Cool Diversions

SUPERHERO DIARIES: PART TWO

Posted by The Wide Eyed Tourist Thursday, September 27, 2012 0 comments

One thing about superheroes that excites me is their awesome ability to stand up and fight no matter how many times they get beat up by the bad guys. I mean, they may be spilling gallons of blood, their guts may be springing out of their interiors, but I don’t know how they manage to stand up like it’s all plastic-replaceable any second. Maybe their neighborhood hospital’s got great after sales service…maybe they don’t even need a hospital….they just go and stitch it all up themselves and voila! We are up again! It’s the ‘give ‘em hell’ attitude that matters, nothing else….Well, I got some attitude too, but it’s the ‘bloodied, hanging out guts’ part that scares me. The last time I watched SAW2, while having dinner (of course!), I had to spend the whole time face down over the washroom sink…you can well imagine why! But, if you are gonna be a superhero, you gotta deal with it..innit? That’s an occupational hazard! Your guts or other’s…just treat it like spaghetti…with an awful lot of ketchup on it!
Speaking of spaghetti….I remember where we were the last time we left off…..the bible of all superherodom..remember?
So here it goes..
And under all the empty packs of Cheetos, coffee mugs(my mum still thinks I’m perfectly able to focus on studies for 5 minutes without parental supervision :p) and Batman collectibles, I found my first break to success! Marvel Comics-Spiderman Issue#1! As you would have suspected by now, I started leafing through it..page by page…making my plan all at the same time.
So here’s my list of must-have items before you go crime-fighting and saving the poor man’s ass:
  • ·         A pair of specs: probably from the 18th century: (doesn’t matter if you’ve got a cataract or perfectly good eyes..specs are a must!)..they make you inconspicuous..people wouldn’t notice you even if your ass was on fire….geeks attract the least attention!
  • ·         A below normal public presence…works best if people think you are the biggest loser in town
  • ·         An absolutely hot babe in the neighborhood- who wouldn’t go out with you even if you were the last man alive
  • ·         A crazy scientist: Probably a deranged alcoholic, with a broken marriage, failed to clear his class 10th exams, but knows all about nuclear technology and how to clone monkeys from humans. Works best if his son is your best friend and lives a few blocks away.
  • ·         A spandex suit…you’d probably get that off e-bay-not too hard to buy when your dad leaves his credit card lying at your table
  •       Special Abilities: we’ll get to that later….
  •  And above all…..a great detergent! What else would wash off that blood and grime from your suit! You’d probably want that custom-made from P n G. Just need to pull a few strings, that’s all! 
More in the next instalment..
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The Final Goodbye

Posted by The Wide Eyed Tourist Wednesday, September 26, 2012 4 comments

Hyde Park Thursday Poets Rally Week 73 (September 20 - September 26, 2012)





There's a hundred ways,
To remember you,
But none that make me forget,
Right...you said I live in my dreams,
That are plain meaningless, not real.
Breeding hopes for a better tomorrow,
My mind is trapped, confused and sealed.
Stronger is my resolve, as ever it can be,
But there are times,
when my heart has reeled.

Now, when I look back at those times,
My life seems like a riddle, in pieces
They lie there, the same way you left,
Leaving me without answers, desperate and clueless.

Maybe the best I can do,
Is resign myself to those memories,
Let them pierce the very wall of sanity,
That keeps me closer to you.

And a time will come,
When it'll all be over,
When there'll be no hope, no dreams, no puzzles to fill,
Then, I pray to you,
Just look over my grave,
Untill it's time to say the final goodbye.

THE NEVADA EXPERIMENT

Posted by The Wide Eyed Tourist Wednesday, September 14, 2011 0 comments


NOVEMBER 14, 2003
LINCOLN COUNTY, NEVADA
[I]

The night was pitch dark and chilling, with the only means of comfort being the tiny fireballs hanging from the heavens above. But of course, to expect any help from those orbs of light millions of miles away from earth would be like expecting a bunch of fireflies to light up the whole town….They were there just to add glitter to an otherwise mundane sky, nothing else; much like those tiny designer lights that are used to decorate a Christmas tree. Except from the rustling of leaves of trees on either side of Highway 47 and an occasional flutter of wings of some mysterious bird, nothing disturbed the eerie calm that had descended upon earth that night. Not even a soul was visible for miles. With the country facing its worst snowfall in recent years and temperatures dipping to record low levels, the only sane thing a human in his right frame of mind would do, is sit cozily near a fireplace with a beer in hand, and hum away the night with a soft melody from the 50’s.

