Yes, JOURNALIST.

MURDER. No clues, no suspects, all four gone in a single stroke.

Would have normally invoked shock and terror; and set off thoughts on the state of affairs in the world, growing intolerance, need for love and understanding. Not this time. The news was pronounced to me like a sentence and I had no escape. I was there to do my job; and fulfill it to the best extend possible, I must.

Calls were made to the law enforcers. My identity deemed that I be paid respect. I asked and received much more than expected. Neither did they know this was my first, nor did i try to hide it. I guess, the simple fact of my "necessary evil" kinda existence in society brings with it certain powers. The boss however pointed out flaws and a great learning it turned out to be. I knew I was right in having decided to come here.

At the end, I was surprised at my own lack of emotion. I was completely antiseptic to the turn of events. And to think I am not even a few months old here. Professional hazard, they call it. I pray it doesn't rob my soul.

My Dad agrees too - "Girls just wanna have fun!"

(My personalised version of Cyndi Lauper's 'Girls just wanna have fun')

I stay up late at night,
My father says "When you gonna live your life right?"
Oh, daddy, dear
We're not the naughty ones,
And we won’t let you down,
But girls, just wanna have some fun,
Read a book, or watch a flick, and slip into slumber, curled up on the couch,
Oh, girls just wanna have some innocent fun.

The phone rings in the middle of the night,
My father yells "What you gonna do with your life?"
Oh, daddy dear,
You know you're still number one,
And there’s no boy in my life yet,
Oh, girls, just wanna have some innocent fun.
That's all they really want,
When the working day is done,
Girls just wanna have fun.

Some boys take a beautiful girl,
And ask to be compensated with cars and cash, or gold and gifts,
I am not a ‘Buy One, Get One Free’ product,
I wanna be the one to walk in the sun with my head held high.
So, daddy please, believe in me,
And don’t care about a society that can’t respect or understand me.

Girls just wanna have fun,That's all they really want,
Before the sun sets on a short life, full of responsibilities and worries,
Girls just wanna have some fun.
******************************

I sent these verses to my "super dude Dad", and he responded with a "God bless you, my super cool daughter." Awwww.....

A dream!?

Wild with passion, raw yet tender, unstoppable and unimaginable… a torrid love affair, as they call it. To enjoy love, like it will be gone the next moment. To throw caution to the winds, to stop thinking, to keep looking into the eyes of the lover, to feel love all over your body and soul. Make love till you’re completely spent and then fall apart. To sit back leaning against your lover… talk about nothing, just listen to the heartbeats in the room. Then, sit by the window, covered in moonlight, cuddled in your lover’s arms.

To wake up to a day in heaven… with a loving smile on the face… to say nothing, yet know all and understand all. A peck on the cheek and ‘I love you’ in the eyes, calm and peace in the mind, knowing and believing that it’s going to last forever.

Waiting with love, waiting in anticipation, for the moment… to run into the arms of the lover, take in the scent and feel the rush. With music in the head, to dance with the wind and swirl in abandon in those caring arms, to laugh till it hurts and then fall on the floor and lie back. Loud heartbeats silenced by a sweet, lovely kiss.

Jack and Jill – Innocence lost

Once upon a time, there was a boy named Jack and a girl named Jill. They were good friends and lived in the same neighbourhood. They went to school together, shared their tiffins with each other and played in the park every evening. Then one fine day, Jack and Jill heard and saw something about ‘the birds and the bees’. They were curious to know more but did not dare to ask their parents. Jack’s buddies showed him some magazines and Jill’s friends whispered something in her ears. On the way back from school, Jack fell down and broke his crown and Jill came tumbling after.

Has the popular nursery rhyme gone haywire? Going by the number of instances of child rape and molestation that one comes across in the media today, it would not be too surprising if old nursery rhymes were to be modified thus. Circa 2008 is at a stage when schools and colleges in countries abroad are advocating installation of condom vending machines in campuses to dissuade teenagers from engaging in unsafe sex. But what about our young Jack and Jill to whom ‘Moods’ or ‘Kamasutra’ mean nothing beyond “chee chee” product brands shown on television. These young impressionable minds exposed to suggestive graphics and images, raunchy lyrics and explicit music videos have nowhere to turn to for help.

The recent cases of nine and ten year olds being charged with sexual offences are appalling. This is more serious than perverted men abusing innocent lives. So, how do we prevent our tiny tots from falling prey to these life-sized threats? Proper sex education imparted in the right way, at the right time – it is not enough to learn the diagrammatic representation of the human reproductive system in Biology textbooks at the age of 15. With changing patterns of living, the onset of puberty has also advanced. It is therefore important that parents and teachers provide adequate information and emotional support to children as they go through this turbulent period in their lives. Shying away from such issues will lead curious minds to tread risky paths. Let us not be responsible for innocence lost.

FUN Things to do before getting MARRIED

1. Learn DJ-ing
2. Learn Bharata Natyam – Mohiniyattom
3. Learn Salsa
4. Learn Kalaripayattu/Karate/Boxing
5. Learn to ride a motorbike
6. Get a tattoo
7. Get a dog
8. Work for an NGO
9. Bungee-jump
10. Sky-dive
11. Go on a shopping-eating out spree with Mom (repetitive)
12. Help Jen to get her hair coloured and ears/nose pierced
13. Buy F.R.I.E.N.D.S. complete VCD/DVD
14. Own an SLR camera
15. Own a handycam
16. Frame pictures for the wall
17. Go on a date for Valentine’s Day
18. Send mom and dad for a candle-lit dinner date
19, 20,… to be updated.