Near miss

There must still be many things I and a busload of people were meant to do in this world. That's why I am still here in this world, along with all of them...

For our big day out last week, our all-work X-mas lunch, we travelled on this bus....to our destination – a bowling club.




After the fun and all that, when we were returning, the bus we were seated in, being a double-decker and far too tall for this sort of fun and games, ploughed through the power/phone cables. And caused a wooden pole to snap off and do this.....





...and this...




No one was hurt except the car and the pole that snapped right off to fall on the car.

And we learnt later that the only reason that all the people in the car and the bus walked away unscathed was that it was the phone cable that had snapped off and fallen on both the vehicles (assumption). Had it been the power cable, we were told, we would have been totally fried....or something similar.

As I said before, there are many things I still haven't finished doing in this world. There is a purpose and reason I still haven’t fulfilled - that is why I still haven't shed this mortal coil.

Too often, we long for adventure in our mundane humdrum lives. Probably have to exclude adventures of this sort. Getting far too old for all this.

In the meanwhile, here's wishing you all a very happy new year. I've got to run - Boxing Day sales on everywhere and I still have to pick up many things - don't quite know where I'll fit them all in the house....
And sparing a thought for all the Boxing Day tsunami victims on this second anniversary....
Cheers, everybody...

Sillly season

That means lunches, eats, and SOCIALISING!!! with a vengeance.

There are about a 100 people where I work. And so far, I've had 3 x-mas lucnhes. Luckily not with all the 100. I am planning on skipping the next one (tomorrow).

The first was only with our immediate team and we were wined and dined @ one of Wlg's (arguably) finest restaurants - Logan Brown. Of course, being vegetarian and teetotaller might hamper some people's style ;-) This was really nice as it was only five of us. That was in late-Nov. And the amount of wine was moderate, as all of us were 'mature' beings well aware of the limits (ok, the truth was that we had to go back to work after that lunch). And I remeber it for mainly good food and a detailed discussion on what deja vu actually means.

Then, our whole 'unit' (whatever that means) that has about 20 people in it, went out for the 'unit' lunch a couple of weeks ago. This time, there were a few youngsters and the likker was flowing. Bring it on, they said, and every five minutes, the decibel level and number of risque jokess kept going up. And I never said it was only the men. Those who laughed loudest and made the dirtiest jokes were young and female. I was ok with this lunch too and actually found something to veggie to eat.

Then came our 'all-office' lunch. I was petrified to say the least. Going out to lunch with 100 people, 75% of whom I don't even know. Way out of my comfort zone, even if I am quite good at pretending to 'do' the social thing. And at a mystery location. Luckily, it wasn't a formal setting - it was a bowling club. And by virtue of sticking to known and nice mates, I managed.

In fact, quite enjoyed seeing other people get a bit sloshed and acting quite silly. Of course, I didn't hang around long enough to see anyone get really and totally pissed. Thankfully this year's compulsary socialising is over. And the reward? Time off from Friday afternoon (Dec 22) till Jan 3 morning.

Of course, had a near miss too. That shall be the next post. Have a great holiday season and all that...

Retail-therapied till I dropped, over the weekend....what fun!!
Although I am drowning in a deluge of guilt now at the spending....

My good deed for the day

Putting up all the X-mas decorations at work single-handedly.......well, maybe not single-handedly, but I did do my bit.
And it all looks so nice and festive with reds and greens and the tinsel and the fairy lights and x-mas trees...not to forget the carols.

Christmas carols

I can hear them - they are just outside work now at lunch time.
Although there is no snow only rain now....never mind that it is offcially the 4th day of summer here......

And homeward-bound
AT least half the set of freinds and acquaintances are in the process of, or have already, gone to India. Things kind of quieten down now..and as ever, the urge to go is there. Only have to keep reminding myself of totally unimportant but necessary things like money, leave, and that fact taht I got back only this Jan from India.

An exciting day at work

This is an email I received from a friend:) Honestly. Sounds like she sure is having a whale of a time!!!!

Sent so many useless emails to friends that they couldn't even be bothered to reply
Made endless cups of coffee (only for myself)
Spent an hour doing email puzzles
Polished my shoes
Cleaned my desk
Ate my way through 3 packets of crisps and two muffins
Had one lunch and four coffee breaks
Went shopping for olives
Did my grocery list
Had a hair cut
And by then, as I was exhausted with all this activity and knew I wouldn't be able to do any dinner at home, rushed out in the last 10 minutes of my working day and grabbed a couple of takeaways.

I am totally pooped. Going early to bed. And will probably call in sick tomorrow!!

Well, that's her working day. Hopefully, not a typical one. Let me tag everyone that reads this post - what's your typical working day like?

Y'day

Saw this poster for Dhoom 2 yesterday afternoon during a lunch time stroll! Stopped short at the sight of Ash. I knew she was in the movie and so knew it was her in the poster. Else, I would have assumed it was Mallika Sherawat. Or Mumait Khan. Or Bimbo-Whoever.
What has she done to herself?
In a way, I s'pose she looks hot and sexy.
Whatever happened to class? Crass rules!

