MAY 30, 15 .. PATTI/GULLILBLE/SHADDY/’ZILLA .. PLZ TITLE THIS POST ..

I updated this Post .. inserting additional photos and text on Monday .. June 1st .. with regards to the section on ‘Tough Cookie’.

I am at a loss-for-a-title .. So PATTI/GULLIBLE/SHADDY/’ZILLA .. After you have read this .. that is .. IF you read this past this point .. help me out with a title.

I have categorized it three ways ..

A Little of This .. A Little of That! ..

Chit-Chat! ..

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Some days .. I mean SOME DAYS .. they (in the kitchen) REALLY GET IT RIGHT ..

In this HEAT I REALLY NEED breakfast RIGHT! The kitchen staff delivered big time today.

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WHERE ELSE BUT HERE IN INDIA DO YOU FIND AN EATING PLACE NAMED .. 

MAMA CHICKEN MAMA FRANKY HOUSE ?

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Not much ROCKS me here in India after 24 years of experience and travel here. But I just got rocked!  Did I tip over? NO .. Nor did I die .. but I was rocked! So I am  going to re-visit this little ‘Tough Cookie’ since I cannot get her out-of-my-mind.

So ‘Zilla let me begin with you. You and Kleiner Bear have had many cats. One of your many cats you called .. ‘Tough Cookie’ .. or T.C. for short.

BELOW IS A PHOTO OF A ‘TOUGH COOKIE’!

I just wrote about this small but ‘Tough Cookie’ over on blogspot .. MAY 30, 15 .. AGRA CANTT .. POST OFFICE AND WALK. The above young Lady (is Lady really a proper choice of words here?) would NOT stand-down to me for one instant. It was war between us! SHE wanted my wallet .. SHE wanted everything I had in my over-the-shoulder bag. I THE CAPTAIN wanted my wallet .. I THE CAPTAIN wanted 100% of everything that I had in my over-the-shoulder bag! She appeared after I got some money out of the below local ATM.

I believe that she had me ‘staked out’. .. “This man has money and I want this man’s money and everything else he has. Look at him .. He is an OLD man! I think that I can take-him-down!” .. And the war began.

Did any of you really think for one moment that I would not go back and figure out what I did to produce these NIFTY images!

In working with the Microsoft Scanner and Camera Wizard software here .. when I was in PAINT .. after clicking onto Image .. instead of clicking onto Stretch/Skew Image .. I accidentally clicked onto Invert Colors. Now WHY anyone would want to do this? I do not have a clue!

You will better recognize the ATM in the below photo ..

Back to our small but ‘Tough Cookie’. I think that I won the war because for-the-life-of-me I can find nothing missing. Next week I will ‘lose’ something in Hong Kong and I will SNORT ..”She stole it a week ago in Agra Cantt!”

IF I see her before I leave here on Monday night I am going to interact with her. I will give her a nice contribution of money thanking her profusely for providing me with a life-long solution to each and to everything I ever lose or misplace .. that being .. “She stole it!”

That is really worth something to me. Ten Rupees (16-cents U.S.) maybe. So knowing these street-smart-tough-cookies work areas .. I may see her again. IF I do I will start out .. “What is your name?” .. “Are you hungry? Would you like some food? Are you thirsty?  Would you like some COLD WATER? Do you want money? How much money do you want?” God put this urchin smack-dab-right-in-my-face!

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I am going to again re-visit our little ‘Tough Cookie’ because I encountered her small band of street-children this morning .. Monday Morning .. 1 June 2015 .. my Travel Day back to New Delhi.

I am NOT able to find ‘Tough Cookie’ in the below photos but this is her territory for sure! None of the below children are wearing the shirt ‘Tough Cookie’ was wearing.

When I saw the children I calmly walked past them and paid-them-no-notice. I then got out my camera and calmly walked back towards them and caught them unexpectedly in the first photo below.

As soon as I snapped the above photo one immediately took-notice of me. She is beginning to point-at-me.

Then they each began to ‘react’ to me several turning away and/or covering up their heads. The one stayed with me still pointing at me.

Two .. in the lower right foreground .. really began to warm-up to me. Three would have-nothing-to-do-with-me!

