tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69079028060201520392024-03-05T14:44:36.445+05:30The Magic QuillRandom thoughts. Unanswered questions. Queer Observations. A scribble pad and a quillAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.comBlogger54125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-53927154232994217362015-02-27T00:58:00.002+05:302015-02-27T00:58:53.868+05:30Work from home woes<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Picture this-<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">X: “Where do you work?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Moi: “I work as an independent
consultant”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">X: “Oh, from home?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Moi: “Yes, most of the time”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">X: “Oh, IT?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Moi: “No, in human resources.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">X: “Oh, recruitment?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Moi: “Errr…. Not always.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">X: Stops the conversation short
with a quizzical look, wondering what on earth I do.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I stepped
out of full time work in the corporate world twice in my career. And during
both stints, I have had this conversation with all sorts of X s. And it has
never been any different. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Self-employed,
part – time, consultant, freelancer, contract, retainer, work from home - Not
many people recognize that each of these modes of employment is fairly different.
It often makes me feel like those in the flexi work space (not just women) are orphaned children of the corporate world. I know that’s a
strong statement, only because the fight against stereotypes is just as tough. Here
are some issues that I have faced from prospective
employers, clients and society at large on account of working from home: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Flexi work is an alibi for women on a career
break, owing to a life event<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">When I wanted
to get back to full time work after my first independent consulting stint,
interviewing with companies was a nightmare. I have always had to justify why I
made the decision to opt for a flexible work arrangement so early in my career
without a “valid” reason. “Valid” reasons include – marriage, pregnancy &
maternity. None were applicable to me at that point in time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I was once
told at an interview that independent consulting work is tantamount to taking a
sabbatical! Essentially, I was being told that it was a nice way of covering up
gaps in full time work! Consequently, the work experience that I gathered over
this period could not be considered as “active work experience” (whatever that
is supposed to mean!) Never mind all the personal brand building, the sales,
the marketing and the delivery that I did single handedly. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">If you are working from home, your job can’t
be all that important<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I now work
in a full time role, mostly out of home. The societal perception of a woman
with a baby, who works from home, is rather parochial. There is so much
importance attached to working out of an office, some people just do not get
the concept of full time employment + work from home. It was tough in the
beginning, when everyone from my house help to relatives took my time for
granted. Random social engagements would be planned without my consent. When I
politely decline, common retorts include - “No one is going to know” or “A few
hours off will do no harm”. The worst that I have heard is “If your job was all
that important, you would be working in office, not at home!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">It took a
great deal of effort and a whole lot of saying no to make this arrangement
work. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Offering flexible work arrangements hampers
quality<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The perception
that commitment and flexi work do not go hand in hand is so deeply ingrained in
a fairly large section of the corporate world. We are, as a society, driven by
the belief that -lack of monitoring would result in low quality output, lack of
a formal work space leads to lack of focus and lack of a full time work
agreement begets issues in accountability. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> I’m
doing you a favour, I cannot pay you at market value<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I have had
to turn down several projects that offered me as low as 50% of the market rate
as consulting fees. That such a deal is a nonstarter is besides the point, the
reason for the low offer is what is appalling - “We are “allowing” you to work
from home; you must take that into consideration”! Why is physical presence in an office a
determinant of pay? </span><span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">The attitude
towards flexi-working seems to be riding on favour rather than according it as
a benefit.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">What’s your
story? Have you faced such stereotypes? How did you handle it? I’d love to know.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-90620342955322409972015-01-04T23:04:00.000+05:302015-01-04T23:04:26.165+05:30My date with disability<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">In all my
life, I have spoken to him about this for not more than 60 seconds. He was
affected by polio as a child and had to be carried from room to room. This man,
who studied in a Malayalam medium school till class V, went on to become the
Chief Executive of a “mainstream” conglomerate in India and the CEO of an
American firm. At an age where people would choose to hang their boots up, he
established his entrepreneurial venture. He leads a normal life – he goes on
long walks, he drives, he swims, I’ve even seen him dance. This self-made man
is my father. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I came to
learn about the International Day for People with Disabilities a few months
back. Close on the heels of this, I had the opportunity to participate in a recruitment
drive for persons with disabilities. Most applicants to my company were polio
affected. I was a little crestfallen, since I have never viewed polio as a
disability! My father NEVER played the “disability” card either personally or
professionally, consequently, my mind refuses to equate my dad’s condition with
disability. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">This brought
back an unpleasant experience that I had as a recruiter. I was with the hiring
manager at an interview for a sales position, and a candidate walked in with a
noticeable limp. After a short interview, the hiring manager seemed very
dismissive of his candidature. He expressed considerable doubt regarding his
ability to sell and blurted out an appalling statement – “What would a client
think if we sent a person like him to represent out brand?” I was infuriated;
he had touched a raw nerve. What was “person like him” even supposed to mean? I
reported this incident, he was issued a verbal warning and I was asked to
“orient” him towards dealing with “such” situations.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">In my limited
experience, I have found that people with disabilities do not want sympathy,
they would be happy with some empathy. They do not want special privileges or
leeway with rules. They would appreciate not being stared at. All they want is
a fair chance to compete. And for heaven’s sake, they are “normal” people. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">It is
amazing how the corporate world does its bit – Diversity & Inclusion and
the likes, but I think we must first address the biggest disability that the
human race has to deal with – that of the mind. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-83122284190523210452014-04-28T22:25:00.000+05:302014-04-28T22:25:11.111+05:30T is for To do lists!<div style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhixGMS3wHDC-zYuew8-g_Dcz2dLnQcrDj5gGnmoTiL0VNigugqfPwYq4ZHs9hMJu1nkaN_ar7d-4K7P0wOmxdL9j2iDmW4Oq2jRptgLeAC-pVjhNRtCwKnQ0hxzlAyZyEZiHND5Go9HDgN/s1600/T.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">T for Thailand is what I wanted
to write,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">As I reminisced the days of yore,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">A set of papers caught my sight,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">It was my to do list, with tasks
galore.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Grocery to buy, bills to pay and shelves
to clear,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Proposals to make and deadlines
to meet,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Calls long overdue to near and
dear,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">As is a massage for my aching
feet.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I haven’t watched a movie in ages,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">On the A-Z challenge, I lag
behind,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">My to do list is just short of
two pages.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">It seems like the list has its
own mind!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I cross of an entry for very task
I complete,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">But it gets magically replaced by
another one,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Like an endless pit with tasks
replete,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I realize this to do list will
never get completely done!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-89921577830948692532014-04-27T23:41:00.000+05:302014-04-27T23:41:46.295+05:30S is for Summer<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL2HLKQuQktU_bxirSeWgjegpTHUDUuVAj5NUEL2Q44liLt2dQzx-5ig3ao9pdFKjw6ighuuPZ4LB-dbLf0BJfXkh8prBmhwN5Q7MSXuU8WHVTmplxamIJhxR0ipusUdCIk6C8qnf6bo06/s1600/S.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">It's Sunday and it's Scorching hot! So I decided to write about my childhood memories of Summers. I'm keeping it short and crisp with an A-Z on Summers.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Air conditioners. Beaches,
basketball. Curd rice. Drawing & Painting. Electricity cuts. paper Fans. Glares.
