Teenage entertainment

The greenery has turned to a concrete jungle'. This is a dialogue common in newspapers, radios, discussions and in a whole lot of places. Reading the outset of my writing, one might misinterpret it to concern the same old school problems of global warming, earthquake or other environmental issues. Of course, it is related to the issue as to how these jungles rising up monstrously and eating up the greenery voluptuously are affecting us. However, I am not discussing the ecological factor here.

So, what is the problem at the first place? The problem is paucity of teenage entertainment in our country. "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" Only Jack? No, it makes everyone a dull person. Children need to play and these buildings (and the two-feet space in-between) don't allow that. For this reason, young people set their parameters within the four walls of the house.

There is (how can one ignore?) the incredible invention staring from one corner of the room - the computer. To some, it is the sole form of entertainment, internet being the focal point. Teenagers chat, play computer games and visit religiously and morally forbidden sites for a glimpse of explicit material. Consequently, their entertainment becomes a dirty one.

To some others, video game are the heart and soul of their recreation. Of course, it is fun. I myself enjoy it a lot. Research has shown that playing video games for limited hours helps develop children's brain and reflexes. On the other hand, it does not help in the healthy development of body. Hence only video game is not an effective entertainment. Recently, restaurants have cropped up in the city like mushrooms. It is good, because people do have space to hang around with their friends and special relations (special friends are also an entertainment now a days) Still the Y-factor comes in.

Since the pastimes of these young people are not sufficient, it is taking a heavy toll in almost every family. There is an increasing unruly behaviour at home and lack of discipline in the lifestyle of teens. They are mentally stressed, often frustrated due to family conflicts, disputes among friends and so on. Hence to soothe themselves, they indulge in violence. They smoke, take drugs (which is considered an essential element for coolness god knows why), blocking the shining ray of the sun from reaching.

Teenagers need space - space from the hectic life, from the city's hustle and bustle, to develop their mind and body. They require a space to play. Many entertainment facilities has been set up, though not on a large scale but the prospect is worth appreciating.

Now the rising generation can sign a breath of relief. Youths can to go places like Dhaka Billiard Centre for Billiard. There's in another called Bangladesh Billiard Centre. There are places like Sports Zone, Thunderbolt and so on. There is an acute scarcity of these facilities.

I understand maintenance of such places are expensive. However, if these are set up in almost every locality and carried out on a large scale, then the costs will shrink. Bowling-though the latest fad-should not be the only attraction. Table tennis, carom and other not so costly but healthy provision of sports would prove to be excellent supplements. The government can use more land for parks, fields for outdoor games. Private sectors can take the initiative to make theme parks for weekend outings. These will help to relieve the teenagers from mental rut, make them sociable and more outspoken.

To some, the issue might be a peripheral one. However these are needed for a healthy development of mind and body. The teenagers can tally with the always evolving world and this will lead the country towards progression.

By Maherin Ahmed

High thoughts

A good height is seen as a blessing almost everywhere. The first three local adjectives to praise someone (esp. a to-be-bride or groom) will definitely include 'lomba' (tall); the other two probably being 'forsha' (fair complexion) and 'smart'. A man with all these and a healthy wallet is seen by many as 'The One'. Let's leave all that and get back to our topic.

Now you have to be a real big pessimist to say tall people do not have any advantages. Being tall you do not have to ask anyone for things on the top shelf, you have the advantage of being able to see what's going on in a crowded place, nobody can call you 'batkul' or a hobbit, etc. Everything does have its problems,though.

This happens especially to teenagers. At this age the height seems to get a 'nitro boost' (something to do with hormones I guess) and you shoot up a good many inches in a few months time. It takes some time to adjust to the new 'highs'. All of a sudden you have to remember to duck every time you pass a low door or gate. Most of your 'cool' dresses shorten all at a same time (I wonder if that's why people got the idea of short 'fotuas' and 'kameezes'...). Above all, there are a lot of embarrassing situations you can fall into.

Take the case of sitting in public buses. The knees won't fit into the 'standard' space available and all you can do is to sit diagonally (Anyone over 5'7'' who has had a ride in public buses knows what I mean). And while sitting in this awkward manner there is a high chance the fellow passenger sharing your seat gets irritated and exercises his vocal rights to teach you how to sit. The best thing in such situations is to keep quiet because if you choose to be equally vocal, you might end up in a big 'ganjam' and furthermore, 'public dholai'.

There's more to it. Some relatives are always high-ly enthusiastic about height. Every time they see you they start saying: 'Arey, baba koto lomba hoye geso tomar abbakeyo chharaye geso mone hoi.' After that they might go further and start comparing you with your other cousins by making you stand beside them. I understand there is nothing wrong bcause they all intend to appreciate but it gets a little too embarrassing at times.

