Meeting and Noting

Meeting and Noting

  ****

  By Hiranya Borah

  Copyright 2017 Hiranya Borah

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  Preface

  It is written for humour only without any intention to tarnish image of anyone. I am trying to visualize, in a serious meeting how a group of members of the meeting can think. This is a fictitious description, nothing to do with reality. So if you find any resemblance with any character in the write-up, it is pure coincidence only.

  Thanks to my readers and friends and above all my family for their constant support to write something usual and unusual. I am also thankful to those readers who review my books and give few encouraging words. I love them all.

  Author

  Chapter I: The Young Lady Officer

  Anindita looked at the Chairman, a seventy plus fat man with some difficulty in movement. He would be at least ten to fifteen years older than her father. Then she looked to other members of the committee. All are old. She thought all the ladies probably attained menopause and all the men must have erection problem. On thinking those odd things, a wild smile went off from her lips.

  She was sent by her boss to attend this high level meeting. All the male members of the Committee either her father’s age or few years away to the either side of her father’s age. She felt sorry for her thinking about the old guys few hours ago.

  Similarly, ladies are mostly of her mother’s age. She is aware of the fact that her mother attained her menopause few years ago and stopped sleeping with her father. Last few years she observed that her parent’s fighting has increased manifold. However, they were united when two month’s back her marriage was solemnized with Ankit against their will. Thankfully, now they have accepted Ankit as their son in law.

  She looked again to the members of the Committee, all are looked serious. From their faces it appeared, they had been entrusted a duty through which they would pull out our country from all miseries. She wondered, whether, these people are really serious or looked serious?

  Anyway, she had to be remain in the meeting so that after the meeting she could be able to brief her boss about the decisions taken in the meeting.

  Chapter II: A Middle Aged Member

  A middle aged person was looking at the only young lady in the room for some time without any specific reason. Her age might be of her elder daughter’s age. He wondered why she was there. On the next moment, he thought, her boss might have sent her just to inform him/her on her return what were discussed. The girl was cute. She must have a husband or a lover. He is also in search of a qualified beautiful girl for his son. He removed his eyes from her fearing, she might think, why the old hack was looking at her.

  He looked all other members. Most of them are of his age. All are looked very serious for a serious discussion. He knew, every member of the Committee would try to showcase his / her knowledge in front of others. Everyone would try to convince others that his/ her point of argument would carry more importance to the cause of the targeted group. But were they serious about solving the real problem?

  Once, he asked his very learned boss, an expert of poverty alleviation, ‘Sir if poverty is eradicated from the earth, what will happen to us?’

  His answer was very candid, ‘Many of us will be unemployed. There will be no lavish dinner at any five star hotel for us. But do not worry, we experts will never allow you to be unemployed or will allow to attain a situations where there will be full stop for lavish dinner in five star hotel or first class air travel for experts. Do you know, poverty alleviation itself generates lot of employment, particularly in hospitality sectors, like hotel and air travel?’

  The middle level officer nodded his head and appreciated the candid answer of the learned boss from his heart.

  Chapter III: The Chairman

  For last few years, he was requesting all his juniors who are now holding top level posts to consider his name for Chairman or member of any Committee so that he can hold his head high before his nagging wife and his children. Otherwise his wife and children started thinking him as a toothless aged tiger who does not have any practical value in the society. Is it limited to society or beyond that?

  Anyhow, the present boss of this organisation, who worked under him for few years and had a good relation with him, heard his request and made him Chairman of this Committee. Knowing his indecisive nature, the boss of the organisation told him categorically that the committee must submit its report within six months. The cunning old Chairman knows, the life of each Committee is always extended for at least another six months.

  He tried to recall, when did he last time enjoy sex with someone, not necessarily with his wife. He forgot. But one thing he remembered, it was not with his wife; but with someone professional and it was a shameful experience. The lady who was at least forty years younger than him, taunted him for his dysfunctional instrument.

