The Milestoned Diaries Chapter 1

The Milestoned Diaires made a video for you to Enjoy! 

Click on this link below and join in on the quest!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JApeXt0coaY

Mud Rush was a Mad Rush!

One of the many Mudrush moments

About a dozen cars passed by me as I stood on the highway with my thumb out. At 6 am on a Saturday, August 31st, I began to wonder if I should even be on that highway instead of my comfortable bed without really knowing what I was in for. A very nice gentleman stopped by and dropped me off at the pick up point where I was to catch a bus and head off to a 300 year old Fort Jadhavgad, outside Pune as this was the host to an event called 'The Mud Rush'.

First let me tell you a little bit about Mud Rush, it was a 7km course across the hills laden with 21 obstacles and a lot of muck! Add around 2,500 enthusiastic participants in their colorful costumes and an Electro-Dance Music Sundown Party and it really catches your eye. But what made this event stand out was that behind an excuse to party and get fit hid a cause, to help the Multiple Sclerosis Society of India (MSSI) raise funds to continue their noble deed of helping those diagnosed in India. Now, I want to break down all these separate entities that somehow found a way to work together and lead to an event that became one of a kind.

The course was set-up in a sense for everybody, from little kids to veterans, but if done with serious vigor it would have been quite a challenging task. From crawling under barbed wire to climbing up a 70 degree wall, from enjoying a water slide to jumping into ice cold muddy water, from balancing on thin logs to jumping over fire it really pushed the limits of all the participants in some or the other way. However since it was an event designed for fun you had the option of skipping any of the 21 challenges. As I went through the course, I saw friends cheering each other on, some competing to get better, and some making bonds that will last for a long time to come in the future. Towards the end of this course was something that might not have been intentional but something that I saw affecting people in a very soothing way, was that they had to walk through these beautiful Marigold farms, Guava and Banana plantations, and a couple of really beautiful landscapes that inevitably gave peace to all. At the very end of the course they were showered, firstly, with ice cold water not only to clean them but to provide with instant relief from the sun and, secondly, with a medal and chilled beer to really reward them for their efforts!

Once the participants started finishing the course they were eased into the second part of the event. The sun started going down and so did the beers. The Sundown party with DJ's like Sequel, Ajit Pai, Anish Sood and Clemente definitely ensured that fun was had! Even after an exhausting run, the participants somehow got the energy to dance for hours on end. More joined...some that came just for the party and they added to the already memorable night it was turning out to be.

This event was one of the best managed events I have been to in India on such a large scale. There was never one moment where I felt that there were too many people (a feeling that smacks me in my face almost everywhere I go in this beautiful country). There was ample space for parking and enough space to walk and sit and dance and run, and I feel like more of these events should happen. I know that the next MudRush is going to be a bigger event than this one and I'll be there at Mud Rush Aamby Valley City in 2014. 

Here are a couple of links that will help you out: 

Multiple Sclerosis India

Mud Rush Official page

Look at all the fun that was had! (click on the image to start a slideshow)

Gold's Gym helping the participants with the warm ups

Participants about to start the race

Many of them wore colorful headgear

Balancing beams

That happy moment!

Getting into Muddy waters

Happy finishers

The beginning of the Sundowner..

The MUDRUSH: Monsoon Edition, Pune

Since I was a child I was a huge fan of the monsoons and it is this love for getting wet in nature combined with my early days playing outside in the mud that has found a special place for the idea of "The Mudrush" in my heart. On the 31st of August, I get to experience nostalgia in a way never before. I have found out that there is a place that will allow me to run around in a 300 year old Fort, in the rains, through obstacles that are set just to make it more exciting! Jackpot! 

The Mud Rush is back with a monsoon edition! As promised, it’s going to be bigger, better and with a LOT more mud. On 31st August 2013, feel the thrill of a quest accompanied with adrenaline along the terrain of the Fort Jadhavgadh situated in the beautiful rolling hills in the heart of Jadhavwadi, Pune. What better place to host the Monsoon Edition with Fort Jadhavgadh’s tag line being Ladh, Jhagadh, AageBadh!

