Pages

December 29, 2014

This and that, again

Last some days have been ultra fast paced for me. A short trip to Ahmedabad to attend a cousin's wedding at the same venue where we got married! I must say, for the first time I actually observed decoration, food and other stuff. Wait, I have so many things to write and I am in no mood to structure this blog post. Let me shoot bullet points.


  • Zero oil Undhiyu with I-dont-know-what-all-vegetables was prepared and packed for Mr.ISB by mom. We all love it. Not only Undhiyu, my family is famous for making 'Methi Chimed' which is nearly 'Methi pak' with lots of 'Vasanas' in the super freezing winter, so a pack specially for me and my youngest (and spoiled by my own parents as their very first daughter) Masi. My dad also found some ghost place in a village near Ahmedabad where a guy sells 'Ubatiyu' which is basically roasted whole vegetables with some spices in an earthen pot on coal stove. Some people do feel it is close to Undhiyu but believe me the coal roasted vegetables have different kind of Aroma! I do feel bad for my Gujarat friends and Mr.ISB who are far away from some super healthy traditional Gujarati food.
  • I miss my real 'fai' who passed away a few days before my wedding. She was one of the finest cook I could ever met after my paternal grandmother. She was the person who kept the tradition of preparing 'Methi Chimed' alive which her (and now mine) maiden family had created ages ago. Of course my mom is the one who is keeping it alive now and looking at the love for the dish I might learn as well. Amen.
  • I missed tea made by me in Ahmedabad. I miss it in Mumbai as well. Not to boast my not at all developed culinary skills but I like the tea prepared by me, that is it. None of my moms or fathers make the tea which can give me a kick. Yeah , the guy near my office once offered me a cup of cutting tea without any cost when I refused to accompany my friends for the tea -break. I loved it to death. No exaggeration. 
  • My mom gifted a beautiful pair of Swarovski crystal earrings and pendant. Actually, it is a Diwali gift which had to be altered according to the diameter of the pierced holes in my ears. I love the pair and I am trying to check out the calendar how soon I can flaunt them. 
  • After four days of laughter attacks without any pause at Ahmedabad ( I had 2 masis and 1 mama to manage while they crack atom bombs of jokes), my throat is confused about how to talk. The winter has made it even worst. The good point is my throat is not even hurting and still making me a silent observer in the office. 
  • Pune has become so cold that I want to bury myself under 15 blankets and sleep for hours. 
  • My kindle has become the best friend since the day it arrived. Period. I am reading books on world war 2 on war footing. 
  • I had thought once I would cross 25, my acne would vanish magically. Every one used to tell me the same story till 2013. Nothing is magical, guys. I still have teenage acne. Really.
  • My sister (in law) is in Spain with her friends enjoying the most awaited trip of her life, sending me photos of beautiful European coastal houses and kitchens. I feel she is living 'Under the Tuscan Sun' for some reasons. May be I love the book.
How was your weekend? :) 

December 21, 2014

Friendship at the fence.

Two kids. Boys. In the age when they start building opinions but yet to face brutality of the world. A Jew and  a German. Divided by a fence but not actually. United by their friendship.

Curiosity and loneliness are same. Situations are different. One is tortured victim of the concentration camps. The other is having all the luxuries of life but friends. One has fat cells and muscles, another is loosing all of them. One is the subject for the Fury, another is from the family who is serving the Fury. They share their lives and thoughts about everything around them.

Right from Berlin and Poland to family members. From disappearing family friends from one side of the fence to family members who are suppose to obey orders of the Fury who decides about lives on the other side of the fence. Apart from thoughts and feelings the German kid passes pieces of cakes and breads to the Jew kid. 

Life was not too bad till the day when they decided to be on the miserable side of the fence.

Both without hair on the head.Both are of same age. Both in Striped Pajamas. Both full of humanity and opinions. Both unknown to the ugly end. Both trying to find some one in the camp. Both were forced to march in the room with other people with striped pajamas by soldiers. 

The friendship and humanity dies together after they hear the closing door and a click of some moving mechanism. 

Tears. 

PS: It is impossible to not to write about this book. The boy in the striped Pajama.

December 20, 2014

Kindled Up

It happened again. Just like my first iPhone which my dad gifted, was a result of my deep research as an upcoming smart phone buyer which lasted for more than six months. People ( Dad) lost patience and gifted me this phone. It happened one more time. The device and the person are different this time. 

Since weeks I wanted the kindle Paper white. Reasons were many. My burning eyes, my inability to read even three pages on iPad together unlike my track record of completing 300 pages book at one go and some budget constraints due to other big expenses. Then a cousin of mine planned for India trip and so I started drawing the plan of getting an e-reader from USA. I started getting confused regarding warranty and taxes amazon would ask me to pay. My already pissed of job life created blisters as well for the same subject at home. Frustration just grows exponentially when I can not read, for days together.

