Anks' Ramblings...

I am an Indian First!

2012-01-28T12:13:00.001+05:30

The other day I was talking to a colleague in Mumbai. He started talking to me in Marathi all of a sudden. It started with a few simple words every person who has stayed in Mumbai is likely to know. Then, we proceeded to have a full blown conversation abt our project deliverables, agreed timelines etc in Marathi. For the record, marathi is not his native tongue and neither is it mine. But I guess he too knows it from having spent a large part of his life in Mumbai. At the end of that conversation, I was quite proud of not having forgotten how to speak fluently :)

The interesting thing comes next, a guy from his team who was on the cal throughout, calls me and seeks clarification abt a point. I explained and asked him why was there a confusion. He says, "Kolkata mein rehne waali Punjabi ladki agar marathi mein bolegi toh confusion toh hoga na!" (If a Punjabi girl living in Kolkata conducts business in Marathi, it is bound to cause confusion)

What should have irked me that m communication skills were being commented upon. It didn't. What irked me that I was not a foreigner speaking a foreign language. I felt like asking him "India mein rehne waali Indian ladki agar Indian bhasha mein bolegi toh ajeeb kya hai?" (If an Indian girl, living in India talks in an Indian language, what is weird about it?)

It is just amazing how we divide ourselves into groups and sub groups and sub-sub groups. If we as Indians can't accept our diversity, how can the rest of the world? I am an Indian first. A punjabi later. An Indian first and a marathi / punjabi / gujrati speaker next. An Indian First and a resident of Delhi / Mumbai / Kolkata next. Lets just accept it, ok? I am an INDIAN first.

Building Blocks

2012-01-28T11:15:00.000+05:30

My daughter is playing with her blocks as I write this... she stacks them one atop the other... on every successful stack, she claps her hands in glee.. every time the wobbly tower collapses she says "dhamm ho gaya" (it fell) and laughs. She then promptly picks up the pieces and restarts her stacking... if only we could always be like this.. celebrating the victories, however small they might be and not getting bogged down by a failure; instead restart our efforts to be successful once more... she went a bit higher every time. Her largest tower was 7 blocks high... proud mamma watches happily :)

Cover the Haathis

2012-01-12T10:06:00.001+05:30

So after the madness of cover the haathis in UP, am wondering what comes next. Banning cycles on the road? Preventing use of Lanterns? Preventing use of Lotus flower? Or cover all the idols in temples that have their hands raised in a blessing.

The great Indian Tamasha, I tell you....

On a lighter note, here is a fun snippet from a popular radio spot. The super awesome Mallishka is a riot, I tell you! Check her out on Twitter here

Wanderlust Beckons

2012-01-03T10:49:00.000+05:30

I feel the need to walk on a long winding road, surrounded by trees.. listening to the chirping of the birds, the whistling of the soft breeze. I feel the need to sink my toes into velvetty moist sand, to feel the gentle waves lapping at my ankles and spot shells on a golden beach. I feel the need to look at colours of a valley, those twinkling lights far below and a canopy of tiny stars all over my head. I feel the need to row in a lake, peaceful water rocking my boat gently as if pulling me into a lullaby. That temptress Wanderlust beckons... but I have nowhere to go!

That was totally random, I know... blame it on all the people taking holidays to lovely places and putting up pictures on Facebook... :D

Kolkata

2011-09-12T09:49:00.000+05:30

Kolkata, a city I saw for the first time last Friday, a city that is soon to be home. Where is the old world charm that I had read about? Perhaps it is there and I am oblivious to it. Perhaps it is buried deep beneath the layers of moss and grime that covers every surface. Perhaps I do not understand what old world charm means. Whatever it is, I found nothing charming in the claustrophobic streets, littered bylanes and extremely crowded markets. Add to that the stench of rotting garbage that permeates the air every now and then, you have a sour taste in the mouth. Literally a sour taste in the mouth as bile rises up your throat ever so often. Now don't go around thinking that I am a mall brat or a phoren returned snob. I am the girl who has lived almost all of her life in Mumbai. Crowded Mumbai. Stinky Mumbai. Noisy Mumbai. You can never see the whole sky Mumbai. Fast paced, opportunistic and impossible to hate Mumbai. My first home, Mumbai. If I can love Mumbai, I can perhaps learn to love Kolkata as well. Will I? Only Time will tell...

