Written on 8/27/2008 10:25:00 am by Swift!
Peter Keating is a new draftsman in the office of Francon & Heyers, the leading Architects in America. Guy Francon, one among the two partners is very much impressed with Keating’s academic records and so has a liking for him. Tim Davis is the most skilled draftsman at Francon’s office. Now read the following:
In the drafting room he found Tim Davis, his best friend, slouched despondently over a drawing. Tim Davis was the tall, blond boy at the next table, whom Keating had noticed long ago, because he had known, with no tangible evidence, but with certainty, as Keating always knew such things, that this was the favored draftsman of the office. Keating managed to be assigned, as frequently as possible, to do parts of the projects on which Davis worked. Soon they were out to lunch together, and to a quiet little speak-easy after the day’s work, and Keating was listening with breathless attention to Davis’ talk about his love for one Elaine Duffy, not a word of which Keating ever remembered afterward.
He found Davis now in black gloom, his mouth chewing furiously a cigarette and a pencil at once. Keating did not have to question him. He merely bent his friendly face over Davis’ shoulder. Davis spit out the cigarette and exploded. He had just been told that he would have to work overtime tonight, for the third time this week.
“Got to stay late, God knows how late! Gotta finish this damn tripe tonight!” He slammed the sheets spread before him. “Look at it.! Hours and hours to finish it! What am I going to do?”
“Well, it’s because you’re the best man here, Tim, and they need you.”
“To hell with that! I’ve got a date with Elaine tonight! How’m I going to break it? Third time! She won’t believe me! She told me so last time! That’s the end! I’m going up to Guy the Mighty and tell him where he can put his plans and his job! I’m through!”
“Wait,” said Keating, and leaned closer to him. “Wait! There’s another way. I’ll finish them for you.”
“Huh?”
“I’ll stay. I’ll do them. Don’t be afraid. No one’ll tell the difference.”
“Pete! Would you?”
“Sure. I’ve nothing to do tonight. You just stay till they all go home and then skip.”
“Oh, gee, Pete!” Davis sighed, tempted. “But look, if they find out they’ll can me. You’re too new for this kind of job.”
“They won’t find out.”
“I can’t lose my job, Pete. You know I can’t. Elaine and I are going to be married soon. If anything happens…”
“Nothing will happen.”
Shortly after six, Davis departed furtively from the empty drafting room, leaving Keating at his table.
Bending under a solitary green lamp, Keating glanced at the desolate expanse of three long rooms, oddly silent after the day’s rush, and he felt that he owned them, that he would own them, as surely as the pencil moved in his hand.
It was half past nine when he finished the plans, stacked them neatly on Davis’ table, and left the office. He walked down the street, glowing with a comfortable, undignified feeling, as though after a good meal.
* * * * * * * *
In the drafting room, Keating concentrated on Tim Davis. Work and drawings were only unavoidable details on the surface of his days; Tim Davis was the substance and the shape of the first step in his career. Davis let him do most of his own work; only night work at first, then parts of his daily assignments as well; secretly, at first, then openly. Davis had not wanted it to be known. Keating made it known, with an air of naïve confidence which implied that he was only a tool, no more than Tim’s pencil or T-square, that his help enhanced Tim’s importance rather than diminished it and, therefore, he did not wish to conceal it. At first, Davis relayed instructions to Keating; then the chief draftsman took the arrangement for granted and began coming to Keating with orders intended for Davis. Keating was always there, smiling, saying” “I’ll do it; don’t bother Tim with those little things. I’ll take care of it.” Davis relaxed and let himself be carried along; he smoked a great deal, he lolled about, his legs twisted loosely over the rungs of a stool, his eyes closed, dreaming of Elaine; he turned once in a while: “Is the stuff ready, Pete?” Davis had married Elaine that spring. He was frequently late for work. He had whispered to Keating: “You’re in with the old man Pete, slip a good word for me, once in a while, will you?-so they’ll overlook a few things. God do I hate to have to be working right now!” Keating would say to Francon: “I’m sorry, Mr. Francon, that Murray job sub-basement plans were so late, but Tim Davis had a quarrel with his wife last night, and you know how newlyweds are, you don’t want to be too hard on them,” or “It’s Tim Davis again, Mr. Francon, do forgive him, he can’t help it, he hasn’t got his mind on his work at all!” When Francon glanced at the list of his employees’ salaries, he notices that his most expensive draftsman was the man least needed in the office. When Tim Davis lost his job, no one in the drafting room was surprised but Tim Davis. He could not understand it. He set his lips defiantly in bitterness against a world he would hate forever. He felt he had no friend on earth save Peter Keating. Keating consoled him, cursed Francon, cursed the injustice of humanity, spent six dollars in a speak-easy, entertaining the secretary of an obscure architect of his acquaintance and arranged a new job for Tim Davis.* * * * * * * *
By a unanimous decision of Francon, Heyer and the chief draftsman, Tim’s table position and salary were given to Peter Keating. But this was only part of his satisfaction; there was another sense of it, warmer and less real-and more dangerous. He said brightly and often: “Tim Davis? Oh yes, I got him his present job.” On Peter Keating, From Ayn Rand’s The Fountainhead
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Written on 8/10/2008 11:38:00 pm by Swift!
