How do you like this?

I just loved the shadow when I saw it. The perfect silhouttes!

Sent on my BlackBerry® from Hutch

We are going on a winter holiday!

Oh yes we are! :D

We are on our way to Jaipur right now sitting in the Volvo which starts from Bikaner House near India Gate.

Tomorrow morning we will start along with in laws for Udaipur. We plan to see Chittaurgarh on the way. I have heard its a beautiful tower there.

I am so super excited! And Betu is excited just about the bus trip! :)

When he started to get unwell on Saturday and at night was wailing away complaining of ear pain I was thinking 'There goes our trip!' What a mom I am you must be thinking. Worrying more about the trip being cancelled than about betu's pain :P

It turned out to be what we dreaded - an ear infection. But now his ear pain is gone but the cold and cough is still there which is under control though. And we are praying hard it gets better and not worse during the trip.

And this is a pic of betu sitting in the bus wearing his Santa cap which his Nanu got for him :)

Wishing you all a merry Christmas!




Sent on my BlackBerry® from Hutch

This is such a cool lamp!!

Hanabi (fireworks party) is the name of this beautiful lamp, by Japanese designer Endo. Closed when cold, and with petals opened when it becomes hotter due to the light bulb's temperature.


What a wonderful and beautiful idea. Isn't it??

Funny or stupid or plain dumb?

Today Anirudh's school had a function for celebrating Christmas. And all the children who participated got gifts in the end.

So as we were going towards the car, me and Betu, I put the gift on top of the car to make my hands free to open the car. I'm sure you can imagine what must have happened after that. I just forgot about it and settled in the car and drove off. We had just driven about 6 meters that I had to apply brakes and I could sense something falling and the next moment I see the gift toppled on to the side. :P

I got out, picked up the gift but it had broken partially but was repairable. Thank god for that since whole way Betu kept telling me "Aapne galti kari na?" (you made a mistake right?). He stopped pointing at my mistake only when I repaired it. :D

I was laughing thinking about me driving with things on the car roof. I don't know whether its funny or stupid or plain dumb of me.

Edited to add: The moment Hubby set his foot in the house, with the bag still on his shoulder, Betu runs to him and tells him the entire falling gift and repairing incident! Sheesh!! This boy will never let me keep any secrets..will he?

Sent on my BlackBerry® from Hutch

Like father, like son!

Hubby playing game on phone and Betu playing on his water squirt game.

P.S. My first post via my BlackBerry

Sent on my BlackBerry® from Hutch

Anyone heard this song?

The song 'Sakhi Piya' from 'Khoya Khoya Chand'? I just so love it. Its SO VERY beautiful. It somehow touches me deep down. I have already played it over and over again 4 times. And its still playing :)

Sometimes it seems like a nice romantic song and sometimes a 'virah' song. I just can't think of an apt word for 'Virah' in English. 'Virah' would mean missing the spouse. It would mean the yearning for the partner. It does not mean being sad.

The background score is so soft and melodious. Plus its sung beautifully too by Pranav Biswas and Shreya Ghosal.

I also like the title track a lot. I'm hoping to watch the movie soon too!

So very interesting...aren't they?

On Off Mug
This clever mug automatically displays “OFF” when it is empty and ‘ON” when it is filled with coffee or tea. It is covered with a heat sensitive pigment which allows it to change from black to white or vice versa depending on whether it is filled or not.

I so want to have this mug!!

Oeuf Squeeze-Me Mittens

These adult-sized mittens have a kid-sized mitten-shaped pocket, allowing for easy handholding during cold-weather walks. Made from 100% baby alpaca wool.

But gosh man!! They are damn expensive for $52.00!!

Went for a movie on me own!!

Whoever I tell so roll their eyes thinking I must have gone insane to go for a movie all by myself. But I ask why?? Has any of you done so? I mean after being married for quite long? Well..this was a first for me after being married although I wonder whats the connection of being married or not. But somehow now everyone expects that either one should go with hubby dear or with a friend.

Yesterday I had gone to meet a prospective employer which may not eventually be a prospective employer..*sob* *sob* but since the meeting ended early and as I was driving back I saw this Multiplex on the way and decided to check out if 'Khoya Khoya Chand' is playing. Since hubby was not interested in watching this one I thought I will watch it by myself especially since I'm totally vella these days. So after enquiries I had the option of watching Dus Kahaniyan which was scheduled in about 35 minutes. I gave in to the temptation and went ahead and bought the tickets!

As I was waiting I told Hubby about it. He was not particularly happy that I am watching the movie by myself since he too wanted to see it too! But then he didn't have much choice since I already had the ticket. *chuckle*

When I went in to see the movie I had this perception in mind that there will be 10 interlinked stories but it turned out to be 10 different stand alone stories with different titles and different cast. I liked it. Really liked the concept. Almost all the stories were good. But then I have my favourites and the ones that I didn't like much.

I would put the Shabana Azmi and Naseeruddin Shah one on the top, then the Nana Patekar one, then Amrita Arora one, then Neha Dhupia and Mahesh Manjrekar. Masumeh and Jimmy Shergill one plus Manoj Bajpai and Diya Mirza will take the same rank. Aftab Shivdasani was also OK OK. I least liked the Dino one and the Sanjay Dutt one.

Its a overall good movie. One time watch for sure. I would love to see the Shabana Azmi and Naseeruddin Shah one again! Shabana Azmi was so wonderful. She looked like a total South Indian Brahmin. The expressions, the gestures, the body movements everything was superb! And what I liked the best was how the topic of Hindu and Muslim and the disconnect there was handled so beautifully!

Won't spill more beans. So go ahead and watch it! You will like it too!

The encounters!

Every now and then we meet people and they say or do something which either leaves you aghast or laughing inside as out of courtesies you cannot laugh as such. I just remembered a few from the past today:

Incident 1:
Not so long ago I was taking out some relatives for some outing. From my rear view mirror I saw the one sitting in the back seat rolling down the window and trying to throw the tissue outside. I immediately said "Mujhe de dijiye, main dustbin mein daal deti hoon" (Give it to me, I will throw it in hte dustbin) but I was too late and the tissue was thrown out before I could have made myself heard. But the funny part was the comment from that person "Yahan par mana karte hain bahar fainkne se?" (Is not not allowed to throw here). I literally rolled my eyes thinking aren't we old enough to know that we are not supposed to litter around?

