Gaming Blog

 Let's see, where was I? Ah yes, a nice stroll down memory lane with my favourite video game. Even talking about it brings me joy. However, while Forza Motorsport 2 persisted as my singular favourite piece of interactive digital media, it is imperative that I talk about my other favourites in the wide world of gaming. After all, we can only play so much of one game without getting bored of it. 

I posit that it is important to have a wider collection of video games as one will learn to contrast their qualities with one another not only to gain more detailed knowledge about the game, but also to enjoy the subtleties of the games. It will also allow you to explore the world of video games a lot more in depth as you have a broader selection of them at your disposal. You will be able to be competent in different video games with different requirements and disparate difficulty levels.

With that in mind, I'd like to enlist my favourite video games from my collection other than the aforementioned 'Forza Motorsport 2'.

Let's start with Burnout 3: Takedown. Burnout 3: Takedown is an arcade-style racing game in which the objective is to participate in races across Asia, Europe, and America wherein you are to crash other cars by taking them down, hence the name "Takedown". It is the third instalment in the franchise, with the first and second games being released in 2001 and 2002 respectively. This game gives you the freedom you blaze through traffic at blistering speeds of over 200 miles an hour on the wrong side of the road, slam other cars into traffic and walls, slam into them at high speeds

 There are so many things executed with perfection that quite frankly, I'm struggling to figure out which part of the game I should talk about first. How about the graphics? Well, to illustrate the magnitude to which how advanced the graphics were for when the game came out (2004), I was playing it on my laptop, I gave my father a go at it and thought it was only ten years old when it was actually released for sixth-generation consoles like the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. 

The game is a flawles

Gaming Blog 2

 In the last blog, we discussed not just the advantages, but also the importance of video games in today's world as a way to discredit unsubstantiated opinions on the supposed dangerousness and harmfulness of video games in young people's lives. I also talked about what video games meant to me. Since this blog is more of a self-expression rather than a general essay on whether video games are a boon or a bane in modern society, I would now like to discuss my personal favourite masterpieces in terms of video games.

The first game I ever had the honour of playing, the game that taught me how to master all racing games, and one that is still my favourite today is undoubtedly, Forza Motorsport 2 for the Xbox 360. Almost every day after pre-school and elementary, I'd spend hours on end perfecting the art of driving in one of the most realistic racing games ever made, especially for its time. This was the closest I could get to driving an actual car as a car enthusiast and it was more than I could ever ask for back then.

Forza Motorsport 2 was released for the Xbox 360 in North America in May 2007. This game is the very root of my entire journey with video games over the span of the last fifteen years. It is one among the most visually appealing and engaging experiences of the 21st century. Receiving overwhelmingly positive critic scores at the time of its release (90/100 Metacritic, 9.2/10 Gamespot, 8.9 IGN), it became an instant hit and boasted sales of over 3.5 million units worldwide.

Once the game starts in career mode on Level 0, it throws you right into the action without any tutorials. You are told to pick a region from which your starter car comes from. For example, picking North America as your region will allow you to choose between cars like the '98 Eagle Talon TSi and the '03 Ford Focus SVT (both American brands), and will give you discounts on cars you buy from North America. 

You then progress as you earn money from races where each level reached will grant you newer and more high value and lucrative rewards like faster cars and higher cash bonuses until you reach Level 50. This means that this game is basically along the lines of most career-based racing games. But don't let its genericness deceive you, as beneath that "average 2000's racing game" exterior, lies an intricate and unique system of racing events, one for each class of cars ranging from everyday city cars to mighty exotic cars and purpose-built racing class cars. There is also a penalty system in which you lose seconds on the timer on account of going off the tarmac or making direct physical contact with opponent vehicles, as well as a limitless and meticulously detailed customization options where you can add vinyls. manufacturer decals, add special types of paint to your car, specialized bodykits for the car's exterior, wheel rim designs and a plethora of endless possibilites to enhance the cosmetics of your car. On Xbox Live, this game also featured an Auction House system where one could buy, sell, and trade cars with other Xbox Live subscribers.

This game will always be the greatest example of interactive digital media to me. It has provided me with years of enjoyment and intriguing information about cars. It is the founding reason behind why video games are an integral part of my life, even today.

To be continued..

Gaming Blog 1

 To many, especially the older generations, they perceive video games to be nothing more than a deviation from productive, career building and education based activites which in their eyes, make them a complete waste of time. They shun advancements in technology, where some judgements contain such extremity to the point which they view it as a cancer which provokes unhealthy addictions and violent behaviour and/or beliefs. 