"Suiciiiiiiiiiiiiiiiide"!
For those of you who have seen the movie Sholay, you can't forget the scene in which a drunken Dharmendra climbs to a height and shouts (I will commit) suicide! It's a very funny scene wherein he threatens the public that he will commit suicide. And it is all fake. He isn't drunk and is trying to act so. So why am I telling all this? My today's story is about my suicide attempt!
Back then I was a small kid. I am not sure whether I was in LKG or UKG. Those school days were a torture for me. I hated going to school (there is no official records on how many thrashes I have got from my father for refusing to go to school each day. Each day I will say, "I won't". He will say, "You will". After some drama, I will start getting my usual quota. I will refuse to walk. I will be dragged. And I will continue taking the beatings even on the way, due to my "undying spirit" for "that what I believe in". Eventually I reach school. The next day: the same events take place in the same order).
Yes, those days were actually hateable. I was in a foreign land, my class was an unknown world, all I knew was that there were countless benches behind me, all occupying hostile children. I didnot know the language (Hindi) and the classes were scaring. I was afraid of all the teachers and their classes. I still remember my first caning in my school life, for having scored 2.5 in Hindi. Those red digits are still vivid to me. She didnot know that I didnot know anything in Hindi and that I didnot belong to their place. I wanted to say, എന്റെ ടീച്ചറെ എനിക്ക് ഈ ഭാഷ അറിഞ്ഞുകൂടാ...കിലുക്കത്തില് ഹിന്ദിക്കാരന്റെ കൈയില്നിന്നു ഇടി കിട്ടുമ്പോള് ജഗതി പറയില്ലേ..ഏതാണ്ടു ആ അവസ്ഥയായിരുന്നു എനിക്ക്. My academic life was full of such terrifying events. And all these were despite my being the second rank holder in the class. School!! was hell for me.
So, it was some vacation. A long one, but not the annual vacation. In their system, the summer vacation comes in between an academic year, so that you have homeworks to be completed when you return. I don't remember the exact events, there was some "Herculean task" to be completed, which was left uncompleted due to my "hardworking nature". I knew that the holidays were coming to an end. I shuddered when I thought of returning to school. I asked my mother when the school will reopen. She said "Thursday". Slowly the week went by. When it was finally Wednesday, the homework was still incomplete. And you know, those homeworks were dozens of pages and in many subjects. There was no way that you can complete it in one day. As the hours passed, I became more and more worried. Finally it was evening. I felt that it was the "End of World" for me the next day. There was no point in going to School the next day, since I had no hope of returning alive. I decided to act. Like all those great Dictators who considered it a shame to die at the hands of their enemies, I too felt that it was a disgrace. Moreover I didnot have the strength to undergo the torture. So I decided to end my life. Rather than wait until the next day for someone else to take my life. So death was imminent. Yes, my hour had come. So, I decided that no hope was left and death was the only way to evade the danger.
So I found out a method to die. I took a pen and "inked" my tongue. As soon as this ink reaches my stomach I will die, thought I. After having taken my doze of "poison", I went to bed and lied there, anticipating death. I was very sad, though, because I was going to die.