  Now looking at the middle aged ladies who might be at least twenty years younger, he heaved a sigh. He did not to look at the young girl who might be at least fifty years younger than him.

  He tried to concentrate on the subject of the meeting. He immediately could not remember the subject. But he was confident, once the member secretary would welcome him, in his speech he would definitely mention the subject and objective of the meeting. He smiled at himself.

  Chapter IV: The Middle-aged Lady Officer

  Today morning she had a bitter fight with her daughter in law for a trivial reason. She is known in her fraternity as a subject expert. But home? Her son and daughter in law think, she is nothing but a quarrelsome old lady who was divorced by her husband for her non-compromising attitude.

  Today why they fought for? From yesterday, she had an indigestion problem, so she wanted boiled rice in her breakfast. She conveyed her mind to her daughter in law in the early morning. But at the dining table she was served with ‘puri subzi’ soaked with oil. When confronted the daughter in law curtly said, her husband wanted that and she did not have time for two types of breakfast.

  After a big fight, she had to come to office without a proper breakfast and with a bad temper.

  At office when her Assistant told her that power point presentation would take another ten minutes, though meeting was scheduled after one hour, she blasted the young lady. The young lady was virtually in tears, which gave the middle level officer some solace.

  Chapter V: The Meeting Attendant

  The young man of twenty four was angry from the morning due to two main reasons, one there was a big fight with his mother for his late rising from bed and he got another scolding from his boss for coming late to the office.

  He does not want to come to office, because he happened to be the junior most official in the office. He has to obey everyone’s order, but he cannot give any order. In his family also being the youngest son, he has to follow everyone’s dictates, but he cannot reply to anybody, except his mother, who tolerates his tantrum up to some extent.

  But he does not want to leave his job either. Now a days, getting a job by an eight drop out is next to impossible. Thanks to his cousin, who is holding a very good job in this organisation, he got this job. Though the salary is not very good, he is one of the highest paid boys among his peers.

  When his boss told him that he had to arrange lunch for the meeting, his anger was somewhat subsided. He knew that after the meeting, he was going to get a good lunch. After all, though these old people would not cher
ish the lunch, he and his friends would definitely like such heavy oily food.

  Chapter VI: The Decisions

  The meeting lasted for three hours. Even during the lunch time the meeting went on. Everyone was coming with a new suggestions; no matter those are implementable or not. Sometimes even irrelevant discussions were carried on for hours.

  The Chairman, who is not listened by his family for a single minute, grabbed the opportunity to speak majority of time during the meeting. Normally, if a serving officer is made Chairman of a Committee, he or she seldom speaks; but is able to take concrete decisions. But whenever a retired person made a Chairman is made Chairman, there is a likelihood, he/ she speaks a lot; the middle aged man thought. In the present case, the middle aged man thought, the Chairman sometimes was talking irrelevant issues mostly. The tragedy is that, in such a situation, one has to hear all the nonsense and after that, one has to praise the old man also! The middle aged man tried to have a nap. But he could not do that, as the Chairman was known to him for a long time and occasionally he was asked comments on his (Chairman’s) ‘short remark’.

  The middle aged officer was praying to God to do something to end the meeting. Finally, meeting was summarized.

  After a marathon meeting, no concrete decision had emerged except the following decision, ‘The final decision of the meeting was to have another brainstorming meeting in the next month so that all the members can give more and practical suggestions on the subject. The meeting ended with a vote of thanks to the Chair.’

  The Chairman gleefully left the meeting with a hope to deliver another long lecture in the next meeting also. His importance in the eyes of his family members had been extended for another month or so.

  The members of the organisation were unhappy as they have to arrange another meeting for the same issue. Particularly, the young officer who has to prepare the minutes of the meeting, was very annoyed to prepare another useless minute without a decision.

  The middle aged officer, told to himself, ‘I am not going to attend the next meeting to hear all these nonsense from the old hack, who did not do any justice to his job when he was in service. I shall send a junior officer for the next meeting.’

