Shifted

Came back from trip on 18th november. Shifted home on 1st december. The shifting and organising went on till 31st december. I got the net connection in mid december.

Blogging for me is not just about posting and replying to comments but also reading and commenting on some other blogs. So while I have posted a 100 or is it 1000, posts in my mind, I didn't pick up my mobile and post it online because, I felt it would be incomplete and perhaps unfair. And I just don't have the time right now to spend couple of hours online everyday, which I used to take earlier.


Reading for more than a month, Dalai Lama's book on Happiness. I liked the perspective and I accept that compassion is the first step towards happiness.

I hated the new year, because it meant I would have to skip my routine and wish and talk to everyone I knew or come online to send greetings and of course the general hype around what did you do on the eve. But ended up feeling good about it, since I managed to wish, everyone I wanted to. I think it was a nice way to let people know I think of them, even when I don't interact with them.

When I started blogging I wanted to change the world. (Well not the entire world, but I felt change is change even if its one person, one perspective). But the longer you stare at the abyss, the longer the abyss stares at you. And due to constant exposure, I have become immune to many things I wanted to change. But the core still remains. And now I want to blog just as an expression of myself. Change or no change.

And while I used to be extremely wary about even acknowledging myself on my blogs, I have typed the "I's without counting in these post. And for that I must thank my current (hmmm will they come back this year?) bloggers for it.

Can anyone guess the actual incidents I am referring to in these posts? The post dates might offer a clue.
License to Kill
Ashamed of your Mother!
They Dare to Make Money!
A four letter word called Hurt
A Watchwoman's Wrath against Mustache

Shifting my home, shifted my perspective on home management and to an extent my priorities. But it has not changed my passion, hoping to be back in couple of weeks and blog regularly. I might not have visited your blogs but, please, you have been a BIG part of my life, and will continue to remain for the rest of my life..

Happy New Year:)

Bright Orange on a Grey Sky

• Arrived Safely in Chennai. (I hate air travel, for that matter any kind of travel. Thought I was cool and calm during take off, but the kid was rolling with laughter and now does an imitation of me being scared during take off, which involves staring straight ahead, breathing heavily and eyebrows furrowed.) (Now I spend around 10 minutes a day on how I will make the trip back home and the weather and turbulations).
• Diwali finally over (I hate festivals, wrote a post long time back on appointment with happiness or something like that on that. And Diwali is definitely the festival I dislike the most. I have never understood the hype especially amongst NRIs on Diwali back home, everytime someone gets nostalgic I want to tell them, hey now people just watch TV on Diwali and bigger the family more the number of channels to fight over. Sweets and Dresses are not just reserved for festivals. And the fireworks are more about ego and pollution than fun. But the cynic in me still liked to wish people, especially the auto drivers, sales personnel etc.) 
• Got Vijayadasami admission for kid. (And thankfully found a school which didn't give a fancy brochure on the skills they will teach. But the kid got unwell and hasn't spent much days at school).
• Saw Endhiran finally. (Those of you who follow me on twitter would have known I gave up my friday (release day) tickets to my friends because I didn't want to see an important movie without reading the  review first and choose to see Anjaana Anjani, since it was just time pass movie. Saw couple of moives too. And had to seen Endhiran again. And I liked it more the 2nd time. A Satyam loyalist, never thought I would like Kamala. But they have improved drastically. )
• No time to read the newspapers or catch up with the news. But ignorance is bliss. (One day I picked up the paper and read about tsunami in Indonesia and a flower vendor's boy being crushed to death in elevator. Enough of news for the moment. Btw newspapers seem to be more about offers and promotions than news and analysis.
• No time for TV too. Saw Neeya Nana celebrations discussion. What sort of research do they do? Why did no one mention, the woman who was behind Mother's Day spent the rest of her life fighting AGAINST it?
• Read few books. Now want to finish the post to get back to the 2 books I have started reading today.
• 10 more days to go before I travel and still 100 things to do. My excel list just keeps getting long and longer.
• I hate change and lack of control. And vacation is in a way my nightmare. But if my life remained stagnant perhaps I wouldn't grow and become wiser. So instead of resisting what I can't change, trying my best to be cool and calm but ending up many times as a dragon. And its not fun being a dragon-donkee.

I was in a dark mood, lightened up after catching the comment and email of 2 bloggers. Thank You so much. The past couple of months have been tough for me. And only I know the difference the bloggers who dropped in to enquire made to me. Reading a book about a serial killer and was thinking how naive I was when I let people into my online life few years back. While the unpleasant experiences helped me grow wiser as a person, the kindness I received in the last few months has comforted me and honestly I can't find words to convey how I feel. Its just been a bright orange on a grey sky.

TV Thoughts

They didn't want to watch the match with us, because we might not use the projector and the big screen. Then they will have to see it on a small TV, brand unknown. Not even a LCD or a flat screen, forget LED, or 42inch. What in the world were we thinking?

Decades ago, it was okat to watch TV with friends at the neighbours. Today, the neighbours decide if we are worthy of their friendship based on what TV we own.

DD was not fun but today's DD (Disappointing Distance) is more horrible. Its not just adults who judge you based on

1.The locality and number of bedrooms in your house

2.The car

3.The TV you own.

Its kids too.

I haven't forgotten the fun in waiting for some fun on DD. Watching "Aamchi Mathi Aamchi Manoos" or "Apan yaana Pahila Ka?" and thinking an interview would end, if they showed the long shot (in a neighbour's house of course). Being amazed as a teen, when a friend's sister had TWO channels and could watch a match without being at the mercy of a cable operator who rotated channels.


