The 20’s is an exciting age to be in. Since my social life has been sadly reduced to Facebook and Twitter updates, I spend enormous amounts of time gawking (read stalking) at friends’ photos on Facebook. The lanky girl with the oiled hair effortlessly works a smart Posh Spice bob and wears designer boots. The pimple-faced, sacred-ash smeared boy sports a curly mane large enough to house half a dozen sparrows. His sacred thread is probably neatly tucked away in his closet. But arguably the best form of entertainment is derived from viewing wedding pictures, especially when you have a roommate to gush and giggle over with.

It has been almost 5 years since there has been a wedding in my family and when there is one coming up, I can only imagine the adrenaline rush that drives my family to the ends of their nerves. And trust me when I say we have short nerves. Weddings in my family have always been about a lot of smoke generation, teary-eyed’ness (partially attributed to the smoke), prostrating, sacred-ash smearing, hand-shaking and feeding the same 600 odd people three times a day for three days. Amidst all this drama, silk-clad aunties tactfully find opportune moments to campaign for their NRI sons at these events.

But looks like a lot has changed on the wedding scene over the years. Ceremonies are no longer the solemn occasions that they used to be. People are trying too hard to add their own personal touch to every little detail and are willing to go to any extent to make the event as ostentatious as possible. The entire event feels less ritualistic and more choreographed. Families are now more open to the concept of Mehndi, Sangeet and Cocktail parties as opposed to making the groom ride in a rickety red convertible car along with half a dozen wailing kids during the Jaanavasam. The kalyana mandapam (Marriage Hall) concept seems to have revolutionized as well. The venues with their flowy fabrics and soft lighting now look like an elaborate set straight out of a Shankar-directed song sequence. Light music during the reception is no longer considered cool. In fact, it represents cheap taste in music. The trend now is to rope in good-looking playback singers who sing contemporary classical songs and on request, their film tracks as well. The more fashionable families do DJ's especially when alcohol shares the space. Events of the latter kind usually culminate in orgies.

The bride and groom wear ethnic designer labels and no longer do the "groom's hand on bride's shoulder while she sits on a chair" pose. They now reflect scenes out of a Yash-Raj movie. DSLR's zoom in on the mangal-sutra (which would be hung next to the sacred thread in the future), intertwined fingers of the newlyweds and the backless blouse of the bride with the cheeky tattoo peeking out. Leaving the hair untied is no longer objected by paatis, but might not go too well if your prospective mother-in-law is decided from the same episode. Navel showing and skimpy blouse donning are still considered a sin. The bride & groom’s coolness quotient is judged by the number of foreigner friends who attend the wedding. The family’s social status is measured by the number of movie stars and the amount of time for which they are in attendance.

Sure, I agree that the Indian wedding scenario has totally been pimped up over the years. There is nothing wrong in going that extra mile to make your day extraordinary. But, when you begin to lose yourself in the process of making others awe and drop their jaws, how do you think it would remain special to you? Somehow, I think I am way too practical to indulge in such an annoying display of pomp. You never know!

|

GAP on my hip,
MAC on my lip,

Clinique in my eye,
Versace's scent getting me high.

Sephora in my curl,
Aldo doing the twirl,

Oh dear lord,
When did I become this glamor girl ?

PS: The author does not do poetry, but she believes in boring you with outbursts as such.

|

I'm officially done with experiencing the 4 seasons in one year. My summer comes to a close next week and I'm not sure how ready I am to face my new beginnings. I seem to be totally out of the beat after working through the summer. The past 3 months have been a great learning experience and I just wish I could squeeze some more juice out of the lemons that life gave me.

I had wished to do so many things over these 3 months and I did get through most of it. I still suck at cooking though. I should really credit my bad food to my newly acquired sense of appreciation and respect for people who can cook! Now that I've said that, my attempts at baking and producing brownies have been almost successful except for the fact that I might have accidentally set the house on fire. I do not wish to divulge into the facts for the fear of further damaging my already tarnished cooking reputation. But you must know that the brownies did come out really moist, chocolatey and brownie-like.

