zigzackly's omnium-gatherum *
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Caferati's blog;
blogolepsy;
indi³;
We, the Media;
Son of CSF.
Now and then, when Hurree needs a holiday, i pinch-hit at Kitabkhana.
And of course, the wonderful World Wide Help group blogs, which include:
The South-East Asia Earthquake and Tsunami Blog and TsunamiHelp Wiki |
MumbaiHelp |
Cloudburst Mumbai |
KatrinaHelp Blog and Wiki |
RitaHelp |
South Asia Quake Help |
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[!] = updated in the last 24 hours
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Recent Posts
Bandra Worli Pee Link
Steve Martin does MJ
Pot-bellied clouds flirt with the sun
"The monsoon...
See here, I ate my fruit and all
Ignoring eggs and...
Breakfast at two? You lazy sod!
You're no go-gette...
Another day I live to tango
Pomegranate, muesli, m...
No more worries about inflation,
discrimination, s...
Now that this issue is done (done!)
We thought we ...
Our kaikus we had no time to do
Scrabble suffered ...
Parrots, the Universe and Everything
D Mervin Ffingir writes, and having writ, moves on:
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(This came to us in a forward. The person who sent it doesn't know its provenance. It was supposed to have been taken on the day the bridge opened.)
Labels: photo
From The New Yorker's News Desk blog:
As a dancer, Michael Jackson was great. He was like Fred Astaire. This video, a parody of the “Billie Jean” video, was done for “The New Show,” which was a prime-time NBC program that Lorne Michaels did in 1983-1984, when he wasn’t producing “Saturday Night Live.” This was the opening—it was the first piece on the first episode of the show. Michael Jackson had recently done what I consider to be his life-changing performance on the Grammy Awards, where he did the Moonwalk and threw his hat offstage. He was just brilliant. Then the “Billie Jean” video came out. And this was a parody of that.
I’m not sure whose idea it was; it might have been Lorne’s. Pat Birch choreographed it. The hard move was that little leg twist that he did. You really have to throw your leg. I did it a thousand times in about three days. And a couple of weeks later I noticed—er, I have a pain here. The pain lasted about two years, then it went away on its own.
Pot-bellied clouds flirt with the sun
"The monsoon's here!" we say, "What fun!"
Then, to the east, the bastards run
No rain
Labels: kaiku
See here, I ate my fruit and all
Ignoring eggs and bacon's call
Dinner was clean: sprouts and dal*
St Pete!
*You must say 'dal' the Anglo-Indian way, to sound like "doll."
Labels: kaiku
Breakfast at two? You lazy sod!
You're no go-getter, you're a fraud!
Your parents must have spared the rod!
Gerrup!
Labels: kaiku
Another day I live to tango
Pomegranate, muesli, mango
Breakfast is done, now go man go
To work
Labels: kaiku
No more worries about inflation,
discrimination, state of the nation
No more depression or elation
Now that I'm just an eructation
This was in response to Amit Varma, who in response to my Facebook status message (which was "Peter Griffin can feel some nonsense rhyme coming on."), commented:
Monster called up Mommy Dear
'Mommy, Mommy, hunger's here
But since you haven't sent my tiffin
I think I'll just eat Peter Griffin.'
More from Facebook, where, in addition to Mr Varma, Mr Basu chips in, as does Anupama Bijur:
who meets angels and says howdy?
who makes squiffy skuas squelch?
Peter Griffin, zen-like belch
And we all know, from science class, how
These ruminants regurgitate their chow
Ozone b 'ware! I'm the "me" in "methane" now
But worse things could have come to pass
One could have been mere bio-mass
Expelled with force from the cow's, um, other end.
Now turned into products gaseous!
Amit Varma! Blackguard! Thief!
With your pets we have a beef.
Together a bio-patent took,
Gobar, biomass or hot air,
Further verses will share.
To conclusions with a bump
The Monster in question is not bovine
And yes, Samit, Peter's quite divine.