I have the money to buy a great TV for my kid but how will I give my kid, the fun I had with TV, as a kid?

Why is it so tough to convince my friends and neighbours its not about Price but about Value. Fun is not just about what you see, but how and with whom you see it:)


PS : They are still my friends. I do feel bad when they don't get my point of view but as DD has thought me, Life isn't What you want it to be:) And I accept and love my friends inspite of their "snobbish values".


PPS : And who am I kidding, when the ribbing gets too bad, I am glad I have the projector:)

****

I don't think Bikram's Blog needs directions from this blog, but instead of writing a post I thought I could mention his post Shaheed Sardar Bhagat Singh.

Another Personality Test

Main type	Variant

Take Free Enneagram Personality Test
personality tests by similarminds.com

Enneagram Test Results Type 1 Perfectionism 56% Type 2 Helpfulness 90% Type 3 Image Awareness 66% Type 4 Sensitivity 26% Type 5 Detachment 76% Type 6 Anxiety 90% Type 7 Adventurousness 40% Type 8 Aggressiveness 66% Type 9 Calmness 70% Your main type is 2 Your variant is social

Take Free Enneagram Personality Test
personality tests by similarminds.com

Re. The Jung Test, I took the test around6-7 times and other than the T factor, everything varied each time..:D

A new low with High

Yesterday I was preparing an investment matrix and had to match the Instruments with the Investment goals. I had analysed all the instruments for investing and written the 10 Investment goals one could have. And now it was a simple job of writing, High Medium and Low, on the matrix.

Half way I stare and pause at the word, High. High is a word? Did I mean to write Height. Is it a spelling mistake? Wont I appear a fool if I wrote all the wise things about financial planning and came with a nonsense word?

Does the Word "High" exist, I ask myself. And realise I just dont know. Its not frustrating or irritating. Just a dull feeling of acceptance. I cant remember and its probably a word which doesnt exist. Next time I would try to google or use the spell check. But its hard many times to question what I accept.

Its tough enough when the dreams are crystal clear and the memories vague, spending 10 minutes every morning, wondering what I had dreamt, and to correct my memory. To put it simply, if I wanted to make a phone call, I would probably dream about it, and the next day, continue to believe I had made that phone call:D, unless I remember, that it was a Dream.
How important is memory? Is Life better as a moment, or a memory?

Perhaps I would enjoy life more, if its just a moment.
But I still prefer the memories, for reasons I dont remember at the moment :)

Forgetting High might be a new low for me,
But when the potential in everyone is infiniteI still believe,
I can reach for the sky
Inspite of the lows, can reach new highs.

Friendly yet Friendless

Did I write that? Did I think those stuff? Cool. I thought, when I came across 3 comments yesterday in Blogging about Boss. Its not even a year old. Yet, if someone had asked me, what I had written on that topic, I would have just stared back. And perhaps could have come up with one point after thinking, for 5 minutes. And yesterday, while going through my list to select my Favourites, I came across, couple of titles, whoose contents, I didnt have a clue.

Sure every stuff I write is original and comes from the heart, filtered by the head. But its tough when memory fails you.

When you open the fridge and stare at it for a minute, your mind goes blank, and yet you desperately want to remember, feeling helpless, as if I am drowning in dark waters, staring at the contents, hoping for a clue, wondering why I opened it.

And then thankfully, logic rescues me. I Think back, at what I had been doing. And realise, for cooking that thing, I would have needed to open the white door of the cupboard, not the white door of the fridge. Happens with people all the time. But its tough when it happens too many times, in a day. And hey I am just 32 not 82. And its not easy when you cant just remember 482.86 and have to copy paste it from one screen to another.

I struggle hard to remember, and many times, its ironical to be complimented for memory. Well thats because, most people take their memory for granted, I dont. I think back or write down. You become obsessed with thought, when you have to rely on the thought process.

But this isnt just about memory and me. Its the logic, that I insert into everything. The compulsiveness, I feel to be correct.

After 10th Prelim exam results, when I went from home to school for the 3rd time, to tell the geography teacher my marks have to be reduced. A paper corrected by perhaps another generous student, for a result that wouldnt be recorded, I remember the puzzled words of the teacher "What are you trying to do?". I dont think I had an answer, and even now I dont have, other than a voice which said, "This isnt the right mark, take it back, to the school"..It was fine once, but thrice?? And as a quirk its fine once, but at every point in life??

I want to finish this post soon, because I am not comfortable, talking about myself. Sure I like attention, but at what I create, not at self. Because I would hate, to be misunderstood. And I pity the person who misunderstands my point, since I will come back again and again, to clarify and communicate my point.

And while people just think, I think over the way I think and the way, others think. It of course helps while analysing or understanding, and the base of logic, creates in a funny way, emphathy for everyone. And perhaps, its wonderful that I am pursuing Psychology.

But this mind, puts a toll on my relationship. When I sound like a lawyer and break down the sentences, in an arguement. Or when I speak like I am under oath, mentioning all the Ifs and all the exceptions, in casual conversations.

And people are wrong when they say they want someone to be understanding and good. Understand people too much, they wonder if you are manipulating them. And by being good, you just make them feel guilty, and no one likes to feel guilty.

Why am I writing it? Because while framing the 3rd and Last Post on Finding Friendship, I wondered how I would define my friend. And what I would expect from my friend.

It took just few seconds to come to the sentence,"My friend would be a person who thinks like me". Thats not the same as agreeing with me.

But unless the person sees the patterns I do, while watching a movie, reading a book, or just in a conversation, it will be tough to have a long term relationship with me. Sure I have many good relationships, some due to family and some due to acquaintance. But to me, they arent friendships.