Presence of God

2011-09-05T22:05:00.001+05:30

When things go wrong;
When sadness fills your heart;
When tears flow in your eyes;
remember God is with you in the present moment!
(via a dear friend on facebook.)

The thing that lets me feel God's presence right now is the smile of my baby...

The (In)Eligible Bachelors

2011-08-24T20:25:00.000+05:30

Some people love to talk and some people you love to talk to. Ruchita Misra is both of them. I know her from work and if our conversations are any indication, The (In)Eligible Bachelors will be a funny and interesting book. It is about marriages, arranged at that. Everyone (like yours truly) who has lived thru that experience has a story to tell and is all ears for someone else's story too... I know I am. The book comes out in India on the 1st of September and I hope it is a smash hit!

Voldemort's Soul

2011-06-22T08:26:00.001+05:30

I Love Charts

When I first saw this over at Geek in Heels, I too wondered why not seven equal parts... then I read that every time the soul was split into half! Brilliant... am ashamed, like any Harry Potter fanatic who goes "seven equal parts" should be....

Half a Century

2011-06-08T14:39:00.000+05:30

I just realised I have 50 followers. For a blog that has spurts of activity and months of hibernation, this is a huge thing! It is a big deal to me guys. Thanks a lot....

Meet The Bloggers - Akshaya

2011-05-20T12:16:00.002+05:30

I have met very few people as brave as Akshaya. He does complete justice to his on screen moniker; for he truly is a braveheart. Here is a guy who loves art and worships cricket. Or is it the other way round? He has an engineering degree from IIT-K and was well settled into a job when he gave it all up and decided to pursue his love for art. He travels and clicks amazing photographs, writes brilliantly and dissects movies and books at levels I cannot even begin to imagine. Think old world intellectual, who does not give a damn about the rat race. Akshaya truly believes in living life and enjoying all its pleasures. I think I became acquainted with him when he commented on one of my movie reviews. I was writing Progati those days and he gave me excellent feedback for it. I knew there is something lacking in my writing and he pointed it out for me. No, I am not about to admit my weakness here. This post is about Akshaya, not me. So hear it on, from the horse's mouth…

Personal Information

1. Your Online Name: Braveheart

2. Your Blog Link: Braveheart-blog.blogspot.com -> leftrightleftwrite.wordpress.com

3. Your Real Name (in case the two are different): Akshaya

4. Which country do you live in: India

5. What do you do for a living: Live off what programming I inflicted upon myself a few years ago

Blogging

1. When did you start blogging? July 2004

2. What/Who introduced you to blogging? Abhaya (abhaga.blogspot.com)

3. What was your first post about? A violent incident at IITK, my alma mater, which I wanted to take a position around.

4. Did you refer your blog to answer the previous question? (Be honest here guys, this is not an exam!) No. I remembered that for otherwise I wouldn’t have made the blog itself. I needed a blogger id to participate in an ongoing debate on someone’s blog. The comment became the blog and then it acquired its own momentum, appetite etc.

5. Why do you blog (or did, if you are no longer active)? I had time, opinions, an aspiration/ability for creative output and a way to socialize without intervening, composing an opinion rather than just dishing it out. And of course, engaging with what was a fast-growing sphere of knowledge, exchange and transactions.

6. Who are the other bloggers you read? Abhaya, Ragini, Ramya, Ankita, Abhishek, Sen and many more.

7. Which is your favorite piece of work? (A blog post written by you) Cannot quite remember them all as Iost the entire blog but it would be a letter I wrote as if I were the father to a daughter. It was quite an emotionally rewarding experience.

8. Do people you know in real life (friends, family etc) know about your blog? Several of them do, many who became friends later, after I lost the blog, don’t.

9. Do they read your blog? It doesn’t exist anymore but they sure used to. My blog persona, it could be said, had its own identity.

10. What do you think of the recent blogging phenomenon of category blogging like ppl who blog about technology or fashion or travel or food only? I don’t think much of it as a blogger if it happens to be the only blog one writes. As a reader, I might like reading some of these blogs, if I happen to feel our tastes match to some degree, for utilitarian purposes. I quite like it when one main blog addresses it all, plays with the unpredictability of what the next post would be about and shows a good range of interests of the blogger.

