Livinghigh: Some people I knew
Thursday, January 27, 2005
Livinghigh was here at 10:02 AM /



Some people I knew

I knew a person who has had countless impersonations of the way she used to come in early morning and pronounce "Good Morning!" with all the technical skills of an opera singer and all the zest of a newborn puppy! She was an enthusiastic creature, who would take all the teases and taunts in exceptionally good humour and come back early the next day (in clockwork precision) with that same opening line, to be greeted with the same tired looks of exasperation and/or bemused expressions.

I knew a person who would strut around corridors with a self-important swagger though he was by far the shortest man I ever saw, and curled up his chin defiantly if you dared to try short-side him, no pun intended. He would laugh about himself, and run circles around the tallest people around, hugely at ease with his size and hugely self-confident. But there were times when he would slink away and straddle the window sill, looking out, out and out... and the only thing to do then was to go sit by him, banter on about the silliest of things, till the two of you finally romp up for a cup of steaming coffee.

I knew a person who would sulk for days on end if she were not appeased in the silliest little fancies, and would preen with joy and caring if things went her way. She was a naive little girl, often an old woman in a frail body, often too tube-lightish to understand what was happening, and often too angry to see that she was not understanding! When she fell in love, she was intense. (Aren't we all?)

I knew a person who regarded tea as God's gift to mankind, who skipped on the road out of sheer joy when you least expected it, who would clamber up on a tree when the rest of us settled for chairs, who would hold long conversations with me into the night about the darndest things. He gave me ice cream and other food for thought. He coursed through the city on a bike that was supposed to give him nirvana. He twisted his face as he laughed, and spoke an outlandish dialect that made me laugh to hear it, and I soon acquired traces of him in my own laughter.

I knew a person who is the eternal chameleon: in one second at ease with himself and the slowing tide of the world, and in the next, a flurry of activity. He would project himself into the Arts and he would delve into the secret language of nano-technology. He would write letters to Camus and he would giggle at Calvin. He would stride down the road and examine me, and a part of me followed him in wistful curiousity. He was a giant among men.

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In an aside, I have been inspired by some of the 100 things about me that I have come across - courtesy Sarah and Deepa - and so, that is enough for an innovation to the HIGH blog. However, like both of the lovely ladies, I love sitting on my ass far too much to ever hope or contemplate writing 100 such tidbits about me in any one or two or three sessions, so I have a compromise. Starting today, every post will have a single little factoid about me/ mua/ yours truly.

Mirror Mirror #1: I start with the easy thing first - I'm
an egoist.


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