Picture this: a 300 year old Fort, rains, fog, and a 5+ kms muddy trail with over 21 obstacles. This Monsoon, be prepared to run like the famous game character in Temple Run! And you will get the feeling of accomplishment with an epic reward at the finish line comprising of a Signature Frosty Beer and a Medal stamping you as a true Mud Rusher! The icing on the cake is you ’ll be running for a cause where the proceeds go to an NGO.

So let yourself free and give something new a go!

http://www.themudrush.com/aboutus.html

The Fight

When the validity or the theory of relativity is in question

Look around yourself and come take my suggestion

And listen carefully to these next couple of words

Cause the prophecy is here and here are the passwords

To the questions in our minds, and the unanswered sings,

That we see around us and by beginning to discuss

We can move ahead

Instead of wearing shoes made of lead

We can start to run without a thread

Or any strings attached, forgetting

The times we were attacked,

And make a pact that binds us,

That reminds us, that rewinds us

To a place of bliss that we miss and reminisce

But don’t have to dismiss the idea of togetherness

And I gotta confess, the mess that we are in

Will not just vanish,

The future will unfold as we act and we wish.

To begin we gotta open our minds to each other

Give love to your sister and your brother, and only together

Can we stand a chance, and then we can enhance this dance

And begin to advance to our final stance

That will either be remembered forever

Or become a useless endeavor

But that doesn’t matter to me

Cause the fight to get there will set me Free….

Still

The river still flows,
The sun still glows,
The bird still flies,
The ice still cools,
We are still fools,
The guitarist still picks,
The clock still ticks.
- Kirti KM

It's U.S.

With the world asking so much from everyone 
I aint so sure but maybe the answer is a gun
And then we can kill everyone for fun 
And say we won 
But I aint standing for death around me 
Payin’ ma fee, cuttin’ down a tree
I hate people who see in black and white
They think they are so right cuz they’re so white 
But black people are just as tight 
Just as right, ready to fight, Ready to bite 
Back from all those years when they got shut out 
It makes me wanna holler, shout
About everything and the way it could be 
Where everyone is free
Where you stand for doin’ good deeds
Where the water can still freeze
Up at the poles 
There aint no holes in our souls.
Where money isn’t what wets people at night 
Make’m fight, tryin’ to get high, high like a kite.
Where chicks are tryin’ to sell themselves
Linin’ themselves up on shelves
I don’t want a place like that 
Where you are dissed on for bein’ fat
I aint ready for that 
Oh shit! Where are we goin’? Where we at?

Operation Iraqi Freedom

We’ve been at war since I can remember 
It didn’t just begin that fateful September
It’s been 5 years since we attacked Iraq
And now I’m wondering if we’ll ever come back

We went there for a reason that doesn’t stand true
Really just treason a military cue
There was only a few who didn’t support the war
Now our pockets are draining and we’re looking for a door, out.

Of operation Iraqi freedom
We’ve tilled the land but we still got to seed’em
Maybe that’s just what they want us to believe,
That we’re freedom fighters instead of freedom thieves.
There is blood on the ground and nothing can grow,
Is this war gonna end it’s going so slow.

We’re beating around the Bush, no pun intended.
What will happen when china wants the money that was lended.
Our morals were bended, extended for oil or whatever
If McCain wins we’re gonna be in debt forever.

It doesn’t matter who controls the capital hill 
Does anybody have the heart along with the will?
To pull us out of the dark, instead of tearing us apart
The invasion of other nation doesn’t make sense
We’re still looking through manifest destiny lens

We’ve been at war since I can remember 
It didn’t just begin that fateful September
It’s been 5 years since we attacked Iraq
And now I’m wondering if we’ll ever come back.

Talked about McCain but they’re all confused
Trust me Hilary and Obama should not be excused
It doesn’t matter if we win or we loose
The people in Iraq will still be abused.

If you ask me this war we have already lost 
The possible gain has exceeded the cost


We’re trying to control what can’t be controlled
You have to change for yourself, you can’t be told.
We’re like a bad gambler, don’t know when to fold.
Just like the conquistadors from the days of old,
We’re destroying other nations in search of gold.
By being so bold we are loosing our hold.