11. For those who no longer blog, why did you leave? My blog was deleted. Later I did set up a new blog but life changed, energies find other outlets and writing quality demanded a more important platform, more meaningful readership, and a deeper engagement with issues.

12. Anything else you would like to share? My blog told its own story. It documented without my willing it, my journey with pen in English language. It marked my formative years as a writer, enthused me to become better, and have a wider reach. It helped my eagerness for transformation as not only a writer, but as a thinking person who connected to the things happening around. Later, when I would look at my old posts, I often found them quite silly indeed. But it always told me how far I had come. It was an inspirational journey during which my earlier reflection was arrested in the archives. It meant a lot to me.

What do you feel?

2011-05-11T12:05:00.002+05:30

Do you sometimes feel that you are living in a limbo... waiting for something to happen but don't know what? You feel that something big is just around the corner and yet, your road never turns... it goes on and on, painfully straight, every single day...

Meet The Bloggers - Anjan

2011-05-05T20:03:00.001+05:30

Anjan or Preeti as we all know her is the epitome of sweetness. She started a blog with her husband Sachin and both of them would write their thoughts down. Preeti is very very creative. She sketches very well! The most memorable posts were their love story which they presented on the blog as a piece of fiction and revealed in the end J Preeti is now a mother of the cute Navya. A toddler, who takes after her mum in creativity. She loves to paint! Anjan has the mother goose instinct and I remember all the advice she gave me when I was to travel with Kuhu for the first time. I was worried sick and she gave me a lot of helpful information. I do hope she starts to blog again for her blogs offered a slice of life with art, culinary delights and snippets of everyday musings….

Personal Information

Your Online Name
Same as real, Anjan Bhandari, people know me by my nick name also, that is Preeti…

Your Blog Link

http://preetisachins.blogspot.com

In the profile information, my other blogs can also be accessed..

Your Real Name (in case the two are different)

No it's same, Anjanpreet Bhandari / Preeti

Which country do you live in

India

What do you do for a living

Into Writing but technical :D Senior Technical Writer

Blogging

When did you start blogging?
I think in 2005, I'll have to check my blog for this J

What/Who introduced you to blogging?

I think I was doing some Google search and landed in someone's blog, and from there I tried exploring and went on…

What was your first post about?

Welcome Post, I welcomed myself and others to the blog

Did you refer your blog to answer the previous question? (Be honest here guys, this is not an exam!)

No I did not, Referred now to crosscheck, Yes it was welcome blog only, on our Protoplasm, Confirmed, yes I started blogging in Oct 2005

Why do you blog (or did, if you are no longer active)?

I started out of curiosity, kept doing for my passion of writing something or other, now no more active or should say blog scarcely, time lack, had kid and most of the time spent with her.

Do you have a blog related memory you cherish? (Please mention an incident)

Memory as such , I made many good friends You, Ricky, Ekta, Ashish Sharma, Preeti Prasad, Neeti, Pinki, and few more… loved talking to them. As such no incident I remember to quote… the post were mine or Sachin's (as he is co-owner too and my life partner as well ;) )random thoughts. So no such particular memory..

By digging back to memory lane , I remember writing about my own city Chandigarh, when I was in hyderabad and I was very nostalgic at that time that I was almost in tears, here's the link

http://preetisachins.blogspot.com/2006/03/cherished-memories.html

Anks, Pinks, Aindrila, Reema, Use to read more but most of them like me have gone to hibernation phase…

Which is your favorite piece of work? (A blog post written by you)

Our Story J

http://preetisachins.blogspot.com/2007/01/story-so-far.html

A blog post by another blogger that you like a lot

Yeah a post by Ricky …"And the Award Goes too" , it always remained there in my mind, loved reading it and again got to know many good blogpost by different people..

http://seventeentomatoes.blogspot.com/2007_12_01_archive.html

Do people you know in real life (friends, family etc) know about your blog?

Yes, almost all the people I know , know about my blogs or rather our blogs..

Do they read your blog?

They used too, now we stopped writing..

What do you think of the recent blogging phenomenon of category blogging like ppl who blog about technology or fashion or travel or food only?

