Adieu – The ever devouring machine … My stomach!

Hunger struck, I fumbled and stumbled with a medium pan pizza, which had a double layered cheese. One may say, that happens, buddy! Had you known me you would have empathized in a different way...

Rewind back … 20 odd yrs …

I am eating a snack, my sister is eating a snack... 10 minutes later because of me watching her eat … I would end up eating both of ours.

Few days later …

I am eating an ice cream, my sister too is eating or about to eat an ice cream, 10 minutes later because of me watching her eat … I would end up eating both of ours.

Few months later …

I am eating a favourite meal, my sister is eating a not so favourite meal, but 10 minutes later I started to eat what she had, well after completing what was mine.

So, you see, I was born to eat and enjoy food unfortunately (or fortunately for the animal kingdom) the only thing I always ate was clean vegetarian food. And my vegetarian occasionally had eggs in some other form – cakes or mayonnaise.

I was known for what and how I eat. Everyone used to give importance to me and my food when I am around, they would normally make sure that there's plenty enough when I pay them a visit. And I am usually preferential, I do not eat everywhere I go, unless instinct tells me that food would be good.

I am not a connoisseur but I am known for appreciating good food. This made a sort of good cook, I am allowed to say that because I liked what I usually made – but, there are instances when others did not. ;-) For example I made a special stuffed chilli bhajji once, which came out very very spicy and did not go well with the samplers – I stuffed these special long chillies with our normal green chillies – that unfortunately made many stomachs upset and did not go very well with my repertoire!

Anyways, I have my reservations too in the dishes I eat or drink. I usually prefer large meals, and grande drinks. I am totally averse to anything small in food! Well, you could say that it was an adapted one from my family – when I am usually told about how people eat and grow big and not to see food wasted – so I chose everything big when I eat out. Even ice creams – once when we hung out at Movenpick, Chennai for my friend's birthday bash – I ordered the largest available on their menu. :-P

Thus was my reputation that I ended up in completing most of the remainders that people usually, happily, pushover to my side of the table. I do not like to see people waste food.

I would, most of the times, shock and surprise people who would watch me with awe by devouring a two 12 inch pizzas back to back with out a break and would still end up asking for more. This incident happened on a foreign land – all people gathered for a night and dined together. I ordered a soup from a Chinese place, blimey they must have known or spied on me – they gave a litre of soup!!! Well, that vanished without a trace only to reappear, after being processed, the next day. This followed with a medium pizza which my colleague couldn't complete, then my own 12inch pizza and finally someone else's 12 inch pizza and couple of glasses of coke in between. You should have seen the expression on people who were gaping at me while I was eating … Hehehehe … My mom would have aptly snapped at people saying not put eyes on her son! ;-) No standing ovation, nothing, they were just spell bound – possibly of the thought I am one of the mythical characters who had descended to earth to wipe the earth of food and make the rest of the humanity starve.

Word spread so quickly after this incident I believe and most of the airlines started charging for two seats if one was over-weight. I would have also ended up as the Gluttony victim in Se7en.

Then came Bangalore – the one I did not properly hunt around prior to my landing in a foreign country. If you are a foodie – Bangalore it is! Let me list out all the places that would have been approved by me (around Basavanagudi) …

1. Sanman hotel – The first hotel that I food when we (naang motham 7 peru … ;-)) landed in Bangalore. Food was OK. I loathed it first for it was sweet on many items.

2. Vaibhava/Vyabhava – Free the name. 2 Idlies and 1 Vada and cuppa of coffee is all what you need to get started for the day from this place. You should also try out their baths – it changes for every day -

• Pudina

• Pulav

• Vaangy

• Tomato

• etc …

  One must not miss out their set dosa, but the saagu does not please you …

3. Ever dreaded Imperial – I had been to this too. Some say they usually dogs go missing aroung this hotel.

4. UD – Upahara Darshini – Good coffee, Semiya bath, Malanad Kadubu, aalu bonda …

5. Ever favourite – Davengiri Benne (Butter) Dosa – Mind blowing Benna Dosa which is accompanied with spicy chutney and mashed aalu. Slurrp! Then a round of Paddus, then another round with open dosa.

