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30 Jan 2010

Think Of An Angel & Hear The Flutter Of Its Wings

The start of a long weekend. Saturday morning. Sleep in. Woke up at 8AM, wishing I could get a real hug!

Lucky comes, wagging her tail, when she hears me stir. My cutie-pie! I love her so much. Hugged her, rubbed her until she first sat down to enjoy the attention and finally lay down just below the bed.

The husband follows a few minutes later. First talks to Lucky. Then it's my turn. Plants a kiss on my forehead and goes out to make tea for me. Cute as it may be, I'm still wishing I could get a real hug. He suddenly turns around and flings my donkey pillow at me. "Hug this", he says. Surprised! I didn't ask for a hug, how did he know? If he knew, why didn't he hug me?

Sigh! Where is the angel whose wings flutter when you wish for...

28 Jan 2010

My Beer Husband

My beer husband. Here's his story...





That's it. That's the story. Remember how a picture speaks a thousand words?

26 Jan 2010

Republic Day Recap


Courtesy Taj Online  http://festivals.tajonline.com/republic-day.php

    26th January 1950 is one of the most important days in Indian history as it was on this day the constitution of India came into force and India became a truly sovereign state. In this day India became a totally republican unit. The country finally realized the dream of Mahatma Gandhi and the numerous freedom fighters who, fought for and sacrificed their lives for the Independence of their country. So, the 26th of January was decreed a national holiday and has been recognized and celebrated as the Republic Day of India, ever since.


    Today, the Republic Day is celebrated with much enthusiasm all over the country and especially in the capital, New Delhi where the celebrations start with the Presidential to the nation. The beginning of the occasion is always a solemn reminder of the sacrifice of the martyrs who died for the country in the freedom movement and the succeeding wars for the defense of sovereignty of their country. Then, the President comes forward to award the medals of bravery to the people from the armed forces for their exceptional courage in the field and also the civilians, who have distinguished themselves by their different acts of valour in different situations.

   To mark the importance of this occasion, every year a grand parade is held in the capital, from the Rajghat, along the Vijaypath. The different regiments of the army, the Navy and the Air force march past in all their finery and official decorations even the horses of the cavalry are attractively caparisoned to suit the occasion. The crème of N.C.C cadets, selected from all over the country consider it an honour to participate in this event, as do the school children from various schools in the capital. They spend many days preparing for the event and no expense is spared to see that every detail is taken care of, from their practice for the drills, the essential props and their uniforms.

    The parade is followed by a pageant of spectacular displays from the different states of the country. These moving exhibits depict scenes of activities of people in those states and the music and songs of that particular state accompany each display. Each display brings out the diversity and richness of the culture of India and the whole show lends a festive air to the occasion. The parade and the ensuing pageantry is telecast by the National Television and is watched by millions of viewers in every corner of the country.

   The patriotic fervor of the people on this day brings the whole country together even in her essential diversity. Every part of the country is represented in occasion, which makes the Republic Day the most popular of all the national holidays of India.

Courtesy wikipedia  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_Day_(India)

The Republic Day of India marks the anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution of India and the transition of India from a British Dominion to a republic on January 26, 1950.


Although India obtained its independence on August 15, 1947, it did not yet have a permanent constitution; instead, its laws were based on the modified colonialGovernment of India Act 1935, and the country was a Dominion, with George VI as head of state and Earl Mountbatten as Governor General. On August 29, 1947, the Drafting Committee was appointed to draft a permanent constitution, with Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar as chairman.

A draft Constitution was prepared by the committee and submitted to the Assembly on November 4, 1947. The Assembly met, in sessions open to public, for 166 days, spread over a period of 2 years, 11 months and 18 days before adopting the Constitution. After many deliberations and some modifications, the 308 members of the Assembly signed two hand-written copies of the document (one each in Hindi and English) on January 24, 1950. Two days later, the Constitution of India became the law of all the Indian lands. The Constitution of India came into effect only on January 26, 1950, 10.18 AM IST. Following elections on January 21, 1950,Rajendra Prasad was elected as the president of India. The Indian National Congress and other parties had been celebrating January 26th as a symbol of Independence, even before India actually became independent. Thus, signing the constitution on January 26, to mark and respect January 26 and the freedom struggle and the freedom fighters.
Granville Austin has described the Indian Constitution drafted by Ambedkar as 'first and foremost a social document.' ... 'The majority of India's constitutional provisions are either directly arrived at furthering the aim of social revolution or attempt to foster this revolution by establishing conditions necessary for its achievement.'
The amending mechanism was lauded even at the time of introduction by Ambedkar in the following words: "We can therefore safely say that the Indian federation will not suffer from the faults of rigidity or legalism. Its distinguished feature is that it is a flexible federation.

"The three mechanisms of the system derived by the Assembly, contrary to the predictions, have made the constitution flexible at the same time protected the rights of the states. They have worked better than the amending process in any other country where Federalism and the British Parliamentary system jointly formed the basis of the constitution"

What Sir Anthony Eden, the Prime Minister of Britain (April 1955 to January 1957), said at the time of the emergence of Indian Republic is relevant in this context. He said, ‘Of all the experiments in government, which have been attempted since the beginning of time, I believe that the Indian venture into parliamentary government is the most exciting. A vast subcontinent is attempting to apply to its tens and thousands of millions a system of free democracy... It is a brave thing to try to do so. The Indian venture is not a pale imitation of our practice at home, but a magnified and multiplied reproduction on a scale we have never dreamt of. If it succeeds, its influence on Asia is incalculable for good. Whatever the outcome we must honour those who attempt it. Even more meaningful was the opinion expressed by an American Constitutional authority, Granville Austin, who wrote that what the Indian Constituent Assembly began was ‘perhaps the greatest political venture since that originated in Philadelphia in 1787.’

"During recent years, it has become fashionable among some citizens to disparage the founders and their document. These individuals disappointed by the developments in the country since 1950, have called for changing the constitution explaining that it has not 'worked'. Such thinking, in my view, is misguided. Constitutions do not 'work', they are inert, dependent upon being 'worked' by citizens and elected and appointed leaders"

It is one of the three national holidays in India

My Republic Day

My brother and I would wake up sleepy-eyed at 6AM on a holiday, sleep-walk to the bathroom and dress up in white or green or saffron (so yeah, white) to attend the flag-hoisting at the playground in our colony. It's been a regular event ever since I can remember... school days, work-days (I lived elsewhere during my college days) until we moved out of the colony last year.

While most people don't seem to exactly 'celebrate' Republic Day, it's good to see that there are a few colonies that still do it. A colleague of mine mentioned celebrations that included little kids getting cute little Indian flags, a parade by the 25 watchmen in their huge apartment complex, etc. The one I'm talking about is nothing compared to that. We hoist the flag at 7.15AM sharp (the president of the resident's welfare associate does), one of the ladies distributes sweets. There's breakfast, sports/games for kids and parents, lunch, cultural programs in the evening and finally dinner. It's fun to live in colonies with lots of houses but not so many that it becomes a little city of it's own. I miss that. But then, I miss the grounds and the clean locality too. I digress again!

