So long....

I am moving....to wordpress that is.

2 reasons why - One, i think this should rejuvinate me and make me blog more often. and two, i discovered recently that blogger blogs are not displayed as search results on google. Whats the point really if no one knows / reads my blogs??
So Ciao people, so long.......... see u at http://idiotland.wordpress.com/

Tag is the name of the game

SO found yet another one..........wierd questions....you can judge the answers yourselves...

1.) Can you cook? well....yes though I must admit I was right........it is as boring as I thought it would be

2.)What was your dream growing up? To become a CEO of a Fortune 500 company......or start a company and get it into the Fortune 500....was highly confused between the 2 options.....what do you guys think I should do?

3.)Q. What talent do you wish you had? Gift of the gab....makes life so much easier :)

4.)Q. Favorite place? Mumbai...am tired of this question and am sure you guys must be tired of seeing this answer again & again

5.)Q. Favorite vegetable? Hmmm...Potatoes, sometimes peas, sometimes bitter gourd

6.)Q. What was the last book you read? Kite Runner by Khalid Hosseni....its actually not the last one but the last one whose name I remember

7.)Q. What zodiac sign are you ? Aquarius....very typical I am told!

8.)Q. Any Tattoos and/or Piercings? Pierced my ears....yeah yeah...Tam Bram and all.....

9.)Q. Worst Habit? Tough one.......will get back on this

10.)Q. If you saw me walking down the street would you offer me a ride? Considering I currently dont drive...NO

11.)Q. What is your favorite sport? I watch tennis and cricket...not much of a sportsperson myself

12.)Q. Negative or Optimistic attitude? Optimistic

13.)Q. What would you do if you were stuck in an elevator with me? Well....call someone to get us out...duh!

14.)Q. Worst thing to ever happen to you? Dunno....life?

15.)Q. Tell me one weird fact about you - I think i am completely normal. Let me know if you find anythin I do wierd

16.)Q. Do have any pets? Nope....and dont plan to either

17.)Q. Do u know how to do the macarena? Oh yeah.......its fun :)

18.)Q. What time is it where you are now? 5:45 pm on a saturday evening.... some life

19.)Q. Do you think clowns are cute or scary? wrong time for this question.......I just got back aftering watching Heath Ledger in Dark Knight!

20.)Q. If you could change one thing about how you look, what would it be??? nothing....I am fine the way I am.

21.)Q. Would you be my crime partner or my conscience? Crime Partner is so much more fun! On second thoughts, crimes alone are a lot more enjoyable. so sorry buddy! find someone else

22.)Q. What color eyes do you have? Black

23.)Q. Ever been arrested? Nope

24.)Q. Bottle or Draft (draught)? depends

25.)Q. If you won $10,000 dollars today, what would you do with it? Buy a car

26.)Q. What kind of bubble gum do you prefer to chew? None...I am more of a chocolate person

27.)Q. What 's your favorite bar to hang at? Any..as far as I have interesting company

28.)Q. Do you believe in ghosts? Not seen one till now....so NO!

29.)Q. Favorite thing to do in your spare time? Read or blog

30.)Q. Do you swear a lot? not at all

31.)Q. Biggest pet peeve? Anyone stepping into my room.....well this may also qualify for the wierd habit question....but thts me

32.)Q. In one word, how would you describe yourself? Unbelievable

33.)Q. Will you repost this so I can fill it out and do the same for you? Nah! too much trouble

Tag along once more

Okie...Tag Part 3 is here...Supposed to give ONE WORD answers...So tough! Since when did I become a person of few words? A slight modification to the rules just for me. Words in brackets dont count. (Ok?) Here goes -

1. If you get something out of a vending machine, it's most likely to be: Chocolates. (Am getting oh-so-nostalgic here...thinking of the Cadburys vending machine near my college gets my salivary glands going....yummm!)

2. A word you sometimes catch yourself misspelling: tomorrow (Hv no clue if this is the right spelling. Thank God for 'Autocorrect' on MS Word. Mr.Gates, take a bow)

3. You least want people to see you as: Easy-going (someone who has life handed over in a platter with trimmings)

4.You're a little scared of: Mom (dont need any further words to decribe tht one)

5. The least attractive thing you do in your sleep: Snore (Big deal)

6.The number of contacts in your cell phone: 215

7. How many of them are restaurants: 2

8.You lose your cool when someone: irritates (by not understanding my point of view or talks down to me. hmmmph)

9. When you go to the drugstore, you often can't leave without buying: Candy

10. Your dance moves can best be described as: Graceful (Modesty, thy name is mine)

11.The majority of your underwear is: branded

12.Something you eat even though you hate how bad it is for you: Chips

13. You think you're really not a great: Artist (I mean the drawing and sketching kind....else I am popular as a 'drama queen')

14. How much cash is in your wallet right now: Rs. 1647/-

15. The majority of your shoes are this color: Black (brown comes a close second)

16. You don't think you'll ever be able to get rid of your: extra kilos

17. If your breath is bad, it's most likely because you had: garlic (usually its garlic bread coupled with an onion topped pizza...)