I think that is good for people who are looking for some specific information and infact I liked it a lot, sometime in future, when I again take back to blogging, I might also categorize it.

For those who no longer blog, why did you leave?

As mentioned earlier, it took break after my little angel came, then it is difficult to maintain blog apart from routine life, kid, job and her little little demands..

Anything else you would like to share? (Pour your heart out here. Anything at all!!!)

Yeah liked going back to the memory lanes, loved typing all the answers, as if I again took back to blogging.. will love to read the post by you and other ppl oops bloggers J answers..

I sign off J

Meet The Bloggers - Nupur

2011-05-02T23:39:00.003+05:30

I think I landed on Nupur's blog thru Ricky. You remember him from the first Meet The Blogger Series post. Don't you? At that time, Nupur was a student. What I remember most were the posts around her marriage. I specially remember the post when she visited her hubby's grandparents and was served dal with equal proportions of lentils and butter! And then FB happened again and we put faces to names. For those of you who have seen her pics will agree that she is equal measure chic and innocence. She has the best smile ever....! As cute as a little child. Hope you always remain that cute Nupur... :) Oh and the beauty bloggers will understand this one - Nupur loves MAC ;)

Personal Information

Your Online Name - Nupur

Your Blog Link – nupur-gupta@blogspot.com

Your Real Name (in case the two are different) - Same

Which country do you live in - Australia

Blogging

When did you start blogging? 2004

What/Who introduced you to blogging? A friend from school - Kapil

What was your first post about? "I have no idea" http://nupur-gupta.blogspot.com/2004_10_01_archive.html

Did you refer your blog to answer the previous question? (Be honest here guys, this is not an exam!) YES!!

Why do you blog (or did, if you are no longer active)? Just to log my experiences and share them with friends and family who are overseas.

Do you have a blog related memory you cherish? (Please mention an incident) – Cant pick one!

Who are the other bloggers you read? Not as much as I would like any more. Ricky, Colors, Anks, Kaush…

Which is your favorite piece of work? (A blog post written by you) Oh this one is hard – May be my wedding posts right at the end. I still laugh when I read what I wrote at the time.. in 2006!

A blog post by another blogger that you like a lot (Please do not mention a blog here. Refer to a specific post. It's ok if you don't have a link) - I used to really like witty short stories written by a blogger called "Deepak"…wonder if he still writes them.

Do people you know in real life (friends, family etc) know about your blog? - Yes

Do they read your blog? – I think they used to

What do you think of the recent blogging phenomenon of category blogging like ppl who blog about technology or fashion or travel or food only? – I like the idea. I myself started a food blog during the time.

For those who no longer blog, why did you leave? Life caught up with me… career – family life!

Anything else you would like to share? I do wonder sometimes what it would be like if I started blogging again….. but so much has changed in Blogosphere!! I'm afraid I will be LOST!!

Do you live in a dream world?

2011-04-29T12:21:00.000+05:30

I live on the periphery... alternating between a dream world and a real world... i can move from one to another at will and i don't think i let the world in my head affect the world outside. And no, I am not mad.... I am a stable sensible person... we all have our quirks and this one is mine... I think I am a lot better than many out there... whats wrong in living in a dream world?

Img Source: http://www.ummc.org/Services/HopeHaven/tabid/176/Default.aspx

Meet The Bloggers - Navjot

2011-04-27T23:14:00.001+05:30

Navjot or Navy as I call him was the one who sparked off the whole Meet The Bloggers idea in my head. When I mailed him about this series he was very enthusiastic and one of the first few to complete the questionnaire. I started reading his blog very late (much later than others though!) and got to know him better thru FB and messenger! I have him pegged as a romantic at heart! A fellow fiction lover who realises the true power of a well written story...

Personal Info

Your Online Name – Navjot Kashyap
Your Blog Link - http://navjotkashyap.blogspot.com
Which country do you live in - India
What do you do for a living? Coolie on the railway platform. I mean on Java platform.