Holidays. Ice cream. Juices. </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_Chennai"><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Kathiri Veyil</span></a><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> (look up the section under climate). Lime
mint coolers. Mangoes. New books at school. Oil massages. Pickles. Queues at
the movies. Reading. Swimming. Tans. Umbrellas. Veranda. Watermelons. eXams
before vacations. Yoga. Zzzz.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">What are your memories of summers?</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-57833570823387921032014-04-24T00:33:00.000+05:302014-04-24T01:03:27.988+05:30R is for Regret<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqPZK7K5ZyPT5cMQY_EJeZv1TWEIW1Z86iebxMJM-TgI09b4v406aMHHX0vuk0iEQEoxTF4qEE6uDnD63CU-ftigKuM2drd_vVFj_sn3J02n4nUDXt7HLplC7bL-M8BL29O4ZL2zVReoZF/s1600/R.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I have a way of getting around
grief and pain,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Of shock and trauma, I can come
out sane.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">But one emotion that I can’t get
my head around,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Is that of regret doing the
rounds.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“I could have, I should have,
maybe, perhaps”,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Are words which give me painful jabs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“Had I? Hadn’t I”– may have
changed the game,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I end up feeling totally lame.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I have learnt the hard way,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">That regret doesn’t easily go
away.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">We all have calls to take and decisions
to make,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">But don’t always have time to
evaluate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I ask myself, “Will I regret this
later?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">And all of a sudden, things seem
better!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The clouds lift up and I know, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">With fair precision, which way to
go!</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-81865534146924212632014-04-22T19:44:00.000+05:302014-04-22T19:44:15.510+05:30Quick Quips<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMywGXDy39qDD28TctuT-6X6ymBiGhrTFLF895-L12MIG0sPMW0rAGv4r3ZaLUZHmt4yB3hvOQ7QmAWXCodALVhx9ieyue18dmQU8eP-b7wBCJSVp9salIcoayj_RvLpb7XniZTWgayqGD/s1600/Q.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">Six word stories this time:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Queer<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Straight in the head. Still
marginalized. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Quiche<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Tastes as good as it sounds.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Quilt<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Love, memories amidst layers of
fabric<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Quit<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“Last puff”, he said. Every
night.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-20277971228159106522014-04-21T00:38:00.000+05:302014-04-21T00:41:05.608+05:30P is to Pray<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQflig_SnJmWocko9DJwvddlO_LoC9_gVJlNImzX4BvSmZu_b7ds7ZGLIoX0k3gpJ0qCjeO_cI4ok8DEkFKpU9JttYrsp7PFNzqaJ8M_Sc2zchzVVonBdbCfo4X4W4Zc2TvQLAPs4p0Afg/s1600/P.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">My ideas on
religion and faith require a lot of philosophical explanation, which I plan to
write for my post on the letter R. For now, let me just tell you that on the
atheist-agnostic-believer continuum, I would peg myself somewhere between
agnostic and a believer. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I have grown
to like the idea of praying over the years. I’m not yet sure if I believe in the
things we are usually taught about prayers. Stuff like - if you pray, God will
be kind to you / reward you etc. As a child, I was lucky to go to a school
which taught students the Vedas. Even today, I can recite a good part of the
Rig Veda Agnihotra in Sanskrit, while actually knowing the meaning of it all. But
in my books, that doesn’t count as prayer. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">When I pray,
I usually recount my experiences over the day or think about a person in need I
thank, share my happiness, laugh, ask for forgiveness, reflect, wonder, empathize,
confess, plead and occasionally question, crib and cry! I pray in English, a mish-mash
of Tamil and Malayalam, peppered with some Hindi at times too! I don’t have a
set format or verses to say / think about when I pray. I don’t even pray every
day. I don’t necessarily pray at temples or in front of an idol. It is mostly
in bed or when I travel long distances. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">And oh! I
instinctively pray when I hear an ambulance. Just for a few seconds, I don’t even
know what I think, but I know I pray. I’ve been doing it for as long as I can
remember. My prayers range between a few seconds and ten long minutes.
Sometimes, I meditate for much longer at yoga class, and the line between
meditating and praying is often blurred. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Most people
say their prayers are conversations / dialogues with God. But my prayers are
all monologues. I don’t know who the recipient of my prayer is. But I do know that every single time, at the end of this monologue, I feel calm, clear
in my head and so full of peace – feelings that very few conversations have
ever given me. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">What are
your views on prayers?</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-41082954271480660232014-04-18T19:37:00.001+05:302014-04-22T20:22:55.762+05:30O is for Old<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrABIjct5nl9oTYwr7lrS1OlHN28__Iqt3fEnJysaaBFOO_81zDgdoj3MrNkF9NKt_FUjGtbzr_mUGdqnThGz4TQdPh-yUj1iu_2BGx_by9aFweIIqrsoJF0NXKtsDUlxrDOpqFM_mUUFM/s1600/O.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I am one of
those who believe that age is just a number. (Well, I’m over the hill now, so
that’s what I will advocate right? </span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> )</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I was in my
late twenties when the first strand of grey sprung up. That definitely has to
do with genetics. I also humour myself by thinking they were early signs of wisdom.
