An Unmarried Girl

What is the problem if girls my age are still not married? Really why do some people have to exclaim when they hear I'm single.  Today I'm narrating an incident - a first for me. 

I happened to run into this distant relative of an aunt today.  There have been too many accidental meetings with her this year and she has been progressively becoming more annoying than the last time.  Since the last three meetings she had been asking if I my family was looking (for a groom), if I'm getting married soon or if I'm engaged.  So here's what happened today.

The bell rang and I was the one who opened it.  What a surprise, there she was - lets call her aunty Elly - with her daughter and  niece I presume. We exchanged the regular pleasantries (inside I cringed - oh why today?).  She settled in and was speaking with uncle while sat with my laptop, browsing and chatting with friends.  She looks at me smiles and asks 'To kahi baat pakki hui beta?' I smile back and reply in negative and try to hide behind the laptop! (ugghh really why IS SHE bothered?).  she goes on as asks "Are you working or playing a game?" I reply "I have to finish some urgent work" (on my personal red laptop :P). She goes back to chatting with uncle. 

Five minutes later she asks me "How old are you?" I'm a little annoyed at her question but reply - 25.. She still wants to confirm so asks me which year! My uncle replies "She is 86 born same year as my elder son" She is now calculating and says " So you have completed 25 and running on 26..hmmmm" I usually don't care when it comes to stating my age but the way she said it felt like she was disrobing me :(...  I wonder when she will leave. Elly is relentless.. she seems to have made up her mind to get as much as info about me today.  She asks me about my star sign, horoscope details! There seems to be no end to it,  I feel like a victim. Pause.  She is now back to talking to my uncle. 

Then she asks me "So what kind of a guy are you looking for?" I'm surprised and dumbfounded at this question.  I stumble and just able to  react with ''huh?!.. Why... What do you mean?"  She asks "What are your expectations? a Doctor, Engineer, Professor?" I reply "I don't know" and go back to starting into my laptop praying God let this be over soon.  And then another question "What's your height?" I tell her I'm 5ft 4in.  She goes on... "So will you be fine with a 5ft 5in tall guy?" OMG she had someone in her mind already!!! I'm quick to reply with "NO, The guy has to be minimum 5ft 9in... I wear heels you see and some are about 4 inches high" (I'm just ROFLing inside) 'Elly had crossed over her boundary of the regular nosy relative and walked in to the role of a matchmaker and couple of steps too close into my personal space.  I wish I could just walk out right now but can't look rude.  I'm praying someone just calls me.

"Oh!" She exclaims and continues "Well you know wearing heels is not good for health.  There is a Orthopedic I know and he advises that girls should not wear heels at all.  I know it looks good but in the long term it causes back ache" after intruding my personal space she is now acting as my health instructor. She then asks how many siblings I have and what is my educational qualification how long have I been working. By the end of it I was sooo annoyed and tempted to say Thanks very much but I love wearing heels and I don't plan on getting married at all.  

This was my first ever experience with a nosy relative.  Makes me wonder why can't girls be single and happy? Why do people expect that after a certain age we have to get married? I understand marriage can be beautiful if you meet the right one but it can be totally opposite if rushed into.  From where I'm standing right now its - Better alone than bad company.

Rupee Devaluation - Size Matters

I usually avoid writing about politics and politicians because the subject is so vast and there is no end to how much the common people can crib.  I have been observing - what I think is the deterioration of the rupee.  A subject which has been playing on my mind a lot lately.  The Rupee seems to have lost so much weight owing to the diet of the politicians. While the Aana and Paisa has gone out of circulation the Rupee coin has become lighter and smaller. Wonder what is the reason? I recently happened to have a lot of change in my purse and found some old and the very recent rupee. See for your self (click on the images to view the larger than life version :P).

I noticed the latest one rupee coin is the same size as the 50 Paisa coin or slightly smaller! They have incorporated the new Rupee symbol on the coin alright but why make it smaller and lighter? The design I most hated was the one with a thumb on it...Thenga!! Its like they are mocking the person holding a rupee! What was that designed for, the illiterates? Are they acknowledging the illiterate population of the country!?

Here's a look at 2 Rupee coins.

The second coin seems like its bigger in size but its thinner and lighter.  Also again I'm glad they stopped the one with the two finger impression on it!

The latest  2 Rupee coin is the same size as the old 1 Rupee coin. I have got confused at times and handed out 2 rupee coins instead of one rupee. 