  The young lady officer was wondering what to report to the boss after her return to her office. However, she was not adverse in attending another meeting, where she can think many things (?) not related to her office work.

  The middle aged lady officer thought, ‘At least, I could ventilate some of my frustration in the meeting. The old Chairman also showed some interest on my view points. Definitely, I am looking forward to the next meeting.’

  The young attendant was thinking, when he is going to get another free lunch for such a terrific and engrossing meeting among the learned people.

  The author is a Government servant and a man of vivid experiences derived from his official postings across the country, travels across India and numerous visits outside India. He is presently placed at New Delhi.

  His earlier publications are:

  1. Random Thoughts through a Coloured Prism

  2. Dilemma of a Young Mind

  3. Funny Statistics and Serious Statisticians

  4. Melody of Fragrance

  5. Akhadya

  6. Few Cities through the Lens of Hiranya Borah

  7. Guilt: Gift of Winter Spring

  8. Beautiful Ghost

  9. Great Fighters: Grace of God

  10. All Blurred

  11. Putting kids to sleep

  12. How to become unpopular

  13. Soulmates

  14. My grumpy Face

  15. Love and Worries

  16. Discussion of own Birth: A Taboo

  17. Interview

  18. Indecent Love Affairs

  19. My Fair Lady

  20. Waiting time

  21. Two Stories

  22. My Mother: Dashami Borah

  23. Parineeta

  24. Manorama

  25. Unwanted

  26. First Attempt

  27. A father

  28. The Portrait

  29. Snapped Thread

  30. Only He Knows

  31. The Stupid Mother

  32. The Same Old Story

  33. The Old Scoundrel

  34. Third Attempt

  35. Some of my First Days and First Nights

  36. Snubbed Twice

  37. Have You Met the God

  38. Frequent Flier

  39. Messiah

  40. Forgive and Forget

  41. To Win or to lose

  42. Call Girl

  43. Beyond Blood Relation

  44. Lady with a Black Car

  45. My wife

  46. Complete Woman

  47. Diwali Gift

  48. Romance with a Lady

  49. Open Heart Surgery

  50. My First Love

  51. Replacement

  52. Pebbles on My Way Home

  53. My First Bengali Book

  54. Murder Mystery

  55. Niharika

  56. Swapping

  57. Make a Habit to Thank God

  58. Killing of a Bird

  59. The Hero

  60. Fantasy versus Reality

  61. The Party

  62. Road Rage

  63. Death of a Friend

  64. Cannot Live with Memory Only

  65. None Cares for Me

  66. A Tribute to My Guru

  67. Two Professionals

  68. The Choice

  69. The Elusive Spouse

  70. First Encounter with A P

  71. Plane Crash

  72. Plane Crash Part-II

  73. Plane Crash Part-III

  74. Abducted

  75. A Bag of Currency

  76. Suitable Groom

  77. Head Hunters

  78. My Dear Sister

  79. Selection While Waiting at the Airport

  80. Oh Shit

  81. Perverse

  82. He Got Back His Wife

  83. Beautiful Faces

  84. Elder Sister

  85. Good Morning

  86. Prey

  87. Pass on your Death to Someone Else

  88. Colour of Holi

  89. Why blame others

  90. A Forbidden Issue

  91. Hat-trick of Failures

  92. Agony of Writers

  93. Contrasts

  94. Three Directors

  95. An Unusual Love Affair

  96. Birth Day

  97. Do not Tell Anyone

  98. Anupama

  99. Late By Ten Years

  100. Murder in a Foreign City

  101. Strange Life

  102. I love You Darling

  103. Falsehood

  104. Lady in the Park

  105. Do Anything, I Shall comment

  106. Professionalism

  107. Art of Flirting

  108. Are We Human

  109. Old man and a Dog

  110. Relation with Relatives

  111. Sun and Cloud

  112. My Second Lover

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