I’ve had dark circles under my eyes ever since I remember. Apparently, I never
used to sleep as a child. I think I am not too old to start learning tennis, an
instrument or a new language. I tell myself, if I had the time, I would have
made it to the national swimming Olympics team. (Yeah, I like to flatter myself
at times) When I talk to friends, I realise it will soon be a decade since I graduated
from college. When kids in my apartment call me “aunty”, more often than not, I
do not respond, because it doesn’t even strike that it is me they are referring
to! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">But there
was one day, when I really did feel old. It was at a coffee shop in upmarket
Mumbai. A group of young girls, barely in their teens walked into the store. Most
of them were outrageously dressed and wore heavy make up for an age that
tender. They flipped out thousand rupee notes, placed their orders, had conversations
peppered with words that sounded rather disgusting coming from them. What
bothered me was that this whole thing was rather casual, it seemed to come to
them naturally. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I don’t remember
living a life like that at that age. That’s when it hit me - I belong to a
different generation. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-45280814219531854802014-04-17T23:32:00.000+05:302014-04-17T23:32:15.362+05:30N is for Night trek. N is for Never again.<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAVYVoYA3ZPpGACSK1kn0wH7tN5DpfR4Ra79eadrxHkp_vei4S2qfB6gcgsYo1TLN3AYCBq8PEOWCRZtixmC0HVDTeN3MzM9g3vKTeuZx-AdIBFKGvqV1rHLZZ1WyIu4eZXdoVyS81xnvj/s1600/N.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">This is yet
another travel tale! This time from Thekkady, Idukki district - Kerala, India. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">A trip to
Thekkady is incomplete without visiting the Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary.
Inspired by my husband’s induction to the wonders of the jungle, we signed up
for a night trek / jungle patrol in Thekkday. I sheepishly enquired about how
large our trek group was expected to be. “10 including the guards”, came the reply.
Taking comfort in the numbers, I decided to give it a shot. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">It was 7 pm.
As luck would have it, none of the others turned up! So there we were, two of
us, two from the patrol team, armed with anti-leech powder, boots, torches and
rain coats; inside the Periyar wildlife sanctuary. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">It seemed
like a cake walk along the fringes of the forest, since there was some kind of
lighting from nearby settlements. As we went into the thicket, the rain gods
decided to make things slightly more adventurous. Picture this – rain lashing
down on us, pitch dark, sounds of the jungle and sudden flashes of glistening
eyes of animals. There was this one particular moment, when 4-5 pairs of eyes
were too close for comfort. My heart was pounding and it felt like my temples
would explode. “Deer”, announced the patrol leader. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">My husband
helped me a great deal by narrating an incident where he got chased by mad
elephants in an earlier forest trip!!! The guys in the patrol nodded in
agreement and confirmed that was commonplace. Wait, this was not the part where
I freaked out… Read on… <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">For some
reason I stopped and happened to look down at my feet. That is when pandemonium
struck. Leech!!! All over my boots, crawling up. That was it. I could take it
no more. I had enough adventure for a night. Slimy, bloodsuckers on my feet is
not my idea of adventure. Anti leech powder came to my rescue, not for long
though. Within a few minutes, my boots were back to square one. Since it was
just us, I took the liberty of cutting the trek short and ran back to familiar
surroundings. Phew!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">This was one
of those trips that I was very glad to have done, but I know will never repeat.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-56952883944089125462014-04-16T01:01:00.001+05:302014-04-16T01:01:09.717+05:30M is for Maranello<div style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ8RAOdeVGL4yyaAwsnifgMTGB2lr4rmU83-Zj9kPZ76oAZQqBU0zw3AHYtMahmzlKF5OoMM4jcZf2EB9vqGOjv5ZdbRU4RVq2a7cJYk6mP9GbE7YRflXlymtTd-zfJh1jAuVXdlNlnMh0/s1600/M.jpg" /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">One of the
most sensible pacts that my husband and I have made is the no gifting policy. Well,
it was more for my comfort. I have always found it incredibly difficult to buy
the man something he would appreciate and cherish. A typical gift buying
conversation would go like this -</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Me: “A wallet?
A watch perhaps?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">He: ”Please don’t
waste money, I already have one of each”. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Me: “A pen?”
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">He: “I don’t
write”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Me: “A
gadget – phone, tab?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">He: “Hmmm...
sounds interesting, but let’s wait for the next version to come out”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">You get the
drift right??<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">If you use
the word ‘fast’ and ‘cars’ in the same sentence anywhere in the vicinity of my
husband, you can be sure to see his eyes light up. It is a dream that he knows
will never come true – being a race car driver. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">So, during
our trip to Italy, when I figured we would be crossing Maranello en route Pisa,
we just had to make a pit stop (pun intended!) Maranello is best known for the
Ferrari factory. Despite being a shoestring budget trip, I decided to splurge
on this one occasion and gift him a 20 minute Ferrari drive! It would make up
for all the lack of gifting for eternity. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The museum visit
by itself had given him such an adrenalin rush, he could hardly make up his
mind between a Lamborghini and a Ferrari California. After much thought and
deliberation, he went with the latter. We had a person from the shop accompany
us on the drive, explaining the controls et al.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Then we hit
the highway. Boy! I had butterflies in my stomach, just being a silent co passenger.