'With great height, come great responsibilities' (Okay I know I got it from Spiderman). The tall boy in the house has to do all the 'high' jobs which are not all that 'high' in standard. For example in my house it's I who has to switch on the water pump (as it is too high for my sis' or the servants) and also switch it off at the right time. Mom cuts my work a little though by doing it for me whenever she's around. In another incident one of my 'bhabi's got me to hang up the curtain for her as it was out of reach for anyone else around. At first I took pride in doing all these for I felt I was one of the few around who could do it but now I guess I have become lazy and don't want to play the giraffe anymore.

Tall people are despised rather foolishly by the shorties' popular sayings, 'lomba hoiley buddhi hatutey porey' (i.e. Intelligence is inversely proportional to height). There are more insulting nicks such as: 'taal-gaach' or even 'bok' (stork). Is this what you call a blessing?

After reading up to this the readers have surely got an idea on what it takes to be up there (I know some of you are already familiar with all these stuff from personal experience). After everything all, if I was given a choice, I would still want to be tall that's because though I would hate to ask anyone for 'something from the top shelf' and I would just HATE to be called a midget. Something positive, all right!

By Tausif Salim

Rediscovering letter writing

The Internet culture has taken over the world and everywhere you look people are sending emails and text messages or chatting online. Letter writing has almost become an obsolete practice, especially amongst the younger generation. It is not difficult to understand why people no longer communicate with letters, when you consider how fast, cheap and reliable emailing has become. There are also other obvious advantages. You can send the same message to many different people in an instant. There is no longer any need for stamps or visits to the post office and the job is done with just the click of a button.

When I was younger I used to love writing letters. I used to exchange letters with my friends at school, even though we used to see each other almost everyday. We would compare the letters and see who could create the most colorful and eye-catching one. I still have most of those letters stashed away somewhere in my desk drawer. That is probably the best thing about letters - you can treasure them forever. For people like me, it is easy to find an excuse to write letters. You can write thank-you notes when someone gives you a gift or does something nice for you. Birthdays, anniversaries, the New Year etc. are great occasions for writing letters or, if you are more creative, for making cards. At times, you don't even need an excuse to write a letter. Just grab a piece of paper and a pen and simply start writing to a friend, a relative, your favorite teacher or the first person who comes into your mind. Nowadays most of us just turn on the computer, write out an email, and then send it to a dozen people. It saves a lot of time and also a lot of trouble. Letter writing, however, need not be time consuming. You do not have to make it artistic or creative. All that is required is for you to write down your feelings on a piece of paper and then post it. The same words that you type out on your computer can become so much more meaningful when it is written in your handwriting.

Letter writing can be lots of fun. You can decorate letters or cards with glitter, stickers, drawings or sketches. For a more innovative approach you could utilize leaves, flowers, feathers etc. But even simple letters can be beautiful. You can write letters on a piece of plain white paper and still make it look good. It really is the thought that counts and not the actual letter itself. So the next time your friend's birthday comes along do not just send him/her an email. Something you create with your own hands is so much more special. Make a card, write a letter or even a small note. Anything is better than those annoying e-cards!

Ayesha Sanchita Mahmud

A sweet revenge

A Marine stationed in Afghanistan recently received a "Dear John" letter from his girlfriend back home. It read as follows:
"Dear Ricky, I can no longer continue our relationship. The distance between us is just too great. I must admit that I have cheated on you three times, since you've been gone, and it's not fair to either of us. I'm sorry. Please return the picture of me that I sent to you. Love, Becky"
The Marine, with very hurt feelings, asked his fellow Marines for any snapshots they could spare of their girlfriends, sisters, ex-girlfriends, aunts, cousins etc. In addition to the picture of Becky, Ricky included all the other pictures of the pretty girls he had collected from his buddies. There were 27 photos in that envelope . . . along with this note:
"Dear Becky, I'm so sorry, but I can't quite remember who you are. Please take your picture from the pile, and send the rest back to me. Take Care, Ricky"

Compiled By Suravi

Poems

Melancholy orange sky above me

I see happy people around me,
As happy as can be
They ask me, "don't you want to be happy?"
I just smile at them sadly
And I wait patiently
I watch the smooth breeze flowing over the beautiful green grass
And the rustling sounds of happiness
And I know one day I'll be happy
And I wait patiently
I watch the sun set its beautiful face across the horizon
Far and beyond
And the melancholy orange sky above me
And it saddens me
But I know one day I'll be happy
And I wait patiently
The night sky is dark but glitters with the brightest of stars
It smiles at me,
Its so beautiful its depressing
I suppress forceful tears as I look up and I smile back
And I wait patiently
Days go by, nights go by, years go by
And I'm sad but I smile to myself
Because I know someday, someday I'll be happy
And I wait patiently
And then, one day, happiness comes to me
And I want to be so happy
As happy as I've never been before
As happy as I've always dreamed of being,
As happy as I thought one day I would be....

By S. H.