The Chowk Jam!

Yes, let`s give the poor guy a break. I think many of us have gone throught similar experiences. However, my qualm with the story is that it just hasn`t been told well. Good writing should invoke pathos without being pathetic.

Ciao

Re: Temporal post # 70 (LXX)

Cool down? only Chowk mela?

Berlin Wall was only a wall; Ho Chi Minh trail was only a trail; Omaha beach was only a beach...

On more sombre note, Omaha Beach was a disaster and the Ho Chi Minh trail was too costly in human lives and the Berlin Wall was just a bad idea!

Maybe, you`re right!

Shandana:

Rain checks?

Anita:

Looking forward.

Feroze:

Yar cool down! It is only a Chowk Mela.

Majnoon sahab:

Goostakhi darguzar!

Re: Zehra post # 63

Yes, that is the right e-mail address.

Re: Temporal post # 60

Conserve my efforts for something practical?

Temporal, you have to understand that in cases like this, I love the process more than the outcome! All those long hours devoted, living on coffee and stomach acid and then in the end, nothing, but a feeling abject weariness when your 110% was not good enough!

This is a mental challenge...putting all the pieces together...taking the impossible and making it seem probable...keeping one eye on the time and other on its twin conspirator, my own limits....trying to seek a happy compromise between time, place, schedules and each a variable that defies a confluence and conflicts with others.....hell, this is what I live for!

This is like planing a military campaign....so many imponderables and no matter how well the plan might be, you always know that the minute it is put into effect, something will happen and nothing will go as planned! This is crisis management at its worst and at its best and why I love it!

Adapt, Improvise and Overcome!!!!!!! My battle cry!

re: temporal

Bhai, JB sey tou roz baat ho jati hai. Ab zara garmiaN huN tou aap ki taraf aaeeN.

A

Bina and Shandana,

I didn`t think it would be worth your while to make a transatlantic trip just to shoot the breeze with losers like us. On the other hand, you two are the obvious center of gravity (along with the mythical Kaneez) for a Chowk get-together in Pakistan.

Incidentally, Anita and I will be in Karachi later this year and would love to meet you.

Saad

Hey Shandana and Bina,

We`ll be there in August. Let`s all have a party, Kaneez Rahman included.

P.S I have a sneaking suspicion that you are married to my former dentist`s son!!

Anita

re bina..

excellent idea! the thing is (much as i`d like ari f to be part of our toyboy celebration) arif is going to be in lahore for the next 5 days..perfect time to do it yes? i`m sure kaneez would be happy to join us..maybe they can work the paper bag into the jumping out of a cake routine.

re all (especially temporal and his partner in sin)
anyone who`s going to be in karachi over the next few months is invited to come and stay with us. we`re in the process of moving into a space much too large for the two of us and need someone to answer the door and cook. if that doesn`t sound appealing..come and stay with us anyway and experience firsthand the hospitality of a psychotic pakistani couple and the luxury of living in this city.if you`re a serial (conversation) killer and you wish to take advantage of this innocent invitation to find gullible victims, go and visit temp.
(offer valid only as long as these castles in the air stand)

re cheeno..

i got married to cloak my inherent promiscuousness in a shroud of respectability of course. why do you think i was so gushy about (little) javed memon of `that jelly bean kinda feeling`?

shandana

Well, Shandana, you and I can just have our own party. Arif can be the DJ - which ensures the best music anywhere - we can hire a team of toy boys to amuse ourselves with; we can invite Kaneez Rahman but I think she might come with a bag on her head, and we can invite all the people across the border in India - they can utilize the new bus service from Delhi to Lahore! What do you say?

to open this reply i quote :

It`s like a big party, an open rendezvous

A conduit, receptacle for you and you and you

To throw out ideas or pick up something new

To agree or disagree about a thing or two

cheeno`s idea of what chowk is..a BIG OPEN party...

i am in the process of emailing ferozk ( dude, whats your email address? i tried frkhan@chowk.com..is that right?) and perhaps the two of us can see what the possibility is, what places, time and locations are good and even get in touch with the chowk staff and see whats up...for those planning private get-togethers and stuff, its all good :) but lets see if we can get one big ole weekend planned.

cheeno..i thought the comment about the rippling pecs identified you as a man..guess not :) im feroz`s height so i guess its not so short..

rizvi

Cheeno, right on Chowk Survey is the only way to get feedback from diverse people living in east to west coasts before organizing a Chowk picnic. And yes thanx for doing izzat. keep `em up :)

reagrds.

MAK

Shandana:

IF (capitals inntentional) there is a Chowk Mela Bina can be persuaded to attend it. As for you and Arif, did we not hear it somewhere your are still planning a honeymoon?

Wonder if your dare (about ANY man) will be picked up by others. Not one, you say?! Pity!

Quaid-e-Sagheer Feroze:

Stop in your tracks. Listen to the sane, cynical voices. Conserve thoughts and energies on more doable projects.

JB:

Our little project is on. Place is agreed upon, Time to be decided soon for logistic reasons. Confirmed attendees three. Am probing 1-3 more. The additional folks must be agreeable to you three.

