Of Loving and Understanding

There are many days which end in a whirlwind and yet many others where I have the time to relax, think and plan for the next day. I cherish this time which I get at times, towards the end of the day, however rare it is. Being a new mother, there always seems to be so many items on the checklist, which never ever get done, but nevertheless have to in the week. All such planning and updates on the list happen during these few hours which I catch up with at times.

If I will be credited with 2 hours every day, then there is something which I have not being giving any time for, and that is myself. Being able to sit down and plan my life out, take the time to think how I wish to pan out plans and achieve them. And these me-times are very rare to find as there is inevitably something which I need to attend to at any time of the day. So, more than 2 hours extra, I need to have these two hours completely to myself. That is what I would want the most.

And what would I do during these two hours? There are many things which I feel, in the daily run called life, we miss out on and do not give any importance to.

The most important I feel is to understand a fellow human being.
The second important thing is to love unconditionally.

If you ask me, of the two, the second one is very difficult, and it does play havoc with ego, emotions et al. But, to truly be happy, one must be able to love someone taking away the good, bad and ugly from than person. And that requires that I am able to do some good amount of thinking, re-assess what decisions I took and how differently I could have done things. They might be the smallest of small things, but if it has affected me, and warranted a look over it in these 2 extra hours, then it sure is important.

Understanding people around is again something which requires time for me. I have noticed that many a times, I end up assuming what the other person would have wanted to me understand rather than just understand what they said. And if they do not say anything, I have learnt to ask. I think this is one of the most important things which I need to instill in myself. It is a tedious process, I have begun the same, but I know analyzing my thinking and actions are the only way to go about it.

So, extra time is something I really do need. I need to organize my mind and improve as a person.

Time flew

7 months seem like a short period of time for many other things which I have done. But, when I look at my 7 month old daughter, I feel aww, love, amazement. I see everyday a new development, I see a personality developing apart from the milestones which I am quickly counting and documenting. She has her likes and dislikes, somethings will never happen when she doesn't wish for it. But, she also knows when I am losing my temper and she will also quickly concede.

When I embarked on this journey, I was so unprepared, in fact now I look back, I had no idea what to expect. I did not know anything about children. I had only seen my nieces and nephews for brief periods which were more customary than in a taking care role. I was there to take care of them when their mother needed some work done. So, I was the one who would sit down and keep them occupied, but I was never the one who would be with them all through the day and I did not know how I would ever manage that. And today, I have been all alone at home, with no help ( yes, my help bunked), which means cooking, cleaning and T has all been my responsibility.

I do not know whether it was my running about or was it that children tend to get themselves into weird positions, but T just got her first nick while trying to stand up and stumbling, bumping her head on a rocking chair. She screamed and I came running, I saw the tinge of blood and my first instinct was to call B, but then I decided it didn't require that. It was a small nick, and she stopped howling after a minute. I dabbed it with a wet cotton and applied some baby lotion. Now, I believe that children fall down, get hurt and then they become OK, but then the first one being at 7 months is what I did not expect. My mom keeps telling me, you have one very active kid in the making, she will ensure you are on your feet. And my mom is also of the opinion that instead of wasting money on gym, exercise classes et al, I should just start running about with her and interact with her all through the day which will surely have me tired. After one day of managing everything on my own, I think maybe she does have a point, well moms always have a point! Experience that is called!

Anyhow, on the trying to stand up and move about bit, I think maybe it would be a good idea for me to get her a walker so that I know she wont be tumbling down anything soon. Also this will allow her to move about more easily. Any inputs, please do leave a comment. Any particular brand, model which is good, or if you feel walkers are not a good idea.. whichever way. 

How a child can change your life

Every time I get a call from a friend, the question which I get asked is as to how I am coping up with the change and how I am liking the different lifestyle. The fact is it is a big change and nothing which you could have thought will explain how the things are going to change. There are changes in every aspect of your life. Something as simple as just going to buy groceries to more elaborate shopping for oneself, all of it changes dramatically when you have to feature in a small person who loves to go out and explore, but would also be finicky about the kind of place and that she gets her food on time. Timing is everything in this whole process, with knowing your kid's schedule and being prepared about what would be required on a trip out.