Back to Republic Day celebrations. I drove mum & dad to the colony (as ex-president, dad was a 'special guest'). What was different this year? The ladies decided that they wanted to take the centre stage, so when the flag hoisting was about to start, there was a group of ladies totally amused to watch the confused men wondering where to stand, for their place was taken. One of the women proudly announced that we'd pushed the men aside and taken the lead. The litle joys of life. Guess this was her moment. The president arrived, in a suit (whoa!) at 7.30AM (big crime, we always do 7.15AM on the dot)... the women-folk were getting restless and unhappy at the lack of punctuality. As most people that come under the category of 'big people' in government offices go, the president merely unfurled the flag but didn't exactly put in an effort to get it in a position that it would wave in the wind. One of the other men had to do it after him. Duh!


Usually, we would start off with the National Anthem. Our lady, Mrs. Akhila, started singing Vande Mataram, so the rest of us had to follow suit. She wanted to end the National Song with 'Vande Mataram' chanted thrice. Okay lady, you got it. That was followed by the National Anthem. Thank God for these Republic & Independence day celebrationss, I can still get both these right, unlike a lot of Indians I know *wink* *wink*


The president yelled "Bharat Mata Ki" and the chorus ended it with a "Jai". Then "Vande Mataram" chanted a couple of times and now the audience wanted him to 'say a few words'. If I were in his place, I'd go blank. Imagine being unprepared, an audience wanting you to speak on the occasion of Republic Day, at 7.30 in the morning! I was desperately trying to remember which anniversary it was. 61st. The man just took off and spoke for over 5 minutes. Republic Day, love for the country, greateness of people... oh dear, how do they do that? That's one thing about these KEB guys, I've noticed... they can talk. Anyplace, anytime, anything about. No English, all Kannada. Brilliant. I mean, the speech was okay but the impromptu was good, the language was good.

Breakfast from Shrinidhi Sagar, as always. Idly-Vada with sambar and coconut chutney, Kesaribath and tea. No coffee. Sigh! I am a coffee person. Enjoyed breakfast. Wished I could have another vada but I was really full. While mum & dad caught up with old friends from the colony, I decided to sit in the car and read for a while. I ended up watching a few kids play. It looked like fun. A new game. Never played that before. One boy from the group throws a ball up in the air and the guy who is "out" runs to where it drops off. The other guys run as far away from the ball as they can but have to turn into statues the moment the 'out' guy finds the ball and yells "STOP!". Then he picks one guy from the group (I'm guessing the guy closest to him), who remains a statue and the rest of the group crowds around the guy who was picked. The 'out' guy throws the ball in the direction of the group and whoever the ball hits is now "OUT". The ex-out guy throws the ball up in the air, the new 'out' guy runs after it and the rest run away from it... and it continues in a never-ending game.

Nothing like the lagori of our days but well, kids these days are lot delicate, I guess. As long as they didn't break the glass of my car, I was happy. After a few minutes of watching some of the kids crowding around my car and the 'out' guy trying to fling the ball at them, I decided that the stress wasn't worth it and dragged my parents back home. I just had to get my car out of there. I had work to get done, at home.

It's afternoon now, I'd better go wish dad while it's still his birthday. It always seems to get buried in the bigger celebrations of the bigger events of Republic Day. Poor dad. The husband's got a chocolate cake, which might have been cut and eaten at midnight if dad hadn't slept by then, if bro did not have to run a marathon this morning and the husband himself didn't have a long ride planned. Cake still waits. Yummm, the thought of chocolate cake in the refrigerator is making me hungry...

24 Jan 2010

I Love My Books




The husband and I are big time book-lovers. We are the kind who walk into a book store and stop a moment to take in the wonderful smell of books. Staying in Bangalore, there aren't too many places to go to, in the city. Movies, malls, pubs (yeah, we are the pub city, remember?), food joints and more recently book-stores. We nearly always pick the last two. Between the two of us, we invest thousands of rupees every month, on books. The huge wall-to-wall bookshelf in our house (my little library - yeah, yeah, turn green) is overcrowded with books of all colours and sizes, science, fantasy, fiction, romance, thrillers, math, management, there are so many with barely space for more.

I am pretty sure that my gold medal in school (ok, ok, you may stop clapping and sit down now) was simply due to my love for reading and books, not so much my intelligence. My school books were crammed with notes wherever there was a white space in between lines, words and around the page. When I studied for the exams, I'd feel compelled to read the notes scrawled across the pages, which most of the time was pretty much the same as the text and explained in different words by the teacher. In effect, I read everything twice. That was my advantage over everyone else.

I digress. The point I am trying to make is, by the end of each year, my books would look used (abused is a more appropriate word) and there was hardly a point in trying to sell them off to second hand book-stores. I never wanted to anyway, it was my parents who would force me to part with my books... I'd fight tooth & nail for them but in about 4 - 5 years time I would have never looked at them and that would be the classic argument that led to my downfall & my parents' victory.

In my final year of college, I met my husband. He was absolutely delighted to find out that I loved books too and was eager to lend me some of his own. The difference lay in the fact that his love for books also meant that the books looked as good as new for years after he had bought them and read them numerous times. No creases in the spine, no dog-ears, no sign that the book had ever been opened, let alone been read!

The first couple of books he gave me went back looking about 5 years older. One of them was all wrinked at the spine, slightly folded around the edge whereas in the other, there were a few loose pages. I never realized it back then but it chills my spine when I think of it now. Poor guy. It must have nearly killed him to see that! He never said a word, back then. Talk about love being blind! As months rolled by and the blindness receded (the love didn't, I swear), a dog-ear on a page or a line of crease would kick off an episode of books flying and hitting the walls, doors slamming and banging tables.

Thanks to the intensive training (yeah, he'd want me to read a book he really liked and I'd better return it looking just like it did before I started), I now keep my books in pretty good condition too. Since I mastered the act (never open a book fully, always read them opened in a V-fashion to avoid creases; use book-marks), my books are in pretty good condition too. I don't cram notes on my books anymore (except an occasional underline or a reference note) and I use book-marks. I like my books in good condition. I never lend my books unless I know they will be returned and in good shape. Fortunately, I've managed not to reach the point of sufferance where a crease would upset me for days on end.

