- PonderingTwo September 2014 ~ Pondering Two The title of your home page

Tuesday 30 September 2014






Welcome to "Verses @ PonderingTwo".


It's a new day and a new challenge. 


But before we begin, let me brief you again what is Verses @ PonderingTwo all about.


So what is it?

Every fortnight I will put up a prompt along with a particular type of poem on which you have to creatively write a poem.


What you have to do?

1) Write a poem based on the given prompt. (Scroll down for the prompt)

2) Upload the post to the linky given at the end of the post.


Rules:

1) All poems must be freshly written and original.

2) Include the line "Linking this post to the poetry challenge at Verses @ PonderingTwo" and hyperlink it to the current post.

3) Also copy paste the Logo i.e. the above Picture, at the end of your post.

4) Only ONE link per blog is allowed.

5) Only ONE poem per post is allowed, be it even the smallest of the poem. So give your best shot.

6) Also, one Tweet and one Facebook update sharing your post is mandatory. Also while sharing it on Twitter and Facebook use the hashtag #VersesAtPonderingTwo for being easily noticed.


Total Three winners will be selected (provided the entries exceed a minimum of Five) out of the total entries and they will receive a Winner's Image to flaunt it on their blog.




The Prompt

You have to write an ABC poem, theme being 'Celebration'.

ABC poem is a series of lines which depicts a mood, picture or feeling such that the first line starts with alphabet A, the second line starts with alphabet B and so on.

The Challenge

Write an ABC poem using all the alphabets from A till Z
(i.e.The poem will have 26 lines starting from A and ending at Z)

or

Use all the words: Cutie pie, Foxy and Hug in your poem
(The lines should Not necessarily begin with above words)

or

Use both the above challenges into your ABC themed poem.


Hope you liked the prompt and have a great time penning your poem. Ready steady Po!


Kindly add your links to the linky given below.






P.S. The idea is derived from +Shailaja V who blogs at The Moving Quill

Friday 26 September 2014



BlogAdda’s newest initiative is to #CelebrateBlogging with a series of contests, starting with one called a Game of Blogs. Teams of bloggers take turns creating a round robin story of sorts that they post to their individual blogs.

Team Blogsters

Tara came out of the editorial meet with a sullen face but a throbbing heart. She was angry that Anshuman simply could not let her concentrate on the things that help her earn money. Rather he was busy eyeing her with passion that was as deep as the sea and making suggestive faces that made her heart race and her lips to quiver.

Anshuman who promptly followed her, stopped her midway, and raised his brow with a mute what.

“As if you don’t know, Anshuman”, replied Tara looking straight into his eyes.

“If I cannot flirt with my soon-to-be-wife, then with whom I can flirt, Miss Bunny?”

“You’re impossible.” Tara shook her head, gave a swooning little smile.

“See you soon”, she winked at him and left towards the parking lot.

Work had taken a lot of her young and happy days as she had completely forgotten to live her life and enjoy it to the fullest. In fact she got so embroiled in her work that sometimes she would spent sleepless nights at her office cubicle and sometimes she would just doze off at her office’s guest room. Work for her had become her medicine, medicine for her past, her once upon a time husband Shekhar and her lovely daughter Roohi. If something that could stop her thoughts meandering across to Roohi and her whereabouts that would be simply her work and God send Anshuman.

Anshuman’s company had become a home for Tara. She never felt that comfortable in Anuhuman’s company as she felt now. That one night stand had worked as a miracle for her. After an initial guilty feeling, it had changed their relationship forever and for good.

She felt a sense of relaxation, a sense of oneness when Anshuman is around. Though she felt like detesting his flirting habits every now and then but at the same time she also felt important, that someone is there who cares about her, who lovers her. Her heart ached for his closeness, for his smell, for his weird sense of humor, for the way he cared and for everything that was Anshuman when he wasn’t near her.

Read the previous part of the story here
Read the next part of the story here.