To be blunt, I don't blame some of them. Technology is something whose proliferation is inevitable. Like a supplementary unit, it prevails as one with mankind. However, to some, it progresses far too quickly. Newer and emergent concepts related to it continue to be opaque and unbenknownst to them. The same types of people gave birth to the generation that witnessed the age of digitalisation, the spread of computerisation like an alcohol-catalysed wildfire, and the metamorphosis of tasks that were once done manually. All of these reasons foster negative perspectives behind the distribution of video games, especially home consoles.

Sure, it has its disadvantages such as addiction and tendency to resort to violent behavior when forced to abstain for it either temporarily or permanently, but doesn't that depend on the person? The way in which they act around the presence or absence of video games is entirely up to them, and the blame cannot be put on the video games themselves. For example, if a person plays shooting and stealth games and indulges in unlawful activities in real life, the problem lies within him and not the game. The game in itself cannot harm people, however if the person playing it understands that it its just a video game and the actions performed in the game need to stay in the game, there's no necessity for any feelings of apprehension as long as you play video games with the correct mindset.

The way in which I see video games, which people who discourage the consumption of video games fail to see, mostly due to ignorance and narrow-mindedness, is that gaming is the door to a voyaging in a world outside ours, through an audiovisual medium, that, in my opinion, no book can take me to. Whether online or offline, we can be who we want to be and escape from reality at times when we need it the most through gaming. It is also a medium through which we can establish human connections from anywhere across the world. Therefore, in a way, it establishes itself as a facilitator of society's advancements in the digital world.

Now that we've asserted the benefactors of video games from my somewhat sociological perspective, we must also acknowledge their scientifically proven benefits. Cognitive benefits include faster reaction times, enhanced memory and increased attention and focus. Emotionally, video games can play a role as a stress reliever which can reduce anxiety and depression, enhanced social skills when participating in online gaming, and increased self esteem when achieving goals in games.

Video games aren't only limited to a leisure activity, they are humanity's most exhilarating, immersive digital space where everything beyond the limits of your imagination is right in front of you to be a part of. Whether you're a racedriver, a World War II soldier, a musician, all these roles are given as golden opportunities to you, and you are called upon to be the person for the role.

To be continued..

Louder than Yesterday Part.4

The Finest Work in the History of Music (in my opinion)

1. Chevelle - Wonder What's Next (2002)

Wonder What's Next is the second studio album by American rock band, Chevelle (formed 1995), released on October 8th, 2002 by Epic Records. Chevelle is a band of brothers. It consists of Pete Loeffler as the singer/songwriter/guitarist, Sam Loeffler as the co-songwriter/drummer, and Joe Loeffler and Dean Bernardini as former bass guitarists (1996-2005 and 2005-2019 respectively). This album falls under genres like Altermative Metal and Nu Metal.

To put it bluntly, this is the greatest album of all time. Not just in its genre, or its era. It quite simply is the most beautifully written and produced album in the 40,000 years of music history, and there is simply no doubt about it. One may ask, "Why? there's more hardcore stuff out there, songs that are harder to play, songs that are more influential based on how many people they've influenced. What makes this more special?"

Well, allow me to give you a little backstory.

You see, I was in a long distance relationship where I was being manipulated and my emotions were toyed with without my knowledge. I was told lies over lies that I impetuously believed so that the higher I was brought, the harder I'd fall. I was disposed of like I was worth nothing after six months of being told I was worth everything, and was asked to stay around so I could feed her more attention. This was simply the worst thing anyone has done to me so far. I was 16 1/2 years old at the time, and knew I needed an album to deliver me from this torment.

                                                       And there it was. Like a winged angel sent from above the skies to aid the emotionally wounded. It picked me up and stitched up every little dent and great trench in my sanity. It could not resonate with the unfolding of these events of my life more gracefully and flawlessly like it had. This wasn't just an album - it was a message from God himself.

And now, let's discuss the tracks in the expanded version of the album with 15 instead of 11 unforgettable masterpieces. 

Firstly, tracks like Closure, Family System, Comfortable Liar, and An Evening with El Diablo (tracks 4, 1, 2, and 10 respectively), have significantly helped me through my heartbreak. To clarify things, this blog is not to vent about my past relationships, but to talk about how this album is greatly a part of my identity. Closure talks about how I got all the answers as to why I should've ended the charade of being played with. Family System may have been about a dysfunctional family, but to me it was about recuperating from the anguish that lingered around me after cutting ties with her. Comfortable Liar describes the atrocities behind a relationship built on lies and the effects of psychological deception as part of a relationship. The song is her and perfectly describes the events that unfolded in my life. An Evening with El Diablo is about coming face to face with a person whose positive traits are superficial. It describes how people have facades of morally good people but underneath this surface lies the work of the devil (El Diablo in Spanish, as mentioned in the track title). In summary, it's about the contrasting initial and final perspectives on the individual. Here, the description of the track obviates the fact that I was led to believe that this person was a saint but turned out to be an antisaint (which is a reference to the track titled 'Antisaint' in Chevelle's fourth studio album, Vena Sera [2007]). 

