Haaapyy B'day AmmuKutti!

To Meeena Mema's dearest Ammuttii,

Happy B'day sweetheart! Hv a swell time at school today and a big cake cutting session post that! Sorry ammutii tht I couldnt the promise of being there with u today :(. Banes of a working woman :(!

So where do I begin.... 6 years back? I remember my first glance of u... u were a baby of 3 months then .... u were soundly asleep in ur cradle until the moment I n ur manju mema pop in...... we were a excited bunch who couldnt wait to see their dearest niece.... n 3 months was already too long a wait for us! N that moment is etched for eternity in ma memories......The baby who was asleep till then choses just that v moment to open her eyes n treat us with the most angelic of smiles......awwwww!!!

Ammuutti, U know how special n loved u r ! U r the apple of so many eyes! with ur innocent(n not so innocent) ways u hv so tightly wrapped ur muthu n babu maama around ur little fingers! The happiness u hv bought in all ovur lives n possibly the only reason of smile in ur mom's n grandparents life!

N u as a person hv grown into somebody with a definite personality.... no shooing u off thinking u just a 6 year old baby.... yeah right! U hv ur own v definite n clear set of likes n dislikes n there are no two ways abt it! Yeah probably u do need to get a little less tongue-tied b4 strangers ... but well tht is wht u r and prob as u grow older u'll grow out of it! But did I anyway hint tht u run short of words.... No dearie no, U speak 18 to a dozen... N at times the words that come out from there far surpass ur age :)

N the most treasured part for me? The v fact that I am ur fav-mema (Ho! U dont hv to tell me tht... I know it n declare it myslef... u given no choice in it u c :) Manju mena u say? I donno who she is :-D) ...... V imp to me considering the bond taht I share with ur amma n babu maama... thou we are first cousins the relationship we share is more than that! N its a happy sigh that I let out as I know that the bond is renewed for another generation with u... Touchwood N I hope n earnestly wish that it continues.....

Wishing u a life filled with happiness... grow up to be a smart young lady (like me :) ) n yeah go onto become a doctor or auto driver (ur current 'dream-job' is to study MBBS n drive a auto :-D) but just be happy n fill our joys with lots of happiness(latter part is V imp :-D)!

Love U Ammmutti!!!
Meena Mema!

The Serial stories!

The kinda serials am talking of here is the 'saas-bahu' tele-serials! Na na not another of those bash-up sessions on them! Rather a completely diff take... Read on n decide 4 urself....

I n ma dear sister right from childhood were bought up on a steady diet of doordarshan... yeah yeah u heard tht rt... Thnx to my mom's belief that when children study TV is a bad distraction... so while all of u were gawking on Friends, Titanic n all it was good old hindi, telugu movie\serials for us! So much so that untill ma wedding English movies wern't not really ma cup of tea!! Yea Yea u would be forgiven to think tht am bought up in some remote part of Inida... But truth being I was v much bought up in good old hyd!!

So as the story goes... wht u learn in ur childhood is diff to unlearn! Today thou thnx to a bully of a hubbs I hv learnt to live with (n enjoy) HBO, Star Movies Blah blah Blah my equivalent to comfy food(Sorry... But all comparisons for me emanate only from food :-D) is till a few of those silly hindi serials! Thankfully never got hooked to those saas-bahu kinds..... The current list of mine is 'Balika Vadhu' in Colors N 'Sasuraal Gendhaa Phool' in Star(Drives ma hubbs crazy... But LOL when he has no choices but watch it thru n pops ina few complex questions only to end it up with his typical one liners!) !! N imagine ma surprise when I just realized the other day that the only serials that ma kiddo of a sis watches are these very two..... This when neither of us had any linking to what the other was watching :-D!

Ha sisters!!!!

The Office!!

Ha think its gonna be a boring post abt my work place! U couldn't hv been wronger!!

This my dear friends is the name coined for... Guess what could be called "The Office"???? The idea is courtesy ma hubbs ,... so do twist ur brain a little!! He never thinks straight u c :)

Now tht I hear all sad answers... lemme let the cat out! This my friends would be the name of... of... of.... a pub!!! Yeah yeah yeah.... u heard tht rt! A pub sometime in future as n when he decides to open one!!

What did u say? Its a sad name for a pub!! welcome to the club of straight, 'in-box' thinkers... Dont worry I'll give u company here!

