P : Pillow Talk #AtoZChallenge2020

Pillow Talk - A Short Fictional Story

Pari was in quarantine. It was her seventh day in isolation, or was it the tenth! She had no idea of the time. Loneliness can be a strange animal. For the first few days it was her pet, domesticated, acting on her whims. But as the days passed, the animal took over. 

With sunlight fading outside her window, she surely knew it was going to be night soon. But she had lost count of the days since she was in this room. She remembered, returning from her first ever solo Europe trip, with happy memories. She had partied there a lot. As if she was trying to run away from some hard reality. When she got screened at the airport, she had fever. She was immediately brought to this government facility, where she was kept in a room with spartan amenities. All her belongings were kept in a safe and she was given a fresh pair of clothes. Her interactions were limited to the visits by doctors and nurses. Food was served regularly. What she got to eat everyday, also gave her a fair idea about the time of the day. Idlis in breakfast. Dal Rice in Lunch. Light Soup in night. She had lost her appetite by the fourth day and her fever was still high.  She had never been this alone before. Long hours without talking to anyone, and being so sick from inside was totally new. She thought it was her seventh day in isolation, or was it the tenth! She had no idea of the time. For first four days, she had a lot to think about.

Her recent Europe trip ... Meeting Shawn there and a promising date with him... getting drunk on the cruise...

Her office... Colleagues... her promotion... those long nights at work... excitement around the launch...

Her first toy... Her parents' happy marriage... Her first scooter...

Her school... her friends... her break-up...

Her breakup... her marriage... her divorce... 

As the days passed, her memories became darker. She wallowed in self-pity. It was her seventh day in isolation, or was it the tenth, or was it the fourth night! She wasn't sure. She had no idea of the time. She dug her face in her pillow. And that moment was the most comforting for her in days. She was sure that the pillow was talking to her. She wasn't hallucinating. She was sure about this as some one was pulling her inside the pillow. She felt a cold, comforting breeze, on her face. It wasn't the effect of medication. She was sure. 

The pillow hugged her. It was the hug of a mother at times! And the hug of a lover at other times! But it was always comforting. She wasn't thinking of anything when the pillow used to hug her. No memories of the past. No plans for the future. No escape from the present, or from her hard reality. When the pillow talked, she was just there. There in the present. The pillow told her things. Things she didn't fully understand, but things that surely made sense. 

The pillow told her stories, which she had always known. Stories of people with fulfilling lives, happy lives. The pillow had a strange habit of using catchphrases.

Carpe Diem,  it shouted one day.

Yesterday is gone, it told the other day.

The pillow made her loneliness bearable. Loneliness was now not an animal to be domesticated. But it wasn't in control of her either. Her fever had vanished one morning! Doctors told her that she has fully recovered now and the disease is gone. They informed her that she had been there for 23 days. After discharge, as she was returning home, she knew her disease was gone. Disease of the body! And the disease of the mind! 

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My theme for this year's #AtoZchallenge is Lock-down Blues. I intend to write and talk about how I deal with it, what it inspires me to read or watch or any aspect of it which fascinates me. You can read the theme reveal post here. 

Previous Challenges : Letter P

2017: Perfect Response

2018: Pots in Restaurant Toilets

2019: Parallel Comedy Tracks in Hindi Films / Bollywood

L : Love in Lockdown #AtoZChallenge2020

Love in Lockdown - A Short Fictional Story

On the evening of 24th March 2020, the Prime Minister made an unprecedented announcement. The lockdown was announced for 21 days with effect from 25th March 2020. Like all midnight diktats, this one also came with a lot of pain. Lokesh was definitely not prepared for this. His hostel was being closed and he was asked to evacuate immediately. The trains to his hometown, 300 miles away, were cancelled. He was new to the city and didn't have any friends. As he was contemplating his next move, nervously moving about his office corridor, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around and was surprised to see Lata.

They had interacted only once before this and that too during a meeting. He had made a presentation on marketing plans for the year, few months back, and she had sought a clarification. Lata his colleague, from engineering department, had a very delightful countenance. The moment he saw that face, his troubles melted away instantaneously. She also seemed to understand his problem, without him saying anything. She said, "I have a spare room in my apartment, as my room-mate left for her hometown last week. It is a private space and no one will disturb you. And we can share the rent too."