Other tracks like Send the Pain Below (Track 3) helped me deal with the pain I felt from three events which happened in a span of three weeks. First was of course, the breakup, second was when I was hospitalized due to dengue, where I went through a lengthy week of physical, mental and emotional agony. Third was when my ten year old dog Simba, who was like a sister to me, passed away not even a day after I came back home from the hospital. All these circumstances exceeded the personal resources I had to deal with all this, so I needed a conduit through which all this anguish could be released, and I failed to find anything better. It was perfect.

The Red is their most popular song. It reached the top of the charts in 2003 in North America. The Red is Chevelle’s magnum opus. Not just because it charted so well, but because of what it represents. It’s the raw, feral embodiment of anger, trauma, and the moment where restraint gives way to eruption. “They say freak, when you’re singled out.” That line alone takes you back to that bitter place where you felt invalidated, misunderstood, pushed to your breaking point. For me, The Red wasn’t just a song. It was an outlet. It validated my rage when no one else would. The red is symbolic. It’s the boiling point. The final straw. The color of hurt seen through clenched fists and gritted teeth. It let me know that I wasn’t insane for feeling what I felt. In a world that tells broken people to just move on, this song tells you to eliminate the bounds that your rage knows. That’s the kind of saving grace this track is. It was an anthem for the emotionally wounded. 

Track 11 titled 'One Lonely Visitor', which is the original version of the album's closer, acts as a track that is meant to soothe you after almost every single track preceding it blasts you with its fury-packed vocals, aggressive guitar tones, and intense drum beats. It only consists of Pete Loeffler, and his acoustic guitar. No sound production, no drums, no amps, no distortion. To me, this album is like a therapy session where the client lets out all his rage almost throughout the entire session, and ends where the client is in a mood of tranquility and acceptance, where his heart no longer bleeds, but is stitched up and beating. It is a message that one must move on from all the dark places our emotions take us to, and leave it behind us for self-amelioration, where one finds peace and salvation. It can be through meditation, it can be through acceptance, it can be through finding God as well. No matter how it's done, someday we all must accept the agony we feel from life's challenges so that we are less affected by it in the future.

Tracks 12 to 15 on the expanded edition which consist of Until You're Reformed, High Visibility, Black Boys on Mopeds, and It’s No Good, which are meticulously and excellently written pieces that have the same weight as the main tracklist. Until You’re Reformed feels like a cold realization, a final acceptance that healing doesn’t mean justice, not to mention, it was featured in the 2003 Marvel flick, 'Daredevil'. High Visibility punches through with gritty energy, like walking away from a wreck with blood on your shirt but fire in your step. The band does a flawless job in covering this wonder of a Helmet track. Black Boys on Mopeds, a haunting Sinead O’Connor cover, is stripped and devastating. It’s No Good signs off the expanded version of the album by showcasing their ability to cover a song. And boy, did they deliver. 

In conclusion, as much as this album means to me, it's a must-listen to people who appreciate alternative metal, as well as those that are oftentimes angst-filled and need something cathartic that uplifts and reassures them. To those who are struggling with problems like heartbreak and those who are victims of emotional manipulation, this album is your saviour. It's by far the greatest possible thing you can listen to in times of adversity. It will rescue you like it rescued me, and you will never regret listening to it.

Louder Than Yesterday Part.3

 In the fifth and sixth grade, I never really listened to any music. Maybe it would be one song every couple days on YouTube that my dad would play in the car, or something I got from the soundtrack of a movie or a video game I was playing. Of course, the part of me which was highly opinionated in terms of music taste lived on, however, there was a dearth of music to learn from and to survive off of. It was like I saw it as an occasional tool to ease my mind off things instead of a drug where even one day without it would drive me insane. I guess, it's the feeling you get from the songs you hold the closest to your heart that I need an overdosage of every other second that I never really longed for in that short period of time.

This was until June 14, 2020. I was twelve and a half years old, and randomly decided to sign in to a brand new Spotify account. And as one would expect, it changed my life. I was introduced to newer songs by the day, was able to access all of my all-time favourites and gradually developed a strong addiction to music.

Spotify was a vast world of unlocking new feelings, new cures for depression, new emotions to channel, new experiences, and new songs to shape my identity, as well as my outlook towards life.

I was gradually drawn to this whole idea of seeing music as a drug. Each song instilling a different set of feelings that would make me addicted. All of them having their own atmosphere, meaning, vibe, it was almost along the lines of having my own vinyl/CD collection. 