Taking out time for myself has been the biggest challenge which I am faced with. You can have a help but getting yourself to trust completely that person and leaving your child is something which I am not too sure about. My mother says you have to trust someone or else just give up everything that you wish to do and sit at home. That is a choice which I have to make. Or the other option is some member of family from either side is present at home. I am not very thrilled with that option either. I think I have been ever too comfortable in a place which I call my own since the past 10 years and now if there is a constant other presence I am not too sure I would really like it. Nevertheless, I can't say for sure as I have not been there. But this is certainly one option where in I can just be sure that it is perfectly fine for me to leave the house for a few hours and go any place. But, then the trade off is in the way you want to teach your kid to do some stuff. There would be two different kinds of instructions which the kid will receive and that I am not too sure would be great to build a good solid foundation on the manners and habits which I would like to instill. For example, I can say that I do not give books in Tee's hands simply because I know she does not know what is to be done with them and hence she will just crush the paper to make noise. My help does at times give her books/ news paper in her hand which I have said NO to, and she does it because it is simple for her to keep her occupied such than play/ talk to her.

I was recently talking with a friend and she was of the opinion that when you do not let the child move about on the floor, explore, they do not end up moving about and learning to roll over or crawl. A friend of mine has experienced this first hand as she was working and hence the baby was in the care of the nanny most of the day. And she believes the nanny was in the habit of keeping her daughter in the pram through the day as it was simpler to move her about and also easier to manage her.Hence, she feels her daughter has started to crawl very late and is in general lazy as is used to being carried around or in a pram and is not used to exploring on her own. These might just be cases, but there might be many such things which will arise and hence the apprehension. I would love to have my freedom back and move about, but I think it is also in me to bring up my daughter to the best way I can. I have to prioritize and see what is it that I can let go and what I can not under any circumstances.

One of the main things which I need to start is working out. This is something of a priority for me and have been putting it off for long now. Now, for this I would like to leave Tee for an hour with my help and get this done. I feel some time being apart is fine but I am personally not comfortable in leaving her for prolonged periods. By this I mean, I would not like to leave her until she is able to tell me when something was wrong and she did not like it. Until then I think I should be around to ensure that the things are the way I want it to be done. For some reason I can not imagine that someone would take care of my kid the way I would. And this is where I see the truth when its said its good to have family stay with you if you wish to work or be away from your child for a long period. The fact is I do not want to leave Tee, not that I can not. I can. I can if I wish to trust my help to do the things as I would like it. But, will she?

A child truly changes your outlook to many things and opens up new emotions which you have never experienced. Its difficult and so many times you just feel frustrated with your situation and wonder why can't someone just take over for a while. And, then you realize, unless you really blindly trust the person who will be taking over, there is no true break.

I just had no clue its so hard being a mom!

Valmiki's Daughter - Book Review

Valmiki's Daughter by Shani Mootoo, set in Trinidad, revolving around a family of four, their sexual preferences and the society they move in. The book is written in the voices of all the characters and there is also a fair bit of third person narrative in it. Hence a good blend of style.

The story weaves seamlessly, the past and present, emotions and culture. It moves through the relationships between father - daughter, mother - daughter, sisters and also the couple. The plot is mostly of the emotions which Viveka, Valmiki's Daughter experiences as she realizes her sexual preference for women over men. She is not worried about it, but she does know the plight of such women in the society and how it will affect her family. She knows that her parents might not agree to her likes, as they are shown to be through the book, but moreover she herself also is unsure whether she will have the courage to step up and take her stand for her wish. Through this there is the hidden preference of Valmiki himself, which is camouflaged in the screen of a womanizer.

The book portrays how society rules one's lives and how it is mandatory in smaller societies to ensure that the likes and dislikes are guarded heavily lest they become the topic of all conversations. It also shows how those who want, still goes ahead and cater to their likes, but with the knowledge of how to go about it and to not cause a scandal.

This is a book which I picked up at JustBooks over a month back but just never got down to reading it. Just been busy, I guess. Once I did pick it up, I was done in a matter of days. Its beautifully written, emotions played out and thoughts detailed. It does set you thinking.

Image: http://img.nbcindia.com/128/200/BookImages/778/9780143068778.jpg

I don't know how she does it - Movie Review

Being a SATC fan, and also a Sara Jessica Parker fan, well not for her acting per say. I just liked her portrayal of Carrie Bradshaw, and seem to watch her movies. Lets say most of her movies are what a good chick flick is for me. Its never too heavy and still has some story line better than the Euro trip kinds. Being at home, and a recent mom, just wanted a peek into the other side... as I do plan on starting to work, maybe not soon, but will. And what I did see was not a pretty picture. I think its super difficult after seeing this movie.

She is a working mother, good at her work, enjoys her work and is trying her best to get the whole work done. Her husband is a very understanding man, but is also working and is hence quite busy with himself and has little time for the kids too. How the kids are affected by the nanny's continuous presence and how the yearn for their mom to be with them. They see more of their dad than their mom, and the elder daughter (6) makes it very evident that she dislikes her mom's work as it keeps her away from home. The plot moves onto a great project which comes her way, and makes life even more difficult for her. At the end of it all, she just decides to quit her job and stop as it was just driving her family crazy, but she ends up just prioritizing and saying 'NO' to the boss when required.

