Surrealism - the new reality.

There is a way that seemeth 

The incessant impulsion to the sense of enchantment never ceases to amaze. Enthralling pursuits of every design , on every conceivable platform. We landed on Mars a few days ago, progressively, gender equality comes at the cost of increased drug use.  4G is here. Super heroes, animation flicks  and mythical sagas have reason to be box office hits .....  Lady Gaga hits 28.2 million followers on Twitter....and the cloud can now ensure that the mob of desolate profiles are futilely synced.....to more futility    ....power on a platter ...or so it is believed

What are we made up of...... really ? Why do we have to move from thrill to thrill  ?   Who, what and how are we trying to satisfy ? Welcome to surrealism - the new reality. This is a defiant new world where melioration is an alluring place of pseudo-gratification of a thirst largely misunderstood. 

I believe, this is the compensatory humane effort of the soul, to relive the wonder it was once a partaker of. It realizes that the existing position is stimulating , but temporal, unoriginal and falls blatantly short of expectations , and thus the search goes on..... There is a proverb which goes ....

“ There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.

Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful; and the end of that mirth is heaviness.

The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways; and a good man shall be satisfied from himself.

The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man loooketh well to his going.

A wise man feareth, and departeth from evil : but the fool rageth and is confident”

For……enchantment in life can never be realized in a “thing “, it must culminate in a person !!!

August 09, 2012,

scherian.blogspot.com

Touch Tanks' Seat of Enlightenment

I never really understood, for quite a while , what the Gs stood for in  2G, 3G and 4G... Of course "generation" sounded awfully simple. The only solace being , whatever it stood for, could be interpreted as twice as good, thrice as good and so on....bought myself the Ipad from the crony in my contact list. . Soon.the plethora of free and paid apps ,  games and the rest ....a whole world , competing online for the first time, .. a whole new arena. Welcome to the age of the interface.

Touch Tanks Europe by Flipside, particularly,  caught my attention,   an engrossing RPG as a tank commander. My first tank was a an A12.Matilda II a light weight, nimble, low armor,  shoot and scoot vehicle , speed of gun reload being the only feature worth mention .Thirty games later, i had myself , nitro fuel, a pack of mines, enhanced armor and a zillionith in rank amongst other " online always " geeks from all around the world. My military career began as a 1st Private, whatever that means, in the parlance of Flipside, in any case,  the only noteworthy achievement being that my general awareness of armored assault vehicles was growing by the second  . A.12Matilda II, SDKFZIIIF,T-2637, M1340, Char B1, A-15 Crusader, Sherman, KV-1, T-34, A272 Cromwell, A.27 Centaur, Panther D, Sherman VC Firefly, T-3485, A.30 Challenger,  Tiger E, Pershing M-26, A.34 Comet , IS2. I handled 28 tanks and their upgrades with varying degrees of armor, speed, gun sight, shell speed , shell damage, and reload , and decimated online opponents in the battles of Cyrenaica, Hurtgen, Kiev, El-Alamein and Stalingrad. My new found skills and points collected ensured my promotion gradually , from a rookie  I Private , II ,and  III Private, onward  from I to IIICaptain. General to Commander in Chief.. I was now in management, probably at level 20 ,  am at the brink of becoming Field Marshall.It had been an interesting career, my opponents were now familiar with my screen name ( not telling you what it is) and familiarity made some wary , some aggressive, some nonchalant and some completely fool hardy .  I was quickly assigning the approach of my cyber opponents to people I have been with and situations I have seen people in. I call this post my  "Touch Tanks Seat of Enlightenment" The similarity and parallels that i could draw is what this is about. Touch Tanks may be a game  however , offense , defense , strategy is no strange place and is probably apt. I will try and draw parallels to the script i know in the texts i have read,   if you find it offensive, take a walk. After, all every war hero has his right to memoirs.

* When you are light and nimble , you are impressionable.  :

A12 Matilda

My rookie tank A-12 Matlilda, used by the British Infantry in WWII remained in service till the end of the war. Quick , light and nimble   The parallel i could draw as a beginner in career, marriage, relationships and as a rookie, impressions are easy to form. The risk of being destroyed is high, because you do not know much at this level, either you must base yourself on training or emulate those before you .  " Catch em young" is probably an embodiment of this level. Mark records in his Gospel " ...Truly I tell you , anyone who will not enter the kingdom of God, like a little child  will never enter it " Blind, unquestioned belief is everything at this level.

