NOEL ELLIS' GOOGLE BLOG

  Happy Basant Panchmi from the Ellis' Garden to all my friends

 

WITH LOVE FROM OUR ROOFTOP

    I distinctly remember, it was September of 2022 when an idea of growing a unique woody vine came to my mind. I have written about it earlier but this time I am so happy to write about it again.   I drifted into childhood when we used its vine as a ‘swing’. We had no TV or mobiles those days. Parents didn’t mind us playing in mud or hanging on trees, getting cut or bruised, till the time we stayed outdoors and came home exhausted.   This vine was discovered by accident during one of our escapades of our summer vacations when children of the teachers used to frolic in the school campus like it was their ‘Baap ki Jaageer’.   We found “red and black” beads spread on the ground. One of our friends spread a rumour and we believed him that snakes protected the fallen beads and bit all those who came to pick them. The serpent was capable of flying in the air and struck the forehead. Its venom was so strong that within minutes you ‘kicked the bucket’....

  People ask me, how do I find ‘subjects’ to write on. Some suggest reducing the frequency of writing. A few said, by time they read one, the next one is published. Many confessed that they skip reading as they cannot keep pace. I take it as a compliment.   I bash on regardless. What happens today is fresh. If you sit down to recall later, many details get blurred or wiped out from the memory. Articles then will keep getting piled up without being published. My blog is my ‘daily diary’ or sorts.   Let me share an event which happened this morning.   This winter, one has been witnessing a ‘couple’ of “Wire Tailed Swallows” coming to the window sill of our neighbours every morning. They absorb all the vitamin D they can as they ‘sunbathe’ at their favourite perch.   It has been cold here in the Sun City since the beginning of January. Temperatures at night and early morning have dipped into single digits. Like we feel cold, so do the birds. Thi...

  A friend of mine had once sent me photographs of ‘Vultures’ which are very rare and an uncommon sight these days. That was at the back of my mind for quite some time.   Another friend, who is a birding enthusiast, has been taking me to places around. We have been able to get some good shots of birds and animals. As I was tending to the garden this morning, he walked across and asked me if I would accompany him for bird watching.   “Neki aur pooch-pooch” is how the saying goes. Give me five minutes and we were off.   We were in a dilemma. The vulture spot was about thirty-forty kilometres on the Jaisalmer Road. However, we had never been to that place nor had any intel if we would find those birds now. That made us change our decision to go to Guda Lake again.   ‘Demoiselles Cranes’ are here in thousands. Every time we go, we not only get to see and photograph them but also get a view of a lot of other water birds. Like last time one got to see a ‘Painted Stork...

ARMY CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR   LT COL NOEL ELLIS   16/I/2026   I was watching the excerpts of the ‘Army Day Parade’ held in Jaipur. The show put up by the Army was exemplary. It reminded me of the Chinese Military parade, ours was far better. I wish I could have witnessed it in person.   What impressed me was the showcasing of the ‘Bhairav troops’ in their ‘combat regalia’. Especially the Sikh troops. Camo painted faces, Khaki pagris and the call of Bole-so-Nihal could shake up the enemy in his grave.   What caught my attention was their boots. Keeping their tasks and deployment in mind in various sectors, those boots would be wind proof, water proof, light weight, comfortable, flexible, durable with enhanced grip and ankle support.   The contingent was not in ‘Tez chal’ but ‘daur ke kadam taal mode’. Which implies, they do not walk but are always on the run to annihilate the enemy. Their boots had to support their operational requirem...

  DISCLAIMER : - This piece is written in pure jest including the comparisons. Any resemblance to the real or fictional people/characters and the story is purely coincidental with no intention to hurt any feelings. So read on….     Most of us are fans of “Sholay picture”. Every character of the movie is still as fresh. If we take the world scenario today, there are many similarities.   There were the good, bad and the ugly portrayed so well in the movie. The story was gripping, touching, suspenseful, nail biting and enthralled us no end. No one knew the end until we reached the climax scene. It was entertaining and a total paisa vasool movie.   The formula for a hit movie had to have “Hellen-Villan, Gana-Bajana, Dance-Romance”. The only thing I detested was the bloodshed of innocents, like the school teacher’s son who was paraded back dead to the village on a donkey.   There is this huge village called Ramgarh. The de-facto head of the a...

  There is a place called “Sardar Samand” about forty kilometers from Jodhpur which was on my bucket list. There is a property of HH Jodhpur which has been converted into a hotel overlooking a dam.   The water reservoir was an attraction, hoping to find ‘migratory birds’ which congregate in winters at various lakes in large numbers at water bodies around.   A friend of mine gave a hint that he wanted to go there and I latched on. We decided to go this morning. Luckily, the batteries of the camera were charged and ready for a shoot. It was a maiden trip so the two of us would be good company. He is a birding enthusiast too.   With CNG topped up, we were all set to steer the course for the lake. How to reach it was the issue. We had to branch off the main road onto a village road with ‘revars’ (herds) of cattle, goats and sheep claiming the right of way.   Google Aunty was with us but then she was showing a different route. We knocked at the Maharajas entrance gat...