Pony Express (as a tag)

This post is out of rules, which was to grab the closest book and write the 5th sentence from page 123. Here is an info tag post. I present this post (tag) to my friend Kay, where he tagged me.

Nowadays, when we want to communicate, we either email the person or SMS them. Everything happens at the click of a mouse or the pressing of few buttons. But in the olden days it was not so. At one time, if we wanted to mail a letter, we wrote the letter, put it in an envelope, stamped the envelope and dropped it in a post box. After that it was the postman's job.

But in the 1850s for people in America to communicate to someone in the west, their letters went by overland coach and usually took weeks to get there. One enterprising freight company decided to speed things up by hiring 80 men to take the mail to the west on horseback. In 1860, the Pony Express was formed. The riders for the Pony Express were chosen for their lightweight as well as their riding ability. Most of them were young boys. The route they undertook was a rugged one; it went from St. Joseph Missouri to Sacramento, California, a distance of over 1,800 miles! Each rider rode a total of 75 miles, changing ponies at stations posted at ten-mile intervals.

The mail was carried in four leather boxes, which were attached to a special saddle blanket, thrown over the saddle. The changing of ponies was done in two minutes. The speed was a bonus, because it cut the average delivery time from several weeks to about 10 days. The fastest trip was made in seven days and 17 hours. This record was set by the rider carrying President Abraham Lincoln's first message to Congress. The poor riders had to ride through unknown terrain; some routes exposed them to attacks from Red Indians and led them through dangerous territories.

For all this dangerous work they received decent salaries of $25 per week. Newspaper ads for riders listed one important requirement orphans preferred. Though exciting, the pony express was a short-lived experiment. It lasted for only 19 months. By then, from coast to coast there was a telegraph line and this was definitely a faster way to send messages. We sure live in better times. Just imagine waiting for a fortnight or more for a message to reach a dear one and another fortnight for their answer to reach us. Aren't we just grateful for all the technological developments and latest means of communications?

Weekend with dachu

This is my uncle’s daughter Dharshini, she was visiting my house gone weekend. I am seeing her after few months, as she we in her grandma house. In this few months she has grown well and become sister for a 6 month-old boy Sachin. It was a happy surprise that I couldn’t expect she would be visiting our house.

I should tell, I had a sweet weekend with her; whenever she calls me jeeva mama (uncle), I feel so happy. The four hours with her is not enough, she was good in painting on computer, and also handling mouse. She was enjoying my collections of funny videos and photo’s. Being in LKG, she was not only intelligent and one thing that increased in her was the speaking cleverly. Don’t hope she would be very serene by seeing this sin like pic, now she is the much ado child in our family and his bro is getting ready to snatch her place soon. Some one scold or dint’s give she get more angry, good time I haven’t make her angry and her slogans are superb

I heard that she was keeping her bro on her lap and singing Munba va song… and recent news from her was, she won 1st prize in running race. U could see her drawing above like she and her bro was riding bike.

Valor Lovingly

It’s been six years since I have went to a night show Film in Drive-in. Last time it was Arjun’s Vedam in 2001 with my uncle, it was the last film I watched with him, before he pass away. I couldn’t avoid those memorial days with him, when standing on the long line to enter inside the theater. Whenever we visit our grandpa house, my uncle used to take us to night show in drive-in, those times it was very very enjoyable to go there (not only to watch films, but also to play in the sea-saw, sliding tree, swings. Washing faces, powdering and shouting prathana, prathana… is still funny days.

Thinking why this long line today only, may be it would be the first time so much vehicle for a film, where the hero is new face!! The hero is Karthik, brother of actor surya and son of Shivakumar. The Film is Paruthi Veeran (Cotton Hero :D). Films comes sometimes to screen with indicating the acting, not on the story or for the hero, Paruti Veeran is such a film. Director Amir created the whole film, whose film Raam won the international award, after years… I watched the both film this weekend. The story is the hero Veeran is a person always doing some criminal activities with his uncle Chevvazhai and they were roaming without any ambition and going to jail is there habit. Here the heroin Muthazhagu was affectionate on the Veeran , (who is her aunty’s daughter where the both families were separated for an caste difference), but he avoid her till a situation comes to him to understand how deep she loves him… what ever happen then are said with brave and inducement.