6. Uttar Karnataka Meals – the one that should not be missed during lunch time. For 50 something we used to get sumptuous meal! As names points out – it is speciality of Uttar Karnataka. Brilliant!

7. SLV next to KSRTC booking centre – offers good chutney – not the watery kind – the solid ones – no double meaning here.

8. There's also this Cane juice centre that I am unable to recollect – not cane-o-la.

9. The Grape juice at Kabab Magic is god level

10. For non-veggies – It is Meghna biryani, Koli Mane …

11. Gopi Manchurian near the crowded market of NR Colony is also heavenly

12. Juice center on the same road as Davengiri Benne (Butter) Dosa – Masala thumbs up!

13. Then there's Shanti Sagar and Jayanthi Sagar (that existed a long ago, which was duly purchased by mighty Vaibhav)

Banashankari has amazing places to eat as well …

1. The BDA at Banashankari 2^nd stage is the place for evening snacks.

2. There's also the place that was previously called as Lepakshi – the Andhra full meals! ;-)

3. Then Uphara Sagar – nice lassi and Gobi manchurian!

4. Venkateswara Coffee Bar – a good place to have nice coffee – right opposite to the park.

5. Ganesh Juice centre – cheap and best! Try the solid mosumbi

Now comes Jayanagar … Yes, I know what you all are saying … I would anyways list out …

1. For Andhra full meals – Nagarjuna and Nandini compete

2. For coffee – Cothas coffee centre next to Cool Joint

3. Cool Joint – the ever crowded Rs. 15 Sandwich centre. Prices may have increased, but the crowd is not directly proportional. One used to get soups for Rs. 5. The variety of juice and ice cream they offer is also good.

4. There's used to be this Udupi hotel – Home Meals – in one of the crosses, which to my disappointment closed itself – amazing udupi rasam! Seriously I go there to have meals – only to drink the rasam.

5. Then there's the Jelebi and Kachori center next to Canton Chinese hotel

6. Dosa Corner – For good coffee and variety of dosas.

7. Opposite of Dosa corner towards Nandini hotel is a chaat shop known for his pani puris. Superb puris! Bliss!

8. Then there's the Kulfi place (Sreeraj Lassi Bar) – you get good Mango shakes and lassis and beautiful Kulfis.

9. There's this juice shop opposite to the ladies college on the ICICI (Elephant rock branch) road – nice juices – cheap and very good! Try their sizzler.

10. All the road side eateries!

Others -

1. VV Puram – Street filled with food on both sides – you get everything!!!

• Delhi Doodh center offering Chiroti and Pheni

• Holige

• Thatte idlies

• Masala Thumbs up

• Dosas

• Chinese

• Gulkund with Fruit salad ice cream

• Big Amla/Gooseberry soaked in Honey and sprinkled with pepper/jal jeera

2. Malleswaram -

• Gulkund with Fruit salad ice cream

3. Koramangala – Sri Krishna Cafe – Nice Coimbatore style lunch in a huge Banana Leaf. Unlimited supply. Their tiifin too is good.

4. The Pongal in JP Nagar offers amazing TN style dosa/Idly/parotta! Spicy and super!

5. Then all the modern food joints – Barbecue Nation, Coffee Days, Inchara …

There are many more that I would have missed. I put them all as reminiscence for the time I spent in Bangalore – A place I loathed to stay, a place now I miss a lot. I am from Chennai, but have never explored the food joints as I have done in Bangalore, may be my partiality arises out of this.

A foodie I am … That even during my wedding, my wife-to-be made sure that she arranged the best caterers for me to enjoy. I love to eat different styles of food. I do not restrict myself in that way.

All along my stomach played well – until recently – when he showed signs of aging! The aging was so sudden and heart breaking... It was bad too! The last time I had been to Barbecue Nation, I ate a little too much of Cajun Potato. What it made to and my stomach will remain etched forever … It made me fart through my mouth!!! Disgusting it was! Yes, my burps were unbearable - the taste it left behind on every burp made me to loath food for couple of days. From then on, I am forever reminded every time to eat less and be contended with that. Thanks to my wife, who, always make sure that I do not over-eat. I don't diet, but have restricted in number of times a food item goes in.

