Hippies, grass, cows, a sacred river, and moonlight dinners: all in a day in Rishikesh

This pas weekend, I finally got out of the hot as balls Gurgaon/Delhi metro area and experienced what was one of the best weekends of my life: a weekend in Rishikesh. Located in the foothills of the himalayas, Rishikesh is what I thought my whole Indian experience would be like. It's funny how I felt more at home, more relaxed, more like myself, in a sleepy little town with hippies, books, cows, footbridges over the sacred Gangees river, and dinner under the stars at outdoor little local restaurants than I have ever felt in Delhi or any other big city here in India. The biggest highlight: getting my palm read by this wonderful old man sitting in a little enclave of a temple. He said I will:
1. live to be 77 or 78
2. that in my past life I thought too much
3. that my life will be 70% good, 30% not so good
4. that at 35 I will encounter a small to medium health problem
5. that I will have one girl and one boy
6. that I had a very bad past boyfriend, but that the one coming up will be good
7. that I will make good money
8. that I will have a very happy and healthy life with not a lot of problems
9. that I should do yoga and meditation for good health
10. that I should wear a golden ring with a ruby on my ring finger on my right hand to bring health and happiness

Now let's just see if that all comes true!

Enjoy the pics!

Oh, and this past weekend it got up to 47 degrees c in delhi. That's somewhere between 110-115 f. not in rishikesh! I got a freaking tan! yea...it was the perfect weekend to get away!

Reflection on reasons why I'm holdin off on the Icy pole

so, this post is kind of an inside joke. for those of you that weren't there, it won't be funny...just a warning.

I asked a friend the question today: Icy pole or...? but then had to think about it myself. icy pole or India? Hmm, lately it seems I'm holding off on the icy pole thing. not that I couldn't use a little bit of cooling down with the 105 plus weather here. actually, the icy pole would be a really welcomed relief. But I think that would mean admitting defeat, and I won't go down that quickly. Fuck. 6 months and all I can say is give me the icy pole? Nope, I don't think so!

So often, when we're in our ivy towers, we can say that we would or wouldn't do this or that, but when you actually experience something...that's when you know what you're really made of. And I've had some scary moments here, where the icy pole actually looked appealing! Ouch!

But something has kept me on. It might be that I need to prove to myself that I'm not too fragile to handle this. Or it could be that I'm proving that I can take a true challenge and succeed. Or that I'm really finding out what it takes to back up my words with actions. Not completely sure yet. We'll see. But I can tell you that I am learning a lot and am glad for new people in my life...ones that really have helped me to see beyond myself...beyond my experience...

Proven: Your mom jokes directly related to the amount of alcohol consumed

So, I haven't been telling (well, saying) your mom jokes much as of late. I think it has something to do with the fact that I haven't been drinking NEARLY as much as I have in the past. And everyone knows how the number of drinks I consume is directly and positively related to the number of your mom jokes I tell. I feel like I'm loosing a little piece of myself...and there's only one way to bring it back: BRING ON THE BACCARDI BABY!

Your mom jokes, here I come...oh, and I'll be sure to drink and wear the "your mom" t-shirt that Ryan and Mads purchased for me in NYC last year...that'll complete the experience!

Another thought: I'll be home in 22 days, and in NYC in 35 days. OH MY GOD MAN! I don't think I've ever been so excited, just imagining seeing Appleton...oh how the mighty have fallen...its funny how challenges can make us or break us...not sure how this one will end up yet, though.

Keep in touch? With whom?

I've recently joined a couple of the ever expanding networking/find old friends sites, with the purpose of expanding the alumni network. Now I find myself being contacted by people I haven't seen or heard from in years. Most people would say to themselves "hey, this is awesome, I am back in contact with XYZ person" but not me. Some things are better left in the past...actually, a lot of things are.

That's not the only bone I have to pick with these types of sites. In my opinion, these sites make it too easy...too easy to re-start and keep up a relationship with a person. And it makes me wonder if these are really relationships? OOO, you wrote on my wall--I want to be your friend again! Are you fucking kidding me? These networking sites are good for just that: networking. Are they really that good a tool for having and keeping a relationship with someone, be it a friendship or whatever? I call the people that are important to me. I email them. I let them know that I do care about them and do think about them when I'm half a world away by making an effort to keep in touch. And they do the same for me.

So why all of this need for these sites? If I wanted you in my life, you would be in my life. There's some sort of intangible value in keeping in touch with people, not just writing on a wall and expecting to be the best of friends. And why do people need layers between themselves? Are we too harsh, too calculating, too self-conscious to get out there and really meet people? Meeting people has gotten too easy. Why put the layers between? Why put up more buriers, when, if you really want to get to know the person, you're going to have to tear them down anyway...and if you don't, do you really want to stay in touch? With what purpose? To have a larger network? To use that person as some means to an end?

In short, I just don't like these sites...but I will admit that they are a useful communication tool.

A world divided...

Just had to share...

Easter: A tribute to the penis

Easter, I'll never think of it the same way after this year's, umm, happenings.

First off, a friend and I decided to catch a rickshaw to the malls to get a late lunch. We stepped outside my gate and the first thing I see are 2 dogs, humpin' it up. hilarious!

No more than 5 minutes later, still on the way to the malls, there's this cow in the middle of the road. Now, normally, I wouldn't even notice this anymore. But this cow was standing wierdly, with it's butt kind of bent down, its back arched, its leggs closer together...the rickshaw passed no more than 6 inches from it, and that's when I saw it, the cow penis. *insert HUGE shutter here* Its something I'm not happy to say I've seen, and, in all honesty, it was a lot smaller than I thought it would be. But the fact that I've wondered about this subject before makes me wonder about myself...

So, this easter was spent seeing the gratification of the penis at its most anamalistic, and I guess natural, state. Guess all of the animals wanted to celebrate that jesus christ saves *insert southern loudmouth preacher voice here*

All in all, hilarious!

Namaste Asshole

(Namaste=hello in Hindi)

Namaste
How are you today?
What more are you going to throw my way?
Have I done OK?
What's happening in the month of May?
How much more do I have to pay?
When will it all be out of the grey?
When I can get a moment to think today.

You say its the learning curve, hey? The way the world works, anyway.
But what if I'm not built that way?

Maybe your answers
are not curing the cancer

of questions and morality
that rise up inside of me

And when I think that today
What else can you possibly throw my way?
And that I'll definatly be ok
It's coming up, my break, the month of May
No longer will I have to pay
For results that are, at best, grey
Which supposidly leave me better off today

so, Namaste.

Progress v Progress

Progress here: where highways converge and malls emerge

Progress there: where roads wait and malls decintegrate

What do we call progress? Having more? Having choice? Having something better? My guess is that it has something to do with having...but why is that? Even when we progress as individuals--not just monetarily--but physically, mentally or emotionally, we have something more: muscles, knowledge, heartache or happiness.

In a country where the economy is growing at 9% per year, progress is all around. But in some ways, (and not to get down on people at all), I feel like I'm surrounded by a bunch of pretenders, or not even that. People that are being forced forward, unable to discover for themselves the path forward, all for this explosive growth. Why?

Where emotional innocence is a defining characteristic of one of the oldest cultures in the world, why does there seem to be no practical wisdom?