Monster sat down at the table
Shouted, "Mommy, just for Amit
I think I'll also consume Samit."
Consumed Pete, Amit and Samit
And down in his intestine,
They continued to talk in rhyme.
Observes the rhyming Ms Bijur,
Consigns her to chambers gastric
And then sights the Duck Fantastic
I say, 'hey, you, monster, look,... Read more
Want to star in my next book?'
While the monster grimly ponders,
I strike! With the Beak of Wonders!
Spotting, on the corpse's paunch-o
The inscription 'I am Sancho'
I realize, as I suspected,
That fiend Varma stands detected!
Soon as I, now Case Inspector,
Construct my Zig Ressurector,
Spend all monies in my wallet
To turn Zig from gas to solid,
We'll be back, a duo most deadly
Fight this Varma/Monster medley,
And then say, 'Hey! Ma Monster! Dammit!
We fed your son your friend Amit.'
I'm sure it'll help my friend's digestion
The Monster really liked young Peter
(Especially his sense of meter)
But still, the lad caused him some heartburn... Read more
All night it was turn, and twist, and turn
But now he'll have you with cold milk
And other poets of your ilk
Such as Ms Bijur (pleased to meet you)
Yes, sweet lady, you'll be eaten too.
Bloated from his feast yesterday
And seriously pondered Samit’s offer
To star in his next book on Monsters.
... Read more
Thought he, `Three-poets-and-the-lady mix,
Not as good as my own iambic.
Besides the courses came in the wrong order
Where was the hors d’oeuvre?’
`Next time, come one at a time,
Take a token, stand in line
We’ll have to pair you with a wine,
I stand on ceremony when I dine.’
`Amit would’ve worked with guacamole
Samit would’ve done instead of poulet
Peter is as good a sorbet
You see, I’m quite the gourmet.’
So Samit, I wish to decline
The offer to star in your set of rhymes
I’m ready for a food show, I am,
With none other than Anthony Bourdain.
I have secret recipes from my Mommy
And with Peter Griffin,
Who needs liquid nitrogen? '
Labels: nonsense
Now that this issue is done (done!)
We thought we would have some fun (fun!)
But at our head is a gun (gun!):
Next issue!
Labels: kaiku
Our kaikus we had no time to do
Scrabble suffered grievously too
And books we bought are still enqueued
Deadlines!
Labels: kaiku
Almost 90 minutes. One man on stage. No props. No fancy slideshow or snazzy film. No music. Just talking to the audience, and a bit of reading from one of his books. Can't think of very many people who could pull that off.
The talk is about his travels while writing Last Chance to See, which he expresses great affection for. "The runt of the litter," he calls it.
Labels: conservation, douglas adams, environment, humour, video
Mr Singh, you're quite a charmer
Looks like India has good karma*
This is better than Obama
What say?
* You have to say 'karma' with an American accent
Labels: kaiku
Can't thank all you voters enough
You did your job, you got the stuff
You've shown em who is really tough
Yay you!
Labels: kaiku
Coffee's drunk, and I've cleared my head
To office now, the old tin shed
The magazine's almost in bed
What joy!
Labels: kaiku
At last the elections are done
*sigh* Now what will we do for fun
Since IPL games we do shun?
Yay books!
Labels: kaiku
What shall we write poems about?
Is there anything worth a shout?
Ah yes, the defeat of the louts!
Yay voters!
Labels: kaiku
Witty friends and conversation:
Cabbages, kings, and inflation
The better writers in the nation
Like that
Labels: kaiku
Dinner after the launch was had
Though the muzak was rather sad
The food and booze were not half-bad
Burp
Labels: kaiku
Got my copy signed, bought lots more
Enough to read for weeks and more
But me bank balance is sure
Depleted
Labels: kaiku
Amit read, with much impact
A well-chosen short extract
In which the protagonist climaxed
I swear
Labels: kaiku
Saturday, the evening we took
Ourselves to Juhu for a look
At the Varma launching his book
Nice day!
