The Burning House

"If your house was burning, what would you take with you? It's a conflict between what's practical, valuable and sentimental. What you would take reflects your interests, background and priorities. Think of it as an interview condensed into one question." - theburninghouse.com

I have often found answering questions like 'If I die tomorrow, what things would I do/If I was stuck on a lonely island, what would I bring/What is my all time favourite movie?' very difficult. It is almost always difficult for me to narrow down on things that are really important or lifechanging for me. Maybe because I have so many.

Then I came across someone's very interesting photo project called 'The Burning House'. The premise is simple enough-the photographer photographs items of sentimental (or otherwise) value a person would grab if their house caught on fire.

As I browsed through the hipster-like, sometimes pretentious, items (I mean, someone had said they'd take Ayn Rand's 'The Fountainhead' with them. Can you say Hipster?) I began questioning myself about this topic. What things would I grab if my house caught on fire?

The obvious things came to me first-wallet, phone, camera and important documents. The bare necessities were a given. But when it came to things of sentimental value, I was absolutely stumped. At first I racked my brain, trying to think of pretentious books I could carry, but realised I had none. None that I'd re-read anyway.

Would I carry that photo album my late grandfather made for me? The one and only love letter someone once wrote for me? My diary as a teenager? My favourite T-shirt I own since 1999? Or something else?

I have no definite answer, because the above is a tiny fragment of a huge list that is my life. So many instances, so many memorabilia and so difficult to choose one that means most to me.

I suppose what matters are priorities. And once I have that figured out, I will revisit this question and maybe have a concrete answer. Till then, I pray my house never cathches fire.

Friday Links

Here are some amazoballs links I have encountered in the last week. If you haven't seen them already, go see them. Your amusement level will definitely increase.

1. Things That Blew Your Mind When You Were A Kid

2. Worst Movie Death Scene

3. Star Wars Crawl Creator

4. The Best Delhi definitions, ever (Sample: Vree verb. Feel anxious, worry. Example: "Oi, koi nahin pakdega (nobody will catch us). Daunt vree so much!")

5. The Cast Of “Full House” Reunited (Except the Olsen twins. Sad.)

6. Tunak Tunak Tun Meets Metal

7. Hilarious Medical Miracle (feat. A dead Mithun, his brain and a lesbian Madhoo)

8. One of xkcd's best and brilliant time wasters

9. A firangi's commendable take on Sunny Paji's 'TAREEKH PE TAREEKH!'

10. The Curious Case of Uday Chopra

And that's it! Hope you've enjoyed this week's edition of linkages. 

See you next Friday with more time wasters!

Fuck Me Sideways

The human condition is one that I will never be able to understand. I have tried, several times, but I have sadly been quite unsuccessful in my understanding. This is not to say that I am above human, a demi-God like figure sent to this planet to understand the ways of the homo sapiens.

Though that would have been mighty sweet. And a potential plot for a blockbuster Hollywood movie (I'd like to think).

Simplicity, as a type of behaviour, is lost somewhere. The same can be said about consistency. You may argue that no person can have a consistent behaviour, there are often mood swings. That is true, but there is also a simplicity attached to those who are moody and have strange behavioral patterns. You expect them to act crazy one day, and normal and chirpy on the other.

What about those who you think you have figured out, and BAM they bitchslap you out of nowhere? What about those you thought have pretty consistent behaviour and BAM, they snap at you?

The bottomline is BAM. I will never understand people.

Dogs, on the other hand, are pretty cool customers. I wish people were more like dogs. I'd understand them so well then.

Or maybe wish I were a dog. I'd much rather spend my life sniffing dog butts, chasing my tail and eating my own poop than to try to figure out a person's personality.

Maybe I could. But then you'd just call me crazy.

   

The Little Things

It's 2:00 am in the morning, and I cannot find sleep. Instead, I find an all consuming rage and a hint of self loathing.

There are some who quite enjoy this state. These are also those people who constantly complain all the time. I am not one of those people.

I am also not a perfectionist. I'd like to think I try, but that might come off as a lie.

What I would really like is the life of a snail. Sometimes I liken myself to one. And I even make up for the lack of shell by constructing an imaginary one all around myself. I retract in this shell quite often. No one else is allowed in.

Routine sickens me. I find no joy in the usual. Is life really the same thing over and over again? Since when did we get stuck in this infinite loop of sorrow and misery?

I also hate when people have very utopian ideas about reality. Such people romanticize even the mundane. That, to me, is one of the most difficult things to accept.

What is to become of me? Where am I going? Am I even going anywhere?

Questions. Questions. Questions. Instead of finding the answers, sleep finds me.

Good night.