| Username |
Post |
| Biswo |
Posted
on 27-Sep-02 08:24 PM
This week reminded us how lucky we were to be writing and reading stuffs in sajha.com
as it was rescued from the verge of vanishing. Let's enjoy while it last.
--
We were in the Nanjing Road of Shanghai, eating 'hotpot' in a restaurant which was
very close to fabled Huangpu River. As soon as his girlfriend,who was from a deveoped
country went to the restroom, he stooped a little bit,stretched his head towards me and
asked me if I could lend him fifty dollars.
His girl friend had invited me for that dinner the previous day. I didn't want to go
anywhere,but I considered the couple good friends, so I agreed to join. So,
the demand for fifty dollars came as an unnecessary jolt to me.
"When do you need?" I asked, ostensibly calmly.Inside, I wasn't very happy about
his demand.
"As soon as possible" He said, his face beamed with hope.
"OK." I said.
--
He came alone to my room to get money. "Foreign girlfriend, you know, my expenses
are a lot!" He tried to explain.
"I know you are living off her money." I said, rather ruthlessly. Yet, I knew he was
childish, and wouldn't mind.
"Still, I have to pay for something sometimes. Can't ask her to pay all the times!"
"Don't spend a lot of money, all right? Jitnaa Chaadar Howe, Utnaa Paawa Phailaawe
(stretch your leg as far as your blanket goes!)"I quoted a Bhojpuri proverb that
I had earned in Terai.
----
Like the villagers of Premchand's novel Gaban,he never thought that he would have
to pay back money once he got it. He always invented some subterfuges to get money
and I had been familiar with his excuses by then.Yet I knew he was always running out
of money, and was in the constant need of money all the time. Despite that, I liked him,
he was a childish man, a harmless person who was hospitablel at times and used to invite
me in weekends while rest of the world ignored me.
One day I noticed a nice air conditioner in his room.
"Nice AC.National, huh?"
He came close to me, as if he was afraid others would listen to him. "Don't tell anyone
else. SHE gave it to me."
"Wasn't that TV too her present?" I asked.
"Yes."
I tried to imagine what he was thinking of me at the time: was he thinking I was jealous
of him? A girl, and plenty of freebies.
"You know, Chandre, don't tell this to others as if it is a matter of pride. It is basically
shame, u know. Nepali boys will ridicule you." I told him.
"No. I told you because I thought you were my BEST friend." He said.A warmth prevailed
between him and I, and I forgot I was thinking about a lot of pretexts to get my money
back when I went to him that day too.
--
Couple of days later, the girl moved to his room. And I lessened my frequency of
visiting their room. They would sometimes come to my room. When Chandre came
alone, he would complain about lack of money. I had stopped lending him anymore
money, but still he used to come up with some really plausible excuses and managed
to get a couple of dollars from me from times to times.
And one day, the lady left. She had some kind of immigration problem, so she couldn't
stay in the university anymore.
He came to me, and wondered about his life.
"The girl loved me immensely." He said, while regretting her expulsion. "Now we may
never meet each other."
"I am sure you still have those TV and AC."I said with the wry smile in my lips."I figured
out you told that thing to others too."
"No, I didn't." He protested.
"Yes, you did. You told that to Karim."
"Karim wasn't Nepali. You asked me not to tell that to other Nepalese only, didn't you?"
"Well, that Pakistani was making fun of you in front of all Pakistanis and Nepalese in
the Tequila Mama (Bar)"I said. He grinned, as if he was somehow proud that people
knew about that.
---
I had to leave China for good as my graduation drew near. I visited Great Wall and
some other places I found myself emotionally attached to during my stay there. As a
teenager, when I went there first, I never thought that I would one day conclude my
stay in China.Five Years just looked like eternity at first. And when I was living,the
five years looked like a few days. Passed really fast.
He was the only person in my graduation ceremony, which was held in a small auditorium
of school. He came near to me, and asked me about my further plan.