Lokesh agreed and moved to the apartment immediately. Lata had maintained the house very well - spick and span. She had also stocked groceries for a week or so. Lokesh was looking at her with admiration. Unlike him, she was so well organized. But he was still little awkward. Sharing a home with a woman, was a first for him. They divided the household chores that night itself, post dinner. For next few days they both were largely confined to their respective rooms and only used to eat together in the dining hall. On the 6th night, Lata heard him singing. He was humming some old Bollywood song while ironing his clothes. Lata went towards his room and stood near the door without being noticed. It was her favorite song. At that precise moment, something changed. Her heart fluttered. She came back to her room, and couldn't sleep that night. 

Lokesh completely unaware of what happened the previous night, offered to go out to buy groceries for the week. He didn't return for almost an hour. The grocery store was allowing only 4 people inside at a time. Lata got anxious and called him thrice to check on him. He took a shower after his return and completely sanitized everything. She wanted to hug him. But she wasn't sure.

As the 21 days of the lockdown were coming to an end, Lata was jittery. She couldn't imagine her life without him. Lokesh was a good companion, great to talk with and had a great taste in music. He even made her laugh several times during this dreadful lockdown. But Lokesh didn't seem to notice her at all. Yes, he was nice to her. But he didn't seem to reciprocate her feelings. She felt engineering is easier to understand than the matters of the heart. 

Today morning, on the 21st day of the lockdown, they both were watching TV at 10 am. The Prime Minister was to make a key announcement. Almost 10 minutes into his speech the PM announced that the lockdown will get extended till 3rd of May. 19 more days! Lata and Lokesh moaned in delight exactly at the same moment! Now both of them knew what they have been feeling for each other for weeks. Lata switched off the TV immediately. They didn't listen to the complete speech. 

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My theme for this year's #AtoZchallenge is Lock-down Blues. I intend to write and talk about how I deal with it, what it inspires me to read or watch or any aspect of it which fascinates me. You can read the theme reveal post here. 

Previous Challenges : Letter L

2017: Lucknow

2018: Left Behind

2019: Lost & Found Formula in Hindi Films / Bollywood

J : Joker in the Pack #AtoZChallenge2020

Joker in the Pack - A Short Fictional Story

Jagdish took a sharp right turn. A passenger was waiting for him near the mall entrance. He sensed panic in the passenger's voice, when he called to confirm his location. There was some news broadcast on the radio in the cab. Jagdish's mind was focused on reaching the mall fast, so he faintly registered some snatches of the news on the radio.

"Janta curfew successful"
"... an impending lockdown"
"Hoarders will be punished"

Jagdish aka Jaggu always lacked focus in life. But he was an excellent driver and knew his way around the city well. He reached the mall on time. The passenger looked familiar. But Jaggu wasn't sure. He thought he looked like his schoolmate Rohan. But he chose to remain silent. The passenger sat in his car in a hurry. He didn't even look at Jaggu. He was lost in his thoughts. And looked forlorn.

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Rohan had come to the mall to buy groceries and vegetables, straight from his office. He wanted to stock up for next 30 days as the government was about to announce a lockdown soon. There was panic everywhere. The store at the mall was empty. He wasn't sure what he would tell his wife upon reaching home. As he boarded the cab, he was fiddling with his tie and mobile phone repeatedly. The driver inquired if something was bothering Rohan. Without looking up from his phone, he asked the driver, if he knows any place where he can get groceries and vegetables from. The driver said in a very assured voice, "Yes!". Rohan asked the driver to take him there. Rohan was sceptical, as most of his friends on WhatsApp were telling him that all the stores were empty. The driver took a detour and entered a less posh area of the town. Rohan failed to notice this. As the car came to a halt, the driver told Rohan that he will get everything here. Rohan was disgusted with the smell. But he had also realized by then, that the store here was less crowded. It seemed to him, as if the news of the lockdown hadn't reached the poorer parts of the town. He quickly went inside the store and came back in 20 minutes with three big bags filled up to the brim and a big wide smile on his face.
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Jaggu by now had checked his passenger's name on the app, and he was happy to know it was Rohan, as he had suspected. He directly told Rohan, that he was his school mate. Rohan felt little uncomfortable, with this new found familiarity in cab driver's voice. But he made some small talk just for the sake of it. Jaggu was the proverbial Joker in the Pack. Good for nothing fellow! He always used to flunk his exams and was always punished by his teachers in school. As they kept chatting, Rohan recollected all these memories from his school days. He smirked inside his head. He had become a corporate bigwig and Jaggu a cab driver. As Rohan reached his home, he offered a big tip to Jaggu. Jaggu declined politely as he felt a tinge of sadness.
---
Ten days later, the city was under complete lockdown. No cars or cabs were allowed to ply on the road. Rohan's mother had fallen sick and had problems breathing. They called for an ambulance. Ambulance reached timely. As Rohan stretchered his mother inside the ambulance, he recognized Jaggu, despite the mask on his face. He felt assured that his mother was in safe hands. That night Jaggu informed Rohan, that as lockdown forced him to take his cab off road, he had no source of income. So he volunteered as an ambulance driver at the local hospital. There is no salary to be earned. But he is getting free meals daily for himself and his family from the hospital canteen. And some times he gets tipped by the patients' relatives. Rohan fished into his pocket for some money to tip Jaggu. But Jaggu had already left to attend to another distress call.

