NOEL ELLIS' GOOGLE BLOG

  Mallard Ducks on the waterfront

 

 💖 DIL KHUSH 💝

  LT COL NOEL ELLIS   07/XII/2024   Winters are fast setting in. Sweaters and hoodies are out and even woollen caps are caps to keep the contents of your upper story warm. People looked a little fluffed up.   The only exception is our ‘gentle ladies’. This being the wedding season, dare I say that they might carry a shawl but chances of wearing them are minimal. I could be wrong in my observation. Right Ladies?   Be that as it may. I am not going to talk of ‘chicks’ of the human kind but of real birds.   The other day we were visiting a friend of ours who stays on the banks of the same river which touches our colony. In fact, we stay down stream. While we were crossing the bridge, I came across water birds aplenty. I dropped my wife at her friend's place and drove back, only to stop and take some pics.   I met Mr Malya, my old friend from Alibaug sitting with his friend the dove on an electric line along the river. Moment, I said hello, he greeted me w...

💜DIL KHUSH💚

 💖DIL KHUSH💖

  My friend came visiting made my ❤ Dil Khush ❤

 DIL KHUSH 

  LT COL NOEL ELLIS   02/XII/2024   It was the year 1991, I got posted to a beautiful hill station called ‘Chakrata’. The woods there were actually ‘lovely, dark, and deep’. Deodar and Pines were the mainstay of the jungle which was teeming with wildlife. The picturesque landscape is still fresh in our minds.   There was no traffic those days, just a few vehicles, that too restricted to ‘gate’ timings. The narrow ‘one way’ road with its “Chakkar-Ata Hai” type hairpin bends were the lifeline for everyone.   That place was a paradise for flowers and fruits. Gladiolus and Dahlias grew wild. ‘Rhododendron’ in the forest gave a semblance of ‘fire in the jungle’. The scenery was breathtaking.   Fruit trees like apricots, plums, pears, peaches & walnuts grew aplenty, only to be massacred by Langurs, if not plucked in time.   ‘Terrace farming’ would give a look of ‘natural steps’ leading to heaven to our small sleepy town. ...

  It is after a long gap that Hibiscus 🌺 are again blooming in the Ellis' Garden. ❤ DIL KHUSH 🧡

  What a Dil Khush sight!

    LT COL NOEL ELLIS   30/XI/2024   It can happen only in the fauj they say! What? That’s what I would like to highlight. (With no offence to anyone).   Yesterday, we had a social evening in our club. A lively, vibrant, active, energetic, and spirited club. Once in a while, we friends aka course mates let down our hair, so we meet there.   One can catch up on family affairs and gossip. It is less bitching and more bonding. A couple of drinks, pull a leg or two, then have a hearty meal. One feels fresh and rejuvenated.   It was a DJ night yesterday with a ‘Retro’ theme. An interesting take. Knowing the fauj well, it was taken in that spirit. Single, married, children, serving and veterans came finely dressed for the occasion.   The formation commander did a very wise thing. To get the best ‘talent’ out of the people who look and act a little serious in life. One that stood out was the singing competition.   Let me confess, we have lots of Man...

Yellow Pansy Butterfly 🦋 🧡 DIL KHUSH 🧡

  Greetings to my Dil Khush Friends with flowers

  A new colour joins the Ellis' Garden 🧡 DIL KHUSH ❤

  LT COL NOEL ELLIS   24/XI/2024   Visiting a hill station takes you to another level of quietude. Though there is nothing much to do, if you are a lover of nature and enjoy absorbing the smells and sounds of the hills, there is no better place.   We as a family decided to take a short break at one called “Kasauli”. It was far from the madding crowd. Our friends had booked the ‘holiday home’ for us.   We were in a mood to explore with no idea about the town. We also knew that we would have to “puff and pant” to reach places. That did not deter us from promenading around the small town.   Our location was at one of the highest places, with the sunset point just fifty meters away. The setting sun was seen better from our bedroom window though. Ironically, there were people who kept asking us directions to the sunset point in the morning. Why in the morning? We kept wondering.   The first thing was a ‘milestone’ embedded in the...