A lot of us who regularly use social media might be aware of the Facebook list of people in academia who have allegedly sexually harassed a student. It allows the said student to anonymously add the name of the academician to the list, and anyone can see the list. Here’s a link to an article on The Quint, talking about this – Facebook List Naming Profs as Sexual Harassers Sparks Fiery Debate.
Image courtesy – The News Minute
Serena Williams recently gave birth to her daughter and the little fan-girl part me of me is ecstatic at knowing that this incredible woman is happily adding a new role to her life. But that is not even half of it. After all, every second, there are four kids taking birth somewhere around the world. So what really has Serena Williams done to makes me this happy?
It’s this open letter she wrote to her mother, Oracene Price:
Courtesy – Serena Williams’ Instagram Page
The year is 1997 and Titanic has just released. People are rushing to the theaters to watch it, not caring that the movie, just like the real life incident it was based on, would end tragically. If anything, the tear jerking end became one of the most powerful scenes in the movie. People couldn’t stop gushing over it, even if it meant they were also gushing tears while doing it. In fact, the sad finale became such a huge phenomenon, that it actually landed up in the BBC’s list of “Movies that made men cry.”
If you don’t know where you’re going, any road would lead you there. – Lewis Carroll
Courtesy – Martin Liebermann (c) martin-liebermann.de
Ironically, I just heard it from a girl in a movie where she devotes her everything to her ambition of becoming an Olympic long distance runner.
I am walking to my class, when I hear someone shout from above, “Topi Wali! (The one with the cap) I love you!” It didn’t take me a second to recognise it as a man leering from inside the police custody bus, coming back from the Court nearby. It was quite unsettling, more so because of the uncomfortable proximity I was forced into with the bus. Standard, crowded Indian road conditions applied there. Mercifully, I was getting late for a class and it left me little time to think about anything else other than hurrying. And hurry I did, with as much false bravado as possible.
Three days a week, I reluctantly lift my butt off to go for music classes. It doesn’t matter that I like attending the classes. It still doesn’t make it easy to change into some respectable clothes, brush my hair and exchange the comfy slippers for sneakers.
Have you seen The Carmichael Show? You should. For a comedy series in today’s age, it is surprisingly insightful and entertaining.
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I am particularly impressed by the second episode of Season 2 in the series. The protagonist of the show, Jerrod gets tickets to a live show by Bill Cosby for his family on his parents’ anniversary following which there’s intense and comedic discussion over whether they should attend the show or not, given the recent news of Cosby’s scandals.
Entering the haloed gates of the top engineering colleges is a dream. For most of us, unfortunately the heady feeling of this dream coming true is short lived.
Quite a few of us decided to add Tech to the B only because our parents wished so (maybe even ordered us to do so.). Many others did it because there wasn’t anything else that they really wished to do. Engineering seemed to be the safest choice. After all, chasing our dreams may sound courageous, but courage wouldn’t pay our bills or even buy us the humble daal and roti.
And thus we start the rest of our lives, confused about what we really want. Don’t you worry child, whether or not you make new friends, this confusion may accompany you for a long time…maybe even after college.
Then comes the time for showing everyone what a big shot you are on the first day. It doesn’t even take the first lecture to get over before you’re punched in the gut with the realisation that you’re not really the next Elon Musk. The boy or girl sitting next to you seems just as smart and talented as you are. Thus begins the confusion of self-worth. This too shall be your loyal mistress for the coming years. And after you read the next paragraph, this might be the only mistress you’re going to get for a some time.
Talking of mistress and handsome lovers, we must also talk about our wish to find our soul-mate. For the more hip and happening ones, even flings seem all right. But the cursed male to female ratio successfully destroys all our romantic dreams. This itself can make anyone to become a feminist crusader for all the girls who couldn’t attend school or didn’t take science and engineering. After all, your “coochy-coo” could have been one of them. But alas! Many of us are left to be the secret Romeos or Juliets who post our heartfelt messages on confession pages, constantly wondering if there is something wrong with how we walk or talk or look. And hence our confusion about our looks and personality start.
Meanwhile, you’re also seriously contemplating your future course of life. Do you actually like your stream or should you switch over to something else? MBA sounds cool. IAS doesn’t sound so bad either or should I learn some programming languages and take up coding? For some of us, we’re unable to resolve this dilemma even in our fourth year of college. We just go where the masses go. Not all of us our made to be the shepherds. Some need to fit the roles of the clueless sheep.
Of course, life’s confusions don’t stop here. Just when you think you’ve got a hang of things, life just has to meddle and mess up everything. The only thing we can do is sit back and laugh at the comedy our lives are.
The clock’s tick-tock grates on my nerves.
Everything is silent and the only sound that can be heard is occasional howling by the bored neighbourhood dog who has nothing better to do.
Immensely grateful, I thank the lords for not forcing my ears to be an unwilling guest at someone’s loud wedding.
I am flipping through the pages in front of me but the words have long since stopped making any sense.
Still I march forward with the studying.
The exam’s tomorrow and there is still so much to do.
The cups of coffee are losing their effect and I am reminded I should take a break and go to the kitchen for some more.
Not that it’ll help much.
The legs of the chair screech as I push back the chair.
On the way to the kitchen, all the different formulae, theorems, definitions swim through my head.
I am so drowsy I could just fall down and not feel a thing.
But there’s still do much to do.
The irony of the promise I made during the last exams isn’t lost on me.
Then too, a solemn promise had been made to study beforehand and not leave everything until the last minute.
Oh well.
Lets get on with making the coffee.
As I add some instant-coffee powder in the hot milk, I go through the syllabus again.
Hmm, there aren’t too many topics left.
I’ll manage to complete them in the morning.
Pouring the coffee powder on the spoon back into its jar, I switch off the kitchen’s light and zombie my way to my bed.
Barely removing my slippers, I plop down flat on my bed and pull the covers up.
Silently praying that the exam goes well, I close my eyes, knowing it’ll be just as terrible as ever.
The Dear John letter to my school uniform.
Goodbye you old, boring summer cottons,
And goodbye , you old drab, sullen winter woollens.
We had a 14 year long relation and I’ve been wanting to move on.
I can’t handle this life of monotony, it’s time for us to part ways.
Candid Wallflowers 