Incident 2:
Looking at one of the home tuition inserts in the newspapers today morning reminded me of my accounts tutor in my 12th standard in Calcutta. I still remember my first day there so very clearly and have a hearty laugh thinking about it even now. My tutor, Mr. Ghosh Dastidaar, was an old fellow and had a squint. It had been just a few minutes into the tuition on the first day and he asked as question. I was sitting in the front with a few people sitting behind me. I was so confused if he was asking me or someone at the back. Somehow in the confusion I looked back and then looked in the front again towards the tutor. Suddenly I see him, pointing his finger at me saying "I'm talking to you!!" with a stern voice.

I remember getting a bit nervous then but now I find the whole incident so funny :D

Incident 3:
I was in college then. It must have been the year 1994 or 1995. I don't remember exactly. We went to watch the movie 'Cliffhanger' starring ooh-so-sexy Sylvester Stallone then at Chanakya Cinema hall. It was among the only 2 movie theaters who used to show English movies too here in Delhi. So a group of 7-8 friends went to watch the movie after college. As the movie started, we could hear someone translating the dialogs in Hindi and telling it to someone. For a few minutes we just ignored it but after 10 mins it got really irritating and we turned around to find a couple sitting right behind us and it was the guy who was translating the movie to his wife in Hindi. It was obvious she didn't understand English and they looked newly married kinds. We turned back in our seats without saying a word thinking not to spoil their together-moments but after another 10 mins we were not able to enjoy the movie because of their not-so-translation-whisperings. So we finally turned to them and told us the problem and since the theater had a some empty seats around we asked them to move there :D

It was a sweet gesture on the guy's part to try to make his wife enjoy the movie but then I fell they really should have gone to watch a Hindi movie to really spend some good together-moment! Right?

Hubby is so funny!

Yesterday night there was an AD coming on TV about some winter cream. I don't remember the brand or the make and probably wouldn't have remembered the AD itself if it hadn't been for Hubby's funny remark.

They showed a skimpily clad girl amidst lots of snow - a yellow tube top/bustier with white hot pants/skirt saying "Kya aap tayyar hain? Main tayyar hoon!" (Are you ready? I'm ready!). Hearing this Hubby naughtily says "Kis cheez ke liye tayyar ho?" (what are you ready for?). I had such a laugh hearing the remark but then with such stupid ads, one can't help saying things like these. Right? :D

It was a usual night...

Time is 10:15 PM. The lights are switched off, all are in bed and one can hear the sounds of insects in the complete silence. I can hear Betu's breathing, sleeping between me and hubby. I think to myself "So gaya". The next moment I see hubby propping himself halfway up and looking at me.

Me: "Kya hua?".

Hubby: "So gaya?"

Me: "Haan".

Hubby: "Idhar aa jayo".

Me: "ok".

I slide away the blanket, sit up and am about to go over the other side...

"Kahan ja rahee ho Mumma?"

Me: "Kahin nahi beta. Yahin hoon."

Hubby and me both lie down at their respective places, put the blanket back on and pat him to sleep. The whole family dozed off soon after.

School admissions and the total chaos there of

I was out on the roads yesterday most of the morning doing rounds of various schools for Betu's Pre-Primary (a new word for what was earlier called as Kindergarten of KG in short) admissions. Out of5 schools I went to, only 2 were going to open out forms for KG admissions. The rest are not going to have any this year. Reason? They are already all full with no vacancies.

I really wonder what was the objective behind this Ganguly committee being set up. Was it to smooth things out or to create even more chaos? Whatever the aim was but the way they have worked and made rules and changed them and changed them again have done nothing but created utter confusion.

Last year the rule was min age of 3.5 yrs by March 2007 to get admissions in the nursery for the session of 2007-2008. Fine. Anirudh didn't fit because he was going to turn 3 in March end.

2 weeks ago they have suddenly change back the age to 3 yrs by March end to be eligible for Nursery admissions and 4yrs for pre-primary. So this means he needs to go to KG now. But how is the question when all the schools say they have no vacancies because all the nursery students are getting promoted to KG.

So to summarize if he doesn't get through in KG he will have to take admission in Nursery and be one year older to the other kids in the class. I wonder what effect that will have on his psyche and on younger kids too. Either he will be frustrated since the mental level of younger kids will not match up to him. One year is a big difference at the age he is in. Or the other thing that might happen is that he will bully around the younger kids which he did in his current school till he was promoted to a higher class. Neither of which is something I want to happen.

And today TOI-New Delhi edition echoed my feelings exactly. The turmoil, the confusion that we have been going through.

Its just a wait and watch and then act game for us. All the schools are coming out with forms on Dec 15 so until then we can do nothing but just sit around anxiously for the date.

Never say never!

Coz you don't know when you will be doing things that you once said 'Never!!" to.

It happened with me today morning. Whenever I would go to drop Betu at school and see mums in their crumpled night dresses and unkempt, uncombed hair, I would shake my head and say I will never do that. I may not take a bath before going to drop Betu at school but I make sure I comb my hair and are properly dressed even if its my slacks and Ts.

But that's what I exactly did today morning. And when I was driving to the school I realised what state I was in and how I despised being in that state. Ugghh...

These funny things!

Every now and then I come across such funny/interesting things over the internet that I just can't resist sharing it with you all. And here are 2 of them that I chanced upon recently -

Barefoot Sneakers?? Helluva Funny!

I would definitely like to wear these funny looking sneakers and watch the expressions of others! Hehehe..

Interestingly shaped decanter!

Did you think these were decanters in the first place? Aren't they so amusing? The moment I saw this I was running a list of things I can use this to store in.

Addictions are an integral part of life!

They are definitely in mine! And I've plenty to talk about. And they keep increasing in numbers and never decreasing!

