The dryness of the winter spell is finally succumbing to the welcome thaw of a new summer here in Karachi. Carts of dry fruits are morphing into carts of fresh fruit as the season of mangoes beckons from afar and the weather turns warmer and pleasant.
Seems Rabi ul awal has also arrived which can be usually measured by the Mullahs of my neighborhood mosque going quite berserk and their fervor overpowering night and day into an endless series of naats and screams of allah hu akbar from the mosques loud speakers at full blast, indeed I had no answers to my daughter who queried me in the morning today and asked “what is wrong with them, they’ve been on for the past 24 hours straight” I told her it is the force of Islam in 2, 12 hr shifts she is witnessing. She replied with a “I think they are silly”, alas if more of us were this honest.
On the local tech front there has been a welcome addition to the blogging community in Karachi and Pakistan in general with the repackaged relaunch of Dawns blog. I am sure this will garner a new age of sensibility into the scrappings offered by our various newspapers in the form of their own corporate blogs and perhaps even an opportunity for the tapping of undiscovered talent which has been a point on display in dawn’s blog. The reason why Tazeens posts are getting loads more comments than Kamila shamsies fantasies about our future should be hopefully not lost on editors. Not that Ms Shamsie is not a great writer but her blogging is unfortunately listless, Muhammad Hanif although is as luminous as the stars seen from shigri hill still. Could someone please also send them a better web designer though, their front page is about as organized as my desk.
Last but not the least the new year has now gained in momentum and even my hand has discovered the joy of printing 09 on my cheques rather than a crossed out 08 in the date column, seems the body takes a bit of time to realize what has passed which may even be a defence mechanism against aging, always a silver lining eh?
Speaking of linings, my British friends seem to think that my head is too far above the parapet due to some of my posts here in an unstable regime. I think I have nothing to fear though at least for the impending summer as we will soon have no electricity and thus no one checking anything least of all insignificant blogs. Fascinating thing is how the English still think of us as people who still live in castles and all…alas those grand parapet and harem days are quite over. We are more into overflowing sewerage holes and neighborhood flyovers these days. Even for those we are being taxed, by our marvelous CDGK not that I mind paying “if” they can ensure a clean and quiet neighborhood.
To orange ice lollies and sweltering heat, let us all burn to the summers beat.