Some time later I found out that I did not die. I was shocked and troubled. Not dying now means that an even painful life awaits me the next day. I was not the one to withdraw due to a failed suicide attempt. This time, there will be no errors! With such a resolve, I now took a really fatal poison; you know what? I ate a full page of paper and to make sure that I surely died, I also "inked" my tongue, this time with double the quantity of ink!
Not to mention that I am still alive to narrate this story. It was a historic suicide attempt. I was a little kid but somehow after this event I decided that I will never try anything of this sort in my life, no matter what happens. I still don't know how the idea of suicide was so strong in the mind of a small child. Maybe that is something that the media and society injects into children. In those days there were no Cable TVs, there was only one channel-DD. If my case was so, what will be that of today's children, who are exposed to unimaginably inappropriate contents. Wonder how their personality gets distorted, and how strongly their immature minds absorb the contents meant to satisfy the adults who sit with mouths wide open before unrealistic stories.
Don't you know want to know the climax? A depressed Roshan, a complete failure, who failed not only in his homework, but also in his suicide attempt, went to his mother (after the failed suicide attempts). On seeing him his mother asked why he was so sad. He replied that he hadn't completed his homework. "So complete it, why are you sad? Don't you have one week?", asked his mother. "One week? how? my school reopens tomorrow, right?", he asked confused. "No, it is next Thursday", replied his mother.
Do you know how happy I felt then?
Now it all seems stupid, thinking on how easily I had decided to die, the reason I had for it, and still, the strategy I adopted for it! But what I feel now is that everyone who attempts suicide is as foolish as I was, no matter how grown-up he is. Anyone attempting a suicide has a valid reason to do it, but it is only years later, when he has lived much more and gone through a lot of experiences, that he realises that his cause was so childish(yes, as childish as mine, no matter what the cause is). No problem in this world is a sufficient reason for us to end our lives, because our lives are greater than the problems themselves. It might be only later that we understand that our perspective was narrow and that what we saw was only one bit of the whole picture. And that there was a way out of the problem that was troubling us, it is only that we couldn't see it then.
That little beacon of hope, which we were looking for, may be just across the river; if only we swim to the other shore! But most often, we give up, thinking that it is all over, and let us sink in the river.
Only few are fortunate to realise this truth, those foolish ones like me who didn't know the right way to die. For the intelligent ones, they either die without realising it, or escape but with irreparable damages to their bodies, and live a horrible life, now without even the strength to commit suicide, but realising that the earlier life was much better, if only they hadn't tried to end it.
That funny event of my childhood days taught me a great lesson. When you think that everything is over, just wait for some more time; an entirely different life may be awaiting you.
A bend in the road is not the end of the road,
Unless you fail to make the turn
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Written on 8/08/2008 06:46:00 pm by Swift!
Was watching the Olympics Opening Ceremony till now, but the "power cut" played the show-stopper...oops I can't watch it right now as there is no power supply.
It was really nice. Especially the play with electronics... who else can excel in it other than the Chinese?
The part which impressed me the most was that where tiny box shaped blocks moved up and down to create various formations. It was spectacular. While I kept thinking how many computers were involved and how many months of coding was required to achieve the precision of these movements, came the shock! Humans were inside these blocks (unseen to us) and they were moving each of the blocks up and down. Just imagine their memory and synchrony, in a situation where they can't even see how the other blocks are moving!
Ho! The power supply is on... Hope that the lighting of the Cauldron is not over. If it's, then I will miss what I really wanted to see.
******************************************************
Yea, I made it! A Chinese gymnast, with the spotlight focussed on him, ran 360 degrees around the stadium before lighting the Cauldron. Yes, but he ran through the air, at a height of hundreds of feet! It was spectacular. In recent years we have seen the dominance of technology over the conventional way of shooting an arrow to light up the Cauldron. But here they merged human skills and technology to produce a wonderful show for millions of viewers worldwide. And the fireworks were magnificent! It was better than the one seen in Sydney Olympics. When the athletes from different nations marched past the audience it seemed that it was a fusion of culture. From the darkest to the fairest, the strongest to the fastest, everyone was here. I saw that I hadn't even heard of many of the countries before. Some had only a handful of athletes. But at the event of the event they will have a handful of medals too. What about the nation with a billion population. Each time we get away with a single face-saving medal, and that too from a "not-so-popular" athlete. By the way, are athletes popular in India?