Other than that P & S came to visit me and I had so much fun catching up with both of them. And the next week is going to be even better for so many different reasons. Now that life is going to throw tomatoes at me, I will make Bloody Mary's out of them for I need that extra kick to get through the next 4 months. I've decided to live it up while it lasts!

|

The following post is the result of an uncontrollable burst of nerves which led to being pissed off majorly. The author will however revert to her normal good-naturedness by the end of this post.

The last one year has been the most intriguing period in my life. Being independent, learning to use my freedom appropriately and coexisting with not-so-nice people in peace.
I can now vouch for the fact that Indians are the most unhelpful and unfriendly people in the United States. Now when it is my turn to guide the freshers, the emotions about my past year here are all gushing out of my head.

I've acquainted so many different kinds of people that, I'm starting to doubt if it is the place that makes them change or if it is just my narrowed spectrum of friendship with nice people ? There are a few things that irritate me the most and I'm trying to work my temper around the situation.

Why do people always eye your things when they have stuff of their own ? It's not like I don't like sharing, but the whole idea of jealousy paired with my superstitions of evil eye tagging along makes me very uncomfortable.

Why do people have to prove their superiority over others? You might be better off than me, but why does that have to be a factor in you judging me by things that I like to do ? I am not trying to make you do what I like, I just wish you would keep your "refined" opinions to yourself. If you want to do something your way; I'd only be too happy to step out of your way, because I only hope to never be like you ! I shouldn't even be bothered of what you think of me, but when you try to condescend my actions, I have too much of an ego to lend you a deaf ear and a mute mouth. *Growl

Thrusting your opinion on others: You might have had more experience than me, but that doesn't make me any less knowledgeable than you. And my knowledge is not always a byproduct of my quick googling skills! Why is it so hard for you to accept your ignorance ? And no, I wouldn't stoop to your level to show my superiority over you. Don't even try to thrust your ideas down my back, I'm definitely not going to follow your path. Stop believing that your actions were the best that you have ever encountered. If you continue to believe so, sadly you don't know much and my opinion about you doesn't go any higher.

And I just hate it when you take me for granted. When I try to be nice, it is only because I do not want to be a bitch, like you! And if you must know, I do not think very highly of you either, you are the one who does things only because others have done it as well.

Ultimately it took me a very long time to come to terms with the fact that no matter how well you talk to certain people, they will judge you anyway. The only difference in this with the petty school politics is that, we are meaner, bitchier and love the drama! I did learn that you don't have to always be nice or explain yourself. I stretched my boundaries of tolerance, but now I know where to draw the line.

How you treat me is your karma, how I react to yours is mine. Peace!

|

As my dear Somethings & Nothings inches close to its 5th Blogiversary, I have mixed feelings about where I have come since 2005. Yes, do watch out for a sappy post below. Don't tell me I didn't warn you!

Apprehensive as I was about the whole concept of blogging, I only took it as a mere way to vent stuff out of my head that kept spacing out. (Every blogiversary post of mine has this line I think!) I have this ability to think faster than I can speak, so its pretty hard for my mouth(fingers in this case) to keep up with my mind, you see! There's so much that I have experimented here and when I read my first post now, I can almost puke my guts out at what I've written. I'm sure 5 years from now, I'd guffaw and snort at this very post as well. Most of my posts have been majorly spaced out for not knowing what to write but having the urge to keep typing.

I do have to mention that it did prove as a great way to sit longer at the computer while my mom thought I was actually studying. It is another story that when she found out through the sister-in-law about my blogging activities, she resorted to being a passive reader to monitor my activities on the internet. I'm still thinking of a good excuse to keep her away from Facebook.
(Hi maa!)

It was a totally different story with my dad. He continues to boast of how the writing skills have been soaked in the family's blood and have passed on from grandfather to granddaughter (if thatha had been buried, he'd have turned over in his grave and shuddered!). So I was not going to take up a career in writing yet (Mass Communication & Journalism are not considered professional degrees in my household!). You may save your lecture, but that ain't going down our throats, mate. So blogging became an addiction and added a whole new dimension to my personality as I went on to pursue a so-called "professional" degree. But that was only till the social networking fever caught on and I spent lesser time here and more time networking and being cool! But I have to admit, the friends that I have made here are some of the closest I have currently and mean the world to me.

