse.

Life was going on and on like nothing really mattered. It was to go on in a never-ending manner in which I was to fail, collect back-papers and keep writing the exams to make it a nice five year plan. I could still not be persuaded to study better. Each and everyday, I would get on my Honda Unicorn or TATA Indica and go all the way to the college travelling those thirteen kilometres for almost no real reason. I even had no good friends and there was absolutely no point of that journey.

One day, when I was doing nothing as usual, and wasting my time as if time and tide waited for me at the bus station, my mother asked me if I really wanted to do this. She added that she should have asked the same question before I joined the course as suggested by some uncles, but that wouldn’t have mattered because her opinion wouldn’t have been of any value. She said that this was the time for me to make a stand.

It was not like I had never made a stand, but I have had the same opinion as my mother, that whatever stand I take, it is not going to change anything in a positive manner. I have had my choices of school, but my opinions were never taken into consideration. The points by some of the relatives and fake friends always made more impact in the decision making at our home. Even for Plus Two, I had wished to take the Humanities group, but I had scored too much to go for what they called the “inferior group”.

So when she said that I should make a decision on this, I didn’t want to do anything other than to stop this ridiculous course which made no sense to me, and with so much less teaching going on and nobody in the class really studying, this was going to bring nothing positive. I decided to end this procedure of a course which was going nowhere. I decided to go to the Mahatma Gandhi University and cancel this course which I did, even as most of my relatives were completely against the idea and wanted me to go on studying this forever until I pass.

I joined BA English after that, and with most of my friends of BCA still trying to clear the exams, she told me that it was the best stand that I had ever taken, and it is the first major positive decision of a great value that I had ever made. It is because of her words of encouragement and support that she had provided, that I was able to change my graduation which had a great influence on my post-graduation, making me want to be that PG graduate rather than go with the flow and reach somewhere not really fitting in.

***The image used in this blog post is from HDFC’s IndiBlogger Campaign Page. The blog post was written as part of the Happy Hours Campaign from HDFC Life in association with IndiBlogger. They have surely managed to come up with one of the best advertisements for their product as you have seen in the video above. Do find some time to check: http://www.hdfclife.com/

TeNy

A Few Unfamilar Rituals

Only a few months had passed since Mavis Dracula was born, and as Uncle Dracula thinks about this day of his past, it is our duty to take a look back to the day before Mavis’ first birthday with him. There are no questions to be asked, and there are no doubts to cleared, but accompany Uncle Dracula’s minions who take us back to that day. Let me assure you that Mavis is no lesser Dracula than our uncle, and it is something that she proved later.

It was quite a dark night, but still not enough for the vampires to celebrate their new festival, The Season of the Night. Dracula was inviting monsters for the first birthday of Mavis, his daughter who came to this world after sacrificing one hundred and twenty eight kilograms of potato chips mixed with blood. All the werewolves and zombies around the castle had agreed to come for the celebrations. But the big problem was at the castle when he was not there.

“This is not happening. I can’t do this at all” screamed the Vampire Panda.

“You are the cutest available vampire in the locality. You have to do this” said the Vampire Penguin.

“Actually, you are pretty much cute too” added the Vampire Owl.

“What? No, I am a dangerous penguin with survivor skills. One day, I was travelling through the Bermuda Triangle and…”

“I don’t think that the baby knows that though. So cute penguins can do” said the Vampire Panda.

“The baby is crying. Can something be done? I have done a few things on situations like this – but I have awesome memory loss problem” added the Vampire Hamster.

“Actually, where is the Vampire Bat?” asked the Vampire Crocodile.

“He is doing his vanishing act. He bought the new and improved Invisibility Cloak from the Goblin Market” said the Vampire Owl.

“Is it like this clock shows time and we can’t even see it?” asked the Vampire Hamster.

“What? No, not that clock! Who gives vampire badges to people like this”? yelled the Vampire Owl.

“I am back! And I am starting a ritual here” said the Vampire Bat as he appeared out of the Invisibility Cloak.

“What is that weapon that you have in your hands? It is the book Dracula and what is this Pampers Baby Dry Pants?” asked the Vampire Owl.

“Both are for Mavis. She needs to learn about the adventures of her father told in the words of other vampires. Any questions?” asked the Vampire Bat.

“Is that book to be used as a diaper?” asked the Vampire Hamster.

“Are you even listening? Is it so difficult to understand the vampire world which is right in front of you? Vampire Crocodile, get to work”.

In a few minutes, things were set, and the Vampire Crocodile started reading the story. Vampire Cat dropped in and added a lullaby in the “meow meow” vampire model. Vampire Bat and Vampire Owl were making future plans while Mavis Dracula was already asleep. The next day was to be her birthday, a memory which Uncle Dracula was to use a few days later – that would call for another drastic rewind.

***The image used in this blog post is from the Happy Hours campaign page at Indiblogger. This blog post is part of the Happy Hours campaign from Pampers in association with Indiblogger. Check here for further details about the same: http://www.rewardme.in/tag/Pampers

TeNy

Unconditional Asus Love

Asus Zenfone 5 has been my dream phone for quite a long time. This would be the third gadget from Asus I will be using if I could get to finally attain my love, the Asus Zenfone. For so many months, I have spent my time staring at her on various online shopping websites without saying a word. I have been a stalker of this phone for too long, and on this Valentine’s Day, I choose to tell her that she is my valentine.

