Everyone likes music in one form or another. Different people have different tastes in music. I have realized that exploring likes in music is very interesting indeed. To me, it sort of, personifies the essence of each person. Now, that does not mean that it helps me categorize or stereotype people. On the contrary, it helps me understand them better as unique individuals.
I define the essence of a person as, the symbolic influence, impact or imprint of life experiences on an individual. Good, Bad and otherwise. It includes phases in one’s life like childhood, early growing up years, teenage, grade school, etc. as well as significant experiences with friends, families, acquaintances, strangers and people (and sometimes even places) in general. They arouse memories, emotions that go with them and a trail of thoughts. What is more, each time you hear them the trail may extend depending on what new experiences you may have added to that particular association.
Therefore, one’s taste in music is very subjective and actually has quite a personal significance to it. Oh and so unpredictable, which is what makes the exploration all the more fun! For instance, I automatically associate one or more songs with different phases of my life, places I’ve been to, and almost all significant experiences in my life so far! I cannot categorize my likes in music according to genres since I like some (or many) across most. Most of my favored songs range in language from Hindi, Punjabi, English, Tamil and Gujarati and several of their dialects (in no particular order, however Hindi does top the list). So, here are some select songs that, let’s just say, are music for more than my ears!!
Format: Song- Movie/Artist- Descriptor- Memory- Emotion- link
Snow drops and daffodils- Dana (1970)-
Rose colored glasses- Parading / prancing around with my sister in new dresses stitched by mom (and her singing along), my notion of love and romance at 5- elation, mush & wonder (then), nostalgia & amusement (now) & awesome (forever)
Snow drops and daffodils
Chikkubukku raile – Gentleman (1993)-
Dappankoothu 101- One of the first songs introducing my sister and me to Dappankoothu (hip-hop-like songs) in Tamil music and of course the man with bones of rubber- wonder & amazement (then), nostalgia (now) & ekdum dhinchaak (forever)
Chikkubukku Raile
Aayega aane wala- Mahal (1949) + Babuji dheere chalna- Aar Paar (1954) -
The singer in me- D-27, Jamnagar, being profusely praised by family and friends for singing in my tiny 3-4yr old voice- Embarrassment & Pride (secretly though) (then) - amusement & fun (now) - absolute nostalgia (forever)
Aayega Aane Wala
+
Babuji Dheere Chalna
Woh ladki hai kahaan- Dil Chahta Hai (2001) -
Ultimate masti- A song we performed on, in our first year of college, reminiscent of Sociology dept and staff, MSU Baroda, AR, SB, SP, NA, DV and everybody else performing on the song, as well as the ones attending the practice sessions, exhausting rehearsals and major bloopers, making new friends, having fun and making memories for life.- fun(then), fun & nostalgia (now & forever)
Woh Ladki Hai Kahan
There you go! I wonder if other’s have similar or more interesting associations with music as well!? Feel free to share some.
Enjoy and shake a leg!
Friday, October 2, 2009
Friday, September 11, 2009
Busy but bored !!
Despite having enough to do with my getting started on my (long overdue) thesis and work, I find myself in la la land quite often around noon (mostly), roaming youtube, fb and the likes, or just plain day dreaming. Wondered why.., decided on lack of the company I have gotten used to in the past 2 years as the reason (out of the million options that readily popped up in my brain)! In the absence of all my erstwhile social crib and gossip sessions, on campus, I just realized that it’s been ages since I visited my blog!! “Guilt”.., very little, “expecting to be more regular in the future”.., very much so ;)! Hmm.., definitely something to try and remedy my "busy but bored" syndrome ;) I hope!
Flashback to Moving Full Throttle Ahead !!
So, the fall semester just kicked in. I find myself in the lab every other day with no classes to attend, no project deadlines to meet (for all immediate purposes), and no class mates to hang around with. I find this change a little unsettling, yet exciting too, in a way. Its one of those situations where, although you are certain of not failing, there are those tiny anxieties nagging you at the back of your head.