My stint with FindNearYou would have never happened if it weren't for my blog. I have met some of the most helpful and encouraging people here. I'm glad I went for those initial apprehension filled "bajji-blogger-meets". I would have lost my faith in love, if P & H hadn't met through a blog. (Ok, I wouldn't have really lost faith in love, but heck their little love story is so darn romantic!) So even after 40 comment major fanbase days to 4 comment ones - its quite hard not to fall for my queer sense of humor. You think otherwise?

For all those people who claimed to know me all this while and joined blogger recently and have shitloads of followers and exclaim - Since when do you blog?! - take that, I'm your big daddy here! I might not have thought provoking posts on the atrocities of the downtrodden, women's rights and global warming. I certainly didn't try to do any good through my blog or flatter a celebrity by writing their praises, I definitely don't think I have the stuff that would make you want to come back or make "fraanship" with me or even spam me for that sense. And I'm positively not blogging to showcase my writing abilities - I don't consider I have that talent entirely; though my dad would be the person you'd have to disprove. Though, prospective employers may note this point.

Guess that wasn't too sappy afterall, I'll spare you anyways! In the words of one of my feminist friends - "okbye!"

|

Major spoilers ahead, please don't read further if you plan to watch the concert in any of the other cities. The author refuses to take blame for spoiling the fun, she merely tried to share the excitement with fellow Rahmaniacs who couldn't be there. Thank you!

ARTISTS:

Vocals: AR Rahman, Hariharan, Benny Dayal, Vijay Prakash, Blaaze, Alphons Joseph, Neeti Muhan, Shweta Pandit, Harshdeep Kaur, Zeenia Roy, Krystal Garib.

Supported by: Takuyo Hirano (Percussions), Keith Peters (Bass), Sanjeev Thomas (Guitar), Naveen (Flute), Aditya Kalyanpur (Tabla).

TrackList:

Enter Malachi from the audience, searching for someone. He runs around for a while and jumps onto the stage and boom - the door as shown on the projector opens.

1) O Saya (Slumdog Millionaire): A man looking like ARR is running as the projector shows pictures of ARR and his milestones. Train like feel, you see! Everyone thinks Rahman is running. He's air lifted and the boss enters singing. Howl !!!

2) Adhiradi (Sivaji): ARR is wearing a black coat with LED lights on them. Looked really funky. Only one charanam was performed and surprisingly he didn't forget the lyrics.

3) Say naa naa (Couples Retreat): Enter Benny & Blaaze with Krystal Garib. Benny was wearing a really funky long kurta with feathers and doing some really enthusiastic hopping/skipping. While most Indians blinked, the few Americans enjoyed it.

4) Some bloody brilliant jamming by Sanjeev Thomas (dressed in a red panjakacham with a black shirt complete with Nike sports shoes!) and an American on the banjo. Very very spunky!

5) Yeh jo des hai tera (Swades): There was a patriotic undertone to the entire concert, and it all began with this. It ended with Naveen's first solo of the day. Soulful !

6) Takuyo Hirano is definitely talented. This was his turn for a solo drum act with some foot-tapping bhangra beats, but he failed to engage the audience like Sivamani does. The act transitions into the Rang De Basanti title track performed by Benny, Harshdeep Kaur and Neeti Muhan.

7) Dreams on Fire (Slumdog Millionaire): Again just one charanam performed by Kristal Garib. She seems like an ABCD, but held the act together very well.

8) Nazrein milana (Jaane tu ya jaane na): Performed by Benny Dayal, Sanjeev Thomas (yes, the cool guitarist sang too!) and Shweta. Benny & Shweta had an amazing chemistry and some really good moves too!

9) Barso re (Guru): Neeti muhan & Kristal Garib with Naveen, an Asian Violinist and the tabla guy jamming to end it with the na rey na rey bit.

10) Dil se rey (Dil se): ARR messed up the lyrics for this one. Infact, he sang the same charanam twice. I'm not complaining, I had gooseflesh when he hit the high pitch in the end. I did miss Raihanah & Tanvi in the backup vocals. I thought the crowd was relatively less noisy for this one.