Then the mobile pinged when I was busy discussing about the same at office. Mr.ISB messaged not to worry further as he has ordered one Kindle, exactly the same I wanted. My eyes popped out and the mind danced in the virtual library. Today.... I got the joy in my hands! 

I spent some twenty minutes in registering Kindle with some cups of freshly brewed spicy tea. The steam coming out of the cup filled my soul with sweet-spicy aroma which let me travel the Tuscan country. Yes, I was reading "Under the Tuscan Sun" and enjoying my 'Life' in Olives and Wines. I am yet to finish the book but I suppose I am going to become the fan of Italian food - Olive oil, Sauteed bell peppers, caramelized onions, tasty baby tomatoes and Ricotta. 

There is a sense of brilliant satisfaction in spending the whole day reading the book which rested in your pending reading list since months.

As now my next-favorite-book is being planned, I am feeling loved - By books. 

Totally Kindled- up :)

December 18, 2014

Random twists - This and that.

If you think no twist can be random. Well, I may have a problem with your belief. It happened to me and it is happening even now.

In last some days or weeks, my life got some small and big twists or rather I could see them coming but they never came. Just like the rubber band which comes back to the original shape after giving a twist without attaching it to anything solid. The twist on the band never gets the solid support to add some value in the function of the band.

Indecisiveness in some of the major areas of my life is prevalent right now. Generally I do not dwell over issues much and delay taking quick actions but then, there is always something new in my personality I every time I introspect. May be some situations together as a team plays a lead role in giving birth to this new found trait.

The numbness or procrastination , I am not able to judge what has taken over my entire life. I am showing zero emotions for things I adore or I hate, even now. A dozen Panipuri on the table, an ever increasing pending book list or even tasks at office which would offer zero value to me or my organization, TED talks waiting in the buffer state or planning some dreamy trips next year.

Some opportunities touch you and fly away, I yawn. In my heart, I love to cling to it and never let it go but then situations hog my enthusiasm. The dullness in the professional life is eating away my excitement to live shine and bright. They basic major traits of my personality,that is what every one says.

Like Some Ms.Murphy said in this article, my practice of 'Deep' reading needs to be 're-kindled'. May be some more paperback books  need to be bought. There is one more day before the weekend comes so  I can get up and dive in the hot tea made by my always-thirsty-for-tea soul. May be there is some thousand liters of will power to get up and buy a pair of dumbbells which might make me look less like a body builder who has fat cells all over the forearms and not muscles. May be I am waiting for that one phone call which would make me forget all those dull professional moments into a tiny new dream of doing something really fruitful. May be I can delete the 'Whatsapp' and 'Facebook' without the fear of loosing close friends.

There are so many wishes hidden in all those 'May be' but there is also a big gap of something called 'Will' and 'Budget'. Well, 'May be, some day', I would get over these random twists and govern myself to some specific twist.

I am sure the post makes some sense, if does not you know my state of mind!

December 15, 2014

When going gets tough..

When your professional life goes haywire. When you get tired of your own tears for the non value added activities and a stagnant learning curve at the present office you work. When you can not focus on a book. When your iPad and laptops give your eyes some dark circles. When every day, post lunch your eyes pop out for nothing. When not a single thing works out.

You wait for your sister (In law) to come to Pune, who is equally pissed off with uncertainty in life.And...

Then you bake Cinnamon rolls with burnt ages as while chatting we forgot that we had kept something in the OTG.

Then you just laugh watching some silly stupid Bollywood spoofs in such a way that neighbors come to know about your hidden-homely (if it makes sense) personality trait of laughing with your lungs (again, if it makes sense), really!

Then we irritate Mr.ISB in such a fashion that he gets almost installed in some Football game on the iPad, ignoring us.

Then you almost start chatting with the lady at Amazon USA like a friend, who makes me work like a cyber spy to fill in some information regarding long-forgotten-registration details of kindle. You need the Kindle at any cost now! :)

Then you get tired right at 10 and you would hate to sleep as you want to have fun having a night out.

:-)

How was your weekend?

December 10, 2014

The Unopened book.

Actually there are many. The number increases as almost all around me knows how madly I fall in love with books. Recommendations by mail, messages, Whatsapp and my Feedly keeps on increasing. Unlike my old habit of ticking off all of them one by one, I am letting them grow in numbers. Believe me, I am sad.

It is disheartening to see myself sulking over this. Failed attempts to hold the iPad with burning eyes, drained brain and read one of the list breaks my heart into pieces every night. I tried changing time of reading from night to morning, but the morning rush is too whimsical in nature. It just does not let me read.

To decrease my expenses, I started making up my mind to read on our iPad, which worked some what. The possibility of buying more books and reading more gave me adrenaline rush some time back, only to realize now I have lost the energy or the flow to get glued to the book.

Getting swallowed down by the story, de-touring from the real world and touring with the world within those words. Ah, I miss everything about it.

It is a form of a meditation for me. The book gets my heart in it and just like when you focus on 'OM', I get my soul revived. No more may be. I have lost the touch or may be it is a reader's block?

May be.