I thought it was quite dramatic how she decided to quit her job as how many of us would actually do that. If it is a job you have worked so hard to keep, work hard on and then you just walk out? Well, maybe you can if it is driving your life crazy. There is nothing phenomenally great in this movie, but its a decent week night movie.

Crochet Baby Sweater

This finished quite quickly. I had posted a picture of the previous stage, and from there till now, I think it was a quick haul. 

This is a crochet baby sweater, done in a single piece, and in homespun yarn. I truly am in love with this cozy snuggly yarn. Its perfect from children's wear, me think. It is chunky so it moves quite quick too. As I said earlier too.. the sweater can ideally be completed in just about 3-4 hours.. but then with the speed and intermittent process which I was following, it quite quite a while. 

I think the two colours come off pretty well. And the pink being regular worsted DK, the chunky yarn is given some firmness through this edging. 

Why females?

Shail of Shail's nest shared a link on Facebook, a blogpost at Gender Bytes, and on reading it, it did set me thinking. If education and economics are not the reason for this incessant purging of females, then what is? Is it a feeling of responsibility, or is it the expense factor which eats them up?

Does a parents not feel any responsibility towards a son? They do not care what happens to him? Why is it so different for a girl? I feel the entire family respect which lies on the feet of a girl is where no family is ready to take on the responsibility and stand up for the girl to do as they please. I think the same stigma is attached to even homosexuals. A son, who is a homosexual is also seen in the same light, as per me, tarnishing their ever great family respect. But, the forever yearning for a son will never change, however wonderful and successful a daughter they have.

Then comes the expense of a girl, predominantly speaking, its not her education which matters to them, rather it is the dowry and wedding expenditure which swoons in front of their eyes. But, why do they forget that they themselves are the reason for this stupendous expense. There are communities int he world where a marriage/ wedding is taken up as the responsibility of the couple at hand, not the parents. The expenses are shared between the to-be-couple, and both parents contribute a small amount what they see fit for the occasion. I think this in a way helps to eliminate the prejudice against a girl child. But, this kind of responsibility can be handed over to the bride and groom, only if the parents see their children as adults who can take decisions and organize to their liking.

So where does the problem truly lie?

Image Source: http://crimeanddeviance.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/656009_f5202.jpg

Working with my hands

Oh am I not glad to be working on some crochet after ages. I have been looking for yarn and finally got it through a friend who went for work to US. I do really believe that India does not have great yarn with different textures and wonderful colours. They are just boring and all the yarn is the simple DK, worsted kinds. 

I have been wanting to make a sweater for Tee, and finally found a great pattern for her sweater at Crochet me. In case you have not been able to open the link, then the name of the pattern is " Baby its cold outside' .. isn't that like a super cute name for the sweater itself :) 

I have some mow yarn which I asked my friend to get… in fact I think I did ask her to get a lot of yarn… its so horrible that you not get yarn here ( I repeat myself ) .Anyhow, I have another pattern also which I will be making for Tee, maybe after this immediately or maybe after some time… before I attend a wedding in cold chilly Chandigarh in January. 

Here is a picture of what I have done till now. Its not a lot, the pattern says I should take like 3-4 hours to make it. which I agree with, just that I do not have 3-4 uninterrupted hours! 

Does anyone else do Crochet? 

Soya chunks, Home style

Well, thats a name which I just concocted as I have been always on the look out for what to do with soya chunks and something which is truly presentable in front of guests and not just for a home quick meal ( which it was for me anyways!). So, today I decided to go about making something on my own, with no recipe, and here is what has come up! 

Ingredients

Soya chunks - 3 handfuls (dry)

Onions - 2 medium sized

Ginger paste - 1 tsp

Tomato - 1 medium sized chopped ( even two would do no harm! )

Chilli powder - 1heaped tsp

Tumeric Powder - 1/4 tsp

Paprika - 1/2 tsp

Pepper Powder - 1/2 tsp

Coriander powder -1/2 tsp

Garam Masala - 1/2 tsp

Coconut milk powder - 1 1/2 tbsp

Oil - 2 tbsp

Salt to taste

Method

1. Boil some water, add salt to it as its boiling, and drop the dry soya chunks into the water. Turn off the gas and let it stay in the water for 15 - 20 mins. Drain the soya in a strainer and squeeze lightly to remove excess water. 

2. Grind the onions well, and add the ginger paste to the mixture and give a swirl. 

3. Heat the oil in a wok and when hot add the ground mixture to it. Fry the ground mixture well, and when done the paprika and all other masalas except the pepper powder and salt. 