Are these candidates really gonna stand behind their word
Considering the track record that would be absurd.
They tell us to be heard, go out and vote,
But all they do is shove it down our throats.

It didn’t just begin that fateful September 
We’ve been at war since I can remember 

We’re way too deep for just evolution 
We need to move our feet, start a revolution
It’s the only solution, to end this era 
Of Political, Environmental & social pollution.

-kirti math & jake sakson

Read this somewhere... liked it...

The infinite possibilities each day should stagger the mind. The sheer number of experiences i can have is uncountable, breathtaking, and i'm sitting here refreshing my inbox.We live trapped in loops. Reliving a few days over and over, and we envision only a handful of paths laid out ahead of us. We see the same things each day, we respond the same way, we think the same thoughts, each day a slight variation on the last,every moment smoothly following the gentle curves of societal norms. We act like if we just get through today, tommorow our dreams will come back to us.

And no, I dont have all the answers. I dont know how to jolt myself into seeing what each moment could become. But I do know one thing --- the solution doesnt involve watering down my every little idea and creative impulse for the sake of someday easing my fit into a mold. It doesnt involve tempering my life to better fit someone's expectations. It doesnt involve constantly holding back for the fear of shaking things up.This is very important, so i want to say it as clearly as i can --- fuck.that.shit.

We need more people like this in the world....



So a group of Dolphins get too close to the beach and end up getting stuck...
and a group of kind humans come to the rescue...
Such a beautiful moment this was....

Hello,

We have all tried to start a fire.

I am sure that we all like to think-- that what we are doing now is the right thing--But sadly it isn’t so.

This life as you now live it-- and have lived it, you will have to live once more and innumerable times more-- and there will be nothing new in it-- but every pain and every joy-- and every thought and sigh-- everything immeasurably small or great in your life-- must return to you-- This eternal hourglass of existence is turned over-- and over again.

You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life.-- But if you never start looking you will never find it.

 It is possible to be alive and not exist at the same moment.

What I’d like you to take away from this-- is that every breath deserves to be celebrated-- and every life deserves to be lived.

Separating Our Sins

“All you need is love” a great man once said. Remember this.

Separation is defined as the act of keeping apart or dividing. That’s the definition in the dictionary but when it comes to separation among ourselves as human beings we forget that we separate ourselves from what we believe in and how we behave. We separate ourselves from everything. We try to create boundaries between ourselves because in some twisted way it makes sense in our heads. We view ourselves as superficial name tags instead of actually connecting ourselves to ourselves. We define ourselves based on our origin or religion or race or class but what we forget is that in actuality we are all humans. I do not understand how we continue to separate ourselves from others and also separate ourselves from ourselves.

In my life I have experienced separateness because of the places I have lived in. I have never lived in the place I was born or around it. I was brought up in many different cultures. No matter where I lived I felt like I was trying to preserve my culture while living in a different culture. These things were a lot easier to see in India because the language and food was different. When I came here to the states the issue of separateness became very lost in the smaller differences like the color of my skin or my accent. However I also perpetuated it as I used it to fit in. (kind of ironic)

It is much easier in my eyes to separate ourselves from others as we can find different things that can be different from them. We have seen these acts of separating ourselves in the stories of the Nazi commander who killed hundreds of people and went back and sang his kid to bed. But I have noticed these breaks of morals that we hold true on a daily basis. We intend to do good things but we don’t.

            Our separation leads to more separation. When we are separated within we cannot help but separate ourselves from others. However there comes a point in our lives when we realize that we are separating ourselves from ourselves and others and a drastic change in our lifestyle occurs. This transformation doesn't have to be “epic” or mind-blowing but it does happen in a fashion that if a man were to look at it carefully, it would move him          

            I don’t know what it is that makes us do things that are aligned with our morals opposed to why we don’t. But somewhere in our minds we know that point and we hide from it. Because it means sacrifice from our current lifestyles and when someone does reach that point it is usually because they have been put in places where they have hit that point enough times.