Be it food related or just general habits. If I categorise I think I can create 3 categories of my addiction - To food, to things and to people.

Well, I've talked about my addiction to good food so many times already that I won't start off again. And you are already aware of the degree of my addiction to chocolates :P

Coming to the second category - Addiction to Things! Now this is quite a diverse category in itself. I can list down so many things in here. Like addiction to my PC, to my blogs, to my Google Reader, to my Blackberry, to the Internet, to clicking away with my camera at any occasion or just like that (who needs an excuse to click anyways :P). I also have an addiction to my side of the bed! It has to be it when I sleep or I don't sleep well at all!

Moving to the last but not the least is the addiction to people. People whom you look so very forward to talk to them to meet them or to just chat up with them over IMs. I certainly have a few people on my list with whom I just have HAVE to talk every day even if its just 2 lines of chat on an IM otherwise the entire day seems incomplete. An essential part of my life seems missing till I finally talk to them. Such fierce is the addiction to certain people in my life.

And frankly I'm not even bothered if its right or wrong. I know its there and I gladly accept it. In fact I love it. And want it.

I know this might seem like a crazy nonsensical post but I just had to write it out. For my own sake!

Some clicks from my new phone!

I am so happy using my new Blackberry not just as a phone or for checking my emails or or general internet browsing or for chatting but also for randomly clicking away. The picture quality may not be super duper but its pretty decent!

Come check them out!!

Nov 29 '07: Sunset @ approx 5 PM

Nov 29 '07: Sunset @ approx 5 PM

Nov 30 '07: Dahlia in my house

Nov 30 '07: Dahlia's in my house

Nov 30 '07: Betu snuggling in Papa's arms!

Dec 2 '07 : The roving eye!

P.S. I'm yet to figure out some settings for the camera so thats why those sunset pictures came out in such small size.

Such a wonderful day it was!

I couldn't have asked for a more wonderful birthday than it was yesterday! It started with a big puchha and "Happy Birthday Mumma!" wish from Anirudh and a big nice hug from Hubby. I've lost count of the amount of SMSes and the phone calls that kept coming through the entire day till with the last one being at 10 PM. And last but not the least so many wishes that I got from all the blogger friends. You all made my day!

It makes me happy! Really happy to be remembered and loved and wished by so many people. I'm sure anyone else in my position would feel as happy and as elated as I was.

In the morning I decided to take some goodies to Betu's daycare and after talking to them they felt muffins would be a good idea to go along with the evening snacks. So I picked up some chocolate and raisin muffins from a nice bakery in New Friends Colony and reached about 15 mins before their snack time. I was told that their music class is on so I was waiting in the lounge. A little late one of the nannies came and asked me to come to the music room. I went and the moment I entered all these tinny little kids started to sing 'Happy Birthday' song in the their such sweet voices! I was so taken by surprise and had wet eyes by the time they finished! It was such a sweet and wonderful gesture and I just hugged them all and said thank you! I think that was the best birthday gift. THE BEST!

My eldest sister who lives in US ordered a cake online. It was a cappuccino cheese cake with a moist brownie base! It was just so delicious! It simply melted in the mouth! In the beginning everyone was saying to give just a little as everyone was trying to avoid eating too much sweet. But after one bite, everyone went for the second helpings! Now you can imagine how delicious it was! Here's the pic of that sumptuous, finger licking cake -

And this is Anirudh helping me cut the cake -

In the evening, when Anirudh realised we are going to have party in the evening, he was so excited and kept wishing me every now and then! And not only that. I got showered with so many kisses from him all of the evening :D

We all went out for yummy south Indian food at Sarvana Bhawan at Janpath, near Connaught Place for dinner. It was three of us along with Appa, Amma, Mausiji (Amma's sister who lives in US), Chacha-Chachi, Hubby's Mausaji-Mausiji and his cousin sister.

So now you can see what a wonderfully celebrated birthday it was for me!

Ahh..the winters...and the goodies that it brings!

I'm not fond of the real cold winters but I like slightly chilly and slightly sunny kinds. With just a shawl or a half sweater and you are all set!

And I love this weather even more for all the yummy goodies that we can gorge on like hot pakoras with dhaniya-pudina chutney, stuffed paranthas for breakfast and a nice ginger tea to go along with it!

Just imagine just off the tawa gobhi parantha or methi parantha or for that matter even mooli parantha with a dollop of butter on top of it and if you are really lucky a pickle too! Yummm....

Or imagine right off the pan pakoras. Of all kinds - aloo, pyaaz, gobhi, palak..just any kinds! They are so hot that as you break them open a whiff of steam comes out and you blow it cold and dip it into the freshly ground dhaniya-pudina chutney or a nice thick ketchup! Slurrrp....

And after such feasts enjoying a big cuppa piping hot ginger-tulsi tea which you need to drink sip by sip lest you burn your tongue!

Such are the simple pleasures that you can enjoy in this kind of weather! I have decided deliberately to avoid any talk of the calories intake or the weight gain after such sinful food so that we can enjoy them thoroughly without feeling even wee bit guilty!!

What more would a man want with such wonderful things to keep him happy! Right???

And what more can you expect from a foodie like me! :D Just lots of talks and pictures on food, food and some more food! Happy eating people!!

A new page in the book of life...

The book is withering at the edges, the pages are turning yellow and cracking because of age. The writing in the book is fading day by day, year after year. And as I flip on to the next page, it throws a number in my face - written in bold, font size 100, underline and in quotes!! The number reads 32!! I prefer to read it backwards though! Sadly next year it won't make any difference whatever way I read it!

I don't know if I should be happy or sad! Frankly I'm feeling nothing. And that scares me even more. Am I really getting so old that I don't get excited by my own birthday? And the worst is when you realise its your birthday when you look at a post you just published and looking at the date you think "The date seems familiar..." and its then that it strikes you that its your birthday!