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And while walking to the rly station in the evening after work, got diverted by my friendly neighbourhood cop - one block had been cordoned off as there was a bomb scare there!!!! Bomb scares, even in this corner of the world. Terrorism is universal.

There comes a time

in every blogger's life when they have to make the decision:

to write or not to write

That is the question.

An idol to look up to!

Now there's a Hilton syndrome? Girls actually want to be like Paris Hilton - famous for being famous? That'll be the day! It already is.

Well, Paris can be famous for being famous and just that. She can make an album, sell perfumes or even film her own sex videos. Of course, she can, she's an heiress! Never mind that she says she did it all on her own. Meaning, she didn't take a cent from her poor parents. That's her version, anyway!

But will someone tell these idiotic girls that they can't be Paris (or even Nicky Hilton). Simply because they will need to have money to buy things like food, clothes etc. And to have that money, they actually need to be able to do something useful - like earn a living. Not just be anorexic and do TV reality shows - badly!

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I think it must be the generation gap - but just now, a whole crowd of screaming teens, carrying (not real) knives and smeared with blood (not real again) strolled past the Wlg CBD - why? I don't have a clue.

Is it because it's Friday the 13th today!

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Update: yes, it was a `Zombie Day'. It got shown on the 6pm news. It was pretty gross, according to me. But I guess it was 'fun' for many!!!!! Whatever.

Diet

How could it all have gone wrong?

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From the beginning, as soon as he could eat solid food, the emphasis had been on good quality vegetarian food that included a lot of fruits and vegetables (they believed in the dictum of 7 serves a day). Unlike some other families that force the issue, there was no question of getting him to eat meat in this household. They were really big on 'healthy eating'

They failed to notice the other telling signs. The fact that ever since he could walk, he hated exercising and would rebel every time he was taken out of the house. He would dig his heels in and refuse to move. And would have to be literally dragged along.

But as he was moving around fine inside the house they soon found it easier to ignore this. And as he was otherwise normally very friendly and always full of beans they figured his diet was healthy enough. To be sure, sometimes they had concerns. Was he getting enough to eat? Didn't he look a bit thin and small for his age? But everytime they overcame this by giving him more 'healthy food'. And his frame filled out satisfyingly. After all, at that age, they looked a lot better with some baby fat on them.

Till they finally took him to the doctor for his annual check-up. At first, the doctor was satisfying appreciative of their efforts. "He looks fine, look at him go," etc. Till she put him on the weighing machine.

She came back with a sombre look on her face. "Well, he weighs .... (she mentioned a figure that seemed quite reasonable to the family). But I hate to break it to you, but I have to let you know that he is overweight. In fact, he's just short of being obese. I am going to have to put him on a permanent diet. Life-long, else the prospects are not that good. Nothing sweet at all. He cannot afford to gain much more weight than this."

They stared at each other, aghast. Obese - at one-and-a-half years of age on a totally vegetarian diet? And now to be on a lifelong diet of nothing sweet? They couldn't believe it. All their good intentions, healthy food, etc had been useless. And what had they given that was sweet?

Seeing their stricken looks, the doctor hastened to add: "Not to worry, this is a very common problem in NZ. I am sure he will come right with a balanced diet. You can feed him parts of his current diet as a treat, once in a while, you know," she said, trying to soften the blow. "It's good to be aware that even natural foods contain quite a lot of sucrose."

But a life-long diet? They were shaken to the core. Still, they pulled themselves together to thank the doctor and left silently, cuddling him as they went.

The doctor shook her head as they left. She saw so many like them daily. They meant well, but in the end, they were the ones that did so much damage to the ones they loved the most. Sighing, she pulled the next case sheet towards her.....

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Aauthor's note: This is a true story.

Today is

Gandhi Jayanthi: Thanks to 'Lage Raho..', looks like there's a lot of interest back home. Good for the LRM team. Happy Gandhi Jayanthi.

Vijayadashami: finally, the navarathri excesses are almost finished. Found the whole haldi-kumkum scenario an uphill walk this time around, compounded by many circs and some people. Still, Happy Navarathri and Vijayadashmi.

and back-to-work-after-daylight-saving-started day. Travelled to work, feeling grumpy and disoriented. And my face was only one of hundreds of wan-looking ones. *sigh* will take a week to get used to having the clocks an hour forward......Can't wish a happy day for this one to anyone.

Still, I have to agree with what my neighbour said yesterday. "I am really looking forward to the weekdays, at least we can go and relax at work." Which, I have to admit, is so true! If you get over the Monday morning blues, then there's no place to be relaxed like work, sweet work, be it ever so humble.....

Being olive

in colour has its advantages. Apparently, the texture of the skin is "just beautiful". No wrinkles near the eyes and mouth and no lines on the forehead. At least, not till you hit the forties.This is what the beauty therapist told me the other day when I went in for a facial. She sighed and said she wished she could have skin like that. Hyuk, hyuk, that was an ego boost alright.

Who'd have thought?
But, word for word, this is what I heard.

Not that I didn't know about this before and not that I haven't observed it meself here - olive skin does age better. But still, it took a lilting Irish voice to drill this into my head.