Not so long ago, just before wedding I was able to gobble a 12 inch pizza with ease! :-(

Finally today when I struggled to complete my medium pizza, I realized that my bag will take no more …

My stomach silently (not silent to all - it was violent most of the times ;-)) showed his discontent in my dumping.

Swayamvaram - Unison of Contraries

Penpencils

Yes, the topic says so. I thought I'll relax a bit and write about these amazing instruments after forgetting how to hold them and write on a paper. Today, I completed five long years (and some days) of working/existing in one company, right after college. While in college, I wasted less paper, but more notebooks – shabbily put marks on papers. Well, I am talking about the notes that were vomited out of my lecturer's mouth – yes, the same slimy thing. I knew how to write. Write fast - almost like shorthand language which the journalists prefer.

I switched between pens (ballpoint pens and fountain pens and sometimes ball-less as well ;)) and sometimes fell in love with pencils. These switches happened after first year, until then I was still a school kid and wasn't unshackled from the rope around my neck to be disobedient. Not disobedient, but a little subtler.

Five years! I tried in-between to write - with anything - but failed. I type, though. Got used to it! Not long back, I was a dropout in typing. I searched for keys and alphabets on QWERTY and typed only using my index finger. I am not proficient now, either. I still search for letters on the keyboard, but a little faster and use all the fingers! ;)

OK… Deviated from the topic I wanted to talk about – Penpencils. Hell! Microsoft’s Word does not recognize this word! Long ago, to begin with - there were pencils, and then came pens. With the advent of pens and complex minds came penpencils. Well reserved only for upper class people, penpencils often were luxurious item to be possessed by any school-goer under 5th ishtandard.

With those decades looming around the lower-middle class, middle class and the upper-middle class (This is equivalent to categorizing a cup of coffee as very light, light, medium light, strong, medium strong and very strong). Both this and the analogy do not have a demarcation. It is up to oneself to convince that it is. In such categories of middle class, pencils are such a huge investment! Your parents would decide what you should carry and what you should not. This includes the lubber (local pronunciation from a fellow who does not have the front two teeth) as well. The pencils became novel. We used to have a pencil which had a lubber (I will not use the r-word as we have grown up to know the meaning of it), pencils with caps, pencils with different-animated-characters-at-the-other-end, long pencils with a hand cap (this is often used to scratch unreachable back body parts), pencils that were coloured with two shades at either ends, to end it were the soft-plastic pencil which can be sharpened like a wooden one.

Now you know why I told the pencils became novel. It did not stop there, the novel became luxurious – penpencils. Variations galore in this category. Variety1: (Popular) We had those transparent 24 cartridges filled penpencils which had a white cylindrical eraser at the other end. You can switch between them whenever the hook (lead) went blunt. Variety2: (Short-lived by its modern cousin) Then came the thick leaded pen-type penpencils – this would require you to insert a thick, long, lead from the back side. Covering the back will be a sharpener which also serves as the press-point to push the lead out through the other side. Variety3: (Famous and most popular) This one was a modified version of his cousin (Variety2), without a sharpener at the back, but with long thin needle-like leads (you can stuff in more than one from the other end). This became popular with higher secondary folks. Who flaunt with it along with their textbooks, in which all the texts will be underlined from page-1 to page-last.

Gandhi’s pencil story had influenced quite a lot of people - Many parents (and indeed from middle class). I would always carry either a half or a quarter of the full pencil. For one, my parents – my dad to be specific - hated the way I lose a pencil. For two, you’ll have to use the quarter-pencil till it became to a size that your dad considers another quarter-pencil for you – mind it – it is not you who makes that decision. Or they could be environment friendly, did not like the way you wasted a pencil by repeatedly sharpening it, just so you can get a new pencil (intention being that the chap sitting next to you is a proud owner of a Staedtler pencil and it is nearly impossible to exchange your Camelin or a Nataraj with his German ones!). At the end of it, you get a Nataraj or Camelin for the ones you had reduced to a wood dust, after you were belted, kicked and run-over by your dad/mom.