A friend is someone who will understand me. Who understands why I have two different hobbies, Thinking and Imagining. Who understands how its possible to be idealistic and cynical at the same time. Who understands why death doesnt disturb me, and yet why a line from a movie, can make me sob. Who understands my humour, and my passion. And who doesnt think I am joking when I am being serious, and serious, when I am just joking:D

If Friendship is about trust,
Its tough to trust, what you dont understand
And its tough to understand me,
When you dont know understand, the way I think.

My mind and the way I think, helps me to be friendly to everyone. Yet leaves me without a true friend. If Friends are defined as people without bloodties, who CARE about me, I am thankfully blessed with many. But my there would be more in my ideal friendship.

I realise if I changed the way I think, I would have more friends and possibly be more happy.
But if I change the way I think, am I being, me, Myself?
And if I cant be happy with myself,
Whats the point of being happy due to others?
And so I simply smile, feel good, for being me,
and hope to find a friend,
even when I am prepared to never have a friend.

PS : If you are reading this link because you are a stranger who emailed me or said over messenger, "I would like to know you and be your friend". Well I hope this serves as a lesson to you. Beware of the crazy people you can find on the net. Luckily for you, I am not a serial killer.

PPS : Bloggers who write, I may not have friends because I dont give what I want, havent understood the post, or perhaps didnt have time to read the post:D

A Blogger's Initiative. Help if Possible. The 343

Marooned Tag

A tag by shady - You are marooned on Island miles away from civilization you can take one partner and 5 things what would that be?





1.A big flask of coffee. (Juices are great, but the no added sugar, no preservative stuff I drink could get spoiled, but I can drink coffee even if its horribly cold.)












2.Potatoes. (My favourite dish is boiled potatoes, hmmm maybe 5 kgs...)











3.Matchboxes. (To boil my potatoes, and to keep away the animals and cannibals if any, at night. Maybe a dozen.)












4.Sharp Knife. (The wood, and the branches to protect me from the weather, sun or rain)



5.Hammock .(Silly choice. A book on surviving alone, would be a better choice, but I love swings and hammock and it would be fun to doze and imagine in it, and hopefully not many insects would climb up to it:D)

Partner : A good sailor (male or female) with a boat, who will not disturb me when I am on the island and who will take me back to civilisation, when I run out of potatoes and coffee.

PS : If there is a solared powered satelllite phone, will definitely opt for it. But since I love the 5 things I mentioned, will trade in the partner for the phone (now thats truly pathetic:D)

PPS : Didnt mention my husband, because I am considerate about boring him to death, and I dont want him to die. And the option would have been boring to the bloggers to read, and the emotional health of the bloggers are important to me:) If I have to really come up with a celebrity, it would be David E Kelly (creator of Picket Fences, The Practice, Boston Legal, etc. Because he makes me think, and when I am not imagining stories in my mind, I like to think.)

Tag : Anyone interested

No.336

Sexy & Attractive

A tag on what I find sexy and attractive in men, from Savy. Well using some well known people to illustrate my point, lets start at the top, with the brain i.e, the personality

Dignity : Nothing can be as attractive as a sense of dignity.

Intelligent and Witty: Intelligence isnt measured by a CAT score, for me its making the best use of the resources available. And witty doesnt just mean the ability to laugh at the world, its important to laugh at self too.

Emotionally competent : Dr.Phil. A Secure person with no "issues", who doesnt have the need for alcohol, drugs, porn, abuse, to feel good and, Broadminded.

Ability to make me think : David E Kelly (Picket Fences, The Practice, Boston Legal) Stimulating the brain, definitely gives me a high:D

Socialist : Call me old fashioned, but issues, like unemployment matter a lot to me. And oh yes Weight Challenged Guys can be sexy too:D

Having a Passion for Life : (Miss Him)

Ability to reduce things to basics : Jamie Oliver. A logical approach to anything is just sooooo soothing to my mind.

Thats when I meet a person. But lets move on to just the audio - visual stimulant

Chin & Jaw line & Cheekbones: This might sound ridiculous, but well, I cant help it.

Cheerful face :

Sparkling Eyes : Eddie Cahill

Graceful : Sigh for the seve and volley style

Ability to Dance : This isnt about complicated steps, but adding beauty to a simple step. Remember George Micheal in Fast Love video, dancing for few seconds in the Rain?

Voice :

Decent Thighs in Straight Cut Jeans :

And now even more complicated the Conceptually Sexy

A Saucy Attitude : Jack Sparrow in Pirates.., & Alan Shore in Boston Legal

Raymond's The Complete Man

The awkward, simple guy

And finally Ultimately Sexy
Ultimately no one can be as sexy as the person you love, even if the person doesnt have everything mentioned above. Hmmm perhaps thats why Love is Blind :D

Definitely NOT Sexy :

Plastic Beauties Show offs & Guys who think they are God's Gift to women

8 boring unknown facts

A tag, from Deeps.

Its 8 unknown facts about me, that no one else knows..Hmmm you got to be kidding, why would I blog about things I have carefully maintained as a secret? But then why waste the opportunity to blog about somethings, which I cant bring up in casual conversation.

1.I think parallely.
You know one background voice, and one foreground voice. You think thats weird, well, think of a song, and then think of something else, and few moments later you will be listening to that song in the background while you are thinking the second thought. So replace the song with another thought, then you will know what I mean. If you cant, practise it...:D. And if everybody can do it, well, what did you expect me to start with, I have 2 horns?

