When did we suddenly grow up?

Warning - Reading of this post may potentially waste away 5 minutes of your precious day filled with stuff which you planned on doing but probably will end up cancelling.

Okay so once again I've been feeling the mood to write so I thought why not tackle a little issue that I'm sure a few people have been feeling lately or least are itching to talk about. The past few weeks back home in Dubai and this last year in general has been a bit of an eye-opener for me. I got more interested in job applications than what my juniors were doing, swapped day long naps with an evenly (read 'evenly') balanced scheduled and weirdly enough stopped caring so much what some people thought of me. Arguments over stupid things seemed like an irritation that I'd rather avoid and in all honesty I got bored quite fast of what the entire world was up to. When on Earth did I ever start self-reflecting? God knows but I kinda like it. Anyway getting back to point of the ever impending change of our teenage lives.

I'm probably being a hypocrite for writing this but then, it's my blog so what are you going do? Still writing helps me think clearly so I felt it useful that I at least give this piece a shot.

So now for the few of you out there who are like me and seem to find life amidst transition what exactly are you feeling? To me growing up meant the freedom to leave the house at 1:30 in the morning, drive really fast to the beach and just sit down and stare at the ocean. Now typically you'd need a set of extraordinarily trusting parents and a car with an amazing sound system to basically blast your music into. It also meant the change of actually knowing what was right and wrong when it came to making decisions. I started trusting my instincts more and knew that the opinions I held, flawed to say the very least, were at least honest based on how I felt. Focus became an important issue and I desired to take more of life in rather than aimlessly watch the days fly by. True my daily routine got hectic, tiring and I often felt overworked, but I loved every sweat inducing moment of it.

In all honesty I wrote this post to challenge the minds of those who may be still within that cycle of leaving a part of their lives behinds and beginning a new one. What do you feel you need to give up? What exactly brought you down? Did the things you did matter so much?

So a friend of mine lately brought up this rather disturbing piece of news that I won't get into but it somehow drifted towards me turning 20 in a few months time. Now most people are genuinely terrified about entering a new era of their lives but to me it weirdly seems like a welcome change right now. Maybe it's because when I look back at the past 19 years of my life, the problems I've faced, the person I used to be and genuinely what I've become I can confidently say, at least to myself, childhood well spent.

Now if you can give me a chance to go through a bit of a memory trip, I have a little challenge for you. Take out a little piece of paper and jot down the numbers 10 - 19 on it. For each year write down one defining moment in your life be it good or bad and appreciate the fact that you're still standing after all of it. If you can do that, then trust me when I say this, it's going to be alright. For the younger ones, try and fill up till the point where you are right now and aim to fill each remaining space with a memory that actually will withstand the passage of time. For you, the greatest gift of all is what can be.

Well that's probably all I have to talk about right now. I mean it's not much but I kinda like how my thoughts seem to spell themselves out into words. It seems to make everything, a lot more human...

Till next time.

Pushing the Boundaries

Okay so two thoughts. This post could be immensely insightful and talk about how people need to challenge themselves beyond the necessary and strive for success. Yet that topic is rather overplayed and something I find completely pointless to talk about, seeing as everyone wants the best for themselves. So today I felt that I'd talk about something I feel rather strongly about and what most people go through themselves when they simply... push the boundaries of friendship.

God that sentence was so overplayed it's not even funny. Still now that I've brought it up, you might as well sit down and listen.

They say the human mouth is incapable of staying shut for long periods of time (I should know) and when we speak without realising, it often doesn't bode well for us. Thousands of relationship have been ruined by a simple 'slip of the tongue', more so in today's day than ever. People all around are listening to what you say and therefore your every view, every word, every opinion comes under constant scrutinising by those you interact with. They dispel your originality, dampen your creativity and block you ingenuity. They are the barriers that hold you back.  