I was reading A Cup Of Comfort For Friends while on the toilet this morning (in my defense, it's a book of anthologies, each spanning 4 - 5 pages max & I can easily read a story or two, in the time) and my heart skipped a beat, right in the middle of a short story. There was a crease right in the middle of a page. A sharp one, with a small cut at the top. A slight tug and the page would split into two. I took a sharp breath and continued to read. Turned the page and the same on the next sheet. I couldn't read anymore. Forced myself to finish the story. It hurts. This wasn't one of my favourite books because I am not so hot on anthologies. However, some of the the stories in this book are not bad and they make perfect reading for my mornings in the bathroom. That's not important. My book. Torn. Well, almost. Why didn't I check before I bought it? Ah, it hurts.


Obviously, the images in this blog are courtesy Google search. While I'm at it, here are some pictures of what I'd really like. A home library. A large room full of books. Shelves filled with old and new books. Ah, I dream on...


No Photos Please!

The intelligence and behaviour of dogs has never failed to amaze me. Some of their actions are so common that they may be the most natural thing, yet excite me to a great extent.


I woke up this morning to two dog-stories. My friend tells me how his little one that takes up his side of the bed and there is a fight for territory. Go back a few years. It's Sonu and dad fighting every night, for the spot next to mum. Dogs, the world over, are so similar. The husband, during our morning tea together, tells me how the little black pup near our house got chased off by the bigger dogs and his dad went across to comfort him. In a flash, the little one had forgotten all about the bullies and was jumping about excitedly. I've always known the big dad dog as a quiet, inexpressive dog. To hear that he acknowledges his little baby in the absence of the mother is so heart-warming.

Last night, as Lucky, the husband and I did our routine walk, we passed by the wine store down the road. There's a pack of 3 dogs and 2 puppies that sleep there. The black pup is very territorial and goes 'yap, yap, yap' the moment we hit the spot. His sibling, the white one, stands and eyes us warily. Sometimes he yaps too. Yesterday was one of those times. The moment the little ones start yelping, three fawn dogs come running out of nowhere. If there were two, I'd say the parents. I never understood the story of 3 but there they are, always together, all equally protective of the puppies.

So, if you pass by that corner with a dog, you'll see 2 pups who raise an alarm (and then head off into the side lane to hide) and 3 dogs who take position at the turning of the main street and the side lane.


They looked so beautiful, watching each other's backs, that I had to have a picture. The ever-obliging husband pulled out his cell phone and started clicking. Immediately, the mother of the pups stood up and crossed the road, to hide behind a road-sign. She hates it. I wonder how she knows but she does and she hides if you're taking a picture. Just like my Lucky. Just like my Sonu. He used to love posing as a kid but turned camera-shy as he grew older. The little ones of my friend's, they seem to love it, staring right at the camera. Maybe, it's a universal thing. Pups love being photographed but the older ones don't. Maybe it's a natural instinct to grow cynical about the whims of humans as dogs grow older.

I guess I'll never know but things like these fascinate me to no end. How do they know so much, without being taught? How do they understand?

As we passed them by and the husband stopped taking pictures, the mother returned to her place with the other two. We turned around and took another shot at them. They had to go on my blog. The mother is the one in the centre, in the picture below.


It Happens Only In India

Remember those forwards with pictures of overloaded trucks, scooters carrying a family of 4 or 5, over-crowded buses? The subject line of the emails would say 'It happens only in India'. Here's my contribution to IHOIA.

Good: I saw these kids on my way to work one day. It brought back memories of my school days when I did the same. Double-riding with heavy school bags on my BSA SLR that lasted me nearly 10 years...


Bad: Come elections and there's a sudden surge of love for slum-dwellers. Guys from BBMP a.k.a Brihad Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (Greater Bangalore Municipality Corporation) parked their bore-well drilling lorry bang in the middle of the road one fine morning. The morning wasn't really 'fine' after that. The men in the neighbourhood came down upon them real hard, quarreling about the parking, quarreling about the drilling and the attitude of the workers and just about everything. Finally, it took the cops to get them out of the way and make peace.



22 Jan 2010

The Case Of The Stolen Wallet

It takes a lot to convince my husband to take me to a movie. Especially a Hindi movie. He hates sitting in the theatre for 3 hours. After 3 weeks of trying, I finally managed to get him to agree to watch 3 IDIOTS with me. Even better? Mum also agreed to come with us for a 7PM show. She never says yes to anything that's past the streetlights hour. I was in an awfully good mood that day.

Having lots my wallet numerous times during my college days - the routine of paying for a bus ticket, leaving it on my lap and walking away - I've grown to be excessively careful. I pulled out a note of 100 Rupees when I went for a snack in the afternoon, inserted the notes in the side pocket of my bag, taking care not to get the wallet out lest I lose it.

Come evening, the husband and mum left home in bro's car (how that happened is a story for another day - our car alarm going off, the punctured tyre, newbie girl driver, etc, etc). I was to meet them in Indiranagar, which is half the way for both of us. Considering that it was traffic hour, I decided that I could easily take a bus and still catch them in time. Faster than walking, slower than an auto (10 times cheaper too).

I wasn't wrong. I got off the bus and met them just as they reached the designated place. Brilliant! The bus ride seemed without much fuss. I got a seat pretty soon. I was holding it in front of me (beware of pick-pockets in crowded buses). I placed it on my lap and proceeded to check my email on my mobile. After frustrated attempts to connect to the internet, I gave up and began to enjoy the view outside. About 5 minutes before it my stop, I headed towards the front door. A minute later, a lady got on to the bus with a baby and I was forced to move the bag behind me. That's all it took! Five minutes for the pick-pocket and three weeks later, I am still under enormous stress!

We reached Lido (where the movie was playing) in the hellish traffic, where mum and I got off while the husband went ahead to park the car. I opened my bag to get out my credit card. No sign of my wallet! Oh hell! My new wallet, my favourite, my expensive Xmas gift. A beautiful brown wallet with the perfect number of compartments, well-placed, an awesome antique-metal coloured ring in the centre. My debit and credit cards, my Crossword card (paid 220 bucks and still not got my replacement), my Driving License (still haven't been able to get a replacement... expected cost - 1100 bucks) and about twelve hundred rupees. I never carry so much money... took money from the ATM the previous day for the car service, the thief got lucky!

I still haven't been able to lodge a police complaint. The cops at the Jeevan Bhima Nagar police station refused to register a complaint because it was not within their jurisdiction, asked me to go to the Indiranagar police station. The cops at the Indiranagar police station insisted I get a letter from the bank that I had indeed had a card in my name that had been blocked. The bank would give me a letter for the debit card but nothing for the credit card. They asked me to call the customer care. I called the customer care and they want me to go to the branch. Finally, after numerous calls and providing one of the 5 or 6 agents I spoke with, my entire "personal details" and yelling at her, I managed to have a request placed for my debit card replacement. A week later, the PIN has arrived, still no sign of card. The credit card, on the other hand, I can do nothing about. They have delinked it from my account, blocked it, won't let me cancel it or get a replacement - all because I cannot remember the incorrect PIN number they have registered against my address. Hell! However, they have no problems sending me a bill for a thousand bucks today. Hell again!

