Staccato

Confessions of a Misfit

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 06:58:00 +0000

I think I've always been a misfit. Such a misfit that I don't even fit among the misfits. And unless you looked really carefully, you'd never think so.

I'm a ordinary looking girl, with a supposedly nice smile and a possibly naive air. Around some people I can talk and make jokes, and around some more, I can listen and laugh. But very few to whom I can talk my mind, and even fewer who actually listen.

And under all that, there's an awkwardness in me, so subtle that most don't feel it, but so strong that I can't shake it off. It's in the way I feel about myself... so deep rooted, that it's in how I walk, how I meet someone's eyes, and how I talk. Not visible enough for people to shun me or mock me. And not strong enough for others to welcome me. But it's certainly there.

There are those best friends though, who are happy and whole enough, to not care about how and what I am, but just have enough room in their hearts to love me. And those are the hearts I miss, here, in the land of lonely, floating souls.

I'm not unhappy with my misfitedness. I think it's part of who I am. But maybe I've not embraced it fully. I've held it and and worn it awkwardly, and I have a feeling that maybe its time to grow into it.

Just saying

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 18:42:00 +0000

Star Trek - The Next Generation: maybe about exploring strange new worlds and seeking out new life and civilizations, but essentially, it is about being human.

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:48:00 +0000

I think I haven't been blogging as much coz I haven't been drinking as much. Kinda sucks. I will try and eliminate the co-relation and just blog more.

Pinning and Polyvoring

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 07:17:00 +0000

The last few weeks, finally having a desk job again, have led to many hours spent online and besides the regular means of timepass I've gotten hooked to --
1) 500px
2) Pinterest
3) Polyvore
Here's a set I made playing around on Polyvore. It's pretty damn fun!

A sunny day by thegirlinthewindow featuring strap watches

Always Potter

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 07:22:00 +0000

A rusty recap of 2011

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 18:21:00 +0000

This rusty recap of 2011 has been sitting around in my drafts for days, so keeping in line with my resolutions for 2012 (that's another post) I'm going to do what I miss doing a lot-- hit PUBLISH!

In January, we flew up to Seattle to look for a place to rent -- we had decided to move there for a year or two, for career-designed progressions. Packed up our lives into a U-Haul, and drove up to Seattle with our newly adopted puppy, Lily, to be company for puppy No.1, Jolie.

In February, we settled down into a routine -- him going to work, and me, being at home, pursuing my Masters of American Sociology by watching a wide range of reality shows on TV. It was pretty darn cold in Seattle.

March had my sweet husband buy me a new DSLR and with the hint of spring around the corner, I stepped out to capture naked trees and grey skies. Seattle Daily Picture was born.

In April, I walked around, took the bus, walked the dogs and yearned to earn some USDs while I started my long due job-hunting process. April marked one year since I'd quit Google, I felt rusty and awkward thinking about working and doing interviews again. But armed with my 50mm lens, I chased cherry blossoms.

In May the job hunting continued, and then I applied to a role that claimed to be Account Management/ Client Servicing, and I was offered a position in their "Entry Level Management Program" which I accepted. Because I'd told myself I wanted a job aka ANY JOB. This role, however, turned out to be a door-to-door sales job with the opportunity to grow into your own business in a year or two.

June - I tried to do my best at the sales job. It was hard. Never ever had I imagined that I would ever knock on doors and waving at windows while improvising a sales pitch. I took it as a challenge to, in the least, improve my communication and do something that not a lot of people would. But by the end of the month, the 70 hour weeks yielded very few USDs, and a nasty stomach ulcer that let to me having my first emergency hospitalization (my friend called 911 for me and they came, sirens and all!)

So in early July, I quit. A week later, thanks to Google aka my fairy Godmother, I had a temp job with Google. Google world again! I worked on a secret project with lots and lots of travel and made a nice bundle of USDs.

August, I traveled some more. Let's see - Idaho, Oregon, Minneapolis, Ohio. A week at each place, and 2 weeks at Minneapolis where I spent my 26th birthday working at the biggest mall in the US. And spending some of my new USDs while practicing my newly acquired How To Be A First World Consumerist Asshole skills. So yea, I shopped. Everyday. For ten days. All this while, photography was sidetracked.

