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Musing

The psychology behind countdowns

September 22, 2021

100 days to…

2022

Yes, as of today, we are just 100 days away from a brand new year. Does it matter? It may, or may not, depending upon the context. 

While for many things, life continues to go on as we transition from one year to another. But in case you are someone like me, who sets yearly goals and personal milestones, perhaps it’s the best time to revisit them. 

Why?

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Hope is a magical thing

December 30, 2020

2020 – the year of extraordinary challenges, and unexpected chaos. 

The year of unprecedented crisis and unimaginable loss.

The year that made the whole world standstill.

The year that made us reflect, reset, and refill. 

This year has been exceptionally tough for many in ways more than we can ever imagine. The general mood across the globe has been gloomy and stressful. 

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The Unsocial Social

May 15, 2014
Have you seen this amazing short film titled ‘Lookup’ by Gary Turk? In case you have not, you must! It’s an eye opener in true sense and just so pertinent for our times. 
We just shift our gaze from one device to another, one conversation to another, one action to another and one interaction to another but sigh… all those seemingly realtime actions or interactions are actually so virtual! Just how conveniently we have,
  • replaced gestures like appreciation or acknowledgement with Likes? So much so that if a real moment to appreciate comes, we fumble!
  • prioritized the need to share a good moment more than enjoying it? Or wait, was it actually a good moment or was it how we would like it to be projected in our virtual world? Perhaps too busy in our screens to even realize it!
  • fixated our eyes on our screen so much so that even in a real social circle, we are actually busy interacting with our virtual social world?
How many of you have actually got 10 tabs open in your laptop right now? Psstt… I do!
How many of you start googling some information about the actors or plot while watching any movie?
When was the last time you sat at your dining table or went to bed without your mobile?
How many of you talk to any person in front of you as well as browse your mobile device simultaneously?
How many of you go to a restaurant and after few lines of conversation get back to your Facebook or Twitter app?
Well, these and some more, few more, more and more Whens and Hows and Whys remain unanswered in our lives. Considering the love for digital media that I have, it’s very surprising that a post like this is coming from a person like me but then I do think on this quite often now. I wonder many a time as to why did I put my book down just because of that notification for some stupid whatsapp joke? Or that comment trail alert on my mobile app for Facebook? Definitely that was not more important than the piece I was reading or the post I was writing. Why isn’t that group of friends on my next table in this coffee shop chatting more in real life instead of taking pictures, uploading and commenting on their respective screens? Wait, whatever little real life conversation that they are having right now is actually revolving around those comments and likes on those pictures in their screens!

Why do they call it social networking when all it does is make people more unsocial? Why…

More options, lesser communication :)

October 18, 2013
I’m back! Once again! Once again I was gone for long and once again I want to be back! To this space of mine that I had always cherished! That I want to cherish in future as well! The space that is mine! Where I was free to express anything! I miss this space. And my expressions! And the me-time that this space used to give me earlier! I want that back! I really do! Those people with whom I could converse! Without the fear of being judged! The like minded ones! And the not-so-like minded ones! Opinions of whom were healthy! And so were the conversations! I want those readers back! I really do! I don’t want this space of mine to meet the same fate as that of many other form of communications these days! Conversations are shorter! Opinions are fabricated! Ideas are copied! Personal interactions are dead! And ideologies are… well, what’s that?
Well, whatever be the situation now, one thing is for sure that I had always liked to have a space where I could express myself. It started from a black slate as my mom says where I used to draw things at night that I did the whole day :), moved to copies, then diaries, then fancy notebooks, then handcrafted notepads, then a computer, then a basic laptop, then a higher end laptop, then an ipad, then a fancy phone, then millions of writing apps installed on multiple digital devices, then… phew the more the options and the fancier the medium, the lesser the communication! No :)? At least with a black slate, white chalk and minimum language skills I used to draw daily :). So, here’s a hope that amidst all the chaos of life, daily madness, insane schedules, inner turmoil and external craziness, I will get back to certain passions of my life that I once truly enjoyed! And writing definitely is one of them.
Anybody still coming here :)?