The snow from the previous night had been plowed off the highway; the district administration had been particularly efficient in its bid to minimize road accidents because of a traction-less road surface. However, it was winter…the worst of the seasons in those parts and a nightmare for motorists. It had been snowing continuously for the past three days and none of the efforts of the administration was proving to be a clear winner. It seemed to be a constant struggle between nature and man for control…nature being the higher power and man being the proverbial stone-head who is used to having his way around everything. The previous week alone, Highway 47 had been witness to 5 road accidents…but owing to prompt emergency services, all the lives had been saved--a stellar performance by any standards for a place accustomed to having 20-30 deaths by road accidents alone.

But none of that mattered for the blue Corolla that was snaking through the highway at such breakneck speed that its engine rattled violently against its bonnet. One look at its front- all battered and bruised and the multiple bullet holes at its rear window, and it was easy to guess that it was not a party gone wild, all right. Close behind, a menacingly black BMW was in hot pursuit…a hand with a Heckler & Koch MP7 sticking out from one of the side windows, trying to take a clean shot at the occupants of the car in front. But every time the MP7 opened fire, the Corolla would swerve swiftly to its sides, only managing to avoid being hit.

“Jones, we don’t have all night to take out these people. If we don’t get ‘em, then HQ will…and you don’t want the Commander up your ass, do you?”…The man in the driver seat of the BMW pointed out to his partner.

“Well, maybe if you shut your damn pie hole and concentrate on getting around them, then we get ourselves a clear shot! And it’s not only my ass on the line, remember?” His partner remarked.

“You got it!” Saying this, he let the car roll in full throttle.

The Corolla, sensing what was coming next, made a desperate move. It drove off the highway and into the fields to its right. However, Jones was already onto his MP7. Two rounds, followed by a seething screech of brakes…the Corolla had just managed to avoid crashing onto the oak in the middle of the field. Smoke billowing out of its front, it sure looked like it had had enough that night.

The BMW stopped right behind. Jones and his partner alighted, guns in hand.

“Two years of searching and millions wasted…and here we have them, in this obscure field right next to HQ…damn sewer rats…living under our very nose.” Jones had a habit of being dramatic at critical moments.
“Check the car if anyone is still alive…destroy everything, including the package. HQ wants no evidence left behind.” His partner ordered.

TIME OF OUR LIVES-PART II (Trailer)

Posted by The Wide Eyed Tourist Friday, May 20, 2011 0 comments

Hello folks! This is a follow up trailer to my upcoming vid dedicated to my awesome btech batchmates. Hope you all enjoy this one as much as i enjoyed making it. The full video will be uploaded soon. Till then, have fun!!

SUPERHERO DIARIES: PART ONE

Posted by The Wide Eyed Tourist Friday, April 29, 2011 0 comments



Hello, my fellow surface dwellers! The Tourist has gone supernatural today! The question I put before you today lays its basis on the numerous childhood fantasies that I pursued in my dreams, only to wake up and realize that none of it was real! Well, it didn’t stop me from dreaming though…and that explains this crazy, out of the world post that I am writing now! So here it is: Have you ever wanted to be a superhero? I mean, wouldn’t it be cool to be endowed with some really awesome abilities….like shooting webs from the palm of your hand, or blow stuff to pieces with just your angry gaze? How about we take it a step further? Suppose you got this really cool ability that lets you teleport from place to place by just thinking about it? Wouldn’t that be something!

