NOEL ELLIS' GOOGLE BLOG

  HOW NATURE WORKS   LT COL NOEL ELLIS   31/VII/2023     A fresh start to a week couldn’t have been better. A walk in the park and then towards the river side was all in a day’s work. Fresh and pure air, dark clouds, tiny droplets of rain, fresh flowers and birds singing for you was enough to make my day.     People walked past, almost colliding with you because many were glued to their cells and said ‘sorry-sorry’. I am not sure they even looked at me. Within a blink they are glued back to the phones again. Would they be appreciating nature, I doubt. What are they watching or listening to, with their ‘Kaan Khajuras’ in their ears, I am not sure. Good that instead of my phone, I carry my camera.     What caught my attention was a fluffy bundle lying on a hedge. I crossed my heart and prayed it should not be a nest. It was. A tiny one with a tiny dotted yellow egg. I have seen Finch, Bulbul, and Sparrow eggs, but this colour was novel. Could it be of a yellow O

💙DIL KHUSH💙

 Grass 🎋 makes my 💚 DIL KHUSH 💚

  TRAIL OF SMOKE   LT COL NOEL ELLIS   29/VII/2023   My fascination for Tatas started way back as a child. It was my aim to become a steam engine driver and visit their factory producing ‘Steam Engines’. The YP & YG (meter gauge) and WP & WG (broad gauge) had Chittranjan Locomotive Works written on them. The trail of black smoke and steam enthralled me.   They were the work horses of Indian Railways in the steam era. I could watch any passing steam engine move its pistons. The smell of coal, steam oozing from everywhere, slipping of the wheels and then the constant rhythm of Chuk-Chuk it used to break into hypnotized me. Diesels came, followed by electrification, by then I lost interest in such engines. The era of steam went into oblivion.    During the same period, Mercedes Benz petrol trucks came under the folds of Tatas. Standing on Kanjli river while fishing, I loved the sweet smell of their exhaust, not realising that one day my first driving lesson of

 Purple makes my 💜 DIL KHUSH 💜

❤ DIL KHUSH 💙

🐌   Dil Khush with Snails 🐌

💙DIL KHUSH❤

  THOUGHTS ON KARGIL DIWAS     LT COL NOEL ELLIS     26/VII/2023     Today is Kargil Diwas. A day when victory of good over evil was achieved by the Indian Armed Forces. Kargil and Dras areas were lit up with fireworks of a different kind. Booming artillery guns, flying aircrafts and charging infantry were in action. The Ravan from the neighbouring rogue country had to be put down. Who else could have done it other than our Armed forces.   Enemy crossed the Laxman Rekha. ‘Chal & Kapat’ were used by those liars. Thereafter, there was no stopping our forces who annihilated the enemy. I wish we would have sorted many other territorial disputes in the same breath once for all.   India bore a very heavy cost. We lost 527 of our brave hearts besides 1363 were wounded or maimed. 1890 families were shattered. Besides, every unit which bore the brunt of body bags were also devastated. Each martyrdom filled in fresh josh in the troops. Many walked into sure death unflinchingly and knowing fu

❤ 🧡 DIL KHUSH 💙 ❤

  MERA DESH BADAL RAHA HAI   LT COL NOEL ELLIS   24/VII/2023   My wife and I had to attend a funeral yesterday. With a heavy heart we proceeded to their home. It is a tradition that ‘Mala’ (garland of flowers) are offered as a token of reverence to the departed soul.   On our way, we halted at our favourite ‘phoolwalon ka thela’. They are hard working people, making all sorts of garlands and can customise one on demand. There is a tradition in the Sun City that for various functions, people are felicitated with ‘phool malas’, from birthdays, to retirement, to death.   I stopped the car almost kissing one flower cart. My wife lowered the car window and asked, ‘Malan ji’ as that is the way ‘lady flower sellers’ are generally addressed with respect. Do chokho mala hai kain? Do you have two good garlands? This lady removed the damp cloth covers to exhibit her wares. Somehow, the flowers didn’t look so fresh, so my wife decided to check garlands on the next cart adjacent to this one.   I ke

💜💚DIL KHUSH💖💘

  DHAKKAN DHAKKAN   LT COL NOEL ELLIS   22/VII/2023   Nature has its own way of camouflaging things. Insects blend with the foliage, certain birds, and animals merge with their background. It is a way of avoiding detection.   As the rains have set in, rain lilies have erupted. Invariably, a bud pops up first, followed by the leaves. There came a point when only leaves were showing. Where were the flowers?   To check, I decided to hoe the pots. As I started to work with my poke, meandering through the lily bulbs, I realised, in between the lilies, a wild grass was growing which looked almost like a lily leaf.   I pulled out one. It had a bulb akin to a lily but a little smaller. There actually was more wild grass growing than lilies. If one had not inspected, one would have never found out. That grass was weeded out immediately.   The second story is similar. Our daughter has caught on to drinking Lemon Grass tea which we grow at home. A fresh leaf is picked