Not so this time, it seems. With a silver medalist leading the "Indian Army" and Mrs. Sonia Gandhi herself waving to the athletes, it seemed that the Indian camp is very enthusiastic. And we have more medal hopes in this Olympics than in recent ones. RVS Rathore is on the top of the list, with his body language indicating that he is thirsty for gold. Anju Bobby George is another; though she is a performer, medals have been evading her. We have hopes in the boxing and shooting teams also. The tennis duo, Paes-Bhoopathi too can bring in a medal provided they don't contend individually for the Double's title. And the point is that we have similar hopes for every Olympics, until we realise that though we are as good as we expected, others are better! Let's hope there is a change this time.
Trivia:
- Around 40 billion$ USD spent for Beijing Olympics.
- The order in which the nations appeared in the march past was based on the number of strokes required in the Chinese alphabet to represent the first letter of the country's name.
- At least one of the colours in the five Olympic rings is present in the flags of each of the member nations.
- The Mascots
Like the Five Olympic Rings from which they draw their color and inspiration, Fuwa will serve as the Official Mascots of Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, carrying a message of friendship and peace -- and good wishes from China -- to children all over the world.
Designed to express the playful qualities of five little children who form an intimate circle of friends, Fuwa also embody the natural characteristics of four of China's most popular animals -- the Fish, the Panda, the Tibetan Antelope, the Swallow -- and the Olympic Flame.
Each of Fuwa has a rhyming two-syllable name -- a traditional way of expressing affection for children in China. Beibei is the Fish, Jingjing is the Panda, Huanhuan is the Olympic Flame, Yingying is the Tibetan Antelope and Nini is the Swallow.
When you put their names together -- Bei Jing Huan Ying Ni -- they say "Welcome to Beijing," offering a warm invitation that reflects the mission of Fuwa as young ambassadors for the Olympic Games!
Let the Olympics make human kind Swifter, Higher and Stronger!
Once again trivia: "It doesn't matter whether you win or lose, what is important is that you participate", was probably said by an Indian athlete.
Written on 8/06/2008 12:38:00 pm by Swift!
Taken from an e-mail forward
"Lets go for a walk", said Rahul.
"Yippee. Lets go", said Swetha, almost jumping out of her seat.
It was yet another boring day in the Mysore training institute. Dusk
was breaking in. Swetha had already taken two breaks since lunch.
Nevertheless, she had been anticipating Rahul's invitation for
Rahul and Swetha had known each other for the last couple of months.
They had been together since the training days. People knew them as
the best of friends. Rahul, the regular T-D-H type, who spoke with a
heavy Bengali accent, was a popular flirt in the DC. On the other
hand, Swetha was a chubby sweet little girl, who was always on the
lookout for sorrow souls. They enjoyed being in each other's company.
Swetha would disclose all his crushes to Rahul, and Rahul would
always be seen taking classes from Swetha, on how to impress a girl
in 24 hours. Rahul had helped Swetha to forget her 7-year-old single
lane relationship and Swetha would see to it that Rahul would never
be lonely. Most of the time, they were together. People admired, some
even sneered with jealousy, the relation that these two shared.
The walk today was unusually long.
"This is gonna be one of our last walks", muttered Rahul in a low
"I know", replied Swetha in a soft, almost inaudible voice.
Mysore DC had completed the long cycle training and the postings had
been announced the previous day. Swetha was posted at Mysore base
location, while Rahul would have to shift to Bangalore. Even though
they both always knew that they had to separate one day... they did
not expect it to happen so soon.
Swetha, who belonged to the sentimental group, looked at Rahul and
managed to pass a disguised smile. "I tried my best for a swap. The
HRC is stubborn. She is still holding on to 'EURP P.U. doesn't
encourage swaps.' I cannot stay here alone Rahul."
"I swear, I am gonna miss you badly too dear" replied Rahul, again
"Hey don't worry sweetie, Mysore is just three hours from Bangalore.
Just call me and I will be here." said Rahul, trying to cheer her up,
though his words did not light up Swetha's face.