4. When the mixture loses its water content, add the tomatoes to it and mix well to get a puree like consistency. 

5. Now add the salt and the pepper powder to the mixture and cook well. 

6. Take the soya chunks which would have swelled up and might look quite big, so in which case you can just cut them into 2 using a pair of scissors. On the contrary, if you think the size is fine by you, then they can go in as it is too. 

7. Mix well, and cook. The soya also tends to lose some water, hence do not add any water as yet. 

8. Take about 200 ml of warm water and add the coconut milk powder into it. Mix well taking care to break up any lumps, if any. Add the milk to the wok and let it boil.

9. Now, add about 200 ml of water and let it cook well. If you would like more gravy, then you may add double the quantity. Else, cook well covered and then turn off the gas.

10. Serve and Enjoy!

Movie Review - Company Men

Cast: Ben Affleck, Tommy lee Jones and so on as the poster on the left says.

Plot: Set during the massive downsizing and outplacement ongoing at a firm in US. How each employee is bothered by the management decision and how they cope with their job loss. The fear associated with job loss, and the loss of face. How they are forced to cut down on expenses, take up any job and so on. Family changes and how the economy gives them nothing to look forward to. What one feels on being let go, how you cope with it, how you try to hide it and what comes of it at end.  

A good week day evening watch. 

Vist here for more

Image Courtesy: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpvwJ5DgCoke8XmoKzNs4NbhTPvdoEGCJFpMvC4cfsfY1VMghxw2KgO-WIsCTzUNSD61kZuPktlHIkQMwrltnch1c5F9Hc5KBhCDUsFzfG7NpluI2mt5mILK3hRoqS2qgw9uGMHyoEXKo/s1600/company-men-530.jpg

A (bride) woman for 30,000 rupees

Violence against women has opened my eyes to the unthought acts of violence against women by human beings. One of the posts had caught my attention then, and I was also looking at the possible reasons behind why this is something which is resorted to. Why violence against women? Is it because women are seen as weak, easy to overpower...

Quoting a price for a woman, to sleep with, or to marry is I believe certainly a violence. A violence against women and human beings. Being a commodity and having no value for one and being compared to livestock is certainly a emotional violence as per me. 

As I researched about this, I came across many videos on Youtube, and I realized that violence against women is a major concern in most developing economies, but when it comes to female infanticide, I am not sure any country has seen the kind of numbers that India has been seeing in these years. And after female infanticide, men have the spine to go to other communities, where girls are not seen as as an fetus to destroy, and buy brides for themselves when it comes to satisfying their carnal pleasures and to ensure a progeny. Why don't these men resort to satisfying each other, as its a choice their kind made to eliminate females as they seemed to be a waste of time, a burden and so on. 

I think no community should sell their daughters to anyone for money. But, whom am I saying this to. A parent might think that, it would be a better option to give their daughter to another community as a wife, than sell her to prostitution. That it what I think would be the thinking when money is the most important necessity for many. It is difficult to understand the mentality, when we are not in that kind of a situation. 

I frankly do not know what is the solution to this.

The Paan Waala

There is something about entrepreneurship which surely does feel good. And, saying that, I also know that it is not everyones' cup of tea. There are some who find it very difficult to break away from the norm and step up or out to the world unknown to them. And on the other hand, there are some who are more than willing to explore and venture into completely unknown territories just for the kick! 

This grit and fun is one of the many things which I love in B. How did I start writing all this? 

Well, yesterday, B happened to help a Paan waala who has his own small place, which B visits ever so often, to get a new deal and set a new shop in a much better and profitable location. There is a new pub which has opened up a few hundred metres away and that was close to a busy junction, which ensured better traffic and sales. B happened to casually ask the Paan waala why he was not interested in that location as it is very evident that it would be more profitable. The Paan waala was certainly interested, but did not know how to go about it, or whom to go and meet as the pub was just about to open. B made a few calls, and found out from some friends who is the owner, and went promptly along with the Paan waala to meet the owner. He spoke with the owner at length explaining the benefit of having a paan shop outside his pub, and also vouched for the quality of the paan. The owner not only understood that it was a good proposition, but he also agreed on a reasonable amount as deposit and rent to run the Paan shop just at the entrance to the pub. 

When B came back and narrated to me this incident, I was just awed. It was not because of his idea, but that he went ahead and spoke on behalf of the Paan wala and actually went through it the whole way. He not only took the effort to get in touch with the owner, but he also went along with the Paan waala and spoke on his behalf. This is a quality which I know I do not have, and immensely look up to in him. He did not think that this is too lowly a matter to interfere in, nor did he think what would the owner of the pub might think of him if he takes such a matter to him. His only thoughts were that it is a worthwhile venture, and something which might do good for the Paan waala. 