Wonder how the blind catch up with all these changes.  Earlier the coins used to be distinct and even the blind could tell the value.

Do you remember the days when you saw fresh and crisp five Rupee notes? They introduced five Rupee coins, again it started with a heavy fat coin that lost weight over the years. (I just gave away a latest shiny five rupee coin and could not include it) After seeing the illiteracy-special coins I thought the five Rupee coin might have a palm (also the symbol of the ruling party) on it.  

Heck! They even created 10 Rupee coins! People who got their hands on the coins first decided to keep it.  I have one too.  The minting factory tried to make it look like a Euro with dual metal thing but look at the size when I compared it with a Two Rupee coin made in 1999.

Utterly Shameful! I don't think any other country in the world has ever devalued their own currency at this rate and this low! The Government might blame it on the ever rising inflation (which they are suppose to manage) the Rupee strength reduced to almost like a leaf in the wind.  I don't understand the economics but as a commoner / part of the Aam Junta I feel the slap as inflation rises.  I am assuming the govt needs the extra metal to satiate the corrupt and hence trying to lighten our currency.  

Imagine how this will ease them in continuing their corruption - If there are notes / coins for higher denominations its easier to fill up bags and carry them around.  Do you know one Crore Rupees easily be packed in a duffel bag thanks to the thousand Rupee notes.

Another thing I would like to talk about is the picture of Gandhiji on notes of all denominations.  Now I understand he is the father of the nation and all that.. but he was not the only man responsible for the independence our country.  We have so many brave freedom fighters who gave up their lives fighting for this nation and all that they have to their name are few pages in the school history text books.  Again I think ours is the only country that has just one man on our money.  Why not Bhagat Singh, Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel - The Iron man of India, Veer Savarkar, Chandra Shekar Aazad, Subhas Chandra Bose or our scientists even?  I think that is because of the way the ruling party wants to use the Gandhi name to their advantage. Do they think - Show Gandhi and people will vote for Gandhi? Digressing a bit away from currencies even the bridges, universities and roads are named after the current Gandhis who are in no way related to the original Gandhi. There's nothing personal against them but really aren't we paying for their Z security and for what? What have these new age, so called youth icon Gandhis done actually other than walk among the people around elections and try to show they understand what ails the common Indian.

Other countries who have fought for their freedom have the names and pictures of the martyrs on the different denominations, streets, universities, etc. Those who were always free have their scientists / politicians (good ones!) or Royals printed.  Ours I have to say is a very poor and sad state of affairs.

Just FYI on some know foreign currencies.

• The highest denomination note printed in the US is the 100 Dollar bill. (Imagine packing a million dollars in a duffel bag)
• The hundred Dollar bill has the US President Franklin on it while the one Dollar bill has George Washington on it.
• One Euro weighs 7.5 grams and the design hasn't changed since it was introduced in 1999 (I think so).
• The Arab Emirates Dirham notes have different motifs as per the denomination.

There's a lot more information out there.. but I guess you get the point. 

Why Do Cockroaches Fly?

This is going to be the most random article I've ever written.  I couldn't sleep and when I went to get some water saw a cockroach.  The instant reaction was trying to kill it but just as I was about to... It FLEW!!! I just hate it when they do that!!

Why did God create these six legged tentacled creatures? So we appreciate those creatures that are not creepy and make you want to kill them!? The thing is creepy as it is why give it wings?  It reminded me of the Peacock somehow (I know weird) because even though some of us think the peacock does not fly, it does when it needs to I guess (I've seen seen it!).

Now the Peacock is a creature of beauty and it look amazing when it flies - more like glides. From the trees / roof to lower ground, it can't fly like an eagle or a pigeon. May be it does I've not seen it - must do may be how does it get into the trees / on the roof then.  Hmmm.. I've moved on to a beautiful creature.  I tend to digress when I'm talking as well and it reminds me what a friend said to me "You have a wavering mind!" :P I start at point A and end up at 4th cross road Martin street heheh (I just did it again :P) .. Coming back to the point... why do they have wings? They have 6 legs to carry them faster.  Those 2 antenna thingy to warn then of direction / find food I guess... but they should not be allowed to fly! :( its just a little scary sometimes.  If they did it everyday like they were flying insects would be fine.. but they do it occasionally. It should be simple either fly or don't fly! They are like the amphibians - we learnt in school animals that reside on land and water.  So this is a pest bordering on flying and what is it they do..crawl, run? There must be a word for it :P

Here are a few facts about cockroaches I know thanks to some e-mail forwards and Google :D

Kill it before it flies!