The revving engine, the wind in my hair, the speed, the roads… I have
goosebumps even as I write this! I can imagine how exciting it must have been
for him to actually get to drive it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-11009026677881489312014-04-15T23:52:00.000+05:302014-04-15T23:52:53.560+05:30Leopard encounter<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJFnBkwVpcZe2-qfZmKK6EWSATwWjW0yXKCRCkD67zX1vbJFmRM8gGciw8EidCE_0qzsQpOeMm6PlKS206yCyB2gNeCxzxkat-IF8PLfLyFkZALhb6OQPelcG2eN5QvTPs9RQlJA2VxQQp/s1600/L.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">My husband
introduced me to the wonders of jungles and wildlife soon after we got married.
We made our first “jungle trip” to Bandipur in South India. After some basics on safari etiquette, we set
out for our early morning adventure. I was in high spirits, hoping to catch a
tiger sighting, which the husband explained would be possible only with a
generous dose of serendipity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">After about
half an hour into the jungle, my jeep slowed down as we crossed a manmade
watering hole. After a couple of minutes of recon, our guide signalled to us to
look at a tree by the far end of the water body. There is was! Perched on the
branch of a tree, perfectly camouflaged, was a leopard! Only the twitch of its
tail gave it away. We used the binoculars to get a clear view and zoomed in to
catch a glimpse of the face. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">What I saw through
those lenses will be a memory that I will carry to my grave. I remember trying
not to breathe as hard in the fear of inciting the leopard; as if it were right
in front of me, looking directly into my eyes. This is the moment when I
understood what William Blake intended to convey when he wrote “Tyger Tyger,
burning bright”. Those blazing eyes, those chiselled features, a gaze so powerful,
so piercing, menacing and beautiful all at the same time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-26345629631658607822014-04-14T23:39:00.001+05:302014-04-14T23:39:48.504+05:3055 on Karma<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHI457U3BHcs9wSC7nMsmYR4ToZdKtgXXY6MCmNuQeY7u2HMHNs7xNTM4RpZZFUEqvNi6YHEcTGamCMSCe67uUL2vFPGE7XyEkWiM3QCn8dwLvv-vGnXcPNbczN46QlTXky9b4OcQDdpeR/s1600/K.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Dear Amma, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I’m sorry I spoke incessantly
with food in my mouth, spat out medicines, refused to sleep and gave you a
tennis elbow. What goes around, comes around. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I’m glad that I smothered you
with kisses, played hours of peekaboo and read storybooks into wee hours of the
morning. What goes around, comes around.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-23211136289027282702014-04-13T00:40:00.000+05:302014-04-13T00:40:56.848+05:30J is for Jungfraujoch<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb5XJfPqaw8DQfaw28q9CMQhEstW1rzGKW3vQsvBC1yJWBKsvfh_QPrL5WcgZR2Uy8K-6k5c-fzz4HA1XxJ_dtAyOOepw4XJCdbJV4K1cEGnm_VVN8rhcC9JlBLFYFF_quXyM6cjHwyHAI/s1600/J.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; text-align: justify;">Marketed as
the “Top of Europe” experience, the husband and I were expecting our trip to Jungfrau
to be the high point of our Swiss sojourn.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">We chose to
use the services of the Jungfrau railway, known to be a pioneer of sorts in the
mountain railway scene. We boarded a delightful cogwheel train at Kleine
Scheidegg, which took us to Jungfrau in about an hour’s time. En route, we got
off at two spectacular view points and gasped and marvelled at the Alps.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">At this
point, I would like to draw your attention to the fact that TH and I have lived
near the equator practically our entire lives. You may now appreciate the
effort it took us to just get to Jungfrau. We actually felt like ghosts,
because we could not feel our feet and hands beyond a certain altitude.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">When we
finally reached, we were dazed to see a bunch of people rush to a particular
spot, trampling everything in their wake. TH and I managed to find each other
again after all this drama and floated along (ghosts remember?) to get out into
the snow. And guess what we find? Shah Rukh Khan! (For the uninitiated, he is a
big Bollywood superstar) Not in body and flesh, but his picture on a cardboard
was enough to send people into a frenzy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I occasionally
loathe how loud and crass Bollywood can be. So you can imagine my dismay when I
go all the way to the top of Europe, braving the cold, only to see people making
a beeline to click pictures with a cut out of Shah Rukh Khan and dine in Restaurant
Bollywood! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Well, that
does not take away anything from the beauty of the place. It is quite
astounding. Just watch your back for crazy SRK fans when you step out into the
snow. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-16236438895680681512014-04-11T00:10:00.001+05:302014-04-11T00:10:40.338+05:30I is for Illuminate<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguRZtD9v1wGt1JPWCmnLw_Bjc_vvP8lmwWkbfyiAE-5FUJtjul1NApzoroeKhElNb2t_6VIxz6hmH_nUz-Izr9Nxa53-paZef8jo5_c0Z9y6NakmFf-d9_jxdlcSYQ-UjbI326-HBa-52o/s1600/I.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The word "illuminate”
will never mean the same to us again. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The husband
and I went on a trip to Thailand in 2011. Ao Nang is a small island in the
Krabi province of Thailand that is not as commercial as the rest of the beaches
in Thailand. After an evening of island hopping, we ventured out into the sea
for a night dive experience. Our boat anchored in a spot off Maya Bay (of The
Beach fame). All the lights aboard were switched off and we plunged into the
chill waters in complete darkness. To be honest, it was scary in the beginning,
but we were blown away by what happened next. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">As we moved
our limbs to make our way through the water, our bodies lit up in the most
brilliant colours of blue and green. Photophosphorescence! The bioluminescent plankton
that surrounded out bodies lit up and illuminated the diving spot. Remember the
scene from Life of Pi where the whale jumps out of the water? Yeah, that. I
scoured the internet for pictures to give you an idea of what it would look
like, but none did justice. So, I am posting a photo of bioluminescent phytoplankton that I found on news.nationalgeographic.com to give you a
glimpse of the wonders of the ocean. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCFHLJ5jzcKdwFzy5CIM04eEa6a5vtCRZD9CywnhH8Y4l0ByVy55Ir0hyphenhyphenvPMA6JRj93-wl1kjcN-23xLZaKHsLPyaciOacp-mlDgw1kbOb7p0X_f7oBQkgOyj2FcLsnkhkmO5RMAIOflg/s1600/bio.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCFHLJ5jzcKdwFzy5CIM04eEa6a5vtCRZD9CywnhH8Y4l0ByVy55Ir0hyphenhyphenvPMA6JRj93-wl1kjcN-23xLZaKHsLPyaciOacp-mlDgw1kbOb7p0X_f7oBQkgOyj2FcLsnkhkmO5RMAIOflg/s1600/bio.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-IN; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The night dive at Ao Nang was the highlight of