2a. Its not easy to make me watchsomething I decide is stupid on TV (or for that matter a movie or a book).
While I can be tolerant of people (well you have to be if you want to be a psychologist), I cant and hate, watching/reading something I dont like. I think my brain is a sacred and I hate filling it up with thoughts that I dont like :D
b.I cant bear to hear sounds that I dislike, especially the sound of the News Channels. (NDTV -taga taga..SunTV tadatain.. and so on). If I heard the sound throughout the day, I would go crazy. And while a news anchor can look “ugly“, I would hate a false accent. Frankly I live in dread of coming across a news channel while channel surfing. And am eternally grateful for the Mute Button.

3.I dont drive, because I like to drive Fast.
(And dont want to be responsible for someone's accident).

4.The main thing I notice, when I watch a movie, is the screenplay.
I can forgive bad performances, silly stories, if the screenplay is good.

5.I can get pain, by hearing about it.
So if I meet a person with a toothache, I get it too, for few minutes. It has got something to do with emphaty. Thankfully, its only for aches, and if I hear about cancers and heart attacks, I dont get it. (Since I met another person, with the same "problem", I am thankful, for not being too weird).

6.I can understand evil, even if I dont agree with it.
For example, I wont get shocked by a serial killer's mind. (That doesnt mean I want to be a serial killer, or serial killers can pay me a visit).

7.I just hate, yes hate, when others embarass, themselves before me, even if they dont realise it.
And I get verrrrrrrry irritated when the news anchors, fumble with the news or when a star gives a stupid acceptance speech, etc.

8.I can imagine myself on a swing, and feel myself moving, whenever I want to. (Thats some cerebral/spinal fluid flowing back and forth, I think). It started long back, when in 3rd Standard, Ms.Thomas asked, if anyone can feel the earth moving. And I said Yes (dunno why). And she smirked and said oh Ga** can feel the earth moving. Offended, I decided, I would feel it and then felt it. And well, its fun, and I do it occassionally, even now.

Tag 6 people?
Savy, Saaya, will add more on request.

Me Myself & I - So you think you know Wise Donkey

1.What do I enjoy reading the most, on the web
c .Film Reviews 4. Sorry I dont let it out on blogs, perhaps. But I love reading film reviews and I read a lot of them. Mostly the reviews are more interesting than the movies:d

a.News and analysis 3. Yes. I copy paste what I read with links, even the trivia stuff. For future posts. When you decide to write less about yourself, one needs it.

d.Blogs, 2. For the amazing variety it offers

b.My own blogs 1. After I post it, I dont read it, unless I have to edit it. Why waste my time, reading what I wrote. Life is precious, and time is life.

e.UN Reports and other stuff, which tells the world, whats wrong with the world.(If we dont read them, who will? Aliens?) 0. I get my Data from the news. Read these reports only when I have to confirm the data. I will be an alien or a robot, if I Enjoyed it, I think.

2.Love blogging through
c.Satirical posts 4. I love them, to make someone laugh and think at the same time.And yeah I do write them, even if you dont remember them.

d.Analytical posts 3. Even when I dont write much of them, love them, Remember my relationships posts,

a.Emotional, straight from the heart, 2. Its nice to do it, but it also leaves me feeling vulnerable, and I certainly dont love that feeling.

b.Controversial posts 1. Unless I really believe in them, its pointless.Too time consuming, and I hate feeling defensive. Why post about it, when you can simply comment.

e.Posts that make others feel guilty about about the state of the world and hopefully would make them do something about it. 0. People hate feeling guilty, even if its their fault:D. And if some end up feel guilty after reading some posts, sorry, but I certainly dont love making anyone feel guilty. Now dont try to make me feel guilty about it:D

3.Ultimate Celebrity
c.Dr.Phil 4. My "Complete Human", so what if he happens to be man. And a man against porn is a nice man:D. He talks, does and guides. My main blog has a link to his website, that should have been a clue.

b.Oprah Winfrey 3. She is fine, but not even a Phil Donahue. Her being a woman, cuts no ice with me. But thanks to her for introducing Dr.Phil.

d.Angelina Jolie 2. She talks about refugees so ok..I dont care much for her..

a.Hugh Grant 1. Looks good, mostly harmless.. Ultimata Celeb ha ha ha ha

e.Arundathi Roy 0. I dont like Shrill people. And I couldnt read past the first page of her book. And almost had fits when I read her thoughts on 9/11 in outlook. She is probably a nice person, definitely better than me, but my ultimate celebrity? EEeeeeeeeeeeeks.

4.Would love to meet this famous person from the past
b.Einstein 4. I have a weakness for smart people and he seemed to have a sense of humour. And hey I did write a post on wanting to be like Einstein

a.Mahatma Gandhi 3. Like his conviction, but then "yeh dil mange more". And actually I would prefer to meet Da Vinci over him. Da Vinci, wasnt just a painter, he had multiple interests..But since I hadnt raved about Da Vinci through my blogs, didnt think it would be fair to include him.

c.Charlie Chaplin 2. I have a weakness for humour. And its always fun to meet any artist.

d.Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi 1. Women of courage, interesting. But she was a queen and I am a socialist :d

e.Mother Teresa 0. Whaaaaaaaaaaat. I dont want to win a beauty pageant. And I deeply disagree with her attitude towards contraception. Just because she is a better person than me, shouldnt mean I should want to meet her.

