Yearnings of a Frazzled Teenager.

If someone were to click a picture of me at this very moment (No Sanika,put that camera away) they would see my hair rumpled, dark circles under my eyes and me buried under a mountain of books (THAT is a story for another day). And when I do take a break (quite frequently I must admit) I tend to reflect on what I would like to be doing instead of staring at textbooks.

When we were younger,there were just so many things that kept us occupied (and mainly out of our parent's hair). And most of them were non-academic related activities which gave us immense joy. What I really want to have are those times back,when I did not even know the spelling of academics and when my mother did not come into my room and ask in a strict tone" why are you not studying Vaishali?"

 So here is a list of things that I wish were relevant even to teenagers under a lot of stress:

1) Nap time.
Most kindergartens these day have an allotted time of around one hour for kids,just to let them unwind from the day's not so strenuous activities.
Why can Teenagers not have this too? We have a lot more workload,lot more expectations etc
*Teenagers in the background yelling* "give us nap time!"

2) Stay up as late as you want passes
Almost every teenager who stays up later than usual, hears this standard line from their parents "You are just spoiling your health this way,go to sleep" Teenagers,do you not see  injustice in this? Let your voice be heard! Let us stay up till late into the night!
Disclaimer: when tested on parents,reactions were usually in the monotone "keep quiet and go to sleep"

3) Free food 24×7
Every teenager is a growing kid. This I think,entitles them to all the food they like. Parents, I implore you to see reason and let your children eat  at any time of the day,be it 1 in the night (like me) or right after lunch. Food is food.

4)  Study free days
Why do we have to study for at least an hour a day for a whole year? Do we not also need a free day? Free of any kind of orders or instructions,mainly academic related.

5) A bit more pocket money.
You give us money and don't question what we plan to use it for,thats all we ask (a little bit like a drug dealer). Although if we do go above and beyond our estimated budget,you may reprimand us.

So there you have it folks!  A list of somethings we teenagers want. I feel a little like Katniss from the Hunger Games. Although I do not intend to instigate any kind of rebellion through this post. This was also not meant to hurt the sentiments of all the cool parents who happen to be reading this.

PS: Amma, if you happen to be reading this, I just expressed my deepest desires. I hope we can come to a comprimise afterall I am your only second daughter.

-Vaishali Ramesh

Quote of the day: "The bed is a bundle of paradoxes: we go to it with reluctance, yet we quit it with regret; we make up our minds every night to leave it early, but we make up our bodies every morning to keep it late." - Charles Caleb Colton, English writer


Word of the day:
Doppelgänger: look alike or double of a living person; often potrayed as a harbinger of bad luck.

A (Rarely) Proud Indian

May we present to you our Guest Writer this week the absolutely amazing, witty and talented, Akash Kumar! We are so glad he readily and enthusiastically accepted our request to guest write this week.

I have been following Prolix ever since it has born. I was one of the first people to be informed about the launch and it elated me to come of this information primarily because I think these two ladies are two of the most level headed writers I know. So you can imagine my excitement (and slight nervousness) when Sanika told me to guest edit. At AkashKumarSanity, I focus on strong topics, and I've always wanted to write something light and I think this is the best Dias for an article on those lines. So I'm going to do a list of 5 things I love the most about my country. 1. Khatirdaari Face it, no one hosts, entertains or welcomes as well as we do. We might not have the swankiest 5 stars at every corner, but we definitely have the skills that's make every party a super hit. Even without the booze. 2. Kashmir Tu Main Kanyakumari Vaishali will probably kill me for quoting a Bollywood song but, hey I need to prove a point! The cultural diversity in our country is tremendous. Living in a metro, emphasises that for me. 3. Band Baaja Baraat Now I'm quoting a movie itself, lord save me from her wrath. But honestly, pessimists can go on about the waste of money but I don't call celebration a waste. Of anything. There's great food (which well get to) and everybody's happy. Until unless the DJ decides to drop the beat, or over enthusiastic uncle has had too much to drink. It's a six day (or longer, as is the case more often) extravaganza. Besides we get to take off from college or work, because even if it is father's brother's sister in law's son's wedding, he's still a close relative! 4. Khaana Khazana Cultural diversity has its benefits. You can go to any part of the country and get finger licking good. Yes you may end up with a stomach upset, but it'll be worth it (I speak from experience). Indians love their food more than they love their cricket. Or almost, on second thoughts. 5. Come dance with me So recently, I was at a club I was invited to by someone. There was really good English music going on and the floor was sparsely populated. The minute they shifted gears and played some IndiPop, you should have seen the atmosphere! It was a hoot and a half. And mind you, this was at a suave SoBo locale. 'Nuff Said. So that was my list. I really hope you like it. Thank you to Vaishali and Sanika for asking me to do this, I'm glad. This really was a bundle of fun. 
  (You can read more of Akash Kumar's articles here: www.akashakumar.wordpress.com)

