Mental Excursions

Pause for a smile! The string of festivals has come and gone, there is a nip in the air in the early morning, the days are getting shorter, it is time to take a breather and smile at some things we notice around us before we lock ourselves indoors to avoid the cold.   Very clear instructions indeed, I must say.  Top photo:  Those who do not trust scans and doctors' scalpels cutting open their precious cranial box, can perhaps visit this shop. Isn't he claiming that he repairs all kinds of heads? Photo: Hansel Aubert I have yet to understand if these are two different pieces of advice. Is it that one should generally stay away from God who lives beyond this wall or simply that God is watching, so one should not park their vehicle there? Why? I do not see God's chariot parked there. One thing is clear that the bravehearts whose  scooters are parked there,  like an open challenge either way. Is going to the loo otherwise a public event? Was the applicant shipped from somewher

  Awesome? I hope not! I hope all of you celebrated Diwali with your family and friends- you lighted diyas, candles and strings of shining tiny electric lights, ate your favourite mithai, symbolically fired some crackers, shared your blessings with the others, exchanged thoughtful gifts and prayed to Goddess Lakshmi to visit your house. Did you have a great time? Did Diwali bring happiness and satisfaction for everyone? Did it reignite old memories? Will the festival qualify as ‘awesome’ for you? Let me tell you why I am asking this. I do not consider myself a language prude, but sometimes the wrong/strange use of some words annoys me and awesome is among the most dreadful ones on this list. Yes, you read it right, awesome is now the cliche used inappropriately in almost all situations unworthy of any measure of awesomeness. The dictionary explains awesome as something inspiring awe, something extremely impressive or daunting . Awesome is what generates among one dread m