No..I think the worst is when you have to remind an online friend to wish you telling explicitly that its your birthday today! Height of desperation ehh?? But its true. That's what I did just a few minutes ago :D

But I just don't feel like 32!! I remember when we were in college the numbers 27-28 seemed those of old haggard aunties. And now that I'm way beyond those numbers which used to seem scary to me as a teenager, make no difference to feel old or haggard at all. In fact I still feel the same. As happy, as lively (shall I say boisterous? :P) and as young at heart minus the backache once in a while and the few strands of whites on the head and a few tyres around the belly. I'm still the same minus these.

So come on, go ahead and wish me and just ignore the number...OK? *wink* :D

I soooo love it! My Blackberry Pearl!

Yippeee! I got my new Blackberry pearl this week and I so love it! Its super sexy!

And its so light weight too! Everything about it is just sooooo goood! The features are better so its much easier to use. I don't have to move my thumb far away from the keys to use the trackball since its right there in the center.

Its much smaller than the earlier one that I had and so much more jazzy looking too! My Jijaji had used it for a year but no one can tell its not new! Its as sparkling new as it can be! Thanks Jijaji, once again!

Now I can even take pictures from my phone and the quality is super cool too!

Today when I went to pick Betu from school he insisted that I click his picture from my phone and then went about telling everyone that "Humne naya phone liya hai!" (We got a new phone) What a brag and show off he is becoming already!

Chocolate Coasters!!

What more are they going to come up with? Of all the things a chocolate coaster!!?? But what a waste of chocolate to be used this way! At least I think so! What do you say?

The quirky me? Hmm....

Everyone has a few quirks and so do I. I thought its better they are kept under the carpet but our dear Mona didn't let it be that way. She wants me to write 7 quirks about me. 7!!!! Why so many Mona? You should have let me keep some of them secrets at least!! Now every thing's going to be out in the open! Poor me!!

The rules are:

1. Link to the person that tagged you, and post the rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself.
3. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post, and include links to their blogs.
4. Let each person know that they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Since you don't leave me with any choice, here are they..*sigh*...

1. I pick my nose often! Read that as every 15 mins. Do I hear some 'ewwwwwws'?? :P
2. I just LOVE chocolates and whatever chocolates come for Anirudh I hide them away from him because he's not supposed to eat them because of his bronchitis and so I eat them myself. :P :P
3. I can be really forgetful at time. Age has started to show I guess.
4. I can come up with excuses of any kinds and any numbers if I am not interested in doing anything. *wink*
5. I love to collect URLs. Did I hear someone say "Collect URLs? Huh?" I'm sure you would have heard of collecting stamps, coins, pens etc etc but never this. But that's me..different! Hehehe... Anything good I chance upon I immediately save the URL for it on a text file which I created just for storing the URLs right on my desktop!
6. I love food and can eat anything at any point of time as long as its something I like. And its very rare that I don't like something.
   
7. Every time I have Betu in my lap I just cannot stop myself from looking into his ears and nose to make sure there's nothing in there which needs to be removed :)

Phew...done with it! Happy now that you know such funny/weird things about me? :D

Now its my turn to take revenge on someone..heeeheeeeheee *rubbing my palms excitedly with a evil grin on my face* So go ahead and tell me your quirks Guruprasad, Timepass and Shobana. Come on..out with it! :D

Being judgemental? Whats wrong with it?

About 10 days ago we all went along with BIL and his wife to Dilli Haat at night. It was a Monday if I'm not wrong. The weather was chilly enough to wear a cotton shawl for adults and cold enough to wear full sleeved clothing plus a thin jacket or half sweater for kids. As were were strolling around I saw 2 twin girls. They were quite cute but I was shocked to see them in sleeveless frocks. And I saw the parents themselves wearing full sleeved shirts. I just shook my head at such stupidity/carelessness of parents.

About 5 mins later when we sat down to eat some goodies at the Maharashtra stall, I just talked about this to Hubby and the BIL-SIL. I didn't know that the Mother of those twins was sitting next to our table. And she heard whatever I said about her girls and about them. So when her husband came back with their order to their table, she started talking in loud angry tone as to how people have no sense to mind their own business and repeated whatever I had said.

I was shocked. Shocked because had I known she was sitting just next to us I wouldn't have talked about it at all. I have this much common sense for sure. And at that moment I even decided to apologise to her and to tell her that the idea was not to demean her in any way. But then she kept something like "These bloody people don't have manners and poke their nose in other peoples lives etc etc" I don't remember the exact words but when I heard her using the words like bloody I decided I do not want to apologise to her. She didn't deserve it. All the 10 minutes we were sitting there she just kept going on and on and talking in such rough manner. The mother took my statements as if I intentionally said so because I knew she was sitting nearby and so that she hears it. I just shook my head in disbelief at her outrage. Hubby also later said that he also thought of apologising but looking at her language and attitude he decided not to and that she wasn't being mature enough to realise her mistake.

However later I wondered if I was wrong somewhere about judging people and things I saw and talking about them. I know that day I talked about it at inopportune moment and situation but then I was not aware of the presence of the family next to us. But on the whole is it wrong for us to judge people in other circumstances? Should we genuinely make an effort not to say anything about others? Should we just see what it is and just keep it in our minds? I wonder....

What would you have done if you were in my place in that situation? How do you feel about judging others and talking about it openly (not in front of the people you were judging of course :D )?

'Sholay' fans out there?

Check out this link http://www.thakurkainteqam.com/

Its simply hilarious! A must watch!

Om Shanti Om

I saw the movie a few days ago. I think the last movie I watched (in a theatre) was the Bong connection which was almost 6 months ago. I liked the movie. Its a good one time watch. Light and entertaining. Nothing new in the story but still I liked watching it. But then I doubt I will like to watch it again :)/:P

It was mostly funny and the rest was a mix of romantic + thriller. There is one dialogue from the movie which left me thinking and nodding in agreement -
"Agar Kisi Cheez Ko Tum Dil Se Chaho Toh Poori Kaaynat Use Tumse Milane Ki Koshish Mein Lag Jaati Hai"

And the another great dialogue from the movie was "Hamari filmon ki tarah hamari zindagi mein bhi end tak sab kuch theek hi ho jaata hai. Happees Ending! Aur agar theek na ho to woh ‘The End’ nahin! Picture abhi baaki hai mere dost..."