our trip (pun intended </span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-IN; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-IN; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> )</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-45388468705732015622014-04-10T00:31:00.000+05:302014-04-10T00:31:43.069+05:30Holidaying in Havelock<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPEzCogYDrxjglF2j2lo7p-_GtdDvzakKcxsz3Gr6O-kNTzXkw_VXF7lfXImxeeiONBDlTUOnkMMxVIzCoZQh9EfGIplYZr_SgGoKnqKJd7hlD7lvYxG8YU7IhYe-6toB7haFBoVRZtjx1/s1600/H.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">We have all
seen pictures from the Andaman Islands promotional campaigns, with turquoise
waters and pristine sands haven’t we? The good news is that, these pictures are
not photoshopped. I don’t think any camera or any technology can truly capture
the beauty this place has to offer. It is best seen with the human eye, best
experienced with an open mind and a large heart.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I am going to
spare you the details of the touristy things to do here. This post is about how
one can get lost in Havelock and yet find yourself!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The husband
and I holidayed in this lovely island to complete a scuba diving course. An
island with no newspapers, no television, very poor signal for your mobile
phone and no internet can be a little disorienting to begin with. Add to it an
early sunset (it gets dark by 5 PM!), and you may wonder what you are going to
do for the rest of the day! As you would imagine, electricity is scarce as
well, so most resorts are big on conservation. One stormy night can disrupt
supply of essential commodities from the mainland – grocery, petrol, beer and
even bottled water!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Stay warned,
if you are the kind who likes to live tweet / Instagram every breath you take
on a holiday, or if you are really bothered about your klout scores, you might
as well skip holidaying here. On the other hand, if your heart yearns for a
holiday where you want to disconnect with the world and connect with yourself, Havelock
is the place to go. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">Oh, and I
stand corrected about the internet. We did see a delightful little shack, which
proudly advertised “Rs. 300 per hour, 512 kbps” </span><span style="font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-10310683447120975022014-04-08T23:39:00.000+05:302014-04-09T00:15:30.502+05:30G is for Grandeur<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMGbbeyHYc9GJxeDvuCulwiQyJRChpXg91e-CUcQtMKBJdc4S72Ico7pUK0Mv0FVpfcHuWQZJluaJdCXEKP4cxOkNm4ZtvqQsMAzNxfBtdvjpH4S2XP0SUCP1djxqil_HNecwZCgZ2w9yR/s1600/G.jpg" /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; text-align: justify;">There is
only one scene that flashes in my mind when I think of grandeur. That view will
remain forever etched in my memory, one that I will carry to my grave. It was
breath taking, awe inspiring and even had the agnostic me believe in God for a
moment. The only other time that I have felt that way was when I saw my little
girl for the first time.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="File:Crepescular rays in saint peters basilica.JPG" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7c/Crepescular_rays_in_saint_peters_basilica.JPG/450px-Crepescular_rays_in_saint_peters_basilica.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Source: Wikipedia</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">The St. Peter’s basilica. There was something about the moment that I stepped into the place. Maybe it was the light streaming through the dome or just the sheer size, the grandeur of it all. I felt light headed, like I was in heaven. I thought it was also rather symbolic to feel dwarfed in this magnificent architectural marvel. Check out the picture, look at how tiny the human beings look! We all are tiny aren’t we? Well, that's another philosophical discussion altogether, sometime later perhaps.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">The Vatican skyline sports the iconic white dome, but don’t let it deceive you. For, inside the basilica it is another world altogether. I couldn’t get my head around how something could be so huge, yet so ornate. The architectural splendour, the finesse of every small detail was mind blowing. And to have done this centuries back! Phew!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">If you haven’t already been to the basilica, you must. Everything else about the Vatican City is indeed grand, but this one is ethereal!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;"><br /></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-32257893980401048192014-04-08T00:11:00.001+05:302014-04-08T00:11:50.165+05:30Four things F<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYzD0z6TLJ2lzQ_BVD1p5encS9_euoTcoUI728KLJi14bn7Km-v5uODKSzOQdR-DzRfrl2cPJba-2KhRy1b4S_2eXPAhpJH1fR5V8MgvBui3hp9RtlDXvzocAROwBABJlAicyNwHcVzZK0/s1600/F.jpg" /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Today, I return to writing about
parenting. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Fascination –
Have I told you, I am in complete awe of evolution? What I saw as a 6
millimetre black and white picture in a scan report grew into something so
beautiful and is now with us, right here! I cannot but marvel with a dropped
jaw at the miracle that is life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Forgo – You learn
to let go. Let go of sleep, jobs, looks perhaps and in some cases, lifestyles
all together. Priorities get a rejig. The beauty of it is that, although you
let go, there’s so much you get in return – unconditionally. Love, joy, a sense
of belonging, a feeling of being wanted, being able to provide, protect, teach
and raise another human being! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Fear – As a
new mother, I was always scared whether I was doing it right. I constantly tried
to live up to the most perfect image of the role – my mother. Also, being
completely accountable for another soul is the single most important responsibility
that life entrusts us with.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Fury to Fatigue
– Most of this emotion actually started out as Fury. With time, the fury
sobered down to just fatigue. Not so much the physical fatigue of going through
the pregnancy, labour, surgical procedures et al. It is more the fatigue of
listening to endless unsolicited advice, opinions, comments and every other conceivable
mode of interference there is. And all this about myriad issues – about the
baby herself, my parenting style, the dos and the don’ts, the right and the
wrong. The list is endless.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">What are the
things that parenting has changed in you? Do you have experiences to share? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-24795563370160406472014-04-05T23:40:00.000+05:302014-04-06T00:09:05.972+05:30Enchanted by elephants<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiyiJnq_EIUQS8zb9-9grQv0m-ar7cNXxgUB87cTRHBkcA2ZbGtVyS7U67-KhjwqKNix0W7LzYuNJEvI-sKJP4KzZfC9UOUFnMj4UkAErWmf9jabU9CwhBJvemwyhGIQpzZ1ECASGarzFk/s1600/E.jpg" /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Those who
know me know how much I love pachyderms. There’s something about these gentle
giants that takes my breath away. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">It is no
surprise that my visit to the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage in Sri Lanka will