On one hand I don’t have to juggle my work, internship and the completion of a dozen units, with the rest of my daily routine... that had become the norm for me in the past. So, life definitely has a more laid back ambience to it.., at least superficially, less stress, more breathing time between thesis, work and internship, which is nice. On the other hand it’s a little uneasy and unusual to not have a pre-made structure to follow, despite cribbing endlessly when we had it, lolz. Guess its just time to grow up.., and set your own rules, which is not too tough; but then comes the tricky part.., following it!! It’s not like I’ve never had to set and follow a schedule. However, this is a lot more flexibility than I am used to, and hence the apprehension.
Ever so often, we start taking things in our routine for granted that we often fail to realize their true significance. For example, just the random discussions with class mates, sharing the same space for the duration of a class etc., just did not seem to be that big of a deal in the past; however, now that its done with I miss all of it so much!! Oh yes! all of the good, bad, special and ordinary experiences that we've had together are memories I'll cherish for sure. Also, it’s amazing how often, we as humans, introspect and retrospect to try and improve our present and future. Sometimes it’s more consciously done than the others. In the same vein, I am curious, as to how well I set and self regulate my new routine. Will I totally fall into the procrastination mode (which is my greatest fear) or will it be more of a productive and pleasurable experience? I shall soon find out !!
On one hand I don’t have to juggle my work, internship and the completion of a dozen units, with the rest of my daily routine... that had become the norm for me in the past. So, life definitely has a more laid back ambience to it.., at least superficially, less stress, more breathing time between thesis, work and internship, which is nice. On the other hand it’s a little uneasy and unusual to not have a pre-made structure to follow, despite cribbing endlessly when we had it, lolz. Guess its just time to grow up.., and set your own rules, which is not too tough; but then comes the tricky part.., following it!! It’s not like I’ve never had to set and follow a schedule. However, this is a lot more flexibility than I am used to, and hence the apprehension.
Ever so often, we start taking things in our routine for granted that we often fail to realize their true significance. For example, just the random discussions with class mates, sharing the same space for the duration of a class etc., just did not seem to be that big of a deal in the past; however, now that its done with I miss all of it so much!! Oh yes! all of the good, bad, special and ordinary experiences that we've had together are memories I'll cherish for sure. Also, it’s amazing how often, we as humans, introspect and retrospect to try and improve our present and future. Sometimes it’s more consciously done than the others. In the same vein, I am curious, as to how well I set and self regulate my new routine. Will I totally fall into the procrastination mode (which is my greatest fear) or will it be more of a productive and pleasurable experience? I shall soon find out !!
Sunday, April 12, 2009
To J'land and back!!!
It was a fairly uneventful Sunday morning, sometime in the December of 2008, when I registered for my classes this Spring semester that I found out I won’t be able to register for my swimming course, unlike the last two semester’s, when the rest of my classes did not clash with my swimming class times. So after hunting the website for a good 15 minutes and contemplating whether I’d feel upto learning karate for a good hour at 8am every Tuesday and Thursday and rushing after an express shower, all exhausted, to tutor my poor Psyc 202 students who have me for their GA, I decided to sign up for a beginner’s badminton course instead (and spare my students the torture of having me there in my “hazy-daisy avatar” in addition to my usual making no sense in what I teach them, lolz).
The mere surge of joy that I experienced in gripping the racquet and tossing the shuttle-cork, after a good 15 years.., was so amazingly refreshing!!! I can very confidently say there have been very few occasions in my life, besides this one, that have introduced this intensity of child like joy and satisfaction, in a very long time. Getting back to badminton is a decision I shall certainly not regret.