I felt these lines give a very optimistic outlook towards life. And I liked them. Remember the first few lines from a song in the movie "1942 : A Love Story"? I so love them till date

"Dil na-umeed to nahi, na-kaam hi to hai,
Lambi hai gham ki shaam, magar shaam hi to hai.."

Aren't these such beautifully written lines? With so much depth and feeling? I remember whenever I would feel let down and low I would hum these lines and things would start to look better :)

Coming back to Om Shanti Om, don't you think Shahrukh Khan has started to look old now? I haven't seen any of his movies lately besides this one so don't know how he looked in others but in this movie definitely he has started to show age on his face.

Its been so long...

..since I have been away from my blogs. Literally and completely away. I felt so disjointed and so disinterested to even go and take a look at them in all these days for reasons that I would not go into now since I'm over with them and feel happy that I decided to make a comeback. As I was writing this word 'comeback' I felt so funny as if I'm a great superstar who's making a comeback and as if all my audience has been eagerly waiting for me to write :) Hehehe..

And why I decided to start writing is that I was suddenly feeling quite happy since yesterday afternoon even though nothing amazing or out of the world has happened to make me feel this way. Probably I was just going through this 'off-mood' phase. It was so bad that nothing seemed remotely interesting or nice to read or write about. I didn't even want to read the other blogs much. I did try to make a forceful and strained effort to read and comment but stopped after a few random ones. It was so much so that my reader tells me I've 278 unread posts in all of my blog subscriptions *whoopie*...you guys have been going crazy writing or what? :D And I'm so scared looking at the number that I've to catch up on..once again. *whew*

Anyways, whatever it was I'm glad its gone. I'm sure you will get used to my such mood swings if you visit me here often. :D

Diwali@Jaipur!

We always celebrate Diwali at Jaipur with Hubby's parents. Hubby's brother and his family also travel down from Bangalore for Diwali. So its an occasion for family reunion too! :)

The buildings at Jaipur are decorated beautifully with various styles and kinds of lights. Although this year Vidhan sabha was not decorated at all. Last year it had looked beautiful! Birla Mandir was decorated in the same style that I've seen for the past 7 years.

We made some rangoli at the house like we do every year using rice powder and holi colours (gulal). Here are some pictures of them:

Although Anirudh was enjoying looking at the crackers being burst but he was hesitant to hold the phuljhari's himself. But once I held it with him, he started to enjoy it and then he didn't want to stop. So all the teachings from his school teacher that he had been saying over and over again since the past few days of "No crackers!" went down the drain! :)

After a long break!

I had been away to Jaipur since Nov 5th and arrived in the evening on Nov 12th. It was a good long holiday for me and Anirudh. Since I still haven't started working, Betu's Dadu-Dadi wanted to spend time with him. So we both went there early with his Chahu-Chachi. Hubby joined us there later on 8th morning.

On the way we stopped at Haldiram on the Delhi-Jaipur highway and had something to eat. Betu also had his share of rides there in the play area.
On the way we saw a motorcyclist riding the bike while standing. He seemed so cool and waved at us. We saw 2 more such cyclists on the way so it made me think if it was a kind of a road show.
Betu had a blast with his cousins and Dadu-Dadi there. But then he also realised he can throw tantrums there and Dadu-Dadi or Chachu-Chachi or his Bua will save him from me :) The kids are so very smart these days. Oh boy!

Ooh la la!

Who wouldn't love to have this?
A chocolate keyboard! But if I really had it, one key would be missing every hour :P

I'm amazed at the things people keep trying and creating! Such yummy inventions!

Of bondings and friendships!

Have you noticed how quickly you vibe so good with someone and with others even after tonnes of efforts, it is just a superficial bonding? A person may completely be an unknown stranger but when you start talking it feels like you are long lost friends meeting/talking after ages! And then there are people who you have known for years and may be even relatives but even after trying to bond with them, you just share this over the skin kind of relationship because you have to! So you just smile and talk to them, showing so much interest as if they mean the world to you!And its only you who knows its a farce.

I certainly have tonnes of people that I know which I can put in both of these categories!

Once I was talking to one such stranger and when it was time to go our own ways, I very casually said "Bye friend." And that person said "Are you sure you can call me a friend yet? I think I will still call you just an acquaintance." I agreed. But then sometimes out of courtesies we do tend to show the extended arm of friendship. I definitely do. Do you too?

Lets talk about the former group of people since the other group doesn't need much of our attention anyways..right? :D The ones with whom you just click immediately. With whom the chemistry is instant! So many occasions when I've been left awed and probably shocked too at myself that how could I be so comfy with a complete stranger in such a short span of time. So much so that we even decide to share some contact information so that we can be in touch from now on.

From a short meeting at a bus stop or on the road or in the bus or in the train or in the lounges of airports/malls and even a simple bump at a shop, how it grows into a deep friendship.

I may not be making any sense to a person who's not gone through this kind of a friendship. You might find me insane!

Dancing shoes for a parent and child!

The first words that crossed my mind when I saw the picture of dancing shoes for a parent and a child were "WOW! What an idea!"

Isn't this such a wonderful idea? I would have loved to have them when Anirudh was younger! Definitely not now unless I go completely insane and really want to break my toes! :D

Aren't these so very cute? I just keep looking at them and going "Awww!" But man, are they expensive? Euro 80 for a pair!! Phew! The producers made sure its not just the shoes that are mind boggling but the price too!

Lots to catch up!

Last week with in-laws visiting and then my friend dropping by for 2 days I had literally no time to read or write blogs. So yesterday when I finally logged on and opened my Google Reader I saw 163 unread posts just under the blogs section. I almost fell off my chair thinking how many posts I need to catch up with. Just a few days and so many posts written by so many bloggers? Gosh!

And at the same time I realised how many blog subscriptions I've under my belt and I also kind of felt left out since I didn't get to read them as and when they were written! So yesterday feeling something like I this I just closed my Reader. I got really bogged down by the number.