She just replied with a frown. "You will be busy with your new girl
friends and your work. You will soon forget me"
"Hey come on!" said an offended Rahul. "You are my best friend. Can I
"You just wait and see", came an almost sobbing reply.
"Don't start crying dear." Said Rahul with a gloomy face... "Oh... by
the way... it's getting late... let's go back" he said, taking a
As destiny wanted......... the next week saw Rahul packing his bags
for Bangalore, while Swetha moved out of her PG, to a rented apartment
closer to her office. They parted with a few wet handkerchiefs. The
bus started moving. Rahul looking through the Volvo glass was trying
to say something to Swetha. His actions deciphered, as "I will call u
when I reach there. Gonna miss you. Take care... Bye-Bye"
Swetha was comforted by her own tears. She felt very lonely, as if
she had lost something. Something, very precious. Consoling herself,
she went back to her room, shut the door, and started sobbing again.
She had found a very good friend in Rahul, and he was her major
support. She had no clue in the beginning that she would get so much
attached and more important... too much dependent on him. She sobbed
A couple of hours later, she heard her mobile ringing. One look at
the tiny screen, which happened to display, "Rahul calling..." and she
was overjoyed. She answered the call with a "Hey... You reached so
"Yo dear! Just reached. Bangalore seems to be bliss. The climate is
almost like Mysore. It is wonderful... though Mysore was better....
Coz I miss you badly here..."
"I miss you too dear," said Swetha... trying to stop her tears. They
talked on for almost an hour. Swetha was all the time advising him, on
what to do and what not to do. And Rahul was responding with a "Yes
dear" "Ofcourse I will" "Sure, I wont"
A couple of days had gone by. They used to call each other every day.
They did not miss the good morning / good evening / how are you / I
am fine ... SMS almost every hour. Thanks to the Airtel to Airtel
free SMS scheme. Slowly the days went by. Two weeks had past since
That Saturday, Rahul called up Swetha in the morning and said... "Hey
Swetha... you know what... I am gonna have a terrific weekend. We are
going to check out Nandi hills today."
"We? What do you mean by we?" asked a puzzled Swetha.
"Oh Oh. I completely forgot to tell you about my new friend. She is
so cute. We are in the same project. We both are going to the hill
station. Just about to leave... So thought of calling you up and say a
Somehow the "hi" was not so enticing for Swetha. Back there, she was
finding it hard to talk to anyone after Rahul left, while on the other
hand, someone had already taken her place in Rahul's life. She managed
to mumble out "That's great Rahul. Have a nice time... and enjoy
yourself." She was kinda upset, but dint show it.
Days went by and Swetha was feeling that the distance between her and
Rahul was slowly increasing.
Then one day... the phone at her desktop rang. "Swetha... you have to
go to Bangalore for one week to gather the details of our APPLE
project". It was the voice of her PM. Swetha could hardly believe her
ears. "Wow! What luck! I can meet Rahul for a week," she said to
herself. She was very much happy and excited over this new twist. As
luck would have it... it was Rahul's birthday next week. She thought
of giving him a big surprise. Therefore, she hid the news from him.
Next week, Swetha was in Bangalore. Thanks to the huge crowd of
people, she managed to go unnoticed by anyone, especially Rahul, for
the first day. It was evening. She had left office early. She went to
the market and brought some beautiful flowers. She had been waiting
for this day. Flowers have this magical way of pleasing people... and
so she was choosy in selecting them. Rahul was her best friend, and
she cared a lot about him.
Taking the flowers home, she had her dinner and was waiting for time
to pass. She knew Rahul's address... she left the hotel at 11:30 and
hired a taxi to reach Rahul's place. It was a short distance away, so
she reached pretty soon. She groped around and found out his flat. The
lights were still on. She frowned. She wanted this to be a magnificent
surprise and hence had expected him to be sleeping. Nevertheless, she
timidly went to the door and rang the bell. The door opened in a few
seconds... There was Rahul. "Happy birthday..." said Swetha. Rahul was
stunned. He could not believe his eyes. Taking the flowers, he said.