In September, I travelled even more. It was hectic, spent barely 2 days home each week, and I missed my husband and the pups a lot. Saved money. Worked 80 hour weeks. Lived out of a carry-on suitcase. Ohio again, New Jersey, Oklahoma, and, hold your breath, ALASKA! Definitely one of the highlights of my year. Majestic majesticology.

October came and after a trip to North Carolina, the travel slowed down. Settled down into a desk job and spent time at home. Ate home-cooked (by the husband) meals and enjoyed the power of Netflix.

November and December are a haze of holiday fun and shopping. We made 3 road trips to California. We spent New Years Eve in Las Vegas with friends and family. And I peed my pants while being sick in the car. And NOT even from being I guess am not going to forget that soon.

It was a year of learning the ropes, settling down, empowering myself. I dont feel satisfied though... I dont feel like I grew enough, did enough, pushed myself enough.. looked after myself and my happiness enough.

And I feel it in my bones that 2012 is going to be different.

I love Captain Picard. Oh, and Data.

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 22:00:00 +0000

Captain Jean-Luc Picard: Captain's log, stardate 41263.2 - This will be a rather unusual log entry, assuming Starfleet ever receives it. As I already informed my crew, a phenomenal surge of power during a warp speed experiment has sent our starship hurtling out of our own galaxy and past another, taking us over 2,700,000 light years - in a few minutes.
Lieutenant Geordi La Forge: Message on this has already been transmitted to Starfleet, sir.
Lt. Commander Data: Which, traveling subspace, they should receive in 51 years, ten months, nine weeks, 16 days...
Captain Jean-Luc Picard: Mr. Data.

From-

"Star Trek: The Next Generation: Where No One Has Gone Before (#1.5)" (1987)

Obsession Update: 1

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 20:54:00 +0000

When I was talking about how much I missed India Daily Photo, my husband asked why I wasn't doing a Seattle Daily, and I had to hit my self on the head. Why hadn't I thought of that? Seattle Daily Photo, both the domain and the blogspot URL were already bagged, and so I settled for seattledailypicture.blogspot.com

It's no fancy website, but it's where I'm going to post photos while I practice stuff I'm reading about. Yes, plenty of photo books scattered around, so here's the link again, enjoy the photos, leave a comment, and excuse me while I go obsess some more :)

It's time to obsess

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 06:08:00 +0000

I had an 'a-ha' moment recently (although it should have honestly happened years ago, and in fact was a bit of regular feedback from my manager at work), that I truly, really, easily get distracted from what my focus should be on. And while right now I'm still sitting at home, without a job, one would say I don't really have a lot to focus on; not ferociously, anyway.

But there I was, trying to get a bunch of documents together to have my new name and address updated on my passport, and I go out to the living room to find a pen. And I sit down watch TV for two hours. That's when the a-ha moment happened. There was proof all around me.

Dishes washed yesterday, but still in the dishwasher.
Laundry done on the weekend, but still in the dryer.
Documents nearly ready for weeks, just need a signature.

And really, it's ridiculous. I have all the time in the world, but I don't get anything done. So I've decided to obsess.

And obsessing over something when you need to, is good. I'm sure you'll agree. And it's not like I haven't obsessed before. With a whole bunch of things ranging from Harry Potter of course, to my Film Club in college, and my friends' band when I was their self-proclaimed manager, and India Daily Photo when it was still flourishing :(. But it's been a while now.

What have I been obsessed with recently since I came to the US? Very lame stuff I must confess. A lot of TV. Real Housewives of Orange County? Yes. NOOO! But yes. My puppies. And a lot of facebook.

So here's my pledge. To obsess over my photography. Because I really want to. Like really, really. Am not fully sure why. But am going to give it my best shot. After all, life has turned out to be straight out of a dramatic movie, and so I should be able to make it happen, right?

Wish me luck.

Random notes from the week

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 06:57:00 +0000

Have to admit it, the food at the Google Mountain View campus is really, really good.
I miss getting emails from Eric Schmidt, especially when there's major things going on. (read this)
The word 'silver' is so damn pretty.
My capacity to consume alcohol is fairly diminished.
Wine-high makes me think of things like, "what if all the oxygen molecules in my body went on a strike."
I met an amazing girl this weekend, and have a crush on her.

The dilemma

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 23:53:00 +0000

I've moved home plenty of times. If I count correctly, I moved 5 houses in my 4 years in Hyderabad. Usually not a super-grand affair -- I never bought any furniture, or major appliances, and in fact, made a couple of my inter-Hyderabad moves in a few trips in rickshaws. Not complicated. I've always liked that fact, and wanted to adhere to the policy of not owning too much. Keep life clutter-free is a good motto. Right?