The enthusiasm and the revelry that we played with never seemed to run out! It was all the more fun since it was out in the streets with no nets and walls to restrict the famous Jamnagar sea breeze/ wind. The losing team would always blame it on the partial winds that would intentionally blow in their direction, one of those evil conspiracies of Mother Nature, lolz. The present exhilaration was definitely due to the immediate flood of innocent, happy, carefree memories of my childhood that it brought back to me. My house in Jamnagar, P, N and Akka who were my partners in crime (..,occasionally other kids in the neighborhood joined us too), French Cricket, L-O-N-D-O-N stop, nadhi ke parvat, andhro pado (LMAO), G Miss, our sports teacher at school who happened to be a neighbor too (who btw I still think was super partial to me, teeheehee, absolutely love her :).., the streets where we played religiously, almost every evening for a good 4 to 5 years or so.., long after the sunset, and after several well-meaning-though-futile dhamki’s from the Baxi and Raman households, till finally we would run out of water on our doorsteps and had to get in! Even then we wouldn’t necessarily comply with what the elders would want us to do, namely go back to our respective homes like chamatu kutties ( Daya chokraon in Gujarati :) and freshen up before proceeding to the more important things in life like books and dinner. Instead P and N would come home with Akka and me for a glass of water, we’d watch dd for a bit and we’d go back to their place for lighting the Divo ( perumal ku velakku ethardhu in the South) and then end up playing some board game like Carom or “Barbie goes shopping”, lolz. We’d finally end up in our own houses only by 9:30pm or so (have the widest grin ever, even as I type this). I guess, the thrill of surviving the day with having your own wild way of leading your life despite the concerted efforts of the elders in the family/neighborhood to tame you down is one of those unparalleled joys of childhood. Wonder where all that joy, pleasure and satisfaction in accomplishing anything, no matter how small or trivial, has gone !!?? I seem to have gone so critical about anything that I do, for almost over a decade.
Not sure if its due to my prolonged stint in education (read 21 years or so) or the societal expectations of performing well in one's education, relationships, career and life in general that I've introjected over the years that has lead to it. The reason I miss the satisfaction of doing things well enough, I believe, is the conflict between my (naturally) laid-back personality and the super A type personalities that I’ve been in the company of, of late. Most of them need to stress over every single project in hand and re-do several drafts, way before the time of submission, and still sweat it out till the final day in search of obtaining a perfect grade. I, on the other hand, used to feel inclined to work just a little before the date of submission, give it my best shot and feel relieved that I have done my bit, without any of the post hoc worrying over the what I’ve submitted or what grade I shall get. For one, I did not think my sweating it, will change my grade. Secondly, I have so far received decent grades (which does include a number of B’s). However, three semesters down the degree, I find myself doubting my ways, studying habits etc. I often plague myself with.., am I really being a chronic procrastinator? Could I have done better? Maybe I should have redone the draft, ‘coz most of them did it 50 times!!?? End result being a “super stressed me” with acne (ugh!!) all over my face. All of that self imposed torture while doing well on my GPA, along with successfully keeping the part-time employment that I’d secured three semester’s back (no kidding.., considering how rare on-campus employment has become in campuses across CA), working my ass off at my internship, all the desi-roommate jhol and still managing to have some trace of a social life !! Phew! Living in a foreign land away from family (despite the wonders of gtalk and voip services) and juggling school, work and personal life has certainly left me a little drained.., just a little coz I opted for the situation that I am in and have no regrets for most of it, especially since I am blessed with a strong social support in the form of umpteen relatives and close friends. However, a healthy dose of ventilating online certainly helps ;) Pleasant trips down memory lane, like the badminton class, definitely come as a welcome breeze of fresh air to recharge one’s low energy levels at certain points in life!
I’m sure most of us feel a little overwhelmed, at times, in today’s age of super-specializations in any given field, doing it right at work, earning enough, saving enough, and the enormous strain that it places on one to balance one’s professional with one’s personal life just right !! It’s been a good four months since my first day in the Badminton class. However, it deserves to be blogged because of the nostalgia and child-like pleasure that it reintroduced in my life ever since .., I did not for once think anything in this land could ever take me back to my childhood like this experience did. Needless to say, I was all happy and beaming all day long.
Any achaar-vichaar, bachpan ki yaadein or stress buster’s anyone?
The mere surge of joy that I experienced in gripping the racquet and tossing the shuttle-cork, after a good 15 years.., was so amazingly refreshing!!! I can very confidently say there have been very few occasions in my life, besides this one, that have introduced this intensity of child like joy and satisfaction, in a very long time. Getting back to badminton is a decision I shall certainly not regret.