Think hatke, 'out-of-box' .... Imagine ur boss or possibly ur mom\dad\GF\BF calls u when u drinking away at pub n asks u 'Where r u'... ans with a straight face (n no mockery in voice) Am at  'The Office'......

LOL! Dimaag ki batthi jalaa diya???

Faith Reinforced!

How do u like it when a person who u look up to with lots of awe, respect n love   does something tht u think is wrong - something beneath them!!! N u cant even walk up n confront them cause u know its a personal decision!

Exactly wht I had gone thru yesterday! N its yikes to say the least ~~ U dont waana look the person in the eyes ~~ Cause u dont want the person to read into them n deduce wht is going on in ur mind n make u blurt them all out ~~ Cause u r afraid u'll cross the line! U r upset to say the least!!! N u wonder what the world is come upt ~~ Esp when its somebody u idolize :(!

But well tht was yest ~~ As they say every cloud has a silver lining n tht just makes each dark  cloud livable! I love the person for getting it out of me ~~ I donno how u manage tht each time! Not so diff u say... esp when I come running to u even thou I hv the prob with u :) N the justification u gave made me all the more say "wow" ~~ The principles u hv in life n how u stick to them just reinforced the reason why u  mean so much!

Its indeed a "Happy sigh" tht I let out ~~ its bliss to have your faith reinforced!  Thank You  for just being wht u r :)

But as with everything in life there are people who have taken the brunt of this decision....... Well part n parcel of life but .....................

A Cyclone Hit Ma Kitchen!

N the cyclone is none but ma hubbs dearest! B4 the credits are rolled out, lemme give u a background....

Sat morn dawns in fresh n ma hubs dearest has this uncontainable itch to make barbeque chicken (in microwave)...... This when ma brain cells arent even yet fully awake n there is this person trying to get me to bareque the chicken... 3 years hasnt taught him much...hmpf!!! Ok ok now to give him all his due, the only contribution I was supposed to do is handover the ingredients n the required microwave accessories!! N here came the hitch.... One of the accessory is gone missing!! Now my dearest hubbs literally ransacks the kitchen in search of it! Me?? Well I gota better things to do on sat morn :-P!

At then end of all this(fruitless search), ma kitchen did indeed look like it was hit by a cyclone!! But does the man take this face down!! Ofcourse no... He instead throws it all back n tells me "Hmpf!! Any order in this kitchen is due to me.... N the cyclone here is u! N anyways the cyclones are always named after ladies... so it should indeed be you".... Grrrrrrr!!!!!!!!

Well well.... I will still live with all this allegations cause I know I need not worry abt cooking 3 meals a day for your highness!!! I know u do more than ur share of cooking.... I know in quite a few ways u just let me be...... Love u...Muah!!!!!

PS: N wht do u call ur friend who when u complain abt all these injustice in ur life.... Forget abt giving u a shoulder to cry decide instead to give u a earful n become supporter of ur hubbss... Life I say!

N yeah yeap he did manage to make his barbeque chicken minus the accessory!! N I did enjoy licking it clean :)

The movie Horoscope!!!

The regular stay-at-home sat ritual includes quite a bit of blog-hopping and if I find an interesting blog makes ma day like nothing else :).... But mind u its only MA day.... poor hubbs has to fight foot n nail to get some attention n food... LOL :)

So back to topic, a post I hit upon was abt "Movie Horoscope" where it said "The first movie u watch together as a couple sets the footage of how ur married life will be"..... LOL is what I did! But also set me thinking as to what was the first one I watched with hubbs dearest... Any guesses!!! ROFL is what I did when I hit upon the answer!!!

"Bheja Fry"!!!  what am subjected to day in n day out!!!!

N we are Draped!

Or rather my home is...Almost a year after we moved in :-D!

Speaks something of our domesticity doesnt it :)

Ps: All tht I meant is we put some curtains in our new home...LOL! Hv a quick decko.....

Lemme now show off a corner of my home - A small corner but something I love(This is a pic as in month of may - theres been additions n subtractionns since then...  but well as they say lets start somewhere)

Did u like this corner? N if u wondering what spl abt it.... lets start with each of the artifacts....