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My theme for this year's #AtoZchallenge is Lock-down Blues. I intend to write and talk about how I deal with it, what it inspires me to read or watch or any aspect of it which fascinates me. You can read the theme reveal post here. 

Previous Challenges : Letter J

2017: Joy

2018: Jugaad that we don't need

2019: Johar's Cliches - Hindi Films / Bollywood

S : Short Sentences / Stories #AtoZchallenge

In 2015 - 2016, I had joined a Readers' Club in Mumbai. We used to meet once in a month to discuss books. The club is now called Owlery. Some of us were also making efforts, to learn basic nuances of writing. This effort led us to attend a book writing workshop. As part of an exercise there, I wrote a fictional story which I had posted on this blog last year. Also on the WhatsApp group of this Club, a word was shared everyday on which we tried to write short (actually micro) stories. I wrote hundreds of such small sentences or stories - good, bad, ugly. I had posted 45 such sentences / stories, over 15 posts, in 2016 on this blog. Today, I decided to post 10 more of them, which were woven around 10 words shared on that group. I hope my readers will be kind and forgive any mistakes I made then or the ones I am going to make today. I am still learning a really tough task of writing good stories.

Word : Quaff

verb [kwof, kwaf, kwawf]

Meaning: to drink a beverage copiously and with hearty enjoyment

Tale: Old / New

As he quaffed his cherished single malt and puffed a costly cigar, his henchmen beat the young leader of the new street gang to a pulp, But the young man kept laughing instead of crying in pain. Then the sound of a loud desperate cough reverberated in that room. His cigar popped out and blood mixed with that single malt gushed out of his mouth with huge force. The poison had worked. The young man now controlled the entire mafia.

Word : Yom Tov

noun [yuhn tuh v, tuh f]

Meaning : holiday

Tale: Orphan

He is an orphan who doesn't  know what a full stomach means. But comes yom tov, his happiness will know no bounds. That day he will get to eat as much as he wants. He will raid the garbage bin of his rich neighbors and will feast on the leftovers of the day. 

Word: Eldritch

adjective [el-drich]

Meaning: eerie; weird; spooky

Tale: Hinges

It was a moonlit night when they got stranded in the middle of the forest. They saw a flickering light at a distance. Upon reaching the source of the light they found an old cottage. They pushed open the door. The eldritch creaking of the door was accompanied by hooting of the owls and howling of the wolves. They started trembling with fear. The caretaker of the cottage came out and applied some grease on hinges of the door. The door stopped creaking.

Word: Cunctator

noun [kuhngk-tey-ter]

Meaning: a procrastinator; delayer

Tale: Fearless

He never accomplished anything worthwhile. Every job he undertook ended in a disaster. Being a compulsive cunctator he was left behind his peers in the organizational hierarchy. But his fortunes changed one day. He didn't complete his job on time and still earned the top spot in his group. He was told to shoot a man before daybreak, when there would be no witnesses. But he shot him in the broad daylight in front of  hundreds of people. He earned that day, the moniker of Fearless Hitman.

Word: Turpitude

noun[tur-pi-tood, -tyood]

Meaning: vile, shameful, or base character; depravity

Tale: Whose fault

Every night her pimp sold her to the highest bidder. He had to feed his large family. He was a criminal in the eyes of the law.

