Compliments etc.

I am a bit fame shy person. I do not like to be in the spotlight for any reason whatsoever. And it's a very popular trait of me among friends. They know how awkward I become when someone gives me a compliment. The scene is still better these days as I have learnt to say thank you in spite of being taken aback after the compliment, but I would still prefer a no-compliment scene any day.

Recently, a very close friend A happened to message me that he loves my blogs and I should take up writing seriously. Well, she is a very very dear friend and naturally she will like my work more. I told her that it was just a hobby for me. I have seen amazing writers around. I am not a writer, I am a ranter. I crib. I cannot create stories. A couple of other friends too said that they read my blog. They played safe and didn't mention how it was though :D

But it feels nice when people read you. Appreciation or trashing doesn't matter. I don't auto-publish my posts anymore. Earlier I did. At that time, I didn't have many friends. But slowly as my friends' list built up, I stopped doing that. Now all my accounts are separate. None of the account is inter-connected. Life is good.

And I recruited a couple of people for my firm. It might be a small thing, but it is a big deal for us. After working hard for four years, you are finally establishing your organization - ah bliss. Now the target is a house of my own in Mumbai. That's the toughest target as the property rates in Mumbai are sky high; but well, hope is always there.

Busy days are ahead for me. I will be running around a lot this week as there is a family function taking place before the weekend. And I have some plans for the weekend too. I may make a short trip somewhere if everything works out. Let's hope for the best.

Another ranting post, another show off post - I am practicing what I preach.

Blogs, Bloggers, etc.

I happened to talk to a blog friend Kavita the other day. We were talking about the kind of readers we used to have, the kind of posts we used to write, the comments we posted, the number of readers we had, common connections and such else. And the most interesting of all was of course the bloggers around us. I remember writing many posts on people - their various traits, habits, characteristics, uniqueness and so on.

Remembering those posts, the idea of writing the one on bloggers struck me. I have been around here for more than three years now, and I have come across many types of bloggers. Not that I am an expert here, but still, you can call me an observant. Apart from being a personal blogger, travel blogger, food blogger, fashion and lifestyle blogger, tech blogger; there are other things that make some bloggers quite unique.

1. "Oh I am so great" types: These people blog about their lifestyle, comforts, awesome travels, their smartness and intelligence and such things. In short, my types. I boast a lot. Each post has some show off about me or things I own or places I visit. And I know a few who do that too. Their regular readers would even know what brand DSLR they use and how awesomely they capture the shots better than anyone around blogsphere. So, these people are too conceited and they love to flaunt. They may/may not be arrogant, but they do boast about every single amazing possession on the blog.

2. Faltu Philosophers: Ah it's fun to read them. They can change your mood in an instant. They can make you sad from being extremely happy and happy if you were suicidal. They are so much confused about positivity and negativity and what really helps them. They are positively pessimistic if you know what I mean. They can write endless about life, it's problems, depression, love and still not get bored of their own philosophies. God bless you if such a character is your friend and you have to read him/her.

3. Pseudo Gyaani: They are similar to philosophers, but they write posts in brief, leave it open ended and then discuss it in comment box. Baal ki khaal nikalna koi inse sikhe. They literally do the postmortem of the topic. When you read the last comment there, rather last few lines of the comment as each comment there would be of two pages, you will realize that the discussion going on in the comment box is nowhere close to what the post is all about!

4. Feminists: No I have nothing for or against them. but I come across so many abala naris around here. Some blog under pseudonym - I have written about that already - and they still take the shit. Some fake their stand, while some copy others' material to make oneself sound profound, sensible and knowledgeable. Write about sensitive issues, blog about them, spread awareness, but it has to be honest and original. Don't steal or lie to gain readers and sympathy. Demotivating the suffering ones is the last thing you should be doing as victims read such stuff to take motivation and guidance.

5. Rant Specialists: That'd be me again. I rant a lot on my blog. About everything and about nothing. I see many people do the same. Rant away, but be interesting there too or don't crib about readers and followers. And rant in brief if you want to be read. And try to make it slightly humorous. I can write one whole post on how to write rant post and how to make it interesting.