18. You feel embarrassed when you: burp

19. The last public place where you used the restroom: Hotel

20. Something you don't like to debate in mixed company: Menstruation

21.You don't think you can pull off wearing: Sleeveless

22. Something you own entirely too much of: Bags (Dont get me started on this ....I just lovvvvvvve them)

23. Someone you would love to see in concert who might bring down your street cred: ARR

24. The last thing that you spilled on yourself: Curds (tht was today's story....I am always spilling something on myself. Think I'd make a great brand ambassador for a detergent....any takers??)

25. If you were on a reality show, the producers would likely portray/characterize you as the: Blabbermouth (could also be the clown...guess we need to ask the producers themselves. where are all the producers when u need one?)

Tag along again.......

This is the second of my 'tag along' series. Another tag I picked up...feel free to tag yourself :)

I am: smiling (right now :))

I think: of everyone and everything except me

I know: that I am gonna be a success someday

I want: a successful career

I have: lots of dreams

I wish: Chennai auto drivers go by the meter

I miss: Mumbai (mainly its auto drivers :))

I fear: lonliness

I feel: happy when I meet more and more people

I smell: as good as my perfume

I search: only on Google

I wonder: how much would be too much

I regret: quitting my dance

I love: freedom and independence

I ache: when I eat wrong :(

I care: Frankly, I don't care!

I am not: doing any work right now!

I believe: in destiny

I dance: whenever I am alone

I sing: only in groups

I cry : when hurt

I don’t always : have 'the right bag' for every occassion....when am I gonna catch up???

I fight : the most with my brother...we come to blows and then share a coffee :)

I write: lot lesser than I should

I win: hearts

I lose: touch with people! need to improve on that one

I never: miss an Aaamir Khan movie

I always: go to sleep while commuting

I confuse: when I don't understand (Confused, eh?)

I listen: to everyone's story........sometimes thats the best thing you can do

I can usually be found: dreaming and planning

I am scared: of adding too much salt to the dish :)

I need: family and lots of friends around me

I am happy about: the occassional rain in Chennai, especially during office hours

Tag along

Totally bereft of ideas...so thought i shall do all the tags i came across in various blogs and thereby generat content in my blog...yeah yeah! sad! but I hv not been posting for a month now simple because I am not finding anythin post-worthy. this is surely better for the continuing life of my blog! so here goes tag no. 1

The Page 123 tag.

These are the rules:

1. Pick up the nearest book.

2. Open to page 123.

3. Find the fifth sentence.

4. Post the next three sentences.

5. Tag five people, and acknowledge the person who tagged you.

Okie........nearest book...hmmm ....hunt hunt! Gotcha

Its the SEBI (Disclosure and Investor Protection) Guidelines, 2000 (ok, I am guilty...doin blogs at office hours)

anyways...Page 123, here i come

Lines 1..2...3..4...5...the next 3 sentences -

The risk factors shall appear in the prospectus in the following manner:

a. Risks envisaged by management

b. Proposals, if any, to address the risks

c. Any 'notes' required to be given prominence shall appear immediately after the risk factors

Hey the funda of this tag suddenly dawned on me .......Its 'the tag' for office hours. One, it makes you learn something...like I just did. (the irrelevant part is that I am supposed to be knowing this for over 4 months now!) Anyways, I learnt something today. Secondly, and more importantly, it makes you look like working when you are actually blogging. Whoa! I like the guy who thought of this tag. 'Smart Boy' :)

So anyone who wants to pick this tag, do it during office, learn something / pretend working :) Ok, I should leave now. Am envisaging lots of Risk factors if I continue....Ciao

Arrow

My entry for Klash this week. There is a slight twist to the kahani this time....In addition to the other rules, we had to base the entry on some mythological event/character/etc...makes it interesting. So here goes.....

When his visitors left, he turned to his wife. “I have to do my duty.”
“The consequences can be terrible for you.”
“But they are right. Think of that young girl. It will make a world of difference.”
“I’ll come with you.”
Armed with his bow and arrows he began his journey accompanied by his cuckoo, parrot, the gentle breeze, the lovely season of spring and his ever-loving, dutiful wife.
Their presence made the atmosphere cheerful and him hopeful. He saw the girl arrive. This was his chance. One arrow should do the trick. His wife prayed. Just as Kamadeva fired his passion filled arrow at Lord Shiva, his third eye blazed open……..

There are numerous versions to the story I alluded to. Here is one such lovely site.