11) Bombay Theme: Naveen on flute and the Asian string player on Cello with Malachi doing some break moves, while another Asian woman contorted her body into weird positions!

12) Mausam and Escape (Slumdog Millionaire): Sanjeev Thomas let his hair and his strings run loose for this one. Oh-My-God-can-a-guitar-sound-like-that-too material! And when people around me exclaimed : "Who is that?" I was only too proud to announce: "Sanjeev Thomas - ARR's lead guitarist !" He just redefines cool!

13) Bharat Humko / Tamizha Tamizha (Bombay): Hariharan finally enters with his wisdom and wearing an atrociously hideous garb that looked like it had been made by tearing the Indian flag apart. Nevertheless as always, he held the entire song together while the other singers struggled to keep pace with Hariji's alaaps. We all know who's the boss !

14) Theeyil Vizhunda theana (Varalaaru) opening humming transition to Lukka Chuppi (Rang De Basanti): Lata Mangeshkar singing the entire song was used a projection alongside Rahman. It looked absolutely ethereal and I am sure every soul wanted to run back home to their mothers when this came on!"Yahan sab kuch hai maa, phir bhi, lagey bin tere mujhko akela!"

15) Aazadi (Bose): Orange, White and Green lights flood the auditorium. ARR on his highest note. Patriotism strikes. Freedom. Goosebumps. Shudder. Spine chills as he hits Aazadi.

16) Liquid Dance (Slumdog Millionaire): The track is played instead and dancers do crazy acrobatics that knots your stomach!

17) Pappu can't dance (Jaane tu ya jaane na): ARR wears some funky headphones and Benny, Blaaze, Neeti & Shweta set the stage on fire ! Short-lived.

18) Tribute to Michael Jackson: ARR sings Black or White that sounds strangely like MJ himself(gooseflesh!) and Malachi does some more break dance and moonwalking dressed up like MJ.

19) ARR on Piano and says : "Let's have some smooth blues" : He plays a mix of Hosanna & Mannippaya which you don't want to end but does so in a couple of seconds and transitions to Hello Mr. Ethirkatchi (Iruvar) performed by Neeti Muhan. She kadichu thuppifies (massacres) the words, but has a creative style of her own version of the song. The last briha bits are very jazzy and sound nothing like Harini's original. It was a very genre-oriented take on the song.

20) ARR walks on to the ramp and begins crooning Marhabaaaaa(Oorvasi) which is forcibly mixed with Taxi taxi being taken over by Blaaze & Benny. I have to admit, Benny is quite the performer ! He flirted with every female dancer who danced past him ! :P

21) Hai Rama (Rangeela): Hariharan & Shweta Pandit - OMG!! Hariharan flatters everybody with his vocal abilities and Shweta Pandit stays on par with him! She picks up notes with such ease and has so much versatility ! She makes an excellent replacement for Chinmayi.

22) Only you: ARR. Unplugged Solo. Should I say more. Period.

23) Medley of Hindustani styles: A tribute to Bade Ghulam Ali Khan Saab: Hariharan, Vijay Prakash, Shweta Pandit and Zeenia Roy sit around ARR while he's on the harmonium. Hariji begins with Bhor Bhaye, snaps into a thumri. Now, Vijay Prakash begins singing Ennavale in Telugu gets the loudest cheer of the day - gets flattered - blushes and sings with full feelings! *heart skips a beat, I fall in love with him at first note. Hariji gets a little jealous and starts Kandukonden kandukonden which he takes to Anbe anbe kolladhe. Zeenia Roy failed miserably to catch up with the tempo despite ARR giving her the cue for Dheeme Dheeme gaoon(Zubeidaa). Shweta Pandit got the crowd out of their seats with her Genda Phool. The crowd went wild when Rahman sang Rehna Tu and even louder when Vijay Prakash ended it with Hosanna. By the end of this performance, I was already head over heels in love with Vijay Prakash.

24) Mehndi hai (Zubeidaa) : The men leave and Shweta Pandit & Zeenia Roy perform decently.