She slept for money with the worst of the men. Her soul was pure though. But what she was doing, was illegal.

Her father had traded her when she was twelve. He had to provide for his wife's treatment and he had already mortgaged his land. He was accused of human trafficking.

The local moneylender grabbed his land as he couldn't repay his meager loan. The loan shark was the most respected man in the village.

I am not certain which act of turpitude agitates me most.

Word: Botryoidal

adjective [bo-tree-oid-l]

Meaning: having the form of a bunch of grapes

Tale: Obsession

His intestines had spilled out of his stomach and had bunched together in a botryoidal formation. I had never seen something so brutal in my life before. Later, I came to know that he was newly married and was stabbed thirty-six times by his wife's obsessed stalker.

Word : Embonpoint

noun [French ahn-bawn-pwan]

Meaning: excessive plumpness; stoutness

Tale: Attraction

He always got attracted to the women inclined to embonpoint. A strange kind of stirring happened in his heart and blood rushed to his loins, whenever he saw his buxom neighbor. Then one day she acknowledged him. Soon he was in his bedroom. It was a mistake. He was robbed off all his valuables by that attractive cross-dresser. 

Word: Jeremiad

noun[jer-uh-mahy-uh d, -ad]

Meaning: a prolonged lamentation or mournful complaint

Tale: 49 days

His 'shoot and scoot' politics benefited from his caustic jeremiad, targeted at the ruling parties. Media gleefully lapped up his accusations without bothering to verify them. The gullible citizens voted him to power, thinking that he will bring in the change he promised. But when he was faced with the prospect of actually delivering on his promises, he ran away in 49 days.

Word: Trophic

adjective [trof-ik, troh-fik]

Meaning: of or relating to nutrition

Tale: Hallucination

Science can play havoc with human lives sometimes. When DNA cloning was introduced, everyone thought it will help humanity fight many diseases. But they used it to reproduce a carnivorous dinosaur. This has changed the balance of food chain and species at several trophic levels are now endangered. I am riding that dinosaur right now. I am a monster. I need more cocaine. 

Word : Furphy

noun [fur-fee]

Meaning : a false report; rumor

Tale: Political Fiasco

His political career was on the rise when he got caught red handed taking a bribe. He will now be taken to task by his party members. Media reports that he will be the first politician ever to be sentenced for his deeds as agencies have a watertight case against him. I can tell you it is just another furphy. He will never go to jail. No politician ever has. In fact he will emerge as a more powerful and popular leader after this fiasco.

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My last year's challenge post from letter S was a Story about young love, titled 'The Minor Glitch'. Read it here. 

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My theme for this year's #AtoZchallenge is all about writing stories, anecdotes and observations from my life in form of easy to read listicles. You can read the theme reveal post here.

Three Words:Three Stories - Part 1

The stories that emerge from your deep experiences often tend to be most honest. You don't care whether your readers will like them or not. What matters is your ability to write what you want.

Last few weeks have been a struggle to re-live some experiences and draw inspiration from them.

This post has three words shared on our Readers' Club WhatsApp group and the stories I wrote about them.

Hinterland

noun [hin-ter-land]

the remote or less developed parts of a country; back country

Tale: Embrace

He buried all his negative thoughts in the hinterlands of his mind. Not knowing how to deal with them, he carried on for years, with problems in his life. It was a great way for a workaholic like him to just bulldoze ahead. His calm exterior and manner of speech belied the violence that had taken root in his heart. He didn't realize he was on the edge and tipping point was just days away. As he walked down from his office today, a woman appeared from nowhere and hugged him. The embrace was selfless and warm. The dams in his eyes opened, as if he had lived for this moment. When he wiped the tears, after what seemed like an eternity, the darkness engulfed him. The woman was not there. But a light shone bright somewhere inside.

Mutable

adjective [myoo-tuh-buh l]

given to changing; fickle or inconstant

Tale: Fashionable Smile

Today it was red and yesterday it was burgundy. The highlights of her hair color changed so often that, I had lost count. She, the girl of my dreams, somehow kept up with the mutable trends in fashion. Some of her idiosyncrasies were beyond my understanding. Like that time when she started matching her scarves' color with her artificial lenses. Once the shrugs caught her fancy in peak summers. The sweat on her brow didn't deter her. But I loved her for something constant. She was kind and ever smiling. Her smile complimented every fashion whim of hers. That smile will never go out of season.