Indiblogger Chennai Meet

Finally I am posting on the Indiblogger meet last weekend which even got me my 15 seconds of fame :)
Call it luck, call it destiny, I, coincidentally, registered on the site a mere 4 days before the event. Having registered for the meet, my site traffic shot up like 5 times (meaning, 5 people visited my page in 4 days vis-à-vis zilch in the past 3 months). It was a good omen; I had to attend the event. Being new to the city, I did’nt have an iota of clue as to how to get to the venue. Thanks to Lemonade, I managed to find the venue easily and be on time. I was ‘oh-so-hesitant’ to enter the hotel. I had fleeting thoughts of taking an auto and returning home. But site traffic and total abhorrence for bargaining with auto guys made me take the big step forward.
There were about 20 odd people when I entered and I tried to walk-in without being noticed. If you have seen me you will know that is totally impossible. I was spotted and greeted by some of the Indiblogger team and led to a seat near a couple of people. I sat, stared and smiled which is my usual ‘first 15 minutes’ persona. I got to know Shoonyata and Ashwini who were seated next to me. I spotted Pseudonym (one of the brave ones who visited and commented on my site) on the other side. There was a very relaxed atmosphere with people spotting the ones they knew and getting to know the faces of those in their comment section. The commencement was delayed by half hour to accommodate the latecomers. (That’s not fair! Why did the rest of us be on time?)
The intro was to be by Lemonade and when she walked up to face the rest of us I realized no chilled glass would be offered as welcome. The Indiblogger team intro was exactly what I had read in the previous blog meet reviews. Guys, don’t you think you should find a new story? And if that Old Monk story is true, do you have a vacancy?? Then began the one minute of fame when you get to introduce yourself and your blog. There was also this sweet guy from the Indiblogger team (am not too good with names L) who would display your site on the projector. Neat concept! I was elated to see that people came in random order and I could easily give this thing a miss. But as it moved on, I thought, what the heck! Lemme scare them good! So I gave a few lines, got the usual question as to the meaning of my blog title. The minute I returned to my seat I realized that the answer should have been –‘leave a comment on my blog’.
Then came the main agenda –food. I met this Poddi Ponnu Nithya who had a blog on, hold your breath, T Rajendran. That guy must be going over the moon. We chatted up, ate and got back to our seats. Then we had a session called Know your readers where comments were read from different blogs and we had to identify the one on ours and do a jig. I am still to find the comment that was attributed to my blog but I enjoyed doing the jig nevertheless. If you wanna see me doing that jig, ask him.
Then we had a play by the Rebelz Group, a funny take on bloggers intermingled with the recent T20 series. Was fun J Then came the session on Mobile Blogging by Pseudonym. I call myself tech-savvy but this I was completely unaware of. That was my learning for the day and I should be exploring this blogging option very soon. Then there was a session on Windows Live Write by Sandhya, a Microsoft Student representative. Quite interesting! And while all this was going on I realized that there was someone at home awaiting his dinner. I picked my memoir, a t-shirt and ran.
All in all it was a fun time. Thanks you guys at Indiblogger. Some more meets like this would be awesome. To end with your tagline –‘I blog therefore I am’

Check this out.....

Random Question 1

I am definetely goin to post a full length report on last week's Chennai Indiblogger meet latest by tomorrow...........till then tell me sumthin -

Given a choice, should one do what makes one happy or what is the right thing to do?

Clash

This week's entry to the Klash of the Konfessioners....the word is 'clash'

"Not another grand-daughter". His mother's renewed chanting brought him back to the present….. this familiar agonizing wait when every second dragged on for a whole minute. He remembered his previous three visits…futile visits waiting for his son. "This time will be different", he smiled. Finalizing a name for his son would kill those cruel hours. No! That's what he did last time. Bad luck! He played with the blue stone ring…which was to bring him good luck. Or would his astrologer be proved right? Will he be the last son of his lineage? He prayed.
"What a beautiful girl!", the panting nurse broke his reverie He slumped into his chair. Who has ever won the clash against destiny?

Thank you Indiblogger

Hey...stuck with crazy amount of work. So i am unable to write a full length post on the amazing Chennai Indiblogger Meet. Hope this suffices for now (Hindu Metroplus June 10, 2008)

Bloggers Meet

Hey U know what....there is a Chennai Bloggers Meet
on Sunday June 8, 2008
at Hotel Dee Cee Manor, T Nagar
by IndiBloggers
My first blogger meet.......Sounds like fun.....see u there :)