But today I decided I will read them all. No getting up from the table till everything is cleaned off from the plate :)

So all you guys who didn't get any comments from me on your posts and didn't find any new posts also on my blog, you will get to see them all now! As they say "Better late than never!"

Edited:
Its 12:15 Am on Nov 2, 2007 and I just finished reading and commenting on all the pending piled up posts! Yay! I almost managed to stick to my word of finishing them all today! :D A 15 min margin is allowed no? And now you know why would there be comments from me on posts written days ago :P

Meeting an old friend!

I got to meet my friend - Saroja this past weekend. We met almost after 2 years. It was a trip that we both looked forward too. She stays in Kolkata but stopped by on her way back from the holiday trip to Rajasthan.

We became friends in 12th standard when we had moved there as Appa got posted to Kolkata, then called as Calcutta. We were a group of 6 friends - Me, Saroja, Sowmya, Monica, Savitri and Jaya. We all had great fun during that one year. But after that we all went to different places to continue our college education. Somehow the contact with them continued for a few years and then after our marriages somehow slowly and slowly we would contact each other once in a blue moon. But it was with Saroja whom there was a constant contact. Be it a call once in two months or just an SMS a month.

Saroja has 2 kids. An elder daughter and a younger son. Her son is just about 4-5 months older than Anirudh. Savitri is now in US with 2 kids - a daughter Shreya and a son Rahul. Sowmya is in Mumbai and has a daughter named Sarayu. Monica is in Gurgaon and is looking for a suitable bachelor. Jaya was the first one to get married and I believe has 2 children too. I never managed to have contact with her once I moved to Delhi after passing out of 12th standard.

Saroja's son Atreyo and Anirduh both had lots of fun playing with each other but then they had their share of terrible fights on toys and activities. Whatever one would want, the other would want too. If one wanted to ride on the swing, the other would want to too at the same time. If one would want to ride on the cycle, the other would want to do so too. If one wanted to watch one program on the TV the other would want to watch some other. And the worst would be when they would both gang up against Dyuti (Saroja's daughter) and she would come crying to us. So now you can truly imagine the situation. :D

I guess its a phase with all the kids. Whoever would get up first from the sleep either in the morning or from the evening naps, would look around for the other :) One moment a shower of love and affection and the other minute they were ready to pounce upon the other. Truly a love and hate relationship.

Here are some pics of the kids having fun!

What is this object?

What do you think this is? Please give only one choice/name as to what you think this is! The answer will be revealed soon!

The Revelation!
Most of you are right. It is a clothes hanger. A coat rack as the site where I found it called this object and said this -

This whimsical coat rack will delight little ones and encourage tidiness. The colorful peg hooks move around the kitty cat track to adjust to varying heights for hanging clothes and other items.

My first thought was it was a kind of a puzzle where the kids need to take the spokes around the open slots to make it go from the start to end. And I said to myself "Isn't this such a cute idea?" when I found out what it really was!

P.S. Sorry for posting the answer late but couldn't help it as PC was giving trouble.

I like it!

I really like it! I got a big big compliment on my driving skills by my in-laws yesterday night. :D

They are visiting us and yesterday I took them out to Sadar Bazaar and then Connaught Place. We were on the roads from 9:40 AM till 3:30 PM. They complimented me saying how I drove through thick chaotic traffic with such ease and maneuvered so well as if I've been driving all my life. Me very happy to hear that. Very very happy!

Who doesn't like getting compliments? Right? :D And especially us Daughter-in-laws from our in-laws :)

P.S. I started driving a four wheeler less than 2 years ago.

Me? A Schmooze award?? Really???

I really had to pinch myself hard and not once but twice (ouch!) when I saw that I've been awarded the 'Schmooze Award" once by Collection of Stars and again by Just Like that. I had to to make sure what I was seeing is not one of those weird dreams that I get so often. And slowly I realised it certainly was a reality. And I was so ecstatic. As ecstatic as a small child who's just been given a balloon or a chocolate or a new toy! :D

I'm fairly new to this blogging world with my blogging age less than 6 months and not even hundred posts under my belt! And getting this award was something that I never expected. And such sweet unexpected things bring a big big smile on our faces. Don't they?

About the award, "This award is “for blogger who “effortlessly weave their way in and out of the blogosphere, leaving friendly trails and smiles, happily making new friends along the way. They don’t limit their visits to only the rich and successful, but spend some time to say hello to new blogs as well. They are the ones who engage others in meaningful conversations, refusing to let it end at a mere hello - all the while fostering a sense of closeness and friendship.” (CollectionOfStars, I picked it as it is from your blog but don't sue me for plagiarism :D )

And yes I agree I'm like that. My Google reader is a standing proof of that with over 100 subscriptions just under the blogs category!

COS awarded me saying "She always leaves very sweet comments on my posts." Thanks COS! You find my comments sweet enough to give me this award made me smile!

JLT awarded me saying "A very easygoing , likable person. Absolutely without any airs, and very down-to-earth, her writings are warm and effervescent. She can paint very well and man! can she take a picture! Her comments are always friendly and tongue-in-cheek and I like her all the more for it." JLT, I'm totally floored with the adjectives that you have showered upon me. I'm still swimming in them and don't wanna come out :D

Thanks so much girls!!

There are so many I can honour with this award as is the tradition with this award "Give it as you get it". However I will restrict myself to a few.

I award Ps, whom I discovered recently and do not like to miss any post of hers. I may not comment but I make sure I don't miss any post of hers.

I award 2B's Mommy. Again a new discovery but what I like about her is the genuineness about what she writes. They come right from her heart.

And last but not the least, I award Cuckoo. Again a recent discovery but I find his posts amusing and interesting at the same time.

But hey, I must admit, it was them who discovered me and I walked back the trail. And I'm glad I did.

My engagement story?

Hmm... MNAmma, I really need to dig long way back on the road to get it out! Its just about two months less than 8 years since this major event happened in my life.

Ours was a typical newspaper matrimonial marriage. With us replying to the various ads in the matrimonial columns of HT and TOI and then proceeding further after the screenings of the grooms by first the Bio's, then by phone calls and finally by meeting them in person.