I was new to Spotify at the time. I had this old habit of simply taking every single song that I fancied into one massive playlist indiscriminate of the genre from which it was. Era-wise, id say at least 95% of my music is from the 1990s and 2000s. As time went on, I realized my playlist looked rather unbalanced. A 90s pop hit followed by an early 2000's punk rock song was a bewildering sight to behold. So, I evolved as a listener (again), and put different songs in different playlists to make my profile look more organized as a reflection of myself as a music afficionado.

Spotify was, and still is the score to the motion picture that is my life. Some songs were to reflect emotions like fury, mirth, and sorrow, while others were to appreciate the art of the lyrical and melodic aspects of each song. It became an absolute necessity, not just for the attainment of a certain feeling, but something to drag me out of the darkest, most psychologically rotten places life dragged me into. But, we'll talk about that in our next blog.

Louder Than Yesterday Part.2

 In the first grade, I was used to genres like dubstep and pop music because it was all the rage in the early 2010's. Everywhere you went, no matter what you were doing, whether a quick errand to the supermarket or a trip to the electronics store, artists like Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez and Britney Spears would play in the background in the shops, and would annoyingly follow you by repeatedly playing in your head with its extreme degree of catchiness. I knew I wasn't keen on whatever was popular and that I needed something different. One week, in around 2013 or 2014, I was in the car with my father, and he started playing 'Drag the Waters' by Pantera, a heavy metal band. I never heard anything at all like it.

I was instantly hooked and decided to listen to some songs on the album, and it was undoubtedly one of the best decisions I ever made. The aggression of the guitar tones, the intensity of the singer's voice, the force put into the drums, I was never subjected to anything this extraordinary. I remember as a child, I'd stomp around and walk aggressively for good fun whenever their songs played. I was probably the only first grader you ever heard of who listened to Pantera.

As the years went on, I never really listened to a lot of music until I passively and casually listened to what my dad was playing in the car. This was around the 4th grade. There'd be a couple pop hits and rap hits here and there until he started to play the genre of Nu Metal. Nu metal is a subgenre of alternative metal that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop, funk, industrial, and grunge, which sometimes involved the use of electronic instruments, altogether making it a very unique subgenre of rock and one of the most influential genres marking the millenium, that is the year 2000.

Upon listening to this genre, I heard enough to know that it was also some of the best pieces of audible art I heard at the time. Although these bands sometimes weren't as aggressive as Pantera, some of the emotions induced by listening to them felt deeper. The versatility of this genre with hints of rap and electronics with rock made listening to their genre an incredibly immersive experience. The band that got me into this genre was Linkin Park. One of the band's singers, Chester Bennington has left an indelible mark on music history as one of the most influential and talented vocalists of all time. His singing, along with the lyrical skills of Mike Shinoda, the other singer of Linkin Park, arguably the greatest expert in complimenting rap with rock, made Linkin Park a substantially unique band to kickstart the 21st century, with their hit album, Hybrid Theory, released on October 24th, 2000. Other Nu Metal bands that defined my last years of elementary school were Limp Bizkit, Korn, Deftones, Saliva, System of a Down, Sepultura, Papa Roach, Drowning Pool, Incubus, and so on.

A couple months before I turned 10, as intrigued I was by the aggressive style of music put out in the Nu Metal genre, I found myself to be fascinated by a more positive tone of music that was part of a genre called Punk Rock. 

At this point of time, I was exposed to more mainstream artists like Sum 41 and Good Charlotte. Their early 2000's way of energetic power chords and rebellious themes made it an alluring experience, everyday when I came home and played their songs on my subpar iBall speakers after school. There was entire aesthetic vibe of disobedience and flouting authority with the embodiment of the wayward spirits of the youth, along with this genre's ability to condition the listener to allow himself/herself to let the music's zestful tones channel through the listener. These things proved that this was a genre that stands out from what you normally hear in this day and age. The cultures, hobbies and mindsets that punk rock as a genre has affiliated or associated itself with include skateboarding where it's not allowed, wearing piercings or makeup, the principles of insubordination, heartbreak, relationships, all of which perfectly describe the life of an adolescent.

And needless to say, ten year old me loved every single aspect about it, and seventeen-and-a-half year old me still does to this day.

To be continued..

Louder than Yesterday Part.1

 A considerable part in my perspective of life, my way of thinking and speaking, my emotions and my identity is shaped by my taste in music. You see, I was always the black sheep of the herd when I was a child in middle school in terms of my music taste. Everyone else listened to popular genres like Bollywood, R&B, Pop Music and House Music, while I was deep into the subgenres of rock music like Nu Metal, Punk Rock, Hard Rock and Alternative Metal with bands like Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, Trapt, Sum 41, P.O.D, Good Charlotte, 311, Saliva, Hoobastank, Korn, Pantera, and Slipknot, where all of these bands were introduced to me by my father.