Blogging

When did you start blogging? Thursday June 2, 2005
What/ who introduced you to blogging? Read few other blogs which prompted me to dive-n.
What was your first post about? You can read it on my blog.
Did you refer your blog to answer the previous question? (Be honest here guys, this is not an exam!) Yes, of course.
Why did you blog (or did, if you are no longer active)? It’s a very complex question to answer. Let me give it a try. Initially it was just for fun – to explore and experiment new things. But gradually the bondings become stronger. Knowing people who had common interests and passions for reading, writing, movies, music etc. made me visit their blogs regularly and also egged me on to write new posts and get their views and comments. Gradually it became a compulsion, an addiction. It was also a journey to explore myself.
Do you have any blog related memory that you cherish? Lots of them. To name a few - Reading stories by DJ and Anks. 55ers by Anks, Suitor sagas of Pryangini, Antakshri, rhyme-shyme and other things done on orkut etc.etc etc.
Who are the other bloggers you read? Anubha, Anks, DJ, Kaushi, Nupur, Silky Moon, Mehak, Ricky, Priyangini
Which is your favorite piece of work? (A blog post written by you) A Story to do - which I never completed
A post by another blogger that you like a lot - Suitor Sagas by Priyangini (Note by anks: I have just not been able to locate Priyangini! If any of you are in touch with her, tell her I said hi! Those of you who do not know Priyangini, she quit blogging when she got married. Its too bad she did, coz she was FUNNY!! Her pieces were great and suitor sagas were her experiences with the arranged marriage meetings :) we all know how she met her prince charming! )
Do people you know in real life (friends, family etc) know about your blog? Yes, few know it
Do they read your blog? Hopefully not. Its dead anyway
What do you think of the recent blogging phenomenon of category blogging like ppl who blog about technology or fashion or travel or food only?I personally do not like them primarily because according to me blogging is a journey of the self and you can’t really say that okay I’ll write about this only – it becomes too much constrained.
For those who no longer blog, why did you leave? Excess of everything is bad. Its true for everything. But the main reason probably was that one by one the fellow bloggers stopped blogging and the group disintegrated. So, without them all the charm was lost.
Anything else you would like to share? To me blogging was such a wonderful experience that words fell short to describe it. It was a journey of the self – knowing myself better and connecting and knowing such nice and wonderful people out there. At a personal level it helped me to express my thoughts better, improved my verbal and written communication skills and enriched my life in countless ways. I am extremely happy to have taken this journey. A special thanks to all my blogger friends out there.

MIA

2011-04-10T17:22:00.000+05:30

Hi guys, my apologies for pretty much disappearing from here. But I just got caught with some stuff and will be MIA for another 2-3 days. Be back with the Meet The Blogger series very soon....!

Meet The Bloggers - Ricky Singh

2011-03-31T21:31:00.002+05:30

Ricky Singh is one of the sweetest persons I have had the pleasure of knowing! As much as I know of him, there isn't a mean bone in his body... He has tons of friends and takes the pain to keep in touch. He found the love of his life recently and I wish him years of bliss with The Cute Mrs. H! (In his words)

Personal Info

1. Your Online Name – Ricky / Seventeen Tomatoes

2. Your Blog Link - http://www.seventeentomatoes.blogspot.com/ and after ages I tried to visit my original blog http://seventeentomatoes.rediffblogs.com that started it all, only to find that rediff discontinued that service and suddenly it feels that like a huge part of my life has gone missing.

3. Your Real Name (in case the two are different) – Ricky Singh

4. Which country do you live in - Canada

5. What do you do for a living – System Analyst for local government

Blogging

1. When did you start blogging? Now that my original blog is lost, I don’t know the exact date but sometime in 2003

2. How did you come to know about blogging? I read about it on technology sites and found it to be a way to express myself but it turned out to be much more than that. For me it was a way to meet some of the most wonderful people from all around the world that shared my thought process.

3. What was your first post about? I started writing reviews of books that I would read but I didn’t know the power of blogging. So, I used to read a book, create a blog, write its review and then next time create another blog for another book. It was when I wrote about a real life incident where a girl of Indian descent was murdered in city of Victoria, BC, Canada that I started to get comments from people all around the world asking me about it. And then I read another book by an Indo-Canadian author, Seventeen Tomatoes by Jaspreet Singh, and wrote its review that became my online blog identity and my first official post.