remain one of my most memorable travel experiences. The orphanage houses and
cares for over 80 wild elephants that are orphaned or found abandoned. We
stopped at Kegalle en route Kandy from Colombo on an overcast day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">After having
spent the morning in the vast orphanage, the entire herd walks across to the
Oya River to bathe. I remember having butterflies in my stomach because I could
actually feel slight tremors as the herd walked along the small lane off the
highway into the river. It is a sight to behold and reminds you how small and
helpless human beings are in front of nature!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">There are a
number of restaurants that dot the lane leading upto the river. We dined at a restaurant
offered panoramic views of the river and allowed guests to get up close and
personal with the bathing elephants. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRjW9yvcsChtXgQg1penTObkl-dIo8TNwNh9T0IePK_uL4kcINFdJWflgIhPUk0qoinRE6pMTgdgE-LRxN_VlLxj13Vw_fQjFXsUnzEmE4V74rRrLIoEvtk5hZY3SKEDkhTjdiwRfwusk/s1600/Elephants.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRjW9yvcsChtXgQg1penTObkl-dIo8TNwNh9T0IePK_uL4kcINFdJWflgIhPUk0qoinRE6pMTgdgE-LRxN_VlLxj13Vw_fQjFXsUnzEmE4V74rRrLIoEvtk5hZY3SKEDkhTjdiwRfwusk/s1600/Elephants.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">A memorable day, which reinforced my belief that we humans take ourselves too seriously, while being quite minuscule in the larger scheme of things. Literally :) </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-10081516121529348632014-04-04T23:30:00.001+05:302014-04-04T23:30:30.983+05:30DIY Madness<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Sqo3LG8xSSKwSpVTXinaazV1GgR4vXHV57UhurFzdC-aKg4AK7O7wbJqN-oxZ18YtSquJ1Za7LhaaDyx4hDVgRyolyrJHCbUrYSItErixFYn1Sn4tOKtaSWOpmf9pIjEw8NQr-cjUzGh/s1600/D.jpg" /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">It is
wonderful what some free time, coloured paper, inspiration (mostly from Pinterest)
and some imagination can do! What started off as an effort to engage my daughter
soon became an obsession. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">As an
infant, I always thought Baby A got bored of simply staring at the ceiling
and other random objects in the room. So I made her a cradle mobile out of
chart paper, with huge shapes, contrasting colours and some glitter. Oh boy!
She loved it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHsUgu-ahkzgViPQkkAAEETKyvC8TNFgtFMQWNV7gmoDI1yL2foXurs-ydayt6dKb2Mg8ERW92upU00Ee1Fa74gbUkO_j8fp0rhfr9sDXGRYw4klcSzemf36hdOMKDknAJdEpd7LP9e8E/s1600/Paper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHsUgu-ahkzgViPQkkAAEETKyvC8TNFgtFMQWNV7gmoDI1yL2foXurs-ydayt6dKb2Mg8ERW92upU00Ee1Fa74gbUkO_j8fp0rhfr9sDXGRYw4klcSzemf36hdOMKDknAJdEpd7LP9e8E/s1600/Paper.jpg" height="320" width="265" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">Egged on by her reactions, I made her the dragon (which I picked up from a felt toy design by Dawn Treacher on Flickr) and hung it by the window. She would watch it while daddy dearest played her Puff the magic dragon…</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">When she
began focusing a bit more and recognizing bright objects, I made a series of sunlight catchers. </span><span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">The one on
the left is made out of wax paper and crayons. Again an idea that I picked off
Pinterest, I threw multi coloured shavings of wax crayon in between two layers
of wax paper and heated it gently with an iron. Some brilliant shapes emerged
and I cut them to shape and gave it a chart paper outline.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Caution: The
wax tends to become brittle on ageing. You can see this on the top left corner of the wax paper. So ensure you do not hold this near or
directly above a baby. This is best appreciated from a distance.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWT5djhBB6dubqzYzpUa7t4d76p2jSYxSQVhJEErmLgNeX5aNJyM383mdhkTuMqCkwswgomqDSJ7lUIS3YR43KVUr24nDm_1kCiT9_GS0By0EBLOqewjbixpcSKETWLhJhTR2dMKHlbSM/s1600/LIght+catcher.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWT5djhBB6dubqzYzpUa7t4d76p2jSYxSQVhJEErmLgNeX5aNJyM383mdhkTuMqCkwswgomqDSJ7lUIS3YR43KVUr24nDm_1kCiT9_GS0By0EBLOqewjbixpcSKETWLhJhTR2dMKHlbSM/s1600/LIght+catcher.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> I would have liked to name the one on the right something Notre-dame ish, but I call it the "Brahmastra", which is the deadliest weapon according to ancient Sanskrit scriptures. This worked like magic on Baby A and hence the name. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The disc is
a paper plate with shapes cut out of it and filled with glass paper. We would
just lie on the bed, looking at the sunlight streaming through it for hours
together. Also, when she grew older, she loved the rustle of the paper and was
a great source of entertainment. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The octopus
and starfish below are made of felt, stuffed with polyfill. Pretty run of the
mill. I used googly eyes for the starfish and hand embroidered the rest. I hand stitched the felt inside out as well. I got a little lazy with the octopus and just stitched it from the outside, used foam for the eyes and mouth of
the octopus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSWwnFIdusvOgqw_NxNTzzAcNCT-nD0i6YnkbTcwnK_sf3XaMA4uq1wN-MgoXwuy8-epLSn3cAySNNsOnOriKNECSKNjck1NjPu1iDQSTGxNRbx0lE3EJ7lmGrEOuxcT2q2CwWubDwKFU/s1600/Felt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSWwnFIdusvOgqw_NxNTzzAcNCT-nD0i6YnkbTcwnK_sf3XaMA4uq1wN-MgoXwuy8-epLSn3cAySNNsOnOriKNECSKNjck1NjPu1iDQSTGxNRbx0lE3EJ7lmGrEOuxcT2q2CwWubDwKFU/s1600/Felt.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I converted
a carton of raisins into the pink handheld puppet. The tongue is made of felt
and has space to slip in a finger and wiggle the tongue around. The eyes could
have been much better, I botched it up. The hair of the puppet is made out of
quilling paper, loosely wound. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Caution: If you do
end up making this puppet, ensure you get a picture before you little one can
lay hands on it. In a matter of seconds, it will look nothing like the original.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Have you
done anything of this sort before? If so, please let me know. You plan to do
something like this soon? Keep me posted on how things turn out! Bouquets and
brickbats are welcome. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-9454560928341905242014-04-03T22:18:00.000+05:302014-04-04T14:59:37.369+05:30C is to Conquer<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj8QIa0sptbuU00PnaYCN2E2E2FGxC3Uy2lyb__ghL_2zCmGOm4oP1xubPk0wGRwQ_BtPbZAcycyyf0efityaq1dq9jz3oknoeCgoV9VrvVidWBvvr8TPjaFyLLfxuCwfCICJOHlHVVudn/s1600/C.jpg" /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I was not sure what I would even tell her. I
had debated hell of a lot about this call. Would she be tired of answering
endless such calls? Would she find it intrusive? But how could I not call? You
know what made it all the more difficult? It was her birthday that day… I never
miss her birthday; it is a day after my mom’s. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I picked up some courage and called her with
a lump in my throat and a stomach in knots. There I was, delivering a