Pledge

Continuing my mission of visiting all Shoppers' Stop outlets in the country (hehe...whot a mission!) I checked out the one at Harrington Road, Chennai. I guess I have visited every outlet in Mumbai, the one at Gurgaon and also Kolkata. I have a long way to go...and I will:) The best part of the whole trip was that I actually knew the way from home all the way to the SS outlet. Whoa! Was I overjoyed!!! I also know the route to my office but that has some unfair advantages over SS –
1. The 100 ft from Anna Nagar to Guindy has as many turns as a straight line possibly can. And Me Mumbaikar may not know that the hindi word for 'kantha' is actually 'pyaaz' but I do know a straight road when I see one.
2. I have been on that single straight road twice a day, six days a week, twenty-four days a month for the past 3 months
But this one to SS outlet had as many twists and turns as a Balaji soap, one-ways and subways (so very unique in Chennai)...I traversed all that and landed at SS at about 5 p.m. for some relaxed shopping as also window, shadow, etc shopping.
It was not too crowded for a Sunday evening...i wondered why. Then dawned the realisation that it was the IPL final between Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings. Regular readers (I know that is a non-existing tribe....but it kinda sounds kewl. Like there are actually ppl in this world, except my dear mister, who read this blog) might curiously note that my lack of posting wrt IPL coincided with Mumbai Indians losing matches in quick succession. Let me assure you that it is so. I shut my eye like the proverbial cat and thought if I don’t acknowledge it, it has'nt happened. Damn the team...not even semi-finals? That too at a time when mister and I were having one of our famous 'Mumbai is better than Chennai' arguments. Mr. Tendulkar, do you know what all I had to endure thanks to you and our team?? Anyways I am sure we'll win it next time.
That was why I was not too interested in that final in which Mumbai's only participation was the location....but can u have better crowds anywhere else ;) Having realized the match schedule, mister decided that shopping, snacking, burping, negotiating with auto guy and travelling back home had to be completed by 8.00 pm. I was ok with the rest, but negotiating with auto guy??? Impossible!
Our list had 2 trousers and 1 perfume in it...if I was shopping alone, be assured I would have bought everything except the trousers and perfume. If hubby dearest had walked in alone he would have been in time for Rajasthan's net practice the previous day. BUT as they say love is blind, maybe foolish, which is why he took me along ;) I wanted pot pourri. He said trousers. I almost bought '3 mistakes of my life' by 'Chetan Bhagat'. Mister said trousers. I gazed longingly at the latest collection of 'Hidesign'. Mister dragged me to the trouser section. Aaaaaargh! Those trousers! I had a tough time juggling between shopping and sticking to the list.
Hats off to my hubby! He managed to rummage through n number of shelves stocking x+y+z number of brands, pick 3 of which he liked (am still wondering how can a human being like ONLY 3!), find a trial room, try all 3 trousers, select 2 out of them, give measurements and negotiate with the shop assistant on time to be taken for alteration, all under half hour. By this time I would have decided that I should not be buying long kurtas since I have too many and maybe I should look at medium length or short kurta though not too jazzy & with too much work on it cos I had a few of those and my main requirement was for casual weekend wear. And this guy actually, believe me, actually completed his entire shopping for, what I am sure is, another 8-10 months. He would’ve paid the bill too but for the tech snag at the bill counter. Having paid the bill and getting membership cards and plethora of points for our half hour shopping we proceeded to the perfume counter, though not before issuing numerous threats on what all we could do to the shop assistant and his family if we did not get the altered to the perfect 43” within 20 minutes. That was mister’s scheduled time for buying perfume. Snigger, snigger
We sniffed our way to the ground floor where perfume man was waiting with coffee beans in his hand “Some perfumes, sir!” This has always bothered me. Only the perfume and cosmetics people ask us to buy their products. The garments, shoes, bags, etc counter staff never do that. Why’ o’ why? Guess that shall remain one of my life’s unanswered questions.
Then begun our hunt for the perfect perfume for my mother-in-law -light, daily-wear types. I almost fainted sometime after the 35th perfume and hubby did the same after he saw the price tag. We finally settled on a ‘pure lightness’ perfume which coincidentally was the first one we tried. Then started my actual shopping. It would have been scandalous if I actually bought only what I intended to. I mean what about retail boom and consumerism? So I picked some cosmetics and another perfume for hubby after sniffing through the coffee beans for like hundred times.
We paid for these stuff, accumulated more points on our membership card. I bravely fought for more points to be accumulated but mister would have none of it. He marched to the trouser guy to get the altered ones. When I think of it today, if that had been ready then, maybe things would have been different. But it was not to be. Destiny! What else can I say? They needed another ten minutes to get the perfect fit. It was that moment that mister made probably one of the top five blunders of his life. He said those ‘you-know-what’ words –“Sowmya, why don’t you see if you like anything?”
He did’nt realize then that he would reach home only after Shane Warne would reach his. So off we went to the ladies’ section of the store…………
I admit that on most occasions buying a formal shirt / trouser is a traumatic experience for me. It would, for you too, if you weighed even 20% less than me. My general approach in such a situation is to pick the biggest size available. Then I feel so good about myself when it is slightly big for me and pick one size smaller wherein I feel ‘thin’. That’s a pick-me-up I often use. Feel free to borrow the idea….you’ll feel great!!! So I scanned all the brands available, picked quite a few I liked and proceeded to the trial room. On the way tragedy struck. My route was blocked, barricades in front of me in the form of my mister. He relieved me of many shirts and all I was left with were a mere 4. Maybe he realized his mistake and was trying to make the best of his situation but destiny always has its own way. For once, I got a trial room without being reminded of the ticket queues at peak time in Thane station. Wow! This was turning to be a nice day. At the perfect moment when I locked myself in and began trying out the shirts the Electricity God decided to play truant. Poof went the power and I was stuck inside for all of 3 minutes. How I survived that long in the pitch dark room with only myself to look at on all four side merits a post all by itself. Right, it was scary.
After that cam the bigger scar(e). I did not fit into the first shirt I tried. Thinking I picked the wrong size, I tried shirt 2. Same result. I started to get oh-so-slightly worried. When shirt 3 also refused to yield to my demands I let out a cry of anguish. What am I to do now? Can I never shop again? Do I need circus tents as mister so often teases me? All those blissfully happy moments of scanning through few thousands of garments and picking the 50 I liked. Then trying them on, selecting the 30 best through carefully devised scientific procedures combined with the ever reliable close-my-eyes-and-touch-one methodology in which I always end up touching 2. What do I do now? What do I live for? Can I ever enter a store again? Will I be able to lead a normal life again?
I ran out of the trial room, dumped the rogue shirts in a corner and ran far far from the garment section to the ‘Crossword’ where I am not judged by inches, feet, shapes and such other disgraceful yardsticks. I scanned through shelves and shelves of books –my best friends. Mister found me gazing longingly at the ‘Top 10’ list. He did’nt budge, not giving any allowances for the fact that I was just recovering from such a major trauma. He left me waiting at the entrance of the store and went to find his altered trousers. I am sure, by now, you must be tearing your hair apart to find out what the title of the post has got to do with the actual post. Well, here it comes.
As I was waiting I happened to spot an open book. Enquiries and further investigations revealed that it was a pledge book. Basically everyone could write down something as their pledge and hopefully fulfill it sometime in their life. The concept sounded cool. I read the previous entries which ranged from selfish desires to world peace. I was inspired. I borrowed a pen from one Mr.Perfume and proceeded to pledge –
‘I pledge that I will use my skills and talents to the optimum so as to be useful to myself, my family and the world at large.’
How does that sound? Well, don’t ask me as to what I am doing to that end. This is the first step and the agenda for the week was only to make the pledge. I shall figure out something soon and definitely keep you guys posted! Mister was back with his 2 new trousers and we set off. Then came his casual question, “so how many kilos did you pledge to lose?” I was stumped. Why did I not think of that? Another unanswered question of my life!
We reached home on dot at 8 with mister complaining that he would miss the opening batsmen walk from the pavilion to the crease. Well, well the match started at 8.15 and he did not miss a single step!
I’ll be going to Westside next week in my eternal quest for the perfect shirt. Keep watching this space.

