Encroachment!

I have nothing new to say. The number of sparrows is decreasing, the tigers are facing the threat of extinction, pigeons being electrocuted, and no, I will not talk about global warming.

High rises, and ever increasing urban population has pushed “natural” life to the periphery of our existence. We have so many more worries – EMIs, fuel prices, heat (forget the cause), network connectivity. And in all this whirligig that means the world to us, when we come across living beings that are not humans we either are too busy to notice them, or we spare a moment of guilt and passion, a camera click maybe, and then move on with our mundane reality.

These squirrels around my parents’ apartment in Noida had babies, and all of us spared some time to feed them food and water and observe them stealthily from behind closed windows and curtains. I am sure these cuties couldn’t care a damn about how happy we felt having them around. They must be cribbing about the lack of privacy, if nothing else.

This pigeon has a sad story. It had built a nice nest over our split ac’s rear in the balcony, and when we had to remove the covering of the AC to get ready for the rising mercury in Delhi, the nest fell over, breaking one egg. Yes, we were devastated. And that is that. The pigeon fluttered around for a couple of hours giving us the cold, accusing stare – we had a few grains and water to offer in apology – It finally recreated its abode on top of our neighbor’s bedroom window. I swear the pigeon family will be safer there than on top of the ac.

I am less sympathetic to the noisy crows, not that their right to co-exist is any less. Am sure our dislike is mutual.

So, what are your encroachment stories?

Spread the word around…Guess who’s back in town…

And that explains the brief hiatus on the blog.

I am back home, with my folks in Noida, after almost two years and it’s been simply wonderful. Nothing feels like home…having been away for such a long time, the whole experience of homecoming has been awesome. It’s so comfortable to slip back to the old days’ holiday lifestyle…lazy mornings, late baths, no cooking, mommy’s food, dad’s pampering, endless ringing of the phone, incessant chatting with relatives, neighbors and friends (the antiseptic life of U.S. of A where your neighbor is also a complete stranger was getting to me) and all the Indian delicacies, shopping, mall hopping (sorry, this is common to all geographies) and the continuous banter and fights at home with my darling bro.

The only difference this time is that my hubby is around…but I guess this fact hasn’t changed much. Vish has easily become a part of our small family except for the VIP status he enjoys when it comes to selecting the menu for the meals and small things here and there. My parents are still getting used to the fact that he is as normal a kid as their other two kids and can live without all the attention he gets ;).

In these two weeks, have caught up with relatives, friends, neighbors…there are so many changes but all superficial…nothing’s “really” changed. Thank god for that! My baby nieces now go to school, some college friends are beautiful (and am not sure if dutiful as well) wives, some school pals are proud mommies, the neighbor’s kids now have beards but they are the same people I have known for years. The distance of two years have not dented our relationships, we met like we have always met. Ditto for the cities…Noida, Delhi and Ghaziabad, where I have spent almost 25 years! There are more flyovers, metro connectivity has increased, lot of construction, infrastructure enhancements for the Asian Games due in 2010, bigger malls, better brands, increased auto fares but the spirit is the same…raring to go in the midst of the crowds and the dirt, in the midst of the peak hour traffic and the non-peak hour lull, and in the in the midst of the extremes of devastating poverty and disgusting opulence.
For good or for bad, I guess nothing “really” changes…

Am back in Chennai from the week starting 01/05 and it will take some effort to gear up for the work routine again but the party never ends…I just take a break!