But, the darker side of me has always had a bit of a hoarder in it. It's in the blood, I would say. My grandmother owns a big house in Pune and it's literally full of things she's 'saved' for half a century. So while I'm often tempted to 'save' things for the distant future when that mundane object will play an irreplaceable part in my life, I have to do a quick reboot in the head.

Because, after all, honestly, what are the chances that you're really going to EVER . Especially once it is dusty and musty and covered in cobwebs, after taking up a load of space not mansion-sized homes we live in.

So, anyway, back to the point at hand. I'm now on the brink of another repack. This time moving 838 miles to Seattle, Washington. This kind of distance basically eliminates the convenience of spreading the move across multiple trips or even multiple days. Everything has to fit in whatever truck we rent. Everything has to fit in these scores of cardboard boxes that are leering at me right now, blocking my light too, damn it.

I've been walking around the house the past couple of hours looking at the pretty ferocious volume of objects my husband and I have accumulated. Doesn't help the situation when the husband also has a bit of the-dark-side-with-the-hoarder part in him. Its in his blood too, I do say.

So, yes am talking about crates of books, 5 more of all kinds of video games (you name it), dvds, half a dozen guitars, half a dozen amps, bulky speakers and not to forget, a dog with a classic collection of half-eaten toys. Not even mentioning the stuff that's in the kitchen and bedroom.

This reboot button usually helps me get rid of things I don't want to carry around. It's abandoned me this time. I'm staring at an abysmally small heap in the things-to-get-rid-of area. I hope this being-married-and-settling-down business hasn't brought about the victory of the dark side in me.

Gulp. Back to walking around the boxes for now.

What am I missing here?

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 21:18:00 +0000

It's 2:00 am. I'm awake for some absurd reason, and I look out of my window to see if it's still snowing. Barely. No one's around. But, I see something that's annoying. Every single shop across the street from my hotel has it's lights on bright.

I've seen this everywhere I have visited in the US. Shops/stores/offices that shut as early as 7 pm leave some or all of their lights on ALL NIGHT.

I don't get it. And I don't get why its not a big deal. I don't see even remotely, what purpose it serves, and I don't see why no one cares about it. Not only does it cost them money (which they should obviously care about) but is such a horrid misuse and waste of resources.

In India, we've recently seen a lot of awareness campaigns and initiatives to make people save every bit of electricity. Not in the room? Turn the lights off. Companies make an effort, and it's a great way of positive marketing if they demonstrate how green and conscious they are. At the Google office in Hyderabad, we had lights that came on when they sensed movement in the room, we were encouraged to use natural lights, turn our monitors off, and every other conceivable way of saving energy.

And while many things in the US are environmentally conscious and responsible, many things aren't.

I know ranting about it on my blog isn't going to make a difference, but for one, am wondering if I'm really missing something here and am completely off base, and there's a logical reason for this? For two, am going to have to looking into this, and see what I can do to start trying to change this.

More later. If you have any light to shed, please leave a note!

Snowflakes are falling on my bedhead

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 09:14:00 +0000

I feel terrible that I was sitting in a hotel room all day (to my defense, I was sick today), watching the news about it going to snow in the city this evening, and I didn't even look outside to really see that it was, indeed, snowing outside. Right outside my window, an inch of snow on everything, the same white blanket described in books. No big deal, other than the fact that it doesn't usually snow in Seattle. This climate change thing is yes, oh so alarming.

Jolie Number 2

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 08:59:00 +0000

We're thinking of adopting another puppy. It's exactly a year since we got our precious little Jolie, and there's no doubt in my mind that our lives wouldn't be the same without her. It's like having a baby, you know? You are literally responsible for a living thing -- one that is completely dependent on you for its well being, and protection, and in return, one that showers you with unconditional love, and unending entertainment.

So while, a few months ago, I did turn into a paranoid mommy, hardly taking my eyes off Jolie, to ensure she's not peeing or pooping in our small, carpeted apartment, or eating something completely disastrous, or even sometimes just being grumpy with her because I was at home alone with her for hours on end, all that changed recently.

When I just had to go out for a few hours, and left her alone, and later came back to discover the house was completely intact. No cushions on the floor, no half eaten chapstick, no ballpen chewed up. Instead, wagging her bottom at me in a mad, mad frenzy, and trying to climb up my leg, was my adorable little puppy.