P.S. Hubby, I know you would probably be the only one to read this. But you know my temptation for exaggeration far exceeds that for even chocolate and that I am only doing this to improve my writing skills. (Obviously! No doubt! ;)

Shadow

U know what, the guys at Klash of the Konfessioners had put my last entry on their blog contest and I got some pretty nice comments too :) Am trying my luck again. This week's word is 'Shadow' ....check it out

“Can’t believe this Swati! Look at yourself”, Gayatri was fuming.
You have nothing left. Your children, job....why did you give up everything? For Arvind?
Gayathri thought of the enthusiastic and bubbly Swati who charmed everyone around her. People fell in love with her inspite of themselves. Everyone wanted to be with her since laughter & fun were guaranteed. Then she fell for Arvind….
Looking at her pale and spiritless sister, Gayathri could not help screaming, “What have u done to yourself? You were not like this”.
“I loved to talk, Arvind liked silence. I loved my job, he felt threatened. I wanted children, he was not interested. I loved sunshine, he preferred darkness. All I am now is a shadow”.

Life-live it

What is life asks one and all
Every spring, summer or fall

When you are weak
and things seem bleak
Then all you do is sigh
and reflect on life's lows & highs

Life is beautiful, good & nice
If u did'nt think so
you're in for a surprise

What is life, if u ask
It is not about existing under a thousand masks
Its about making relationships last
about taking things slowly, not running fast
Its about having a contended family
and friends who, in us, believe
Its about getting up each day with a smile
and bringing it everyone's lips around one mile
Its about being able to light up another's life
Fill it up with bright colours and warm sunshine

Don't look at life as a battlefield with endless struggle and war
Live it as a flower spreading fragrance one place and all

Mumbai on the roll :D

Yohooooooo! Mumbai did it again.....beat Deccan Chargers. 6th straight win!!!
'Bravo' Bravo !!!
Bring on Punjab on Wednesday !!!