"Did MIT accept you?" He asked me. He knew that much.
"No." But from among the list of rejection, I told him about a good news.
"You will be going to USA. Money won't be problem for you, I guess." He said. I was
started, because in stead of returning my previously lent money, he was ,I thought,
probably going to ask me to leave him some more.
"Money is problem everywhere." I told him."We will never have enough of it."
--
The day I left Shanghai, he came to airport.He appeared sad, but wished me good luck.
"Try to do something for me." He said.
"Take those lousy GRE and TOEFLs." I suggested.
Little did I realise that as soon as I left China, he would not even write emails to me.
The only one email I received from his was this:" Due to the lack of money, I can't
even go online/ write emails frequently. Ke garne. If you can, why not you send me
some money from there?"
---
[ Not a true story. Partly assorted from an experience of a lot of my friends though.]
|
| DHUMBASSE (DUMBASS) |
Posted
on 28-Sep-02 06:57 AM
Nice stuff, narrative, nice writing too. different than ususal stuff at sajha. Thus a lot better too, for the change of taste.
|
| VillageVoice |
Posted
on 28-Sep-02 07:47 AM
biswoji,
good story. yes, US is a big deal for people round the world, esp. in our part of the world. A mere entry into the land of opportunities is taken as a sure recipe for success, money.
And that is understandable. Most - i am not saying all mind you - people do end up doing better here - than they would say in sanghai, jhapa, or afghanistan. but i am not so sure about my comparision with China.
Liked this:
<<<>>>
reminds me vaguely of a character in maugham's razor's edge - who was very fond of partying and all that. :)
|
| VillageVoice |
Posted
on 28-Sep-02 07:52 AM
That copy-paste dosen't show. Any idea, biswo, san?
Here I go again- acutally typing some words fearing an encore.
###Like the villagers of Premchand's novel Gaban, he never thought that he would have to pay back money one he got it... He always invented some subterfuges to get money and I had been familiar with his excuses by then.
Yet I knew he was always running out of money, and was in the constant need of money all the time. Despite that, I liked him,
he was a childish man, a harmless person who was hospitablel at times and used to invite
me in weekends while rest of the world ignored me. ####
|
| San |
Posted
on 28-Sep-02 08:49 AM
VillageVoice:
Your quote got cut off because you enclosed them in the pointy brackets i.e.
< - do not enclose anything inside such brackets because they will be treated as part of code - >
you had put the following inside those 'tag' brackets
Missing from Village Voice's post:
"He always invented some subterfuges to get money and I had been familiar with his excuses by then.Yet I knew he was always running out of money, and was in the constant need of money all the time. Despite that, I liked him, he was a childish man, a harmless person who was hospitablel at times and used to invite me in weekends while rest of the world ignored me."
|
| SimpleGal |
Posted
on 28-Sep-02 09:35 AM
Biswoji,
Nice story and well written. You should try your hand at short story writing! Honestly.
VillageVoiceji,
Are you from New York? Me too. :)
I agree with you that yes, people do end up doing relatively well for themselves in the US. But one must not be blinded by the briliance that makes America. Being a New Yorker, I've met scores of people in the city who, in the quest for a better life and $$, have to relinquish their familial bliss. Not everyone can bring his/her family into the country. Bichod ko dukha man ma liyera they have to trudge to work. The 7-train (which an American born Nepali friend calls "the Immigrant Express" with a touch of sarcasm) is teeming with people everyday--tired from a long and lonely day of work. Their eyes staring into an emptiness. Their pockets may be well-endowed with the dreams that haunt the lives of those aspiring to enter the US, but their lives are torn between their livelihood and their "life." With each passing year, the two (livelihood and life) merge immutably....It's strange to think how humans lose sight of their priorities with the passage of time. It's both a healer and a hider.
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| Biswo |
Posted
on 28-Sep-02 02:16 PM
Hi SimpleGal and Dumbasseji,
Thanks for your observation and suggestions. In my only trip to NY, I have enjoyed
a train ride from Queens to somewhere downtown: full of people speaking language
other than English. NY is a city to live, I agree.
