The Shower Cubicle Incident

This happened during our 10th grade, during a tour from the school to the Hill Stations in Kerala, South India. This particular incident happened when we stayed over at Idukki at a place called Greenland lodge. We had to stay over for the night because we had seen enough sites for the day, and were to head for our next destination the coming morning. 

 It was a fun night, I tell you. We had a huge dormitory. Some guys were lucky enough to get rooms (which was shared among four of them). But it was more fun in the dorms. There was the occasional trying out new stuff (like – “hey who’s smoking in here?”). 

We never knew when the sun shone on our faces. It was freezing cold out there, being a hill-station and all. We were asked to get ready by the two teachers who accompanied us. The teacher accompanying the boys was our moral studies’ teacher. Now, the girls were provided with well to do wash facilities, and most importantly, bathrooms with doors and latches on them. While the boys were shown the imperial bath suites – a gym washroom setup, but instead of doors, just curtains in its place.

There were 5 shower outlets, and so five of us took our baths at the same time. There was this one friend of ours, who was a complete laugh riot. You wouldn’t even know when time passes by when he is around. This friend of ours went into the shower cubicle. He turned on the shower, that is when it hit him – he’d forgotten to take the soap. He ran (obviously with a towel around his waist) and made it to the dorm, rummaged through his luggage, got the thing that he was looking for, and made it back to the shower cubicle. 

But alas, the cubicle was occupied. The curtains were closed. And somebody was taking a shower. Now Shinaan had been waiting in queue for long to take a bath. And when by chance he got it to himself, somebody took it over. This couldn’t happen. Our friend went ballistic. He shouted to the person inside the shower cubicle – “Hey asshole! Get the <beep> out of the <beep> shower. I’ve been waiting in here for <beep> time, and you <beep> take it all away. <beep> you!!! <beeper beep beeping beeper>!!!”

The person inside turns the shower off. And then a familiar voice came from inside – “If you have finished, you can please move aside. You might not want to face me when I come out.” 

It was our moral studies teacher. 

The Zahoor Effect

Well as you know it’s the time of Ramadan. It brings with itself a self revelation among the people to be good, do good and be cheerful. I think I have always believed it that if there is a change for the good and it should always be for the best (which means it should stay on forever and not for just one month. *tsk* *tsk* like for example now - where they are all goody goody, just to get back into the same old shoe after a month)

Well it was just another day in the month of Ramadan for me today. At around 9 at night, I called up ma friend Nawab and asked him as to where he was. He asked me to join him at the beach. Now Calicut beach is quite picturesque (I mean ‘chick’wise as well as the surrounding wise). So I did not think twice before finding myself at the ‘walk’ in the beach.

There were three of us sitting there – Nawab, Zahoor (his friend) and myself. Both are Afghani’s. So there we were on the beach ‘walk’ sitting on the side wall between a calm beach and some lazy cows on the interlocks (it’s India after all, who did u expect to be on the interlocks?) Well there were quite a lot of cattle on the beach for today. But there were more people than the cattle (thank God).

Zahoor decides to call his girlfriend (an Afghani – been just here for a few years – even he’s gotten lucky, damn… mera number kab ayega?) But she doesn’t pick it up. And he asks me –

“You tell me one thing. I find this really strange. I mean I call girls at 9 or 10. They don’t pick up. But they have no problem talking after 11 or midnight. I sometimes get miss calls at 2 past midnight”

What could I answer?

I laughed. Told him – it might be strange to you. But that’s how it rolls here in Calicut. (Maybe you girls out there can help answer that better)

And then he had quite a few other doubts. He was like a refreshing breeze to the stagnant life that we lived off here. There was laughter. He spoke of the time when he got slapped by a girl. The times he had out here in Kerala. The differences in the colleges in and around Calicut. I can tell you this – he has a better understanding of the people of Calicut than even me. He has a solution for everything. You know why? Coz he receives anything with an open smile. No stress, nothing at all. Come what may, go what may, he lives each moment to the max. I wished to be him for a moment there.

No moment was dull. The Zahoor effect changed my perspective on life a bit – live life, love life.

Love Actually?

This thing called love is really kinda very strange. You don’t know when and to whom you are falling in love. And when you do fall in love it’s so not right. You try to calculate the relation you’ve been having with them, and then you end up thinking as to whether you need to tell them or not. And some times you end up doing the foolish thing – by going along and telling them out. I don’t know why I say this, maybe because every time I’ve tried to open out my heart, I believe that I do one of the most foolish things possible. But then there will be people who will disagree with me. They’ll say that is better out than in. There’s no question of buts or what ifs. It’s all straight into the face. I am sad and at the same time that I have never been such a kind of person. But let me tell you one thing – when you love somebody, mean it with your heart. There’s no use trying to get the other person love you back or show your love in much more than just affection. When you give, give as if you’ve known no boundaries. These words are all rather the normal clichés I guess. But then again I have not got anything else to say to you. Maybe people take me too much for granted. But I succumb to whatever they make of me. I think this has got to change. Now you people must be thinking as to whether I’ve fallen in love again. But it’s not that I’ve fallen in love again. It’s just that I don’t when I fall in love no more. It’s quite the mystery. Maybe that’s why I am so hard to crack.