Right now what I really feel like doing is running away and hiding. Oh no no no. Don’t jump to conclusions. You always land in the most unexpected of places when you do that. Unlike what you might think, the law is not after me. Neither do I have muscular thugs after my blood for I owe not anyone, not even a dime.

‘Then pray why do you wanna run and hide Shail??’ ask the bewildered blogger friends brows creased in perplexity. I almost hear someone asking, “Errrr Shail, has your skin broken out into big red splotches?? Is that why you wanna hide, sort of till you get back your girlie complexion??” and another exclaiming, “I know!! She is getting dentures!”

No siree, not at all. My complexion is doing fine, thank you and the pearlies are still intact though some of the molars and the pre-molars wear silver crowns. And yet, there it is. My desire at this very moment is to run and hide. Oh well, but then, that’s me, wanting to hide in situations most would want to spend on rooftops shouting out to the world and dancing to boot.

I came first in the recently concluded Kathasagar short story competition at INDImag. I am, errrr….  also the runner-up. And I really don’t know how to handle this double-honor. Don’t get me wrong. There is no paparazzi hounding me, no flash bulbs going in my face or mikes being thrust at me for pearls of wisdom. And yet, am I not the bashful child (at heart), like the ABBA song goes, though in reality an old woman ….and in spite of whatever picture you have got of me via my blogs, still the introvert in the garb of an extrovert.

Whatever my inclination, I have to stay back and thank each one of you who made this possible for me by trotting over to INDImag, reading, commenting and rating the stories. Besides, don’t I also have a couple of ‘trophies’ to share with you all?? Here they are:

The winner: The Pink Skirt

The Runner-up: And the baton passed…

You can see the final results and the judges’ comments here. Thank you all once again, for your support and encouragement. I wouldn’t have made it but for you all. And I really, really mean it. And the baton passed… which is the runner up, did not rate high with the esteemed judges. It is your ratings that got it to the second slot. But contrary to the expert panel opinion, I still think I wrote this one better than ‘The Pink Skirt‘. Oh well, to each one his/her own I guess! Besides which, I am no expert. I just rate with my heart, my gut feeling, what a story makes me feel at the end of reading it….

A BIIIIIIG ‘thank you’ to the INDImag team, for the opportunity given.

And it would be so incomplete if I were not to thank my family here, for all the burnt dinners they have endured with a smile through gritted teeth and suffering the ‘royal’ neglect while moi did the fingers tap-dancing on the keyboard routine pretending to be a busy writer.

I’d like to add that my 55-worder ‘Her Fault’ was runner up in the Avant Garde Bloggies Award. Thanks to all of you who nominated/voted and made that possible.

Now I should seriously think of making a career of inflicting more of my stories on the unsuspecting public till they cry for mercy. What a wonderful prospect that sounds!! *evil grin*

I am also thinking of going in for the Lhasa Apso in Glasses look because my new haircut when blown in the wind makes me look like a Lhasa Apso anyway to suit my new profession. Pity that I can’t throw in a few ink spots (like all them female writers in Wodehouse books) to complete the effect in this age of laptops. Oh well, one can’t have everything I guess!!

Oh last, but never never the least, thank you Muse. What would I be without thee?!