A cockroach can stay alive for a whole week without its head -  A true pest huh! This makes me wonder what kind of a weirdo must have beheaded a roach and observed it for that long time to come to this conclusion.... Also, this is why we need to squish them - no amputating! :P

Cockroaches have been around since the time of Dinosaurs! :-O - They should be declared kings of pests!!

Some female cockroaches only mate once and stay pregnant for life! -That is just abnormal to think of... does the baby roach take birth when the mother dies then? What happens to it? Imagine what would happen if that happened to humans... errr lets not... creates a very disturbing image!

The next 2 facts really made me LOL! :P

Cockroaches can run up to 3 miles an hour - I imagined a roach on a treadmill and a guy (same one who beheaded his friend) with a stopwatch (heheahaha)

Cockroaches can hold their breath for up to 40 minutes! - Roach under water :P Some person must have had a lot of time to get to these facts! :P Must be people who are really curious about this and do a lot of Research! Poor pest had to suffer such harsh testing - would have been so much better off if it was killed instead :(

We consider this creature a pest because it lives off our food and also give off a terrible odor.  If it brings along family we call it an infestation... What is it's role in the food chain? eating scraps / garbage?  There must be a reason for it's existence... So if the worlds a stage then the role of this little thing must be to play the pest.. Doing really good pesty! :P

Some Interesting People

Disclaimer to Friends: If I haven't mentioned you in this article it does not mean you are not special to me. You must already know I don't have the patience to write pages and pages.  May be someday when I think of writing a book on the people in my life I will count each and every single one of you. This post is to highlight people I met through uncommon and interesting ways.  Also I shall not give out proper names - for your privacy ofcourse.. but you should know when I'm talking about you.. hopefully

I have to say I have a good memory (most of the times). Today I was going through my friends list on a social networking site (I know that you know that I'm talking about Facebook) and remembering how we became friends. Some I share some interesting moments with, some through a common friend only to realise how freakin similar we are and then somehow we ended up becoming closer friends than with the one who actually introduced us. I'd like to narrate this chronologically.

Some how I don't remember the first friend I ever made - probably because it was an entire class I saw (getting a feeling I'm rambling now... May be writing in the reverse order is better)

The most recent friends I made were two people (RK and JK) with whom I had interacted only through this blog.  How I met them was because of another common blogger friend (BM) whose posts I much love to read  and the people I met were also his fans :P... now what's special about this is I don't really go about adding everybody who follows this blog :P I had added BM on FB after reading his articles. The plan was to meet up with BM because he was coming to this city but eventually ended up meeting RK and JK  and also a new unexpected friend JM. RK was the 1st one I saw and just behind her were JK and JM.  We met at Nariman Point and it was a totally fun evening!

Another friend I made thanks to blogger and I intend to meet as well is SDR.  I really like reading what she writes.  Her post Perceptions, Vegan and Boyfriends is one of the best articles I've read!  Hope someday we are able to meet in person too. 

SB is another really really sweet and extremely fun person! She is my office best friend's (DS) childhood friend.  I added SB on FB after hearing all her stories / praises  from DS.  We had a common best friend but I think we mostly bonded over heavy issues.  Something peculiar about her is she is quiet a lot like me - soo talkative (sooo much more than me - I don't get to talk when she is talking!), extremely fun, very straight forward and we have realised over time that we have a LOT of similar likes / dislikes!  I call her the comic strip lady, she has a lot of potential to write (sadly she does not believe this) and those who know her can get to see this side of her if they are friends on FB or around her when she is in that mode :P hehe. I am yet to meet her in person, another person on the list of people I want to see :D