* As you grow in achievement and merit, the compromise is your adaptability "

Finer choices had to be made as i grew in the game, every tank became formidable, however the strengths and weakness of each vehicle / opponent were now pronounced. Some opponents were easily beatable others were impossible. Enhanced armor came at the cost of speed , extended gun sight came at the cost of shell delivery.  Paradigm shift . The much told story of Solomon comes to mind, commonly accepted as the wisest of men, who fell to the basic carnal challenges.   In fact  going by first principles,  my souped up Pershing  should suffice for an outright victory. However,  heavy armor reduced my speed and increased my vulnerability.. My acquired immunity became  an impediment to my  success. Its not that I had not read John Maxwell, Blanchard, Ravi Zacharias, Paul Coelho and others of the like , to asses a possible stand point of being strong , yet susceptible,   however,the  true state at this level is well put by Paul in his letter to the Romans " ..but I see another law at work in the members of my body , waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisioner of the law of sin at work within my members" In fact John Maxwell extrapolates  " The higher you go , the more evident your integrity or the lack of it becomes ".  Fancy ...here was enlightenment in an online game. Was it  King Gautama Buddha had left home for this kind of stuff.?

" Your enemies  best shot is a timed tracer to where you are going, not where you are or have been "

Handling the online version of the the IS2 , on my promotion as General was destructive entertainment redifined, mammoth,  T-122 guns on the IS2 could make an impression , and a novice stood slim chance. The IS2, 

( other wise called Iosip Stalin 2 ), was developed by  Russians and was put into use in 1944 in the Battle of Berlin , by the Red Army, and later by the Koreans, Chinese ,  Mainly used as a breakthrough tank in the several conflicts, breaking down buildings , devastating fronlines and well dug in bunkers , before the lighter tanks  with improved mobilility viz. T- 34 took over and finished the good work . What surprised me was my online opponents had learned to work around the challenge of a killer tank The judicious novice would dent my 130 mm armor with a timed shot estimating where i would reach in the next 4 seconds or so. Much, like the launch of unguided missiles or torpedoes, somebody in the fighting compartment could work this out quickly assessing speed , distance  and turrent turning radius This could really hurt. Paradigm shift. I remember the US primaries and the kind of muck that was being thrown around at candidates. Not that, and this intends to justify or condemn, attenton is drawn to timing. Hours of debate probably go in to ensure that timed release of sleaze would have maximum impact and deter progress.  Eventually the results would hinge on your reputation and not necessarliy the accusation. Wise king Solomon , gave direction  to the dilemma when he recorded in Proverbs  " A good name is more desirable than riches, to be esteemed is better than silver or gold" . .....he continues " the prudent see danger and take refuge , but the simple keep going and pay the penalty"

Speaking at the strength of being CINC of my  virtual battlefield, and my discources  from my 

" Touch Tanks Seat of Englightenment" i assure you that there is more from where all that came ....however i have few more battles to win. This time wiser and stronger.......and knowing the devices of the enemy..........ironic that this game is by " Flipside" ...ive seen one .heck of a Flipside...... ......now where is  that Ipad !!? 

Ode to the M4

M4 …that sounds like some kind of cloak and dagger code  key, ….a weapon… or a drug variant . That was how incorrect I was when I first heard of  M4….…” try and make it to…. M4 ….” . That is what Ms Vee  , advised  me as a beginner on the fourth floor. . Though, I was rather keen on Ms Vee’s …well…(ahem) …. V, ,,,she seemed overtly  interested  in M4. 

M4, that was the first level managerial cadre , it was at that level that one graduated from standing around somebody else’s table to getting a table of your own. This came with perks such as your extension number, a dustbin, a shiny set of staplers , scissors, glue stick,  post it , ruler, memo pad, letter heads, and the office boy served you  tea in a cup and saucer instead of polystyrene disposable . Extended privileges included a mega food bill, that passed off in  the yellow slip as “ Staff welfare “ or “ selling expenses “ ( which, actually,  you and your friends  bribed off some sleazy waiter while discussing ..strategy ..with Kingfisher , Budweiser and the like)

M4 that was the place to be, that was my dream coming true , finally , I  figured in the hierarchy…. all that toil,  sweat, double crossing dirty politics had finally paid off …I have arrived. This was only the beginning of a legacy ,…. M4, M3, M2, M1…and then ….U ( unclassified ) . At ‘U”,  I suppose , you could probably take Ms Vee home. Risks looked minimal ….at least to me then…I did wonder why the guys in M3, M2 and the rest …looked….constipated most of the time ..Well not me …I was raring to go…things would be different here now …I have taken over…watch me !!..........the rest is history.