Ok, I could go on for another hour at least, about how awesome Jolie is, so getting back to what I want to say, a few days ago when we had another puppy at home for about 24 hours, I had to admit, we were ready to welcome another one into our lives. A baby sister for Jolie, someone as small, tiny, playful, energetic, and smart as her, to keep each other company.

I had a profound moment months ago, after having consumed several glasses of wine, when I looked at Jolie on my lap, and fully experienced the fact that here is a creature, a living breathing creature who is so unconscious of herself, but so alive. It's hard to explain what I was feeling and thinking, but my husband understood, and its our little joke... about our little creature.

So yes, we are in conversation with someone about adopting one of their puppies -- and fingers crossed, in a few weeks, we will welcome puppy number 2 into the pack.

Bloody Nigerian Scammers

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 02:48:00 +0000

Last week, I posted my first Craigslist ad. To sell my Nikon D80 so that we can upgrade to a bigger/better/newer. And after a couple of disheartening emails from people asking if I will sell at half the price I offered, I got a reply from a "Doctor from San Jose" who went on the explain that he wanted to buy the camera for his son who is currently transferred to Africa. He offered to pay me a $100 extra for the shipping.

I was definitely a bit skeptical about this possibly shady deal, but we decided that we had no grounds for being suspicious, yet. He had asked us to send him a paypal invoice, and knowing that paypal is a reliable service, we sent him one. Our plan being let's see if the cash comes through.

So I sent the invoice, and within minutes I got a reply from him saying he had made the payment and that I should ship the camera instantly. His excuse was he was out of town on business, and couldn't do the shipping to Africa bit himself.

By now, I was slightly more distressed. His English in the emails was weak (big flag) and he hadn't even sent me a shipping address. And he insisted that the paypal payment was made, while I saw nothing in our account.

Now feeling more certain that this was some scam, we looked up his gmail address on Google. (Gerraldphilips@gmail.com)
And there were multiple blogs articles that listed this email address associated with what is called the 419 Nigerian scam. Where he (the scammer/fake doctor) does the same thing, makes a offer to buy, at whatever price you're asking, plus pay for shipping to Nigeria. Then proceeds to send you a fake email from Paypal saying that your money has arrived.

I dunno how many people fall for this, because the fake email was so bad, we only saw it when we looked in the Junk folder, and had an infinite number of typos and grammatical errors. So anyway, after making sure he hadn't got any of our information via paypal, we felt a bit foolish for not going with our instinct right-away, but were now better prepared to identify the next scam, and had a funny story to narrate the next couple of days.

Our chance to use our newly gained knowledge came pretty soon. A week later, we're here in Seattle, looking up ads on Craigslist for apartments. We called a few places, made appointments, and I emailed one lady who had a great looking house up for rent for a lowish price.

The next day, I got a reply from her; this time it was two doctors who are "committed in mitigating the impact of HIV/AIDS". Before I got a chance to flag the ad, it was already flagged off. Disgusting.

INFORMATION AND APPLICATION FOR THE APARTMENT FOR RENT

Thanks for the email and interest in our home. I am a Medical doctor and I work for RED CROSS SOCIETY,we arrive London a Month Ago with my husband and we are committed in mitigating the impact of HIV/AIDS which kills more that 3,000 people everyday and also supporting community garden programs for AIDS sufferers and their families

If you are interested in renting our home you can call me for further details on my Cell number + (+44 702 407 2434): Please note that the property is locked & the keys will be sent once we approved you as our tenant. Also this is not a share or sublet so I prefer dealing directly with my tenant no third party or agent. You can also reach my attorney once you have been approved on (802) 375-7213.

RENTALS APPLICATION
FIRST NAME:__________________
MIDDLE NAME:_________________
LAST NAME:__________________
PROFESSION: ________________
HOME PHONE (____)__________
(CELL)PHONE (____)__________
(WORK)PHONE (____)__________
KIDS _____ (YES/NO), HOW MANY________
PRESENT ADDRESS:_____________________
CITY: _______________
STATE: ______________
ZIPCODE: ____________
HOW LONG DO YOU INTEND STAYING?____________
WHEN DO YOU INTEND MOVING IN?______________
HOW SOON CAN YOU HAVE THE DEPOSIT PAYMENT SENT TO ME___________________________
HOW SOON DO YOU WANT TO RECEIVE THE KEYS AND DOCUMETS OF THE HOUSE_________________________

__
DO YOU HAVE A PET:_____________
NAME OF PET:_____________
KIND OF PETS:_____________
DO YOU SMOKE?______________

Wide Parking place is available/Washer & Dryer/Internet/Air Condition E.t.c

We decided to rent our property to a responsible person because we will be spending a long time around Europe for Missionary work. To avoid keeping our home Empty during these periods of time we both have decided to lease our property to a good and God fearing person that will take good care of the property.