That's all from now. After this post, I sound like one pseudo gyaani too who knows a LOT about blogging and bloggers! Do you have any other categories of bloggers to share apart from the regular ones and the ones featured here? Do share it.

Meeting a blogger friend

Earlier this month, Saroj of 'Sarojs Panorama' blog visited Mumbai. Quite some time back, we had a deal that we would go drinking together whenever she visits Mumbai. At times like these, I seriously thank social networking sites, it was easy for us to get in touch as both of us have not really been regular on our respective blogs.

So thanks to facebook, we got in touch with each other albeit the short notice. The day we were supposed to meet, some last minute changes occurred, I rescheduled my appointments and we ended up meeting not once but twice.

It's not very difficult to guess what two bloggers would usually talk about. Saroj and I happen to have a lot of common bloggers too whom we follow. Day one over a cup of coffee, we discussed about bloggers and blogging. I have always been her fan and she was one of the persons I always wanted to meet.

She is a wonderful person, apart from being a great blogger and a rocking mom. I had a great time showing her some parts of my city. Here is our picture as a memory:

Like most of you must have guessed, life is too busy to update this space. I always try to write something here just as a ritual, but it doesn't materialize. Like right now too, I have ended up writing this lousy post in spite of having such a wonderful topic to write about. But well, Saroj will forgive me I am sure :D

And I shall be back soon with the next post. How soon will be soon? Let some questions remain mysteries.

Flame

Sitting by the window
Accompanied by my shadow
In a boring room
On a lazy noon
Deep in thought
letting time pass
Lots to do,
But I am hanging around.

Those delicate fingers
taps off the cinders
Fuming into flame; the sparks
Slope of gold and blue and red lurks
The bold face of fire as in hearth
Blown brighter by the breath

Whiff of cold air hits me hard,
I don't know why its sad
The blue blue sky
Is dark and hazy.
I wonder why?
I want to see the bright blue sky
But I just see it dark and hazy

Lots to do,
But I am hanging around.
I am waiting for you
and the blue blue sky...

Image Courtesy: Yours Truly

Verses by: Insignia

Time flies

Three years - I completed three whole years of blogging. I know many veterans here who have been blogging for five years to a decade; but for me, sticking to a place for three years - regular writing and reading - phew! It's a huge huge thing. Three years seem like a huge achievement too.

There are so many people I have known through blogging. They have become a part of my real life too. Guria, Insignia, Shilpa, Kavita, Merlin, Ugich Konitari, Nu, Kavi, Vivek, Neha K, SG, BK Chowla, Neha H, Arif, Vidhu, Vineet, Sree, Pal to name a few. I know I have forgotten to mention many many more names, but you know who you are.

Thanking these people will be a small thing to do. They will come to Mumbai and hit me if I even use the word thank you for them (well I am taking this for granted), but they have been amazing. And patient. They have listened to my endless rants - on blogs as well as in real life. They tolerate me on various platforms like social networking sites, mobiles, gtalk and where not. They are just a phone call or a ping or a mail away.

And there are others too who have been a very important part of my blogging journey. People who read me, people who hit on the follow button and let me be on their dashboard with every update, people who leave a comment, who visit again and again even though I don't visit their blog. No I am not rude or lazy. It's just that I seldom get time. I read every person's blog who leaves a comment on my blog; but reciprocating with another comment is just not me. The moment I feel that I am obliged to leave a comment somewhere, I back out.

See, I rant on blog birthday too! March month celebrates birthdays for many blogs I follow since beginning. Most of them completed/will be completing three years. Insignia celebrates 4 years, she be my blog senior.

And with that, I sign off. I want the birthday post to be only about birthday and people who are a part of it. What are your wishes for me and the blog? Apart from - just stay this way, don't change, please change, keep blogging and smiling?

Happy Birthday Neha's Blog. May you have a longer life than Neha's so that you can just creep out people out here.