I have been with the M3s , M2s, M1s  and the Us and learnt quite a bit, and decided to dedicate this post to them  …some posthumously, to some with malice, and to some with pure unadulterated hate. To some with respect and some with gratitude , and to some with nothing whatsoever …these are the ones that did or did not make a difference . I have seen them handle conflicts,  ….take decisions, handle ethics , hire , fire , promote , demote, politicize and desensitize, patronize and tear to shreds…all in a days work. Here is a snapshot  and  tip from them each of them…..

Type :  Ascharya ( M3 )

Male 45 : I like to surprise everybody including myself, say yes when everybody thinks I will say no !! see ...surprise ... the basis of a decision…will it help surprise?.... then …get it done  . In his case… the ends always justifies the means. Short meetings, surprise on the move, quick decisions ,  there is no such thing as a right or wrong decision ..its just a decision …...then another one...if i said yes...it was because i was drunk...all is forgiven and acceptable if it ends with Old Monk, and i do not have to pay for it. 

Happiness is a permit card.

Tip : Life is short, Live it well …always at somebody else’s expense , bless him.

Type : Muhavra ( M1 )

Male 50 : Everybody body must adore idli and sambaar. Everything in business, can be a proverb in action or a vision statement .The second string of the management , must always be from the military , nowhere else could you get discipline and sheer stupidity as package.  In fact a vision , led to a mission, for those who could not figure out the difference it was just ....confusion. Patronize 5% …..confuse the rest. All reports must be in quadruplicate, how else could you find the figures if you misplaced one set.

Happiness is hearing the words “ Yes Sir…Will do Sir” 

Tip : Be a visionary…hire ex-military NCOs…they are trained…thats all..  your will ...will be done.

Type : Eda-Peda ( M4 )

Male : 55, pretends to be 35,  beer belly is the only legal belly, nobody can do anything better than me. Ride auto to save gas money , Microsoft Word  .,,,,duh ? ….Windows …what ? …everybody is a cheat, trust no one. They are the “ eda bankey peda khana types “ Listen more  …talk less …write everything…that’s what notepads are for …never be the last in a conversation…not because I gave up , but because I  really don’t know what to say …how would I anyway ? … it is  not on the brochure…nor on my notepad

 Happiness is a notepad , a pen and a bottle of cheap beer. 

Tip : Automation , MIS ….. and the rest is all a waste of time , it is correct only if I’ve written it down somewhere in my notepad .

Type  :  KHALASH ( M3 )

Male : 45 , movie star, in fact people notice only what i wear, do not let me open my mouth, if I do , my foot will go in. .Tearing hurry … for everything …Everything is a four letter explicit.  After my foot comes out of my mouth, …. Let me yell dirty …. mothers, fathers, in fact  I can improvise, with the rest if the kin  Books are meant for showcases , Competition – by Porter , looks good on the table. Just like me ….looks good. …

Happiness is a new suit every day ….

Tip : Everything will end one day, that day could be today…I think its already happening &%^!!!!.

Type : LIMELIGHT ( M1 )

Male : 40,  I grew real fast, I really do not know why, maybe it is because, I manage to get the limelight on me all the time. Everybody has a role…and most of them play it well. I really do not know my role , so I make do with a little bit of everybody’s role. Never go into details…read the last line only that’s where the results are     … I like to motivate people…I must do it quick…before I forget what I read in  the loo ….money is secondary for everybody else ... except  for me , for the rest  there is esteem, pride of ownership and the thrill of working with me …there …that’s me in the limelight again ….

Happiness is a 10 minute MBA guide , I wish it came with a dictionary though…

Tip: Everybody is dispensable , except me . 

.........await the rest , its called pacing...that's what  Limelight  calls it ...

Tom, Dick and Hariprasad Gaitonde

Waking up to the reverent fragrance of incense sticks, was daily habit.... Hariprasad Gaitonde, my roomie ( of course not his real name !! ) , would stand by the window, almost in the buff , a wet  towel covering the bare essentials , hands folded, head bowed, ...i am sure he half closes his eyes ....just in case God lands up......two lit incense sticks wedged in between his index fingers....reverently  mumbling his early morning prayers. Waking up the heavens with this rhetoric.