Honesty also forces me to add that maybe she was being too kind. Simply because the massage table over-balanced as soon I sat on it(I swear this was because the table was awkwardly positioned and had nothing to do with my being overweight - really)and she wanted me to feel better. After all, she didn't mention anything about the sunspots on my skin, caused by years of wandering around in Chennai summers. Nor did she say anything about my double chins.....

Btw, she used the PC word 'olive'. I, being the plain speaker that I am, would have probably said 'brown or dark' skinned.

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Wishful thinking:
I've forfeited the right to be obese. All I can aim for and achieve is being overweight. Which I already have. Sigh, I am a underperformer.

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The post on kids by Lak brought home to me, yet again, that no culture can take a morally superior tone. We Indians here lament so much how children here are treated -as in, no picking them up, putting them to bed in separate rooms even if they are only 10 days old, etc (never mind that they cry for hours together when it first happens). But in India, we have mums who are not mums, and kids still being lonely even while surrounded by people. I have to agree with Lak completely on this one. My take is: if you don't /can't spend the time on kids, maybe you should try not having any. After all, what's the point?

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Goodness

The whole crew went in to see `Lage raho Munnabhai' at the theatre y'day.
And ..what can I say?
That I am so glad that we took the kids along? That it was such a clean and well-made entertainer?
But without doubt, Gandhigiri was its USP. And very well done too. Without shoving it down our throats. I won't say more in case any of you haven't seen the movie.
But I have to say, if you haven't, you really and truly should.
I, for one, came away feeling humbled, proud, guilty and hopeful.
Humbled by the priciples the movie advocates.
Proud that I am Indian and have this wonderful heritage to pass on.
Guilty that maybe I had forgottten some of it and hadn't done enough to pass it on to the next generation
And hopeful that if someone instilled all the Gandhian values in a movie and that such a movie is a hit in India, then mera Bharat is indeed mahan. That there is still lots of hope for the the country and it is not going downhill as many I know (cynically) claim.
Forget the crap and just grab the goodness.
Maybe I am being simplistic. But hey, it feels good. So I don't care.

KANK

This was the highlight of my weekend.
With a starcast like that, the film can't be bad.
But it was, I must say, a teeny bit disappointing and I ended up feeling that Shahrukh and Rani deserved each other.
Big B was super as was AB.
Technically, brilliant. But something missing....
Who else has seen this movie and what did you think?

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Also, noticed this time around that TV serials are being advertised in cinema theatres before the movie.....

Fact and fiction

Am reading The Ramayana by Ashok Banker (have finished Prince of Ayodhya, now onto Siege of Mithila). While this post isn't a review, guess where we found it in the library - in the science fiction section........I ask you - science fiction.......

On a lazy, rainy Saturday afternoon

here I am sitting at home in perfect domestic bliss.
Only me and small N at home. She is watching TV.
And I am plodding on with my assignment.

Height of thankfulness:
that the dishes are being done and the clothes being washed even while I battle on with my assignment. Thanks to dishwasher and washing machine.
Height of laziness:
Wishing that the self-same machines would also put away the dishes once they are done and that the washer would hang up the clothes......

Apols

to all the blogger pals whose sites I normally visit and whose sites used to be links on my blog. The last couple of months have been horrendously busy and I haven't done most of the things I've wanted to, including visiting blogs. It doesn't help that the home PC is down and needs to be replaced.

Also, in a moment of madness, I enrolled myself in a course and assignments for those are due shortly. Plus all the things that one usually does for kids - dance programmes, games, etc are all on at full swing. Why do I do these things?????

However, things should quieten down a bit after next week and then will try for more browsing of blogs. Meanwhile, thanks to everyone who is still visiting my blog in the hope that it is alive – it is – partially comatose, not yet dead, so your visits won't be in vain.

And since I blindly went ahead and changed the blog template, I lost all the links that I so painstakingly set up! Sigh, one more to-do to add to my never-ending list...

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As an aside, if you are into Carnatic music, I recommend Sanjay Subramanyan - strongly. He was in Wlg recently and is a brilliant singer - first time I heard him and it was the best I've heard in quite a while...and we have had many famous faces singing for us during the last year...but he'd be the pick of the lot, as far as I am concerned.


And you'll just have to take my word on these two things.

Colours

You can actually see them nowadays on Lambton Quay (LQ is like the Mount Road of Wlg CBD).

I still remember my first walk down LQ during lunch time, years ago. A hurrying sea of black - with a few greys and whites thrown it - that was it. That sight almost depressed me, being as I was then, so used to bright Indian colours and fashions.I instinctively turned around to look at the flowers on the roadside, riotously colourful. Probably the only colourful living things...

But all that's changed now - bright fashion has slowly been creeping into business attire. Yesterday, I saw red, greens, bright blues, yellows and even an occasional purple. And you can see long flowing skirts and more feminine fashions with beadwork, etc. Those severe, pencil thin skirts seem a thing of the past.

However, the wheel of fashion will continue turning. I am just going to enjoy this phase while it lasts....

Used my leave time in July to....hold your breath...........watch a couple of movies!!!!

Superman returns
The Lake House

Thoroughly enjoyed both!!
Superman brought back really pleasant memories of college and friends back home, with whom I'd seen Chris Reeve as Superman.
Brandon Routh is just as good, if not better. And it is nice to see that Superman is now a much more than just an animated cartoon - his character is 3D - it's got some depth to it, which is great.

