Life is a Tree

Disclaimer: I am not referring to the tree of life.

Life's like a tree, this makes sense when you look at a tree that has shed its leaves and all that remains are it's barren branches. When we are born, we do not have a choice regarding the time and nature of our birth. We also can not choose between parents, the life we would lead, the religion we would follow etc. That symbolizes the trunk of the tree, thick and strong, no choices, just accept... your childhood.

Slowly, the trunk gives way to branches, which leads to more branches and that goes on, till finally the branches give way to twigs and there is an end, The branches represent the choices we have, the decisions we make and we follow one branch. Ultimately, whichever path we follow, there is death in the end. However, some branches have seeds which end up having fruits. These are those tiny moments of accomplishments in life. As life progresses, the decisions we make increase. Every day we make choices, some are too subtle to even care.

Finally, there is the unseen, the roots of the tree, the foundation. I like to think of it as the 9 months we spend in our mother's womb. When the foundation is strong, the tree is magnificent and healthy.

Lastly, the picture is the tree outside my home, which brought about this philosophical note...

The Canadian Way Eh?

Post finally written after a suggestion from a nocturnal online friend who knowingly or unknowingly has inspired me to resume blogging! :)
The "eh?" is used in Canada at the end of almost every question.. "enjoyed your weekend eh?"
Where do I start about the past 5 months? It's been one crazy time with the confluence of cultures. So much to take in and a lot to watch. Made a few good international friends. (Un)fortunately, I did not even make an attempt to change my accent. Finally, at work, my team's got adjusted to the accent. I have this Chinese friend who amuses me a lot with her way of saying "rumali roti". She rotates her hands above her head (to show the way it's made). I really do not think we swing our hands that way when we make the roti.

Anyway, food was something I knew would be this way. ...
We have Indian masalas here, but the taste is not as good as in India.
The tea here at cafe shops is just caffeinated water! Even if you say double-double ( 2 spoons of milk powder and sugar each), it just becomes white caffeinated water. Be it Second Cup or Tim Hortons (Timmy's). Nothing gives me the same pleasure as having the masala/cardamom tea at Bangalore.
There's something about Timmy's though.. on a cold winter day, having a hot cup of chocolate milk. YUM. However, everyone feels the same way, so Timmy's is usually crowded on such days.
There's something about pets and people here. They absolutely LOVE pets, sometimes even more than their parents and can engage in a conversation about them for a very LONG period of time.

Reading the Hindu online has become a habit now. I think I follow more news about India now than when I was there!

My present Home...
So, I live at this place called Pickering, that's about an hour from the happening place - Toronto. That's where all the activities take place, very vibrant night life. Pickering is a quiet place.. mostly like the country side, lots of trails and frozen streams during winter. The best month was December, with a lot of year end parties and new year eve celebrations.
On weekdays, two hours everyday is spent on traveling to work in the "GO BUS". It is not as arduous as it seems, the GO buses are luxurious to say the least. The only lack wifi :)

So life nowadays, it's mostly discovering trails in Pickering/Ajax, that's a lot of fun. Next week is my first skiing trip and I'm totally looking forward to it. The ski resort is Devil's Glen at the south of Collingwood.

Jason Being an Atheist

Mom: Son, we have to go to church today.
Jason: Today, I'll pray at home Mom
Mom: No son. today the Clarks are going to be sitting next to us at the church. They are good people and their friendship will mean a lot to your father. Mary Clark is a nice girl, you know. She has expressed a desire in meeting you. What other place to meet than in the presence of God? *Eyes closed*
Jason: MOM! There's something I've to tell you, I am an atheist.
Mom: Jason Dyck! You Will listen to me today. Such foolish thoughts and behaviour will not be entertained by your father.
Jason: Do you mean dad or the Father in heaven? *Smirk on his face* I think the father in heaven will be more displeased with you going to his "holy house" with such thoughts...THAT IS if the Father and the house exists. I am better off being an atheist than a hypocrite Christian like many I know. Now, let me continue reading.
Mom: Okay, Jay. Do what you like for this weekend. I sincerely hope for your good that you mend your ways. We are off to Church to pray for your soul.
Jason's busy reading and Mom leaves room. In half an hour, his parents leave home.

Jason: So what am I going to do next week? going to church be meet Mary Clark?! You must be kidding me. I would rather sing at Mrs. Higgings choir than talk to Mary.

Between the lines

Facebook is defintely becoming a phenomenon. Some people watch "The Social Network" and decide they'll not "facebook" again, but Zuckerberg was right...a movie is not going to reduce the number of unique vistors of Facebook. It will probably be just a few months before facebook becomes a verb in the dictionary like "google", or probably it already is.
Its fun to watch the stuff that comes out of this social networking.
Recently, I started noticing people were giving into the facebook-deactivate-for-sometime syndrome. Deactivating facebook is a painful process... literally time consuming, with giving reasons why you are deactivating and having your friends pictures strewn all over your page saying "X will miss you", "Y will miss you". Finally they give you an easy option "This Deactivation is temporary..I'll be back".
How do you realise someone is suffering from this syndrome? You see that your photos have reduced in number and hence decide to see which of your friends untagged you /blocked you /deactivated their profile. Obviously, you would not realise if you have about a 1000+ photos and a few 10s are missing :)
Another thing is facebook stalking. It ranges from stalking your "celebrity friends" to stalking people you have not met and who unwittingly do not realise about the facebook default privacy options! Finally when you meet the person you have never seen before except on facebook, you wonder where the hell you met her. Good for you if you keep yourself in check and don't keep rambling about her awesome dress which she's not wearing right now.
Every facebook app is a hit because there is someone who would play farmville/ mafia wars, "who will be your 2011 valentine?".
Getting to know if a movie is worth the watch does not require reviews anymore. My news feed had a post "avante ammumeda oru Kandahar" and some 20 odd people liked it.
Broadcasting developments from getting a new job, change in current city, getting engaged etc etc has never been easier.
Another thing is having your family and relatives on facebook. One wrong move in the form of a status update/ a photo which you got infamously tagged in and the likes can have them breathing down your neck.
All said and done.... think before you post is a good phrase for us ;)

P.S: When you are stuck at home with a snow blizzard, somehow facebooking seems a better option than most of the other stuff. Maybe it's just the times and the fanciness.
Talking about fancy, I was so crazy about getting an ipod touch. Finally after getting it, it's been lying inside the box for about a month now. Thankfully, I did not get a BB/iphone.