I would not have taken it up on me to go ahead and talk to a third person about a business opportunity for someone else. I would have had so many apprehensions, and felt I, as a person should not interfere in anothers' matters. I would not be the kind to go out of my way to help someone as in this case. I might have found out the name of the owner and given that piece of information to the Paan waala, but going with him and helping him in acquiring the deal is just not something I see myself doing. 

What would you have done?

Image Source: http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=MMIR/2007/05/04/12/Img/Pc0120500.jpg

Itasveer: Not a stickler for quality

When Itasveer came about, the concept was new and being fresh out of college, memories was one thing I wanted to live by. This website allowed me to get some momentos done, photos printed to keep and such. That was way back in 2008. The first product I had got done from them, was the two-tone mug, and this was my gift to two of my best friends, and I must say this mug was of amazing quality. The mug looks as good as new even today. 

Recently, 5 months back, I ordered another Classic White Mug as a birthday gift for B, and it was delivered promptly, but being in use for just these 3 months, the print has started to peel off, and I could see in fact very quickly, that the print was not really onto the surface, but a thin film which is pasted onto the surface of the mug. This can certainly be expected to peel off when washed and used. 

In fact just 2 months back, we did order another classic mug, and that too is in the same state as of now. I am very disappointed with the kind of products which are being sold. I was under the impression that they did have a good product range and quality and time were of utmost importance. But, now I see that time is what they adhere to, but the quality is not that great. 

I am not sure whether it is because the Classic Mug is different from the Two - tone one, but even then, why sell a product which will not even last 2 months, and that too something like a coffee mug, which has the potential to be used every single day!

De-Facebooking

One of the things I have decided I would be doing is de-facebooking myself. I will certainly not be going overboard and deleting account or such. I will just restrict my Facebook checking to on the mobile maybe just twice a day. I mean I have come to that kind of maniac facebooking that I am bored, so will just vile away time on Facebook rather than read the so many books which I have at hand. I have not been blogging on so many things which I want to also courtesy this social networking giant! I do not think I want to go and hand my life over to this guy. Its just not worth it. 

The one major thing which steered me towards this decision is that they have yet again changed the layout and notification stuff which is making it irritating and also way more cluttered and too many numbers on the page, for my liking. Something which I had picked up recently again after a bad stint previously was gaming. I used to love the Facebook games.. and I am a great gaming addict… hell… my blog is called Vector Gaming ! This is something which I need to stop too… I think its such a wasteful activity, and all you are trying to do is spend time which you could have else done something more useful with. Like blog! Or Read! 

Speaking of reading, I re-iterate, I have so many books piled onto my to-read list and in fact have three books sitting right at home, waiting to be read. And knowing me, I know that its just a matter of getting these books into my hand, and getting engrossed in it. Like yesterday, I happened to be up reading till 1 am… and thats just because, I knew I was getting interested in the book, and the plot was really something one would ponder over after reading a few pages. 

The book that had me immersed at 1 am? Escape by Manjula Padmanabhan. Have you read it?

Menstrual Blood Banking

During my pregnancy, there was a time when we had to decide whether we wanted to save the cord blood to extract stem cells and ensure some amount of disease cure for our child. At that time, I felt that with around 30 years ahead of us for that, I am not too sure whether these stem cells can not be obtained by then in some other manner. So, I decided at that time not to bank my cord blood and not to choose to preemptively extend my and Trisha's life. And, today a friend send me this link.

Menstrual blood is said to have the same cord blood properties and women can choose to store this blood at any time, to use at a further point in time. And this is also seen as less controversial in terms of ethics and such in comparison to embryonic stem cells.. And this is not a blank trial, there has been menstrual blood stem cells used to differentiate to nerve cells in vitro and treat strokes, so there is really a use in doing this procedure.

One statement which struck me as weird in the article was that the author says at the end of it all.

Lots and lots of details would have to be worked out in order for this to become a reality. And, of course, there's the ick factor to overcome. Would you really want to be the recipient of stem cells plucked from the contents of a woman's monthly cycle? If it could save your life, I'll bet you would.

I do not know why is it that blood drawn from a woman and shed by a woman seen as so different. I am sure that if there was an option to just draw blood from the uterus and then use the stem cells, there would have been no problem. Here, the woman is just shedding it and giving an option of using it, and there seems to an ice factor associated with it! What is the problem, I just do not get it. 

My Upma

Well.. I have been dying to have some good home-made upma.. And upma which looks like this.
I am sorry Bangaloreans...i do not like your halwa upma...this is how my grand mom used to make it...this is how my mom makes it...and this is how I love my upma :)
The veggies can be added or not...i do not mind them, but this has to be the way it looks !
Edited to add: The upma here has been sprinkled with some chutney powder..another one of my personal preferences with upma :)

The Delhi - Southie letters

So we have a lot of talk on the blogosphere and the amongst the twitterati on why this open letter was written and why it should not have been written. 