As luck would have it, I also had my office meal card in the wallet (never do that but that fateful day...). After about 5 emails, 2 phone calls and a week and half, I finally have my meal card.

I am yet to lodge a police complaint (wonder how much it will "cost me" to get an FIR), yet to get a duplicate driving license, yet to do something about the credit card and above all, yet to get over the loss of my wallet with all it's belongings. All because of one inconsiderate woman who took less than 5 minutes to grow rich, probably trash all the stuff I'm trying so hard to get together!

19 Jan 2010

12K A Day


I've been riding to work for 3 weeks now. I'm not as regular as I would like to be but it's better than what I've done in the last year. It helps to have a goal. TFN 2010. What would I do without the husband's support? What would I do without the constant encouragement from my friend? Never thought I'd say this but I love my pinks. There's something about the riding-gear that gets me excited!

An early morning ride is the most enjoyable but not always possible. It's not too bad if I leave before or at 8.30AM. Afterwards, it does not matter whether I am on a cycle, motor-bike, auto or a car. I might as well walk most part of the way. Why does all of Bangalore head towards EGL, on the same route every morning, between 9AM and 10AM? Today was an 8.30AM ride. In other words, the cycling itself felt good but unable to enjoy the weather, thanks to all the dust and smoke.

The ride back is disagreeable on most days. Cars and bikes refuse to let me cross the road. Lots of noise and smoke. Auto drivers constantly veering me off the road. Perverts making me want to throw my cycle at them and drag them down the road with the chain around their necks. The list goes on. As my dailymile update says,  today was better than most days. I crossed the main road in 5 minutes, as opposed to 15 - 25 that it takes me on most days. No speeding cars or bikes scaring me, no buses threatening to run me over. They all seemed to be well-behaved, as if finally accepting me as part of the traffic. Auto-drivers continued to be the pests they were. No surprise there. The world may turn course but the auto-rickshaw drivers in Bangalore will continue to shun road ethics like nobody's business.

The exercise is implicit, the savings on fuel and not having to stress over cheating auto-drivers or pick-pockets in buses are all remarkable benefits of biking to work. Another major advantage is having to leave office before it turns dark. A blinking red light at the back and two whites in the front will not save my life, in the glare of the high-beam traffic that speed by. It is as if everybody got late at work, realized they had to rush home to their 'personal lives' and had to get there even if it meant running over the guy in front. So, I leave early. So, I get home and spend time with my mother. So, I have time to play with Lucky. So, I have time to read a book and do my daily email. So, I have a life!

The downside is that I cannot have pit-stops. The advantage that walking or even a bus ride would provide me. I cannot stop to jump into the nearest supermarket for groceries or stop at the stationer's for the DVD I've been meaning to buy. I cannot pay a quick visit to the beauty parlour or pig out on chaats at the street vendor. It also means, no impromptu movie plans, dinner plans or shopping.

As the McDonald's ad goes, "Mmm, I'm loving it". It's not helping to be sitting on the laptop, if I rode home early and didn't feed the dog. She will hate me for it. The husband will hate me. Mother will hate me. Oops, where is the life I was talking about? Better go...

17 Jan 2010

10 Honest Things About Me

When I first started blogging, it was just about keeping myself in touch with writing - keeping my written English a tad cleaner than the spoken, to be more precise. So it has remained, until this day. I am not a regular follower of anyone's blogs nor have I attempted to invite visitors to my own or make new friends. The quiet privacy accorded by Blogger suits me just fine and I refuse to move out to a more open space, although I have considered it on one occasion.

A friend and fellow-blogger, who's very active on the blogging scene posted this yesterday and invited me to read it http://jeeney.wordpress.com/2010/01/16/i-have-received-so-i-give/ . Now I'm expected to come up with 10 honest things about myself. This is hard. As hard as writing up a self-assessment for that annual appraisal or putting together a resume for a new job. I was procrastinating on this activity until this morning, when someone pushed me to give it a shot. There are some people I just cannot refuse anything, so here I am.
  • My name means music but as the husband puts it I "cannot sing a tune to save my life"
That reminds me of my earliest days at Engineering college. As fate would have it, I was one of those bakras (scapegoat) trapped by seniors to be 'ragged' and I was asked to sing songs in all the languages that I knew. Try as they may, they could not get me sing or even remember lines of any of the songs they wanted. Eventually, they settled for making me wear salwar to college for an entire week, with flowers in my hair. Those were the days when wearing a salwar was, for me, dressing up for a costume party
  • I can speak 3 & 1/4 languages and understand another 3 (somewhat)
English is the language I speak best (uh umm) and think in. Kannada, I speak better than a lot of Bengaluru Kannadigas. Hindi, our national language and that which saved the day when I first moved to Mumbai. Malayalam is my mother-tongue. Whereas I can understand a fair bit of it, I barely manage to say much and even then it would be in a strong Kannadiga accent. Hence, qualifies as 1/4th of a language in the language count.

Every South Indian must (atleast every Bangalorean must) understand a smattering of Tamil and Telugu, and so I do. My Mumbai days has familiarized me with a few words in Marathi...
  • Although I am mostly seen in trousers/jeans and shirts/tees, my wardrobe has more girly dresses/tops/salwars
I attribute this mainly to the fact that on days that I am wearing the 'girl' cap, I end up having shopping binges and buy clothes by the dozen. Considering that I hardly wear them, they last longer and the wardrobe just grows bigger.
  • My best friends have always been boys
For a long time, I use to check out girls because that's what boys do and that's what I did with my best friends. Somewhere along the line, I fell in love with one cute guy, married him and never found anyone else cute ever again. How many cute guys have come and gone while I was busy checking out the same girls that they were?

I guess it's never too late to make up...
  • I've only met one girl in my entire life who was anything like me and we shared some wonderful times together
My roommate and I stayed up late nights watching Tom Cruise movies or crying over 'Life Is Beautiful', allowed the boys to cook for us while we watched Just-For-Laughs on Pogo, spent hours at the beauty parlour, went shopping at Borivli the first week of every month to pick up cheap trousers for 50 bucks off the streets, slept late into the mornings until the boys went nuts knocking at our door to go out for breakfast and then there were some crazy stuff we did...
  • I've been wanting to get back to yoga for some time now. It's been over 11 years and I'm still saying...
Need I say more? I wasted 250 bucks on a CD by Shilpa Shetty. Well, I played it once...
  • I love pets
I used to be terrified of dogs until, one day, at the age of 15, I decided that I wanted one. After much persuasion, my parents let me get a pomeranian, the cheapest available at the vet, for 600 bucks. There's been no looking back. After Sonu, there's Lucky. I also have fish and some trying times managing them! I wouldn't change any of that for anything
  • I am terrible with clothes
During my college days, I was really thin and I wore over-sized men's shirts and baggy trousers. Now, I'm fat and want to wear clothes that I cannot carry off!
  • I love playing pranks
Right from the days of reading Mallory Towers, Chalet School books, I have loved the idea of playing pranks on people. While most children finish their quota during their school days and grow up once they start working, my pranks started only after I started working. I guess I'm growing backwards
  • I change my hairstyle every year
I first cut my hair 7 years ago, when I started working and I have changed my hairstyle every year. Each time, I have managed to horrify people around me.