5.Would never do this on blogs
c.Not reply to a comment on the post 4. If a person takes the trouble to comment, I have to acknowledge it back with a comment. Otherwise I believe I am being rude. And if I come across a comment made a year back in an old outdated blog, I reply to it. And since none have noticed it, perhaps I shouldnt be so compulsive.

d.Delete a comment on the post. 3. Freedom of speech and Freedom to be stupid (Spams arent comments on the post). I dont like to do it, but necessary, I do it.

b.Write under another name 2.
For privacy reasons / for artistic reasons, have taken other ids. But though its tempting have avoided till date for abusive reasons, because once you cross line, there is no coming back: D
In O3
Under nopromises I started writing on books,tv, movies etc but stopped after 3 posts.
Wise Donkey I took on to have a low profile (ha ha ha) gender neutral id instead of Gayathri.
Aargh I took on took on to protest againt a media action and then converted into a fictional series character
Jupiter as a guy and Speck as girl, I created in Imagine series. It was artistic expression of genuine emotions:)
My rules are simple,
I shouldnt be two faced. (disagree thru one id and agree thru another)
And if confronted shouldnt lie

a.Unnecessary updations 1. I do it, though not many of them I think are unnecessary:D

e.Apologise for a post 0. (Why wouldnt I. If I have to, I would. Who said I cant be wrong. I do remember apologising for Saurabh Singh post:D, though cant remember any media apologising for the misinformation.)

Post no.303

You know me scorecard
20 out of 20 : Who are you, my split personality, a mind reader, Hey this is getting freaky:D
16-19 : Thanks for understanding me,
11-15 : You read my posts, but forget there is more to me than just my posts
6-10 : You probably read my post titles or skim through my posts
1-5 : You dont read much of my posts, yet you think you know me
0 :Wish I could get you into dentention and make you read all my posts :D

Score : Navin 15.5, Sanjeev 11.33, Busybee 12, Decentmonkey 11 Vaibhav 8, Godolphin, 8.6, Dte 7,Pluto 6, Konfusd 6, Zephyr 6, Rams 5, Triplex 3, Whiskeypriest 2, No one important 3.

Me Myself & I - Rain Tag

A tag by Vaibhav 10 rain memories
1.The fragrance of earth after the first rain. Nothing can ever match it. It just makes you feel Alive.

2.A poem in Marathi, during secondary school on how people who live on streets suffer due to rain. (Would appreciate any more information on it). It changed my perspective of life. Till then rains seemed to be the best thing in life.

3.After enjoying the cricket in Mumbai, take days off from work for a Test Match in Chennai. India vs New Zealand. For reasons I cant comprehend, the matches are scheduled mostly, when it rains in Chennai. Few years later when it was repeated, fumed via this blog post Atleast in the movies.

4.Never carried umbrellas while studying. Since I love the rain, didnt share anyone's umbrella. Which of course embarrassed my friends. And one thats stands out, walking home with two guys who were deeply embarassed, because everyone on the street thought they were being selfish and cruel to me. Sorry SJ & AK:)

5.Love the rain, but hate it when I have to walk through the dirty water. Couple of lousy memories. But not very terrible either.

6. It was bright and sunny when I walked into the reception. And then realised it was getting quite late, and though everyone had wished me and had their dinner, they didnt leave. Hey what about my dinner?Seems it was one of the worst sudden rains in Chennai's history. And still people hold me responsible for it. And they never get tired of telling how terribly they suffered, hey its going to be almost a decade, and I certainly didnt send any invite to the Rain Goddess (And for the superstitious, I never ate raw rice, as a kid (or as an adult). So stop asking me about it.)

7.Packing an umbrella while leaving for Oman. Spouse who has been in those areas, is outraged, irritated, then laughs and grumbles. And the day after we land, he comes back sheepishly, few minutes, after leaving for the office. Yeah of course it rained - heavily:D

8.My favourite picture, a gif rain one. It was a profile picture in a sify blog, and I have been spending hours trying to find it for the last 2 days.

9.A news item, Cherapunji, India's wettest spot, suffers from water scarcity. Availability is not everything, management matters:)

10.Wet leaves. I just love it when the trees look so fresh

Optional Tag : MeraGussa
And Mumbaikars take care:)
Post no.302

Me Myself & I - Call the Doctor Call the Doctor

Yeah I know the medicos have called off the strike..But I want to call the doctor because I have being tagged by Lavina with “Operation Tag“. She had a fantastic idea of bugging everyone at o3 by tagging them and eliminating this tag, like small pox. Cool idea lavs. Hope reading my answers wont make the bloggers think it would be better if they had bird flu..And without wasting any more of your time, here goes the Q & A

1. Who is your favorite cartoon character & why..?
Shrek. Because Shrek likes Donkey

2. If given a choice which word will you remove from the dictionary.....?
Kewl , if it ever makes it to the dictionary. It irritates me a lot.

3. What is the wallpaper(on your desktop) & why.......?
Purple Flower. Well my comp crashed last week and though I am fussy about my template, I dont care for screensavers and wallpapers, and had not changed them from default. And thanks to the question, scrolled through my wallpaper options and that was the one that I liked. Autumn and Ripple were interesting ones too.. PS : Changed it to Autumn, I felt there was something weird about the black center of the flower. It felt like an eye staring at me.

4. Which blog do you visit the most...?
Obviously my blogs, but other than them..it varies. Last couple of months it was Meticulously Underthought. Because it makes me think and thinking makes me feel good about myself. Vaibhav I visit quite regularly. On o3, I think I visit all my regular ones, equally. And I terribly miss Scithought. I visited it a lot, when it was active.

5. Do you prefer Hindi movies to English....? If not...Why..?
No, unless its by Madhu Bhandarkar or the other 4-5 directors I like.
Why watch the "inspired" versions when you can watch the inspiration. So I watch Tamil and English movies.