I believe everyone among us would give about everything to live the life of a superhero just for a day. After all, who doesn’t crave the endless adulation and love that is showered upon a superhero? And let’s not forget those impossible death-defying stunts that would put even the best circus acts to shame; or those cool one-liners that you get to dish out while battling the bad guys! Needless to say, the life of a superhero is incomplete without cheerleaders-people who hoot and whistle every time he fells one of the evil doers, doting fans that wouldn’t mind being squished by Godzilla to see their favorite hero in action. Oh wait, how could I ever forget to mention the cherry on the cake! You get to have the most awesome babe in town as your girlfriend! A hero sure needs some time out from his strenuous job of saving the people every time some crazy one-eyed scientist decides to go rogue and tries to blow up the town with his latest invention, doesn’t he!

By the age of 18, I had watched enough Cartoon Network and read too many Spiderman issues to decide that I too, was going to be a superhero someday. Being a careful planner by nature, I decided to gear up for the big day….the day, when the world will watch with bated breath its new savior who would release it from its purgatory. Better be well prepared than be troubled by last-minute hassles! The task required indomitable spirit and commitment that was way beyond what was humanely possible. So, I set about the task ahead with a burning desire in my heart, a drawing book and a pencil in hand. “Mom! I am preparing for my Board exams! Do not disturb me!”.

Now, first things first. What makes a superhero unique? His powers, of course! But, I was a normal kid…..ummm…a little below normal, in fact. I couldn’t intimidate even my little sis with my angry gaze, let alone burn stuff to ashes.....My journey to stardom seemed to be headed for a crash even before it took off! Then, just as all hope seemed lost, I was suddenly blinded by a splendid glimmer of heavenly light, equivalent to a thousand burning suns! All things seemed to make sense all of a sudden. All doubts evaporated into thin air. My mind, dwelling among the throes of despair and solitude till then, suddenly found new meaning-a new path! It wasn’t long before I realized that the ‘heavenly light’ was the flash of the camera my sister was holding in her hands. She just happened to sneak into my room and upon seeing my open-mouthed, absent-minded expression, had the brilliant idea of capturing it on cam! Damn these next-gen kids…their brain works faster than a BMW on full throttle! Sometimes, even now, I have a nagging feeling that my sis is some sort of an alien who wants to take revenge for some reason I can’t fathom! Maybe, in my previous birth, I was an inter-galactic warrior who had chanced upon this planet full of evil aliens and had blasted it off into oblivion with his angry gaze. Cool!! But somehow, one of them had survived….and was now standing in front of me with its stupid cam in hand…ready to put those pics on Facebook and humiliate me in every possible way…

“AAH! FUCUS DUDE, FOCUS! Even if your sis is an alien with a twisted sense of humor, you can’t do anything! Simply because you don’t have any powers right now! The message wasn’t from heaven, so what? Does it matter much that the ‘blinding flash of light, equivalent to a thousand suns’ was from a Nikon Coolpix? It cleared all your doubts, didn’t it? So get on with it! A superhero is above all these issues. Look at the bigger picture, dude….bigger picture”

Bigger picture……the words kept echoing in my mind. And then I realized that everything that I had been looking for all this time was in fact right in front of me! On my study table right next to the wall with the big picture of Priyanka Chopra in a swimsuit, was the bible of all Superherodom…..the Van Helsing for all my peace-sucking doubts….the AL Pacino  of all answers…..it was….it was…

Next Part:  What was it?

THE LONG NIGHT OF WAITING

Posted by The Wide Eyed Tourist Sunday, January 23, 2011 0 comments


It's another night,                                                                              
When I have to fight,
Your memories, so strong.       
When I thought,
Would get used to it,
Didn't just know,
I was wrong.




I try to sleep,
But they forever keep,
Coming all along,
I've got no peace,
A stranger to all this,
I'm writing you this song.

Ever since I saw you at the mall,
I haven't really been myself at all...



Every moment feels like forever,
Waiting for the night to dissolve,
My heart is all lit up inside,
With the fireworks of love.


The trees outside, they whisper,
They whisper to me your name,
And I'll be all lost and crazy,
Untill I've seen you again.

Ever since I saw you at the mall,
I haven't really been myself at all....

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Creative Commons License
Cool Diversions by Naba Kumar Barman is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.