SC was a girl from the same college as me.. She was a year senior to me though.  (I'm not sure what impact my revelations will have on our friendship now but since this topic is such.. heregoes!) This happened about almost two years ago.  I received a call from a girl and she said she was in the same college as me she was my senior and had got my number from a common friend CS. She was working in Bangalore but was in Mumbai on a business trip and wanted to meet up.  She added me on FB and we had tons of common friends (the entire college crowd). Now there was something about this person.  I clearly remembered her name and also that she was my senior in college but the thing with the brain is when you remember names it also does a lookup on the face.  When I went through her profile on FB there was no flashback! She called again the next day - it was the weekend.  she had to do some shopping and also was keen to meet up.  Now I could not tell her that I did not remember her face, I thought may be if I met her in personally I might remember her.  So I did, but still nothing! That was really weird because I claim to have a good memory but I just could not remember her! It was like a whole person was wiped out of my mental records.  But yet I did not tell her that.  The whole time we spoke of college, work and the kind of people we meet, life, etc. in the background my brain was desperately  trying to get a match. That whole evening I spent getting to know this person I had once known earlier.  Till date I am unable to recollect how she looked like in college (unless she dressed up like a Hobo or had a undergone plastic surgery or something - which I know is not true or possible!) That day I made friends with a person allover again whom I knew once upon a time and for some reason - which I still wonder - I'm unable to recollect! Bet that has never happened to anyone!

AS and I met in a camp in Dharwad, Karnataka in the summer of 2005.  We first met in the summer camp and then in the subsequent Pre Republic day selections camps that happened that year.  I was an Army cadet and she was a Naval cadet. Initially we did not like each other at all but it was a session of 'face reading' that brought the walls down :) After that we became really good friends and still are. I'm glad we met AS! On second thoughts the whole group of faces was really special!

DM is a friend I made 9 years ago! Way back in 2002 Yahoo chat was a rage like FB is now-a-days.   There used to be real people to chat with unlike today where chat rooms are full of predators.  Through the years we have stayed in touch somehow while not constantly being connected but catching up now and again.  I think it is an achievement we are good friends till today is because through all those changed numbers and e-mail addresses we still managed to be in touch.  We finally met in the real world about 2 years ago before that we had not even exchanged pictures or anything (none that I remember)!

So these are some of my friends.  From the above listed interesting people I think SC story tops the list... Unless someone tells me that is normal :P

The Wait

The one skill I need to acquire is PATIENCE - not that I'm perfect otherwise. I think I'm one of those almost perfect people and I'm glad to be almost perfect instead of totally PERFECT else everyone around me would be soo jealous LOL!! (OK I'm digressing now :P back to the point) The toughest part in life is the wait, learning to wait.  

I think wait can be a silent killer or may be its not the wait but the anticipation of what could be.  I felt it would take an eternity to grow tall when I was little.. hmm now that was a random sentence (I've decided I'm not going to cancel anything I write and think aloud in this one) so yea, coming back to the point of waiting and anticipating.  I'm very impatient when it comes to the verbal hook (I just can't solve those funny riddles, I'd rather pester the person to give me the answer! :P)... and the friends who know that use it against me sometimes.  A friend sends me a text 'I need to tell you something'... Well Seems like she wants to check if I have the phone handy so I immediately reply 'Tell ME!'.. I mean why can't she just text me what it is.. why the I-have-something-to-tell mystery? 

Another friend of mine (now this is just for the pleasure he gets out of making me wait.. and I get soooo mad at him, I Can't describe!) so he calls me tells me 'There's something I have to tell you' and I say 'Yeah????' and he says 'I'll tell you when we meet in person' (Isn't that totally annoying!? I absolutely hate it!) I never annoy my friends like this because I understand the pain ( Pain? :P LOL) I think we humans love to create suspense and drama (why am I even surprised!) Why do you think Daily soaps are such a hit.. I think because people are nosy :P they want to know whats happening in other peoples life.  Then again the wait... the soaps make you wait and you wonder what will happen (do you even now-a-days? I think its totally predictable).

Another random thought about the waiting process - You know what I don't like about waiting too long? Its the fact that after you know you have waited for way longer than you should its making the decision to move on.  Just because we have invested that much time waiting of something to happen / appear you feel you can just put in a little more time.. it then sort of becomes like quick sand pulling you in deeper and deeper (that is the worst part). Its like waiting for the Buses in this city, after you have waited 30 minutes you know you will wait for another 10 minutes, but then even after another 15 more minutes there's no bus and you get into a Rickshaw... and soon as you start moving then you see the bus arriving (you feel worse when you see how freakin empty it is!!) Its just best to move on sooner if you don't find something than be stuck in one place because of the time already invested.  Moving on is good, change is always good. (did that sound like something from the book Who Moved my Cheese? Its just common sense I think but then that is so rare! :P)

They say the wait makes things seem worthwhile and if it weren't that we'd get bored even sooner. There's a lot I could write about this subject but I've run out of patience! So ending with quote I really love  :)

                 I am extraordinarily patient, provided I get my own way in the end.