Ignominy

noun [ig-nuh-min-ee, ig-nom-uh-nee]

disgrace; dishonor; public contempt

Tale: The Suspect

It was a momentous day today for him, for his family. The judgement on his corruption case was to be pronounced today. He was accused of taking huge bribes for passing a sub standard bridge. When bridge collapsed, several people were killed. He had a spotless career till then. His case dragged for three years, where he systematically proved his innocence. The verdict that was delivered today, was a slap on the face of his detractors and those people who ran a slanderous media trial against him. As he walked out of the court premises a free man, he realized that while he is no longer a criminal in the eyes of law, he will always be a suspect for those who know him. He couldn't see people in their eyes. The ignominy of this public trial was too much for him to handle. He felt dying was easy. 

 

Unheard Words, Radical Thoughts - Part 7

Today is a slow day at office. But I still feel less creative. I find my best answers and I think best when I am really busy and in a rush. I don't know if it is a good thing or not.

In this post, I share three stories that I wrote around three 'Word(s) of the Day' shared on our Readers' Club WhatsApp group. These stories are reflective of our current times in some way. Let us see if you can link them with things you identify with. Share your views in comments section. 

Opuscule

noun [oh-puhs-kyool]

a small or minor work

Tale: Social Media

He wrote an opuscule on imaginary friendships, in the future world, almost 300 years ago. That two page description was written by him out of frustration, because of the social ostracism he faced at the hand of upper caste brahmins. It was a paper written as a form of protest and nothing more. But as Google launched its personal assistant Allo last month, historians found some striking similarities with the imaginary friend described in his fictional work. His untitled work till that day, started trending on Twitter, and that paper is now known as 'Social Media Version minus One point O'.

Bailiwick

noun [bey-luh-wik]

a person's area of skill, knowledge, authority or work

Tale: Transformation

Stealing is an art and he was an artist. He stole for thrills rather than money. The pleasure he got from pulling off each impossible heist, was his driving force. More than that he enjoyed the agony he was able to cause to his victims. But last time, he fell into his own trap. As he zeroed down on a potential victim, who was a rich young girl, he made an elaborate plan to woo her, steal her heart and to run away with her jewellery. But he lost his heart to her instead. He decided to quit the life of crime. He now uses his bailiwick to help police with unsolved cases.

Dilatory

adjective [dil-uh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee]

tending to delay or procrastinate; slow; tardy

Tale: Waiting in the Wings

He was a prime minister in waiting for ten years now. A firebrand orator with radical ideas, he remained in shadows of his dominating mother's leadership. Every time, he staked the claim to the highest position, diversionary and dilatory tactics were deployed to thwart his attempts. But he continued building the ground support and was very popular among his party cadres. As the years progressed, his mother's health started failing. The clamour for naming her successor intensified. She declared that her younger daughter will be the next premier. The daughter who was extremely good looking and intelligent. While she hadn't done much party work, her persuasiveness and charms were well known. She was instrumental in getting the nuclear deal for the country last year and had hogged all the limelight. But it was a lesser known fact that tilted the mother in her favour. He was a child born out of wedlock. His father had died years ago because of unknown reasons and the housemaid died of poisoning, few days later.

Unheard Words, Radical Thoughts - Part 6

Long time again, since I visited the blog. Last month was busy, festive and fun-filled. Busy because, it was half year ending at office. Festive because, it was Diwali time. Fun-Filled because, I had a quick trip to Koh Samui, Thailand and had an amazing time there.

One thing, though, remained constant. I made a new story daily, around the 'Word of the Day' shared on our Readers' Club WhatsApp group. The three words in this post were worked on in early October. It is strange that when I wrote these stories, I had a different frame of mind and when I re-looked at them today, I found them strange. 

Stemwinder

noun [stem-wahyn-der]

a rousing speech, especially a stirring political address

Tale: Farewell Party

It was his farewell party his colleagues had thrown for him. He had given ten years to this job and groomed many leaders and won several admirers due to his integrity and passion at work. He was leaving now, not for a better opportunity, but to serve the society. After he cut the cake, his soon to be ex-boss asked him to say a few words. He delivered a stemwinder of a speech stressing on how to make volunteering work a part of our lives. In the weeks that followed, several of his colleagues resigned from their jobs and joined his NGO. His ex-boss regrets till date, giving him the farewell party. A regret not filled with remorse, but pride.