Lake House - probably what will be called a 'chick flick'. Who cares. Anyways, I do like Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock!

Personally, I'd recommend both!

Moving on...

and today is my last day at this work.
It's been a good year - a few downs but many great ups - so overall, no regrets!
Many firsts to this joh:
First public sector experience
Attended my first powhiri (a formal, full-fledged Maori welcome) - loved it:)
Also attended a whakatau - my first (non-formal Maori welcome) - love that too.
Experienced my first hongis - Maori greeting, where you touch noses - this was a beaut blend of West and indigenous - even while we touch noses, we are simultaneously shaking hands with that person.
Oh many more actually, with the last being my farewell that is planned for today.
No doubt, I will miss some of my colleagues here acutely...

New role beckons - excited, nervous, etc. - the whole works...
Wish me luck!!

Short and sweet

If Diana is Di
And Fiona is Fi
What else can Simon be
but Si!!!!!

I wonder how they will shorten their names next. Any suggestions?

Spidey...

Yay.... I am Spiderman - just like everybody else, it looks like....
Can anyone else who reads my blog take the test (if you would like to) and tell me what you are.....I'd love to know:)

Your results:
You are Spider-Man

Spider-Man 70% Green Lantern 65% The Flash 55% Wonder Woman 55% Superman 55% Hulk 55% Supergirl 50% Robin 45% Catwoman 40% Iron Man 25% Batman 15%

You are intelligent, witty, a bit geeky and have great power and responsibility.

Click here to take the "Which Superhero are you?" quiz...

The Goal

is the name of the novel I am reading now. For me, it's my first 'business novel' and it explodes (or is it explores?)the theory of constraints (whatever that means)!! And, from being a reluctant reader (S was really keen that I should have a read) I have now progressed to being an interested one!!About half way through the book now....

Countdown begins

It's time for a change!

Well, only a month more to go before I actually leave this work and move on - hopefully to bigger and better things.

Yup, my short but sweet (and glorious - ha ha!) career as public servant is drawing to an end.

Life sure is funny. When I was actually trying to get into wirting and publishing I couldn't and now that I am not really trying, I have just managed to!!!!! One of life's little ironies....!

Well folks, me an Assistant editor - sounds good!!! Fingers crossed though.

More on that later, so watch this space....

Desi view

I see a little bit of India daily on TV.
No, not in the news, unless 500 people have died in a train accident or there has been a tsunami.
But during the ad breaks on news time.
I see our own Ash in the L'Oreal ad.
And I see Richard Gere in Rajasthan, in the VISA ad.
Three cheers to globalisation, to the power of people - the power of a billion (give or take a few million).

While the Muse is still alive and kicking
and while the good ol' brain is also doing its stuff
with many, far too many ideas/incidents to write about
It's the clock that's my bane!

I can, at this stage, only envy and admire those who blog so regularly.
Unfortunately for me, I don't have the time to imitate them.
And nor do I have the inclination to work on 'making' some time.

Lost marbles...

When do you know that your work-life balance has tilted in favour of work?

When you wake up at 3 am and remember something you didn't complete at work. But that's not it. It's when instead of cursing yourself for having been woken up by that, you think, I have to remember to go and finish it up at work today!!

You'll know then that you've lost it ...your marbles, that is! And that's my excuse for not putting up a post for so long - work is so intense and full-on (and from the looks of it, will be for all of this month, at least) that I plead guilty to the temporary insanity of 51% work and 49% life. Still only a borderline case.....

Harry Potter, Spongebob and Teletubbies

Puhleeeeeese..

Some people must be totally jobless and have nothing better to do.

That's why we have these sudden bursts of insane enlightenment from them when they liken Teletubbies and Spongebob to gays and Harry Potter books to Dark magic.

The first time I read about this (this was after Book 4 in the series was just published), I couldn't even believe it.

Now, I know that these periodic eruptions will happen again (it was someone from the Vatican this time, making this claim) and I can't be bothered to try and infuse them with any semblance of logic.

I enjoy the Potter books immensely and to me, they depict good vs evil, with good ultimately triumphing. As for reading into their sub-plots and subconsious images, allegories, etc, just to come out with something so far-fetched...count me out!

I think that maybe I am just jealous. Yes, really! I do not possess the kind of mind that looks beyond the mundane - I cannot see the intricate and invisible patterns and what they convey. I am too much a fan of calling a spade a spade, so how can I even spot the dark designs embedded in the spade and see them for what they are?

Try as I might, I can't see anything but a silly, pesky sponge with a cutely irritating laugh in Spongebob. And Heaven help me because I failed to spot the true meaning of his holding Patrick's hand.

I can still remember that when I was younger, holding someone's hand only meant that you were their friend. Now it means you are gay. Believe me, nowadays, I hesitate to hold even my daughter's hand in public......

Ps and Qs

It's happened at last. We do, from now on, have to mind our Ps and Qs while blogging, as our Ministerial services department has so kindly told us. As far as the Government goes, image is everything!