25) Mangalyam (Alaipayuthey): Alphons & Vijay Prakash ! Why can't we hear more of these two! Malachi in a velvet suit, plays matchmaker to 2 dancers! Funny ! The male dancer resembled Madhavan according to the fat maami who sat behind me. *turn left, quickly turn right and repeat procedure as fast as you can*

26) Ringa Ringa (Slumdog Millionaire): Neeti Muhan & Shweta Pandit : The men were drooling all over the two pretty singers who did some booty shaking as well. These girls can sing, I tell you! Chitra & Sadhna Sargam will not be missed at all if these 2 are around. A big treat to the ears as well as the eyes!

27) Ik Onkaar (Rang De Basanti): Harshdeep Kaur in her Sufi ke Sultana garb hits all the right notes and marks the start to the religious turn the concert takes henceforth.

28) O paalanhare (Lagaan): Shweta Pandit & Zeenia Roy: Zeenia begins with an alaap and Shweta takes over. You just don't want her to stop. Divine.

29) Khwaja (Jodhaa Akbar): ARR, Alphons, Vijay Prakash: He starts by saying that this is one of his most special songs. It sounds just about right, yet a little hurried. And it was not followed by Arziyaan, maybe because Javed Ali wasn't there?

30) Ganesh (Bombay Dreams): Huge umbrellas covered in colorful LED lights held by dancers meander through the audience as this track from Bombay Dreams is played. Taken over for the "hoi hoi, la la" part by Benny & Vijay Prakash; it ends with Vijay Prakash screaming "Ganpathy bappa moriya!"

31) Dekho aayi holi (Mangal Pandey): The only thing I remember apart from the colorful dancers is Vijay Prakash! Don't ask me more, I beg of you! *drool*

32) Chaiyya chaiyya (Dil se): Harshdeep Kaur starts off and ARR comes on stage playing his guitar like keyboard(what is it called?) with Vijay Prakash & Alphons. And then before you know anything else, the crowd is off their seats and everyone is running towards the stage. The securities fail to control the crowd and everyone is gathered in front trying to be in the same frame as the maestro. And then you realize that ARR is not singing, its Vijay Prakash, and then you hear a voice in its highest pitch and some neck craning later you realize that its actually Alphons doing the high pitched "Chaiyya" notes. Sukhwinder, dude, you've got some major competition from namma pasanga!

33) Humma -Andha Arabic Kadaloram (Bombay): Blaaze and ARR stand atop the steps, arms on each others shoulders and they swish their hands in unison at the projector and the words HUMMA appear in graffiti style. What do you think would happen? The crowd that had just retreated to their seats is back to the front of the stage. The singers don't stop for a good 6.50 minutes, and the crowd begs them to go on further. ARR is all smiles and keeps continuing with his Humma's. But all good things must come to an end. And it did end and we were almost ready for the next one.

34) Jai ho (Slumdog Millionaire): All the singers unite to croon the title song of the world tour. Everything seems right. The world is a happy place !

35) Vande Mataram: The perfect culmination to every ARR Concert. Your faith is restored and you are left to search for something else to look forward to in your life. And with a very content and a heavy heart, I refused to budge until the curtains dropped and the couple behind me cleared their throats rather too loudly to get me to move.

I was surprised to not find Rahman behind the keyboard through the entire show. He was either singing, playing the piano or climbing up and down the stairs on stage. Oh yes, the stage despite being small, was utilized appropriately. Keith Peters had too small a role for the rockstar that he is. Overall, I did feel that the performances seemed a little rushed when they tried to be super efficient and churned out song after song without a gap at all. It was just too much to take in at one point of time. I wouldn't complain if I had two extra pairs of eyes and ears and an extra set of hands to record ! The dancers who were a motley mix did an excellent job and kept the spirits soaring. And there it all ended and I'm now left with amazing memories and hopes for another concert or the release of a new album by ARR! :D

PS: For the first time after coming to the United States, I'm seeing so many Indians in one place. For a moment I felt like I was in Ranganathan Street ! (Ranganathan Street is a road in Chennai where you will witness a population density that is higher than that of Mongolia!)

|

Going for the AR Rahman: Jai Ho - The Journey Home concert in Atlantic City, NJ. After my experience in 2008 which is here, this is my second ARR concert in an entirely different continent, halfway across the world. Talking about excitement, I can't quite contain it. The result of which is my incoherent blabber all day. I woke up with a big smile plastered on my face which I can't quite take off.