- Margaret Thatcher

P.S.

I don't think I'm too impatient either.. I get like this when its gone beyond my patience limit :P

What Was Your Dream?

When I was young (like 5-6 years old) I hated it when people asked me this one question "What do you want to become when you grow up?" I those days there were just a couple professions I had heard of - Doctor or Engineer! I would say Doctor only because most of my classmates said that. I knew I did not really want to become a Doctor or an Engineer but I was not aware of any other options.  I thought may be things will change and I will do something different.

Sometime later when my Dad and I used to stargaze and Mum told me about the man on the moon (Neil Armstrong and Rakesh Sharma the first Indian in space ) I dreamed of becoming an Astronaut. I actually  had dreams of floating among stars and walking on the Moon :P I remember there was news of UFOs and I wondered what would happen if I were ever kidnapped :P  Later I learnt that Astronauts need to have a strong mathematical base - I really HATED Math so much that I changed my mind and gave up my astro dream.

When I was 10 I attended my first proper science class.  I liked biology and wanted to become a scientist. Around the same time I used to watch Captain Planet - it was a show that taught kids about pollution and how we can save our planet (Click This Wiki Link to know about him). I was totally into it and learnt the title song.  I think I still remember it - Captain Planet, he's our hero, gonna take pollution down to Zero.  He's our powers magnified .... something something and then ended with We're the Planeteers, You can be one too. 'Cause saving our planet is the thing to do Looting and polluting is not the way, Hear what Captain Planet has to say: "The Power is Yours!!" :D and even made notes of all the GK they shared (I actually wrote down the points!) that was a really good show and I miss it sometimes. So yeah, I wanted to do something for the planet and dreamt about inventing something that will save the world from global warming. Here also again.. Science students were required to be good at Math! So numbers made me change my mind again.

When I was about 12 I wrote my first poem and wrote about 49 more! :) Yep.. I wrote about anything I remember I had written one about the seed germination process.  Then something bad happened, I had a made a book of my poems and given it to someone to read.. and they lost it! Can you believe it!? They just LOST it!! That hurt me so much I had written soo many poems and this person just loses it! I cried for days over it and then decided I will never write again (Well I'm still writing now! So something nice happened and I later changed my mind  :D) But around this time I realized I could write and thought of becoming a writer too.  

When I was preparing for my board exams I had decided I would be going for Arts and majoring in Literature and Psychology (Yes I'm serious!) I wanted to be a Journalist or something to do with Psychology (I was interested in reading people).  I had even bought the admission form of the Arts college. Now, my Mum was sneaky - she asked me one little question "Do you like to write short answers or lengthy ones that span pages and pages?" I said Short ones.  She explained that arts students have to really write pages and pages for their exams while Commerce students just need to create one balance sheet or solve a problem and they get full marks.  She also said its not like Math and I would be fine. Well, that was all it took and I eventually ended up in a Commerce college and specializing  in Management. I had no idea then as to what I would be exactly doing for a profession.

When I was in college I came across this one Astrology book by Cherio and for some time I even thought about Astrology (nice substitute for not making to Astronomy :P) but this was short lived again due to all the numbers and calculations! I have a mental block around numbers.

I dreamed about a lot of things as a child but today I find myself somewhere else.  I hated math and numbers and avoided it so much that the course of my dreams changed and today I'm working for a financial company :P I don't regret it though. My work is nothing to do with numbers :P :D - I love systems and people interaction and my current job gives me that.  I think I am one of those people who are happy with with their job (most of the times :P)...

But, Zindagi abhi bohot baaki hai :) My love for writing is alive (I like to think) through this blog :) I guess somehow through all the things that we dream of the real passion stays alive no matter what. 

An Unlucky Day

Sometimes I wonder if there is anything like a bad omen or is it something we notice when things don't work for us.

It was bright and the noisy the traffic woke me.  I tried to look at the watch see what time it was and it looked like it was 10 am! I was suppose to wake up at 8 am!!! The phone alarm did not ring? No time to think had to quickly get ready.  I rushed in the shower and realized i had oiled my hair the previous night and it would take atleast 45 min to get ready to leave! Damn why was I late today!! I was out of the house by 11 am.. I was walking toward the train station and I see a black cat cross the road.  A thought corsses my mind - really!? Is it really true what they say? Nah! Its just superstitions. 