Gifting Simplified

Once every year, there arises this problem of what to gift a friend on their birthday. Gifting in it self is a stressful task and it's all the more stressful if you happen to be buying a present for a teenage girl( Not being sexist here.). So let me make your life easier by giving you a list of items that make great presents for a teenage girl. This list is fool proof as it compiled by a girl who happens to be a teenager (me).

Let's get right to it.

1. A good book: If the birthday girl is anything like me and by like me I mean if her room is full of a million books then one more book is the best present you can give her. She'll love you for it and she'll cherish the gift. ( Make sure you discreetly ask her which book she wants. )

2. Hoodie: Every girl wants to look cute and be snug in one of these. 

3. Chocolates: Put together a nice little basket or goody bag of different chocolates and a big jar of Nutella. ( Actually, just a big jar of Nutella will be totally cool too. )

4. Body Care Hamper: Girls love to pamper themselves, have great skin and smell like heaven so buy the birthday gal some nice skin cream, a body wash and a body mist or perfume and put it all in a cute bag. 

5. A cute bag: I think all girls are biologically programmed to love bags. A pretty little bag is the safest present to give.

6. Accessories: Gift her a wrist watch or a bracelet or a chain or earrings or an anklet or all of them!  

7. Poster: Gift her a poster or a collage of her favorite band or T.V show! She'll completely fall in love with something like that.

8. Handmade card: Last but not the least a handmade card. Everyone loves gifts with a personal touch.

I hope this post will help you pick the perfect present for your friend/sister/girlfriend.

-Sanika Saxena

Note from Vaishali: This post has nothing to do with the fact that Sanika's birthday is coming up.

On a proud note: Congratulations India on becoming the first nation in the world to enter the Mars orbit in the first attempt! Go follow ISRO's  Mars Orbiter on Twitter  @MarsOrbiter

Word of the day: Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis is the longest word in the Oxford English Dictionary. It is a lung disease caused by the inhalation of fine silica dust.

Quote of the day: " Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read." - Groucho Marx

Stay tuned. Hasta la vista!

Contact us at: vaishali.ramesh235@gmail.com
Contact Sanika at: sanika25saxena@gmail.com
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@vaishali.ramesh

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I Choose Humanities. ( Yes, you heard right.)

We are stared at, judged by most,scoffed at and then ultimately given these looks of utter disbelief. Yes, we belong to the category of students who chose Humanities as our field of study.

When you reach the not so innocent stage of fifteen or sixteen in India,you are asked one important life changing question by literally everyone who meets you "Beta,what do you want to take up for 12th?"

Your answer to this question will then decide what kind of a look you will get.
If you say Science,the other persons face immediately lights up like a Christmas tree.
If you say Commerce,the person will think for a minute,nod their head appreciatively and give you a smile of approval.
But if you happen to be of the privileged class who gets to answer as Humanities, the other person give you this disgusted look shakes their head in disbelief.

But all in all,it is hilarious to watch the emotions fly across a persons face when you say Humanities. First comes the look of 'did I hear you right?. Next comes the look of 'You cant be serious' and lastly the look of 'who is this person and where is the real Vaishali?'

Everyday, I thank my stars that I got the parents that I did. They asked me this question on the day my Board exams ended. When I boldly replied Humanities,they didn’t even blink,they just nodded their heads and went back to whatever they were doing. But after much discussion,I realized that most of the world is not as accepting as my parents.

There are families who are ashamed to admit that their child studied Humanities and children who are scared to tell their parents they want to study this stream. But I believe, this trend is changing and people will start looking at us with respect for studying Humanities.

