A view from my window

It's raining joy in Sharjah..The opposite building is my office. good day to all:)

Pet first, partner later for women

When her pet parrot flew away, my neighbour in Mumbai remained depressed for days. When his pet dog in Mumbai died, my crestfallen buddy who worked in a leading newspaper in Dubai, quit his job and returned to his hometown. When a dear Tunisian friend’s beautiful dog died, she was in tears for days.

The owner-pet attachment is well known for ages.

However, what has been little known to me is that the way to a woman's heart is through her pet.

According to a new study by animal health organisation NOAH, a quarter of women would dump a man if their pet didn't like him – and a third would leave their own bed and sleep on the floor next to their pet if it was ill.

Half of British women claim they say “hello” to their dog or cat before anyone else when they get home, the Daily Mail has reported.

Thankfully, my wife has not been too keen to keep a pet at home. Maybe, she must have thought one is enough (Obviously me!).

By the way, I tested the veracity of this study. I met a stunning, cat-eyed lady at a conference in Dubai and the first question I asked was, “Do you have a pet at home?”

“Oh. I love Danny. He is such a cute Chinese Shih Tzu,” she started off.

My colleague had to give five missed-calls on my phone to inform that the car was waiting for my return trip.

Joy of relaxation

At the splendid Majaz Park in Sharjah, I jogged for a while and decided to relax by lying down on a concrete slab, face facing the sky.

In that quick moment, I was astonished by what I saw ‑ even without my specks. In the backdrop of the alluring blue sky, I saw a line of birds passing by in perfect V-formation. I also noticed a resplendent rainbow. A speeding jet added to the beauty.

I could not help recall Bruce Lee’s words to his student: “It is like a finger pointing a way to the moon. Don't concentrate on the finger or you will miss all that heavenly glory.”

It also makes me think. The rush hours and grinding routine are only making our life complicated. Chilling out is so easy - as easy as lying back and gazing at the sky or sitting down and watching the waves of the sea and yet we do not have time for that!

One should not confuse relaxation with laziness.

Relaxation rejuvenates; laziness constrains.

Talk of laziness and I remembered a joke.

A factory chief thought all his 10 workers were lazy. He wanted to find who was the laziest.

"I have a very easy task today. The laziest man wins. Who is that among you?"

Nine raised their hands. One did not. Obviously, he was too lazy to do that.

Best wishes always

Strangers-turned-friends

Alluring waterfront, lush-green surroundings, chirping birds, melodious music, walkers’ track, tempting eateries…name it and Sharjah’s Al Majaz park area has it all. Morning walkers naturally find the place a captivating never-miss attraction.

I jogged for a few minutes at the spot and decided to do some warm-up exercises. After a couple of push-ups, twists and turns on a concrete bench, I closed my eyes and breathed in.

I was thus lost in thoughts when I heard some noise from behind. Three youngsters surrounded me and started joking about my aerobics. Impulsively, I looked at my purse and key, which I had kept on the bench. They were intact. I realised that the boys were merely looking for fun.

With age comes maturity and I have aged enough.

I decided to make friends with them and demonstrated some exercises that I knew. I then introduced myself as a journalist and said if they could show some trick for an action photo, we would carry it in our newspaper. They did with much enthusiasm.

“Il youm kalaas. Ashuufak bukra,” (Enough today, rest tomorrow) I told them in broken Arabic.

They gave me a hug and disappeared with the words “Mas salama.”

Maximum money

When a friend asked Irish playwright Bernard Shaw which book got him the maximum money, he replied: “Chequebook.”

A person without a sense of humour, I feel, is like a peacock without tail feathers. No wonder, Gandhi said, “If I had no sense of humour, I would long ago have committed suicide.”

After the performance of a play in London, Bernard Shaw joined actors on stage to acknowledge a rousing ovation. However, there was a solitary voice crying out: "Boo! Boo!" Shaw looked at that direction and remarked: "I agree with you my friend, but what can we two do against a houseful of opposite opinion?"

British statesman Winston Churchill’s repartee is also well-known.  When American socialite Nancy Astor once told him, “If you were my husband, I’d put poison in your coffee,” Churchill shot back, "If you were my wife, I would gladly drink it."

Kung Fu king Bruce Lee was once asked if he believed in God. “I believe in sleeping,” he answered.

Sometimes, serious talks turn humorous. I spotted a sparrow near the window and told my daughter, “When I was a child, a sparrow used to visit our home in Chennai. A neighbour got closer, it tried to fly away, got hit by the ceiling fan and died. I could not sleep entire night. We should love birds.”

“Should we love monkeys too?” she asked.

“Of course,” I replied, without thinking twice.

“I love you, dad.”