Not A Politician

But a humanitarian.

It's about time they did something useful:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-10925400

And So It Is Christmas

You know how sometimes people get confused. I am one of those people. And the sometimes means more than often.

Raised as a Hindu, educated by the Church of England, best friends with a Muslim and from a country where Buddhism is the majority religion and a scientist by profession means that I am more than liberal with my religious values!

Christmas in the West has evolved so fast. So much thought goes into food and presents as opposed to the celebration of the birth of Christ.

I went to a carol service a few days ago. A very simple one. I like carol services. The singing of carols takes me back to when I was a child and I used to sing with great gusto as I played an angel or king or shepherd - even Mary once in my school Nativity play!

But this is not about that. The Father of the small chapel in his sermon gave me a lot to think about which I want to mention here in my own lil' way.

I'm not preaching but for all of you out there that have been taken in by all the presents and the lights and the food, please try to remember that there are those out there that are less fortunate than yourselves. Those who have had a tough year. Those who won't be receiving gifts. Those who have lost loved ones. Those who can't afford to lay on a grandeur meal. Those who won't have a roof over their heads this Christmas amongst so many other reasons that I could list.

I just want you to take some time out and spare a thought for them and how if you haven't this year, think about how maybe next year you, I and we could help them. Because as much as we all like to receive, receiving a smile and knowing you made a difference (no matter how small) is the best gift!

Merry Christmas people.

Scrumps, x

To Be 16 Again

I was tagged by our favourite Jack following the most recent tag to hit the blogosphere: A letter to your sweet 16.

Dearest Fudge (lame ass nickname that I will discuss below!)

Firstly – your life is not over because your parents are not letting you go on the water sports trip to Spain. You won’t “hate them forever” and you’ll find out that it wasn’t as good as the one that you went on when you were 14 (clearly because you weren’t there!).

Now just because your high school crush has decided to give you the nickname “Fudge”, it is NOT cool! Try to move away from that identity. Talking of your crush, yes, he is beautiful and yes he will be the first guy you take home to meet your parents. And he will have exemplary behaviour when he meets your dad but it won’t work out. After all, you’re 16 and you both move on.

Keep studying. I know at the moment it seems like people are taking advantage of you being one of the few that completes their homework but it will pay off. You will earn the label of being a “cool geek” (and yes, such a thing is possible!) – be proud. There are not many people who could pull it off like you can. Don’t regret not taking history and think carefully about your A-Level choices. Chemistry is a given and maths is something you grow to love but biology?! Definitely reconsider that option. But if you don’t do it, you miss out on the field trip with the hottest Tamil boy you will probably ever come to meet! Try not to let your hormones rule your head! (What am I am saying?! You’re 16; your hormones will definitely rule your head!)

Your parents will decide that you need to move house. Don’t fret about losing your friends. You stay at the same school and keep your friends. Talking of friends – there will be a whole lot of drama that you need to deal with. Your role of playing the agony aunt; the confidant; remains the same up until the point at which I write this letter to you. You will go through teenage abortions (Don’t freak out – not yourself personally!), student – teacher trysts amongst other illegal issues you swear yourself to secrecy.

The move will open your eyes to all things Sri Lankan. You will move to a part of London where there are considerably more Tamils than where you currently live. And yes, random Tamil guys will try and follow you home but walking faster does not help you avoid them!
Think twice before beeping that horn at that cute Tamil guy. He’s only after one thing and you’re not going to give it to him. And he’ll only make your life hell once you reject him.

You may think that the age gap between your siblings and you will cause you all to never understand each other but you will see in time that they become your biggest support and helping hands. Your parents surprisingly become a lot more understanding. Lie to your parents about clubbing. What they don't know won't hurt them. You'll be surprised at how good you get at this!

When you’re taking that driving test – do not speed up in the left hand lane – you aren’t “supposed” to overtake on the left and it takes a lot to convince the driving examiner that that’s not what you were doing!

Don’t think you’re not beautiful. You may not have the interest that your peers may have from boys but believe me it’s for the best. You will meet that special somebody and he will (at the time) be a cut above the rest and you will be glad you waited. Not just for the relationship but also for the sex! The sex. Phew. Thank yourself that you didn’t have sex at 16. No way were you mature enough to handle the emotional-ness (yes that’s a word) that comes with doing “it”! And that special somebody will make you feel so unbelievably special whilst doing “it” that you are thankful that you didn’t succumb to all those who attempted to get into your panties!

Take the job at the bookies – no matter how daunting it might sound. It will help you learn to love yourself and your new found confidence changes who you will become. Flirt to your heart's content – you will know where to draw the line.

You will lose the tom-boy of who you are and despite not becoming the essence of femininity, you learn to use what you have to your advantage (the flirting once again) and become super emotional. Don’t hide that. Make use of your boobs. Flashing a lil' bit of that cleavage leaves a lot to the imagination and gets you served at the bar a lot quicker!

Travel. Travel as much as you can afford to. Your first trip away with the girls introduces you to B. She will become a rock in your life. Never be afraid to try out new things and make sure you do the sky dive! You'll know what I mean!

And last but by no means least, wear your heart on your sleeve and smile. Whatever happens makes you who you are.

With all my love
Lloyd (your new and much cooler nickname!)
x

P.S. Start a blog! It will become a part of your life that you will grow to treasure!

Apologies for the length - clearly I had a lot to tell myself at 16!

I hereby tag Santhoshi and Pseudo. And whoever else wants to do it (sorry RD - had to change the rules slightly!).
ETA: And tagging Angel! :)

Hot or Not?!