Wednesday 24 September 2014

It is time for the photo-quote to be shared here on Pondering Two.

We hope that you are liking what Pondering Two has to say.

This time around we have something that will entice your feelings that might have been stuck in one of the corners of your heart.

So, here's presenting the Day 5 in the #PonderingTwoSays series...


#PonderingTwoSays



Do leave you comments on the same and kindly share.

See you on Friday, till then;

Keep Smiling & Spread Love.

XOXO.

Wednesday 17 September 2014


Hello everyone! Hope Wednesday is treating you with ample of excitement and surprises in store. And if it doesn't, go grab a taste of the relationship that you are in. Am sure it will work wonders!

So, presenting the Day 4 of the photo-quote series. And today we have something on Love & Relationships.

So this is what  #PonderingTwoSays for today:-






Please do let us know what do you think about it?


Till then, Keep Smiling, Spread Love !! :)

Tuesday 16 September 2014



Welcome, everyone, to the first ever Poetry Challenge on Pondering Two : Verses @ PonderingTwo


(P.S. - The idea is derived from +Shailaja V, who blogs at The Moving Quill.)


 photo 689343c9-89d3-4660-b463-0999c8b50bc8_zps7277fedd.jpg





  What is it all about?


Every fortnight, I will put up a prompt along with a particular type of poem that you have to write which will be posing as a creative challenge for all the poetry lovers. (Scroll below for the prompt) 


What you have to do?



1) Write a poem based on the given prompt and post it on your blog.


2) Upload the post to the linky given at the end of this post.


After the linky closes in two weeks or maximum 20 entries, I will pick up the top 3 verses and feature them with a link to their post in a follow up post. (In case of time constraints, the current post will be edited and the top 3 posts will be featured at the top of the post.)




What do you get?


If your post is selected, you'll get:

1) A winner's image to display it on your post. (For the best post)



2) Runner's up image for the second best post



3) 2nd runner's up image for the third best post.


Rules:

1) All the poems must be freshly written and original. 



2) Include the line : "Linking this post to the poetry challenge  for Verses @PonderingTwo" hyper-linking it to the current post. 



3) Also copy paste the below mentioned html code into your html design part of the post. 





4) A backlink to this blog for the challenge will be appreciated though not necessary.

  

5) Only one link per blog will be allowed.





6) Only one poem per post is allowed. Be it even the smallest of the poem. So give your best shot.


7) Also it is mandatory while sharing it on Twitter or Facebook to use the hashtag      #VersesAtPonderingTwo for being easily noticed. 





The Theme:



Use the word "Purr" or "Bow wow" or both creatively in a Haiku of 17 syllables in the form of 5-7-5.



Add your links to the linky given below.





Monday 15 September 2014

BlogAdda’s newest initiative is to #CelebrateBlogging with a series of contests, starting with one called a Game of Blogs. Teams of bloggers take turns creating a round robin story of sorts that they post to their individual blogs.

Team Blogsters

Chapter 6

The atrium had been flooded with people exchanging greetings, sharing some laughs, chatting animatedly and making the most of the perfect chance to enjoy some cosy moments under the dimly lit hall. Glasses had been overflowing with various alcoholic drinks making everybody tipsy. It had been one of the most prestigious annual parties in the town, organized in a five star hotel, with guests from various hues and shades of life attending the two day affair. From employees of the company to famous personalities to the who’s who of the ever expanding Bollywood industry, it had been a gala night that would stretch on till the wee hours of the morning.

The click-clack of her high heels gave him a dash of excitement which was quite evident on his wide, oblong face.

There he was, standing six feet tall, wide eyes, jaws detailing his contours with a neatly done beard. His crisp white party shirt detailed his brawny physique, with chiselled muscles threatening to bulge out anytime from his flexed arm that rested on the sides of the serving table near the bar.

He raised his right hand, waved at her and gave her a sexy smile while spilling some of the drink onto the floor. 

“Hey, Bun-ny! You are looking as ravishing as a star in the night sky”, said Anshuman with a hug.