Labels: kaiku
Friday was one long meeting
Free moments few, very fleeting
Our Scrabble time took a beating
Deeyam
Labels: kaiku
Thursday noon, and back in action
Attempting to give satisfaction
Admittedly with little traction
Ah well
Labels: kaiku
Must have been something we ate
First the tum bug cleaned our slate
Then Fever, chills; one stayed prostrate
Ah, fate!
Labels: kaiku
Honesty compels us to say
We were only ill from Tuesday
Running (literally) through Thursday
TMI?
Labels: kaiku
No nonsense poems for one week
Spirit willing but body was weak
Coz we were ill, but now we're theek
We're back
Labels: kaiku
Been topping up on sleep today
Woke late, breakfasted, and then, hey,
I found some more sleep debt to pay
Siesta!
Labels: kaiku
When your whole body genuflects
to medication's side effects
[This doesn't rhyme - delete this text]
Bleargh
Labels: kaiku
Being ill on a long weekend
Not much fun, I tell you, my friend
But *sigh* at least there's time to mend
Gah
Labels: kaiku
This page, you'll be relieved to find
Has way too much on its wee mind
That's why it is so far behind
On kaiku
Labels: kaiku
Should take the car to the garage
Or maybe get a good massage
But next week is looming large
So, sleep
Labels: kaiku
Saturday went by really fast
Barely here, and now it's the past
I just can't make the weekend last
*poof* gone
Labels: kaiku
One more we think we can bake up
Partly, to, um, kinda make up
And a bit of slack to take up
Okay?
Labels: kaiku
One more to go and we are done
Then we must—really—have to run
Into that bloody awful sun
To work
Labels: kaiku
So why is it that we did shirk?
It wasn't just some arbit quirk
Our back was out, and we had work
Honest!
Labels: kaiku
Three poems behind! Alas! Alack!
Get this monkey offa my back
At least give it a bloody whack
Begone!
Labels: kaiku
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Follow, all ye who must know more.Words
We've all heard that a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters will eventually produce a masterpiece. Now, thanks to the Internet, we know this is not true.
~ Eyler Coates
to be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best night and day to make you like everybody else means to fight the hardest battle any human being can fight and never stop fighting
~ e e cummings
In three words i can sum up everything I've learned about life.
It goes on.
~ Robert Frost
Ring the bells that still can ring,
Forget your perfect offering,
There is a crack in everything;
That's how the light gets in.
~ Leonard Cohen
May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds.
~ Edward Abbey, naturalist and author (1927-1989)
I fell in love – that is the only expression I can think of – at once, and am still at the mercy of words, though sometimes now, knowing a little of their behavior very well, I think I can influence them slightly and have even learned to beat them now and then, which they appear to enjoy.
~ Dylan Thomas, Welsh poet, short-story writer, and playwright, "Poetic Manifesto" in the Texas Quarterly, Winter 1961
A writer is somebody for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people.
~Thomas Mann, novelist, Nobel laureate (1875-1955)
The world in general doesn't know what to make of originality; it is startled out of its comfortable habits of thought, and its first reaction is one of anger.
~ W. Somerset Maugham, writer (1874-1965)
In times of profound change, the learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.
~ Al Rogers
Assumptions are the termites of relationships.
~ Henry Winkler, actor (1945- )
Our deeds determine us, as much as we determine our deeds.
~ George Eliot (Mary Ann Evans), novelist (1819-1880)
Either you think - or else others have to think for you and take power from you, pervert and discipline your natural tastes, civilize and sterilize you.
~ F. Scott Fitzgerald
There is no remedy so easy as books, which if they do not give cheerfulness, at least restore quiet to the most troubled mind.
~ Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, author (1689-1762)
Work like you don't need the money. Love like you've never been hurt. Dance like nobody's watching.
~ Satchel Paige
Fake it till you make it.
~ (Heard on West Wing)
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who's the ozone layer solution?
who makes regal eagles chirp?
Peter Griffin, sentient burp.