I belong!

I like the night. I like the peace and quiet.

The moon has been my oldest friend. The stars have played hide & seek with me for as long as my memory goes.

I like the fact that nobody can see me. Maybe I just show that I'm brave, but actually I feel safer when I hide behind the dark of the night?

For a fact, I know what most people are doing. But nobody knows what I am doing!

It may sound weird, but I can hear the calmness. I can hear the nothingness of the night. It appeals to me. Always has.

We talk. We think. We breathe. And most importantly, I belong!

- Sincerely,

The Moon-child.

Freedom is Delusional

 

Freedom is delusional.

Yes, we live in a free country. But, whether we're really free or not, is pretty debatable.

One can barely pass a dinner invite, without being forced to eat what's on the Menu! 

"Oh! You don't like Shrimp?! Oh! You don't even eat enough greens??" As if, the world's going to come crashing down if someone doesn't like Shrimps, or Hilsa! These are expensive meats. So, the ones who don't like them, are perceived as snobs! Ones who don't eat enough greens are perceived to be leading unhealthy lives, or too pampered by their parents. 

But on the other hand, you tell them that you're allergic to a Shrimp, then they're fine by it. They just cannot tolerate the fact that you choose your food preference as per your own free will. You have to be either forced by them, or by some health problem like an allergy!

If you speak too much out of your own free will, then you talk to much. If you are an introvert, who CANNOT talk so much, you're a freak in nature and definitely arrogant! If you have opinions, you're a bitch! If you don't have opinions, you're stupid.

If you like the night, over the day time, there's something terribly wrong with you! But if you're working for an international organisation that mandates you to work late in the night, then you're very successful!

Your choice of songs defines your character and status! It cannot just be based on your current mood. Because that's acting out of your own free will!

What everybody is doing, is normal. And if you're not doing the same thing then you are an abomination.

Seriously?

Who, even, defined what normal is?! Is it even binded by law?

Our ancestors, the freedom fighters died for nothing?

Tattoo as Therapy

After a bold and out there post on LinkedIn, I received a lot of DMs from women across various age groups & professions. They were all talking about how they relate with me, have been through the same experience, but are uncomfortable in speaking out. This incident made me realise how our society's practise of suppressing women still has a strong hold on the behaviour of even the modern day women! I thought I would reach out to such women and publish their stories on my blog, keeping them anonymous.

So, here we go... The first one of the lot.

--- 

Anonymous, 34, Female.

It wasn't until a few days back, that I learnt how getting Tattoos is a way of stopping yourself from causing self harm.

What's sad is that I've known both of those things quite closely, through my adolescence. But I've never known about this fact back then.

Growing up, just like most of you all, I fell for the wrong guys, invested too much emotion in them. Whenever I would have a fight, I would self harm. It started with smaller cuts but gradually I got addicted to it. And I didn't even know how! I would harm myself more, over the period of time. Deeper cuts. More pain. And not just that. Whenever I had a fight with anybody at all, be it those guys, or my parents, my grandparents, whosoever it was, I would self harm. 

I had no idea how to get out of it even though I wanted to, after a lot of scars. But I wasn't able to.

It was something so compelling. I felt like I wouldn't live without it. I would be dying. Not able to breathe. Choking on my tears. Only the physical pain would be able to subside my emotional pain. As if the body automatically reached for something to harm myself with. 

I used to think of it like a sacrifice. That if I would hurt myself, if I would bleed, then everything will be fine again. People will love me again, and not go away from me. Soon enough I realised that nothing can stop the ones who decide to leave, who choose someone or something other than you.

I struggled to stay alive over the next year.

One day, all of a sudden I wished to get a tattoo done, marking the victory of surviving through one of my worst phases in life. One tattoo led to another, and then another. And I didn't even realise how I left behind my self-harming-self.

Five years later...

I felt it again. The uncontrollable need to self harm. I guess I had gone too long without getting a tattoo. I had a few ideas in my mind but I refrained from getting more tattoos. As if I was unknowingly looking for answers as to why I should get more tattoos done. 

And He answered my question. I believe. Because I'm a spiritual person. 

I stumbled upon this on the internet.

You can read the full article here.

You may also read this and this.

Today, standing where I am, I just wish that someone was there to tell me how to stop myself from self harming. Or, would have been just there to share the pain.