And now to destroy some stereotypes about us Humanities students.
1. No we do not slack all day. Agreed that we do not have the same amount of workload as a Science student,but we do work hard.
2. No,we are not stupid. We are as intelligent as the rest of you.
3. We are normal people,we do not have any bad habits,we do not bunk many classes and we certainly are not rebels.

In my opinion and through my experiences,the best solution to all of these people who give you judgemental looks is to,just ignore all of them.  Use the method of 'in through one ear,out through the other'

In conclusion to all of you out there who believe that Humanities is for the lesser beings,let me just inform you that successful people like J.K Rowling, Steven Spielberg and Robin Williams studied Humanities in their college years.

And lastly,let me ask you this. How many of you remember what stream your friends took in their college years? and how is it relevant when you are 25 or 30 years old? Hell,Even I didn't know what Steven Spielberg studied until I googled it.

-Vaishali Ramesh

Word of the day: Ultracrepidarian meaning someone who doesn't know what they are talking about.

Quote of the day:  "Never trust anything that can think for itself,if you cant see where it keeps its brain" -Arthur Weasley from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Contact us at: vaishali.ramesh235@gmail.com
Contact Sanika at: sanika25saxena@gmail.com
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The Wonderland Around

 Shhh.. I see something ..something so bright that it almost blinded my sight! is it a plane? Is it a bird? No! its Kalyani Raikar!

We are pleased to present our guest writer (one of many to come) Kalyani  Raikar.

Did you ever just stop to gaze at a leaf because you thought the reflection of the sun on it created beautiful patterns, or because you thought the mixture of green and golden looked pretty? Have you ever looked at the night sky and seen the stars twinkling brightly against the midnight blue sky and thought, how it would be like to visit there? No? Well why haven't you? These are the wonderful creations of God and they demand to be seen...only humans don't have the right to be seen and thought as beautiful.

We all are so busy in our daily lives and problems that we do not see these creations of God and when we do see them, we think they are so pretty and beautiful and we forget about them quickly...but the truth is these things are just in our eyesight,yet we do not see them. 

Observation and noticing things just don't exist in our science textbooks or experiments at our schools or college, it exists in our daily lives too. All we have to do is look around ourselves. And when you do , you will find these small beautiful sides of nature. Nature will speak to you and reveal to you its immense vastness and you will realize that you are petite in front of it. There is a language in nature, my friend,which everyone knows but doesn't speak.

Once you start observing nature, you will find the buzzing of bees beautiful, you will hear the wind whispering sweet melodies in your ears, the dance of the flowers as they sway, the mosaics created by clouds or the race of the clouds as they compete as to who will go forward.

Who says you have to do meditation to calm your mind? I say, go down to a park or the woods , or take a walk and notice all these things. It will calm and soothe your mind. There is something beautiful in this and you will find yourself in bliss. 

Who says that you have to go to forest or hills for noticing all these things about nature? It is around you..You shall find life in this vastness and who knows, Nature might just reveal something unexpected and extraordinary to you...so stop seeing and start looking my friend.

 -Kalyani Raikar

Feedback and comments appreciated.

Email us at vaishali.ramesh235@gmail.com

Ride of Your Lives.

Mumbai is a city packed with people who hardly have any time for leisure. The citizens are so busy that they don't get time to enjoy things like walks and amusement parks. So to give its citizens, a feel of amusement parks and the rides which get your heart racing, Mumbai has come up with a rather innovative idea. They've made amusement rides on every road! (Or have they made every road into a ride?) Moving on, one can't help but get onto one of these the moment they step out of the house. No need to go to EsselWorld! You're going to have a blast on every turn and straight path!

The best ride Mumbai has to offer is called  'The Crater Run'. It's all crater sized potholes and no roads, a back breaking, motion sickness inducing, fun time is guaranteed! Hold onto your seats folks because you are about to experience what it feels like to ride on the moon right here in Mumbai!

'Rodeo'. People love Rodeo! Rodeo is similar to riding 'The Crater Run' except that it has smaller potholes covering the entire road. You'll experience what a rodeo feels like when the bull is trying to toss him of its back. You have to hold on for dear life. If you're in a rickshaw then may God be with you.

"Mountain". The speed breakers in Mumbai are as tall as mountains and they seem to appear out of thin air. These speed breakers will not only break speed but they'll also break your back.