VVji,
I have read the Razor's Edge, and seen the somehow badly made movie starring
Bill Murray too. I found Mougham's "The Moon And Six Pence" a lot better, I mean
probably one of the best novels ever written. It is (said to be) a book about a painter
Paul Gauguin.Please read that small novel whenever you have time!
|
| najar |
Posted
on 28-Sep-02 03:17 PM
Biswoji,
Very nice story, indeed!
I also agree with VVji and simple gal that yes the US does provide relatively more opportunities for one to prosper. However, the money thing i don't know. From MY experience the money you make is directly proportional to money you spend. So there is never enough. Always run short of it. I remember as a newcoming undergrad used to work for few hours a week, make minimal amount, was fine with it and would think that after finishing school will have a job, a lot of money, you know. After finishing school, yes, I started to work but still never have enough money. Run out of it before i even know it. So don't know how thing money thing is better in the US. May be I need some financial counseling. Readers, this is just based on MY experience, I repeat. It could be different for other people.
Also as we are on the topic of college days, when i first came to college, I thought all these american college students would have lots of $$, the image i'd perceived even before i came to the US. But on the contrary, even the friends that came from affluent family would not have too much money to spend. Most of them were always complaining about how they were so broke, and were working hard to pay off their expenses towards school, car and all else.Very few were the cases when people would spend money recklessly.
Being a frequent visitor of NYC myself, I think it is the place to visit (little different than Biswoji's observation). And am familiar with that #7 train running betn Time sq and Flushing--some fun memories. Subway, i have to say is one of the best things about NY.
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| SimpleGal |
Posted
on 28-Sep-02 08:11 PM
Najarji,
I like the way you explain the inflow and outflow of the American $$ as being proportionate to one another. With all due respect to your experience :) I must say that you exemplify well the point I tried to make about how the life and livelihood of us Nepalis have merged into an inextricable oneness. What you described was an experience seen through the colored lenses of the American lifestyle: You earn, you spend, and if time (be it temporal, material, or whatever kind) permits, you save. What I saw during my summer trip to Nepal this summer was the other side of the fence. I'm surprised no one has mentioned how the newly arrived Nepali in the US instantaneously converts a dollar to its equivalent in rupees and begins to dictate his/her expenses accordingly!! Again, it's not anyone's fault that this merging effect happens--it's merely the rate of acculturation!!! :) If it's any consolation to you, Najarji, I would quote the famous vision from F. Scott Fitzgerald's (sp?) The Great Gatsby: America (and the hariya dollar) is just the green light that Gatsby sees on the other side of the lake where his lady love Daisy resides. It remains an illusion throughout his efforts to woe her!!
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| sally |
Posted
on 28-Sep-02 09:11 PM
Biswo,
Very nice story!
But on New York: "a city to live?" If you have a lot of money, it would be great fun. Living in Manhattan, taking the kids to Central Park, nights out in the clubs.
But if you don't, if you're just an average worker bee, it seems like it would be painful. Miles and miles of concrete. Hours and hours on commuter trains. Millions of anonymous faces. I think I'd want to pack up and move to Santa Fe or Eugene or someplace really livable after maybe a month.
But then, I have a commuting allergy. Just a small town gal at heart, I guess.
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| SITARA |
Posted
on 28-Sep-02 09:21 PM
Biswo ji;
You certainly have a knack for storytelling....Not too heavy nor too light...just right.
Nice...truly refreshing!!! You are correct, I think sometimes we forget...
... It is not what we earn but what we spend on!!!
Also, it is not what we spend on but what we save!!