4. Did you refer your blog to answer the previous question? (Be honest here guys, this is not an exam!) – No, I did not as the story of my first post is etched in my memory even though the bits and bytes are missing.

5. Why do you blog (or did, if you are no longer active)? – I was reading a lot of books at the time I started blogging and always wanted to share my thoughts on the books I read. I found blogging to be a perfect place to write my thoughts. I wasn’t expecting people to read those posts and comment on them but one thing lead to another and my blog evolved from there. My blog became a place to not only share my thoughts but meet people who shared (or not) those thoughts.

6. Do you have a blog related memory you cherish? – My favorite memories are making friends from all around the world with people who I may have never in a million years met me in person. An unforgettable incident during my blogging days was when me and one of my blog friends (she is now based in UK), arranged an online blog meet on yahoo messenger on India’s Independence Day. We weren’t expecting much participation but a lot of people joined and we all sang patriotic songs. Truly unforgettable.

7. Who are the other bloggers you read? Anks (one of my favorite story writer). Most of my other blog friends have stopped blogging.

8. Which is your favorite piece of work? (A blog post written by you): I think my favorite piece will be a post I wrote where I told the love story of my grandparents.

9. A blog post by another blogger that you like a lot: Actually to me blogs was more about knowing the real person writing those blogs than individual blog posts but one story that I remember even today was the one you (Anks) wrote, Progatihttp://ankstellsherstories.blogspot.com/2005/11/progati-tale-of-progress_23.html. The characters of that story were very strong and are still etched in my mind.

10. Do people you know in real life (friends, family etc) know about your blog? Some do most don’t

11. Do they read your blog? My wife has read some of my posts.

12. What do you think of the recent blogging phenomenon of category blogging like ppl who blog about technology or fashion or travel or food only? To each his own. I think blogging started with people writing random posts and that was the most exciting time for me. Today I visit mostly technology blogs related to my work field and that’s very good but it doesn’t hold any emotional interest for me like before.

13. For those who no longer blog, why did you leave? Most of my friends either left blogging or started blogging sporadically and I got busy with my personal and work life. To me blogging was more about people behind those posts than the posts itself, so when the people left so did my interest.

14. Anything else you would like to share? I started blogging as a way to share my thoughts and ended up meeting (mostly online) some like-minded people that became good friends in real/offline life. I also met couple of the bloggers in person and they seemed an extension of their blogs which was fantastic to know. I personally think I know a lot about some of the bloggers than friends from my other life. Blogging has been one of the most expressive parts of my life and I do intend to write again though this time it will not be about making new friends but a way to express myself creatively and maybe bring back some old friends to the joy of blogging.

PS: I really loved doing this exercise although it made me a touch bit sad to find out that my old blog is dead and buried. It reminded me of old times and old friends. A word about Anks – You have been a great friend, Anks. I met you much later than my other blog friends but it has been great knowing you through your blogs and chats and few phone calls (and a memorable phone call). Not many people may know this but you have a big hand in my life (Hint: JS). There is more than a good chance that I would have never met you if there was no such thing as blogging and yet here we are. Please do keep writing, you are one of the very few friends who still write (even if sporadically). Thank You for waking my blog memories J.

Meet The Bloggers!

2011-03-30T22:08:00.000+05:30

I have been blogging since December 2004. That makes this blog almost 6 and a half years old! Agreed, there have been loooong periods of inactivity and the blog has undergone many transformations in terms of content, but it still remains an outlet for my thoughts and words. A remark about the change in my blog by an old blog buddy got me thinking about the days gone by and what good times we had. Those were the days when blogging was new, bloggers were new and blogs were a collection of random posts about everything under the sun! In my group, you found book reviews, movie reviews, travelogues, recipes, song reviews, poems, political rants, office cribs and stories... lots and lots of stories. Some were real, some were figments of the blogger's imagination, but each one was brilliant! Time passed, life happened, ppl moved to other cities, got new jobs, got married and genrally drifted apart, coz a lot of them stopped blogging or became very irregular. Daily interactions grew to a few odd comments...