Tara chuckled and thanked him for the compliment.

“Stop calling me ‘bunny’. I’m Tara.” She smirked. “Or else I’ll have to start calling you ‘Dosa’.”

“I am not as ardent a lover of dosas as you are of buns,” retorted Anshuman, with a wink of his eye.

“Oh, Ansuhuman! You really come across as a breather for me, always relieving me from office tension and work pressure,” Tara said with a smile. Thanks for being there, Anushuman, she thought.

“There is a thing called sex which can also help in relieving your tensions and worries,” Anshuman said, with a wicked smile on his face.

“You are impossible, Anshuman!” cooed Tara with a shake of her head. Sex, with Anshuman? Of course he was attractive, but Anshuman was her colleague. And she was married.

Tara asked the bartender for her usual Cosmopolitan, excused herself and started mingling with the other colleagues and personalities present at the event.

The night dawned with them letting their hair down, dancing to the alternate tunes of soft and metal with the majority of them highly inebriated. It was almost the wee hours of the morning that the party wounded up with everyone almost falling over each other, helping  each other to their rooms.

“See you at the awards function,” said one of the Tara’s female colleagues as she exited the lift with a wave of her hand. Tara ignored her and continued walking in the opposite direction, taking the support of the wall. She took small measured footsteps towards her room which was at the far end of the corridor.

The grapevine had already pitted Tara’s enemy to receive the most prestigious award of ‘The Best Employee’.  The news had made her livid. But nothing was for sure until the award had been handed out. Such was the secrecy that the company maintained. Hearing the rumor was one thing, but Tara just could not handle everyone going gaga over the supposed winner. She had worked hard the entire year, giving more than her sweat and blood and she was right in thinking that she deserved this award more than anyone else.

Upon reaching her room, she swiped her keycard, entered and shut the door behind her. The room was dark. The lights failed to brighten the room as they usually do when one puts the card in the card holder.

She removed and inserted the card again. But darkness reigned.

She was about to open the door and ask for some assistance when someone from behind pulled her into his arms and forced his lips onto hers, pushing away the lock of hair that fell on her cheeks courtesy her short hairstyle. With a scream, she pulled away.

“It’s only me,” came the husky voice, and Tara shuddered.

“Anshuman! You scared me.”

“Sorry,” he said, turning on the lights now. He didn’t look so sorry. He looked sexy, standing there all disheveled, with his hair mussed and her lipstick on him.

“What—” she began, and then shrugged helplessly.

“Come on, Tara,” Anshuman said, taking a step closer. “We both knew this would happen eventually. We both knew it was only a matter of time before we gave in to what we both feel.”

And then he was kissing her again. And this time, before she could figure out what was happening, Tara was kissing him back.

After a while, she came back to her senses, and pushed him away.

"No, this isn't the right thing to do! God will never forgive us. Don’t you know I'm married?!" Tara said in a trembling voice. Her worst fears were coming true.

"I know you are married, Tara darling, but that man Shekhar doesn’t stand a chance with a beautiful girl like you."

Before Tara could say anything, he continued, "Look at you, Tara! You are not just beautiful but much more than just that. You could every Bollywood actress a run for her money! Why are wasting your time with a bald—"

Tara cut him off, he may be speaking the truth but this was her personal life. No one has the liberty to speak about her or her married life. 

“Listen here—” she began, but this time, he was the one who cut her off.

"You can't deny the truth, Tara," he said and sealed her mouth with a kiss.

The kiss was less passionate and more out of need. She wasn't sure whether to play along or stop it. His lips softened in their force as she pulled him closer, and the kiss became gentler, more passionate. Slowly they removed the burden of clothes as passionately as it can be done.

Tara seemed to be as hungry as ever as she pushed him against the wall and started biting his lips, cheeks and neck frantically. Their bodies were pressed against each other as their tongues continued exploring within. Tension had risen. It was only a matter of time that they got rid of their clothes and in a sudden surge he started frantically kissing Tara wherever he found her soul.