Keep in mind, this was in the 6th grade, and I've been listening to most of these bands since the 4th, or even the 3rd grade. So, why these genres and not others? Well, let's start with how much effort and talent it takes even to be half as good as these bands. It's very enduring and challenging simply to practice and effortlessly learn even the basics of each and every instrument involved like the guitar and the drums, especially if you're a beginner. Even when bands back in the day wrote songs, they didn't have a readymade beat or a melody, no autotune to correct their vocal flaws, not many tools that the technology of the era contemporary to when this genre of music flourished, to write specific tunes or melodies. It all depended on the musician's ability and skill to write these songs. The quality of every single aspect of the music that's produced depended all on the musicians involved and no one to do it for them.

Another point I'd like to add is how every guitar note and the level of power put into the drums plays an integral role in the emotion the musician expresses and what the listener feels. This is also affected by how each note in the song is synchronized to convey the right message and exhibit the optimum level of vehemence to complement how the instrumentals are played. 

These reasons allow me to appreciate this genre of music for the talent required to produce and the feelings it elicits from the listener. Since my love for this genre is very apparent, I shall elaborate on how my music taste and favourite artists have evolved over time.

To be continued...

Canine Chronicles Part.3

The people of India posit polarizing views on our stray dogs. Some are of the opinion that they are to be treated with respect, courtesy, and dignity, but sadly, some inhuman people here treat them with callousness, ruthlessness, and unconscionability. They fail to see our street dogs as man's best friend, and something unknown in their conscience acts as impetuses to their unjustified aggression towards dogs.

But why? Why, is it that we shun the unwritten guidelines of morality and threaten dogs with a hand that strikes in lieu of a hand that helps? Where is our humanity? Is it to feel powerful through attacking a less powerful target? Is it because of their lack of empathy?

What is crucial to know is that, none of these reasons are ever rightly justified unless there are rare cases of self defense. One must understand that dogs, like human beings, have emotions, and have every right to live as much as we do. Some people either seem to misread some emotions displayed by dogs as aggresion by barking and tail wagging, and as a result, tend to lash out on the dog either verbally or physically. Some inexcusably see them as a nuisance, even though the humans are almost always the initial perpetrators. Some are also raised without values of empathy or sympathy. Due to this, they view them as pests and objects rather than sentient lives.

All of the above points bring us to this fact - our country needs to educate our people on ethics, especially  towards animals. Whether it's by family, friends, or educational institutions, kindness towards animals is a vital human trait, no matter your background, or unjust views pertaining to how animals should be perceived and treated. Dogs, whether we like it or not, have been a part of human society for over 14,000 years. We have made them a part of our society, and to ostracize and harm them, is simply inequitable.

It is also imperative that us Indians establish shelters, where we house stray dogs, feed them food, give them water, and nurture them. We should expand these shelters when they do not have anyone to adopt them instead of putting these dogs down as we are no one to determine whether they should live based on whether no one wants to adopt them.

Even if they were not initially a part of our society, who are we to judge whether they have the right to live or not? I said it before and I will say it again, they are the most beautiful creatures on this planet, they love unconditionally, they do not ask for more than food, water, and care, and are loyal to whoever they are with, and to be a more civilized country, we must love them and treat them as children of our own.

Canine Chronicles Part.2

 My first dog was Brownie. He was two years older than me. He was born sometime in December of 2005, so our family took the decision of celebrating his birthday on Christmas to celebrate the birth of two holy beings in our lives, Jesus Christ and his gift to us, Brownie. Brownie was one of the most beautifully built dogs that ever lived. He had dark brown eyes with citrus orange hued rings around them, so when you gaze into his eyes it's like a galaxy of memories I cherished with him, and more that I was to cherish in the future. He had long manes below his neck, enhancing his look and making him even more handsome. Brownie was a dog who was loyal to his family, and made us members of his pack. And when I was born as the newest member of the pack, nothing gave me greater joy than irritating him. I'd pet him weirdly, pull his ears and tail, and ride him like a cowboy on a horse. But that was simply just me playing my role as his little brother. As the years went on, he grew to be stronger, smarter, more protective, and more affectionate. He was always nimble and tough, capable of running at high speeds till his last days. By around June 2021, he started to have seizures and his bones grew weak. He peacefully passed away on the June 20, 2021. He will not just remain as someone I hold close to my heart, but as my heart itself, and our family will never forget him.