Whew, at least, I can still blog (like I have anything useful to blog about is entirely a differernt matter!)

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Had a nice little quake here y'day that rattled the windows quite impressively. 4.5 on the Richter and epicentre about 5 km from here. My first while on the 12th floor.

Bollywood = culture = India?

That's the impression I got from watching the finale of the Commonwealth games in Melbourne.

Sure, I know we can deliver the goods any time, as we have the capacity, and that we'll put a good show in Delhi in 2010. (By the way, the appetiser we got in Melbourne was pretty good too.) But it's the way the delivery gets done that sometimes irks.

I don't know if I was the only one who felt this way, but increasingly, I have seen that of late, the term Bollywood (embracing all India-made films) is the only cultural face of India that is presented to the world (with NZ being no exception).

Nothing wrong with it being presented to the world, but my question is: Is it the only one that is worth being presented? Are we taking the easy way out?

To be sure, last night's extravaganza did have some real slickly made docos on other things Indian. But Bollywood overshadowed everything.

Unlike a new country like the US, we do have a long and awesome cultural background. When you have it, why not flaunt it as well, along with Bollywood?

In case I sound like one of those hide-bound traditionalists, let me tell you that I am not. Far from it. I enjoy movies and have a pretty tolerant outlook. But this thing really gets to me.

I am hoping that maybe I am wrong. And maybe that 2010 will have the best of Indian culture and not just only Bollywood. Or will it all be just a Bollywoodised version?

Questions, questions, no answers! Not yet, at least!

I am trying

to do many things, with varying degrees of urgency. Some of them.....

I am trying....

to stay cheerful in this time of grey skies, constant rain and end of daylight saving and summer.

to be energetic enough to some reading for my course every night(and failing mostly)

to find some home-work balance (what balance?)

to try and blog meaningfully (rarely succeeding)

to lose weight (a lost cause for the past how-many-ever years now)

to spend more time with kids & family (trying, trying, always trying)

to think of new dishes to cook or experiment with, but after a full day at work, that never happens

to walk & exercise more (now that summer is over, probably not at all a practical thing to try for!!!!)

to stop using swear words (which are the new words that my 3-year-old seems to pick up quickest)

to read (blogs, fiction and site on the net)

to donate money generously to charity

to be nice and kind to everyone

and lastly, for sainthood.....

Wish me luck!

Mylapore

Although the latest title of my blog (as frequent visitors here know, I keep changing it ever so often) sounds good to me, I do realise that not everyone may know much about Mylapore. So, a post dedicated exclusively to that.

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Mylai or Mylapore was a thriving port during the mighty Pallava dynasty. It is older than the city of Chennai itself by many thousands of years. Steeped in history, it is also steeped nowadays in dirt, crime and all the ills of modern society. At a cross-roads, just like the rest of India.

Mylapore was first built on the Coromandel shore. The arrival of the Portuguese in the mid-sixteenth century changed the town's history. They built Fort San Thome (now known as Santhome) by pushing Mylapore inward, where it has stood since. And they also gave the town some of its unique place names like Luz (meaning 'light' in Portuguese).

The famous Kapaleeshwarar temple that stands at Mylapore (all said and done, Mylapore is a temple town) is only about 300-400 years old, although the temple contains parts of inscriptions dating back to 1250 AD. These inscriptions are traces of the earlier shore temple that once existed in Mylapore. This temple, dedicated to Shiva stood for many centuries in the ancient coastal township of Mylapore, until the Portuguese pushed Mylapore inward to make way for Santhome and demolished the original temple.

It is this ancient temple that the relatively newer Kapaleeshwarar temple replaced. Mylapore, literally translated from Tamil, means ‘A Town of Peacocks’, 'mayil' being the Tamil word for peacock.

At the eastern entrance is the temple chariot, drawn by devotees during the annual Ther Thiruvizha or the ‘car’ festival as well as the parading of 63 idols around the temple square, known as 'Arubathumoovar' festival. This is when the whole world and its cousin land up in Mylapore, when buses are stopped a mile away from the city and the town chokes on its own popularity. A high point in the annual calender.

Although for me, the crowd is a big no-no (the deeds of the crowd could contribute thousands of blog posts worth to the Blanknoise project), the actual festival itself is really beautiful.

The temple tank is now again full of water (at least it was, when I saw it last year), thanks to unseasonal and generous rains in Chennai. The theppam or float festival happens in the tank every January (when there is enough water to so).

Today, Mylapore is full of shops of every variety and hotels, all sorts of offices, hospitals etc. And as it has always been, it is full of places of worship - there are temples, churches and mosques galore.

It is old-fashioned and represents the (supposedly conservative) city of Chennai. But in it, old values and traditions are still alive.

I've lived there for most of my life - about 25 years and that's a long long time. And it is still home.
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As befitting a Mylaporean, I am off to a Carnatic music concert of Unnikrishan this weekend.And just to tie this whole thing up with my previous post: I have done articles in the newspaper on both Unnikrishnan and the Arubathumoovar festival during my 'glory days' (not).

How much do I miss

being a journo?

A couple of months ago, I would have said, 'Not at all'

But now I say, 'A teeny bit'.