:)
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| SimpleGal |
Posted
on 28-Sep-02 09:26 PM
Sallyji,
Surely, NYC can't be That bad, can it? :(
Am a die-hard NYC fan, so went "OUCH" from your comment ..... Besides, the rush of life that is and becomes NYC is what makes Gotham so groovy! Otherwise, the hush of life that is and becomes a small town would not be as appreciated and sought! What is sukkha w/out dukkha, chhaya w/out gham, love w/out hate, and small town quietude w/out NYC???? :)
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| VillageVoice |
Posted
on 28-Sep-02 11:14 PM
hey, san, THANKS a lot. really APPRECIATE this.
|
| Biswo |
Posted
on 28-Sep-02 11:54 PM
Sitaraji,
Glad to be praised by you, finally, after being upbraided in another thread so
harshly:-)
>But on New York: "a city to live?" If you have a lot of money, it would be great fun.
>Living in Manhattan, taking the kids to Central Park, nights out in the clubs.
Didn't know I will receive flaks for getting enamored with NYC life! But Sally and
Najar, which place is not fun when you have a lot of money to burn? Even
war ravaged Nom-Penh of Cambodia offers a lot to the affluent ones.
To say that NYC is a sad place to live for the poor ones is a bit exaggeration. It
offers, among other things, company. For rich , vainglorious ones. For poors,
pauper ones.For strangers, newly arrived and confused ones.
I went to NYC looking for a sophisticated neighborhood, and I was swarmed with the
people in Queens whose gaucherie was prominently noticeable. I went to see the
place , a fort of capitalism and a pride of white English people, and I saw a mosaic
of cultures and nationalities whose language and colours both were different from
what I expected. New York was not a city of giddy oneness like Tokyo or Beijing, it
was a fabric made up of different yarns of complexion. New York is a place everyone
can belong to. That's what I liked very much. But finally, it depends on what we are
looking for: a serene hideout or just a place under sun that offers much more when
we look around:-)
|
| VillageVoice |
Posted
on 29-Sep-02 12:46 AM
Almost all of Nepal would be here given the choice. Going by the explosion in DVD applications, that is :) $$$ *is* a strong motivation - whatever we may think.
I have met tons of people here in NYC (and that replies your question, simplegal. Yes, I am in the city) - and not just nepalis - who are busy chasing their American dreams. Quality of life? Well, that can wait until the next generation or two.
Yes, I agree with Najar. Subway is a New York specialty.
O 7 Train. It *is* something. More than just a train. Well, Paschim, you should take a ride (re: The Great Railway Bazaar debate) some day.
I once asked a longtime resident of New York City,
"Was 7 Train safe during the crime-infested days in the 70s, 80s?"
Much to my chagrin, he burst into peals of laughter.
"People riding 7 train would be so tired," he said, still laughing, "that they would doze off the moment they had a seat. They wouldn't notice no muggers."
Yes, compared to other trains in NYC, 7 train witnesses more action, esp. when it stops: passengers rush for vacant, and not so vacant, seats. only the other day, an amply endowed woman did a remarkable job in squeezing next to me.
"Sorry," she would say politely, making a steady progress in the turf war. As the trained swerved, and puffed, there would only be one winner. There was no way I could keep up with her bulk. Finally, I decided to stand up, and couldn't even bring myself to see her eye to eye. I was so completely vanquished, thoroughly demoralized :)
hey, biswo, Moon and the Six Pence *is* a great read. Starting from that book, which I encountered in a decrepit library in Bhadrapur in the mid-80s, Maugham remained my favorite author for a long, long time.
Talking about libraries, I am now so completely amazed that this library in the sleepy border town, where I was born, had some pretty interesting stuffs. I got my first taste of the great Russian authors - Tolstoy, Dostovesky, Nabakov (of the Lolita fame) - there. But more on that later.
|
| SimpleGal |
Posted
on 29-Sep-02 07:02 AM
VVji,
You describe the inner world of the 7-train so vividly! :) What I personally enjoy about it, among many other things (I'm a big "The One vs. The Many" fan in general) is the specific route it takes: at one extreme, there is Times Square--the epitome of what NYC signifies (to the rest of the world, of course. To New Yorkers per se, it may mean s/thing entirely different), bright, brilliant, bustling, bewitching...... At the other extreme is Flushing. A friend of mine once wrote, pining for the lights of Manhattan, which he could not afford:
If you've got no greens,
You go live in Queens.