And then, Facebook happened! The bloggers were reunited as the network grew... I have kept in touch with a few of my blog buddies and am good friends with them. Several of them are on my facebook and twitter. I can now put faces to their names and know what is happening in their lives. And yet, there are others who I know nothing about... I wondered what happened to them... I then thought about the friends I gained, and wanted to get them all together again. My first thought was a VBM ( a Virtual Blogger's Meet) but the chance of finding a timeslot when all of us cold be accommodated would be next to impossible. And hence, this idea was born - Meet The Bloggers!!!

yeah, I saw Meet The Fockers that weekend and hence the name, but i like it! So, I asked a couple of questions to all my blog buddies and now I proudly present them to you...! Watch this space for more....

Some Pics

2011-03-24T16:24:00.000+05:30

Those of you who know me would know of my mild obsession with photographs. Yes, its mild and yes I am in denial! Here are some of my pics...

Hope u guys enjoyed them!

Jamaican Farewell

2011-03-18T11:18:00.000+05:30

Today is another country music day for me. My all time favorite has to be Don't Cry Joni. A close second is Jamaican Farewell. What I love about these kind of songs is the focus on lyrics and singing and soft melody. Sharing the lyrics for you. You can hear Jamaican Farewell here

Down the way where the nights are gay
And the sun shines daily on the mountain top
I took a trip on a sailing ship
And when I reached Jamaica I made a stop

CHORUS:
But I'm sad to say, I'm on my way
Won't be back for many a day
My heart is down, my head is turning around
I had to leave a little girl in Kingston town

Sounds of laughter everywhere
And the dancing girls swaying to and fro
I must declare that my heart is there
Though I've been from Maine to Mexico

CHORUS

Down at the market you can hear
Ladies cry out while on their head they bear
Ackie rice and salt fish is nice
And the rum is good any time of year

What is your favorite country Number?

Giveaway alert!!

2011-03-14T11:54:00.000+05:30

Our very own Ikki is hosting a giveaway at her blog. Check it out here. Head over to her blog to meet her and her awesome buddy Zorro (of the canine sorts) who will rip you apart if you call him doggy or bow wow... how cute is that?

:)

Lifestyle Deal Experience

2011-03-09T14:56:00.000+05:30

Hello girls… all of you must have seen the snapdeal ads on TV unless you’ve been living in oblivion. The 60%, 70% and 80% off on things like restaurants, spas, gyms are pretty tempting na? I got tempted too and me and hubs being the net junkies that we are, we searched for more of such sites and came across Koovs.com in addition to snapdeal.com and bought a multitude of deals. My experience has been mixed and there are a few learnings too. Let me start off with my experience at the Magnolia Spa, Gurgaon (Koovs.com)

Img Source: Koovs.com

You can see that the deal is quite tempting. And I snagged it up even though this salon was quite far from my place. Kuhu fell ill the weekend I was supposed to go and the coupon was due to expire. So I called the owner and she agreed to stretch it for me.

When I finally reached there, my first impression was UNKEMPT! I figured this place to be at least a decade old and later on when I chatted with the owner, she told me she has been running the place for sixteen years now! So, the place could do with an overhaul…. There was seepage on the walls, the paint was peeling and the place did have a general air of disintegration. When this place would have been new, it might have looked quite posh. There were stylish cut mirrors, wood paneled booths and a separate area for haircuts and separate for wax/facials etc. But the years had taken their toll.

Coming to the service, I have mixed feelings. The staff was courteous and polite and checked up on me twice or thrice if things were going well. There was an attention to detail like putting cotton in my ears before the shampoo so that water does not seep in, a foot and leg massage post waxing and so on. At the same time, another girl just lifted the magazine I was reading from the arm of my chair and handed it to another customer. She did not even bother to ask me!! How utterly rude is that????

When I reached the place, the owner was not there and I found the girls slacking off a bit. There were four ladies on the chairs to be serviced and all of them were waiting for something or the other. Two of them were even complaining! My attendant took an hour to wax my arms and legs… An hour!!! Even with the massage thrown in, that was way too much…