Maybe, just maybe, one of these days, I will put up a post on 'Glory Days' and enumerate my (many?) journalistic achievements.....Whatever - I am sure that I will do something better (and more useful) with my time!

Thin

Les wanted to be thin. All her life. Although she was only rounded in all the right places, the fashion diktat of her time said thin was terrific. Plump was out. Bony was beautiful. And while the fashion Nazis had been more tolerant when she was growing up, by the time she hit her thirties, they had become dictators. Be thin or be damned they said.
Inspired by the super models on the catwalk, she tried for a similar body. Diets, exercise. But they didn't appeal to her, it was just hard work. And she loved her food too much. She lived to eat.
Then, a chance encounter with an old friend opened new doors. Doors she had successfully avoided till then. It was like magic. It made you feel less hungry and actually made you lose weight. She was delighted. And took to smoking with a vengeance.
In a year's time, she was hooked. Totally and absolutely.
And by the time she hit her forties, she was chain-smoking. And she couldn't even remember why she had started smoking in the first place.

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When the doctor told her, she was devastated. And once again, she tried. De-addiction, rehab. But they didn't appeal to her, it was just hard work. And she loved her cigarettes too much. She lived to smoke.

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When they buried her, the cancer had eaten away so much of her, they had to get a child-sized coffin. And all the mourners remarked on how thin she was....
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(I am writing semi-fiction after a long time, but this is something I've wanted to write on ever since I saw a news item. From time to time, whenever the Muse inspires me, I am going to do these small and maybe semi-autobigraphical pieces. This is the first one....and feedback is very valuable to me. And with all due thanks and acknowledgements to my various inspirations, which are too many to list here)

Tagomania

Ok, I've been tagged. (Thanks Shyam, it's a pleasant little task and I 'm sorry it's taken me this long to do it). And it's actually quite a stimulating task for me to come up with answers to all these questions. Sadly, no Tamil titles.

1. What is the total number of books you've owned?

Well, honestly, how on earth can I know or remember. Any number I put down here has to be a major approximation. For sure, all my life, I've lived in houses that have abounded in books. The question, I suppose, is, how many of them were mine? A fair few of my books still reside in Chennai, and that should be 200 books or so. As for here and now, once again, it's a house full of books, but most of them not mine. And I am so tired of accumulating things (the last time we shifted, we had a garage full of things that we needed to 'donate') that I have deliberately toned down on buying.

2. What is the last book you bought?

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I had to, the Potter series is the only one I am collecting books for now.

3. What is the last book you've read?

Paulina Simon's 'Eleven Hours'. Tight action of a psycho kidnapper and his kidnapee (is there such a word) - who is a full-term pregnant woman. The ending was a bit grisly but it wasn't a bad read at all.

4. What are you currently reading?

'Delayed Diagnosis' by Gwen Hunter. It reminds me of Robin Cook's books. Right now, the book's at the stage when the heroine begins to suspect something fishy is going on in the small American town that she lives in. It takes me a long time to finish one book as the only time I can (and do) read is on the train to and from work. *Sigh* the life of a mom & home-maker I guess...

And 'Lost Laysen' by Margaret Mitchell. Apparently, she wrote this one other book too, apart from 'Gone with the Wind.'. I can't believe she was only 16 when she wrote this book.

5. What are the 5 books that have meant a lot to you or that you particularly enjoyed?

Difficult question alright.... how can you expect a senile old woman like me to remember the names of all the books I loved? Here goes anyways

Lost Horizon, by James Hilton. I read this book when I was in high school and there was something about it that really got to me. Into me. More the unsaid things rather than the obvious. Shangri-La. The tone of book. The language. Although I don't own it yet, I recently had ocassion to re-read it - my hubby's boss was kind enought to lend me his copy.

To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. Like you, Shyam. But unlike you, I haven't read it in ages, but will love it for the same reasons as you - gentle humour, such a difficult, touchy subject handled with so much understanding - couldn't have put it better meself.

Gone with the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell. This, in spite of the book's inherent rascism. I am sucker for a good romance and the romance between Scarlett and Rhett is too good to resist or forget. And the history. For the sake of the first one, I even read the second 'Scarlett', which of course, was mostly crap. The only good thing was the second book united the lovers!

Daddy Long legs by Jean Webster. What a cutie that one is!!! I just love Jerusha and always will.

The Da Vinci code by Dan Brown. The characterisiation was wafer-thin and the language was nothing to write home about. But some of the ideas in the book were so revolutionary, I was mighty impressed.


6. What book(s) would you wish to buy next?

The next Harry Potter, of course, to complete my series. Can't think of anything else for now.

7. What book(s) caught your attention but you never had a chance to read?

It was a book by Bill Bryson, but I can't remember what it was called. I think it was do to with Aussie?

8. What book(s) that you've owned for so long but never read?

I know I do have some, but can't remember the titles.....

9. Who are you going to pass this stick to (3 persons) and why

I don't think I will. Coz some of the people I want to pass it onto are not bloggers and others may not want to play tag. So, anyways, I will say that I wanted to tag Lak, Asha and Maya. Only Lak has a blog, that I know of....
************************

Like you feel hungry when you read about food, all this book tagging has created in me a desperation to read some of the books that are being talked about. So, I've gone and reserved 'Gone with the Wind' in the library. And will do more reading, overall...