Love

Its euphoric once and then depression
Its a beautiful way of expression
It makes u laugh sometimes & sometimes cry
It gives u the inspiration for another try

It makes u feel light & lighted
Thats when u r absolutely delighted
It gives u a reason to live
A reason to smile and in good things believe

It gives u hope every morning
And soothes your wounds every night
You can't classify it as wrong or right
You never know when it might strike

We suddenly seem beautiful to ourselves
And feel the days brighter and flowers bloom by themselves
Nothing seems more important than that secret glance
Thats when your heart writes poetry freelance

Your life begins and ends with his one smile
You could do anything for it, even run ten miles
You cease to be your own master
B'cos of him who makes your heart go flutter
Your heart leaps when you see that someone
Its love, its love that makes the world go round :)

Knockout :D

Guys Guys...did anyone watch the IPL match yesterday? yeah rite, the blink and miss one. U blinked and Kolkata Knight Riders had lost a wicket!
Was'nt I loving it.....the pure joy of seeing Mumbai win a match 'oh-so-comprehensively'....not giving the KKR guys the minutest of chance to get back( well...KKR was'nt too keen on tht either..hehe)
Fantastic! Fabulous! Fantabulous! Mind-blowing! Awesome! I am feeling euphoric...Yipeeeeeeee!
Of the total of 67, 43 was scored by 3 guys with extras as the 4 largest contributor.....just imagine! Sure it was a 20-20 match but this match saw a total of 20 overs from both innnings....jayasurya ensured a thumping victory (if it could get any louder:)
Shaun Pollock....U r my man of the match though! What a performance 4-0-12-3 .......hats off to u! Keep it goin ...Deccan Chargers, see u guys on Sunday!!!!

Dasavatharam

check out the music of Kamal Hasan's magnum opus -'Dasavatharam'.
liked this one particular song from it. especially the first 2 lines -
"kalladi mattum kandal kadavul theriyadhu
kadavul mattum kandal kalladi theriyadhu"
Translated as -
if u only see the stone u cant see God
if u see God u cant see the stone.

So guys its all in what u want to see .....

Hv a fab day :)

Hope

This is the entry i posted in a writer contest blog -klash of the konfessioners. the funda being u need to write a max of 120 words on a particular given word. lets see if me entry is accepted. till then, u can read it here........oh btw the word for this week is 'hope'

“Hope we can be friends”, she said. His heart skipped a beat. His most cherished dream was to come true. They became friends, talked, laughed and cried on each other’s shoulders. “I think I want to take this further”, she said. “I hope u agree”. It’s a perfect world, he thought. He lavished her with attention, love and care. When she smiled he was ecstatic. I want to get married. Hope u agree. That’s what decided he would tell her that day. “My parents found a guy from USA, a millionaire I think. I hope we can still be friends”, she said.

My dream mornin cuppa

Dunno why but reading the newspaper with a blissful cup of coffee has always been an unattained dream. have an amazing picture in my head ......sitting in the balcony of my apartment on anywhere between the 15-25th floor. with a huge cup of steaming hot coffee...a gentle breeze...the crisp news of the morning paper....some musical notes in the background...me sitting against the wall...in comfy cottons....the breeze gently playin with my hair (in the opposit direction of my face, of course!)...no care in the world...no regard for the ppt which just has to be mailed to the client today....no calls from pesky colleagues and inquisitive friends (I love u all but not more than my dream mornin cuppa:)...no doorbells from maidservants, dhobhis and kachdawalas. just half hour of the day....atleast on weekends...ok, maximum of once a week? alas, that is never to be so!
Unbelievable but true...mom has an auto sensor-cum-alarm which goes off the minute i touch the newspaper. 'Come and help me clean the veggies' or 'check who is at the door. if it is Mr.A then...Mr. B then... Mr.C ......' AAAAAAAAAAAAAARgh! Not fair.....cant i relish my brew in peace?
Thought i would have better luck when I got married. Ha! who was i kidding? The first month was good....hubby dearest made some damn good masala chai everyday mornin...i was out of my job....made the mega modification in my dream and changed the preferred brew from coffee to tea. But i had to drink it in 10 mins, make lunch and breakfast before he left for work. Hmmm
Worse i was up north (of India, of course) during its peak winter. So if went anywhere near the balcony the wind would play with my teeth and not my hair. Plan B was to try and drink my potion after packing off the husband to work. So it would be just me, my chai and the newspaper (not as crisp, due to the winter me thinks!) but then how could i forget? Momma dearest calls -'what are u doing? have u finished cooking? what did u cook?' and so on....Her sensors r powered to disregard the 1400 odd kms between Delhi and Mumbai......Maa tujhe Salaam!
Then i moved to Chennai........and my dreams came down with a crash from my 15th floor. Oh come on! Skyscraper in Chennai??? Still searching for one.........any info is most welcome:D

This one is awesome........