6. What did you have for dinner last night....?
Pasta, then Idlis and Onion Uthapan. Go figure out why, if possible.

7. Are you a gizmo freak...?
I am a control freak..but gizmo no, thankfully.

8. What is the size of your waist......?
Why you plan to buy me jeans?

9. Did you ever color your hair....?
With talcum powder for grey hair, because I wanted to look older. I hate coloring since I believe all the chemicals will just harm the hair, irrespective of what the ads say. And since I already became semi bald once (for the curious, the crowing glory came back in couple of months) I dont mess much with my hair. And that also means I comb my hair once a week or when I want to give a treat to my family or when I have to meet someone officially.

10. This question is by choice;)Frame a question and answer .....?
Question : How many Indians die from hunger Everyday
Answer : 7000. And you were complaining about...

11. What is your fav deo/perfumes...?
Its a perfume I got as gift for my wedding and the gifter is not sure where she got it.. And its so obscure that even Google has not been helpful in locating it, so I have given up. But I have saved few drops of it after almost 9 years..Funny I have forgotten the name. Lozario??? Generally I like fruity ones. And right now its Pear Splash.

Well…..who takes this tag??
Atlast. And I thought it would never end. Vaibhav Godo Peshwa Savy Pluto

Me Myself & I - Dont Fret Just a Quartet

Tagged by Vaibhav, Its something of a 'Quartet' tag..

You have 4 options with this post
1.Read everything and pretend its interesting and say you had a good time reading it
2.Go straight to the last point and see if you are tagged and if you are tagged, read everything from the top, write a comment and write your own post,
3.Go straight to the last point and if you are not tagged, get mad with me for not tagging you or
4.Yawn and read my previous post.

So now that I have given you the options, here are the answers

4 Jobs I’ve had :
Regional Coordinator (That was the last desgn after working for 5 years in almost every department with the company)
Recruitment Consultant (Being a partner was grand, the tension wasnt)
Writer. Researching for legal issues, did a lot for me personally too. And though its fun being paid, there is more fun not having an editor and so became Stay at home Blogger (that was last year when I spent more time blogging than being a homemaker)
Insurance Advisor (Right now)
and hopefully after 2 more years, Psychologist:)

4 Films I could watch again and again:
Miss Congeniality
One Fine Day
Shrek
Page3
And why should it be only 4, lets include Mouna Raagam, Anbe sivam and Anniyan:)

4 Places I’ve lived in:
Mumbai (all the studies)
Chennai (my work)
Darsait, Oman (where I watched for more than a year, CNN and BBC and still didnt get bored )
and where I am now:D
And the only one I look forward to is Kolkatta, just thought it would be interesting to live in a city, which still sees Red:)

4 TV series I like to watch:
Scrubs
Boston Legal and everything else by David Kelly
Law and Order Special Victims unit
BBC Documentaries
Also Dr.Phil and Friends

4 places that I’ve been on vacation to:
Kovalam, Kerala (Its absolutely fab.)
Ooty and Kodaikannal (nice but crowded)
Yercaud (nice because its not too crowded)
Mahabaleshwar
And according to some, right now everyday of my life is a vacation:)

4 websites I visit everyday:
thehungersite and bhookh to click for free food
Rediff for news
Google - Search, News, Gmail
Ibnlive /NDTV just to cross check the news
and blogspot and o3 when I am blogging

4 Favourite dishes:
Sandwhich
Plain boiled potato
Cheese with anything
Adai (its dosai with different pulses)

4 places where I’d like to be right now:
Indiatimes Office (I still havent got access to my main blog after all these months)
Library
How pathetic I can think of anything else
How fantastic I am where I would prefer to be

4 tags
Max
Rashmi
Busybee
Spark

Just an Update

Tingling All Over
You read about it , but when you experience it, its actually quite unbelievable. Well thats what happened for a few seconds when I read an email today. A blogger, whom I have never met , is going to get married and most importantly sure and happy about the decision. (More than the marriage, the reason for marriage is important).

April Fool?
And talking about bloggers, going to attend the Chennai Blog Meet today. And hopefully its not an April Fools Joke on me. And hopefully I dont spoil the fun..Bit nervous on that.

5 things Bloggers would know about Wise Donkey after meeting her in person.
1.She has atleast the wisdom to call herself a Donkey.
2.She is clumsy
3.She never combs her hair
4.She is poor in conversations. Either she keeps quiet a lot or never stops talking
5.Next there is a blog meet, please lets not invite her.

Will update later and have a wonder April Fools Day

Me Myself and I - Beast

Cried while travelling today morning
Not for the dead baby or faraway hubby (not that I dont miss him)
Not at the auto fare (Tear glands would dry off in couple of days, if one started crying for every exhorbitant fare in Chennai)

Parents might stay just few buildings, off the main road
But its stressful street for me, due to the street dogs on that street.
And its always a dilemma when mom accompanies me.
Since the dogs know she would get a biscuit for them
They would definitely come near me
But with her around surely they wont bark or bite at me

Aaah thankfully the big black and white one wasnt around
The smart one who follows mom only when the corner tea shop is open
Only one other dog on the street and someone was giving it a biscuit.
And then mom mentions about the big black and white one

Few days back a guy had called out to it
And when it went to him, wagging its tail,
He burnt it with the bidi in his hand
Grrrrrrrrrrrrr well thats the thought in my mind

But the dog simply had gone back to its earlier position.
Not a bark Not a bite

Cant comprehend the cruelty
And worse cant comprehend why the dog choose to forgive.

And even though I look stupid,
Cant help the tears.

And next time when I walk that street
Rather than worry if the dog would go for my throat,
would have to watch out for the "inhuman" human
Unfortunately that isnt easy

Tag - 2006 Top Ten

Top 10 things to do in 2006.
Tagged by saaya. Actually I didnt have a Top 10, but anyway, I think this would make sense.