I have read the reply from the Delhi Boy… and also from the Mad Momma… and I still am not sure why she has written this letter. Very evidently someone did tick her off. But, what all she has said there is something which most people know. There is that section of Delhi which she describes, and there is also another which does not fit into any of the categorizations which she has made. 

I have lived in Delhi for 6 years and I have positively loved the city. I love the late nights, the wide roads, the metro, the shopping paradise and I will not fail to add that I do agree it is not the greatest place for a woman to walk about on the streets or take to public transport without thinking twice. The metro has made things better with the women's compartment in the recent times. Anyhow, as everyone says, why judge a book by the cover? How can you say the whole city is so bad if you are going to base your one interaction with a non-so-great punjabhi guy? I have also come across a fair bit of well -read and not - so well - read punjabi folks… but that does not make the community as a whole this way or that. 

I am a true blue Malayalee and I have married a Delhi born and bred UPite. And, I met him at Bangalore, so does that make him any less a Delhite or a UPite? I do not think so. In fact I feel one tends to be more in touch with the roots when you live away from the buzz of community on a everyday basis. This is just my theory, and need not be true in any manner.

Anyhow, another thing which made no sense to me, is the upland English status. Where did you get that from? I know enough human beings who belong to Delhi and who speak perfectly good English, and what would be the idea behind saying that a region produces bad English speakers. Every region in India has a dialect of English and also an accent which needs to go. In fact when many of my friends used to say that I have a tinge of a Malayalee accent, initially I used to take it with a pinch of salt, and many a times, even countered demanding some explanation with examples. But, with time, I have seen that it does not really matter. Everyone has those accents, and the ones who try to camouflage these accents with the American/ British accents sound truly funny to me. What is the harm in being true to your roots? Even some Madrasis have an accent which is quite distinct, so I would not go to the extent of saying that all Madrasis have an accented English! 

There is also some humor which she has ride to infuse, but then hitting on family members is not a great way of doing it. If these are views which are written on a fun note, then great… which to an extend I do think… as you can see from reading the authors comments, but s I said… maybe the humor should have been rightly hit.... 

Home on weekends

Obviously, with a small kid, one can not have a social life or at least not a social life to what you were used to. Though, I did think that I would be on a gradual decline of social activities through pregnancy, that was not the case. I was quite active through my pregnancy, and hence once I came back with Tee, things became so very difficult. 

You can not expect friends to come over ever weekend to your place and have take away dinner also. But, I think more than that, I feel the facilities available for a nursing mother, is moreover the reason why I am not able to have a social life. Even if I were to go to a mall and spend sometime browsing through stores, I am unable to do that as most malls do not have a nursing room. The only option is that you can go and use the ladies restroom, and feed your kid. That's not a very great feeling, and in fact I can't imagine feeding sitting in the many smelly restrooms of the malls. Some stores have nice restrooms which can be used as a make-do baby room, but not all. I think this is one thing which every builder needs to keep in mind. If they wish to cater to a wider range of customers, they really need to have a baby room, maybe a small enclosure within the ladies restroom will do too!

Anyhow, I am on a look out to how I can keep myself happy and socially active through the weekends. I think I need to start getting back to doing something creative. I have thought of starting on some crochet, but I wonder whether this is going to be a great option. Knowing that its a weekend, and I am just sitting on the couch crocheting, doesn't seem like a great weekend option. Also am thinking of getting myself enrolled in the gym close by, so that there is at least an activity which will keep me occupied, if nothing more exciting happens over the the weekends.

Any other suggestions to someone who needs to be around her baby on almost all occasions?

Chilli bhaji

The sin before the diet starts :)
Home-made chilli bhaji :)

Movie Review: Just Go with It

Starring: Adam Sandler, Jennifer Aniston

IMDB Page

A very light movie which is good when you would just like to spend the evening at home, with some take-away chinese. 

He's a doc, and she the assistant. He has his affairs and she is a single mom to two wonderful kids. He wants her to pose as his ex-wife who is a tad crazy. And in return she gets to do a lot of shopping with his credit cards. The plot takes a twist when he has to take the kids to meet his new love interest, and they all concur a plan to go to Hawaii. 

There is a clear mix up of feelings, but the kids have done a beautiful show, which makes one ooh and aah. So I will not spoil the plot for you…. but just tell you that this is a decent watch, and not a boring one! 

Green?

These are just my favourite :)
Layered Spinach paratha :)

It was Janmashtami, So?

