Childhood Heroes

Everyone needs a hero figure, someone to look up to. The heroes are supposed to inspire and trigger aspirations of those who read about them. Growing up in India my heroes were in the pages of Amar Chitra Katha and Chandamama. Both these publications were meant for the young readers, rich in pictures and high on tales of valor, wit and wisdom depending on who the historical protagonist happened to be in a particular story.

The pictures in Amar Chitra Katha were colorful and the accompanying words always seemed to add value and substance. The pictures were like music painting a colorful mosaic providing the context for the text which were like vocals describing the story and fully resonating with the readers keeping them engaged till the last page. The images in those books left a lasting impression. Seared into my memory are illustrations of how the rishis (the wise sages) looked. All the rishis sported luxuriant growth of mustache and free flowing beard with thick black hair tied into a bun at the top of the head. On one hand they would carry rosaries and on the other a kamandalu (oblong water container with a nice handle at the top for carrying it with ease). You better be quite hirsute to convince me you are a sage 😀 Creating those pictures by hand must have been a painstaking effort and I was always amazed at the consistent look achieved in those books.

Chandamama had less pictures compared to Amar Chitra Katha books, it had its own charm. Less pictures meant more reading material which is what one wants when younger, right? 🙂 The images that were there painted a picture of an idyllic India with abundance of greenery where learning was more one on one with the guru (teacher) and in communion with nature. The 2 regular features in Chandamama I remember are “Legends and parables of India” which featured allegorical tales and the other feature was “Tales of Vikramaditya”. Vikramditya was a wise king cursed with living in the forest for 6 months for every 6 months spent in his kingdom. The tales always had a picture of Vikramaditya carrying a ghost on his back who would ask the king very difficult questions. If the wise king answered correctly the ghost would be off his back, if answered wrong his head would explode into a zillion pieces and he would experience a very painful death.
Needless to say the wise king would always answer the questions correctly with wit, wisdom and a very thoughtful explanation leaving readers awaiting for the next edition for more of the good stuff. I need to read again the tales to see if the ghost is actually a metaphor for bad karma which carries over.

The creators of those stories and TV series like “Dora the Explorer”, “Spongebob Squarepants” etc deserve kudos for their ability to understand the needs of their audience and producing a very satisfying experience!
Teachers in elementary school deserve special praise too for understanding the needs of kids and moulding their learning experience.

These days my heroes often tend to be regular folks who perform heroic deeds in their own way!

Modern day parable

A rich, old man (ROM), born to wealth and power, given to recklessness and wild behavior, was pulled over by a police officer (PO) for driving well over 75mph on a 65mph speed limit highway.
PO: Sir, can you please furnish your driving license please?
ROM: For what reason?
PO: Sir, you were driving well over the speed limit
ROM: It can’t be, there must be some mistake
PO: No Sir, there is nothing wrong with the radar gun, I can assure you
ROM: You got to be kidding me, I have never driven over speed limit ever. If at all I drove over the speed limit it must have been momentarily to get ahead of an 18-wheeler ahead of me in my lane
PO: That’s not the case, another PO alerted me 10 miles back that you were driving over the speed limit. We charge drivers only if they drive over the limit consistently for a stretch
ROM: Do you know who I am? I am a rich and powerful man, I have built a lot of businesses and employ thousands of people
PO: Providing gainful employment is a noble thing to do, that’s nice of you. However, that’s got nothing to do with driving over speed limit. Can I get your driver license please?
ROM: A smart, young officer like you could earn much more. I could employ someone like you as my acting chief security officer. Have you given a thought of earning more for your skills?
PO: No Sir and I must warn you promising employment to an officer on duty could invite charges of bribing. Your license please
ROM: I need to speak to my lawyer first
PO: In deference to your age I am allowing you to call your lawyer. However, I am sorry to say your lawyer has no role to play here. You were the only person in a speeding car and from what I see it’s not a self-driving car assuming self-driving cars are street legal. We also have a photograph of you behind the wheel. Nice, clear picture with your hair blowing in the wind. You must have been driving with the windows rolled down
ROM (after calling lawyer and getting no answer, muttering): Where the heck is Broody when I need him?
PO: Sir?
ROM: Oh, Broody is the nickname for my lawyer. I gave him that name, he is the brooding type you see 😀 He is a bloody good lawyer though!
PO: He might very well be a good lawyer but I can’t wait all day here. I have more work to do. If I don’t get your driver license in 5 minutes you might face additional charge of obstructing an officer from doing his duty. It’s your choice
ROM (looking at other cars speeding on the highway over the speed limit) waves his hand in that direction
PO (reading ROM’s thought): Sir, till today you were one of those drivers who got away driving over speed limit. Your 5 minutes are almost up, as you wisely noted there are other drivers that need attention too. By not furnishing your license you are preventing me from doing my duty. I need your license now!
ROM (seeing he has no other alternative) hands over his driving license to the officer who issues a speeding ticket
PO (handing back the driver license to ROM): Thank you, Sir! You are free to go now
ROM (seething with rage): I will contest this ticket in court. Will sue the hell out of everyone if needed
PO: Sure, Sir. You will have your day in court. One sage advice, Sir: Drive safe and go easy on the gas pedal. There are other officers along the way, getting more than one ticket will be considered pattern of behavior and your driving license could be suspended for reckless driving
ROM (starting his car) stares angrily at the officer
PO (while walking back to the patrol car): Have a good rest of the day and enjoy your drive, Sir!