Stiver

noun [stahy-ver]

the smallest possible amount

Tale: Worthy

"You are not worth a stiver," she bellowed in agony, as he walked away from her. She was shivering with anger and her cheeks were glowing red, as she saw his back, fast vanishing into the sea of revellers gathered on the beach. They were dating each other for a year now. Today, they had come here to celebrate their anniversary, at the full moon party. As the sun was setting down, and music was still not very loud, he went down on his knees and proposed her. He took out a ring that he had bought with his savings of three years. She wasn't impressed a bit. She expected the stone to be heavier and costlier. He could see contempt in her eyes. There was no love. As she threw the ring away, he lunged to catch it. He got up, dusted his clothes, and walked away. He couldn't hear what she said. Tears flowed down his eyes and a smile appeared on his face. He now knew all shades of love.

Etymology

noun [et-uh-mol-uh-jee]

the derivation of a word

Tale: Question Paper

Please read the below text carefully and answer the questions following that. Each correct answer will fetch you 10 marks.

'The dacoits robbed the bungalow and didn't even leave a cot behind. They beat the security guard to chutney and vanished into the jungle. The thugs came to be known as pyjama gang as they robbed homes only wearing colored pyjamas and nothing else. Their mantra was very simple. The thieves targeted homes whose owners were away. This loot went on for years but no one could stop it. The last robbery went kaput when they entered a dog owner's home. The dog barked loudly alerting the police. All were killed that night in cross firing. Karma caught up with them.'

Q1. Please write all words with Indian etymology in the above text.

Q2. Identify the ones derived from Sanskrit and Hindi separately. 

Unheard Words, Radical Thoughts - Part 5

I had been really busy for last few days, so couldn't post on the blog. But I was finding sometime daily, mostly while traveling from office to home, to write the story for the day on the words received on our Readers' Club's WhatsApp group.

For the three words covered in this post, I tried to use an alternative literary device in one of the stories. I am not sure what impact it creates, but I felt it right to do so.

Mavourneen

noun [muh-voo r-neen, -vawr-, -vohr-]

darling; dear

Tale: Hero/Villain

"My beloved! My mavourneen! I hope this letter still carries my fragrance when you hold it in your hands. It has been months since I went away. I had no choice. And I know my dear, I promised you that I will write to you every Sunday. But I never did. Never could. There was nothing bright to say. Things were gloomy and there was so much desperation around. After months, today the sun shines bright and there is no sound of bullets. Today it looks like the war is ending. When I left Dublin, I had never hurt anyone. But now I am being hailed as a warrior. I murdered thirty soldiers with my bayonet and killed many more with my rifle. They are going to reward me on my return. But to tell you the truth, my dear, I am not proud of this. I can smell the rotting corpses in my dreams. I hear children wailing too. As much as I try, muffling my ears, the wails don't stop. I love you and it is your thoughts that have kept me sane. Hope to see you soon."

She read this letter hundredth time. She could feel his warmth and smell his manliness in it. Her tears had dried up, but the letter was damp with sweat from her palms and tears of all the past occasions when she read it. He never came back. His decorated coffin returned though. The second world war had not only taken his life, but also hers.

Deleterious

adjective [del-i-teer-ee-uh s]

harmful; injurious

Tale: Vacuum

Their marriage was on the rocks. They hadn't talked to each other for days. Smiles had vanished from their home and both their kids were growing grumpy. It was difficult to understand what went wrong. They both loved each other deeply and had well paying jobs. They were a successful couple in every conceivable way. One day he came home, shot his wife, strangulated his kids and then jumped off his 50th floor apartment. The deleterious effects of living a purpose less life had taken its toll on his mental health. For months, now he was always bothered about the vacuousness of his life, his friend informed the police.