The enthusiasm and the revelry that we played with never seemed to run out! It was all the more fun since it was out in the streets with no nets and walls to restrict the famous Jamnagar sea breeze/ wind. The losing team would always blame it on the partial winds that would intentionally blow in their direction, one of those evil conspiracies of Mother Nature, lolz. The present exhilaration was definitely due to the immediate flood of innocent, happy, carefree memories of my childhood that it brought back to me. My house in Jamnagar, P, N and Akka who were my partners in crime (..,occasionally other kids in the neighborhood joined us too), French Cricket, L-O-N-D-O-N stop, nadhi ke parvat, andhro pado (LMAO), G Miss, our sports teacher at school who happened to be a neighbor too (who btw I still think was super partial to me, teeheehee, absolutely love her :).., the streets where we played religiously, almost every evening for a good 4 to 5 years or so.., long after the sunset, and after several well-meaning-though-futile dhamki’s from the Baxi and Raman households, till finally we would run out of water on our doorsteps and had to get in! Even then we wouldn’t necessarily comply with what the elders would want us to do, namely go back to our respective homes like chamatu kutties ( Daya chokraon in Gujarati :) and freshen up before proceeding to the more important things in life like books and dinner. Instead P and N would come home with Akka and me for a glass of water, we’d watch dd for a bit and we’d go back to their place for lighting the Divo ( perumal ku velakku ethardhu in the South) and then end up playing some board game like Carom or “Barbie goes shopping”, lolz. We’d finally end up in our own houses only by 9:30pm or so (have the widest grin ever, even as I type this). I guess, the thrill of surviving the day with having your own wild way of leading your life despite the concerted efforts of the elders in the family/neighborhood to tame you down is one of those unparalleled joys of childhood. Wonder where all that joy, pleasure and satisfaction in accomplishing anything, no matter how small or trivial, has gone !!?? I seem to have gone so critical about anything that I do, for almost over a decade.
Not sure if its due to my prolonged stint in education (read 21 years or so) or the societal expectations of performing well in one's education, relationships, career and life in general that I've introjected over the years that has lead to it. The reason I miss the satisfaction of doing things well enough, I believe, is the conflict between my (naturally) laid-back personality and the super A type personalities that I’ve been in the company of, of late. Most of them need to stress over every single project in hand and re-do several drafts, way before the time of submission, and still sweat it out till the final day in search of obtaining a perfect grade. I, on the other hand, used to feel inclined to work just a little before the date of submission, give it my best shot and feel relieved that I have done my bit, without any of the post hoc worrying over the what I’ve submitted or what grade I shall get. For one, I did not think my sweating it, will change my grade. Secondly, I have so far received decent grades (which does include a number of B’s). However, three semesters down the degree, I find myself doubting my ways, studying habits etc. I often plague myself with.., am I really being a chronic procrastinator? Could I have done better? Maybe I should have redone the draft, ‘coz most of them did it 50 times!!?? End result being a “super stressed me” with acne (ugh!!) all over my face. All of that self imposed torture while doing well on my GPA, along with successfully keeping the part-time employment that I’d secured three semester’s back (no kidding.., considering how rare on-campus employment has become in campuses across CA), working my ass off at my internship, all the desi-roommate jhol and still managing to have some trace of a social life !! Phew! Living in a foreign land away from family (despite the wonders of gtalk and voip services) and juggling school, work and personal life has certainly left me a little drained.., just a little coz I opted for the situation that I am in and have no regrets for most of it, especially since I am blessed with a strong social support in the form of umpteen relatives and close friends. However, a healthy dose of ventilating online certainly helps ;) Pleasant trips down memory lane, like the badminton class, definitely come as a welcome breeze of fresh air to recharge one’s low energy levels at certain points in life!
I’m sure most of us feel a little overwhelmed, at times, in today’s age of super-specializations in any given field, doing it right at work, earning enough, saving enough, and the enormous strain that it places on one to balance one’s professional with one’s personal life just right !! It’s been a good four months since my first day in the Badminton class. However, it deserves to be blogged because of the nostalgia and child-like pleasure that it reintroduced in my life ever since .., I did not for once think anything in this land could ever take me back to my childhood like this experience did. Needless to say, I was all happy and beaming all day long.
Any achaar-vichaar, bachpan ki yaadein or stress buster’s anyone?
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