Moral of the story: Don’t mess with the cops unless you want to turn a bad situation worse!

In praise of Fall

Nature is putting on quite a show
When you look out you will surely know;
You see an explosion of color
It’s nature’s gift for you to savor!

This time of the year is known as fall
Many a tree will see its leaves fall;
Witness the magic before the leaves are shed
As they turn yellow , orange or red !

Behind the fall colors and the frisson
Is an important life lesson;
You can either choose to worry about the future
Or live in the present and spread joy like nature!

Like Indian food

I am like Indian food.
Most people either love me or hate me.
For the same reason: The way I appeal to their senses!
People who love me overlook all my flaws.
People who hate me can’t look beyond my flaws.
Am I concerned? Not really.
Take it or toss it, this is who I am 🙂

Sorry if you feel I tricked you here by posting food photos 😀

If you wanted to read about food, below links from yours truly 🙂
https://therajblog.com/2019/05/19/mumbai-roadside-eats-series-1-sandwich/
https://therajblog.com/2019/05/28/mumbai-roadside-eats-series-2-zanzanit-batata-vada/
https://therajblog.com/2019/07/16/the-great-cook-off-father-son-battle-royal/
https://therajblog.com/2019/07/19/thursday-night-dinner-father-son-collaboration/
https://therajblog.com/2019/07/21/saturday-night-son-solo-tofu-stir-fry/

Remote control covers / cases

This is the age of ubiquitous remote controls and pretty much every appliance comes packaged with one. Nothing appeals to human beings as much as reclining on a couch and pushing the buttons on those controls. Especially men watching a game eating popcorn with their favorite sports team playing 😀 It’s one of the most prized possessions in every home 🙂 Few decades ago when I was growing up in India as TVs with remotes were introduced in the market they were objects treated with the most reverence. So much so one of the first buys after laying hands on a remote was buying a case/cover to protect those much treasured objects. If a case/cover was not readily available people used to go to great lengths covering the remote with ziploc like transparent plastic and taping it to fit it snugly with the remote. Personally those cases or covers never appealed to me much. Using remote control with cover on is like having protected sex, not quite the same experience as one without 😀 Only reason I can think of for buying those covers/cases is protection from liquid spills while using them. Even that reason doesn’t hold much water as one shouldn’t be handling remote controls and liquids at the same time. Finish with one before handling the other 😉 Another explanation is fear of the numbers or letters on those buttons wearing off. The doesn’t make sense too. Wear off suggests user is very much aware of the function of those buttons and can handle those buttons blindly. Besides if there is so much wear and tear it may be time to replace the remote at least (if not the appliance itself) 😀

Google and pretzel logic

Today’s Google Doodle celebrates the pretzel and it couldn’t have come at a more fitting time!

https://www.cnet.com/news/google-welcomes-oktoberfest-with-pretzel-doodle/

“Pretzel logic” is the phrase that came to mind when I looked at the doodle.

Macmillan dictionary defines that phrase as “faulty or circular reasoning that does not stand up to scrutiny”. In other words reasoning that doesn’t have much truth or logic baked into it! Which is what the high and mighty do when they try to rationalize their actions 🙂

Nothing more fitting to describe the times we live in 😀