Potboiler

noun [pot-boi-ler]

a mediocre work of literature or art produced merely for financial gain

Tale: Life of Crime

He was considered as the most intellectual filmmaker in the noir genre. His crime thrillers were dark and morbid. Lapped up by the audiences, he was the toast of the town. Some of his critics mentioned that his films are so perverse that if he wasn't a director, he would have made a perfect criminal. They didn't know how close they were to truth. He was a pickpocket in childhood. After spending some years in a juvenile home, he came out a hardened criminal. He started drug trafficking and pimping. But then he came across a melancholic, beautiful small time actress. They both fell in love. That transformed him as a person. He studied film-making and nothing stopped him after that. His life reads like a potboiler. Isn't it? 

Unheard Words, Radical Thoughts - Part 4

Start of a new month brought in some really interesting words for me to weave my stories around. In fact, I think for one word (amphiboly), while I got the usage right from sentence point of view, but the example may not be apt. But narrating the story was far more important for me, so I just went with the flow.

So here are the three words shared in first three days of October, on our Readers' Club's WhatsApp group and what I did with them.

Druthers

noun [druhth- erz]

one's own way, choice or preference

Tale: Bad Habits

She couldn't stand that man. His hygiene habits had pissed her off many a time. He would make loud noises while eating food and would burp shamelessly. Whenever he used to fall asleep, the entire neighborhood would know because of his loud snoring. Once she saw him itching around his crotch and then eating food with the same hands. She was disgusted to no end. If she had her druthers she would have never married him.

Understory

noun [uhn-der-stawr-ee, -stohr-ee]

the shrubs and plants growing beneath the main canopy of a forest

Tale: Futility

Beneath the cover of heavy understory, two eyes glowed like ember. The anger in them could have started a forest fire. But he was waiting, patiently. Waiting for her to come. He had no business being here. But life is uncertain and here he was, willing to pounce on her the moment he sees her and kill her. Kill her with his bare hands. As she strolled in, royally, and unaware about her hunter, she started drinking water from the pond in the clearing immediately. Following her were her six cubs whom she was protecting fiercely. He then realized what this lioness did yesterday was her maternal instinct and his young son's foolishness. He returned and mourned for his son.

Amphiboly

noun [am-fib-uh-lee]

ambiguity of speech, especially from uncertainty of the grammatical construction rather than of the meaning of the words

Tale: Love You, Love You Not 

She could never make out from his texts whether he was flirting or not. His use of amphiboly was so effective that even if she feels upset by any of his text, he knew he would be able to explain otherwise. Like this one time he texted her, "I love you, isn't that the most beautiful thing one can ever say to a beautiful girl like you?" She used to like him, but that day she knew, he wasn't the guy. He wasn't willing to risk anything to get her.

Unheard Words, Radical Thoughts - Part 3

With this post, I will complete thirty stories for thirty "Words of the Day" shared on our Readers' Club's WhatsApp group in September 2016. That calls for a little celebration. This little daily ritual has helped me rejuvenate my blog. Happy reading and writing to you all. 

Here are today's three stories.

Peradventure

noun [pur-uh d-ven-cher, per-]

chance, doubt, or uncertainty

Tale: Thank God It's Friday

As she scrolled through his mobile phone, her heart sank. The man she had loved so intensely had been betraying her for months. Each text message proved beyond peradventure his guilt. He had been indulging in sinful activities without her knowledge. Every Friday night he was going for binge drinking with his friends. While she thought that he was working hard at office.

Lodestone

noun [lohd-stohn]

something that attracts strongly

Tale: Nature of Attraction

Moths get attracted to fire. This is a fatal attraction. An attraction that kills. But moths never learn. That is the nature of attraction.

He was driving on the expressway. He had to urgently reach somewhere. Then he heard that lilting voice. A song from his childhood filled his ears. The voice, reminded him of his mother's lullaby. The song like a lodestone, made him change his path. Instead of going to his destination, he took a by-lane and followed the sound. He kept going round in circles but he never reached the source of the sound. He knew he was going to get free today. He drove his car off the cliff. The sound stopped. 

Testudinal

adjective [te-stood-n-l, -styood-]

pertaining to or resembling a tortoise or tortoise shell

Tale: It... 

Her three year old suitcase was witness to several unspeakable things she did over this period. It had gone through the rumble and tumble of her extensive travels and adventures. She used it, stuffed it, abused it to no end. But it was a suitcase with testudinal strength, that had many secrets of hers stored in its belly. It had seen her naked many times snorting off lines of coke drawn on its top pocket. One of her boyfriends once even dropped his ejaculate on its back. The suitcase still embarrassingly carries that stain. But it still remained by her side through her highs and lows, despite her never taking care of it. Today a new larger, pink one caught her fancy. It lies in a corner waiting to be thrown away in a dump.