My second dog was Simba. I was six-and-a-half when she was born. She was one amongst a litter of around six puppies. Three  others were adopted, two died, and the sixth one, Simba, was adopted by us after she accidentally got hit by a car. My mother took her in, we fixed up some water and rice with chicken for her, and we slowly witnessed as she gradually recovered. Here, Brownie was the older brother, I was the middle child, and Simba was our little sister. When Simba was introduced to Brownie, it was challenging for him to adapt to having another dog in the house, but they got along like peas on a pod as the weeks went by. She would annoy him, he would do absolutely nothing about it, and they grew to love each other. I of course, was a part of all the fun. I'd run with them, wrestle with them, feed them, play with them, and I was in the best alliance I could ever be a part of. Simba brought this energetic and hyper aura to our house which we didn't know we needed for our happiness as well. But with her, as the years went by, she would grow weaker and less energetic. She went on to have diabetes when she was approximately 9 years of age, from which she mournfully ascended to heaven shortly  after her tenth birthday on August 1, 2024, and my life has not been the same ever since.

Our third dog was Mogu, named after the popular fruit flavoured drink, Mogu Mogu which our family was addicted to at the time, which was mid-late 2021. She had initially belonged to a friend of my father's, but since that person's family could not take care of her, we took the honour of adopting her as our own, since our family felt empty after Brownie had passed away. She had white fur, light brown patches that matched the colour of her eyes so that there would be a flawlessly leveled synonymity and harmony between these colours for when she would appear in pictures and, I must say, she looked even more elegant in impromptu pictures. She ran the fastest of all our dogs and possessed the stamina of an Olympian track runner on a high dose of caffeine. My most fond memories of her were when I was in the eighth grade, and me, my father and her would try to catch her in our building. All attempts to catch her were unsuccessful, but the process of her slowly being a part of our family, and a part of our hearts was surely successful. Mogu and I were the two siblings that never got along, but had a deep love for one another. We would always playfully bully and irritate each other whenever we got bored, and make up for it when she would sit between my legs as I spent most saturday evenings watching T.V, with a glass mug of ice-cold coffee. Life was pleasant. Almost a year later by May 2022, my father and I went on a trip to the United States for the third time and our grandparents took care of Mogu and Simba. Two weeks into our trip, my aunt had received a horribly distressing and disheartening phone call. Mogu was accidentally hit by a car. Hearing these six dreaded words, processing and interpreting them felt like my heart was hit by the same car going twice as fast. It broke me, and I was struggling to move on, but then I accepted the fact that she lived a good life, a life giving love, and being loved, and her being loved is something I will satisfy till my time comes as well.

Our fourth dog is Boggi. Boggi is one of the smartest, clingiest, most mischievous and caring dogs I am privileged to have in my life. Boggi is my rock, my conduit, and my breath. He is the only dog I have left in my life now, and I am conditioned to love him above all else, along with my other dogs looking down on me from up above. He is wonderfully quirky, incredibly hyperactive throughout the day, and loves spending time with us, but not as much as we loved simply being in his presence. It feels holy being around him. He is a little brother sent from God himself to bring me the best friend anyone can ask for. He never judges me, he never cares about what I do wrong, he always showers me with admiration regardless of everything else that goes awry in my life, and I feel like I did nothing to deserve someone as big a blessing as him. Simply his presence is a remedy to my life's challenges and hardships, an anchor through which I can sustain my faith in living. One look in his adorable, silly big eyes and I know he will never leave my side. I promise to treat him with nothing but respect and adoration till the end of time, and I make it my life mission to do so.

This is what my dogs, and all dogs out there as the heartbeat of the world sent from the word above, mean to me. As much as it agonizes me to lose them to fate, I will always keep them in my heart, and will look forward to the day I join them in heaven.

Canine Chronicles Part.1

 Dogs. The essence of not just family, but of all humanity as our best companion. They are god-given creatures, radiant with mirth and contentedness, spreading joy and laughter with their presence.

They really make up a big part of me and I for one, quite simply fail to visualize my life without them.

As a Christian man, I believe dogs to be god's true children. Given that this belief isn't solely supported by the fact that 'dog' is an anagram of 'god', it's also cause when this species is a blank slate, they are naturally affectionate, loyal, trustworthy and sympathetic. You see, most dogs that shun humans or act aggresively towards them possess that character with the reason being how some humans may have affected them, or the dogs ancestors. This evidently suggests that dogs inherently possess positive qualities. However, us humans have significantly less compunction and ethics. We destroy the earth for our well being, we kill and torture animals for food and entertainment, we steal from each other, kill each other, lie to each other and hurt each other but dogs, are pure of heart. 

No matter what kind of person you are. Wealthy, poor, blessed, unfortunate, a saint, or a sinner, someone unattractive or charming, whether your skin colour or your background is different, dogs couldn't care any less. They love us so unconditionally, it's almost fascinating. They will not judge you by any of these characteristics that us humans use to define or label each other with intentions to either alienate or praise one another. They view you and me as living beings deserving of love, especially when we think that we deserve none ourselves. Dogs are also incredibly loyal and faithful beings. Once dogs form an alliance of love with you, nothing can take your dog away from its attachment to you, and nothing will let them leave your side. 