Into my wallet I went for MONEY and all HELL BROKE LOOSE! En Mass they all were up on their feet and IN MY FACE SURROUNDING ME!

Out of the shadows an elderly lady appeared instantly and with a ‘vise-like grip’ she took hold of my left forearm. Immediately I twisted my left forearm up and away from her shouting loudly NO TOUCHING!

The girls actually giggled to themselves when I screamed at the older lady.

I quickly handed one of the girls two .. Ten Rupee notes .. and walked away from them. None of them followed me and when I was perhaps one hundred feet away from them I looked back and my heart melted! One of them was shyly waving at me from the distance. I continued walking away and one-last-time turned and waved back at the still waving young girl.

I leave today and will not again see them. What’s that God? Well I don’t think I will see them again God.

With my experience spanning 24 years I knew what to expect when money began to appear. So I was not shocked nor caught-off-guard. Things can .. and will .. get very ugly very quickly with these street children.

Thanks God for some closure with the children!

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THE INTERNET .. IF I told you all of my joys and all of my challenges we would be here a long time.

So let’s talk about the internet. I have several options here in Agra Cantt .

Below .. in the basement of the Hotel Pawan .. is where I am now sitting and writing what you are reading ..

Now you all know how much concentration this takes. I like silence and quiet so I can hunker-down and focus on my writing here.

WHAT? WHO ARE YOU ALL? HOW DO I CONCENTRATE?

SUDDENLY THEY APPEARED RIGHT BESIDE ME!

I kept the below blurry photo of the girl in the yellow dress because I wanted you all to see these kids were MOVING around also!

And in spite of their popsicles they were able to manage to SQUEEL A LOT WITH GLEE at suddenly being here-in-my-life for a few moments!

We .. all of us .. THE CAPTAIN and THE GIRLS .. had a lot of fun!  Then .. as suddenly as  they came into my world .. they were gone!

PATTI gave us some  great insight in her comment at the end below. I have added it here. Compare the giggling kids above with ‘Tough Cookie’. All in the same day. What a contrast.

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Well .. sooner or later .. it will come out .. so I think that I will fess up to you all ..

TODAY I WENT OUT .. AND TODAY I VISITED WITH MUMTAZ .. FOR ABOUT 3-1/2 HOURS .. AND I SHOT SEVERAL PHOTOS .. ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY EIGHT PHOTOS IF YOU MUST KNOW!

WELL? .. WHAT DO YOU ALL THINK OF MY SCHEME HERE WITH ‘INVERT COLOR” ON THE SOFTWARE?

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Lord God in Heaven Above .. MUMTAZ .. You are something so special words fail me!

Now how-on-earth am I going to sort through and decide what to post and what not to post when looking at one hundred and seventy eight photos of MUMTAZ  and her surroundings?

I had two very excellent bicycle rickshaw men ..

This gentleman took me out to the Taj Mahal .. He asked me for 40 Rupees .. Fair and honest and so I topped his asking price ..

The below gentleman took me back to the Hotel Pawan ..

In this UNGODLY HEAT when each encountered an up-grade .. I got out and pushed with them. Believe me! I am not going to sit idly and watch them!

These men are human beings! I respect them! I pat them on their backs and I interact with them as they are carrying me along. Short as the ride is .. we strike up a relationship!

The second man above also gave me a fair and a reasonable price. I doubled it when we got back.

I have heard there is stuff said-on-the-street about me. Nobody does the things that I do. Interact with a richshaw man! Take their photos! Shake their hands! Treat them with respect!

Yes .. THE DINKEY BIRD IS SINGING IN THE AMFALULA TREE!

When I got home I immediately drank three (3) sixteen ounce glasses of cold water mixed with fruit juice .. Then I immediately drank another eight ounces of the same. Three and one half hours out in THIS DIFFICULT HEAT is a challenge. Before I left I topped up with water. Then I drank one full liter of water .. sipping it slowly and very carefully .. during the 3-1/2 hours with MUMTAZ.

PATTI / GULLIBLE / SHADDY / ‘ZILLA .. WHAT TO CALL THIS POST?

With Joy and I mean .. WITH JOY! .. Cap ..

YOU KNOW THE DRILL CAPTAIN? .. DEEP BREATH .. HOLD IT .. PRESS PUBLISH!

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