Coming to think of it, the Staedtler instruments were frig’n expensive. In today’s living, a Staedtler eraser (lubber to those who know it better ;)) costs a swelling 60bucks! Apsara – the nearest contender (in bigger categories) - from India, costs as less as 10bucks. See the difference? I did not notice until I was man enough to spend money from my wallet. I think during 1995 to 2000, my dad had sent around 5 dozen Staedtler pencils and erasers. These erasers, I would cut them into pieces (though I went in my dad’s direction) as I was still a school-goer – and at school we would play cricket! Criminal waste! Spare the rod for a second – I was unaware and a kid. For the Staedtler pencils I would it give it away to anyone who asks and never bother to ask back. Filthy rich! I was Karna - Proudly giving away things my dad bought with sweat and blood. I can only be ashamed for what I had done, I cannot change the past, but I can acknowledge these and know what must be done for future.

Pencils craze never ended till you catch a fountain pen for the first time. You would do all the stunts you can do. You would use your dad’s razor blade (7 ‘O’ Clock) –new or old- to sharpen your wooden pencils, in the process you would shave off your skin and ooze out the blood. Then came the blades with handles, another craze! How can one forget the cranked sharpeners?! These new type of sharpener was huge and you got put your pencil in to it and start rotating a lever on the other end. Then there were long/short/normal sharpeners.

Now there are electronic and mechanical sharpeners floating around, but how many kids hold a pencil now-a-days? Apart from drawing, carpentry, underlining (replaced by highlighter) texts in books, kids are into serious computing - I mean computer. There are born with A for Adobe, B for Bing and C for Computer and so on…

Good old days when we housed all these instruments in different pencil boxes! Well a variety there as well, double-decker, double side, magnetic ones and list goes on. To this nostalgia add your own narration about the geometry box how we used with no clue about how to use the Set Square and Protractor!

Adieu till I write again!

Bad Kid

Episode 1 –

It is late evening and you and your nephew (a 4 or 5 yr old kid) are on a crowded road. The kid is the most dreaded kid known ever, known for his adamancy! Let’s call the nephew as S. S spots a road side shop and the seller of it sells choppu saman – basically it is the stuff which is kind of a kitchen set for kids. As they approach the shop, S turns to his uncle

S: Mama, I need it.

Mama (knows about the kid, but still tries his luck): No, S. We can buy that later, we have already bought enough. Your mom would have already bought you this, and I think I have seen it as well.

S: Yes, I do have one, but you see it is old, and the set here has many more that I do not have.

Mama: No, S. Not today. Let’s leave. Sometime later.

S: No, I need it. And I need it now.

Mama: Sorry, not possible.

S: Mummy! I need it, I need it, I need it! (Sits on the road next to the pavement where the shop has spread out)

Mama: You can do whatever you want it, but the answer is “No” (Oops! He chose the wrong words and asked for it)

S starts to roll on the road and creates the biggest scene as though Mama is a kidnapper.

The seller sees this for some time and thinks its time and a necessity to clear.

Seller: Dai! If you are not going to leave now, I would throw you into the dungeon at my home.

S takes a look at the seller (Massively built with a big mush) and thinks “Namma batcha edupadathu pola irukku” – My tricks are not helping me and cannot be sold to this seller. Gup chup, S wipes his tears away and takes his Mama’s hand and departs. Mama would have had a very big “Thank you” expression on his face for the seller for saving his pride!

Episode 2 –

There was always those good old days when you can see temple elephants roaming on our streets to get alms for the mahout. It was a perfect Sunday afternoon and S was sitting outside and waiting for his day to end (The last day of the weekend and you have the homework to complete, repeat the tables to your dad – all these yes, after 1800hrs. And it was still 1700hrs. With dad yet to arrive from his overtime work on a Sunday, you are the king in the house.) S spots a big black object at the end of street (far far away). As the object nears, he recognizes it – the elephant. Damn excited about it, he runs inside the house pesters his mom, grandma to com outside and watch (little did they know scene next!) Elephant comes nears the house, S goes nears it (totally fascinated) and places the 25 paisa (big money that time – you get a chocolate/bubblegum) on the elephant’s trunk. The elephant passes the money to the mahout. S is thrilled – imagines how would it be if he goes to school in this rather on a torn down rickshaw. He would be the best amongst his friends. Adrenaline pumps!