So now how does this all make sense with the what I mentioned in that cheesy first paragraph? Well more often than not it's your friends who builds those barriers. Shooting down your weird but often creative ideas are a given task set by all of those around you. Now while I'm sure that more often than not they mean no legitimate harm and are simply looking out for you. Still if that were always the case then I wouldn't be writing this article now would I?

There are moments, rare moments when you need to give yourself the final decision. Stick to your values for once and don't be swayed by what others think. Having friends is good, but having control of your own life is even better. You need to be able to instil that desire to accept the views of others but remain firm against your own. Simply changing yourself to suit those around you simply delays the chance to express yourself freely. As a person you're both the greatest opponent and greatest support to yourself. When you take to heart what others feel you become your own downfall. It's a bit like defeating yourself before the battle has even begun. I'm liking the expression 'motivational suicide'.

A few weeks ago I realised that despite coming this far in life I still have a lot to learn. I need to stand up for myself once in a while or I'm simply giving in to the idealisms of others. Life is unique to each individual and we should never compromise on our individuality or we risk losing the identity that we perceive of ourselves. There will be times when those close to you will break you down to the the bare foundation that you hold as your own; do not be set back. Get up and rebuild.

The time will come when the joys of life exist in a place that you feel at one with. When you look back and see how much you've grown and realise that you're happy.

When it hasn't been your day, week, month or even your year

Yes I know, I'm referencing F.R.I.E.N.D.S again but I can't seem to help myself. The more times I listen to their ridiculously addicting theme song, the more I realize how many lessons are stuffed into that tiny 3 minute piece of catchy music. So for now, like I say to everyone desperate enough to come to this place, "Deal with it", and sit back and listen to what I have to blabber about.

So being honest with all of you, this year hasn't been a particularly good so far. In fact it was downright crappy to be honest (wow never thought I'd be doing a TBH for myself) and lately I've come to realize that when life gets you all down and in the dumps getting depressed and whining about it won't actually do anything (like I'm doing so right now). Instead it's time to put on your black shades and show everyone that you're the boss of your own destiny. Wow I'm both gangsta and deep at the same time.

Yes this isn't one of my typical depressing morose ass posts mainly cause I've realized I've had enough of being down in the dumps. Now is the time to celebrate what's left of this memorable year, since if we don't, no one else will for us. While I get that what I wrote about in the previous sentence was probably the most retarded piece of advise I can ever offer you (and I've offered some pretty retarded advice), I still feel that it's valuable if you take it to heart.

Okay so now I know that summer vacation is ending quite rapidly and you probably don't have much time to read any of my weird thoughts, I'll just let you guys off easy and cut this one short. Remember though *Puts Shades On* it's time to get back and start living once again. I may have been partially high while writing this one, so come back later on this week for a nice little story.

So I had this brilliant little idea about the #ShadeChallenge. Basically take a photo wearing shades which proves that you're willing to make the difference to get better at life. Send me a pic and I'll probably write something I know about you.

Monica Ahuja [A.K.A Monz] The 'Bubble' is one of the newest additions to my friends circle (lol I need to have more than one to even make a circle) and has long been regarded as the bookworm with an edgy streak for partying. This year she showed her true colors as the fanatic wonder we've all come to know and love. Considering the fact that she's my slightly more sane sister, it's no wonder that I'm writing something nice since I know she'll get me something delicious for lunch tomorrow. Here's to the girl that still whines when we have a minute left one the parking ticket and put in a new one.This is her accepting the fact that it's time to put *DeM Shades* on.