"What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly." -Thomas Paine

"There will be a time when loud-mouthed, incompetent people seem to be getting the best of you. When that happens, you only have to be patient and wait for them to self destruct. It never fails." - Richard Rybolt

"There are two cardinal sins from which all others spring: Impatience and Laziness" -Frank Kafka

"Patience has its limits. Take it too far and it is cowardice" -George Jackson

"Success is not permenant and failure is not fatal" -Mike Ditka

HNY

Heya....Tamizh Putthandu Nal Vazhthukal to all :) (to be read as -Wishing u all a very Happy New Year)

Cheers n hv fun

One of my favorite pick-me ups............

When things in your lives seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 cups of coffee.
A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous "yes." The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.
"Now," said the professor as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things--your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions---and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car. The sand is everything else---the small stuff. "If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you. "Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first---the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand." One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

Movie b(l)uff

I noted sumthin quite surprising....while i make it a point to watch almost every movie tht is churned out of the Bollywood factory (I even watched 'Jo bole so Nihaal' and 'Neal n Nikki'...Aha) I never get down to giving / penning down reviews...I can really never think beyond a couple of phrases about every movie. Most of them can be done with -'go watch it', 'avoid' or 'check it out if u hv nothn else to do'.
I am actually amazed at how many blogs get created for the primary purpose of movie reviewing...of takin the trouble to type out the story (Oh wait...is tht a Ctrl C Ctrl V thingy of the prev blog?) and commentin on the actors/ directors/ etc. Most movies dont deserve this distinction. As far as I can see....movies r hits or flops before they make it to the multiplexes. Its SRK / Hrithik.....people wud watch it....mostly irrespective of the reviews. Its Uday Chopra / Dino Morea.....u need to gift a free ticket to Paris. Then there r some ppl like me (Its we who run the show!) who watch almost everythin, purely a force of habit. So what does a review do really?
It influences a minority population about a miniscule number of movies which r somewhere between 'must watch' and 'oh puhleeeese'. Hmm interesting :)
Any1 seen 'Race' ?

Time to get all mathy!

Something interesting i found online........

Over the weekend, I filled up my car's fuel tank, and I thought fuel has become really expensive after the recent price hike. But then I compared it with other common liquids and did some quick calculations, and I felt a little better.
To know why, see the results below - you'll be surprised at how outrageous some other prices are !
Diesel (regular) in Mumbai : Rs.36.08 per litre
Petrol (speed) in Mumbai : Rs.52 per litre
Coca Cola 330 ml can : Rs.20 = Rs.61 per litre
Dettol antiseptic 100 ml Rs.20 = Rs.200 per litre
Radiator coolant 500 ml Rs.160 = Rs.320 per litre
Pantene conditioner 400 ml Rs.165 = Rs.413 per litre
Medicinal mouthwash like Listerine 100 ml Rs.45 = Rs. 450 per litre
Red Bull 150 ml can : Rs.75 = Rs.500 per litre
Corex cough syrup 100 ml Rs.57 = Rs. 570 per litre
Evian water 500 ml Rs. 330 = Rs. 660 per litre Rs. 500 for a litre of WATER???!!!
And the buyers don't even know the source (Evian spelled backwards is Naive.)
Kores whiteout 15 ml Rs. 15 = Rs. 1000 per litre
Cup of coffee at any decent business hotel 150 ml Rs. 175 = Rs. 1167 per litre
Old Spice after shave lotion 100 ml Rs. 175 = Rs. 1750 per litre
Pure almond oil 25 ml Rs. 68 = Rs. 2720 per litre
And this is the REAL KICKER...
HP deskjet colour ink cartridge 21 ml Rs.1900 = Rs. 90476 per litre!!!
Now you know why computer printers are so cheap ? So they have you hooked for the ink !.
So, the next time you're at the pump, don't curse our honorable Petroleum minister - just be glad your car doesn't run on cough syrup, after shave, coffee, or God forbid, printer ink !

Now thts me :)

OK...now thts me in a nutshell! Cos i believe 'wot we like determines who we r'

I love -

Books :) a biblomaniac to the core......fiction, non-fiction, pulp fiction, autobiographies, history, philosophy, finance, business, marketing, u name it..i read it!!! My childhood dream was to be a librarian....thot i could just read the whole day and be paid for it!!!

Movies :) Actually its pretty much like the book story...i watch all movies...hindi, english, tamil and any other language with subtitiles ...comedy, romance, horror, thriller...u gettin the drift rite???? welll....a secret desire is to direct a movie...maybe someday when i retire................