S: Amma, I need that elephant. Ask him to leave it here and leave.

Amma (perplexed – what the?): No, S. The mahout earns a living with that so, we cannot just ask him to leave it here.

S: In that case, give him the money for the elephant and ask him to leave it.

Amma (aahaa! Tries the next trick): Look S, maintaining the elephant is a big problem. Where do you think we can keep him? (Tries to put into S’s head that they are a middle class family). We have just enough space to keep your dad’s motor cycle. Moreover we have your sister to take care of. (Not that she’s trying to equate my new born sis to the maintenance of an elephant).

Finally the family is saved. Thanks to S’s dad timely entrance. S (bugger became very silent even as his mom started her last conversation. He heard the sound of the motorcycle – chalaak!) hides behind his mom.

S was the most notorious kid as well, he had kept (along with his friends) fire to a stacked up (many) dried plants in his play ground and never accepted that he did it!

He had literally threatened his mom a million times (imagine this: what would you do if your kid stands on an edge of the terrace or a place that is a storey high and threatens that he would jump because you were against his wishes on something?) I would have actually taken the privilege of pushing him and get done with it!

So, life moves on, his adamancy reduces and he becomes a normal guy. Still he never appreciated things. Like have you ever complemented on the food your mom makes? He never did it. Realization always occurs very late, don’t they? He realized all these when he lived alone away from family, when shouldered the responsibility of undertaking the ownership of the well being of his family.

Yes, all this while I was talking about myself. I’m alone, away and on my own, but still owning the responsibility. All this time how many times have I missed to say “Amma, food tastes awesome!” – million times – Everyday! I realized when someone fails to appreciate my effort. If even a small task, a right amount of motivation and complement would actually boost the complemented to do more.

My mom has done lots, just like everyone else’s. Getting up early, cook for an entire family, get ready to work, slog there and come back make coffee, prepare tiffin for her kids and then do some homework from her office, serve food in the night and sleep last.

After work I used crave for that cup of coffee kept ready and steaming hot, has she ever wanted it that way? Someone making her day by making coffee, massage her legs and hands for the hard work she has done? Nope, I failed many times.

The same applies to your dad or sis, yes, but on a lesser extent than what deserves for your mom!

You would have scolded her, been cross with her, but she always knows that it is not for long. (I would actually be pissed if someone does that to me).

THANKS AMMA! I would have missed this many times, but never forget!

All these years alone has actually made me think on appreciating things. Made sure people are very comfortable moving with me. Never to put anyone in a spot.

I’m the Bad Kid! I was like the kid in the video -

http://youtube.com/watch?v=nojWJ6-XmeQ&mode=related&search=

You are right, my parents must have felt the same!

Oh Gawd!

What are the odds of betting “God Exist!” against “There’s no God!” well there might be the other odds which says “God exists, but he does not have influence on our lives!” or wait, “He exists and we are the coins on his chess board!”?

I always liked to debate on His existence. I liked the topic very much – GOD! And when I started to read about “The Blind Watchmaker” by Richard Dawkins, the stir started again! Anbe Sivam emphasizes on the concept of God in a different meaning. Now, there’s always the point when the atheist and the theist are cornered and on the similar question –

Atheist: Can you prove the existence of God?

Theist: Can you prove not His existence?

It is the similar to the forward “Dialogue between the Prof and a student”. It is not necessary that if you cannot see it, it does not exist. Though the thought here is, we can always prove its existence, can’t we?

Life started from where? It was not a just like that! It was not by chance, it was continuous evolution. Makes sense. Yes, I’m quoting Richard here. Yes and for all there must be a starting point, or there’s never a starting point, but only a circle.