As I had mentioned earlier too, I would be a very good example of Festival downer. This Janmashtami, B's parents were visiting us, and hence, we all kept a fast, ate enormous quantities of fatty, fried food items, and that too mainly consisting of potatoes. Well, I would not really call it a fast, it was anything but.

The birth of Lord Krishna is a day which is celebrated all over India, and is given various names. A funny fact was that there is a difference in the day, as its celebrated in the south and north of India. The festivities on the day are also very different. The fast, as I know it in the south, is just fruits, for breakfast, lunch and dinner, which means that you do not have a heavy meal the whole day. This is also a fast which I have not done, in spite of knowing its detox effects. 

So, this was the first time in 28 years I have ever gone on this fast, and I did not particularly like it. I would certainly prefer to have the detox fast. Having only fried items through the entire day, certainly gave me a sick feeling, and certainly did not suit my tummy. In fact I was quite worried that T would also have a upset tummy due to the sudden influx of oil into her system. I tried to counter the effect with some ayurvedic tummy relieving stuff, but I wonder whether that was of any effect. A part of the food which I enjoyed was the ragi flour used for the fried potatoes, and also for the fried puris. I am particularly fond of ragi flour, the taste and obviously for its health reasons. In fact during pregnancy, I had particularly enjoyed ragi puttu all through. 

Now, we get back to janmashtami… at the stroke of 12, which is when Lord Krishna was born, there is a small pooja done and only after dinner is served. Dinner mainly consists of potato curry, ragi rotis, fruits and a salad. 

After the day, I was wondering, did we really do this with a religious bend of mind? I did not ! I took part in the pooja and had dinner after 12, but was that the only things to be done as part of the festivities? I am not aware of anything else, maybe visit the temple would the other obvious option. Do you find all the festivals particularly festive?

A Bowlful of Butterflies by Ritu Lalit

This book came by mail a few days back, but I just could not get to start reading it, with all household duties taking up the whole day. But, when I did, I sat and finished it in one go! That should really say how much I enjoyed the quick paced, very much today's story.

The book starts off with an introduction to the Ratra household and  also details the relationship between the various members. Three siblings, their fights, tiffs, and love rule the house wars. Friendship, a strong bond, which has been nurtured since childhood, has grown and been cherished till the very end of school days. How the days of school, childhood, adolescence and college bring changes to every friendship. I could particularly relate to how the friendships change and morph through years. I have seen that you gather a few friends, befriend many, but enjoy the friendships that you have shared through years. 

This is a very quick read, and it does successfully ignite some old memories and stories with the various instances. Another aspect was, since the time I read the title, I always wondered what was the bowlful of butterflies, is it a symbolism, or does it truly exist? Read the book to find out.

And now we start

After all the rant, a good friend decided I need to help myself. She shared with me this site, and me think its a great start with the limited time that I have. In fact even if I do manage to take out time, I really would never know when would that be. For such an erratic routine, this is just perfect.

Now to start with this today. I've been adviced to pick up random dailyy routines n see which is effective and do-able for me. I also do not want to unnecessarily exert myself, and cause any further issue to my back.

Another thing which is going to be a motivational factor is that apart from the weighing scale, I am also going to record physical measurements. This should be able to give a better outlook on results.

I shall keep an update on how this goes from now on.

The rant

I do not know what got me into this mood, but nevertheless, now that I am in it, I plan to rant. So, in case you are not interested in one, I gave you a very fair warning. 

I have had it with my wardrobe. If you will say, thats every woman's pet peeve, then now you may please close the window. This rant is going to continue onto this very topic itself.

Every year, I think I need to get a fresh set of clothes, and I want to more importantly discard so many of those which I have been wearing since ages. 

Does any of that ever happen? Never! 

I just end up disposing a few of my stuff, in fact just those which are faded and have reached the very end of their lifespan. And since I did not dispose off anything worthwhile, I do not feel the NEED to buy stuff in large numbers. So, which results in me buying just a few ( read 1 or 2 ) pieces of clothing, and calling it quits for the time being. And for the great hours spent in the process of shopping, I always never have anything to show for it.

And to say, the last 10 months have been even more irritating as I can not shop even if I wish to. Till then, it was that I did not find the items interesting or that they were too highly priced ( I shall come to this later). But, this time it was that I can not shop because I do not know whether I shall be able to wear any of these things as time goes on. I am not sure what would be my fitness level, and I know the practical me would say, I should wait for another 6 months before I decide to do any amount of shopping. And even then the question obviously would be do I just shop for new stuff, or can I go ahead and buy expensive stuff. Maybe, I am being pessimistic, but when do I decide that now I shall be not able to lose any more weight, I really have no clue. And with the present situation where I am unable to exercise or control my diet, the question really is will I be back to normal? 