Being independent is addictive!

I started looking for a new job since the mid of March this year, after leaving the last organisation due to their financial crisis. I looked throughout the month of April and into the first week of May. By this time, I have no shame in admitting, I had stepped into depression.

Not getting a job for this long, was driving me crazy. It wasn't that I was unaware of the market situation and didn't come across the numerous posts on LinkedIn where people were saying that they haven't been able to get a job for almost a year now. But it was just that, I have quit as well as lost jobs before. And never did it take me more than 3-4 weeks to get a new job.
The few interviews I was getting, were quite humiliating because the interviewers had already formed an opinion about me based on my short stints and were just conducting the interview to grill me. A few HRs called and said, "you've left jobs so soon that you don't have a stand in asking for a desired CTC". One HR straightaway offered that I can get the job but with 10% hike only, and a day later she mentioned that there will be a 20% salary deduction.
I was struggling to stay positive but still I decided not to break in front of these null & void opportunities.
Being in the advertising industry for 6 years, I have seen and tolerated a lot. I didn't want to be taken advantage of, any more!
I kept applying. A lot of people started reaching out to me over LinkedIn DMs. They were trying to help me out. They were sharing mail IDs of people in their circle. But nothing worked out.

But. By the end of May, I had fallen in love with my independence.
I was getting freelance projects. There was no stress of a bad boss sitting on my head. There was no feud with the client servicing person. There was no communication gap between the client and me. There was no set rule of timings and attendance, that I was enticed to break!

You see, people like me, work because they love their work. But if we are told, or forced, or bossed around, to do the same work, we feel a strong repulsion.

When I was getting these freelance opportunities, I was directly talking to the client. Understanding their requirement better. They were understanding me better, trusting me more, because there was no other SPOC to steal the charm. I was quoting the price I thought was right for the kind of brief and the requirement. The client understood my expertise and my value, and agreed for the quotes. I felt more respected, in comparison with the times when I was working at a few organisations. And this independence felt addictive.

I started getting decent offers, but I wasn't willing to go back to being a slave. So, an offer that was more than decent had to do the trick for me. Along with the money, now the work culture and the kind of people in the organisation were also the key factors driving me towards the decision of taking the offer and going back into the grind.
What happened next is a story for another time. But for now, all I can say is that I'm sailing on two boats, trying to make the right decision, best for my future.

How caring is DruCare?

I recently came across this SaaS project. 
Did a bit of reading on it, through the website and brochures and hence, jotting down a simplified version below. 

Drucare has brought to life, the most integrated healthcare SaaS platform in India, with zero upfront costs for its services.
What it means is that, it is an online service provider for patients as well as healthcare organisations to take care of end-to-end patient journeys.

Drucare is especially important and useful at times like these, when being exposed to regular commute and face-to-face healthcare professionals can turn out to be a greater risk. For the patients, Drucare helps with

•  storing their healthcare data on cloud and accessing it whenever-wherever

• managing their chronic conditions

• connecting with their specific healthcare professionals at convenience

• maintaining a consolidated digital record that can be shared with various healthcare providers throughout a lifetime, using the App DrucareCliQ

As for the healthcare organisations, Drucare helps them to go paperless. It is not just beneficial & easier for the people but also for Nature & our planet Earth because it helps to save paper.

Further, the data can be seamlessly shared with the patients or their family members on smartphones or other digital devices.

Going paperless works for both the organisations as well as the patients because it saves a lot of time and spares them from the tedious work of storing all important papers properly, the mishap of losing them, etc.

Last but not the least, what adds value to the answer of this particular question - how caring is DruCare?

The founder of DruCare is actually a doctor, who went to the lengths of teaching himself to code and also researched the ecosystem for several years.

The DruCare team is young & energetic and most importantly, extremely hardworking. The team of advisors come with experiences in India as well as the USA.

Your seamless, paperless, on-your-fingertips healthcare process starts with Signing Up with DruCare.

A Ride Down the Memory Lane

 

On this World Bicycle Day, I couldn't but think of my childhood when cycling for a minimum of 2 hours every single day, was my ritual. 

I had a group of friends to ride with. Sometimes there were 4-5, sometimes just one and at times I would even ride by myself. And I enjoyed that as well. Just me and my bicycle.