Dilbert :) He's my icon for humor...I can swear anywhere Scot Adams is the funniest guy in the world. So Mr.Dilly here represents my undying love and admiration for SA as also to stress on my humorous side. tickle! tickle!

Diamond :) More particularly a solitaire :D well thts 1 cliche i fell for....girl's friend et al....come stay with me pal!

Dance :) Tough one to explain but the easiest to experience......made me go over the moon everytime. Need to get back to it asap (Must Must Must!)

Temple :) Particularly Mr.Balaji's Tirupati. Can't get over tht absolute feeling of awe for those nanosecs i get to see him. Comin again vry soon!!!

India :) Havin studied in Swami Vivekanand School (One popular line from him -ask not what ur country can do for u..ask what u can do for your country!) I am still figurin out what to do for

Mera Bharat Mahan. Well...not leavin to settle abroad for starters !

Bungee :) This signifies my luv for adventure and freedom.....I am told its an exhilarating experience. Its on the top of my 'to do before i die' list.

Music :) Tried singing.....dont hv much of 'the feel for music' though. But a good number can get me on my toes or serenade or be a comforting lullaby......We need them all sometimes

Pizza :) Its high calorie, I am over weight, its forbidden...........Bingo! Man always goes for the forbidden fruit now, does'nt he??

Sudoku :) Not intelligent enuf for crosswords but logic is so my forte! Also helps in buildin the 'number cruncher' image!

Paragliding :) Well.....freedom, adventure...have'nt we heard it all. With all the stress in life rite now I could jump off the 8th floor of my office now!

Salsa :) Oh so graceful and so romantic.....hv to get hubby dear to agree to this!

Religion :) Its important, part of my identity tht i do not wish to shake off. (mental note -remember ur promise to learn more on this front)

Roses :) Red roses....the ultimate picture of beauty!

Cash :) Oh yeah...I am materialistic and all. Lets face it....its money tht makes the world go round.

Violin :) The most melodious instrument in the world....always wanted to marry someone who plays the violin.......ahem ! ahem! is someone listenin??

Chocolates :) Signify happy moments, celebrations, joy, good news, the like......life is delicious!!!!

Ice-creams :) Hv some crazy connection in my head between ice-creams and rains....always dash out for a scoop when it begins to pour....thts been a start to many adventures ;)

So long then....................

Cool one-liners

Am sure this must be sumthin u've read sum place else, but nevertheless check these out-

• The recipe for romantic success is simple : loyalty without suspicion and love without neediness


• Good judgement comes from experience...so cherish all experiences as you never know what may come handy


• To make your life grand and complete just overcome all your fears and go ahead


• Money isn't everything...But it isn't lesser than anything...so value it !


• Even if the only steps u can take are baby steps, move towards what brings you joy and satisfaction


• Rehearsing your acceptance speech for your first academy award is fun, but u might want to take acting lessons as well


• Never judge people with the "honey and money" they have, don't judge even by their hearts, as who are u to judge??


• keep reminding urself tht u can never feel fabulous when u neglect ur own needs to meet others' requirements


• There's a thin line between genius and insanity.......which side of the line are u?


• Old is gold, but whats the harm in experimenting


• Change accordingly before life changes u unwillingly


• Success and failure are neither final nor fatal


• If u feel the need to disagree, then disagree agreeably [I agree :)]


• Have unlimited dreams...atleast some might be fulfilled


• Make someone's day with your charming bright smile :)
• Divide and rule .....divide ur time between work and love, and u will rule!!!

Have a nice day folks !!!

Mumbai -so very Amchi Mumbai

I love U Mumbai! Gosh i do!!!!! :)

U have been my home for almost 3 decades now...having seen me as a toddler, having schooled me, witnessed my adolesent crushes, given me my first job, shaped my outlook, instilled in me the confidence to face the world chin up and soothed me when I felt blue :) The last bit surprises ppl but U gave me the anonimity which was deeply soothing. I felt secure in your huge crowds where no one stared at me or asked unneccessary questions. I loved your huge crowds which came pouring out like your signature rainfall to help in a catastrophe. Mumbai, U gave me the option of being alone when i needed to and people when i wanted them.
I miss u Mumbai dearest! Chennai is nice but its not u:( The freedom, the space, the secured feeling, the roadside chaats and tapri ki chai, the heated debates with random strangers on an India-Pak match, the downpour, the crazy but organized traffic, trains bursting on its seams but nonstop nevertheless, the friendly cabbies and considerate conductors, CCD and Baristas (I know they exist all over the country but sumthing is missin there!), the Udipi restuarants and Gujarati thalis (This is almost non-existent in Chennai), Tuesday queues at Siddhi Vinayak and the Dalal Street buzz!
Oh my....I can just go on but i need to get going....to bargain with the auto guy in Chennai(tht shud be a whole new post)....seeya !!
Luv u Mumbai.....u ROCK :D