Happy Birthday to Me…

So, today, I’m 14 years old! After more than 1 decade of being alive, this, as always, leads me to appreciate the miracle of life. But what happens when I’ve passed? Will I be remembered by mankind? Will I have contributed what I should have contributed to the society? Or will I just be one of the 7 billion? What will I make of my life?

Arr, forget that. Birthdays are meant to be celebrated! So  today, I’m going to Rach’s house. Lol my mum got be 2 books, turned out I’d read them already!

Book: The Village by The Sea

This book is written by an Indian author, Anita Desai. She's now an old woman.

The book kinda gets the message about rural India across, but I'm just 13, so I don't really get what she's [Anita Desai] trying to say. It's probably about the differences between city kids and village children [note that I say 'kids' and 'children']. We talk about not getting the 4th-gen nano (hint, hint, Tanya) while they toil all day to get a meagre salary.

Summary:

Hari and Lila are a brother and sister who live in the village Thul with their two sisters, Bela and Kamal, and their parents. Their mother is bedridden and their father, gone every night to the toddy shop, doesn’t seem to help as he is forever drunk.

Only Bela and Kamal go to school. Hari dropped out of school a few years back as he could not afford to pay the school fees. The entire village makes a living by fishing, but Hari’s family, being poor, can’t afford a boat. Instead, Hari climbs coconut trees and sells coconuts in the market. One day, Hari sees a site for a factory being laid and finds out that there is going to be a huge fertilizer complex stretching from Thul to Vaishet. There are soon lots of protests as these factories will release waste into the sea, polluting it and killing all the fish, which will eventually result in the loss of the villagers’ livelihood.

The villagers from Alibagh and Thul then decide to sail to Bombay, to give a petition to the Chief Minister saying that they will not part with their land. Hari follows them as well. Upon reaching Bombay, he realizes that he could stay here and make a living. Back in Thul, there is a house owned by a family called the de Silvas, who live in Bombay. They had given Hari their address. He goes there, but they have gone back to Thul. The security guard of their apartment leads Hari to a man called Jagu, who gives him a meal and a job at his restaurant, the Sri Krishna Eating House.

In Thul, Lila tells Mr. de Silva about her mother’s sickness and he immediately brings her to the hospital in Alibagh and agrees to pay for her treatment. When Lila’s father finds out, he gets angry and immediately leaves for Alibagh. The next time Lila visited her mother; she finds her father there and notices that he has given up drinking.

Meanwhile, in Bombay, Hari has taken up another job with the watchmender, Mr Panwallah. He teaches him how to mend watches and it is here that the monsoon starts. After earning enough, Hari returns to Thul by bus and meets his family the day before Diwali. He finds out about his mother and father. He goes to Alibagh to bring his mother and father home and they all celebrate Diwali together the next day with fireworks, sparklers, bonfires, Catherine wheels and bull races. In the end, their mother is well enough to go to the shrine in the sea with the other village women.

I would also like to mention that this is the longest post ever.

Harry Potter Spells

Forgive me for spelling errors. For the descriptions of the spells, go to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spells_in_Harry_Potter

1. Accio (Summoning Charm)
2. (Age-Line Spell)
3. Aguamenti (Aguamenti Charm)
4. Alohomora
5. Anapneo
6. (Anti-Cheating Spell)
7. (Anti-Disapparation Jinx)
8. (Antonin Dolohov's Curse) – Order of the Phoenix (Slashing movement)
9. Aparecium
10. (Atmospheric Charm)
11. Avada Kedavra (Killing Curse)
12. Avis
13. (Babbling Curse)
14. (Banishing Charm)
15. (Bat-Bogey Hex)
16. (Bedazzling Hex)
17. (Bubble-Head Charm)
18. (Caterwauling Charm)
19. Cave Inimicum
20. (Cheering Charm)
21. Colloportus
22. (Colour-Change Charm)
23. Confringo (Blasting Curse)
24. Confundo (Confundus Charm)
25. (Conjunctivitus Curse)
26. Crucio (Cruciatus Curse)
27. (Cushioning Charm)
28. Defodio (Gouging Spell)
29. Deletrius
30. Densaugeo
31. Deprimo
32. Descendo
33. Diffindo (Severing Charm)
34. (Disillusionment Charm)
35. Dissendium
36. Duro
37. Engorgio (Engorgement Charm)
38. (Entrail-Expelling Curse)
39. Episkey
40. Erecto
41. Evanesco (Vanishing Spell)
42. Expecto Patronum (Patronus Charm)
43. Expelliarmus (Disarming Charm)
44. Expulso
45. Ferula
46. (Fidelius Charm)
47. (Fiendfyre)
48. Finite Incantatem
49. Flagrate
50. (Flagrante Curse)
51. (Flame-Freezing Charm)
52. (Flying Charm)
53. Furnuncular (Furnunculus Curse)
54. Geminio
55. Glisseo
56. (Gripping Charm)
57. (Hover Charm)
58. (Hair-Thickening Charm)
59. Homenum Revelio
60. (Homorphus Charm)
61. (Horton-Keitch Braking Charm)
62. (Hurling Hex)
63. Impedimenta (Impediment Jinx, Impediment Curse)
64. Imperio (Imperius Curse)
65. (Imperturbable Charm)
66. Impervius (Impervius Charm)
67. Incarcerous
68. Incendio
69. (Intruder Charm)
70. (Jelly-Legs Jinx)
71. (Jelly-Brain Jinx)
72. (Jelly-Fingers Curse)
73. (Knee-Reversal Hex)
74. Langlock
75. Legilimens
76. Levicorpus
77. Liberacorpus
78. Locomotor-
79. Locomotor Mortis (Leg-Locker Curse)
80. Lumos
81. Meteolojinx Recanto
82. Mobiliarbus
83. Mobilicorpus
84. Morsmordre (Dark Mark)
85. Muffliato
86. Nox
87. (Obliteration Charm)
88. Obliviate (Memory Charm, Memory-Modifying Charm)
89. Obscuro
90. Oppugno
91. Orchideous
92. Pack
93. (Permanent Sticking Charm)
94. Petrificus Totalus (Body-Bind Curse)
95. Peskipiksi Pesternomi
96. Piertotum Locomotor
97. (Placement Charm)
98. Point Me (Four-Point Spell)
99. Portus
100. Prior Incantato
101. (Protean Charm)
102. Protego (Shield Charm)
103. Protego Horribilis
104. Protego Totalum
105. Quietus
106. Reducio
107. Reducto (Reductor Curse)
108. (Refilling Charm)
109. Relashio
110. Rennervate
111. Reparo
112. Repello Muggletum (Muggle-Repelling Charm)
113. Rictusempra (Tickling Charm)
114. Riddikulus
115. Salvio Hexia
116. Scourgify (Scouring Charm)
117. Sectumsempra
118. Serpensortia
119. Silencio (Silencing Charm)
120. (Slug-Vomiting Charm)
121. Sonorus
122. Specialis Revelio (Scarpin's Revelaspell)
123. (Stealth Sensoring Spell)
124. (Stinging Hex, Stinging Jinx)
125. Stupefy (Stunning Spell, Stupefying Charm, Stunner)
126. (Supersensory Charm)
127. (Switching Spell)
128. (Taboo)
129. Tarantallegra
130. Tergeo
131. (Tongue-Tying Curse)
132. (Transmogrifian Torture)
133. (Trip Jinx)
134. (Unbreakable Vow)
135. (Undetectable Extension Charm)
136. (Unbreakable Charm)
137. Waddiwasi
138. Wingardium Leviosa (Levitation Charm)

Porro Ago Harry Potter (Long live Harry Potter)