This one is for all those who were born in the late 70s or early 80s. Flashback 18-20 years to the time we were kids. We would wait for the one hour in the evening which, in our time tables read 'TV'. One hour when we would lose ourselves in Disney World; with Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Uncle Scrooge, Baloo, Tom and Jerry. Or Sunday mornings, when the entire family, mums included, would finish all their morning chores by 10 am to catch the weekly episode of Ramayan and Mahabharat. Doordarshan was our life, cable TV a luxury meant only for spoilt kids, a banned item if you wanted to be a “good child”. Fast forward to today. Life without cable TV seems like dal with no salt in it. Be it elders or the children. I just thought if we were to write out a comparison between TV 20 years ago and TV today the way we used to compare stalactites and stalagmites in our exam answer books, it would read something like below:

TV Then	TV Today
Number of hours dedicated to TV = 9/week	Number of hours dedicated to TV = indefinite. Mostly depends on the electricity or inverter charge
Number of channels aired = 2, DD 1 meant for the old people, due to the boring (read that news, views and documentaries aired on it) and DD2 meant for the younger generation, thanks to the songs and cartoons	Number of channels aired = depends on how many you want to buy
Number of channels watched = 2	Number of channels watched = all. Note: Number of channels absorbed into your brain = none
Programs watched – depends on the age of the viewer. Mostly 2, half an hour long cartoons in case of those less than 15 years and a single, hour long serial in case of those greater than 18 years per day	Number of programs watched =indefinite. Mostly browsing between multiple cartoon channels at a frequency of 5 min for those LT 10 years, multiple music and movie channels at same frequency for those between 10-20 years and multiple saas-bahu serials for those above 20 years. Viewership above 20 years is mostly female.
News programs watched = 1 News knowledge gained = national news, international events, weather and sports for the current day	News programs watched = indefinite News knowledge gained = 0
Dinner table discussion = parents, children, school discussion, general discussion or TV news	Dinner table discussion = non existent Dinner = cartoon/teleserial

I guess you get the general idea. Information is great, but where do we draw a line between information and non-information. Less information seems to have more retention power and hence is more effective. We still remember every episode of Surabhi and Duck Tales we watched. Today you can’t even track the number of cartoons available on the multitude of cartoon channels, thanks to which children don’t even want to explore channels like Discovery or History. About how these cartoons impact the minds of the kids is a different question altogether. Will put that into a separate blog. This one was just a statement of my observations, some fodder for you to chew on. Happy musing…. :)

It was the spring of one year

It was the spring of one year
A spring so untimely, yet so pretty
There was no rain
Yet everything seemed fresh
The same old sun shone upon the earth
Yet everything seemed brighter
The winds that blew were no different
Yet they carried the fragrance of headiness
The waves that washed over our feet had touched millions
Yet they were special as they united our steps
Spring was around us as we stood upon the rocks
In the light of the setting sun
The cool spring air that ruffled your hair
As we walked back home
The spring that had come and gone for centuries before us
But had never seemed so close to heart

It was the spring of one year
That was destined to be so short-lived
That would be followed by a winter endless
The winds no longer brought with them your fragrance
The sun shone, but I could not see your face in its light
The waves still lapped at my feet, but now they walked alone
The sun set in the horizon, but there was only one person on the rocks

Springs, that came and went
Would come and go for time eternal
Springs, that brought with them new experiences
New people, new places
Springs, that would never again be so unique
Springs, that would never again be treasured

Remembering...

Everyone has some memories that never fades from the mind, some snapshots, some pictures when time stood still...and a few of these always bring a smile to your lips. Recently a realization struck me, that I am about to complete 3 decades of my life soon. Time really flies. It seems like yesterday when I would sit on the railing of the ground floor house, waiting for my school bus, while my mother tried in vain to make me finish my rolled up paratha; or when we would walk back from the bus stop and my 2-year old brother would stand outside my aunt's place and call out "Manjuuu" (her name was Manjula aunty btw :)); when, as Diwali drew close we would wait everyday for the trip to the crackers' wholesale shop, tallying the crackers bought with the list we carried and loading the bags into the boot of the car; when we waited the whole week for Sunday evening's dinner outside, followed by ice-cream; when it started pouring one evening and my dad decided to bring out his collection of song books (for the uninitiated, they used to be sold outside movie theaters and contained lyrics of songs from the movie) and treated us to Kishore Kumar and Mohd. Rafi melodies (he was a really good singer himself too) accompanied by hot pakoras and tea made by mom; when we would look forward to that time in the evening when dad would return home and do his weightlifting tricks, swing me and my brother at the same time, one hanging on to each arm (:)); the day he taught me about VIBGYOR, and told me if I continued to learn as fast, he would make me his junior one day, something which I would brag about to friends at school; when we would have our birthday parties, choosing the cake design and flavor, inviting all friends, decorating the hall while mom cooked yummy treats in the kitchen....some things never fade from the mind. You remember them as clearly as if they were yesterday. And people who make these memories never fade away either; it's like they are always around you, bringing to your mind these moments when you really need to cheer up, making you smile long after they are gone...