Needless to say, I'm hoping for a mind-blowing event that promises to unite a show that would be a bit of Broadway - Rock show meets ARR's Magic. I promise to put in every detail tomorrow and make this an everlasting memory!

Jai ho!

|

Ok, so I decided not to give an opportunity to my 5 readers which includes me, my roommate (who I force to read anyways), my mother who thinks she can get to know her daughter's love interests through her blog (ha!), and 2 other people who drop by to find nothing interesting and still leave a comment (oww, thank you guys!) to complain about my long gap between posts. Whew, by the end of that line I'd almost forgotten what I was saying. Talk about me and digressing.

So as the swimming pool outside begins to crowd with women in fancy bikinis with too many knots tied in strategic places and men in modest trunks, I start my sunday morning with Facebook, Twitter and Gmail and a few occasional glances towards the pool. Infact I start my every morning with Facebook, Twitter and Gmail, the added pool glances are merely a weekend affair.

OK, so getting back to the point - Facebook contributes to 75% of my time pass. Thanks to my loyal iPhone (less jealousy please!), I update myself every hour on my friends' relationship statuses, gawk at some display images, wonder how A added B through D who happens to have been my bench mate in 6th standard. All of this is apart from the display of culinary skills by friends who once complained about their college mess food in India and are now making delicious looking, complicatedly spelled desserts in the US. And don't even get me started on the status updates; they range from excited friends going away on vacations to how hot Chennai is (Come on guys, its not like you have been in Alaska all your life and also it doesn't count when you update from an air conditioned room). And there's my cue to switch tabs to Twitter only to find my timeline spammed by Shreya Ghoshal's lack of sleep, Shah Rukh Khan's muscle aches, Abhishek Bachchan's music library shuffling, Sachin Tendulkar's charity work, Paulo Coelho's thathuvams (quotes) and FunnyOneLiner's oh-I've-heard-that-before liners amidst some more of Chennai is so hot ya ! And then of course there's my most loyal timepass - Gmail. I should probably write an entire post dedicated to Gmail; but I'll save that for another day.

What would I do without Gmail in my daily life? It all begins with my mom starting a voice chat to probe about lunch, dinner and then next day's lunch menu with some intermittent touting of how she would not like an American son-in-law and also that buttermilk is better for me than beer. As I appropriately place my "Hmm.. ok maa" I multi-task by providing some intense relationship advice to a friend, reply to unanswered emails and plan my week ahead. No wonder my mom has now started complaining about why is "hmm ok maa" the only thing I've been saying so far.

Oh and just for your information, this post was typed as I did all of the above things and now that my stomach has made its presence felt by grumbling loud enough for everyone to hear, I should hunt down that packet of Maggi and instant soup before beginning to watch random videos on Youtube until its time for dinner ! What - a - life ! :D

|

I have reasons to smile, yet I feel unhappy about the imperfections. I wouldn't call myself a perfectionist or a workaholic, but there are a few things that I just cannot tolerate. And it bothers me so much that I impulsively make a few immediate and unwanted alterations only to regret it sooner than later. I constantly try to remind myself that it is never simple to choose between the right thing and the easy thing.
Despite being slightly neurotic about a few things, I fervently start making changes and lose motivation when I don't see results. I should remember not to lose hope and be persistent, yet I hate it when the thought of giving up enters my mind and disturbs everything.
I really did not want this to be my post after so long. I have so many reasons to celebrate and be proud of, but it baffles me as to why I chose this. I can never write something until I truly feel it. I can't write what people want to read, my dwindling readership is the last thing I would want to worry about. I've always tried to get rid of the negativity within by blogging and this baby of mine has borne the brunt for almost 5 years now. Change has to come from within and its about time I push things to the next level.

|

She checked it everyday on the notice board in the lobby opposite the elevators. Amidst the roommate wanted, yard sale and restaurant advertisements were the two loosely pinned white sheets with numbers and crosses on them. Everyday she would hurriedly scrutinize the list before she made a mad dash for the shuttle bus honking menacingly outside her block. It was the only sheet that caught her attention every time she stepped out of the elevator. No, the 5$ blender and the 45$ dining set offers did not lure her at all. And she wished "Mandarin" would stop advertising their stinky soy sauced laden tasteless menu.