The Film starts with a big rural festival, were all sorts of rural dance, music and shops presents gives very good feel and keeps us energetic to see that today a movie with full rural style. For me the strongest characters are four, the hero Karthik, heroin Priyamani, music and cinematographic. Should tell about the Karthik, who has a mixed face of his bro and father, which comes as a very different and looks like a real gallantry village boy. He and his cittappu (uncle) Chevvazhai are very merry persons, drinking, and doing all ridicule activates, in this the person who always loss something is the KanjaKaruppu (the comedian). The police station scenes and the photo shoot with knifes were funny, and the hero’s main aim was to do big crime and to visit Chennai Jail, and giving interview. I have to tell about priyamani, I haven’t seen any films of her, she was very different; has a talented acting and her expressions are really superb. She done a bold acting and the climax was very rude and violate.

About the music, it has a sense of rural fragrance. The two folk songs were energetic, what I think special about it was, the songs were singed and acted by real rural artist. The Sari gama Patahani was fine, and the voice given to it was very sweet and the Iyyai Iyyao song was lovely for not only the music, and too for picturesque. The song Ariyadha Vayasu by Ilayaraja was nice and looks beautiful with the kids love. I am recommending the music director Yuvan should be praised by state award for using the rural involvement in his music. No w coming to the cinematographic, the cameraman Ramji's shows the remote places that hopes, which were new to cameras. The sunlight behind the hills and the sand lake, the dry grasslands and the festival gives tremendous about the Madhurai sides. I could tell, we couldn’t expect a different story or a message in this film… but a different acting and the bravery of the character and speaking dialogue.

India will fulfill its 24 years dream!!

I don’t have a big craze on cricket, but when it comes to World Cup I am with my nation, which was very crazy on cricket. Everyone is getting ready to the enjoyment in fun of sun sand and cricket on the Caribbean islands from 13th. Indians across all age groups are getting ready with a special preparation to watch the game that would start only at night, IST, given the time difference. And also exams time here, with the world cup fever. It would be a difficult situation for the parents to divert their children’s attending on studies than cricket.

The other day the Indian cricket team left to the Caribbean Islands, with great expectations and billion prayers of our fans. Making the team India for world cup 2007, the biggest World Cup since the first edition in 1975, it is being held for the first time in the West Indies is a story in itself. For almost two years, our Indian players were observed, tested, branded, discarded and reinstated before the selection jotted down the final fifteen. Dressed in newly designed sky blue outfits are all set to launch a fresh onslaught for the coveted trophy, after being put through a painful and sometimes logic-defying churning. This time around team India is a blend of experience and naiveté with the scale tilting heavily towards the former.

Of course, the core of the team is made up of battle-scarred commanders, with the big three of Indian cricket Tendulkar, Ganguly and my fav Rahul Dravid forming the batting mainstay with the talented Yuvraj singh, Sehwag, Anil Kumble, Zaheer khan, and youngsters like Dinesh karthik, M.S.Dhoni, Sreesanth, Ifran Pathan and more… Experiment and flexibility have been the password for success in the Greg Chappel-Rahul Dravid period; now it is time for the players to settle down in specific roles. Each one has a clear-cut job profile, with no scope for ambiguity or job duplication. Seven batsmen, seven bowlers and a wicket keeper who can also bat. Will they cross the finishing line ahead in the rest of the field? Let we all wish them to Won the big cup. Cheers Indian team!

Wind experience

Southeast wind
blowing towards the windows
noon hot melts in the wind
with idleness brain
speechless happiness in the mind

Artificial air odium’s
natural air wonders
rustle of the pipal tree leafs
the bird hidden behind the leafs
gives the adorable sound
tit tittra tit, tit tittra tit…

Seeing the dancing Chinese bells
memories wake from the seep
in the same feeling
with this Southeast wind
smiling on my own, thinking those days
recalling the enjoyments in grannies terrace
along with loved ones, while playing the dice.
now all somewhere, in different thoughts….