Some thoughts on Bharat trip

It was a bittersweet trip to India this time. So much crammed into five weeks and I was fool enough to think when I left that 5 weeks was ample time......some of the things I did, which I consider noteworthy, in no sort of order whatsoever......

1. Completed long-awaited giri valam in Thiruvannamalai, barefoot.

2. Dining out: Plenty, but still not as many as I would have liked. Maximum eating out in the newly-opened Saravana Bhavan in Mylapore (so new, I could still smell the paint). Restaurants highly recommended by me: Utsav (Hyd), Olives (Deccan Plaza, Chn). Of course, me being me, they are all vegetarian restaurants.

3.School re-unions attended: One major one - Vidya Mandir's 50th alumni bash on Dec 25, 2005, along with my brother, who is also ex-VM.

4. Movies: In the theatre: 'Bluffmaster'(in Hyd) and 'Aaru' (in Tiruvannamalai). Brilliant jobs by Abishek and Surya, but far too much violence in Tamil films nowadays. Not to mention tonal volume of lead actors in the Tamil movie, which ended up being unbearably loud.

5. Catching up with friends: The amount of time and quality of catch-ups was satisfactory with most friends, but still, some more time would have been great.

6. Family time: Good, once again more would have been better. But this was lots better than none.

7. Shopping: After deciding not to, I did go a little overboard. Loved the Charminar shopping especially. And also loved the fact that I didn't have to pay for most of what I bought:)

8. Temple time: Great, managed about 10 temples. I did have a couple more on my list, but hey, that's for next time. One of them inclues being in Mylapore for the 'Aruvathimoovar' fest, which happens in March, but that will be a tricky time of the year.....

9.Eating amma's cooking: Total disaster this time. Got hardly any of it. Firstly no gas cylinder for a few days. Secondly, the fact that all of us kept falling sick. And lastly, too little time.

10. Falling sick: Happened even to me, a hardened Chennaite/Indian, this time. I could not believe it. But even the locals were not spared by a severe virus that hit Chennai in the aftermath of the deluge. So, how could I and the kids hope to be spared?

*********************
On going through this, I see the whole thing has a strong tinge of 'if only I had had more time'. That probably needs to be ignored as 5 weeks is as long as I am going to get in the near future! If only NZ wasn't so far away from India!

Stop press!

Watching Tanisha in Hindi was bad enough, but I read this today. Yes, yes, yes, we all know about her illustrious ancestors but so what? Vaathiyar pillai makku (Teacher's son is a dud) as they say in Tamil).

Tanisha comes to Kollywood

Help!!

And do we have no shame? Our south Indian film industry, esply Tamil and Telugu, are always running behind Bollywood rejects!!!

It will be intersting, I guess, to see if she can do better than NnN, though! And I don't obviously mean her acting.

Kalyaana saapadu

I have been fantasising about kalyana saapadu (meals at weddings). ;-)


I know, I know, what a thing to fantasise about. As though I didn't have anything better to do. But I can't help myself. I have had just two such occasions in the last 8 years, which averages to just one saapadu every four years. And for a foodie like me, that is disastrous.

And just any kalayana saapadu won't do for me. It has to be the traditional south Indian brahmin one (ah, the perils of being TamBram). So much so, that I've spent much of my recent non-existent free time working out my ideal menu...

(not necessarily in order of service - and now updated to include readers' items...)

Firstly, after a morning tiffin of
rava kesari
bonda
pongal
idli chutney
followed by lunch proper which includes
nokkal
pineapple rasam
beans paruppu usili
paruppu Kozhambu
more kozhambu
urulai poriyal
jangiri
some yummy newly-made urugai (with my fave being maangai thokku)
paal payasam
puliyorai
some form of chips
mixture
boondi laddu
& even the humble multi-coloured maida cake
avial
paruppu vadai
ven pongal
chenai varuval


Yes, I can tell that my menu is skewed very heavily in favour of sweets. And I also know, that due to prolonged absence, I must have forgotten many an important item.

But hey, it's my dream menu after all. But I would like to hear from my gentle readers what they think an ideal menu should comprise. Any suggestions?

And till such time as one of my friends or cousins or rellies decides to get hitched when I happen to be in India next (note: when I hap to be there, 'coz I am not really sure if I can go at the time they get hitched), this will be the closest I can get to a meal like this. Poor 'ol me.

Neal n Nikki

I don't often put up movie reviews on my blog. But I thought this Hindi movie deserved one.

It was one of the movies I saw over the long weekend (we had Monday off as well for NZ Waitangi (national)Day.

N n N, was in sum, a skin flick masquerading as a 'love story for today's youth' between two NRIs in Canada. With a tagline of 'Nice is out, naughty is in'. And in spite of all that, I sat through the movie fully in the hope that it would get better (or was it just to see how much worse it could get?)

A hero who looks like a drag queen. And a heroine whose wardrobe seemed to comprise almost entirely of underwire bras. Both of them with a combined IQ of a two-year old. And when they kissed (which they did quite often, maybe just to prove to the world that Bollywood movies do have kissing scenes), it was so unwatchable, I couldn't help wishing for the good old shaking flowers/bushes or songs that used to pass for that in our good ol' movies.