But I am really scared. It is really hard for me to think about separation and to feel like things are never going to be peaceful and calm. It is in man’s inherent nature to compete and those emotions get magnified with bad experiences. I think, however, that by slowly changing the way we treat each other we can bring that change. My fear however, is everlastingly being converted to hope. And I believe that even though we might not be able to make the whole world be in complete peace I want to know that I acted from a place of love and compassion from within my heart. A place of love. Because “all you need is love”.

I Wake Up...

My eyes open to the sound of this artificial beeping that is coming from an electric clock. Usually it’s the sound of the beeping of buses on the highway 30 feet from my bed. That is a different part of the world, I forgot. I forgot that I was on a 24 hour journey to travel all the way across the world. I forgot that my life was about to change drastically as I switched school and the country. There is the school I used to go to on the other side of this highway. There is my mother in the house that I used to live in. There is all the food that I love. Waiting till the next time I got back home. There is my little sister. I remember missing her.

            I remember the ride from DIA to Carbondale in a Colorado Mountain Express taxi cab.

My eyes are stuck to the window looking at the landscape around me. The trees are a much darker green than the ones in India. They are flashing in front of my eyes and I only get a couple of seconds to look around me. And then another different landscape. It’s really because of how fast the tires of this vehicle, which only my father and I are sitting in, are rotating. It’s kind of weird to think that he works so hard just so that my life is better. I remember not thinking this way then. We get out of the cab and we look around trying to make sense of this place. There is no obvious entrance into any building and no building is the most obvious one to enter. Our luggage stays in the cab and it goes to the hotel room in which we are going stay.

I remember not trusting another person with my belongings.

It just feels strange that I am going to call this place home for the next 4 years. I remember not calling this place home till my sophomore year.

I meet people and they hug me when I first meet them. I remember feeling really uncomfortable when they did that. I remember I never hugged anybody else other than my immediate family. And once I remember hugging my girlfriend. My ex- girlfriend now.

I notice that people are really nice to me. I remember that not being the case in India.

I notice that no one really tells you that you are wrong in a harsh way. I remember that not being the case in India.

I notice is everything is clean and organized. I remember that not being the case in India.

I notice that a lot of the girls are hot. I remember that not being the case in India.

I notice that everyone’s eyes and they are so cool in blue, green, hazel, and grey and so on and I think that my eyes are so boring. I remember thinking that.

I notice that everyone’s hair is of a different color than black. I see that most of the boys have long hair. I remember wanting long hair. I remember growing my hair out.

“Hey man, how’s it going?” says a boy with smile that last as wide as his face is.

I don’t know what do say to him as no one has ever asked me that question. I look at him and I smile and then say “it’s good” not knowing that this is what I am going to say for the next four years.

“My name is Jake” he says.

“My name is Kirti” I say it with an accent that only Apu (from the Simpsons) could mimic.

I remember watching hours of Simpsons and Family Guy. I remember learning a lot of English through watching movies.

I remember seeing the price on every single thing.

I go the dorm room that I am assigned. I remember not knowing the word dorm. Especially since its short for dormitory.

I notice that the bed is really comfortable. I remember being really comfortable in a big, nice, clean room with other students. I go to the Bar Fork. I eat. I remember thinking it was amazing food. I remember being persuaded by others to think it wasn’t so good. I go back to my room and I hear the rules about this place and thinking “why would I ever want to break them?” I remember breaking them.

I remember every moment when I have loved this place. I remember every moment where I have learnt and realized that all those flights to come here and back were worth it.

Then I go to sleep. I remember feeling scared, nervous, excited, happy, and sad all at the same time.

And now, I wake up to the sound of this artificial beeping that is coming from an electric clock and I wish that it was the beeping of the buses on that highway that woke me up.

Listen With Me

I’ve been listening,

To the glistening of the water in the pools,

Telling me we are all fools, done for

Ain’t nothing to run for in our lives,

Except for our wives,

Is that all that is left, the theft of our own lives

In front of our own eyes, with the society feeding us a bunch of lies,

Asking us to run around in circles for nothing

Aren’t our lives to be about something?