Lets start with the lamps there,,,,, The big n small both were gifts from ma fav people.... One from my mom's sister n other from my dad's bro... Both v spl people! The former for well lets just say shes been around for me from the day I was born to till date... for each small or big momentous occasion in ma life :). N for my dad's bro... Now tht my dadu is no more around.... My velachan who resembles him closely brings along the dearest memories tht I hold v precious :)

The Dholak(Did I tell U that this one was transformed from an simple wooden casket to a Dholak right in front of our eyes), Chillum are collectibles from our trip to Gokarna en route to Goa, from where we picked up the Devil Sticks at Anjuna Flea Market(yeah Yeah remember the Peter pan in ma house :))

N the Wooden Toys - picked this up from Chennai - Only later did we know that they these are the first collectibles gifted to a newly married couple as they build their set of dussera Golu

N how can I forget the small bamboo shoot(sadly dead now :( )  sitting majestically atop the elephant stand in a urli!!! All except the urli gifted by dearest Sabi... The bamboo shoot was her gift on our first anniversary while the elephant stand was one of the many gifts she is peppered ma house with :).

N the urli is the one in which the milk boiling cermony was done as we entered this new home :)

Now u know why I love this space n b4 I conclude don't miss the background... Thts is ma front room wall... did u like its color?

Cheers!!

An Superfluous piece of information... one of those interesting but useless piece tht u pick up somewhere but remains unforgotten!! (Why why why do I never remember PIN for ma debit cards or imp pwds this way!!!!)


So the enlightment today is centerd on the topic “Ever wondered why we say Cheers before taking a swig of drink?” Please stop rolling ur eyes – This is interesting I swear…..

N if u decorum-illiterate like me this will come handy - B4 U take the first sip of ur liquor(Dont be a gobbler... patience dearies patience), the group raises their glass in unison, clangs them LIGHTLY against each other over a toast of ‘cheers’ n immediately takes in a sip b4 setting the glass down(this is supposedly the imp part)!! Ooph I always find it funny tht so much decorum precedes what is soon gonna be a unruly party (Unruly 4 sure if ma behavior is any barometer:-P)!

Ha now back to our topic - This nicety was framed to ensure that all our 'senses'(Remember five sense organs of human body? - vision, hearing, smell, taste, and touch.) are gratified! How u say - Ur eyes see it, Skin feels it n the smell n taste part are of course self explanatory!! But what happens to our poor old hearing - N so to appease the ears somebody came up the nicity to say 'cheers' b4 each drinking session!!! (How jobless!)

Ho now I see quite a few shaking ur head with an ufathomable expression on ur face (Evn I had one when hubbs dearest enlightened me with this piece of gyaan)! Now do I vouch for this? Possibly No, considering my hubbs is capable enuf to coin this n much more nonsense all by himself and market it to gullible souls like me :)

Living Life In Denial!!!

Hmmmm something I was told by ma manager yest......

B4 I jump into tht statement a brief decko... ha which of my posts doesnt hv it now!! Well until yest(n even probably today) I did pride myself to be a good team lead... a good peoples person! So yest's discussion was a eye opener of sorts where one random person accused me of 'Favoritism' of all the things... But ha a single note is gonna get the chip of ma shoulder or make me think twice.. well u should be kidding me!!! Me n being partial... never!!!


But well well giving the due acknowledgment, I had a few more sane n sensible managers who decided to take things in their hands n drive in some sense n drive in some sense into ma dumb head! What they said made me realize what defines 'Favoritism'... going out on breaks with only 'Top performers' n spending time with only a selected few team members in a team outings...... well dont laugh it off! Try thinking from a non-performers shoes n possibly they hv a point there!! But for me to acknowledge this(n so the title) n do something abt it seems a huge mountainous task!!

Bottom Line: Moving up the ladder can be a boring affair :(. But thank you for taking the time out n helping me understand :)

Book Review: The Unbearable Lightness of Being

A book again lent by my English-talking-sleeping-eating-breathing friend Sabs! N as with all the books she lends there is a element of twist n surprise in it ala the 'Like Water For Chocolate'!

The book is 'The Unbearable Lightness of Being' by Milan Kundera n the book is based on ma fav topic 'Human Behavior'... As I write this I have just read a few pages of it.... But the way the gray areas of human behavior is been treated gave me such a kick tht I had to pen it down immediately...... sample this....