Shirley D'Mello [Shirls/Shirlbombs] Easily the 'Wild Child' of the group, this is probably the only person who can match my ability for taking selfies. Body conscious but yet willing to flaunt it without a care, this lady and I have been through both hell and heaven (mostly hell since she's scratched me so many times). Completely willing to speak her mind, shirls may either be the most honest person I know, or the most insane (keeps changing). Weirdly unable to drive anything bigger than a nissan 'tida' this crazy african fashion girl plans on getting her 'Saudi in Audis' on very soon. Dibs on the first ride. This is her getting her photo-editing skills on with the #shadechallenge

Mahek Punjabi [Punju] was somehow a person who came into all of our lives through a weird turn of events. I mean normally I don't go to a school for just one year but I guess when you're as blonde as my friend above here, things like that tend to happen... not that I'm complaining. Now see when you're a person like Punju, you use your blondness to your advantage. Weirdly enough this girl is actually pretty smart. Like brainy with looks kinda smart. So definitely it's going to take some effort to get to know her. However once you do, you'll have her rolling her eyes at every corny thing you do (Come to think of it, I probably have a video of her doing that), and when she does, you know it's a sign that you've done something pretty stupid. Still when you're friends with her, I'm guessing that's okay. After all she can't even take a picture without it not being blurry ^. Still I wouldn't give up meeting her for all the kinder bars in the world (not sure about the opposite since she loves them). Anyways, this is her proving to all that she's as much a boss as anyone else and accepting the #shadechallenge while driving. Kids don't use that as a role model

Ruchika Bhatia [Ruch] The girl who's literally engaged to Tim Hortons, Ruch has always been that slightly weird friend that loves to party. As if being born with a multiple personality disorder wasn't enough, Ruch was given the enormous gift of not being a morning person. If you ever see her early in school during the week STAY BACK or she will attack. Apart from that though I'm not sure exactly how I feel about her. She's a curious individual in the sense that you can never know what she's thinking about. Maybe that's because she's not thinking about anything, but mostly it's some rather deep wordly issue. Oh yes she also prefers monkeys that look better than teenage boys. This is her going all gangsta and sending me a seriously cheesy pic of her accepting the #shadechallenge. Guess her and I will be doing this a lot in the coming months. P.S. if you ever get her mad, she WILL scream at you.

Misbah 'Ninja/Nundu/Potato' Mandai is a free thinking soul who is quite temperamental as she is rebellious. She's a lot like an uncorrupted version of someone I know, which makes her both entertaining and yet presentable to parents. Bit of a dare devil really, she's not afraid of bunking class once in a while if it's for a good cause. Weirdly though she and I have the most random of all talks imaginable, not to mention she sends me the LAMEST jokes alive. I mean it literally makes me face palm every time she whatsapp's me a joke. Still it's kinda awesome of how she's both good at Art and is going to culinary school to most likely become a chef. So long as the portions are large and crazy friends eat free, I'll be more than happy to visit her restaurant in the future.

Sydelle "Syd" D'sa. You must be VERY careful. It's not D'souza it's D'sa. Get that wrong and then she gets mad. First time I met her was in India this year where she randomly mentioned having a heart in her legs. However, she was more than happy to point out that she saw me while I was in my 'bulky' (okay I was a whale) phase and running around Zabeel Park. I swear to you she is in love with her cat. It's a fat, adorable, lethargic thing and I've got more pictures of it in my phone than I do of myself (if that's even physically possible). She's a rather shy girl at first, preferring to be part of the crowd rather than a headliner. However, she does open up once in a while and boy it is pure joy when she does; mainly cause she only talks about what she's passionate about, and if she does then she suddenly comes to life. Addicted to chocolate and a hard core non-veg, Syd dreams of a day when bacon salad is a thing. Still she's probably the nicest person I'll ever meet.

Raveena 'Ravs' Kriplani is seriously the gangsta with nerd goggles. So maybe I'm getting a bit exhausted writing all of these posts but I said I'd do it so here I am. Moving on, Ravs was weirdly a person I've always considered a lot like me but yet somehow different. For starters I don't call my car the "Ravsmobile" nor do I have the ability to run on 2 hours of sleep everyday. I also do plan on living for quite a while which is why I didn't do 6 whole A levels while in high school, yet Ravs thinks she can cope. Aside from the nerdy business Ravs is a person who loves to party, and when I mean party I mean party (emphasis on party). She's also quite the badass and is known to bunk a multitude of classes when she just isn't 'feeling it'. Quite the image conscious one, Raveena gets a bit upset if pictures of her go up that are less than 'perfect'. After all if that's what you're trying to be in life then every aspect must be as well. All in all, she's the kind of person you'll meet once but won't forget, sort of like me except you'll actually want to remember her.