But then again, it was merely One among Many perspectives. Queens is alive with an aura of its own. No other train has passengers as vibrant, yet as invisible as the ones the pile into the 7-train, morning, noon, and night. Mostly those travelling to the bright lights of the Manhattan skyline......
Your friend could not have been more correct in his observation.
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| VillageVoice |
Posted
on 29-Sep-02 08:35 AM
SimpleGal,
talking about the 7 train, i often try to figure out the languages, cultures, mannerisms, etc. but to no avail.
hindi, punjabi, urdu, bengali, spanish, french, russian, chinese and korean (to some extent), but that's about it. but statistics also tell me there are tons of armenians, turks, romanians, greeks, afghans, indonesians, vietnamese, cambodians in no. 7 - not to speak of various ethnicities among the vast hispanic crowd ...
remember a baseball star sparked a huge controversy a few years ago, when he observed, not very graciously, that No. 7 is hardly America. To an average Joe from Ohio, the train ride can be quite an "un-American" experience. He was taking no 7 to Shea Stadium in Flushing - Mets' homeground. Yes, from Times Square to Flushing - in twenty minutes - there is a complete transformation...
Nepal???? my barber, an Uzbek Jew, likes to discuss Hindi movies with me - the moment he finds out nepal is next to india. to him, much like most of my fellow 7 riders, we are a sub-sub culture.
if i had my choice, i would ask all these people to write down their ethnicity on their forehead. for daily lesson on ethnicity/languge/cultural habits.
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| SITARA |
Posted
on 29-Sep-02 10:16 AM
Biswo ji...
I apologize, if I have come across strong...in the other thread. Did not mean to do that really! I hope I am forgiven.
But, this, here is a sincere compliment.
VV ji,
Once I did observations of patterns of human behaviour in bus # 5 which I used to take for work, a few years ago. It was an observation devoid of any interaction ( I enjoy people watching and am interested in their thought processes). The amazing thing was I was able to notice, and absorb new information about the bus, the scenery, the people and their schedule. What was thought of as mundane magically metamorphed into something interesting. I think it is the smallest details that make an observation worthwhile.
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| VillageVoice |
Posted
on 29-Sep-02 10:44 AM
###sitaraji,
Glad to be praised by you, finally, after being upbraided in another thread so
harshly:-) ###
hahaha, biswo. take it easy. life comes in all colors. yep, easier said than done. but i always thought you had achieved nirvana on that front. :)
sitara, i like this one. "What was thought of as mundane magically metamorphed into something interesting. I think it is the smallest details that make an observation worthwhile. "
|
| Poonte |
Posted
on 29-Sep-02 12:29 PM
For all I know, # 7 looks lousy, the tracks and the stations are dirty, but it is the most efficient train in the NYC subway system--carries the most commuters and yet is always on time.
I always get fascinated by the writings that describe the trains in NY in terms of other aesthetics of life, like some of you have done, besides it being the mere mode of transportation. I admire your ability to see through the mere scene, and describe the inner beings that make up those scenes.
Perhaps because I am dull, that I tend not to think of the ethnicity, the faces, languages spoken in the trains. Or perhaps I am a hard-working immigrant, that I have thought of trains only as a means to get to work and return home.
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| SITARA |
Posted
on 29-Sep-02 03:44 PM
VV ji;
Thank you... You, yourself don't miss much....From your silent presence, you seek the very nuance of the Sajha poster! :)
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| surya |
Posted
on 29-Sep-02 03:52 PM
Fascinating. New York has such an unique place in the heart and imagination of America and I would even say the world. This I think was proven by Sept 11 and the kind of atention and goodwill NY got versus DC and Pentagon. Of course, the magnitude of what happened was much greater, but still. For all the poopooing NY recievs for being Gotham, I think NY is still quintessentially American, a place where immigrants and natives alike come to acheive their American dream. It just seems like an amazing place. I feel like I am missing out big time.