I reach the station and see the train leave.  I just missed it, just then there is an announcement the next train has been delayed by 15 minutes.  Its times like these when time seems to really really slow down! Grrr.  Tried listening to some music to take my mind off how late I was running today.  The train finally arrives, I'm just able to make it to work at the usual time 12 .45.  Its Monday and I had to finish somethings before the day could begin.  I'm hungry and decide to get some quick lunch I have just about 15 minutes before Monday fever grips me. 

There's a long queue for the full meal, so quick sandwich it is.  The sandwich people have a grill which they use and it was not working today.  I'm not surprised today! I asked for the cold sandwich to be packed and race to my desk... all the time to check out what to eat or not to eat has taken up 20 mins! I log in and see a meeting reminder pop up.. 10 minutes overdue and its a meeting with Boss! He is someone who hates latecomers.  Really! There's nothing worse than turning up late for his meeting.  This was the 4th time I've been late! This is just perfect for a day like this.  I quickly dial him and apologise for being late.  I'm able to finish lunch in between the call while on mute. Its back to back meetings till about 4 in the afternoon. The To-Do list just keeps getting longer :(

Its one of those days when you wish you had stayed in bed that morning.  Did the cat have anything to do with this? Was that really a bad omen or just a sign of what lay ahead! :(

Then something happens - I was in a meeting my phone begins to ring loudly... Its the alarm tone.  I tried to shut it off and it falls down (all eyes on me...) Just when you think the day could not get worse, it does! I look for it under the table it just keeps getting louder by the second.  I look at the time its 8 and its ringing I'm desperately trying to shut it off but nothing seems to work.  I can't see anything but the screen of the phone.  It has alarm bells dancing on the screen. Oh God the noise... make it stop! everything seems to disappear and all I can see is the phone ringing in my hand.  When I finally am able to stop it I realise its eight O'clock and Monday morning.

It was a dream and I'm glad I woke up! :) Had a good day at work, tasks right on schedule and left on time too :)

My Nikon!

My beloved camera is now no more.... I might sound silly to you if you don't know my love for pictures.  But what happened is truly heart breaking (for me atleast!).  I carried it around with me everywhere I went - everyday I took it to office in my bag in the hope that I might see something that is worth capturing.  And well I was able to get some really nice shots. I had bought it from Dubai after exchanging it for a really bad Olympus cam (it had terrible clarity and I will never ever buy an Olympus).

I had clicked about 2500 odd picture in a span of 2 months.  2500 is not much is it? Well I was travelling and seeing lots of new things so I was lucky to have Nikon with me.  Let me tell you about my Nikon: It was a Coolpix model # S3100, 14 MP cam with 5X zoom and a slim cool blue  body.

Isn't it gorgeous!?

I don't think it's silly to cry over a broken camera. Anyone who love's camera and owns one will understand.  Especially if its a 2 month old baby and after just 2500 clicks! Ye bhi koi uamart hoti hai aisa kuch hone ki? I captured some funny, random, really good moments thanks to Nikon. One of my friend consoled me saying 'Smile, you know your Nikon loved to capture that' That did bring a huge smile on my face :D (LOL! Yea I can be soo dramatic sometimes hehe)  Well I get attached so those few things which I have with me. I'm a click-happy person and well.. that hurt!

Here's the last moment captured on my Nikon.  

Moments before the tragedy. How happy we were.

If you are curious how a brand new cam broke, well here's the story.. so here we were clicking pics about some nonsense argument happening (was funny - see our faces!) another friend was clicking the picture so I decided why not keep it on timer and everyone can fit in the same frame. so was trying to balance it on a CPU on the desk...Switched it on and the lens was up and awake ready to shoot. I set the timer and was about to let go... and somehow I did not completely.  I brushed against the cam and it fell on the desk, bounced off and fell on the floor! :-O (Yeah! was an OMG Ouch! moment) The lens was still out and it got stuck.. something inside had broken and it would not click or close! :(  I broke it... yes ME!! Guilty me! 

Are you wondering why I did not repair it? Its because the cost of repairs would have fetched me a brand new cam! :D

May my heart rest in peace and move on to a newer cam :D I'm all ready to fall in love all over again thanks to all the support from my friends and family during this trying time :)  I'm Cam hunting again :D

Update: I bought a new camera in November 2011 read about how beautiful it is here