Thursday, November 19, 2015

Experience with Flood and Rain

We sat watching updates on northeast monsoon’s rain and floods reported from various parts of the city from more than two news channels. Usually rainwater used to stagnant around my home, whenever there’s heavy rainfall and water will recede slowly once it stopped raining. But on Sunday, from the morning the rainwater started to stay around my home in the usual way and from the evening and once in started to downpour there’s no way of receding and the level of water continued to rose as it rained constantly. Our attention from the TV slanted towards our own and what we have seen through all the years during the monsoon has at last reached our destination or we transferred towards it. Though this is not a usual monsoon and the rain didn’t’ last throughout the season, but showered the entire sum within a week time, blocking every waterways and drainage system, and over flowing rivers and lakes and heavy dose of rainfall brought things to standstill. 

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Some flood scenes on neighbors and ours, shot from first floor

We don’t’ know what to do when water level touched our floor surface and when our attention was how to block the doorway to prevent water entering our home, the water started to outflow though the bathroom gullies blending rain and sewage water. With constant rain and increasing water level around the home, the flood started to enter our home in all possible ways and with the warning of met. Dept for intense rainfall for next two days, there was no other option than moving out of home. It was a moment perplex to do what next and mom didn’t have a mind leaving the home like that and obviously we are in charge of taking refuge at our uncle’s house in next street, which is of course our native house  and just being an upstairs homes we couldn’t reside there. At that phase mom remind us about the empty portion above our home, which is waiting for a tenant and the key, was also with us. Just informing the landlord, we moved couple of cots to the first floor with the help of my cousin and his friends, who also uplifted me using a chair.

My uncle’s family was very supportive throughout this phase and only that we were unable to stay with them... thinking about that now, mom had took the right decision and moving to my uncle’s home at that time should have been more difficult with water flooded all over the streets and moving upstairs within the building is most easiest. The late evening was spent quite putting things at safest and believing that water won’t raise more than a feet (although it rose only one third of it) we made sure no electric device was exposed and moreover switched off the main for two days until water recede quite. The only thing was we were unable to cook and was also not in mindset to bring stove and utensils above (as we feel it won’t be nice to make cooking at the house that was yet to be rented) so it was my uncle’s family take care of this too. My aunt prepared dishes consecutively throughout our stay above and passed it though my cousin and uncle and what we were doing was just eating and taking rest.

It wasn’t like we were affected by flood, but come to a place on vacation surrounded by water and the weather make feel of staying at a hill station. No televising and internet to connect, though we are glad there was electric throughout, unlike many other places, we can’t play television or interest. But that wasn’t a matter as we have Smartphone’s to connect via mobile data, there was little update about rain and flood in neighbourhood. Though water recedes in two days, we decided to stay upstairs for couple of days to wait and see what the weather condition was, because going back and front is not easy task. But glad there wasn’t heavy rain after the constant downpour and we have moved down this evening after going through couple of water washing the home and used cleaning agents to keep away germs and smells. The recent downpour made Chennai float in flood but when checking other places and esp. the suburbs that was almost covered by flood, what we have gone through isn’t much. And it was an experience and brought things close to explore lives at lowest. Glad things are back to normal now. 

Saturday, November 14, 2015

My favorite Cat and the annoying Kitty

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Collage on my favorite cat, when fed on carrots (click for enlarge)
Though black and white is the common color combo of the cats that frequent our home, the one with an extra color of orange is my favorite cat and it is quiet and quite opposite to the annoying kitty in B/W. This cat in trace of orange is a silent visitor and somehow dare to enter our home unlike the little scary BW, which make noise by coming across the compound wall and it only annoys our dog goes away if we shoo... but will be back with annoying meow.

Why the one in orange become my favorite is because of its quietness and always calm being, exhibits a friendliness that I sense in his/her presence, as she never seem to care about me and show very little  hesitation when I come across him/her at close distance. Things being like this, the BW have become my mom’s pet and she started to communicate with it and also try to convey the kitty that our pet dog is sleeping and thus to come back later.

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My mom's pet (black and white) cat on the wall (pic by mom)
The orange layered cat is so daring and used to enter the house, in the usual manner of silence, even when I was sitting in the hall. I think the cat didn’t consider me as a person, or understood my nature (just like our pet dog Maya, who used to take my kindness into her advantage and sometime refuses to give way for my wheelchair knowing or in belief that I will never hurt her) and try to deceive me or refuse to move away for my little shoos unless I show severe in my manner.