1.Thank Bloggers
I thought blogging would be dull after not being able to blog in o3. But actually it became better from last month. Thanks bloggers, especially for the Do U Know participation. It keeps me on my toes. Special thanks to all the o3 bloggers who consistently come here and dont mind the word verification. (Actually a post is on the way, on it, the problem is finishing it)

2.Stop checking o3 support blog to see if they have solved the problem.
They said after Diwali, its probably Diwali 2006. So dont waste time scrolling through the comments.

2.Stop creating or logging into O3 account
It doesnt work. Logging into it is a waste of time.And trying through 7 is enough. Any more would be spamming Indiatimes.

3.Spend 4 hours a day for blogging
Stay at home blogger might be fun. But part time blogger is better, for self.

4.Stop thinking that many bloggers could read the "Indian Sports minus Sania minus Narain"
The mainstream media isnt dumb. It knows what readers are interested in.

5.Start studying
From Today not weeks before exam. And blogging is not studying.

6.Drink 8 glasses of water.
So what if you couldnt do it last year, doesnt mean you cant do it again.

7.Talk softly
Thats a tough one, but atleast try it. Sometimes the message can be more important than the volume:)

8. Plan for it
Its not enought to think I will do it, Plan for it.

9.Dont give up.
If you fail once doesnt mean you cant do it, try to do it again.

10. Keep it open
You may not figure out everything in January, it could come in December, there is always room for improvement, keep it open.

Tag the first 5 people who want to be tagged.:)

Me Myself & I - Thoughts on Terror Town

Couple of days back, my husband casually mentioned about a shootout in an area in another nearby city and that his colleagues had been in that area Before the shootout. Heart went into a panic mode. You will have to go there? Your colleagues will have to go again? Did we go there, when we went to that city? Thats another city which in my list has become unsafe. But then where are the safe places?

When I came back from a trip to Chennai, some months back, I was informed there had been a shootout in the supermarket I shop. What! Oh no! What if it had been me? Now there is a joke, that like lightning, perhaps there wont be an attack there again and that its one of the "safe" places to shop.
I went only once after this, and was pointed out the "landmarks" by friends. I didnt like it, and will go there only if I have to go. But that isnt the only landmark. There are other spots in the town too, which isnt easier on my mind. Dramatically I label the town I am living in, terror town and yearn to go back to "safe" Chennai.

Terror is not new to me. I was in Mumbai during the Blasts. And once there was a bomb explosion and my sibling had been in the earlier train. Until I got the call, went through hell. And perhaps from then on, everytime someone leaves the house without me, I wonder if they would return home "safely".

Terrorism has not changed the way I live, but certainly the way I think.

I dont do anything different. Because I think its pointless to do anything different. I used to think it would be wiser avoiding the markets on the weekend, but then we do what we have to do. Just try to be more careful. Hmmm what do I mean by more careful? Always on the lookout, hmmm but I cant see in all the directions at all the time.

So other than worrying and thinking about it, I dont do anything different. Though I do watch the news a lot and call my husband whenever "something" happens.

And insensitivevly I console myself, thankfully I am not in Iraq, where it seems more of a news when there isnt a bomb blast in a week.

Sure I am paranoid, and I also worry about road accidents. But somehow dying due to terrorism seems more terrible.

The post probably seems lame. Well I am never comfortable discussing how I feel. But I will try to come to my point.

I have written over 250 posts. And though terrorism is on my mind, most of the time, this is the first post that I am writing about terrorism.

Hunger, Health, Sanitation, Law these are more important. They claim more victims. Yet, why does Terror takes so much of headline space in media. Because the reader and those who can buy the products advertised in the media, can be victims of terror but not of hunger or health issues like maternal or neo natal mortality or tuberculosis? I dont know.

Then again why only one group of terror. Why the obsession with Al Qaeda and their LeT variants. Why not the Naxals? If there is an Naxal attack, sure there is an headline, but there isnt an outrage. Life is life, what is the difference. Or is it because Naxals dont attack in Mumbai Delhi Kolkatta Chennai and Bangalore? Another I dont know.

My heart goes out to the family of the victim. They are experiencing what I dread everyday of experiencing.

Terrorism is evil, no doubt, but its not the only evil.

And while we may not be able to bring him back, we can save someone perhaps if we click on http://www.bhookh.com Where they say 7000 Indians die everyday from hunger and a click from you , could help.

PS : If I had been born a muslim, would I away get away with 250 posts with not even one condemning Terrorism? I wonder.

Blog Post no. 252
Me Myself and I series

More to Man than Money for Me

There are perhaps some who think all women look for when it comes to choosing a soulmate is money and status and all that men look for, when it comes to choosing their soulmate is looks. Prince Charles and Princess Diana wouldnt have seperated if one goes by this "wisdom and logic".

Its not about what a person is, but a what a person makes you feel, according to me, which determines the success of a relationship.

In my tag, I had to mention 7 things which would attract me to the opposite sex. And well money and looks didnt come in that. Surely they will have to feature in the Top 7?

Well perhaps to some, but not to me. I dislike writing about myself, but since I wrote the tag, and since I came across this post, I want to share something personal.

My husband was related to me befor marriage.

I was brought up in Mumbai and he in Chennai and while growing up we didnt have contact with each others family.

I came to Chennai after studies, but he was working elsewhere and his family in Chennai.

When he had come down for his sister's wedding the proposal came along from .... (Well... ours is not the typical arranged marriage:D)

All I knew about him was he helped his mom in the kitchen when he came down for vacation and that he would write encouraging stuff, filled wiht humour and inspiration to his younger siblings.