Unheard Words, Radical Thoughts - Part 2

Today I attended a workshop on Design and UX. It was an interesting one, though not in the realm of writing. That is when I realized that every time, I am able to design my stories in a proper structure, they come across as more powerful, while sometimes, when the design of a story is not good, even the most powerful thoughts don't come across well.

Following are the three stories, where I thought I was able to structure the stories well. Do give your feedback in case you feel otherwise. As usual the stories were woven around the 'Word of the Day' shared on WhatsApp group of Readers' Club I am part of.

Abeyance

noun [uh-bey-uh ns]

temporary inactivity, cessation, or suspension

Tale: The Victim

His promotion was kept in abeyance despite emerging as the best performer of the year. He had doubled the sales of regions under him. Month on month he kept breaking all past records, for two years in a row. He fast emerged as a popular guy with ladies too. A sexual harassment case was filed against him just a day before appraisal. Is he self destructive or victim of office politics?

Paean

noun [pee-uh n]

any song of praise, joy, or triumph

Tale: Thirst

She sang paeans to her idol after every kill. She would stab with her sharp dagger, right into her victim's heart and draw blood out. She will then wash her idol's feet with that red fluid of life. Her idol, the devil himself, was thirsty for more.

Gaposis

noun [gap-oh-sis]

a noticeable gap or series of gaps, as between the fastened buttons or snaps on an overly tight garment

Tale: Strange Affliction

He had a strange affliction or one may choose to call it a fetish. He used to get aroused by looking at the gaposis of any female attire. Obviously he was misunderstood and all his women colleagues thought that he is a pervert and had the gumption to look at their body parts without shame. Then on the traditional day celebration everyone wore a sari and he was not even looking at them. Strange.

 

Unheard Words, Radical Thoughts - Part 1

The Readers' Club's WhatsApp group, I am part of has changed its name from Literati Bugs to Owlery, as the owner of the group has registered it as a commercial entity. But one thing remains the same - A word of the day is shared and I try to weave a story around it. With this change, I have changed the title of my posts in this series as well, as most of the words shared are unheard of. This post has three such stories I wrote in response to three unheard words shared. Two stories are about radical people and the last one about a not so radical guy.

Vagarious

adjective [vuh-gair-ee-uh s]

erratic; capricious; characterized by vagaries

Tale: Free Spirit

She left a steady job to pursue her passion. Travel gave her a high which nothing else could match. She did petty jobs few months every year and spent all the savings on traveling for rest of the months. Her vagarious lifestyle took her to new places and experiences. She felt settled in life for the first time. She was at home, away from home.

Eristic

adjective [e-ris-tik]

pertaining to controversy or disputation; controversial

Tale: Killers. Who?

He stood trial for an eristic case that took everyone by surprise. It was discussed by all and sundry. It was dissected for hours at end on news channels. The issue at hand had no precedent and it had the potential to divide the society down the middle. His life was endangered too because of the controversial nature of his argument. People baying for his blood had crowded the court premises. The court held him not guilty but as he came out he was lynched to death. He had killed God and surrendered. People laughed at him and told him that he can't kill God. He further said if God can kill people he has every right to kill God. People argued God has no form so he can't kill God. So he claimed that before surrendering he desecrated idols and symbols of all major religions. Now people were not laughing. They wanted to kill him as he had hurt their God.

Spinebash

verb [spahyn-bash]

to rest; loaf

Tale: Resigned to Fate

It was a tough week at work. Everyday was like an uphill trek. On Monday, the review meet was really rigorous. He got the dressing down of his life from his boss. Tuesday was no better when he missed a client's deadline. It was as if he was carrying a backpack filled with bricks on this trek. Wednesday brought the bad news of him missing a great career opportunity. His heart sank and he spent the entire day sulking. On Thursday, he was assigned a new reportee from another team. He hated her, as she had turned down his proposal during college. He usually used to spend his Fridays spinebashing in office. But he got a weekend assignment late Friday evening. On Saturday, he drafted a resignation letter. He drank beer that night and woke up with a hangover on Sunday. As he caught with his friends on Sunday evening, he forgot everything. He is geared up to face Monday again.