By that time, I was irked by the service. I had made the decision to not get my facial done and had told the lady in charge right away. Despite that, at least three different girls came and asked me if I was getting my facial done. My attendant told me that haircuts were done by the owner and she may or may not come. Now, I was pissed. I had called the previous evening to take the appointment and called the owner asking for directions as well. She should have told me she wasn’t gonna be available. But then, I was told that her son was not well and she had rushed out to attend him. When I called her, she told me that she would be there in an hour. She made it in an hour and a half and even though I had to wait a few minutes for her, I am glad I did! She set to work as soon as she came in, asking me what cut I wanted. I asked her to trim and get them into shape without sacrificing the length. She snipped and snapped and her experience at handling hair was evident. She casually chatted up with me while she cut them and advised me to do something abt the premature graying. I told her I use henna in summer. She said it wud spoil the texture of my hair and if I did want to use it, I should add lots of eggs to it! Now almost all stylists who have cut my hair have told me not to use henna, but no one told me about the eggs. Most get me to sell me the colouring services. This one told me I could even colour at home. It’s no big deal! I liked that she was not trying to sell me too many services. And then, when she was doing the blow dry, she asked me whether I wanted it curled in or out. She gave me a nice spirally sort of blow dry. I liked the end and I might say that the haircut was the saving grace of this deal. I still have to see how it behaves when I have just shampooed it and left to air dry but I do have a good feeling about it. Not the best experience but not one to give me nightmares either.

Img Source: http://kittybradshaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/hair_salon_image.gif

And now, my wisdom from the various deals -

When buying the coupon, look for deals close to your home, workplace or someplace you visit often. If the deal is disappointing, you wouldn’t feel about the time and effort spent in getting there.
Always read the fine print carefully before you buy the deal. There could be some exclusions or conditions that the merchant will not relax.
If possible, check out the place beforehand. If not, at least read some reviews on sites like mouthshut.com. Reviews give against the deal could be written by the merchant or their close ones and are generally glorious ones
Even if the place does not meet your expectations, give them a chance (unless you feel it’s a shady place). They just might surprise you
Always take an appointment before you land. This is especially true when the Merchant has two or more outlets and the deal maybe valid for only one of them. This happened to me with another deal. While taking the appointment, declare that you have a coupon and carry the coupon with you to the outlet.
When you buy a restaurant coupon, taxes may not be included. Understand beforehand how the calculation works. A club we went to, added taxes to our food and beverage, applied discount on this total and calculated what we need to pay. Then they levied tax on the amount again! We had to pay tax twice!

Overall, I’d say that these are not bad and definitely worth checking out; we just need to be careful while purchase and be prepared for the possibility that one odd deal could be a disappointment. Even if you don’t get 70% - 80% off s in the ads, the effective discounts of 40% - 50% too are good enough. Now, will the makeup brands please wake up to such deals???

Giveaway alert!!

2011-03-07T14:36:00.000+05:30

Chk out Renay's Sigma Brush set giveaway here

Reliving your Inner Child

2011-03-06T11:26:00.000+05:30

We took Kuhu to a garden yesterday. Spring is nearly here, the flowers are in bloom and I wanted some pictures of Kuhu outside home. Thank God, the whether did not play spoilsport :) It was clear and sunny and not too breezy. She enjoyed her day out and I had a field day clicking pics of her and of all the flowers. I was like a kid in a candy shop! Hubby played along, even though his leg gave him trouble. And then, when we were sitting down, two girls doing a promotion of red bull approached us. They handed us a can of red bull to try. Gosh it tasted like cough syrup!! But it did give a burst of energy...

And later, I thought about how happy I was while clicking the pics... some of them are mighty good if I may say so... that reminds me, i haven't shared any of my pics on this blog...hmmm... maybe i will... my blogging has been so random off late that I just can not categorise it. When I started blogging, only 2-3 ppl who I knew in real life knew about this blog. Some of them were regular readers, others were not. But as the social media exploded, almost all the ppl I know have an access to this blog. That includes my parents, my husband, my relatives, my colleagues.. even my boss! Back then, I could use this space to rant and vent out stuff but now, the fact that anyone will read it is always at the back of my mind. I watch my word now, lest I say something that is misunderstood or hurtful. Do you guys face this dilemma?

6 Months

2011-03-03T15:14:00.000+05:30

My baby is now 6 months old!!! By jove, time flies.... Hubby said he'll recommend me for a bravery award in August.... :) And she giggled.... so cute... Just looking at her sleeping peacefully induces so much love in my heart... now I know why they say motherhood is the bet experience :)