Tara placed her hand below, between his thighs and started caressing while he had his fingers playing into her insides. She let out a soft moan. Turning her around he cupped her from behind feeling the soft flesh in his hands as he delicately bit the area around the nape of her neck. Tara, all of a sudden, turned to face him and reached for his shaft, feeling it to be as strong as steel.

She feasted as he begged her to stop. Anshuman groaned while she pushed him over to the bed. They rolled over, with Tara lying on her back and Anshuman on top of her, driving himself into her. Thrust after thrust. Deeper and deeper. Pure ecstasy.

Spent, they laid back on the bed.

The sun shining through the soft curtains made Tara open her eyes, with a mild headache troubling her. As the memories of the night before returned, she felt her heart sink, and then die a slow death. She was completely naked in the bed, only covered with a thin sheet of duvet.

A sense of realization dawned upon her with the rising sun with no one to be found in her room.

She couldn’t believe herself. “I slept with Anshuman,” she gasped. Hearing the words out loud still didn’t make it seem real. Trembling, she picked up the thank you note placed on the nightstand.

The rest of the day, Tara had avoided Anshuman like the plague, dodging all his attempts at conversation—and worse, at a repeat of the night before.

That evening had been a mixed one for her.  On the one hand she had committed a big mistake, and on the other, contrary to the grapevine she’d won the coveted ‘Best Employee’ award.

She hadn’t known how to react as she’d spent the night behind closed doors with her trophy and lots of questions to accompany her. Afterwards, she’d tried her best to forget the night, going back to treating Anshuman as nothing more than a colleague, but it was as if Shekar had sensed her transgression somehow. He’d become more controlling, more jealous, and they’d fought more and more, until finally, she’d ended up calling Cyrus, her brother’s best friend—and prominent divorce lawyer.

And now, here she was, three years later, with a few more trophies lining her shelves, but the best thing in her life—her daughter, her Roohi—was gone.



Tara would trade every single one of those shiny, stupid trophies for her daughter in a heartbeat.


Read the previous part of the story i.e. chapter 5 here
Read the next part of the story i.e.chapter 7 here

“Me and my team are participating in ‘Game Of Blogs’ at BlogAdda.com. #CelebrateBlogging with us.”

Friday 12 September 2014


Shailaja V is hosting a weekly blogging challenge From 15 to 50: Fiction Link Up-September 2014 and I am participating in it for some challenge.


So here it goes:



Three similar pots in increasing order besides every deceased body, an evidence or a planted one?

Her perspective changed, from suicide to murder. His remained focussed.

An extraordinary turn of events placed herself as prime suspect leading to her conviction.

A perfect three in a row for him!

Fate sealed.


Word count: 50

Word prompt: Perspective

Phrase prompt: Three in a row


Picture prompt: 

Photo Courtesy: Shailaja V/ The Moving Quill



Linking this to the Fiction Challenge ‘From 15 to 50′




Love is one of a kind emotion that can erupt from nowhere and can stay for eternity. It is also an emotion that can give you joys as well as pain. But here we are not going to talk about pains, sufferings and such like. We will talk about joys, happiness that love gives us through the Day 3 in our photo-quote series which is posted every Wednesday and Friday.

So presenting the Day 3 of the series where #PonderingTwoSays and feels:









Please do share your views upon this... 

Also, here are the past posts on the series:

XOXO

Wednesday 10 September 2014


Howdy people! Hope you are all rejuvenated and in high spirits after series of extended weekends which ended just recently. Time to roll up your sleeves for the boring 6 day working September before the October Festivities begins.

Also, the Ganesh Chaturthi festival has ended with the majority of us taking the blessings of our favorite Lord and wherein we bid adieu to the Elephant God with a lot of Band, Baaja and Celebrations. (Read Garba)

So for today's photo-quote we have something related to this tradition of Idol immersion.