Other than just money, competition and libations

Where do passion and love fit into the equation?

Of life and our definition of success,

It ain’t about a million dollars or buying a Lexus   

Instead it’s about your brothers and sisters

Giving and getting your love, get it misters?

I don’t know where you come from

But listen. Let it hear your eardrum,

We all in the same planet

We can’t really fuck with it

Anymore, cause we aint got no time

And I aint lying

So let’s get our shit together

And I ain’t saying we will live forever

But at least your grandkids will see the day of light

And the stars at night and figure out what’s right

And please I say, lets win this fight

At the end of the day…..

First Sail

The rain slaps my face as though it is reminding me to stay awake. Not the kind of stay awake slap that says stop sleeping but the kind that says “you’re alive! Live your life.”

It’s easy to start thinking of a beach in Belize, where just the thought of the warmth of the sun somehow makes you warmer. That mysterious girl sunbathing in her bikini gets you hot...you think how sexy she would look bringing you a coconut to cool you off!

 But the rain carrying winds sort of act like Viagra on your hair and all of it seems to be as erect as the ads claim they would be.......the hair ofcourse..... However, trying to maneuver this 70 ton boat with giant sheets as an energy source is quite exciting. Truly a force of mother nature can move this sloop effortlessly..... Never have I experienced this but somehow i feel i was born to be here.....it doesn’t overwhelm me. In fact nothing does, it all seems exciting. Maybe it was written u think.... One of the harshest first sails but that just makes it even more fun. Everything is wet but it’ll get better. I am slightly under prepared but that’s just me. Night falls…..the moon shines proudly ruling over the dark secrets of the ocean...The sound of the water and the motion of the boat as I sleep remind me of my mother’s lap. The sailboat is an amazing thing.

Ajja Ajji’s House

Red gates look alarming to those who are unfamiliar but stand for passion and love. And this is exactly what you will find inside this compounded home. I have spent all my summers in this place since birth and know every square inch of this home. This elegant structure is painted cream/off-white with dark brown stripes in the groves that run horizontally a foot apart from each other. There are three small steps with a white railing lending to the orange door with round designs on it. There is a custard apple tree to give shade for guests while they wait outside. It is now tiled with 2 feet by 2 feet square limestone sheets on the outside verandah. Once I remember playing cricket in the red basalt that existed. Everything changes over time. The back of the house has a coconut tree that was born the day I was. He lets me climb up him even though it hurts him. to give him company is a fig tree and a rose bush. These three get along really well my grandpa used to say. A little farther is another group of friends. A lemon tree, a tree with spicy leaves and a tree with holy leaves on it. I don’t know their names, still.         

Now there is a water tank that is covered up after my sister fell in and almost drowned. That was scary. The house is surrounded by walls on all four sides even though they don’t really keep anyone out. On another side there are three plants with the most beautiful smelling flowers. My grandma told me that since they are white they stand for purity and peacefulness. The terrace on top is not only a place for solitude but the funnest game I have played. To try and balance on the edge, with the wind antagonizing you. The risk was great and not falling wasn’t an option.

There is also a giant rock place accordingly by my grandparents so that when any water fell on it trees would receive it. This rock has been used for years to wash clothes of those who have lived in the house. The dirt under your feet sort of slides when you are wearing footwear. But I don’t know much about wearing footwear in that house. But what I do know is that when it rains the house smells of the best possible combination of water and earth. The bricks that mark the boundary between tiles, the human world, and grass, dirt, tress, the world of endless possibilities turn blood red.

17 summers I have spent there for about 4 months a year. 1.3 years all together but I can tell you which rock belongs where and what the name if every bird that has ever lived there or that the taste of a custard apple doubles in its deliciousness when at home. Or when you drink the coconut water it makes feel like you are in heaven. Or that when the wind started blowing I watched my friends dance with their long branches and offer me fruits.

But like I said earlier, everything changes over time. My grandparents cannot live there anymore. And now knowing that this place will never be the same I must accept this change as well. We share a common destiny; we are all subject to change. And I will never be able to express how much I will miss my coconut tree.