Going by this same process I met DH after such initial screenings and after each of our parents met each of us, we met at a restaurant, Essex Farms in New Delhi, one fine Sunday evening. By the end of the meeting, which lasted about an hour and a half, we both felt pro for this bonding and told our respective parents about our sentiments. I was floored by his smile and he told me later that he had gone head over heels in love with my twinkling happy eyes.

Soon the engagement date were finalised - January 3, 2000. I guess God had plans to make it memorable in some way or the other despite it being a a traditional arranged marriage. :D

The day before the engagement, when all the out of town guests were supposed to arrive, by afternoon a cloud of thick fog started to form. By 7 PM it had become so thick that one couldn't see anything beyond 5 meters and by 9 PM so much so that if you would put your hand 1 feet away from your face you, there was no way you could see it. I still remember so much tension surfaced because of this as lot of people were driving down from Jaipur, Agra, Gwalior and more such nearby places. Hubby's parents were driving down from Jaipur and they took record 9 hours to reach Delhi. The longest time ever taken by anyone I guess :) My BIL can surely give a more detailed and amusing account of how he drive all the way to Delhi and what an experience it was for him. :D

But luckily by the morning next day, the fog cleared up 97% as if miraculously. A miracle that we all hoped for :)

So that's that about my engagement story!

And now I pass on the tag to Bhuwan, Stone and Guruprasad to tell us about their engagement stories!

A really hilarious joke!

The new wife was being welcomed at the husband's home in a traditional manner. As expected she gave a speech; "My dear family, I thank you for welcoming me in my new home and family, firstly, my being here does not mean that I would want to change your way of life, your routine ."No, I will never do that, never in a million years."

"What do you mean my child?" asked the father-in-law.

"What I mean dad is (looking at her in-laws);

Those who used to wash the dishes must carry on washing them.
Those who used to do the laundry must carry on doing it.
Those who cooked should not stop at my account, AND Those
who used to clean should continue cleaning!!!

"And what are you here for?" enquired the mother-in-law.

"AS FOR ME, I'M HERE JUST TO ENTERTAIN YOUR SON!!!!!"

Solar Lanterns - great idea!

Don't you think having solar lanterns to light up the house from outside is such a wonderful idea? But if only I had a garden. If only. Sigh...

Anyways, let me not digress :) I saw a nice little solar lantern that glows in the dark so beautifully! It was shaped like a bucket holding the light! Here's the pic of it

Aren't the colors so beautiful? The moment I saw this picture I started imagining them in all kinds of shape and colors! A butterfly, a kite, a cloud, a flower...there could be so many shapes!

Cricket...and me??

I used to be fond of cricket earlier but somehow in the past 7-8 years the fondness was restricted to only few high paced and exciting matches and probably just the finals of a series. But never fond enough to blog about cricket. In fact I used to tease someone whose every other post was about cricket.

But today looking at how incredibly India won against Australia, I just couldn't resist writing about it. When I mentioned about 'the incredible win' today, one friend said, "Every time India win, its incredible" to my statement. I laughed. He was not wrong in his own stance but today it surely was a incredible win. Miraculous was what Appa called it as. When we were just at 100, Appa had said only a miracle can make India win.

But I guess we can give lot of credit to these tail enders who stuck on and brought the victory in India's basket!

Anirudh also loved watching the match with us and when I was asking him to go to bed around 9:30 PM he said "Cricket achha aa raha hai. Thodi der dekhte hain!" It was such a genuine request which I just couldn't refuse. He sat till the last ball and exclaimed at all the fours and sixes. Truly a cricket fan in the making!

And then I remembered how Anirudh's Mama, one of my cousins - Pankaj, always used to say that soon he will get a real cricket set for Anirudh. This is when Anirudh had not been exposed to any real cricket so far and I used to say we don't even know if it will come to use because we don't know if Anirudh would be fond of cricket or not. But now I can definitely say "Mama, the time will not far when you will REALLY have to buy him one of those cricket sets" :D

I got to meet Kiran Bedi today!

Kiran Bedi. In person. Face to face. I was so awed. Before I met her I was awed by her personality as I had seen on TV. And when I met her today I was awed by her simplicity and her genuine endearing smile.

About 2 weeks ago, I saw her by chance when I went to meet someone and they are somehow related. So when I saw her walking in the meeting room I was speechless since I didn't expect to meet her then. My mind was going crazy with so many things to tell her and talk to her about but I just couldn't. That day she was sitting a feet away from me and I just couldn't utter a word. I was so out of words.

And today I actually spoke with her. It was a short meeting of about 8-10 mins. But I know I will never forget this meeting ever. And I told her so too. I told her how awed I was with her. And the fact that how I was kind of dumbfounded when I saw her the other day. And that how glad I am feeling to have been able to meet her in person. She was smiling her big smile all the time when I was saying all this and modestly tried to wave off the compliments I was giving her.

It surely is one of the memorable events in my life. It sure is.

A two colored elephant?

Is it an elephant who has two colors of skin? Or is it the work of some graphic artist who used some imaging tool to create this effect?

Well, its none of that :D This effect was created naturally. "How?" one may ask. In fact you SHOULD ask. The answer is quite simple. Do you see the blue water body behind the elephant? This effect on the elephant was created by the water :)

Amazing. Isn't it? Did you ever think it was a half wet elephant who has just come out of a lake/river after having a nice dip in it? :D

Cutlery made out of Potato

I chanced upon an article which talked about cutlery being made out of potato starch and soy oil making it not only 100% Eco-friendly but also biodegradable. Isn't this something so interesting and awe inspiring? :D Take a look!


When I looked at this picture first it looked too good to be true. In fact I thought its a fake. But I found it interesting enough to share with all. Here's the extract from the article -

"Say goodbye to plastic cutlery and hello to SpudWare—cutlery made from 80% potato starch and 20% soy oil that’s just as heat resistant and every bit as strong as plastic cutlery. The kicker? It biodegrades in just 180 days! SpudWare can even be washed and reused, so you can eat your potatoes with potatoes for months to come."

Its a roll call monday!