Big Chapters Are Sometimes Hard To Close

Been a while since I wrote a post so I thought that it'd be nice to return with a banger of a piece. Now that I've embarrassed myself by saying the word 'banger' (that and the fact that I couldn't spell embarrassed without spell-check) lets get on with what probably is going to be a sad post.

See I even give warnings before starting my piece so that at least you have a heads up for what you're probably going to get yourself into. So now that you've foolishly decided to continue reading perhaps it's time that I actually started talking about today's topic instead of dilly dallying around.

Okay so a while back I wrote a post regarding the tiny chapters in our life. The little mini memories that aren't significant enough to cause any change, but are still worth remembering. Chapters like school trips, summer memories, fights with random people... the list goes on.

However this is different. There are times when major changes occur in your life; Changes you may not expect; Changes you may not event want. Yet they will occur and when they do it's best to realize it, rather than foolishly try and fight for something that was lost long ago.

Sounding rather cryptic aren't I? Well sometimes the closer you look the less you see (Yes I ripped that line off from 'Now You See Me'). Anyways getting back to the original topic. There will be a point when you will find yourself wondering how on Earth did you end up in this situation, with the walls backed up against you and the suffocation setting it. It is at that point that you know you're done, and maybe it's time to sign off from this part of your life.

Sometimes though you don't have control of how a chapter ends. While the norm is for you to have veto power as to how and when a chapter concludes; what happens when someone shuts it for you? In most sense, I as a person know how that feels, and let me tell you, it isn't a good feeling.

Sadly what can you do? Wishing things were different probably won't help; Fighting to keep something that has already ended won't help either. In fact probably the easiest thing to do is to just let go. When you bow to the inevitable, the inevitable becomes the expectation. You knew this would happen and when it did you prepared yourself for it. Perhaps things didn't happen the way you expected them to, but they did for a reason. Now while I'm sorta insane and don't actually know what that reason is, I do know that eventually I will learn to accept it.

To round off what is sure to be either a very confusing or incredibly clear post to all of you out there, let me say this; A chapter is a chapter for a reason, when one begins to close, it signals the start of a new one. So I guess all I have to do is wait now; wait for my next chapter to start.

To apologize for the inconvenience I may have caused by depressing you with this post, here's a Pikachu eating a lollipop. Cheers! 

Dusting off old memories

It's weird how much I've wanted to try to do this again and yet been unable to do so for so long.
For all of you out there who are as perverted as I am, I was referring to starting a blog.

It's no secret that my last attempt at writing a blog was an epic failure, mainly because ; I'm lazy, I accidentally tried to rip off Adsense and I realized that I was posting articles about pets. So basically I had the writing capability of a toddler and trust me you do not want to write like a toddler. Still I have plenty of good memories of writing on that site (I forgot what it was called) and so I thought why not try it again. Yet something kept holding me back, the fear of opening up is one of them. I mean you can't expect any of us to actually be eager to share our thoughts and feelings to the general, now can we?

Despite what people say, no one & and I mean no one is an 'Open Book' even though they think it. There's always something to hide and there's always a hidden agenda between every action. So how do we sort the truly open from those who merely use it as a means of deceit? The answer is; how the hell am I supposed to know. If you think an Eighteen year old knows the answers to questions such as these, then clearly you are mui loco.

That said and done I think I'm going to like having a blog. Don't expect a new post every day or even every week because trust me sometimes you have absolutely no idea what to write about, and since I don't want to bore you with endless facts about guinea pigs (which I own 2 off) just relax, take a seat and maybe I'll tell you a story or two once in a while. Till then maybe it's time for me to sign off