Anyhow, focusing our attention back to the list; she knew exactly where her apartment number would appear. On the second sheet and ensconced somewhere between the numerous X's would sit her barren apartment number. Everyday her eyes would automatically focus on the blank line in the hope that someday it would bear an X against it. That "X" my dear friends, was the cross that meant there was something waiting for her. It was not like she was expecting something. Well, yes she did expect something or anything from deep within. She just called it her unfulfilled hope to get surprised someday! Oh what a sucker she was for surprises and yet not one still! It wasn't too much to ask for, was it? The only difference was, the day never seemed to come. Birthdays whizzed past and we fast forward the hands of the clock at astronomical speeds to a date in the future. No, our protagonist hasn't grayed or wrinkled and positively did not use a cane to walk yet. It was just a time in the very near future when she knew for sure that she was going to be receiving something. Her little slot was going to be fertile.

The checking routine increased frequencies between trips to the gym, walking the dog, and trips just to check if the cross had arrived itself on her real estate of the list. But it never came. What could have happened? She knew her mother had sent something last week. It should have reached her by now. She was almost going to believe that the position of her apartment number on the list did not adhere to the rules of the Feng Shui. She really shouldn't have cursed "Mandarin"!! A few calls later she found that her package had been misdirected and would reach her the next day. Finally, the package was hand-delivered to her doorstep, bypassing the list.

Alas! She still awaits the day when the little meaningless cross would grace its presence against her apartment number on the list.

|

I miss mommy!
I miss driving my bike!
I don't want to cook my food and do the dishes.
I want to eat all the sugary stuff and not worry about becoming fat.
I positively don't want to be doing my laundry, especially not once in 2 weeks.
I want to play literature with Mad and call her Nehru.
I want to eat Bhel Puri and cone ice at Anand Bakery.
I want to hang out at Dappy's with the foosas and pull her cat's tail till it snarls at me.
I want sleepless weekends at ATn watching old Kamal movies.
I want junk jewelry from Pondy Bazaar platform shops.
I want samosa channa at Hot Chips after that.
I want the Holi of 2002.
I miss my lazy evening strolls.
But I do like what I have halfway across the world now.

I thought I'd get here earlier than in 5 years. But, what the heck - this is my 200th post and I don't have anything better to write than what I am currently dreaming / craving/ missing.

PS: The title because as I wrote down this post, I could almost listen to a completely off-key version of the song from Slumdog in my head.

|

I've been feeling extremely restless and confused for the past couple of days. I don't know what's gotten into me but I seem to be unable to make any decisions for myself. For the uninitiated, I am an extremely organized person and absolutely cannot work until I have my plan sorted out. Sometimes that does include where I would be 5 days from now and what I would be doing. No matter how impulsive I may be, my other side is a fully-functional time-table. Sometimes I anticipate things so much in advance that any small change in schedule puts me off track. And of course there are the deadlines. I've been wanting to finish this one report for almost a week and a half now and I'm nowhere close to even beginning it. Procrastination is my middle name! :P
And then there's my obsession for change. I get bored really easily and need changes at short intervals. Sometimes I wish for something, and when I'm close to getting it, I start dreading it.
I really should loosen up a little but then I get so conscious about the amount of time I waste and all the work that has piled up. I'm throwing quite a fit now. I feel completely out of order and need to pull my life back on track. I'm supposed to be on holiday this week, but it feels nothing like it. I'm getting claustrophobic with the place I'm in. Deadlines and projects are bothering me. I want to be in a place where I can't be long, because reality throws me out. I want a life full of passion and no pressures. And knowing that my chosen path is nothing like it, I find it hard to accept, sometimes even tempted to switch. I dread the unpredictability as much as I love the change.
Dear lord, get me out of this ! Grant me some sanity !