Phew! That took a lot of digging. I wish I had more blogger-friends. I'd like to do what my friend did. Jot down a few names and go 'Tag, you're it!'

16 Jan 2010

The Big Bang Theory - Title Track

The Bing Bang Theory Theme Song - Bare Naked Ladies

Our whole universe was in a hot dense state,
Then nearly fourteen billion years ago expansion started. Wait...


The Earth began to cool,
The autotrophs began to drool,
Neanderthals developed tools,
We built a wall (we built the pyramids),
Math, science, history, unraveling the mysteries,
That all started with the big bang! BANG!

"Since the dawn of man" is really not that long,
As every galaxy was formed in less time than it takes to sing this song.
A fraction of a second and the elements were made.
The bipeds stood up straight,
The dinosaurs all met their fate,
They tried to leap but they were late
And they all died (they froze their asses off)
The oceans and pangea
See ya, wouldn't wanna be ya
Set in motion by the same big bang!

It all started with the big BANG!

It's expanding ever outward but one day
It will cause the stars to go the other way,
Collapsing ever inward, we won't be here, it wont be hurt
Our best and brightest figure that it'll make an even bigger bang!

Australopithecus would really have been sick of us
Debating out while here they're catching deer (we're catching viruses)
Religion or Astronomy, Encarta, Deuteronomy
It all started with the big bang!

Music and mythology, Einstein and Astrology
It all started with the big bang!
It all started with the big BANG!


13 Jan 2010

My Pets


In the 10 years that Sonu (my pomeranian, now dead for 4 years) lived with us, he used to love it when we cuddled him. He loved being pampered, although there were times he would behave like a typical boy and turn away with his nose in the air.

When we brought Lucky home, I noticed that she hated cuddling or any sort of physical proximity. She walked about like a lady who likes her space. I used to find it really strange because I thought all animals loved to be petted, especially dogs, especially labradors (she's a lab-mutt cross). I assumed it must be the kind of environment she was brought up in. Dogs have a great sense of the environment around them and they learn as well as adapt pretty quickly. My in-laws are a wee more formal than my family has ever been. Very polite. Respectful of each other's space. On the other hand, my family is one where we step on each others toes all the time as if that's the only way to go! It's our way of expressing a sense of belonging & sharing. I have learnt to love both and can switch from one mode to another quite easily, after so many years with both families. Back to Lucky now. Over time, she has learnt to acknowledge and even seek hugs whenever she can, from everyone in the family. I'm a very hug-loving person, I guess she just couldn't put me off for too long.

I'd read that Black Ghost Knives could be quite human friendly and once they establish a certain trust with us, they let us hand-feed them. I'd never tried that before. I've never really been able to build a relationship with Sheldon (or his former mate). He hides most part of the day and comes out only for food or after the lights-off hour. Last week, when I was feeding the fish, I tried to hand-feed Sheldon. He let me!! I was thrilled to bits. For some reason I can't really understand, he never allowed me that again.

I spent a couple of days trying to figure why. A couple of nights ago, he humoured me by grabbing one small bit of a flake but when I tried again, he wouldn't let me. It looked like he was shaking his head/body and swimming backwards. He did not go away, just kept going down in the tank, all the while eyeing the food. Frustrated, I dropped the flakes in the tank and left, mumbling to myself how a stupid fish could be so moody. I couldn't have been more wrong. Sheldon is far more intelligent than I could ever imagine a fish could be. He likes his space. He trusted me after all these days, to let me feed him. That was until last week. Over the weekend, I moved him in an under-sized fish-net from his home to a tub and then into a bucket, both of which he hated. I kept checking on him, so he knows who it was. That is enough for him to put a distance between us. He won't eat out of my hand. He needs his space (umm... why do women always get to hear that?)

I don't know enough about fishes to say if he sees me, smells me or it is a combination of both. I'm sure he sees me because he hates it when I watch him eat or when I peer through the glass into the space behind the air-pump where he hides most part of the day. Whatever it may be, it will be a while before I can make friends with him again, before I can hand-feed him.

In the meanwhile, the rest of the adult guppies seem to have shifted to the bottom of the tank, to avoid the school of fries who have crowded the top of the water. It's been about 3 days and Howard is finally back to his usual self. I saw him chase Penny around this morning! No!! I don't want any more fries! Is there a way one can neuter fishes?

In the smaller bowl, the new-born seem not to have adapted so well to the over-crowded bowl. The husband found 4 of them dead and lying under a heap of uneaten, soaked flakes this morning. They have now been moved to a larger tub where, hopefully, they will be able to live to grow into adult fish.

11 Jan 2010

80's A Crowd!!!

I cleaned the fish tank this morning. It was long overdue and hence a priority task on my To-Do list for today. It was as if the female adults were just waiting for this moment, to give birth. I've read somewhere that the guppies need a 'conducive' environment to have babies. Obviously, the yellowish water wasn't conducive enough and the transfer helped enable up the process.

The blackie was very restless when I moved him out. He used to adjust better when he had a mate but now he's quite moody. He has grown bigger than my net and was annoyed that I put him in it. He went around nudging the little ones and snapping at them. A while later, the husband found one of the female adult guppies without a tail. Not sure if he bit it off but I wouldn't rule it out. Poor guppy has been suffering ever since! I immediately shifted him into a separate bucket of water. He still wasn't too pleased but atleast he couldn't do any more damage. I tried to feed him but he only came up to sniff the food in my fingers and turned away. The arrogance!

Once I cleaned the tank, I started putting them inside, counting them one at a time. I got 32 and I was happy. The husband said there had to be 36. So I got 3 more and we thought one might have died. Then we found a few more at the bottom of the tub. I casually mentioned to my husband that I was surprised to have so many, I'd only expected 32 because we had given away four to the sis-in-law. Suddenly, the husband springs up. "Uh-oh, we're having babies again!".

I instantly grabbed the net and a bowl and started to transfer the new born fries into another bowl. There began the adventure. As the tail-less one struggled and started giving birth, the husband and I got busy rescuing the little ones. There wasn't as much havoc as the last time, possibly because of the thirty odd fries from the last time creating a bit of a confusion. The guppies might have been as confused and hardpressed to find the new-born babies as us. So, they weren't being eaten as quickly. The 3-month old guppy, barely twice the size of the babies, swallowed one too. So painful to watch, with the tail of the new-born sticking out of it's mouth for over half a minute, while she swallowed it with difficulty. That might have taught her a lesson, for she did not attempt it again! Thank God for that!