We have pretty little lakes in our neighbourhood. Sometimes we used to catch a breath sitting by the lakeside. The evening Sun would make the water shine and we would throw rocks to make ripples.
Sometimes we even had mini-parties, with Lays!

The numerous memories of those days still float in front of eyes, as if it was just yesterday! 
That time when one of my friends ran into the drain with his cycle.
That other time when I was showing off, riding with my hands off and a dog came running into my cycle. Oh, I saved him. But crashed myself and my hands were badly scratched. Tried hiding it at home but it was too big a wound.
Then there was that time when we were parked by the lake and throwing rocks into the water, but one of the rocks thrown by a friend hit my forehead. Had a bandage on, for a week! It kind of felt good, though! Getting hurt, doing what you love, feels good. Doesn't it?

And that's how I even learnt cycling!
At first I tried to learn along with my childhood besties while they were learning from their father. But I've been a sucker for strictness and rules from the very childhood. Didn't like the way he scolded and shouted!
I went back home with a heavy heart. 

Then my little brother came to visit during the summer vacations. He already knew how to ride his cycle and agreed to teach me. So, the two of us took my cycle out. We were just out of our gate and I climbed on to the cycle, thinking he was holding it from the back. I took off and only after a few paddles, realised that he was still at the gate, closing the latch! And then I crashed.
But hey! I learnt it in just 2-3 days! I owe that one to my brother.

And ever since...
I loved going for a spin. Wouldn't miss it for the world. I used to take my cycle everywhere - tuitions, art classes, dance rehearsals. Even if I was sent by my Mom to deliver something to the neighbours or get something from the kirana store, I would try to find an excuse to take my cycle. 

Thankfully I had really supportive parents. They let me take out my bicycle whenever I wanted. They even bought me three cycles! Obviously at different stages of my life.
A lot of aunties told my mother that as a female I shouldn't be riding the bicycle so much. It would harm my ovaries and uterus! I would have problems getting married then. Or, having children.
But, touch wood, my mother was a better judge than them! She never stopped me. She wouldn't even stop me from taking my cycle out on my periods. She told me that if it didn’t hurt me, then it's fine by her too!

I wish I could still go around on my bicycle as freely and safely. Unfortunately there's no concept of separate cycling lanes, in India. Except for a few cities. 
The weather at certain cities also doesn't make it any easier for us to cycle to work.

Though it's quite rare, but whenever I get a chance, I still ride my cycle. 
Like I just did for the five months when I was working from home, in Calcutta.
Like the time when we had an office trip to Eco Park.
Like the time when I visited Bir Billing and rented a bicycle, rode around the hills. Downhill was such a kick, I can vouch for. But try it only if you have a good balance and grip!

And last but not the least, Happy World Bicycle Day!!!

Living in live-in in India!

Living in, isn’t about having sex day in and day out. But that’s how it’s perceived in India!

It is like a live compatibility test.

It is about finding out how weirdly your partner snores. Or about being traumatised by their level of OCD, yet choosing to stick to them. It is about throwing things at each other during a fight.

It’s about spending the whole night clearing out misunderstandings and going to office the next morning.

It's about getting to know about each other’s fears and favourites. 

About borrowing each other's clothes and never returning.

At times you would fight over who's not cooking that night. And then there would be times when the fight be about, who is cooking that night! 
You would also get to know whether they are a Pizza-person or a Biryani-person. And whether your food choices match or not!

At times you would feel everything is so perfect. And at times you two would struggle to stick around.

You would be getting to know their deepest darkest secrets, but you would also get to know about their sweetest memories.

You would get to see for yourself, how they behave with their friends & family. You would get to see how they behave with their peers at work. 

Everything would be out there, naturally. As it is. No hiding. No masks. No filter.

It is a process through which you learn to work it out even though your opinions are poles apart.

It’s about how you learn to be selfless when it comes to taking care of each other’s healths, and selfish when it comes to being drunk on each other’s happiness.

It is about everything in between, till you either make it or break it!

It is about being absolutely confirmed that you want to spend the rest of your lives together, before you spend on a 500-people dinner, out of whom 480 are fake!

If living in would have been seen with a tad bit of seriousness and a tad less of as a taboo, we could have saved a hell lot of divorces. And more importantly, a lot less of unhappy couples continuing in unhappy & unhealthy marriages.

Why I leave my jobs so soon?