Now that we have covered all the reaons behind my everlasting love for dogs, I would like to tell you about all the dogs I've ever had the pleasure of knowing.

To be continued...

Model Car Memoirs Part.2

 How does one strive for excellence as a die-cast model collector?                                                           

As avid collectors and hobbyists, we secure the goal of looking for the rarest and finest pieces of model cars through thorough scrutinization of the digital and geographical world. The ownership of rarer and more obscure models instills a feeling of joy and enthusiasm which enables us to become more devoted to our hobby. In recent years, India has fostered a growth in the sales of imported diecast cars, and 14 year old me couldnt have wished for news as terrific at the time. I had exhaustively explored the web for these sites where I could get these cars, like the Ferdinand Magellan of the Indian     E-Market. This was the first time I was able to fulfill my fantasy of having vintage carded Hot Wheels cars on my room's walls to gaze at with pride, like a Bond villain admiring his fleet of getaway cars, only three inches across and far less insurable.

                                                    Whenever I had to opportunity to visit the United States, I never wasted the opportunity to snag a good amount of Hot Wheels and NASCAR diecast cars off of ebay, through earnest requests made to my father and my aunt to purchase them for me. In the summer of 2022, I had bought $300 dollars worth of diecast cars. Around eight or ten of these were vintage carded Hot Wheels cars, ninety-five loose NASCAR diecast cars, a 1:43 Cararama Scale Model of a 1999 Saab 9-5, and an Xbox 360 copy of Need For Speed Shift 2 : Unleashed for good fun. I felt like the most dedicated a hobbyist could possibly be.

Now that I've already written an entire

letter of appreciation towards Hot Wheels cars, it's time to talk about my ever so growing love for NASCAR as a sport, being the reason behind me importing hoarding almost a hundred of their cars. NASCAR is one of the most

difficult sports to compete in. Many people believe it to be nothing more than a pack of cars turning left for 500 miles, but they never take into account what it's really like to be one of those drivers. Imagine doing over 190 mph on a 33 degree banking, struggling to handle a 3,500 pound 8 cylinder monster with upwards of 780 horsepower. You're surrounded by fire-breathing beasts of machines on all four sides, and if you make one wrong move, your life is largely at risk. It instills a feeling of danger so strong it's like you're juggling four grenades while balancing yourself on a unicycle on the edge of a volcano pit. Everytime I see this pack of cars move by on my laptop screen, I feel nothing but exhilaration. Each driver making impossible moves while being tailgated at those speeds, like a fierce battle between the most valorant of warriors, with V8 stock cars for stallions, racing suits and helmets for chainmail armor, the 2.5 mile oval track of Daytona for the open fields of Medieval Europe, and the skills of the drivers for the warrior's swords.

Each die-cast model of these stock cars tells you a story of all the battles the drivers of these cars fought. For example, everytime I hold up Dale Earnhardt Sr.'s 1991 Chevrolet Lumina Stock Car, I remember his struggles to win the Daytona 500, all his trials and tribulations he underwent before finally winning the 1998 Daytona 500 7 years later. Collecting these also tells you and the people who see the collection about your passion for the sport, which makes you proud to be a follower of the sport, and as an Indian you definitely stick out like a sore thumb being surrounded by a family of cricket followers.

I mean, who's ever heard of an Indian NASCAR fan?

                                                     

Another way us die-cast collectors strive for excellence is forming communities and relationships both on and off the web to discuss the art of collecting, trade and sell cars, show off our own pieces, and find like-minded people. To us, it's not just a hobby. It's a way of life. This now brings us to the social aspect of collecting model cars. Can you remember which relative or friend of yours gifted you your first ever die-cast car? Can you reminisce about how unforgettable and simple times were when your friend would come over and race Hot Wheels cars with you? All these memories of important people in our lives can be cherished with these cars as souvenirs of our life's events. This can include you. Gifting someone you know who likes cars is really one of the most benevolent things you can do, making the cars souvenirs for people to remember you as someone in their life, whether significant or insignificant. That's precisely what toy cars are. A lot more than molded metal with rolling wheels 3 inches across and nothing less than a treasure to behold, and being part of the experience of collecting it is one part of your life you'll never forget.

Model Car Memoirs Part.1

 What is the true significance of owning something as simple and miniscule as a die-cast car?

To some, it's nothing beyond the bounds of a household knick-knack that makes you yell and bawl at your children like a wild boar in a stampede, for stepping on them after preparing supper. To others, it's where after a specific point of time, the toys fail to captivate the interest of the beholder. This phase occurs when an innocent minded and studious elementary school pupil turns into a formidable, pus-filled, raging, tantrum throwing, teenager emitting a plethora of body odors. In this scenario, either that teenager gives them off as hand me downs to their younger brother or sister, or gives them away to charity as if they're an outgrown, malodorous torn up pair of rugby socks.