Presenting the Day 2 in our photo-quote series. #PonderingTwoSays





Do let us know your views about the photo-quote.

Also you can view the Day 1 of the series here.

Friday 5 September 2014


Hello everyone!! Hope the days and the nights are treating you with equal amount of Love and Affection.

It's been a while since something creative have been done by us and hence we thought of coming up with a photo-quote series dealing on Love, Relationships, Emotions and so on by the hash-tag #PonderingTwoSays. This photo-quote series will be done twice a week, Wednesday & Friday. 

Eagerly looking forward for your views upon this new idea and the quotes that goes with it!!

Drum rolls!! Presenting Day 1 of the series!!

Since today being the World Teachers' Day, what better way to thank your another set of parents who have taught us many valuable things in our life since our childhood and probably continuing it till date...

So here's what #PonderingTwoSays






Monday 1 September 2014







The Blurb:-

Where Even the Present is Ancient: Benaras is a book that seeks to tell the little stories that make us who we are. The author believes that Benaras resides in all of us Indians, in some beautiful often unknown way. The author is the Sutradhar, in that she attempts to connect an India that many do not realize exists, in that it is everybody’s story. Radha, Krishna, Ganga, Benaras and Me are all characters in this deluge of poems.

This attempt at telling the story of the ancient, of love and of faith is to instil the confidence that poetry exists in all of us, everywhere, all that is needed is to smell its fragrance.

To those outside India, the book does not seek to be a representation of what India is or was, but a whiff of what it also can be. It is an attempt to ask people to see the little stories that govern all of our lives, stories that we often don’t see, but those that are important.

The audience for this book might be strewn across the globe, for faith is not religion-centric, it is people-centric and often without dimensions.

In poetry there is no beginning, no middle, nor no end. Like faith it is everywhere, it is omnipresent. The book affords no answers, nor no questions, but if you listen and read carefully you will see new things, a new beauty perhaps, one that has been silent so long.



Review:-

'Where Even the Present is Ancient: Benaras'  is a collection of fifty vivid poems portraying the city called Benaras; wading through the fragrance of Benarasi Kaththaa to the fisherman's Ganga eventually describing Ganga to the Dashwamedha ghat, Assi ghat, Panchganga ghat and Manikarnika ghat to the various hymns chanted on the banks of the river Ganga to the foreigners and the Benaras market.

The poems are simple yet striking taking you to a journey of a land forgotten and seen mostly through the cinematic lens. Each and every word, the sentences, did strike a chord with me making it a transparent experience of sorts. Also, the little notes at the bottom of the poems makes it easier to understand and interpret the poem thus feeling a sense of belongingness to the city called Benaras.

The author has brilliantly painted a string of emotions attached in her poems through a thorough description of the revered city of Benaras that lingers in your mind for days. 

Few Striking Verses:-


Pg. 45. While the Ganga swelled,
             tousled hair, met wrinkled face.
             They had crossed their own distances,
             To mate philosophy with poetry,
             in a melting pot called Ganga.

Pg. 48. Divinity is cheap, I think
            And so is living-
            It is only the dying and the dead,
            That become priceless. 

Pg. 60. Her waters drown me somehow,
             deep within her.
             She is the beginning and the end,
             She shall wait and stand by me
             And in her I shall be free.



Overall: A rare collection of poems that takes us through the mystic city of Benaras. A must read !!!


Ratings:- 4/5* 

You can buy this wonderful book from Flipkart and Amazon




About the Author


Author: Maitreyee B Chowdhury


Maitreyee B Chowdhury is a web columnist and creative writer. She is author of Reflections on My India, a book of Indian traditions and spirituality in parts. Maitreyee is also author of Uttam Kumar and Suchitra Sen- Bengali Cinema’s First Couple and Ichhe Holo Tai, a bilingual muti media presentation of poetry. Maitreyee is featured amongst other Indian writers such as Gulzar, Shashi Tharoor and Deepti Naval in an anthology of Indian writers Celebrating India. 



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