TO OTHER CHOWKIES:

My partner in sin, who is not a Chowkie, and I have agreed to host a Toronto Pow wow. To maximize the gupshup factor, we agreed that they will stay with us. Space constraint allows us three spare bedrooms. That means we can comfortably host three couples or six adults only. They will be here from 3-7 days depending on their time constraints. The reason I am breaking the radio-silence over this is simple. This is the way Chowk pow wows should grow. Then perhaps one day...........

regards

Shafqat: Thanks for the AKU site ref. You guys make a good-looking couple!

About the `picnic,` I think the logistics are pretty overwhelming, which is probably why the Chowk staff is mum on this. Before doing anything else, I think we should ask the Chowk staff to at least hold some kind of survey to see how many people (Chowk visitors) will be interested in something like this. That should be the very first step. And then they should suggest three getaways (after feedback from us) and ask people to pick their preference. It would be great if they`ll do at least this much for us. After these two steps, we can appoint a couple of volunteers to take it from there (Feroze leaps into mind) and report back regularly for feedback and to keep the rest of us up to date.

SR: ``I have no qualms about `exploiting the capitalist market.` It is the BEING exploited that I find revolting.``

HILARIOUS. But again, as you so aptly put, `lost on` some readers.

``constipation of the head and diarrhea of the mouth.``

Gut-heaving imagery; really funny again.

Anita Zaidi: Saw the AKU website. The only thing I had right about you is your facial expression.

Feroze: If this thing ever jells, you`ll be our man, bud.

Shandana: tsk tsk, such below-the-belt shots. Btw, what`re you doing asking about interesting young men so soon?

BG: yoohooooooo....

MAK: I`m here, I`m here. Crazy weekend, so gotta hurry this up. Young and single? A student? Aur main vaysay hee teree ithnee izzat shizzat kar raha hoon. Anyway, sorry for mistaking you for an older guy.

Zehra: You...you I imagine as a feisty young thing, short-medium height, large, beautiful eyes. So, you consider yourself beautiful! Great (not that I don`t)!

``its alright, i had thought you were a woman.``

Did I say I wasn`t?

Gotta run...more later.

*smiff *.. *sob *
fufuFINE
me and bina`ll just stay in pakistan and do some knitting shall we.do send us a postcard,a picture and an interesting man..if there can be any at a chowk gathering (meoow:). don`t know how bina feels about sharing though.

shandana

Re: Shafqat post # 55

To All, sorry for this long ``blueprint``.

In this case, I am going to bite my lip and opt for observer status. My reasons are simple, if I take this as a ``special project``, everyone on Chowk will dealing with deadlines and soon there will be a crunch time to make a hard decision. Being result oriented, there is a great deal of probability that some Chowkwallahs might be offended by what I call my ``issue specific focus``. Right now this discussion is merely an academic one testing the feasiblity of the idea. If we go any further than that, then there is the internal dynamic of the issue to be considered and the self-momentum which this will generate.

Also, being a political operative, I have a tendency to step on toes and push people to get things done. I will ``work the problem``, but not unless there is uniformity of a consensus on my taking this proverbial ball and running with it.

For starters this what I would recommend:

1) We need to determine if this idea is a ``go`` or ``no go``.

2) We need to determine the scope of this event- how many people are willing to attend.

3) Having established that, we need to discuss this with the Chowk staff if this event should be identified as an offical Chowk event or a Chowk related event.

4) Then location needs to discussed keeping in mind the point of departures for event-attendees. Two options; event should be held in a region from where most of the attendee are originating from and secondly, it should be within a radius of half a day`s flying time from the point of departure.

5) Travel arrangements. Who is in charge of that and whether this should be centerally planned or each person makes his her own travel arrangements. If option is group travel, then possible group rates must be discussed. In either case, arrangements need to be organized; collecting and depositing arriving event-attendee in a specific location and transort them to their destination must be considered. Again, who will do this; should it be a group or an individual responsibility.

6) Reservations. There has to an early research into likey site options, keeping in mind the travelling parameters, and some sort of decision has to be arrived. Cost analysis needs to done and again; the question should this be a group option or should it be done on an individual basis needs to be answered.

7) Date of the event. A date needs to decided, based on the availibility of accomodations. There should be enough lag time for people to create ``windows`` vis a vis arranging their work schedules to make this possible. Critical requirement should be to move scheduling priorites around the date of the event and not move the date to facilate work schedules.

8) Finances. Who is in charge of the financial responsibilities for arranging group travel and collecting monies for reservation deposits. In other words, who is the ``point person`` for this event?

9) There needs to be clearly defined delegation of responsibility. Given the nature and scope of this project, key decisions will have to be made on the spot and time constraints may not allow a ``full discussion`` on the matter. There has to be a person who needs to act inter alia in deciding matters as they may arise.

The other thing which I would suggest is this. To the Chowk staff, I would say to take down the current survey and put this survey up so there is point of understanding on the feasibility of this idea and to leave the survey on for a week.

Your response to a Chowk Get Together is:

A) Yes
B) No
C) On Opinion

Also; using the Chowk surveys, we pose questions and get immediate feedback on this issue.

Like I said, you do not want me in charge.....I love working under stressful conditions and this seems like a dream come true...