Can't say my tranistion from a sleepy little town out in the northwest to DC was too smooth. I am amzed for instance, that being the capital of the 'free world" that it is, it is still so provincial, so back country. One of the things I looked forward to when moving out here was that unlike that little town Dc would be so diverse and culturally rich. Diverse it is, but I am struck more and more by the divisions between the people who live here. I have not ever ventured to the Southeast for instance... and if I go to the more affluents sections of the metro area, I feel conspicuous and out of place.
Anyhow, interesting.
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| Biswo |
Posted
on 29-Sep-02 03:55 PM
>Biswo ji...
>I apologize, if I have come across strong...in the other
>thread. Did not mean to do that really! I hope I am forgiven.
Sitaraji,
I was just kidding. No need to apologize for expressing your
opinion. Absolutely not.
VVji,
Did someone mention John Rocker's infamous speech about
Shea Stadium and number 7 train here? That Rocker guy was
a stupid. That train ride simply rocks!! But poor VV, there are
some nice tips for train ride:
i) Let the fat lady sit at your seat rather than let her squeeze in
the small place. Be chivalrous Nepalese knight when faced with
those ladies.
ii) Put all your money inside the stockings like our forefathers used
to do when they went for pilgrimmage to India.Money never stinks,
u know.
iii)Try to read newspaper all the time. It obviates any difficulty
arising out of seeing an old lady standing in front of your seat,
and it is also a great chance to read all those craps published
in sixth pages and classifieds. etc. etc.
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| SITARA |
Posted
on 29-Sep-02 03:58 PM
Surya...........Don't mind...I am laughing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :))))
You write well but you seem to be afflicted with my malady of Typos, today.... AND I thought I was the only one doomed with TYPOS...It is funny. Usually you are so meticulous!
:))))) laughing in mirth! Sorry!
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| surya |
Posted
on 29-Sep-02 04:47 PM
:)
Sitara: Glad I am providing some entertainment.
But I say, you seem to be revelling in my pain (insect bite, at least sympathizing with the darn bug more, I should say) and my shortcomings too much!!
Besides, I had to give in sometime, you know. HG otherwise might have started again. Where is he anyhow?
(I swear I responded to this before, but when I went to the main board, the post was not there, so I started again... oh well. Is it senility? or insanity?)
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| VillageVoice |
Posted
on 29-Sep-02 05:36 PM
Biswo, will keep your tips in mind next time round. I esp. like this one,
@@Try to read newspaper all the time. It obviates any difficulty
arising out of seeing an old lady standing in front of your seat,
and it is also a great chance to read all those craps published
in sixth pages and classifieds. etc. etc. @@
LOL. But it's No. 7, pal. But don't forget I am one of them.
Trust me, I have been gracious enough to offer my seat to elderies and mothers with children. But I am not sure when it comes to young ladies. Hmmm. Wonder whether they would even appreciate it.
That said, I am just curious - what do ladies here think? Do they expect men to leave them seats in trains, buses? Talking about chivalry, there is this story (by Nora ???) where a lady actually hurls ("Hurled Ashtray") an astray toward her male companion infuriated by his, yes, you guessed it right, his chivalry :)??
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| SITARA |
Posted
on 29-Sep-02 06:00 PM
VV Ji....
hehe! Refer to "demystifying the Indian Woman" in Naipaul's thread!!! On deliberate and conscious action of chivalry at your own risk!!!
As for me, I appreciate every little gracious act of chivalry...Thanks for asking :).
Still from the old school of charm (Nepe ji...did you hear that? ;)
Surya and Anepalikt...both suffering from insect bites???? What a coinkindink!!!! :)
I hope both of your knees are fine!
Biswo ji.... Sound advice I must say! :)
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