So who ever visits please mark your attendance by writing a word or few lines or maybe just 'P' which our teachers used to mark in the attendance registers! :D

Tanha...

As I was writing the previous post I remembered a song from the serial 'Tanha' which I used to sometimes watch about 6-7 years ago. I used to love the title track of the song. It was a beautiful song. I loved the words and the music too! So as I recalled that song, I couldn't get the words at first but I could hear the song inside my head..the music of the track. And as I started humming that tune, I started getting words after words, sentence after sentence. And once I was sure that the word were right I googled for the lyrics of the song and I found them! And if I'm not wrong these lines were written by Javed Akhtar.

dekhiye to lagta hai,
zindagi ki raahon mein,
ek bheed chalti hai.
sochiye to lagta hai,
bheed mein hain sab tanha.

jitne bhi yeh rishte hain,
kaanch ke khilone hain,
pal mein toot sakte hain..
ek pal mein ho jaaye,
koi jaane kab tanha.

dekhiye to lagta hai,
jaise yeh jo duniya hai,
kitni rangeen mehfil hai,
sochiye to lagta hai,
kitna gam hai duniya mein,
kitna zakhmi har dil hai..

woh jo muskuraate the,
jo kisi ko khwaabon mein,
apne pass paate the..
unki neend tooti hai..
aur hain woh ab tanha.

dekhiye toh lagta hai
zindagi ki raahon mein
ek bheed chalti hai
sochiye toh lagta hai
bheed mein hain sab tanha

Shoonya

You have everything to give you a comfortable happy normal life. A loving husband, an adorable child, a nice and warm extended family. A house to live in (although rented), three meals a day (with the possibility of more), nice clothes to wear, a car to drive in. You have everything what any human needs to have. But still you feel this 'shoonya'(zero) inside you sometimes that none of these things or people are able to fill.

What is it that we look for beyond all this? Or is it only us who create this 'shoonya' looking for something beyond all this? Will this 'shoonya' really exist if we are truly happy with what we have?

When I am going through this 'shoonya' phase I like to be all alone. Just ALONE. No child, no husband, no music, and basically just nothing around. A while ago I was feeling this 'shoonyata' inside me. Hubby was busy watching TV and Betu was sleeping. So I just decided to take a stroll outside.

It was 8 PM. The initial signs of the onset of winter have started to show already. And that too quite suddenly. There was this slight mist in the air along with the touch of coldness. I liked it. And as I was walking I was wondering about this 'shoonya' which I believe everyones feels once in a while. I wondered if 'shoonyata' is same as 'tanhayee'. Probably not. 'I felt Tanhayee' is related to people around you. 'Shoonyata' is not. 'Shoonyata' goes beyond people.

Somehow I think I cannot decipher this 'shoonyata' ever and find the means to overcome it. Anyone to do that, needs to rise beyond the life of a normal human being.

P.S. I don't know if I'm making any sense here but I just poured out whatever was going in my mind right now.

Artisitic Lunch Boxes!

I never imagined that someone would be so creative or innovative to think of having such artistic lunch boxes. See the pictures below and you will know what I mean -



Got what I meant? I'm sure I wouldn't want to touch any bit of such lunch boxes as I would just love to look at them like that without ruining them. Even if it meant me going hungry :P

P.S. I wonder what this black stuff is.

Axe ads..quite creative!

I saw these axe print ads and I think they were so funny and so very creative that I had to show it to you all to enjoy them too!



There were a few more that I saw (like a nun with a clothespin on her nose) but I found these two just awesome! Aren't they?

Do I jinx them?

Every time I wish someone to win the contest, the other person wins! It has happened for the 4th time today. So now I don't think I can call it a coincidence anymore. Right?

When Indian Idol -1 came, I wanted Amit Sana to win, but Abhishek Sawant won!. When Indian Idol - 2 happend, I wanted Karunya to win, Sandeep won. When Indian Idol - 3 happened, I wanted Amit Paul to win, Prashant won! And today in Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 on Zee TV, Aneek Dhar won when I wanted Raja Hussain to win. Its not that Aneek didn't sing good. He was quite good too but someone I liked Raja's style/voice more than Aneek's.

So now I feel I should stop feeling so strongly towards someone winning because they never win! Do I jinx them? :D

Ig Nobel Awards : Vanilla Fragrance from cow dung?

Ewww...this is the first word that came to my mind when I read this news article. Extracting vanilla essence and flavour from cow dung..ugghh....who would even thinking of trying to research on something like this? Oh well someone did and actually won an Ig Nobel award for it too! Geez..don't people have anything interesting to do?

Just an hour ago I read Swati's post on food with lovely picture of an ice cream sundae and was drooling all over it. And now I get to read this article on this stupid, idiotic discovery by some Japanese person..

On 4^th October the Ig Nobel Chemistry Prize was awarded to Mayu Yamamoto, a former researcher at the International Medical Centre of Japan. Yamamoto earned herself the prestigious prize by developing a way to extract a vanilla fragrance and flavour from cow dung – a creation she named vanillin. As a bonus to the prize, Toscanini’s Ice Cream, based in Massachusetts, invented a new flavour to honour her – Yum-A-Moto Vanilla Twist.

Yikes! I will definitely never eat an ice cream in Japan. I know there's simply no chance of me ever going but still writing it out will make the ugghness out of my mind go away to some extent. I just hope no one gets adventurous in India and starts making this so called vanilla essence here knowing the free availability of cow dung from our very own "Gau maata!"

Real or fake? - This is just so awesome!

First take a look at the picture below and then read on..Can you even try and imagine what it is and what is it made out of? Besides the fact that it looked like a bunch of roses. Other than that to me it just looked so very beautiful! And it intrigued me so much!

Could you ever imagine that these roses have been crafted from maple leaves? REAL maple leafs from a real Maple tree? Frankly I couldn't.

I'm sure lot of you would go ":O" just like I did. :D

So do you want to know how it was made? I'm sure you all do. Read more about it here.

Addendum: Just now I remembered a paanwaala in Kolkata who used to fold paan (beetel leaf) in different shapes. Although I don't remember where that guy used to sit..I mean which road or location.