It is always to link, Humans from Ape, Apes from Chimps, Chimps from Monkeys and Monkeys from Partial Amphibians (or some sorts), and they from Aquatic species and Aquatic species from lesser known ones… Yes, they from where? Micro organisms, and they from something else, may be chemical compounds. Earth was because of solar system and solar system from Big Bang. Now, how did Big Bang occur? I do not know the answer; a scientist would have the possible, correct, explanation. The questioning continues until you hit upon saying God would be the starting point. And next question would be: How was he created? You cannot have something that comes up by itself! Well, you would say “That’s God!” Yeah, talk to me! Or “God was created from another God!”

This goes on, and I believe it is just a circle or cycle! But how did this cycle result? From where? I’m sure there must be a starting point, but that contradicts as that starting point needs an initiator and which in turn requires to be made! Who made it? Confusion! I hope I’m clear on my confusion – an Oxymoron. Clarified Confusion!

OK, well. There’s no God, no Super Power, no Supreme, no Creator. Tell me how it all started? A point or a cycle? If cycle, how?

Leaving India - A series - Part 1 - Plane travel...

Been a while since I had inked my experiences as a blog. Now is the chance to do it, sitting in a hotel called StudioPLUS, using their broadband wireless cable connection. Yes, I’m in the land of Americans. My assignment: On-site coordinator, to operate from Charlotte, North Carolina. (By the time I completed this, I have moved into an apartment. I took exactly 21 days to finish this!)

I was informed about my travel well in advance, but the confirmation on the surety was done a day before I’m to leave. This left just a day to be with my folks – a day – less than 12hrs. I traveled to Madras, the day before the travel, packed and left! A sentence to finish the entire trauma is very unjust! There was lot of emotional stuffs, physical tiredness and everything, even as I re-collect, it is very painful.

I couldn’t express it, but everyone else did.

Reached Airport to take a flight to Bombay, flight got delayed by an hour, which helped me in staying close with my family for some more time… Clock ticked and the time called me to depart. Took the Jet Airways plane to Bombay (Maddy was in the Business class – No one bothered to talk to him!). With him on the plane, every time I went to the loo, I used to recollect his comic sequence in the plane – “Jacuzzi? no no kakku^&*” – from the movie “Naladamayanthi”, and I use to giggle within myself. – Credit to NB for reminding me about this!

With the mobile phone switched on till the time I boarded the plane and hope of making my people in the viewing tower to see me was a great trauma. Gash! Finally, they got the glimpse of the plane and not me standing next to it – whom am I kidding? It was dark and no way possible to notice.

Reached Bombay around 2100hrs – lots of air traffic, so the pilot circled the city once and finally landed. God bless him… Finance capital of India has the busiest airport and a huge one as well! To go from the Domestic terminal to the International terminal, took 15mins in the shuttle. Sigh!

Once in the International terminal I noticed a big queue – for the Delta Airlines to Atlanta. Well, there came a nicely dressed woman officer to inform us that the fight is delayed – just – by 3hrs! Wackow! During that process the customs was cleared and I used that time to speak to all people before I can board the plane… My bill should have gone for a SIX! Let’s see how much it comes up to?!

I finally boarded the plane at 0245hrs on Nov 5^th, from Bombay. The feeling of leaving the place which saw me grow up weighed on me along with the pressure built during take-off – well not mine, the pressure inside the plane, you perverts … IO IO!

Dinner was served at around 0400hrs, quite a time to have it… It was tasty and I was tired, three in a seat and I’m in the middle, you can imagine… There were lots of people from Jimmy Carter’s Habitat program in the plane, like the person sitting next to me, near the window. His name was Al. On the other side was an old lady! Plight – miserable. Air hostess – very miserable, but their service was good. ;-)

Each of us had viewer before us and it played 12 channels with one channel dedicated to the course of the plane, statistics of altitude, pressure, speed (measuring > 800odd mph), temperature (-52F) and time for destination. The rest were Video, Music and some more. The video channel played the same 6 movies over and over, again and again! The only watchable movie was Cars!