The blackie was extremely bothered by the constant flashing of light in the tank, as the two of us tried to find the fries that were hiding behind the water filter (where the blackie mostly spends his time) and using the black floor of the tank as camouflage. He kept flying out of his hideout to show his irritation by swimming in a restless manner and trying to pick at anything he could find - little fish, flakes of food or just the glass walls. He hated the entire time we spent, which was about 3 hours, while we rescued the fish. He did not like the sound of my voice in the vicinity of his abode. Good lords! How can a fish be so intelligent and so fussy? He was very unhappy with the little fries constantly trying to hide behind the water filter. Whoever heard of such a cranky fish? He reminds me so much of Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory!

A little more than three hours later, we finally decided to abandon the rescue operation. It was hard, thinking of any more babies that could be born and destroyed. We already watched a few being eaten, one still-born drop out of the mother (oh dear!) and one that fell out of my net and died in transit. As we went about getting ready to leave to a friend's place for lunch (the invite was for 12.30 and it was 3PM already!!!), we kept an eye out for any more new ones. In the time I took to clean up the remnants of the fish-tank cleaning expedition and took a shower, the husband rescued another 7 more. We have over 30 fries born today, nearer to 40, I think, all of them sharing a little transparent bowl as a temporary arrangement. It will be a good six weeks atleast before they are big enough to be moved into the home tank.

In the meanwhile, the tank itself has the blackie, the male adult guppy, two female adult guppies, one female kid guppy and 33 baby guppies. What a huge family! I wonder if the tank will get crowded as the babies grow. Too early to say. What will happen when today's fries grow big enough to go home? No idea! I might have to get the blackie a companion to calm him down. At the rate at which he's growing, I might just need a bigger tank for him and his yet-to-come-home partner. How am I going to manage that? I don't know! For now, I'm too beat to think. Happy to donate the babies to families that will take care.

The husband's friend wants about four fish and we are more than happy to oblige. I might give them some from the last batch. What worries us is how we can manage the addition of 40 guppies every 6 weeks? Is there a way to neuter them, I wonder! Fortunately, the 33 babies are all female too. I cannot begin to imagine what a mess it would be if we had had more males. The current male will have a bigger range of females to mate with once they grow up. I only hope that it doesn't mean larger and more frequent batches of birthing!! Aaaaah, just the thought worries me. No more rescue operations, we will just let the survivors live and the rest should take the course Nature has devised for them.

As we now have a way of identifying each of the older fish, we have decided to name them. Of course, the 33 six-week old babies or the new-born ones cannot be named, they look too alike to be identified. So, here we go (as is obvious, TBBT has a big influence on me at the moment).

Sheldon -   Blackie
Howard  -   Male Guppy
Baldie  -   Fin-less Female Guppy
Winkle  -   Tailed Female Guppy
Penny   -   First Female Survivor Guppy

For more pet-fish-names, here are links. There are more links leading out of these pages.

9 Jan 2010

Language Hungama

Lakshmamma is the soul of our locality. She knows everyone in every house in the four or five adjacent streets, where I live. She works in almost every house and where she doesn't, she has some sort of a connection with the residents.

A Tamilian at home, her nature of work (maid) has taught her to be able to communicate in many languages, albeit in a broken/mixed lingo. She speaks in Tamil with Tamilians, a mix of Kannada and Tamil with my mother (who also speaks a mix of K & T with her), Hindi with the North Indian bachelors in the flat below ours and so on.

Here's an exchange between one of the bachelor boys who was searching for someone (possibly his roommate) and Lakshmamma.

Boy (in Hindi):   "Kidhar gaya woh?"  (where has he gone?)
Lakshmamma: "Udhar illiya? Gate-u open madibittu chalagaya? Anga veetukki gaya?" (Isn't he there? Has he left the gate open and gone? Has he gone to that house?)


The only Hindi words in her reply are Udhar, chalagaya & gaya. Illiya, anga veetukki are Tamil, madubittu is Kannada and a smattering of English words that have seeped into our local languages (gate, open).

Reminds me of my days in Engineering college!

When I left school, I spoke impeccable English, thanks to my wonderful English teachers who insisted on us crossing our t's and dotting our i's and getting it right every time. It was a bit of a culture shock when I joined the Pre-University course, for everyone spoke to each other in their local languages, Kannada being predominant (of course, in Bangalore!). Over time, I learnt to speak a mix of Kannada and English. By the time I finished college, my spoken English included a fair bit of Kannada with a few Tamil and Hindi slang words chucked in.

A few days into Engineering college, a newer crowd, more varied dialects of Inglish (English mixed with Indian languages) and at one point, some people had to make me repeat myself to understand what I was saying. One of the girls, stopped me in mid-sentence one afternoon and whined that I spoke in atleast four different languages in a 6-word sentence, could I please pick one language, any language, and speak a complete sentence in it? After my initial reaction of being stunned, I realized that she was right. I eventually got my point across (in Kannada, with a few English words snuck in) and all was well.

Like a turning point, I made every attempt to fix up my language since then. When I went to Mumbai, I learnt to speak better Hindi and to understand Marathi. Fortunately, I made a conscious effort to keep both languages out of my English! My Kannada-speaking friends and I had fun trying to speak Kannada without a word of English (my Kannada improved so much in Mumbai!!).

The flip side of it was that the two years in Mumbai took away my beautiful neutral accent in English. I picked up a slightly Marathi-Hindi style of speaking. Over time, I've tried to dull it down. My English still has a very Indian accent, with an occasional slip into the Kannada/Marathi-Hindi style. Maybe the association with an English speaking crowd has helped in some ways. Thankfully, I haven't picked up a US or an OZ accent or a mix of all those that I hear at my work-place. It is now not embarrassingly bad but I wish I could go back to the neutral!

Lucky's "Welcome Home"

My little one was so excited to see me home early today. She wagged her tail at me and looked down the stairs. Why does she always assume that I've come home with the husband, when I'm home early? I need to tell her about my cycling!

A few minutes later the husband arrived. She must have thought I lied to her when I said he wasn't with me! She was ecstatic. They played rub-against-each-other, chase and roll for a while. She got hyper-excited and decided to chew on the husband's jacket. He complained to me and she turned away. Hmm. Baby's scared of momma!

Turned around to what? The husband's socks. She turns 5 years younger when she's playing with the husband. He has that effect on her! While she tried to run away with the socks, the husband caught her and grabbed his socks from her mouth. She followed him to where he was going to keep it. She is such a brat!