condolence message, on her birthday, on the passing of her precious little boy,
all of 3 years old, who fought valiantly against high grade glioma, a rare and
aggressive brain tumour. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Being a parent is the only way you will know
how much love and sacrifice you are capable of. It will stun you to discover
how large hearted you can be. They say, along with the baby, parents are born
as well. Despite being a parent, I cannot even imagine what they must have
gone through during the course of the treatment. Awareness has become such a
loosely used word - the scale of the misconception about paediatric cancer is
appalling and scary. Sadly, paediatric cancer is still unspoken about at a
public level in India and support groups are virtually nonexistent. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Above all, children battling this
monster and their families need constant encouragement, support and hope.
However, not everybody can provide emotional support to these families, simply
because one cannot fathom what they go through, without actually having gone
through it. But what we can all do is connect people in need with other parents
who will be able to help. A small step in this regard is the presence of two
closed groups for Parents of Indian kids with cancers: </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/ped.all.India/?directed_target_id=0"><span style="background: white; color: #3b5998; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma;">Pediatric Leukemia and Lymphoma India</span></a></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #37404e; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> </span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="background: white; color: #37404e; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">&<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/pbt.India/?directed_target_id=0"><span style="background: white; color: #3b5998; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma;">Pediatric Brain Tumor India</span></a> (I
picked this up from my friend’s FB timeline)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: 0cm; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Apparently, two of the largest children's
cancer NGO's in India raise less than 3 crores per year. So the next time you
feel philanthropic, please do consider donating to institutions / NGOs towards
care and treatment for paediatric cancer. In cash, in kind, volunteer… Really,
anything at all. I do not want to advocate any particular institution; a simple
google search will help you decide!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">A million other questions are teeming in my
head. A shout out to my journalist friends here. Could you help with awareness?
What after awareness? We all know awareness means visibility, and with
visibility comes a greater hope of funding. But who is it who allocates funds?
What are the various avenues of gathering funds? What about research
facilities? Do we have any for paediatric cancer already? What is the status of
these institutions? I read, that in some parts of the country, gender
discrimination exists even in a condition as terrible as this. Are nurses
equipped to deal with children? Do their courses support and recognize the fact
that children need special care and attention? Or are there any trainers who
can help upskill hospital staff?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">If you have noticed, I have titled this post
C is to Conquer and not C is for Cancer for a reason – Hope.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">My earnest appeal to the few people who read
my blog – should you come across a suitable opportunity or forum to share/
provide any form of support related to this, please do so without batting an
eyelid. Your efforts will lead to may just lead to saving tender little lives
someday. </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-68657421350251759212014-04-02T18:25:00.000+05:302014-04-02T18:25:01.535+05:30B is for Brevity<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioe5TwSj9fSp82NpUIcMsWgyWVyKzewkpWfTFJULCFhKyBpeD7KuuWIni-edfH3AcAPNoGNJNWrfBZSxVZ0NviEfUBYKfKjhfuH2wIn0u9XJPvbuCZv6ZaON6lSV14x4smSn3ZiSlt_lFO/s1600/B.jpg" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Today, I write six six word stories on words that begin with the letter B<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">#1 – Black</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">Our coffee. My skin. Your heart.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">#2 Betrayal<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Best bud, stubbed. They are anagrams.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">#3 Babble<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Gibberish to you , music to me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">#4 Birth<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">A girl! Rejoice, new born
parents.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">#5 Beauty<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Make-up: passé. Botox: Out of
business.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">#6 Bitter</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">That's what makes dark chocolate sweet!</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-89768203603921077782014-04-01T10:18:00.001+05:302014-04-01T10:18:24.260+05:30Airport Adventures<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;">
<img height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVLfNXl0T4Tb7-37yFmdGs6yz5xu3SpPUrJuN-nLP-_O-hPzifYGKQfVqidSRSkbzGQRkhFWtVMM_gterLDr0gB6U8NowKkYgR-WdPFhMad1i3IYBh-lCJOlmoJjF0JoBWnAgZ2WVLHgAf/s200/A.jpg" width="200" /></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I took a two
hour flight earlier this week, all alone with baby A. I was quite apprehensive
about how I would manage alone, but I met a whole bunch of people who helped
ease my nerves a great deal </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; text-indent: -18pt;">The C-Suite
executive who offered baby A some very expensive magazines, which I politely refused, for she knows not the difference between a Wharton journal and Bombay
Times.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; text-indent: -18pt;">The classic
neighbourhood aunty who gave me 5 minutes of unsolicited advice about raising
children from whom I slipped away on the pretext of checking the flight status.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; text-indent: -18pt;">A young
mother of a slightly older child, who reassured me that that phase I am in now,
is way better than hers.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; text-indent: -18pt;">A group of
college kids, obviously hungover, craving for some sleep. The look of horror on
their faces was priceless to the point of being funny when I walked alongside
them towards the boarding gates. They sneakily tried to check which flight I
was taking by throwing furtive glances at my boarding pass / hand baggage tags.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; text-indent: -18pt;">The
genuinely nice teenager who patiently kept picking up her toy every time she
dropped it, so much so, it became a game of sorts!</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; text-indent: -18pt;">A chic lady at
the coffee shop with a Fendi bag, doused in the finest of Issey Miyake fragrances.