"Oh gosh! Thank you so much Swetha. I never expected you... come on...
come inside..." Swetha removed her shoes and went in. Little did she
knew that there was a bigger surprise waiting for her inside. She saw
that the room was decorated and there was a birthday cake, which had
candles on it. There was a pretty girl standing there in blue denims
"Err... Swetha let me introduce you to Neha. And Neha, this is my
friend Swetha" The girls exchanged smiles and said Hi to each other.
Swetha felt uncomfortable. She wanted to be the first one to wish him
on his birthday. But look here! It seemed that someone else had
already done it. Still, controlling her feelings, she did not react.
They sang the birthday song together, cut the cake, and had fun. The
Party was over. Swetha said, "Rahul, it's getting late, I will leave
now. Can you tell me where can I find a taxi?"
"Hey, are u nuts or what? It is very late. You don't need to go
anywhere. Sleep here tonight. Even Neha has decided to stay back."
Swetha would never have accepted this, but the last line "Even Neha
has decided to stay back" drove her to say, "Well, if you insist, I
The next day morning, once again Shweta wished Rahul and left for her
Work was hectic. She met Rahul for his dinner party in the evening.
Neha was with him. She found this annoying, but as usual, did not
The next day morning, she called Rahul and said... "You mean fellow,
you haven't shown me around Bangalore. I am free today evening. Take
"Sure we will do that baby." Was his reply.
The day was boring for Swetha with not much work to do. She waited
until five and then buzzed him on his cell. "Where are you Rahul? Come
"Oh... I am so sorry Swetha; I have this telecon thing... I am gonna
be late... just wait for some time... please dear"
"Sure I will wait dear, you finish your work. Tell me where are u, I
will come there and cheer you up", said Swetha.
"Hey that's fine dear. No need to take any trouble... Besides, Neha
Swetha was surprised. She had not expected him to say this. This
time, not knowing how to react... she was searching for words to
reply... she struggled and said... "Well.. err ... Rahul.. I am.. err
very tired.. I think I will go back... err.. Let us go tomorrow..."
Rahul replied "Wow, that's fine... no problem. We will surely go
tomorrow okay, thanks a ton Swetha for understanding."
Unfortunately tomorrow never came. Rahul was busy with one thing or
the other. She was feeling all the more lonely and desolate. The
feeling that Neha had replaced her position sank her. A frustrated and
irritated Swetha was waiting for her last day in Bangalore.
That day, she did not expect Rahul to call her. So to inform him that
she is leaving, she called him in the evening and told him that she is
leaving in an hour. She was shocked by Rahul's reply. "Oh I am so
sorry dear; I won't be able to come to see you off. Today I have a
very important meeting, I am really sorry yaar." "Its okay Rahul",
said Swetha, thinking at the back of her mind... what meeting could
Rahul possible have after office hours.
Heartbroken by the crushing changes she found in her best friend, she
left for the Majestic bus station and boarded her bus. She kept on
looking outside as if she was expecting a miraculous surprise. But no
one turned up. Resting her head on the slide seat, she closed her
eyes. Memories of those wonderful times spent with Rahul were flashing
in front of her eyes. She did not have any grudges that Rahul had
replaced her, but what pricked her was how easily she was forgotten
and forsaken. The journey was perhaps the dullest and saddest for
Back in Mysore, and back to work, Shweta was trying to cope up with
life. After a week, Rahul called her up. She did not want to create an
issue, but just could not stand it. She blurted out everything. She
asked him to give an explanation. His reply was "Look Swetha, you are
a very good friend of mine. But now, there is someone more important
in my life. Someone with more priority. Swetha... I am in love with
Neha." The words were so cold that Swetha could feel its bite.
Gathering all the bits of her remaining calm, she sobbed and said. "I
don't have any problem with that Rahul. But falling in love doesn't
essentially mean that you have to forsake your old friends"
"You have never fallen in love. What will you know about love,
Rahul's words shattered her heart. She had never expected to hear
this from the person she cared and loved the most. She quietly cut the
phone. She shut her eyes tight and cried.
______________________________________________________________
We should never forget our friends, coz it hurts. It hurts a lot,
when you feel that you have been replaced... when you have been forsaken...
and when you have been forgotten and when you are no longer wanted.
.
.
.
Though the truth is that,
Replacement is inevitable.
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