Working for an organisation is much like being in a relationship.

It is not any one person's responsibility.

Retaining a job takes as much effort from the organisation and the people, as much as it takes from the employee. But that is not even close to the most difficult part of the situation. The most difficult and worst part is that people do not believe in such a simple thing.

It is important that the organisation and the people you work with, understand your worth while you are working with them and not after your talent gets recognised by another organisation and you resign!

It is important that you are recognised through your work and your talent, and not your inability to suck up to your boss or anyone else!

We don't stick to a relationship where the other person is disrespectful. Being abusive in a relationship, is against the law. So, why should we be working at an organisation where people are arrogant and disrespectful?
Why should we not speak up about the harassment at workplaces?

As we start to grow serious in a relationship, we place our trust in it, we start depending on each other, that is when we commit to stick to each other for life. 
It should be the same way for our worklife as well. Before we commit to stick to one particular organisation for all the right reasons, it is our right to look for that perfect organisation. And that can happen with your very first job, or your 10th job in a year! You shouldn't be judged for that.

Nobody can tell you what to do, when they have not been in your shoes. 
Nobody can take the decisions for you. 

Shantiniketan

I've always been attracted to this little traditional educational hub, pride of the Bengalis, tucked safely in the lap of nature at Shantiniketan, Bolpur. 

You hear rumours about these typical Goa plans which keep getting cancelled? Well, I had such plans for my trip to Shantiniketan throughout the three years of my graduation. Call me crazy, or call it the connection of sharing the birthday with Rabindranath Tagore.

Anyway. Guess when that plan finally succeeded! Towards the end of the first lockdown. 

I had finally managed to fly to my hometown after spending the first seven months of the lockdown in Delhi. And in the month of February I finally got to live my dream trip! 

If I had to sum up the experience, "it was blissful".

Of course, nobody told us about the whole University campus being closed and off-limits for tourists, due to Covid. But may be that was just a way of the Universe's conspiracy to get me to revisit.

We did take a tour of the perimeter though. The campus is humongous. Huge playgrounds. Of not just the conventional sports like Cricket and Football. But there were separate grounds for Basketball and Volleyball as well! Different acad blocks for the different specialisations were scattered over the whole area of Shantiniketan.

Though we didn't get to see the famous grounds of Poush Mela, the other sites of traditional importance and natural beauty made our trip a feel-good one. We visited Srijani Shilpagram - a place that showcases model homes of the traditional times, the handicrafts and lifestyle of the Eastern and North-eastern states of India.

There was absolutely no chance that we could miss out on the famous Sonajhuri Haat! I kept going back to that place for three consecutive days, out of the four days that we stayed there. Picked a handful lot of handmade jewellery that's a speciality of the place. And I must tell you, I gave quite a fight to the aunties who were trying to snatch away a piece I had picked up for my Mom!

Last but not the least, rather the best part of this trip - where we stayed!

Introducing - The Garden Bungalow.

Two buildings looking like the traditional Zamindari Bungalows adorning an expanse of a 3 acre garden. It is not just the majestic look but also the natural beauty around it, the gravelled walkways, the peaceful environment after Sundown, the organic farming - basically everything you lay your eyes on that captivates your soul at that place.

To top off the experience, we got served some amazing breakfasts and dinners! We started our days with Luchi & Aloor Dom, and ended them with Rice and Kochi Pathar Jhol (God! The taste still lingers on...)

What more can a Bengali ask for, right?

P.S.: For more visual delights like a video of the locals performing folk dance and tourists joining in, do visit my Instagram profile! ;)

Covid Care 101

It's been a month. And yet I cannot claim that I have completely recovered from Covid.

Thankfully, it didn't go overboard! I didn't have to head to the hospital. It was mild enough to be home quarantined. Or may be, it was because I was in denial!

Yes! I felt this urge to deny the fact that I've got Covid. Even though the fever felt nothing like ordinary. Even though there was uneasiness in the body and the paracetamol could barely keep the fever at bay for five hours. And yet, my instinct was to deny that it's Covid. 

Until it was finally time to face the fact on the 5th day, when I lost my sense of smelling. The fever had gotten better by then. Mainly because I had started taking Antibiotics from the very 2nd day.

Let me rewind and take you through the whole experience.

