The Bloodhound-Kids can kill

This is my first attempt at writing Thriller. Although I do not expect this story to give you sleepless nights, but nevertheless it will surely send shivers down your spine.

There was a young couple living in Nottingham. They had a 2 year old son, a very playful and a cheerful kid. One night the couple had to leave for a party which was in London, and so they left the kid behind. There was a young maid to take care of the kid while the parents were away in London.There was also a 6 foot bloodhound, named "Bloody" to handle any undesirable circumstances and ensure safety. The couple left Nottingham peacefully, as they believed that their child was safe.

After the couple left the child fell fast asleep. Bloody was resting under the bed,awake, his razor sharp teeth were glistening in the darkness of the night. Seeing the child fast asleep, the maid dozed off peacefully. When she woke up in the morning she found that the bed was wet and blood was smeared all over. The child was missing. She panicked and searched the blood room but he was nowhere to be found. Under the bed, she found the headless body of "Bloody" which was lying in a pool of blood. Then the door knocked, breaking the silence of the place. With trembling hands, she opened the door, and found the child with the dog's head in its hand. He was laughing in ecstacy and pointed towards a wall where these words were written in blood; "Kids can kill"

Train Train

The local train is the lifeline of Mumbai. To survive in Maximum City, you have to include the local trains as an essential part of your life. Suketu Mehta calls Mumbai a "Vadapav Eater's city." It is the lunch of the chawl dwellers, the cart pullers, the urchins, the clerks, the cops, the gangsters and the whores. It is also a "Train Commuters city." It is the mode of transport for one and all.The local trains teach you a number of lessons in life and also the art of survival.

Travelling in a Mumbai local train not only requires great deal of physical strength and endurance, but more importantly it requires mental presence and application. For example, a train starting from Wadala is likely to be less crowded than a train starting from CST if you want to board it from Kurla. Whether to catch a slow local or a fast local. One needs to work out his grey cells to travel comfortably and in the shortest possible time. The bible for survival in here is the Rs 10/- local train pocket guide.

A peek through the windows gives you a glimpse of the extreme diversity that exists in this great metropolitan. Crossing Wadala Station, you can see the chawls on one side whereas a distant glance will let you see Antop Hill, where John Abraham lives.A local compartment is also a moving stock market. Eavesdropping into the discussions will give you such an information overload on stocks that you wont require any financial advisor.One learns with experience, and one thing which I have learnt through experience is to never board a Virar Fast if you want to get down at Andheri or Borivali.Experience has also taught that inside a compartment if you smell the sweat of Old Spice, you are in a first class compartment otherwise you are in a 2nd class.

The local compartment is also the place where people carry out their daily chores like cutting vegetables, chanting their daily prayers, and even shopping. Where else would you find a dvd seller selling movies, carrying a dvd player and playing it in front of you so that you are satisfied with its quality? It is also the place where one meets old friends, although spotting your friend amidst the huge crowds is like finding a needle in a haystack. One can explain almost anything by forming analogies with a local train. For example, "An elevator in a high rise is like a slow local, it stops at every damn floor." For the last two months, trains had become an essential part of my life. I almost saw the sunrise and the sunset from the trains. I missed something had I not boarded the train someday, and gradually I got so used to the crowds that I often found it difficult to board an empty compartment.I could hear the rumbling on the tracks even while I was asleep.Trains are indispensable. What if you stay at Ambarnath and your girlfriend calls you for a date in Nariman Point. Train is the only answer, or else the taxi fare will haunt you for the rest of the month. So to conclude,

"You can run, you can hide, but you can't escape the train"

A smiley encounter

Although it takes only 14 muscles to smile, it requires more than 14 million grey cells to decipher what meaning the smile conveys. Especially if you are at the receiving end of a smile from someone of the fairer sex.

This happened a few years ago at Kolkata Airport, when I was about to leave for Chennai. Though this incident also stands testimony to my poor skills in English language, I would like to assure the readers that my English has improved considerably since then. After the luggage check-in formalities, when I went to the Spice Jet counter to collect my boarding pass, I saw a stunningly beautiful ground staff seated who was handing over the boarding passes to the travellers. No wonder why the airlines was named Spice Jet. Being an ardent fan of the window seat which gives me an areal view of the spectacular City of Joy, I asked her if a window seat was available. She replied, with a smile on her face, 'Sorry sir, no window seat is available'. I replied, Ok, 'I would prefer an AISLE seat. Unknowingly, I pronounced it as "AIZEL". She smiled back, saying Ok sir. This smile was wider and prettier than the previous one. I was spellbound by the beauty of her smile which transported me into a world of trance. I began wondering whether the smile was really an admiration of the charm and charisma which I carried with myself.

Inside the aircraft, I asked the airhostess, where is 16D? She replied, again with a smile, "Go straight sir, its on the AISLE." (She pronounced it as it should be A-I-L, and not as AIZEL). Never having heard such a word before, I asked her again, and again she said, its on the A-I-L sir. I was really stunned, and realized what a fool I had been. I felt as if I was at the epicenter of a huge earthquake. Now I realized what those pretty smiles meant. As I sat on my AISLE seat, I could'nt think of anything else apart from the embarassment which had befallen me. Since, then I had decided never to sit on an AISLE seat. A middle seat would be a preferable option incase the window seats were occupied.