Anyways so there is my rant… and my great desire to shop not really going anywhere!

Getting on with it

Its been a while since I have posted, and ... Boy, have I been busy! 


Back to Bangalore, T is 2 months and settling down in Bangalore now. We have recently moved to a new place in Bangalore, so have to do a fir bit of decorating and arranging. We have just come to settle on the arrangement for the living and dining area. The walls are bare and the shelves are empty. It looks so different from the cozy atmosphere at our previous place. But, I am sure that the place will look up in a month or two. 


Another great thing is the new place has a garden, and I am hoping to get to do some gardening, and with the lil one growing up, I would love to have some birds visit us and chirp through the morning. Living in an apartment has its goodness, but the garden and the outdoor is something which I really relish. This house has a garden, but it has not been kept well.. so there is a lot of work for the gardener in me. 


Recently we got T a Rocker and I do hope its a good buy. At present, she seems to like it, enjoys her time just rocking there, but lets see how long the novelty lasts. The only reason I thought it was a good deal was as it could be used also a chair for toddlers :)  Another toy which I picked up was a set of soft activity blocks. I have always loved activity blocks, and been looking out for these soft cloth ones for T once she starts to enjoy toys!


Are there any such things out there, which kids really like. The websites and sales persons are not really helpful, as they just find the super expensive stuff best for the child, where as I do not buy that. 

Day 76 - Crow Pheasant

10 day challenge - One picture

As a grand finale to my 10 day challenge, here is me !

10 day challenge - Two Songs

The past 9 days, I have been posting on the above 10 Day you Challenge. Some of the days have been very difficult and some comparably simpler. This challenge has made me look within and explore what I feel about many of the challenges. 

Music is something which I like, its soothing to the ears and I love some music to be playing in the background when I am at some task. I love to have music playing when I am cooking, reading or just doing some work. 

I have almost never followed music as chartbusters or billboards, I have just been very stagnant in my music likings. I am not the person who has many favorites, so here I will list two songs which hold some importance for me. 

1. 21st century girl - Def Leppard 

This is the song with which I was introduced to Rock as a genre. I still find it most soothing for any situation, soft rock, hard rock, metal…

2. Do you wanna partner - Partner

This is a song from the first movie I watched with B :) on my 25th birthday eve. And this birthday is the day we started dating :)

10 day challenge - Four books

As part of the 10 day challenge which I have taken up, here we are more than half way done. Today's challenge is to list Four books

If someone asked me to rattle off in an instant four of my favorite books, I think these would be it!

1. Untouchable by Mulk Raj Anand

2. Choker Bali / A Grain of Sand by Rabindranath Tagore

3. My Name in Red by Orhan Pamuk

4. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

10 day challenge - Five foods

I have my favorites, which I can have at any time of the day. 

They are as follows :)

1. Puttu and Kadala

2. Sweet corn and chicken soup

3. Spare ribs

4. Steamed momos

5. A mug of hot chocolate

What are yours? Anything similar?

10 day challenge - Five foods

I have my favorites, which I can have at any time of the day. 

They are as follows :)

1. Puttu and Kadala

2. Sweet corn and chicken soup

3. Spare ribs

4. Steamed momos

5. A mug of hot chocolate

What are yours? Anything similar?

10 day challenge - Six places

This has been my favourite from the beginning of this tag... was looking forward to this day alot. 

I have been traveling a lot in the past year, and I completely enjoy traveling. One of the things I want to do is drive to some place. I am a novice when it comes to driving though I like to believe that its becoming slightly better with time.

I am a beach person, lazing on beaches with a book to read and a swim in between is just something I can do for days. And not to forget the night time partying :) With both these things in perfect alignment is Goa... which I think has been by far my favourite holiday location till date! Been there twice, and can go back anytime! There are so many beaches to visit, and maybe next time I shall also go on the cultural route too.

In spite of all the travel, I have had a vacation/holiday on my mind. And these below are the six places I want to visit. 

Vietnam

Picking water spinach
Image Courtesy: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mangodavid/24785743/

Spain

Passeig de Gracias, Barcelona
Image Courtesy - http://www.flickr.com/photos/aigle_dore/5237965835/

Portugal

Image Courtesy: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ferlomu/4777034030/

Peru

Image Courtesy: http://www.flickr.com/photos/44199467@N00/260089086/

Maldives

Image Courtesy: http://www.flickr.com/photos/stefanomilan/5759891986/

If I really sit down to think of all the places I want to go to.. I think thats going to a huge list. I can even list it out for within India and outside also. :)


Looking at the rest of the days.. I think now the challenge is becoming simpler... :)