There is no Registration fee only deposit payment required in other to send keys and paper works. I would like you to know that am doing this base on trust and putting everything is God Hands.
Pets are allowed and utilities are included in the rent.

I hope to hear from you soonest.
Thanks & God Bless.
Dr Sarah & Jeremiah Lawrence.

Do you pee in the shower?

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 02:14:00 +0000

When my husband casually mentioned to me, a couple of months ago, that he pees in the shower, I was shocked. Aghast. His argument was -- its sterile, and that he'd been doing it all his life. I don't remember WHY or HOW that conversation sort of slipped out of my mind for a few more months, until today.

We are moving to Seattle in a couple of weeks, and are currently in the city, house-hunting. So this morning I decided to exercise my wifely powers, and impose a DO NOT URINATE rule in the new shower/bathtub. And what followed were these arguments.

1) Even if I tried, I couldn't stop. It's like being in a swimming pool. You have to pee.
2) I always pee in the shower. And it's sterile.
3) Everyone pees in the shower!
When he made that last declaration. I uttered a soundless grunt of scorn, and decided to consult Google to make my investigations on that impossible proclamation. After all, I have never known anyone who pees in the shower. (Well, I guess I can't say that because I haven't asked everyone I know if they pee in the shower, but it has never occurred to me or come up in conversation.) It's going to.

Anyway, so to proceed with my Google findings, I have to say, I was defeated. The various links I clicked through to, ALL concluded that most men admit freely to peeing in showers. Here's the crux of my investigations.

1) It's a primal instinct. I wont elaborate (because I can't) but they can't help the urge. Nor would they want to.
2) "One of the most liberating things a man can do is pee in nature, the only thing that can come close is peeing in the shower."
3) "You're taking a shower! Of course you're rinsing the tub out! There's water running constantly, with soap!!"
3) I came across a blog post that says a Brazilian environmental group actually encourages people to pee in the shower because it helps conserve water that would otherwise be used in the flush.

While I'm definitely not converted to the cause, I will have to refute my ban, turn a blind eye, and pretend I don't care. Husbands are stubborn creatures. And what I can say to the saving water bit anyway?

PS: Here's a link to a rather entertaining investigation a woman conducted and another link to the blog post about the Brazilian message with a video!

Coraline

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 18:14:00 +0000

Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.

-- G.K Chesterton

Thats the quote Neil Gaiman chose to open his marvelous, thrilling book Coraline with. I've been a Gaiman fan ever since I read his Neverwhere, and bought Coraline in one of my reckless splurging sessions at Landmark, Hyderabad.

Certainly looked like a spooky children's tale... but boy, what a chilly, scary book. And not scary just because of the demon villain, but more because of the moral/take-away of the story.

Also, of course, to mention, is the INCREDIBLE stop motion 3D movie they made of it. I caught it on TV here in the US, and they followed up the movie with a 15-min making of. And this my friends, is what you call animation. Here's a quick peek.

The Return of Percy Jackson

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 19:55:00 +0000

When I bought one and then all five of the Percy Jackson series, I had to finally admit to myself that I am a sucker for children's fantasy. It was no Harry Potter of course, but it was fun to learn Greek mythology in that way, considering my education didn't cover it at all. I really didn't know ANYTHING about Greek mythology other than maybe Aphrodite's name. It was also fun to compare, in my head, the differences between the styles of JK Rowling, who is so distinctly British and Rick Riordan whose humour is so reflective of American goofiness. Very different. Not the forget the food. At Hogwarts, we read about delicious feasts and puddings, and grabbed turkey legs from the magical plates, whereas at Camp Half-Blood in Percy Jackson world, it's pizza and coke that made the demi-Gods drool. That was disturbing.

Anyway, so I finished the Percy Jackson series in about 10 days, and was sad to say goodbye to another hero. Atleast I thought it was goodbye.