|

Kanne thadumaari nadanthen
Noolil aadum mazhayaagi ponen
Unnal thaan kalaignaai aaneney
Tholai thoorathil velicham nee
Unai nokkiye enai eerkiraaye

Melum melum urugi urugi
Unai enni yengum
Idhayathai enna seiven
Unai enni yengum

Cannot get this out of my head! Could I love something more than this ? Yes, even my lust to listen to Aaromale has lessened. If I watch the movie, I'll remember to close my eyes when this comes on. I just cannot imagine Simbu lip syncing this. But then if SJ Surya could do Aararai kodi, this seems fair too! *sigh!

|

an uninteresting conversationalist.
disinterested to yap endlessly.
sick of snowy, slippery days.
tired of dressing up in multiple layers.
addicted to TLC.
less of an optimist.
a staunch believer of reverse psychology.
picky with my food.
thrifty about my budgets.
interested again to play scrabble.
restless to complete this semester.
impatient about the future.
a lousy reader.
and an even more boring writer.

|

There are positive vibes from all around and things assure of working in your favor. Its the happiness of being well fed, rested and having nothing to worry about. Its the joy of waking up before your irritating alarm goes off and realizing you have a good hour of sleep time left. The life devoid of any responsibilities or pressures. No mad rush to meet deadlines or to maintain performance. You live each day like it were the last of your life. Your head is fuzzy with so much lasting happiness that even opioids would miserably fail to give. You see the world through pink tinted glasses. The sky seems bluer and the air has a zesty touch. The grass smells fresher and looks so much greener. The rainbow is outside your window every morning. You wake up with a smile every morning and you know it in your gut that it is going to be a great day.

And then, you sigh and hope that would happen to you in reality and get back to your chores after putting it on your blog ! :D

|

Much awaited from ARR after his Oscar, Vinnaithaandi Varuvaya's music held high hopes way ahead of its release. And when it came, it amazed everyone. According to me, this is one of ARR's most quirky and experimental albums in recent times. The songs have a completely different approach and do not follow any standard patterns. And that is exactly what gives the album a raw and exotic appeal which doesn't conform to usual mass standards.

Much might have been said, here are my few cents about Vinnaithaandi Varuvaya.


Until something better catches my fancy, Aaromale continues on an endless loop.

|

Wasn't it last week that the break began ? Didn't I just build my first snowman yesterday ? Wasn't it only a couple of hours ago that D & I were gushing over silly things during our chilly walks in C-City ?

Isn't it always that when you reflect back over time, it seems to have flown so fast, but when you anticipate something, it doesn't seem to bust its backside anywhere ? I can't think of any smartass quote that would quench my qualms. Time is shrewd and it knows how to play its game well. Period.

Its 10 days into 2010 and as always I have no resolutions for this year. I would really like to do a few things, but I wouldn't want to put a deadline against them. I haven't reached that state of desperation yet. As decided earlier, I did not get to read much. I did listen to music that I really wanted to hear before. Jazz is good for the agitated mind ! Daringly went ahead with snipping off a few extra inches of hair, which ultimately led amma to gasp on video. Definitely caught up on a lot of sleep, not that I missed much of it! Watched a lot of movies. I didn't know that American cinema halls don't break for intervals or assign seats either! My first in 3D movie too - good experience.
I'm trying to cram as many activities I can in this last week before I get back to the grind. I still yearn for that feeling of excitement as you flip through the pages of a book and sit through the early hours to finish it. (*reminds self that this would happen if I accommodate a little less sleep-time*). I hope to plan and work in a more focused manner. I am going to try not to cuss every time I put on multiple layers of clothes or swear loudly when I step out from the warmth into the *grrr.. below-freezing-point-temperatures. How many months more!??!

Maybe these are called resolutions, but I don't want to jinx anything by affixing names to it. I'm going to stop before I conclude or change my mind.
Until later... if anyone still reads me!

|