A man divorced..... Whose life is a long list of 'one-Night-Stands' with no emotional strings attached until he meets his lady love(???)! The '??' is cause as with many of us he himself isnt sure if she is the love of his life or well if circumstances bought them together in a union!! He cant himself explain the reason as to why he still drags himself for yet another one night stands despite having a lady in his life(in spite of the fact tht he no longer enjoys them)... Look at the irony of the situation!!! N then one fine day when the lady walks out, he drops lock, stock n barrel n follows suit (But again he isnt sure as to wht the motto is - is it cause she is the love of his life or is the circumstances).... wow I like the way life isnt painted in black n white!!!

Ha this my friends I think is life.....

Edited To Add: Ha this is one book I am falling in love with more n more as I read each chapter in it - if the first few chapters hinted at an adulterous relationship - the next few goes into the physcology of the people in it! While 'Fidileity' is a turn on for few its 'Betrayal' for others ~~ N the reason for it is captured amazingly in just a few words! Am Loving It!!!

A rebellion!!

Have u ever rebelled cause it gives u kicks :-D! Cause you know u can go out n rebel n  taste  a few of the long list of forbidden fruits of life n still feel secure for u know u hv a strong anchor to pull u back from any real danger!!!

Thank You n sorry for the heart-burn!

Writers Block?

I hv absolutely nothing to write on :( Help help!!

Life seems to be stuck between 'UNAPPRECIATED' work n a few relationships!! Want a dose of good books, movies basically waana sing 'Happy Days are Here Again'..... HELP HELP HELP!!!

Back Yet Again!!

I know I know for sometime there’s been this trend of missing out on action during regular intervals... But funnily enuf this time around the space wasn’t missed!! Why??? Hmm cause I hv moved to a new space ...... but but the readership there is strictly by invitation only........ ho yeap thts news! So what are the reactions I guage?? Why? Is this space gonna be deserted? N a few threats for readership on new space... patience patience my friends patience ... One q at a time :) (Ha!!! Stop rolling ur eyes... This is ma very own space n AM A CELEBRITY here..... So I can afford all the starry nakras.... LOL)


So why did I move? Stop doing a ROFL if I Cite 'Fame' n 'Privacy' as the reasons..... Yeah yeah am a fulltoo star here! But frankly that is the reason... I was zapped when the other day a colleague I hardly knew came up and started talking to me abt the books I read... the explanation that followed suit was the usual suspect.... My blog space!!! Who else to blame but me... what else did I expect when I was advertising it so shamelessly on orkut!!! Now Now this started a worm of doubt in ma mind.... this space was alomst a unadulterated version of ma life.. now am happy n comfy with my friends reading it but not really with people whom I know more at a professional level than personal! N ofcourse there are topics too personal that I prefer not to talk here n so came out the new blog space......

But well this is my own space... my fav if u ask me!! So there is no deserting it..... Keep dropping in here for wht I hope is more of a lighthearted dosage of fun n good times n slices of ma life :)

I am a Sinful Wo’Man’!!!

With no recommendations Needed, I take a bow :-D. N now if I were to list my not-so-womanly quailities well the list will run to pages :)! Lemme try n put on a few non-controversial n easily digestable facts!

• The most obvious one -Running a house! Ma house is no better than the one where a group of bacherlors stay put... Yikes!
• Cooking - Not ma cup of tea! Thank all lucky stars tht my hubbs dearest is somebody who enjoys this :-D
• Dressing up n preening n Lady-Like mannerisms\ Body Language... Yikes!
• The freedom to choose the career which comes along with even more weird timings.. well well credit due to hubbs here!
• Peth-Pooja with no second thots on the tyres around waist - Why Live if not for Good Food!

BTW do these factors not show a strong tendency towards laziness rather than any tomboyishness :-D

But But Isnt it a gr8 time to be a woman - sinful for sure... Hv ur cake n eat it too!! U can be all the un-orthorthodx\non-traditional U waana be under the pretext of being 'Modern' N well be the 'Kaam-chor' under the pretext of being the 'weaker Sex' :-P!!

Thnx Swaram babe for tagging along! N am sitting n typing this out at a good 30 mins past midnight sitting in the blessed premises of ma office... For wht joy u say! Sitting at office at this weird hour n blogging !! Well well lemme use my colleagues fav tag line... Bosses are always right!!!!