There's only so much energy one has after a tiring day at work and worse still, the gruelling ride in traffic. When mom said she was going up to the terrace, the husband sent Lucky with her too. She loves the terrace. She loves to run, play ball, sniff around and most times, just lie down in the open air and open space.

I've got a few minutes before my mum and my daughter come home. Then starts the various demands. Feed me! Feed her! Woof woof guff! Get off the laptop! Help, help, help!!

8 Jan 2010

By Your Side, Always!



BY YOUR SIDE by Ruwaida Van Doorsen

It hurts to know you’re hurting
Because you’re so special in my heart
The pain that you are feeling
Is tearing me apart

But know that love has a way
Of easing all that’s wrong
Together we can make it
If we hold on and just be strong

Know that you’re not alone
In all your adversity
For by your side through and through
Is where I’ll always be.

I've been a sucker for poems since my school days. My favourite books in school included poetry books. Yet you'd be surprised to know that I do not own a single poetry book in my library (yeah, I have a library at home, woohoo). I don't know why. I guess it's because I don't have enough time to sit back and enjoy a good poem anymore. I can't read poetry in a hurry, I need to savour it, bit by bit, trying to understand the various meanings hidden between lines, between words and let my imagination fly. I do sometimes get online and read a few when I can. At times, I even steal a few to send my friends (gone are the days I used to write my own... sigh!)

I went on one of my poetry reading sprees this evening, to ease my disturbed mind. Today's theme was friends. These are my dedication to the world's greatest friend - I am so lucky to have you in my life!

ALWAYS FRIENDS by Randall Beers (Mmm... beer!)

I accept you in confidence,
I listen and admire your wisdom.
We are one when we are together,
You and I will always be friends.

When you are angry,
I am there to sooth your aggression.
When you are sad,
I am there to cheer you up.
(Mmmm... ok, not always.. Mmmm... actually, you cheer me up)

We understand each others thoughts,
Words with us aren’t needed.
We have a trust that is very rare,
You and I will always be friends.

What we enjoy doing together comes natural,
We accept life and move ahead.
I am your shadow and you mine,
We are inseparable if only in mind.  

BEST FRIEND by Teri Martinez

We have been friends for so long
We have grown closer with every passing year
I have grown to love you more every day
If it wasn't for you I would be lost right now

Sure we may argue sometimes
But it helps us grow closer
You have been a really true friend to me

I thank God for you everyday
Nine years ago this friendship started
It has truly grown into something wonderful

I wish I could truly thank you for all that you have helped me with
And all the hard times you have helped me get through

But words just are not strong enough
I don't know what I would have done if you weren't here
Thank you so much
I love you dearly


TREE AT MY WINDOW by Robert Frost (one of my favourite poets)

Tree at my window, window tree,
My sash is lowered when night comes on;
But let there never be curtain drawn
Between you and me.

Vague dream-head lifted out of the ground,
And thing next most diffuse to cloud,
Not all your light tongues talking aloud
Could be profound.

But tree, I have seen you taken and tossed,
And if you have seen me when I slept,
You have seen me when I was taken and swept
And all but lost.

That day she put our heads together,
Fate had her imagination about her,
Your head so much concerned with outer,
Mine with inner, weather.

Psst: There's more at http://www.netpoets.com/poems/.htm When you steal, it's good to acknowledge the source, to soothe any hard feelings ;)

6 Jan 2010

Googly



Four years ago, when my then-boyfriend-now-husband and I decided to buy a car, I took driving lessons costing a whooping four thousand bucks. Everywhere else it cost half the price but this included "theory classes" and a couple of "simulations" before the actual on-road driving. I felt like I needed these extra lessons, for I've never been part of the traffic except as a cyclist, which doesn't really count for much.

I was doing ok in the first couple of classes, albeit a bit nervous, acutely conscious of the fact that my instructors probably looked at me and thought to themselves, "There goes another lady driver on the streets!". On the third or fourth day, it was a class on uphill driving. I struggled and I struggled and I struggled. The instructor was quite vocal about his disgust and said that women like me should not be allowed on the streets. A few classes later, I had to take a break to get married. I finally managed to finish my 10 classes in about 3 months time!

Then it was time to take the test. As expected, I did badly in the orals. Come on, it's hard to remember all that stuff inside the bonnet and their functions!! What am I, in school? Duh! Then the actual driving. Guess who was the invigilator for my driving test? The guy from my uphill driving class. Fuck! I was sure I would fail. So, we got started and he was very keen on making me show him my (lack of) skills in uphill driving. Needless to say, he was not thrilled to bits. He didn't say anything, just made notes in his book as he made me reverse, turn left and right, shift gears, etc.

Half an hour of driving later, we got stuck in bad traffic. I was pretty sure I'd failed and I was getting late to office. I started to get tense. A narrow two-way lane and there was choc-a-block traffic in one direction, barely enough space for a two-wheeler or, at worst, an auto-rickshaw to pass the other way. At the moment, I was too tense to consider asking my instructor for help. I forgot that he was in the car with me. After pondering for a moment, I took the plunge. I decided that I did not have time to wait for the traffic to clear. It was those days when I used to believe in 'facing my fears' and shit like that. A good 20-minute ride, during which I manouevered the car over footpaths, around trees, bikes, other cars, autos and buses, narrow lanes, we finally reached the driving school.

The instructor who was quiet all along, told me that the test was over. It wasn't even an hour yet, so I was pretty convinced that I had failed. I didn't care, I just wanted to get to work. If I had to come back another day for my test, the sooner I got out of there, the better. He looked at me and informed me that I had passed. Sorry, what!?! "I am not very happy with the results of your oral test and you need to work on your uphill driving. However, I will pass you in the test because of the amazing last bit of driving you did. Some of my instructors could not have done that", he said. Coming from him, it was high praise. The happiest moment of all my driving experiences!!


Over time, thanks to the husband's constant back-seat driving (husbands!!!), I lost my love for driving. We have a black Hyundai Santro that spends more time in the garage than on the roads. This year, I decided to start driving again, no matter what. I drove to work yesterday and left the car at the Trident Service Station across the main road, for a long overdue service. It cost me a good five grand! Looking at the split-up costs per item, I noticed one item called 'consumables'. Being a great food lover that I am and never having serviced the car before, I promptly assumed that 'consumables' were goodies. I looked in the car, expecting to see choccies that the service station might have sweetly left on the back seat of my car, in the name of building customer relationships. I was even willing to forgive them for charging me a good 150 bucks, for mere chocolates. I looked everywhere but there was no sign of any chocolates. No consumables in my car!!

This morning, I spoke with a friend of mine and asked what 'consumables' meant in car terms. Oil, filters, brake pads, light bulbs, spark plug, etc. Shit! Consumables! Not goodies, not chocolates. I'm glad I checked before I called the service centre to ask them not to provide me any 'consumables' and bill it to my service anymore. Phew!