'The Great Dip' a ride which will attempt to throw you out of your seat .Don't forget to buckle that seat belt. So you're cruising down this relatively nice road, all happy about how smooth the sailing is when suddenly, out of no where this gigantic pothole appears and you dive into it and come back up at great speed.  Fun, isn't it? Mumbai has some great obstacle courses too. In these courses you have to dodge cows, errant drives, cars parked haphazardly, the great dips and other people with a strong death wish. Good luck with that!

If you prefer sitting in your car and listening to the melodious tunes of horns,and stopping with a jerk every 5 seconds  you can try the ride called the 'The Rush Hour'. It's so exciting, and it's open in the mornings and evenings. Don't miss it! ( You don't have the option to miss it ).

I think I've covered all the amazing rides Mumbai has. The rides which beat the best amusement parks hands down.

The best time to experience all of these rides at once is during the monsoons, the rain makes it oh so exciting! Being in a rickshaw will enhance the fun as you'll also get a free pass to Water Kingdom. Feel free to come anytime during the year too because a minimum of two rides are functional at all times.The scared/exhilarated feeling of going on the meanest rides, will stick with you forever and won't cost you a dime, it will only cost you a headache, a broken back, and a happy mood and maybe a heart attack if you're faint hearted. Have a nice time! You have no option but to visit again and again.

All this being said, I still love Mumbai.

- Sanika Saxena

Word of the day: Coprolalia- meaning

the involuntary repetitive use of obscene language

Quote of the day:  "Where the telescope ends the microscope begins and who can say which has the wider vision." - Victor Hugo

Stay tuned for more. Ciao!

Contact us at: vaishali.ramesh235@gmail.com

Contact Sanika at: sanika25saxena@gmail.com

Instagram @sanika.saxena

Instagram Vaishali

@vaishali.ramesh

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Sarcasm Unleashed.

Have you ever rolled your eyes or scoffed at something a person said? Have you felt the insane urge to hit them on the head and set them straight? Have you felt all of the above but have never been able to verbally say it? Then this post my friend,is just the one for you.

I have on multiple occassions felt the need to punch a wall and  vent out my frustrations. So here are a list of things to tell people,when they ask you the obvious.

1. Hey, you must be smart,you wear glasses.

Answer: oh yes, I am. I also have perfect eyesight since you know,people with perfect sight tend to wear glasses too.

2. Hey look,its raining.

Answer: Oh and I here thought those were cats and dogs.
(This one has been tested on subjects)

3. * looks at your tshirt*
So you are a fan of Harry Potter?

Answer: No shit Sherlock,thats why my tshirt says 'Hogwarts'.

4. Hey why are you wet? Did you get caught in the rain?

Answer: No, I just wanted to take an impromptu shower before I left from home.

5. Hey you have goal keeper gloves, you must be a goalkeeper right?

Answer: no,no I just bought them to use as oven mitts.

I hope this was insightful and it gave you an idea on how to leak sarcasm into your daily conversations.

Pls note: none of these were meant to hurt anyone's sentiments.

On a more serious note, for those of you who are 18 and above,do not forget to vote next month!

 -Vaishali Ramesh

Word of the day:  Lackadaisical- lacking enthusiasm and determination.


Quote of the day:- "We read the world wrong and say that it deceives us." - Rabindranath Tagore


Email us at:  vaishali.ramesh235@gmail.com
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Everyone has the right to love

Let me begin by saying that each and everyone of us is HUMAN and every human being is entitled to love . And I think that's it time we accept that love isn't always between a man and woman. It can and does exist between man and man and woman and woman.

Chapter XVI, section 377 of the Indian Penal Code criminalizes sexual activities "against order of nature". There are a lot of people who believe that same sex relationships are unnatural and people who are gay or lesbian are in need of psychological help. But, nature is a complex thing and I don't think we understand it well enough to label same sex relationships as unnatural and hence punishable.

Some people are indifferent towards the struggle of the LGBT community to have the same rights as "Straight, Normal People". They think that what happens behind closed doors and drawn curtains doesn't concern them. To these people I say, it isn't just about sex. It's about the right to love. They want to be considered equal to the "Natural Couples" in all respects. They want the right to spend their lives in a lawful marriage with the person they love, respect and trust.