I felt feverish at night. Somehow made dinner and took a paracetamol just to be safe. I had just shifted from one flat to the other and I had it in the back of my mind that I might get infected inspite of the precautions.

The paracetamol did it's job and I was fast asleep. But kept feeling the chills through the night.

The next day I woke up with uneasiness and nausea. Made breakfast just because I had to take another paracetamol. I could barely eat! So I switched to liquid diet from that day and continued till the 6th day i.e. till the time the nausea lasted. In the mornings I would have some health drink. Afternoons would mean heavy soup. In the evening I would have some tea or coffee and at night, it would either be over boiled rice or daal.

Also continued the antibiotics for 7 days straight. 

Since I was in denial, I also avoided the few times I had trouble breathing on the first 3-4 days. But it wasn't alarming enough to raise a red flag of needing oxygen cylinders. The breathing problem mainly occurred during the night, or when I was doing some fast paced activity like washing clothes, or cooking. But now when I look at my social media feed, I thank my stars that I didn't have a condition where I needed oxygen cylinders.

On the 12th/13th day, all of a sudden I got the soury smell of a pickle I was taking out. And that was it. I tried smelling other things, with the excitement. But nothing!

And this state continued till the 19th day! I would get weird smells once in a while but not the complete smell of anything. For example, I would get the smell of some chemical from the shampoo I use but it wasn't the exact smell which I normally get from the shampoo. I really don't know how this Covid virus blocks out certain smells. Or may be it was just me. Because I normally have a heightened sense of smell, taste, sound and sight!

And on around the 23rd day when I finally got my complete smell back, trust me, you can never feel so happy to be able to smell your own poop!

Throughout the battle, the most important part was to keep hydrating myself so that the fluids flush out as much as unwanted bacteria and virus from the body. The second most important thing was to keep eating or having liquid diet so that the medicines would work properly. And what I felt, kept my breathing problem in check, was the repeated number of Karvol infused steam inhaling. I was doing it mainly because I already have a problem of Sinus and Migrain which keeps blocking my nose.

Though I know I can donate my plasma, I'm scared to go out to a hospital due to the fear of getting infected with a stronger strain of the virus. 

I really hope everyone reading this is safe and healthy, but just in case you are infected and would like to ask me anything, please drop a comment below and I would try to help you out.

Overheard in a public transport in Kolkata, in the month of November.

 

I am not much of an eavesdropper but couldn't help overhearing the discussion on this particular topic!

A few middle aged uncles were discussing about the probable results of the upcoming "vote" in the given scenario. Apparently a few of them were pretty convinced that the younger generation is so concerned about presentation and impression of one's personality that Modi is their hero! 

The way Modi carries himself is to fall for! And hence, the youth loves the beautification he does to the geographic locations where he wins. An unmatched quality for Mamata Banerjee! She just wears a white saree and runs around in chappals. But Modi has apparently invented a new style of clothing - the Modi jacket (modified version of formerly existing Nehru jacket).

Anyway, coming back to the topic. The conclusion drawn over the discussion was that the youth which is the maximum population, will drive the change and vote for BJP, thus changing the ruling party in Kolkata.

I just have a message for that uncle - so much for being so judgemental about the youth. Also, people like me who have been staying away from home in a different city barely get the chance to vote. How could we be judged for it?

Giving Up

 

Every other day I receive these "gyaans" of not to give up.

Is it really giving up until you change your number?

Is it really giving up until every single memory is lost?

Publish Karu ya Ka'rona'!

Just imagine...

all this was a scam!


All this. The pandemic, people falling sick, even dying, or even the virus itself. Just imagine if it was a big scam! A huge one!

What if there's no such virus at all.

What if it is all made up.

So that the economy could be harmed. The countries could be weakened.

And the people dead? Just collateral damage.

Now imagine who set us up.

Yes! The government.


And now I could be arrested for this post!

A one of a kind experience of a girl as young as 14 years of age.

A family vacation to Jim Corbett National Park kept her excited throughout the swaying journey in the train!

She was well-equipped for the jungle Safari in an open jeep! A first time for her.

When the morning came, she totally felt like she was in a movie!

In an open-jeep, dense jungle on both sides and a winding track for jeeps to strictly follow!

A guide and a driver to assist and instruct throughout the tour. It was a nice beginning.