5 Jan 2010

As The Family Grows In Size...

I said I was not going to write today because it was really late in the night. I had to sleep for I have an early morning tomorrow. However, that is not to be. Sleep eludes me and my mind is restless for there are thoughts in there that need to be stowed away. Like the old headmaster Dumbledore's pensieve, in the Harry Potter's series.



I remembered to water the plants tonight, before hitting the sack. That got me thinking, took me back in time, in some sort of a reverse action (remember Fast Forward and Fast Reverse in the VCPs of the good old days?)

When the husband and I first left my in-laws place to set up a home by ourselves, we were not sure how we would manage. All we had was the determination to do it. It was not easy but we somehow survived the ups and downs. I have never had a reason to regret the decision. Within a year of moving out and in the midst of our struggle to live on our own, the in-laws demanded that we take the family dog in with us, as they could not take care of her any more. I was worried as to how we fit her in our busy lives, both of us working and barely managing to get the domestic chores done.



A few sleepless nights later, we brought Lucky home, on the husband's insistence. It was not an easy ride at all. She hated being alone and either the husband or I had to rush home from office every day, when the house owner called, annoyed by her howling. The neighbours were constantly complaining to the owner and she wanted us to "do something about the dog". It didn't help that her own children went to the balcony and teased the poor, scared baby. We managed somehow. We got her a radio for her following birthday and played it softly for the time we were away, so she could feel the presence of company and not be overwhelmed by the silence in the house. It seemed to work for a bit.

Slowly, she got used to our routines and began to enjoy living with us. We took her to the in-laws' place on an occasional weekend, for they missed her. During the weekdays, we walked her a couple of kilometers to my parents' place, which she absolutely loved. Soon, she became an inseparable part of our lives. She's our baby now. I cannot imagine a day in my life without her in it. I would be lost if I'd to spend a night without her in the same room as me or without the assurance that she'll be there to wag her tail at me as soon as I open my eyes the next morning.



She's just merged into our lives like brushing teeth or having bath. She's not a responsibility. After this, the only thing that could be an extra responsibility was having a baby. Or so, I thought.

One morning, on a whim, I brought home my parents' old aquarium, lying dirty and abandoned in the garage. Mum and I cleaned it, painted & dried it on the terrace and it was ready to be a home to my fishes. I don't know what made me do it, just knew that I wanted to. I brought home a couple of Black Ghost Knives and a handful of guppies. There has been no looking back since then. I love them. Today, they are another integral part of my life.



The husband and I shared an excitement inexplicable, when the guppies had their babies. It broke our hearts to see one of our blackies die in front of our eyes. It's amazing how they can bring about such an array of emotions in our hearts, without saying a word or connecting with us in any way another human or animal might. I have no regrets.



They're part of my life now, not a responsibility I wish I didn't have! All they need is to be fed twice a day, the air-pump/motor and light switched on for a few hours, a fortnightly cleaning of the tank and changing water. No fuss.



I didn't see anything else coming after this. How could there be? I might have wanted another pup but Lucky wouldn't allow me to. Maybe it's a good thing. She isn't too thrilled about the fishes either but they leave her alone, so she leaves them alone. She feels a wee neglected on days when I'm cleaning the tank and giving the fish all my attention... or on days like the one where the husband and I were rescuing the guppies from their parents. Well, that did not stop me from adding another member-group to the family. It was meant to be.

Last week I brought home plants. Three pots with baby palms, standing tall in the balcony adjoining the bedroom. One Tulsi in the balcony adjoining the library (mum insisted that it was good to have a Tulsi in that particular direction, so it stands alone in the other balcony). All they need is to be watered twice a day. If I did only once, they don't complain either way.



The plants experience is still new. While I enjoy seeing green in my balconies, the challenge will be to ensure that I do not kill them. I hope I can pull this one off too, just like I managed with Lucky and the fishes. I don't know what is in store for me next. It's too early to anticipate. I'll just go with the flow. When it happens, I'm sure it will bring just as much joy into my life as all these other things have.


No blog today...

Was going to ride about my riding experiences in today's blog. An ORR initiation ride last evening and the ride to work today gave me enough to write home about. Plus, I had pictures. Unfortunately, time has not been on my side. Late in the night, time for bed. Maybe tomorrow. Here's hoping...

3 Jan 2010

Sunday Morning - 03.01.10

Woke up at 5.30AM and read my morning email, as always. I usually have an alarm to read it at 4.30AM but it's a Sunday. Just caught the husband leaving for an offroading on his bike and went right back to sleep, after asking him to take care. 


At 6.30AM, the maid ringing the bell woke me up. I went around, moving things off the floor so that the maid wouldn't miss a spot, left Lucky at mom's and made tea for the maid. I watered the plants and left Lucky on the terrace for a pee.


The maid left at 7.30AM and I logged in to reply to the morning's email. That done, a quick blog and some tweets later, I logged off to get started on some household chores. I've been sick for the last couple of days and the husband has turned the house into a junkyard. 





At 8.40AM, I fed the fishes, fed Lucky and set about to make breakfast for the husband, who was yet to return from his ride. For the first time in my life, the dosas turned out perfect. The first dosa made me squeal in delight. This has never happened to me before! While the dosas were being made, I arranged the washed dishes in their drawers and wrote some quick notes for this blog. Not to mention the running around to find the right lid for the 'hot box' where the dosas were being transferred to. Lucky occasionally paid me a visit in the kitchen and I had to make small talk to keep her happy. Thank God for multi-tasking!!


As is practice when I make dosas, I am always tempted to make a little design out of the dosa batter. For lack of creativity, I simply end up adding little circles around the regular central big round dosa. When that was done, there was just one little spoon of batter left. I made a kutti dosa (little dosa) for Lucky. 


 


That done, I set about tackling the dishes in the sink. All nice & clean, returned mum's vessels to her and sat down for another quick email. 





I'm trying to scrimp on ISD text messages, so the emails happen fairly frequently these days. The husband walked in while I was in the middle of my email, tired and hungry. I quickly brought the chutney from mum's place, fixed it and served him dosas. The husband wanted tea. I made a cup of tea for him and sat down to finish my email.


The husband finished his breakfast and refused to take mom to the bank or walk Lucky when asked. Mum won't drive with me and would rather cancel her plans instead, which she did. As I was beginning to log out, What A Girl Wants was playing on TV and it was too tempting to let pass but I had to. I had things to get done. The husband went to sleep and refused to move, no matter how many times I called him. Annoyed and needing a break, I sat down to watch the movie.


I got carried away by the internet and telly, as I expected to happen and hoped I would avoid today. Three hours later, I'm sitting here, writing this blog, another email and a few tweets, watching re-runs of FRIENDS. The afternoon has passed.


I need to get about a do my hour-long cycle ride and make my resume today. If I don't move now, I never will.