According to me, they aren't asking for much. They are simply asking for a chance to love another human being, In fact, they shouldn't have to ask anyone to do something that is completely natural and doesn't harm anyone.

It's time we accept that they are the same as everybody else and let them lead the same, respectable life "Normal People" enjoy.

                                                                                                                         - Sanika Saxena

Links to check out: www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXqH7_dYM_k

www.wikihow.com/Understand-Gay-and-Lesbian-People

Word of the day:  Pauciloquolent- meaning  uttering few words or brief in speech.

Quote of the day: " My thoughts on gay marriage are that everyone has the right to love and be loved, and that's the position I take." - Nick Jonas

Stay with us for more. Toodles.
Contact us at: vaishali.ramesh235@gmail.com
Contact Sanika at: sanika25saxena@gmail.com
Instagram @sanika.saxena
Instagram Vaishali
@vaishali.ramesh

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How to Survive a Zombie Attack.

Yes,this post is exactly what the title says. For those of you who are faint hearted. Please do not run away. I solemnly swear that this post will actually inspire you to get out there,search for a zombie and fight it,just because you know how to now.

So,from an experienced zombie fighter here are my top 6 ways to tackle a zombie-

1.Gather a bunch of friends,pick up sticks,baseball bats and anything else. When the zombies approach,yell and charge at them and hope to heavens that everything works out for you as it did for Tyson in Percy Jackson.

2. When a zombie or a bunch of zombies seem to be running after you, turn around point and scream 'Human!" (most preferably at a close friend) and proceed to make the same noises as the above mentioned zombies
.
3. What do zombies love? Feeding on humans, right?  well the easiest and most practical solution would be to lock yourself indoors and  not move at all

4.Calmly approach the zombies and explain to them that when they snack on you,all they will taste is bones and nothing juicy. (If you are a person  on the heavier side just give a reason like this to your advantage) 

5.Zombies stink, don’t they? Well keep an air freshener and liquid soap handy and offer it to the zombie upon meeting them.

6. The best solution would be to train to be a second Usain Bolt so that when time comes you are prepared to  run for your life.

Now that you have learnt one of life's important hacks,go out into the world and test your skill and lets hope that these methods do actually work in the real world.
 Warning: These methods have been tested only and only in Vaishali's head,please do not attempt them on a real Zombie.

Note from Sanika: in case a zombie apocalypse does happen, find Vaishali and offer her to the zombies for giving us a bunch of methods which will most likely get us eaten.

Word of the day: Fibbertigibbet-  a frivolous, flighty, or excessively talkative person. (which Vaishali is not)

Au Revoir Amis! and stay tuned for more!
Contact us at vaishali.ramesh235@gmail.com
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We're New Around Here

Hello! We're Vaishali and Sanika (yes, two people will be writing this blog.) We're two young, like minded people with  a bunch of ideas in our heads which we would like to share with you'll. But before we start sharing our thoughts, we thought it was important to give you'll some background about ourselves. 

We consider ourselves geeks (Vaishali is geekier) because Geeky is the new Cool. We share a love for books and the Internet and have a weird sense of humour and the only thing differentiating us is Sanika's keen sense of style while well frankly,Vaishali has none. ( Sanika shakes her head in disagreement). We're a little Cuckoo so please Bear with us. (Get it?)

Let's talk about the blog. Prolix. It means using or containing too many words. Since this is a blog and blogs contain a lot of words we found the word apt.The whole process of finding a blog name lasted around 2 days with lots of third opinions and deliberation and all of a sudden Voilà,here we are! Who are we kidding? We choose to christen it Prolix because it sounds so damn cool. Even if the word meant a dancing monkey, we would have still named the blog Prolix.

What is the point of this blog you ask?Well this is just a medium for us to talk about anything and everything under the sun! Feedback will be appreciated and feel free to spread the word about us!

Our first post has been prolix, hasn't it? Our apologies. We'll try to make our posts a little less lengthy in the future. 



Word of the day: Clishmaclaver: meaning idle talk or gossip which we shall try to keep to a minimum.

Quote of the day: 

Nothing is more creative…nor destructive…than a brilliant mind with a purpose.

-Dan brown from Inferno

Adiós Amigos and stay tuned to Prolix for a dose of laughter,insanity and craziness in your lives.

 Email us at: vaishali.ramesh235@gmail.com
Feedback and Comments appreciated.