Until came the time when the guide announced that they were deep in the woods to keep their eyes and ears open for the Tigers!

Only a few moments later, instead of tigers, there was a fleet of elephants crossing over the tracks from on side to the other.

Now, what adventure was there to see a fleet of elephants crossing by, right?!

So, the driver relaxed by turning his jeep off and resting on his bonnet and the guide reluctantly stared along with his tourists.

With no prior indication, the elephant last in the fleet gave an extremely loud grunt and started running towards the jeep!

Thanks to the driver’s swiftness and presence of mind, he started the jeep in no time and ran on reverse for about 500 metres!

All the tourists could see, as they drove for their lives, was a cloud of dust.

And all they could hear, were loud thumps and grunts of the elephant!

The jeep bumped on to a huge rock but thankfully landed safely back on the ground, while the father hugged his daughter and the wife tight!

After another 5 seconds, the elephant stopped chasing.

Still, the driver only stopped a few metres away, after making sure it was safe enough!

It took a while before everyone recovered of the shock and could speak again!

While the little girl had an experience of a lifetime so early in her life, her mother whispered prayers of relief and her father checked if she was hurt because of the rough ride!

Other tourist jeeps nearby had heard the loud grunts of the elephant and had hurled towards the location.

They started asking what had happened and the driver took pride in narrating his expert escapade…

It decides to come for us!

Starts the chase...

The jeep is on reverse and picks up speeds...

We, thankfully, lose it!

The Boy who Dured!

It was THE day! 

Finally! 

Nikhil hadn’t slept all night! 

He was finally meeting Salman Khan! His only idol ever since he had seen the movie “Kuch Kuch Hota Hai”! Yes. You read it right! People notice and fall in love with SRK when they see “Kuch Kuch Hota Hai”! But that’s not the case for Nikhil! He man-crushed on Salman Khan!

I mean, did you even remember that Salman Khan was there in the movie! Anyway...

Ever since, he has attained durability in letting go of the lady loves of his life!

Whenever his older sister needs him, he’s always there by her side! And it’s sometimes irritating that when she’s calling out for her Mom, he would pop up in front her trying to rescue the damsel in distress! Because, that’s how reliable he absolutely HAS to be! Just like Jai. Jai aka Salman Khan in the movie “Jai Ho”! Don’t you remember Tabu yelling out his name so many times?! D’oh! 

But there’s one thing you just cannot take a gig on! His excellence in studies. A full on nerd, a science genius! Always a topper in class, throughout his boards’ exams as well as in the college now. You have to give it to him for this! And that’s why he’s a favourite of the house. 

This time though, he had taken his chances in something completely different and earned himself the fruits of his hard work! 

It is not easy to get through the crowd of Delhi and reach to the audition of “Salman’s Biggest Fan”! But being a Delhi Boy, he managed to survive the push & pull, dodge the punches & kicks, because for him it was a “do or die” situation. He would get to meet Salman Khan! Personally! 

His zeal and love for the man, did take him to the final three who would get to meet Salman Khan in Delhi during his “Race 3” promotions. And this was THE day. 

Nikhil hadn’t slept all night! 

He had his clothes sorted, since a week back! He took a shower and got all decked up. It took him two hours! Only to find a tweet by KRK that Salman Khan had fallen extremely sick and he wouldn’t be able to attend the Delhi promotions! This broke Nikhil’s heart. 

He started calling the point of contact person of the event but it went unanswered. All his calls and even messages went unanswered. He checked Salman Khan’s twitter page and there were no tweets about the day at all! Poor thing settled on the couch and sulked as the clock ticked by. He was supposed to reach the venue at 11:00 am which was just half an hour away. His phone rang. His best friend had called to wish him luck. Nikhil narrated the whole story to him. His best friend told him what a fool he was to believe KRK’s tweet as the twitter page of Indira Gandhi International Airport had just tweeted pictures of Salman Khan’s arrival! 

Now that was a shock for him! And with only 20 minutes left, he would never reach the venue on time, given the Delhi traffic! His best friend came for his recue. 

He rode on the pillion of the Thunderbird like a hero on royal chariot! 

Even though Nikhil couldn’t reach on time, for obvious reasons, he was allowed to enter and finally met Salman Khan! The Salman Khan!



P.S.: This is a work of fiction! Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales and incidents are the products of the author's imagination and used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.