“ I’m not like any Tom,  Dick and Harry” he used to say when asked about this wet reverence .” I am a devotee” he briefed the rest of us. 

The bachelor pad was just getting over last night’s booze bout.Struggling with a hangover, contemplating,  if the last swig in the bottle was still available for a quick morning round with contaminated tap water. so much for acquired immunity. The water tank probably had dead rats in it ...  in any case, the stale , re-heated “choley bhaturey” from “Pappu’s dookan” would kill the whiff of ..the whatever we were on and negate anything.  Not looking forward, to the working day, better to stay in bed and catch up on lost sleep.  In any case the frequent “bandhs” and “ andolans” had messed up the market….sleep was the best investment. Mummy told us to sleep well. There …justified.


Sleeping late, ...No ... Not HP, no he was a class apart...he was good to go, fresh ironed shirt and trousers, polished shoes, allprim and proper, by 0745 hrs .HP was an ideal son eligible bachelor, the perfect employee, punching in at 0759  am for two years at a stretch. Hotly pursued , by the enterprising marriage middle - men…the perfect husband to be.” No…..No he does not drink….no affairs….no smokes…no nothing…...devout..spotless reputation…God fearing… good looking…good company ”…the “shadi dalals” had a field day when they were touting HPs CV to second hand maruti 800 owing shady looking ,pan parag chewing prospective dad – in - laws .

“ Im not like any Tom , Dick and Harry”  HP insisted , when the rest of us  cronies suggested , that we play his family and negotiate and collect the dowry from his smuggler (could be drug dealer) prospective father –in-law… and split three ways . HP would not take the money . He was a devotee….HP would still get the girl ..his wife, and hmm …Kishore kaka the paan dookan chappie,  could play HP’s father …and we his brothers..…ok split four ways .HP was listening….HP was a good listener.

“ What if ..my Mother, and Father find a girl and fix an alliance in my village ?”  he challenged us with this very apt question…. “ Adjust bhai “…we replied …Polygamy was no problem if secrets could be kept, ….one wife in the city …one in the village…..HP was a zamindar one and only beta, a very devout beta….of course he loved us as friends…and he had such a nice heart.  ..do it for us  HP …do it for us ..please !!! …..“ I am no Tom Dick and Harry” ..he blurted out almost apologetically …the get rich quick dreams disappeared for the rest of us …at least for the moment.

This......was a long time ago.......a very long time ago …in fact “ Maine Pyar Kiya “ had just completed 100 days in the nearby Lata Hall.  We lost touch in a year or so

Many ,many, many years later…by the ghost of a chance or divine intervention… I met HP, in a roadside café in steel city, surprisingly , we recognized each other ….i had not changed much …..It had been ages years since we moved out following our own dreams..living our own lives . We bumped into each and wham!! …HP was now a conversationalist and bordered on being cop …., I had been taught by life to listen ” good to catch up buddy !! he said  …married  ?  he asked…  “Yeah” .kids  ? yeah  …wife works ? yeah …settled ? ..yeah looks like…middle management job ..huh ?  ..yes ..sort of…good group ? ..yeah …want some more tea..? …hmm well yes..why not ..you don’t get to see an old friend …everyday…. HP pulled out a pack of smokes..and offered me one…no I quit ..hey that’s nice  he said ..when did you start.... I asked ? ..he blew onto my face ….”Long story ..Long story “  he muttered..”  …lets go get a drink..he suggested ..Steel city was full of cheap bars…” I was shocked ..HP and booze ...?? 

 No I got to be back by the evening train ..i said.  ..|” oh come on”  he said …I had to turn it down I was not doing the pub crawl  any more ..”you’ve changed buddy” ..he noticed .”.you ‘ve dumped all this ? ” …Sort of I managed to blurt…” but you surprise me …HP “ you were this great devout .and vehment .teetotaler…? what happened ?

“ I am still devout ...long story … you don’t want to know “ he said ..He was right . In a nut shell …married the perfect woman , split , re-married , split..booze, a bit of drugs…smokes, kept job hopping …obviously booze and grass had done him in …in fact he was now living in …”you see”… he went on “ Im no Tom Dick and Harry “ people mess with me ”lifes been unfair to me “, … I had no time ..I had a train to catch …I did not want his number…No point keeping in touch with a total loser. “ Mail me “  he said  . “.sure thing..” ..call me … the will do will do nonsense , business cards…I jumped on a waiting cab, and slammed this loser shut behind me

…after all  Im no Tom Dick and Harry.