After all this, you may ask, why a review? Just so that I can warn everyone else who reads my blog to stay not a mile, but a world, away from this movie. Welcome to Mars.

And in spite of all this, if you insist on knowing the storyline? Well, there just wasn't one. Only lots of lots of big-bosomed, bikini-clad females and their amorous action with the aforementioned drag queen.

Two adverts that really grabbed my attention...

in all the wrong ways.

The Fair and Handsome ad in India:
Doing that to the women was awful. Doing that to the men is awful too.

The ad, in case you haven't seen it, has a college guy, going into the girls hostel to try and steal their 'Fair and Lovely' cream, as he isn't attractive coz he's dark. But after he discovers 'Fair and Handsome' and turns fair overnight, all the girls flock to him.

The concept of 'fair is beautiful' is so ghastly and all wrong. I mean more than half the world isn't fair. So what are we trying to say?

All the TV I managed to watch in India had heroines and heroes so fair and looking more European than anything else. Especially the Hindi channels. The in look, a la Aishwarya, is pan-European, not pan-Indian anymore. Us and our obsession with white!!!! I don't know when and where it will end, if at all.


The Open Polytech ad in NZ:
Open Poly is the largest provider of extra-mural education here. Recently, they've come out with a series of ads that have workers talking about a co-worker and how he/she has changed. 'the way he talks', it all happens in the evenings after work'... etc, giving the impression that it's an affair that they're talking about. It's only when the ad ends that you realise that they're talking about how the co-worker changed after doing a course.

I've seen and heard that sex sells things, but its a really sad state of affairs that it has to sell education too.

*****************

I have been trying to blog, but I have become lazy and it's more enjoyable to read someone else's blog and its hectic at work and home since I got back. Added to that is the constant, mild depression that affects me everytime I get back from India. Takes a while for things to come back to routine....

Some thoughts from Bharat trip

It was a bittersweet trip to India this time. So much crammed into five weeks and I was fool enough to think when I left that 5 weeks was ample time......some of the things I did, which I consider noteworthy, in no sort of order whatsoever......

1. Completed long-awaited giri valam in Thiruvannamalai, barefoot.

2. Dining out: Plenty, but still not as many as I would have liked. Maximum eating out in the newly-opened Saravana Bhavan in Mylapore (so new, I could still smell the paint). Restaurants highly recommended by me: Utsav (Hyd), Olives (Deccan Plaza, Chn). Of course, me being me, they are all vegetarian restaurants.

3.School re-unions attended: One major one - Vidya Mandir's 50th alumni bash on Dec 25, 2005, along with my brother, who is also ex-VM.

4. Movies: In the theatre: 'Bluffmaster'(in Hyd) and 'Aaru' (in Tiruvannamalai). Brilliant jobs by Abishek and Surya, but far too much violence in Tamil films nowadays. Not to mention tonal volume of lead actors in the Tamil movie, which ended up being unbearably loud.

5. Catching up with friends: The amount of time and quality of catch-ups was satisfactory with most friends, but still, some more time would have been great.

6. Family time: Good, once again more would have been better. But this was lots better than none.

7. Shopping: After deciding not to, I did go a little overboard. Loved the Charminar shopping especially. And also loved the fact that I didn't have to pay for most of what I bought:)

8. Temple time: Great, managed about 10 temples. I did have a couple more on my list, but hey, that's for next time. One of them inclues being in Mylapore for the 'Aruvathimoovar' fest, which happens in March, but that will be a tricky time of the year.....

9.Eating amma's cooking: Total disaster this time. Got hardly any of it. Firstly no gas cylinder for a few days. Secondly, the fact that all of us kept falling sick. And lastly, too little time.

10. Falling sick: Happened even to me, a hardened Chennaite/Indian, this time. I could not believe it. But even the locals were not spared by a severe virus that hit Chennai in the aftermath of the deluge. So, how could I and the kids hope to be spared?

*********************
On going through this, I see the whole thing has a strong tinge of 'if only I had had more time'. That probably needs to be ignored as 5 weeks is probably as long as I am going to get in the near future! If only NZ wasn't so far away from India!

Linking up

I finally did it. Put a few links into my blog, just in case people were wondering why I still hadn't done it.....

And I am this too...

You're a Dove!

A fan of olives and the United Nations, you'd love to teach the
world to sing in perfect harmony. You like stretching your legs at major events,
and have done your best to ward off floods when the waters have risen. All this
running around leaves you exhausted, and it often seems you can never quite get
the peace you so dearly crave. You really like to take showers.


Take the Animal Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

Back at home and work...

...and hating every minute in spite of hugs and morning tea in my honour. A truly NRI plight this and happens after every visit back home....

Anyways, I am

You're The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy!

by Douglas Adams

Considered by many to be one of the funniest people around, you are
quite an entertainer. You've also traveled to the far reaches of what you deem possible. Life continues to jostle you around like a marble,
but it's shown you so much of the world that you don't care. Wacky adventures continue to
lie ahead. Your favorite number is 42.


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.