A week ago I saw Rick Riordan's newly released The Lost Hero in a bookstore, and sneakily ordered it online with a couple of other books. And I was happy to plunge back into the world of demi-Gods, meet a bunch of new characters in the same old setting, but a new twist.

The twist being, we are slowly delving into Roman mythology. Percy Jackson was "missing/kidnapped" the entire book, but a not-so-subtle hint at the end of the book revealed that he is going to be playing a much bigger part in the next book -- The Son of Neptune. (Nepture aka Roman name for Posiedon.) So, excitement is there slightly. Sucky part is that the book is out Fall 2011. Nicely done by Riordan to bring back the Hero after his series ended. Makes me fervently wish that Rowling will just write something soon. Anything. (She is writing apparently, but she is so secretive.)

So that brings us back to focusing on the Harry Potter mania about the grip the world this weekend. I can hardly believe that my tickets are for real.

Of shopping online

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 06:57:00 +0000

They may looks pretty, and they may come at a great discount, I'm pretty sure I would never ever buy a pair of boots online. Just saying.

Small Pleasures #658

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Sat, 13 Nov 2010 01:42:00 +0000

Receiving a secretly ordered package of hardbound books. Double points if it's a bunch of Children's Fantasy books.

Vivian Maier

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 22:27:00 +0000

I don't remember how I came across this blog, but it has grown to become my absolute favourite. It's not a tech blog, or a personal diary, or a comic, or dooce. It's a photoblog -- Vivian Maier - Her Discovered Work. I love it because its so unique.

The story starts when this man bought a bunch of film negatives and a few negative prints at a furniture auction. He was not a photographer. But slowly began to develop film rolls from the hundreds of rolls he had. And what he discovered was the exceptional street photographs in Chicago from the 1950s to 1990s by a woman called Vivian Maier. He now posts her photos on the blog.

Not that much is known about her other than she was a French woman who considered herself a film critic, and was a nanny to children in Chicago. Pleasantly surprised today to read that a documentary is being filmed about her. Until then, enjoy the photos.

The fountains at Bellagio

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 17:16:00 +0000

I hadn't fully grasped how magnificent a fountain could be before I stood in front of the dancing fountains of the Bellagio in Vegas.
I got really overwhelmed by the combination of the music and the pretty dancing fountains and had tears slipping down my face, it was eerie. It was "Time to say Goodbye" by Andrea Bolecci. Don't miss this when you get a chance to see this live.

Ps: I haven't posted the video I took because I discovered my own moaning soundtrack on it, and I'll spare you that. We saw it during the day, and it was amazing in the sunlight.

PPs: Probably wouldn't have cried if it had been another song. This one just hit the spot.

Damn it, the name is Afrin

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 06:28:00 +0000

I'm kinda high right now and I was just struck with the most horrifying thought. So, remember I wrote this post about being unamused to find that for once, a person's first association with my name wasn't an image of the sexy Lisa Ray walking in a desert to the song Afreen, Afreen, but was instead to the brand of nasal drops in the US.

And now that I really am in the US, the tables have turned. It's disturbing to think that 99% of people who meet me will first think of Afrin Nasal Drops (*tagline- No drip) when they hear my name. Not an exotic music video. Great.

Being 25 is weird when...

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 04:15:00 +0000

... you look at your classmates' photos and see middle-aged people instead. Gulp.

More Potter Mania

noreply@blogger.com (A.C) — Sun, 17 Oct 2010 07:31:00 +0000

I've loved Harry Potter for 11 years. Can you beat that? Has it really been 11 years since the magic of JK Rowlings world took my world to a whole new level? The best part is that its not been a phase... not like The Famous Five books (which are still awesome) but dont hold me in the same grip as they did when I was 10. Not like how the Backstreet Boys were awesome when I was 13.

It's been along-lasting and deeply fulfilling love affair. From hours of entertainment, a place to escape to when I'm low, to chirpy conversations with strangers, Potter has been a great best friend.

And Potter stuff is epic. A children's fantasy series has never before gripped the adult audience like this. I love that I can buy a Potter wand, or Gringott coins, or a golden snitch. I love that Emma Watson will always be Hermione. I love that JK Rowling says that someday she might want to go back to Harry's world and write another story.

But in the meantime, I'll wait with bated breath for the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows to hit the screen. And maybe get a Potter tattoo to celebrate the longtime love.