Of course there is more , but I dont want to go into more details, since its personal and it involves both of us.
and he doesnt like me blogging about him even if they are pleasant stuffs (well he is not a Leo :D)

I said yes in Feb and the marriage was in Nov. He went back. But I didnt know what his educational qualifications were and what his line was and how much he earned. And only 4 days before the wedding, when I was in Mumbai on official duty and when I caught up with my best friend, and when she asked, did I realise I didnt know these things.


Everyone had assumed that I would know. and I didnt ask because I thought it wasnt important. Only after some months after marriage did I get to know about it, casually.

So to the question of can there be something more to a person than money and status the answer is yes, character.

As the eldest he had struggled a lot for his family and I felt perhaps in times of trouble, he would have courage.

He helped his mom instead of expecting his mom to pamper him, when he came home tired, and I thought it showed his sensitive side, and the respect he has for homemakers and women.

He encouraged his siblings and was humourous and inspirational and witty. Even though he didnt get time to write long letters , he wrote these poems on pics and postcards. To me it showed how much he valued relationships, and well I am attracted to a person who can be humourous and intelligent.

There were some tough times, like he was out of work while I worked, and when our kid died even after a surgery, and the miscarriage and few more problems, which I dont like to talk about in blogs.

Money and Status and Looks can come and go. He doesnt have the 7 qualities I listed, but he is more than the seven wonders combined to me. Thats Love. And who said, its only love when he has all the things I want and I have all the things he want. We both have our minus points, and it does drives us crazy when one cant see the others point of view.

But we love each other inspite of what the other person is, not just due to what the other person is.

I was 23 then and now 31. But if I had to go through the process again, I would still do the same. When I have to search for a mate for others my advise always had been to go beyond the matrimonial ad sterotype of “fair well educated homely working girl and handsome engineer looking for fair beautiful slim and understanding homely career oriented girl“

And I am honest when I wrote in the tag, of all the words i say, "love you" is what I say frequently. and looks like this is one more post where I dont mind sounding weird and cliched, for being honest. :)

PS : Thanks bloggers for voting me as Ms.Cool based on that tag. Behind every successful man perhaps is a woman. And behind this "cool" blogger is a man to whom blogs mean many a times burnt food and my mood variations, based on whats happening in my blog world:) Hubby dear thanks and of course, love you :)

7 - Tagged again

I have been tagged again by Colors
So here it goes



Seven Things you want to do before you die:
Drink 8 glasses of water everyday
Make a positive difference however small
Write few books and be successful with it
Be a successful psychologist
Spread Gandhian philosophy
Bring out the best in as many people as possible
Learn Learn Learn and never fail in any exam :D

Note : To be honest, I wouldnt mind if I died now and not achieve even a single one:)

Seven Things you can do :
Laugh at myself (well so what if others can too. It helps me maintain my sanity)
Tell a story anytime based on anything anytime
Liason happily and successfully with the government even if it means hours of waiting in dreadful offices and hours of documentation
Be honest even if I sound cliched, weird, stupid, untrue, holier than thou, naive, ridiculous, too good to be true or whatever:)
Never judge a person (hate crime not criminals. behaviour can be good and bad. not persons)
Recollect a movie just from 5 seconds of the movie (no kidding can recollect even the ones I have seen decades ago)
Be horribly lazy, quite happily

Seven Things you say most :
Love you to my husband
Bigdeal to most of the things in my mind
Told you so though not much now, said a lot to my sibling and parents. And they dread hearing it even now I guess.
24000 die from hunger Everyday & A woman dies every minute due to childbirth to my blog readers
Thank you to God
Illai (tamil meaning "no" used colloquially at the start of a sentence) and Pavame/Paavam a Tamil word along the lines of oh no, you poorthing etc. (would like to restrict both these usage)
And errr "ukandu" Tamil meaning "sit/sat and" (I dont know how on earth a person can use it frequently, but I do use it more than others)

Seven Things you can't do:
Stop loving those I love
Stop Imagining (even if its about ghosts and gives me gitters.) and thinking ( Exception of course : Deep Sleep)
Relax during travelling (its worse in planes of course), Shopping (Hate shopping for self, love shopping for others) or while watching a horror movie (So I dont watch them of course:D)
Relax while listening to music (I do love music, but cant relax while listening and cant stop thinking and let go of myself.)
Talk about my feelings (thats not the same as talking about my thoughts:D, Suffer from a touch of autism)
Not get irritated with stupidity even if its in a movie
Pity myself

Seven Things that attract you to the opposite sex:
Humour
Logical mind
Caring attitude
Empathy
Having the same rule for self, as for others
Ethical
The ability to be, and behave, beyond a gender sterotype

Seven Celebrity crushes:
Kiran Bedi
Dr.Phil Mcgraw
Mani Ratnam
John Gray
Vikram
John Grisham
David E Kelly

Seven People you want to tag:
Kalpesh posted
Pramod posted
Shady posted
Vyuha
Deepthi posted
Techj posted
Esprit

Tagged - 55 word story - Normal

I have been tagged by Colors
And so here is the 55 word short story titled Normal.

NORMAL
He enters the costume party in tshirt, jeans,
without mask or makeup.
To queries just looks in the eyes -
shrugs, smiles, asks us to guess
Girl with excellent makeup?
Midget pretending to be taller?
Gatecrasher?
Costume ruined enroute?
Amnesia?
Disguised Millionaire?
Gay (without lisptick?)
Detective (without pipe, glasses?)
Spy (without gadgets?)
Serial killer?
Terrorist?

Guess?

I tag @$#!$# has posted with this one

yet to post , Dirtydoggy & Downtoearth