She looked disdainfully at my dark circles, far from perfect hair, unkempt toe
nails. I felt like an old hag. She then ruined her perfect image by asking for
an “Expresso” and I had the last laugh ;-)</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">I had such a
swell time observing people’s reaction to the presence of a woman travelling
alone with a baby, but there has to be a rotten egg hidden somewhere right? A
pervert who would crane his neck any length to catch a glimpse of a woman breast
feeding. Hmph!</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-65813561755970327072014-03-27T00:26:00.000+05:302014-03-27T00:29:01.654+05:30The unthinkable?<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">I
am going to do the unthinkable – participate in the </span><a href="http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/" style="font-family: Cambria, serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">A2Z Challenge 2014</a><span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">. </span><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">As a new mother, I have been spending some time learning the tricks of the trade, which explains my hiatus for a little over a month. As a work from home mom and the only caregiver (by
choice) to my 8 month old daughter during the day, my day is packed. Any time away from baby A is consumed either by work or sleep. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">To me, the
primary purpose of participating in this challenge is to give myself the opportunity
to indulge in some “me time” that I crave for so often of late. I have so many
half written posts, most of them in my head! That dormant DIY page on my blog beckons
with open arms and this would be a great way to get some content up. I’ve
spruced up my blog a little bit, downloaded some lovely water colour social
media icons from <a href="http://www.everylittlepolish.com/free-watercolour-social-media-icons/">Every
Little Polish</a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">I’ve been
thinking about a theme for the challenge. Given the phase of life I am in right
now, in all likelihood, most of my posts will revolve around motherhood /
parenting. Having said that, I do not want to restrict myself to just that. I plan
to pepper my entries with some creative writing as well. I am hoping I will be able to attempt multiple
styles in writing fiction and possibly rediscover my love for poetry along the
way! And of course, I have some allowance for spontaneous writing – incidents
that make me laugh, issues that move me or even something work related. So, I
am going the bohemian way and keeping my blog theme free!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">By
participating in this challenge, I realize I have entrusted myself with an
enormous responsibility- that of reading and encouraging fellow bloggers. 1600
bloggers and counting! That’s a lot of people for me to draw inspiration from. I am hoping, by the end of April, taking time out to write and read other blogs will become a habit!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Here’s to
writing, reading and making new friends! Bring it on!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-72205454521803080052014-01-21T11:50:00.000+05:302014-01-21T14:30:04.218+05:30Little did she know<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">L</span><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">He meant the world to her. Ever
since she could remember, he tended to her every need, just as he did with the other cows. Some of them went missing now and then; she thought they must
have gone astray or wandered off. </span><span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">Little did she know she was
growing up in a butcher’s backyard.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">It was her birthday, but no one
seemed to remember. At the end of a long day, she dragged herself home, upset
with the world for not making her day special. L</span><span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">ittle did she know her friends
and family waited with bated breath in the darkness of her house to throw her a
big surprise!</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;"></span><br />
<div align="center">
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;"><a href="http://writetribe.com/" title="55 on Friday #WriteTribe"><img alt="55 on Friday #WriteTribe" src="http://i853.photobucket.com/albums/ab92/CorinneCR/55onFriday_zpsdc08ddff.jpg" style="border: none;" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif;">
</span>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "Courier New"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span><br />
<div align="center">
<br /></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Cambria, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px; text-align: justify;">This post has been written for Write Tribe’s </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Cambria; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px; text-align: -webkit-center;">55 on Friday</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Cambria, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px; text-align: justify;"> for the prompt “Little did she know”</span></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6907902806020152039.post-68462406808766165362014-01-13T00:09:00.001+05:302014-01-13T11:06:09.235+05:30Hunger Games<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">It was past
midnight. They stealthily approached her from opposite directions. One of them
was lean and menacing; the other was dark and stodgy. She however, seemed
blissfully unaware of the dangers lurking so close to her. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Haste
getting the better of them, the partners in crime closed in on their first
victim of the night a little too quickly. She sensed something amiss. Her
reflexes kicked in and she was too quick for them to handle. They stood stumped
as they watched their dinner fly away. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The roach
and the lizard were back to being strangers in the night. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span>
</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div align="center">
<a href="http://writetribe.com/" title="100 Words on Saturday -
Write Tribe"><img alt="100 Words on Saturday - Write Tribe" src="http://i853.photobucket.com/albums/ab92/CorinneCR/2d514474-672f-49c4-929e-6b3f8dc84559_zpsbca51962.jpg" style="border: none;" /></a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; text-align: justify;">This post has been written for Write Tribe’s </span>100 words on Saturday<span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; text-align: justify;"> for the prompt “Strangers in the night”</span></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08539415812376317093noreply@blogger.com12