It could have taken the staright route over the Arabian sea through the Sahara and over the Atlantic... But it went over Afghan, over Dubai, Over England and touched Green Land and then touched NY, and Al explained that it may be due to the reason “If we are suppose to crash, we would better do it on the land than in the water!” Immigration/Security was done at New York; it took about 2hours, there. And the next stop was Atlanta – The world’s biggest Airport! I met the GM of Delta Airways, Swiss, in the train (used to travel across terminals = huge terminal!), he is an Indian from Goa, was GM in Swiss, then went to Belfast, now settled in Atlanta for the past 6yrs…

I had to wait at the Atlanta airport to get my next plane to Charlotte. And it was almost 1600hrs when I reached Charlotte.

All throughout the journey, my stomach grumbled many times, not for food – but for other reasons. I refrained myself only for… Not because I was afraid of the heights (Just like what Lodukku Pandi says in Vasool Raja MBBS – “Illa na, khonjham height-a irukku-a, slip aiyduveno-nu oru bayam, namakkku height oththukkathu! 40000feet above sea level) Nay! That was not the reason; it was the paper that scared me. Silly Indian, you might think, yes I’m. Had grown up there and old habits die hard!

Post - 50!

I'll Do Anything for Love, by Meat Loaf -

And I would do anything for love
I'd run right into hell and back
I would do anything for love
I'll never lie to you and that's a fact

But I'll never forget the way you feel right now--
Oh no--no way--
I would do anything for love
But I won't do that
I won't do that
Anything for love
I would do anything for love
I would do anything for love
But I won't do that
I won't do that

Some days it don't come easy
Some days it don't come hard
Some days it don't come at all
and these are the days that never end

Maybe I'm crazy
But it's crazy and it's true
I know you can save me
No one else can save me but you

As long as the planets are turning
As long as the stars are burning
As long as your dreams are comming true--
You better believe it!--

That I would to anything for love
And I'll be there until the final act--
I would do anything for love!
And I'll take a vow and seal a pact--

But I'll never forgive myself if we don't go all the way--
Tonight--
I would do anything for love!
I would do anything for love
I would do anything for love
But I won't do that
I won't do that...

I would do anything for love
Anything you've been dreaming of
But I just won't do that...

Somedays I pray for silence
Somedays I pray for sould
Somedays I just pray to the God of Sex and Drums and Rock'N Roll

Some night I lose the feeling
Some nights I lose control
Some night I just lose it all when I watch you dance and the thunder rolls

Maybe I'm lonely
And that's all I'm qualified to be
There's just one and only
The one and only promise I can keep

As long as the wheels are turning
As long as the fires are burning
As long as your prayers are coming true--
You better believe it--!

That I would do anything for love!
And you know it's true and that's a face
I would do anything for love!
And there'll never be no turning back--

But I'll never do it better than I do it with you
So long--
So long--
I would do anything for love
I would do anything for love
I would do anything for love
But I won't do that
I won't do that

I would do anything for love
Anything you've been dreaming of
But I won't do that...

But I'll never stop dreaming of you
Every night of my life--
No way--

I would do anything for love
I would do anything for love
I would do anything for love
But I won't do that
I won't do that!

Girl:
Will you raise me up?
Will you help me down?
Will you get me right out if this Godforsaken town?
Will you make it all a little less cold?

Boy:
I can do that!
I can do that!

Girl:
Will you hold me sacred?
Will you hold me tight?
Can you colorize my life I'm so sick of black and white?
Can you make it all a little less old?

Boy:
I can do that!
I can do that!

Girl:
Will you make me some magic
With your own two hands?
Can you build an emerald city with these grains of sand?
Can you give me something I can take home?

Boy:
I can do that!
I can do that!

Girl:
Will you cater to every fantasy I got?
Will ya hose me down with holy water--if I get to hot--?
Will ya take me to places I've never known?

Boy:
I can do that!
I can do that!

Girl:
After a while you'll forget everything
It was a brief interlude
And a midsummer night's fling
And you'll see that it's time to move on

Boy:
I won't do that!
I won't do that!

Video Link - Meat Loaf - I'll Do Anything For Love