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Thursday, November 12, 2015

My Deepavali Celebration and Rain

This year’s Deepavali was somehow fun despite the northeast monsoon rain rocked the Chennai, as well the entire state. I think the rain is very important, which let us survive throughout the year rather the one day celebration Deepavali! Fireworks can be ignited on any other day or skip to Karthigai Deepam, if rain permits, but when drought stroke the heart of the state – Chennai – the real celebration was receiving rain. Though everyone was happy about the rainfall, thanks to deep depression in Bay of Bengal, the storm that landfall near Cuddalore suffered a lot on the day ahead to Deepavali and still fighting to come out of the flooded water. The Chennai experience showering throughout the day, though not heaver, the festival of light was burnt and bound little for the day.

Ground Chakra
Sparkling Ground Chakra on wet floor
I bought some fireworks for Deepavali through online shopping. Glad the leading firework manufactures open there own site for purchasing, with a demonstration video on each firework on how it displays. I was certain not to get any crackers that make noise, as I myself could not withstand the loudness these days; I went for the fancy fireworks that make colorful the night sky (though it make noise up into the sky, the effect perhaps is less and unavoidable) aside sparkles, ground chakra and flower pots. Every year I used to go out into the neighborhood (on the day and ahead to Deepavali) to catch up the festival mood and looking out into the sky for fireworks displayed by the area people, but  this time I couldn’t make up such moves, as rain continue to shower uncertainly when will it stop and begin. I stayed indoors all the day and to and fro to Deepavali, watching the pretty bore programs on TV and looking at the rain whether it stop for an hour to light fireworks.  

Ground Chakra

By afternoon the rain decides to hold sometime, and thus I went to my uncle’s house in the adjacent street and had some fun joining/watching my cousin and his friends playing with crackers. Though I hated the noise come from the crackers, I enjoyed the moment being there and it remind me the days I celebrated Deepavali with those crackers (Lakshmi, Sparrow, Red bijli cracker...) and daring to hold it in hand and throw away once ignite. I managed to stay there sometime and chatting with them but the time came in droplets of rain rushed me to home before it started to pour. In the evening my cousin and his friend come to home to help me leaving the aerial fireworks and I really enjoyed our own display of fireworks. As I was feeling uneasy that evening, I couldn’t capture photos on the display of fireworks, so got couple of photos on ground chakra that we let last night. 

Saturday, November 07, 2015

A festival that enthuse me

Sparkle FountainWhile nearing Deepavali (Nov 10), the enthusiasm about the Festival of Lights ignites inside. When it comes to Deepavali, the thing that comes to mind first was fireworks.  Though fireworks aren’t the only thing or matter of celebration, apart sharing sweets and snacks and greeting each other for the well being and lighting lamps to drive away the darkness that not only surrounds the environment but also the wicked mentality. Fireworks has been the main intention and attraction for me from the childhood and I couldn’t image a Deepavali without fireworks and the noise of crackers, and I think there will be a feel of something missed if there isn’t crackling sound of crackers and colourful display of fireworks at night.


I sense the eagerness of celebrating the festival of light (also the other kind of festivals) has been coming down by each passing year and the gadgets keeps people away from any part of activities.  Whether I ignite crackers are not, going through the festive feel is something I cherish within myself, as I could not force anybody to share my season’s joy, I try to enhance the festival mood in whatever possible way I could and going out in the evening of and a day early to Deepavali is a part of my celebration to get a glance on things happening around my neighbourhood related to the festival. The only Deepavali I couldn’t take part in firework, though I could not ignite anything other than sparkles, it was the year 2013 and because of my fracture I couldn’t even come out of home.

When we were residing in the apartment, we had wonderful opportunity to share the festival feel with our neighbours by exchanging sweets and snacks and it was good to see kids come together to fire fireworks in colourful attires.  Being shifted to couple of houses in last two year, we miss the sharing opportunity and before we become familiar with neighbours the time to move out comes earlier. Though we moved back to our native area now, the feeling wasn’t quite familiar and strangers to many, this if first Deepavali we suppose to celebrate here after 10 years. Among the festivals, I find Deepavali as more social and apart various belief and faith people celebrate it with great happiness and when lighting crackers over life somehow gleam colorful.

P.S. For those who don’t know about Deepavali, also called as Diwali, is an ancient Hindu festival celebrated every year and it is one of the largest and brightest festivals in India that signifies the victory of good over evil. 

Thursday, November 05, 2015

Highways Divider

Every time I was on National Highways, I try to capture some images on the road and like taking long angle shots for a wonderful perspective on the pretty neat lanes... somewhere there are dividers in flowering plants, bloom in dazzling colors seems picturesque to shoot.

Highways Divider

The eye-catching yellow dividers here is on NH 46 – Chennai-Bangalore highways. I shot these photos long back when driving back from Bangalore and this part of road is somewhere between Ambum and Vellore, I guess.

NH 46

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