Which adjective do you best prefer to describe aesthetics?

I was having (clearly a deep and meaningful!) conversation with a friend (male) last night about the female population and looks and then progressed onto the male population and looks.

Ladies: Do you prefer being called hot/sexy/beautiful/pretty or any other adjective that describes your looks favourably?

Gents, your turn: Hot/handsome/sexy/rugged/beautiful or whatever else suits your fancy?

I only ask because he said that hot girls are girls that you can't take home to meet your mother (think Kim Kardashian) and beautiful/pretty girls are the ones you can (Jessica Alba was the example we used)!

So basically the hot girls are the "dirty" girls?! Or are they......?!

An Individual Diaspora View

This is just the way I feel and constructive comments/criticism welcome. Apologies in advance for any offence that I may cause. *

I am who I am. I know that I have not had to live through what those directly in Sri Lanka have had to and continue to do so daily.

I’ve read various different articles/comments/blog posts that label the Tamil Diaspora (TD) as supporters of “terrorists”. Though I know that people are aware that the whole of the TD are not like that, it doesn't change the stigma or some of the sweeping statements.

RD questions whether you can want Tamil Eelam without being a terrorist. Personally – I think so. Not so much Tamil Eelam but a desire to have somewhere that you can call home without the threat of being victimised. You don’t have to support the “terrorists” in order to have a feeling of being safe.

I’ve always supported the cause. The cause (for me) being equal rights for Tamils. Not just for those living in the comforts of the South but for all Tamils on the Island. I don’t believe that it is fair to ask for a separate state in the fashion that it is being asked for. How are they any better than the government that they claim discriminates against them? Isn’t that what they themselves are doing? And I’ve never supported the methods.

I’ve been attending the protests at Parliament Square. Not to support the LTTE but nor to label them as terrorists. I can only condemn all those who are involved in the killing of those that are pawns in this long term civil war.

I know the chants. Changing everyday. I know which ones I chant to. The ones about saving the innocent civilians. Though the voices are not as strong as when the chants are proclaiming who their leader is. Standing defiantly as these chants ring loudly around the square. It infuriates me. How can you expect to be taken seriously when you are waving flags and cheering for those who are not respected (maybe respect isn’t the best word to use) by the world?

He’s certainly not my leader. How can someone who proclaims to want the best for the Tamil people let so many innocent civilian lives be slain in vain? I don’t think the government is any better. Believe me – I’m not advocating for either side. By supporting either – are you just supporting the lesser of two evils?

Before these protests that have been taking over the entire place, what was being done to highlight the plight of these civilians? Were there as many stories roaming around the internet or were they being swept under the carpet? Can you be so sure that despite many of the protestors supporting the Tamil Tigers, without them, the plight of all those caught in the no fire safe zone would have been highlighted to those less fortunate to be in the know? I’ve had to respond to many colleagues/neighbours even friends who’ve asked me why the protests are happening. People who are usually so in tune with civil wars in Rwanda/Sudan/Somalia or that of the situation in the Middle East but who have no clue on what is happening in SL.

But we must remember that history is something that has happened. There has been a time when being Tamil has meant being treated differently. And at that time it was Tamil “terrorist” organisations that shouted the loudest allowing voices to be heard. The majority of the Diaspora left SL when these “terrorist” organisations were at their most influential. They’d left when these organisations were vying for a better future for them. For many members of the Diaspora, these “terrorists” did in fact carry their voices. This is the memory for a lot of them.

Indeed these “terrorist” organisations are not the sole representative for all Tamils but they are the main representative for a majority of Tamils. Sure they may have lost some of their vision along the way and I'm not saying that they aren't guilty of harming the ones they claim so hard to protect either BUT without them and their actions, who would hear the cries of Tamils?


*Disclaimer: There are probably a hell of a lot of contradicting views in this and it's a bit of a haphazard post. I’m not advocating anything apart from the obvious peace and end of war. I just want for all those who are suffering unjustly to be given a solution as soon as possible. Nor am I even halfway clued up to write about the situation. But this is just something that I wanted to share despite not being sure whether to publish or not. Oh well. :)

I Am Curious

What is the acceptable time span to keep wishing people "A Happy New Year"?

As in, at what time does it become unacceptable? Can I wish someone when they get back from holiday at the end of January? Is it too late then?

Another extraordinary musing courtesy of Scrumpy! First proper day back at work and the clogs have been grinding away!

The Incident

Politics is not my strong point. I mean, I’m not some airhead bimbo but it’s definitely not something that I’m mega clued up about.

Which is why when I write this, I fear the backlash that I’ll receive from those who are anti America, anti The War on Iraq and inevitably anti George “Dubya” Bush (GDB).

Fair enough, GDB made some dubious decisions (OK, more than some and definitely more than dubious) but remember, he didn’t put himself there. It was the majority of a population of some 300 million people that did that.

Did he deserve the shoe throwing? Not in my opinion. Why? Because he’s an old man that’s had his run. Let him be. If it’s the most disrespectful sign in the Arab world – I don’t think he deserved it. Watching him helpless on the video made me wince slightly. I know I might get the " what about the helpless Iraqis?" question but do the Iraqis believe that they would have been better off under Saddam?

At the end of the day, GDB was doing his job – he may not have done it well but he did what he believed was right. Isn't that a true representation of someone's character - doing what you believe in despite the backlash you may face?

I just feel sorry for the guy and I never thought I'd say that about "Dubya".