Not to me, however. Every single time I take any random car in my collection and gently lay it on the palm of my hand, I watch how gloriously it complements the lines in my palms. This everyday sight speaks to me of how palmists overlook how, for die-cast collectors, like me, the car is the missing piece of the puzzle. Because to me, it's the car that symbolizes my prosperity rather than a line crossing the dimensions of my palm.

A belief I hold dear to my heart is that the type of cars you collect is a reflection of not only your character, but also your background. A 1/87 scaled Rover P4 by Oxford (die-cast brand) may depict the owner to be a middle-aged Englishman, where the reason behind him buying it evokes a feeling of nostalgia, reminding him of the family trips in his dad's car rolling through the hills of Yorkshire. On the other hand, a simple plastic, unbranded die-cast car with the words “Made in China” imprinted on the bottom may belong to a child in a modest neighbourhood, who saved up small coins just to bring home something that fuels his imagination. Both cars, regardless of brand, price, or origin hold immense value to their owners. Every die-cast car, no matter its make, model, or background, is a reflection of its owner’s personal journey, taste in automobiles, appreciation for craftsmanship, and connection to memory.

Speaking of the economic aspect of things, the most successful die-cast car brand, and the one that's the most popular in my collection, is of course, Hot Wheels. Hot Wheels cars are affordable, well detailed, pleasant to own, and are an absolute joy to collect. In India, your average sidewalk toy shop would frequently sell an impostor of Hot Wheels, incompetently mimicking its legitimate counterpart, with its shell, interior and wheels composed entirely of the same plastic of a small container that my grandmother would use to store scraps and bones of leftover chicken vindaloo to feed the dog before he regurgitates the same mess on the carpet. Quite frankly, looking at it is oftentimes less excruciating than the disillusioned feeling of having a lot of excitement built up after seeing a nearby toy shop, which is then followed by a sharp feeling of disgruntlement and dissatisfaction, upon seeing these cheap imitations of Hot Wheels cars, like your heart is a fluorescently coloured piñata struck open by an angry toddler with a mini baseball bat.                                                                                                                                                                             The motive behind the hyperbolization of this ruse is due to an instict of developing a feeling of cheeriness before entering a toy shop that has developed over the years of my childhood, and now when that instinct occurs, all I am met with is disappointment on account of how poor our country's stock of die-cast cars is today.

 This is because in my early childhood, the types of cars that you'd find in stores like Hamleys or Crossword were so extraordinarily otherwordly. Quick rewind to the year 2010. I was in nursery at the time, or as you Americans call it, pre-school. It was my first encounter with the Hamleys at the High Street Phoenix Mall in Mumbai. This was actually the first Hamleys' toy store opened in South-East Asia on April 9, 2010. This particular visit was circa late 2010 or early 2011, so I was about three years old at the time. Upon entering, all I see is paradise. Several shelves of Hot Wheels cars, each only 89 Rupees at the time, as compared to 179-499 Rupees a piece today. Each of them were so detailed and so intricately painted, rendered and branded, all of which were older car models that fit to my current taste in cars. There were at least 2 aisles of cars and 2 aisles of tracks, but, of course, all I cared about was the cars.

I was like a caffeine addict in a Starbucks during happy hour. The store housed rows of die-cast brands whose cars are worth a fortune today. Brands like Hongwell that made 1/72 scale cars, New Ray that had a variety of scales with the biggest being 1/12 models and the smaller ones being 1/32 models, Maisto, Bburago, and Matchbox all making their debut in India. For three year old me, it was a momentary glimpse of heaven on earth. Me, my mother and my father had brought home a set of 6 1965 Mini Cooper cars with vintage rally racing liveries. This set is so rare now, that you will not find a single 6-set of any Hongwell cars in India.

Today, I have approximately between 950-1,000 hot wheels cars in my collection. out of these, about 80 cars are carded and mostly in mint condition. 60% of these carded cars are a lot older than the remaining 40%. They're all from between 1994 and 2010, mainly due to the fact that I have a rather personal and special affinity with 1990's and 2000's culture, and a major part of this fondness is the cars from that era. Even something as elementary as the packaging of the cars of that era is a true sight to behold. The agglomeration of every shade of blue, white and black in the card art, the three-dimensional look to the logo that makes it look like it's risen from the card, ever so implicitly establishing its trademark which tells you that that little car made of plastic and metal three inches across is an artefact, a masterpiece to last for generations to come.

 And what more could a car connoisseur like me ask for than hundreds of  stunning little meticulously crafted pieces of art? In a distinctive way, I see almost each and every one of them as my children. Everytime I walk into my room, I observe my collection with pride and ecstasy. To me, it resembles a feeling preliminary to the one which I'll experience when the day I have a child or children of my own is beckoned to me.

To be continued...