 The HP I knew as a roomie was not the HP I met….. they say much of life is lived by the choices we make, one would even question if righteous living did guarantee a good deal as life plays out . HP did seemingly make the right choices ..and he got a  lousy deal …well..bad luck ?predestination ? …..stupid choices ? ….I did not have the answers… ..may be HP was an exception….I did  not know and I did  not care....the rhythmic Steel City express …need a shut –eye …tired …grateful ...satisfied …redeemed ..yeah redeemed  and sleeping …. 

French Windows

" Hey come in and see my house ..." , he quipped, the guttural way he spoke, had strains of his descent, schooling was obviously from the western hemisphere ,I had just sold my bag of glitzy appliances, to this very affluent gentleman, and beaming , he wanted to show me the rest of his luxurious villa. Not that there was the remote chance of me making a purchase,...... well at least not immediately. Bounding up the steps, " the marble is from Spain...the pergola is from Italy" he continued breathlessly. " You could mistake him for a real estate agent " I thought, the child like excitement was evident and becoming a bit of a bore... "I 've got more work to do chum...cannot spend the rest of the day running up and down your overbudgetted ,overengineered excess that you call your..villa."

His blabber peaked, when he got to the commentary about his customized French Windows....obviously some street smart geek had sold one of his many ideas that never really went public. Whatever.... the assortment was impressive, tall windows, the glass segments were larger than the ones i had come across , the conventional arch was missing..nicely done though. In spite of its tomfoolery with symmetry...the segments...somehow looked pleasing...under the guise of being ..ultra modern. He pressed something ...and the segments...began to rotate and stack up...almost silently. Each segment swivelled on it vertical axis and , very very smooothly stacked up on either side of the wall...this really was impressive. This was no longer a window....it had turned out be a large opening on his wall...we stepped out ....and boy...this was awesome. You wouldnt figure out much as you drove into his parking lot, from here...his house was on a hill !! . You really could see the entire city below. I must admit this was impressive. Worse still..my millionaire noticed ..." I can see the whole world from here!!" he blurted out . Bah!! , there could be something more educated , that he could have come up wiith..he'd have gone up a notch or two in my rating sheet...but no, my man wants to see the whole world. You actually could see the city, its winding roads, traffic...steady pace, the Jaipur sun gleaming  off automotive paint , intersections, synchoronized...well yes impressive.

"Wait till you see the pool ..the master bedrooms...... my study" he continued ...Id better call in ...the guys at work would be wondering what was taking me so long on a "done deal " As he passed the foyer ...he pressed a inconspicious button..."Ive equipped the house with the latest security system he went on.. there are monitors in each room ...i can switch amongst forty five cameras".. the misery continues now who hadnt seen a CCTV ,  motion detectors aided security systems.....this chappies built a fortress...I suppose hes hidden a SWAT team in the basement too. " I can see any place in the house any time, talk to anybody in any room " He had now had the good sense to whip out a packet of cookies......hopefully not from the woodwork ...I did not care much where it came from and its not polite to check the exipiry dates. I risked the bite.

"I can see any place ...any place ..any time" the man was actually proud he could...I wondered if that was some kind of achievement,.. that was what this shindig was meant for. " Come to my study " ..we were soon there, my mind stopped taking note of the details.." .....see how good it feels in here " . Yeah it did ...( applause everybody ) . I can press this button and see the pool , or the kitchen , or the garden...would you like to go down and see the garden ? He wasnt waiting for an answer, as he bolted down the ornate steps.. " see ...ahhh the smell of fresh flowers..these are from  Shimla , these from Brazil...." not important not important..".you can see my french windows from here..amazing arent they ?" A panel under the garden table had a monitor..and my man was soon on the buttons switching from one view to another ..any place ..any time..

Omnipresence ...that was what this twerp was trying to acheive, no wonder i wasnt paying attention anymore and fat chance I ever would. At the flick of a switch he could see any place any time in his house, .He would never know what it felt like to be in  ALL  the places at all times. ... Call me religious , call me spiritual, theistically speaking, Omnipresence in Eastern Theism is a divine attribute , though much less mentioned and spoken about in Western philosophical circles. I do believe that Man yearns to be more like his Creator , and every existential belief system , seems to subscribe that Man could come close.

Yes ,we could bound up and down the stairs till we faint ...he would never know what it feels like to be in ALL the places ...ALL the time !!... 


Advantage :  Almighty ...Consolation :  mortal