Vampire Owl: But dude, she is just a phone. I mean, “it” is a phone. Choose the lady in the advertisement instead. That girl on the poster is a beauty too.

Never mind the Vampire Owl. He has been very jealous because he can’t use a phone without scratching it. It is in his blood to scratch. He never really owns a phone right now. He is a very sad owl and a depressed vampire. But I have got my Valentine on this wonderful day, and she is a Zenfone. Why is she my Valentine? Well, there are too many reasons for the same. I can give you five of them with ease.

1. The Beauty: There is some connection between love and beauty as far as the poets are concerned, and I choose to go through that connection with my future Zenfone. Among the mobile phones, I have considered Zenfone as the fairest of them all, and it doesn’t mean the one who doesn’t cheat with a line call during Badminton – but the most beautiful of them all. A Zenfone in red is so much of a joy to watch. It is not comparable to Kate Upton in red, but still too beautiful.

2. The Gaming Partner: I have always wanted a Valentine who could play games with me, and I have found one with Asus Zenfone. I feel that an amazing gaming experience awaits me with the phone, and I already have a small list of games ready, which I wish to expand once she becomes my Valentine. We shall play more games together than any immortal has played with his lovers. The games will keep us youthful for long. We might even come up with a gamer anthem.

3. The Honeymoon: I see that if I can make the Zenfone mine on this Valentine’s Day, I have a chance to fly to Singapore with her for honeymoon, and all the expenses will be covered by her only. Zenfone already has a honeymoon ready, and if still there is any doubt in my mind whether to propose to the wonderful phone, I have to ponder more on my thought procedures than anything else. Yes, I have been to Singapore and I love that place – another opportunity, this time with the loved one is only fair.

4. That Energy: I cannot question her energy either, as Zenfone has that long battery backup and performance which might surprise me, even with the clear knowledge about the same. Who wouldn’t want a valentine with so much of energy? After all, she would always have the power to light up my life. I might loss my powers, but she won’t. She will remain better than me – it is something that I shall cherish.

5. And Simplicity: ZenUI is intelligent and simple – who wouldn’t like a smart girl who has absolutely no vanity and talks with such simplicity? Zenfone is such a lovely character – never boasting about her skills and always keeping things simple; not falling into the Devil’s favourite sin. Lucifer might be very unhappy with that, but let him be so, because he should have a lot of free time at hell. Pride has no role in her heart. She is worth every word of love that you say for her.

This blog post is part of the Happy Hours campaign from Indiblogger in association with Asus India.

***The image used in this blog post is from the Happy Hours campaign page.

TeNy

Love at the Cemetery

As I had mentioned earlier in more than one blog posts, I have never proposed or came close enough to doing the same. I have preferred to the loner. But as time flies, I only get older and almost everyone around me are getting married. May be it is time I decide to do that because the sands of time is not a renewable resource – sands are available in the desert, but not that sands of time, as they disappear like cricket balls when AB de Villiers bat during the final overs of a cricket match.

So, the question remains about where to propose. My normal preference would be the badminton court or with tea, but there has to be something even more special about it as I think further. I have received flowers on my car on a Valentine’s Day during the last year of my college, and that was the only incident that had any interesting touch to any February the fourteenth. But that had nothing to follow, and I when I think about a proposal on a Valentine’s Day, I go further – I travel deeper and higher, both ways.

That takes all of us to the location. The church cemetery. Yes, this would clearly degenerate my value on any matrimonial website, but that is a risk I am willing to take. I shall gladly take the zombie-vampire rating for my wedding because I would care less if my bride chooses to be one; it is all about personal choices. She can even be a werewolf if she wants to, and in that case, may be I can choose a cave for the second stage of proposal.

After all, it is all about being innovative and different. I don’t see the point in being similar. Doing it like others has never been my method of working. Yes, I have tried to be like others due to the comparisons that have been made by my relatives and other so called well-wishers, but I have gone beyond that. Those were the teenage days, and I am not ready to go back to the cursed times. There is no longer the need to be like others and do like what the rest of the world do.

If I say that I choose to be crazy in love, there will be people who come up with the opinion that I have never been sane. Yes, with the chance of that insanity title bestowed upon me, I choose to propose in that graveyard. Which church graveyard? The one near my mother’s ancestral parish church. Why there? Because it is further away from the church and is located near a small, old and beautiful chapel dedicated to Saint Antony, my patron saint – and that should be only fair.

The blessings will be abundant from the chapel, and what comes along with the same is the hope to take it to the grave and from there towards eternity as whoever goes to the other world first shall look down like in Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s The Blessed Damozel and think straight into the other world like in Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven. One with the angels which take forms to travel in this world and the other with the raven who connects the other world, the connection shall always be there with a proposal made in the cemetery.

I don’t think that she will mind at all, because she is as weird as I am, even though I doubt if the title of being “the strangest among the stranger ones” can be shared. I wouldn’t expect her to think that this is going to happen in such a way, but there comes the surprise, the craziness that comes as the side-effect. There are not many stranger things than love, and then there is this proposal at the cemetery which contributes to the madness with beauty and love. Lets Blog for #SoundOfLove.

I am participating in the #SoundOfLove activity atBlogAdda in association with Bluestone

TeNy